Yom Kippur War series 'Valley of Tears' releases promos ahead of premiere
These previews give a glimpse of a multi-strand series that tells stories from this war that have never been dramatized before.
By HANNAH BROWNA Golani officer played by Aviv Alush is seen behind a rock in a promo for the Yom Kippur War drama 'Valley of Tears.'(photo credit: VERED ADIR/KAN 11)
An epic drama about the Yom Kippur War,Valley of Tears, the most ambitious television series in the country’s history, will premiere on KAN 11 on October 19 and the network released a handful of promos and teaser trailers on Sunday.These previews give a glimpse of a multi-strand series that tells stories from this war that have never been dramatized before.The 10-part series, which cost more than $1 million per episode, according to the website Deadline – a fortune in Israeli terms – is being released during the month that marks the 47th anniversary of the Yom Kippur War. There have been relatively few films and television series in Israel about this war, save for a couple about the recovery of shell-shocked veterans, and nothing on this scale.The series was co-created and written by Ron Leshem (Beaufort, Euphoria), Amit Cohen (False Flag) and Daniel Amsel. It was directed by Yaron Zilberman, who made the acclaimed 2019 film, Incitement, about Rabin’s assassin, Yigal Amir. Zilberman, Gal Zaid and Izhar Harlev were among the writers. The series was co-produced by United King Films, Endemol Shine Israel and the British company, WestEnd Films.It stars some of Israel’s highest profile actors, along with several newcomers in a cast that includes Lior Ashkenazi (Walk on Water,Our Boys) as a radio reporter searching for his son (Lee Biran), Aviv Alush (Beauty and the Baker) as a Golani officer and commander of the security force at the Mount Hermon outpost and Joy Rieger (The Other Story, Virgins) as a soldier who stays behind to help her unit even though all the other female soldiers are evacuated.From left to right: Actors Joy Rieger, Lior Ashkenazi and Maor Schwitzer. (Photo credit: Vered Adir/KAN 11)In another plot line that showcases a very different side of Israeli society, activists from the Black Panthers group of radical Mizrahim from the Musrara neighborhood of Jerusalem (Maor Schwitzer, Ofer Hayoun, Imri Biton) are sent into a hopeless battle after a difficult confrontation with their commanders in the Armored Brigade (Omer Perlman and Ido Bartal).A Black Panther activist played by Ofer Hayoun is seen in a promo for Yom Kippur War drama 'Valley of Tears.' (Photo credit: Vered Adir/KAN 11)For many citizens, the history of the country is divided into before and after the Yom Kippur War, which resulted in a national trauma after soldiers were caught unprepared on the Syrian border. The series focuses on the experience of the soldiers along that border and how they coped with an attack in which they were vastly outnumbered by Syrian forces in the spot that has come to be known as the Valley of Tears. The heroism of these soldiers who kept fighting to hold the line until reserve forces could be mobilized has been praised in the past, but it has never been put on film like this before.
The clips show Alush’s character preparing for an ordinary Yom Kippur in the military, when he is interrupted by a frantic intelligence officer (Shahar Taboch). As they speak, we see the small outpost bombarded by missiles. In another clip, Rieger’s character argues with her commander about how her presence is necessary even though all the other women are heading back, and in a third, Ashkenazi discusses politics with a Black Panther activist as he gets a ride to the front.A frantic intelligence officer played by Shahar Taboch is seen in the promo for 'Valley of Tears.' (Photo credit: Vered Adir/KAN 11)The longest promo is set in an outpost on Mount Hermon. Titles show that it is October 6, 1973. “When all the borders were breached, they were the last hope,” read titles, promising “untold stories” of the war “that shook Israel... One armored platoon against hundreds of enemy tanks... in a new series about the war that changed our lives forever.”
