Lebanon

Lebanon, directed by Samuel Maoz and released in 2009, depicts the 1982 Lebanon War. Maoz based the film on his own experiences as a young Israeli tank crew member during the conflict, making it a deeply personal and autobiographical work.

Director Samuel Maoz chose to shoot almost the entire film from inside the confined space of the tank because that was his actual experience as a soldier—he saw the war entirely through the tank's periscope and viewport. This technique forces the audience to share the claustrophobic and disorienting perspective of the crew, only seeing the outside world through limited, distorted lenses.

Yes, Lebanon won the Golden Lion, the top prize, at the Venice Film Festival in 2009. This made it one of the most acclaimed Israeli films of its era and brought significant international attention to Maoz as a first-time feature director.

Lebanon is often discussed alongside Ari Folman's Waltz with Bashir, another 2008 Israeli film about the 1982 Lebanon War, as both films are deeply personal reflections on the same conflict. However, they take very different approaches, with Folman's film using animation and Maoz's using the claustrophobic in-tank perspective.