Scaffolding (2017) - full transcript

Go, Hapoel Petah Tikva!

Go, Hapoel!

This guy's wife dies.

The undertakers come,
3rd floor, no elevator.

They carry her down.

When they turn the corner
in the stairwell she slips, falls,

stands up, alive!

A few years go by, she dies again.

The undertakers come,
put her on a stretcher,

in the stairwell her
husband says to them: "Hey!

"Watch that corner!"



This is from me to Radi.

Wait a sec! Enjoy, Radi. - Thanks.

Asher, keep an eye on the chicken.

Asher, happy birthday. - Happy birthday!

Thanks, Dad.

Enjoy.

Nice one. - Happy birthday.

Look at Milo's son,

these muscles are from scaffolds,
not the gym.

Happy birthday, Asher!

Cheers!

To your health and happiness.

Happy birthday to you,
happy birthday, dear Asher!

Happy birthday to you,
happy birthday to you



Happy birthday, dear Asher!

Is that the new shirt, Asher?

You bet it is. Feel how soft.

A real Lacoste?

Sure is, you moron,
cost 80 bucks.

Let me feel it.

Looking sharp, huh?

Stop with the phone.

I swear, they put something in them that
gets you hooked, catches your eye...

Who's they?

The mobile networks. They
put something electronic

so you keep looking at it.

How do you know?

Look at Ahmed,

he had a birthday, too. Happy birthday!

Happy birthday, Ahmed!

He got a shirt from Daddy,
too.

Turn around.

Here he goes again.

Where'd you get the shirt?

There was a big sale. Hugo Boss,
Lacoste...

Take it off. - No, no...

Take it off before I fuck you up!

Asher, school isn't only for grades,
it's also to teach you values.

I didn't mean it, bro. I just
told you to change the shirt.

-Oh, please.

Instead of focusing on
your matriculation exams

we're focusing on
inappropriate behavior.

You're wasting your father's time,
making him leave work.

I apologized to him,
it's you who won't let it go.

If this happens again...

Dad, how much did the shirt cost?

Yes, doctor, my surgery is on the 19th.

I have a big project after that.

If I don't wake up, you have Asher.

Okay, on the 19th then.

No, he knows the work, I can rest easy.

Doctor, you know the joke about
the guy whose mother-in-law is dying?

She's in Intensive Care.

Anyway, he goes home and
starts making up a room for her.

His wife says,
"What are you doing? She's dying."

He says, "Yeah, but we should
always prepare for the worst."

Okay, thank you.

Stay well, doctor.

I have a matric exam on the 19th.

Does it have to be on the 19th?

I never heard of someone taking
a matric exam who can't read.

How's the pasta?

Good. - Good, huh?

Is he a good doctor? - Yeah.

He does 10 surgeries a day.

Listen, Asher,

you'll cover for me
till I'm back on my feet.

You hear me?

Isn't that doll pretty, Dad?

It's like a toy.

Wanna play with it?

How's your mother? - Fine.

It's good that she has someone.

Cellphones in here.

Let's go.

In the box. - My battery's dead anyway.

Asher. - Come back to me later.

It helps me concentrate, Rami.

I didn't bring mine.

You know...

In here.

2,000 years ago people
thought the Earth was flat

and this Greek guy, Eratosthenes,

who was a librarian
in Alexandria in Egypt,

home to the world's biggest library,

he liked to observe.

That's what he liked to do,
to observe people,

buildings, the sky, the stars.

One day he's looking at the sunset,

he sees the sun setting,

he sees the moon rising

and he says to himself,

if the sun is round
and the moon is round,

then maybe the planet
we live on is round, too.

Isn't that nice?

That would never happen today.

You know why? - Why?

Because the only thing
people look at are their phones.

People don't talk to each other.

People used to tell jokes
to each other. Today...

it's gone.

Asher's dad tells
jokes all the time.

Yeah?

Then Asher's dad is special.

Not special, very special.

Right, Asher?

Don't talk about my
dad or I'll fuck you up.

Why? What did I do?

I didn't do anything.

Don't touch the phone.

Read a newspaper instead.

No, I'll behave.

No.

Read the paper instead.

Fine, gimme the newspaper.

What is this?

Why are the pages so big?
Is there a sports section?

There's everything.

Look.

On the first page - the most recent,
important news.

On the second page -
articles on all kinds of topics.

Then there's local news and global news.

What else... Oh, look, obituaries.

Sports, just for you.

Forecast around the world.

Whoa, Tokyo, 36 degrees, thunderstorms.

Man, those Chinese are totally wacko.

Ever been overseas? - No, never.

I recommend it,
at least once, on your own.

Why on my own?

You experience things differently.

You look at the sky, it looks different.

The bread tastes different.

Even the way people
get on a bus is different

and it's fun.

Rami, is he the teacher's pet?

Asher.

Take the hard hat.

I'm gonna check out tomorrow's site,
you finish up here, okay?

Asher, floors 1-2. Radi,
you take 3-5. And no missing boards.

You do 1-2. Any problems, call me.

Don't go any higher.

Hi, what's up?

Good morning.

Good morning, how are you?

Okay. What are you waiting for?

Driving lesson.

How many lessons have you taken?

50 or 60.

Wow.

In the third test,
he failed me for no reason.

What an asshole. - Totally.

I don't know,
my teacher said I was fine.

Don't worry, in the end everyone passes.

Okay... - Good luck.

Thanks. - Bye, see you.

In the middle, Yossi.

Come on. - Yossi!

Fuck!

Come on, Asher!

You guys rule!

Pass it, Yossi!

Come on!

Good morning. - Good morning.

Can I please have
the history study guide?

Yes.

Will this be on the matric exam?

Is the exam all you care about?

Following our last class

we'll move on to Karl Haendel's
work "Questions for My Father."

Your name, please? - Asher Lax.

"Why did you decide to have children?

"Do you wish you were taller? "
Did you ever get into a fistfight?

"When did you stop feeling like a boy?

"Did you ever disappoint your parents?

"Were you ever depressed as a young man?

"Do you ever wish your
life turned out differently?

"Did you ever see your
parents having sex?"

"Did you ever wish you
had a different career?"

"What did you want to be?
What did you want me to be?

"What are your regrets?
What makes you cry?

"Do you think you are good looking?

"When were you the happiest?

"How did you learn to cook?

"Why were you so angry all the time?

"How close did you come to hitting me?"

For homework

please write why Karl Haendel

asked these questions the way he did,
one after the other,

and write questions to
someone close to you

and hand it in. Okay?

Great.

Asher. - Are you in a lesson?

Why don't you bring us here?

Afraid we'll trash the library?

Asher...

If you don't bring us here...

You're out of line.

Chill, dude, it's not a real gun.

Well, I'll get out of your way.

Did you see us win, Rami?

When I'm in the hospital,
keep your phone charged.

I'll be in touch with you
and Radi all the time.

Are they gonna put you under?

Of course.

He's gonna open me up
and go deep into my soul.

Otherwise, you think I'd take time off?

My exam is on the 19th.

What do you mean?

I have to study a day or two before.

You wanna screw up
my business just to fail?

Will you pass?

I have a 70-point average.
Even if I get a 40, I'll pass.

If you get 40, you'll pass...

I could get 50 without studying. 40...

Lucky for you we have our business.

Who needs literature and history?

Dad!

What emotions do we know?

Anger. - Envy.

Happiness. - Sadness.

Hope. - Love.

Relying on someone,
knowing you can be relied on.

To hope, to anticipate.

All those are emotions, Rami? - You bet.

People usually feel
several emotions at once.

Not just one emotion,

but a combination.

My sister's son loves when I tickle him.

I pick him up, tickle his armpit

and he laughs like crazy

and wants me to tickle him harder,

but then he starts crying

and when I stop, he asks me for more.

He feels several
emotions at the same time.

I wonder how your parents would
react if someone tickled them.

You know what? For homework,

ask your parents if the
child in them is still alive

or if he's dead

or is on the verge of dying.

Holocaust Remembrance Day
is coming up and I was thinking

we should organize the ceremony.

The big ceremony?

Yes, in front of the entire school.

You'll read some texts on stage,

we'll choose a few songs,
what do you say?

Who'll let us, Rami? Get real.

Let the man speak. - Biton, come here.

Come on, get up.

Say... - Way to go, Biton.

Say...

That's enough. "For our national anthem,
please rise."

Don't be shy.

"For our national anthem, please rise."

"For our national anthem, please sit."

What's wrong with you?

See what I mean, Rami?

Shut the fuck up! Biton,
say: "For our anthem, please rise"

It won't work, Rami.

Yossi, it'll work fine.

No, it won't! - We'll rehearse,

what are you so scared of?

Are you nuts?
We can barely read!

Sit down! - Shut the fuck up!

Stay out of this!

You telling me to shut up?

Son of a bitch! - Shut the fuck up!

Hey!

Yehudit,
my intentions were good.

I know, Rami,

but preparations started a month ago.

You can't just decide to
organize the ceremony.

It doesn't work that way. Not here,
in any case.

It takes preparing,
discussing the details,

deciding who is worthy,

not getting the students involved
without checking with the school first.

Rami, I'm sorry,
I didn't mean for this to happen.

Asher, Yossi, come in.

Asher. What are you doing?

It's just a cigarette. - Not that.

Can't you go to the restroom?

Come with me.

Rami, you're overreacting. - Let's go.

Where to?

What were you thinking?

To the principal?

What's gonna happen when we get there?

You'll get yelled at
for leaving your post.

Here, Rami.

What's this?

The homework you
gave in the library,

"Questions for My Father." - Really?

-Yeah.

Did you put your name on it?

Hey, got a pen?

Thanks.

Thanks.

Keep it safe, it's important.

Asher...

Try to be less prickly,
you get what I mean?

Less prickly. - Cool.

Are we done?

Thanks.

How do you feel? - I'm fine, thanks.

Good.

He has high blood pressure,

check it before he goes in...

Is that okay?

Yes, don't worry about it.

This is as far as you go,
kid. Your dad will be fine.

Dad, go Hapoel!

You're drunk, bro. Stop staring at her!

Leave him alone. You only live once,
dude.

I'll go get us some snacks, guys.

Let's party!

Why'd you let him go, you jerk.

Let him live a little. - He's wasted.

How's it going, Shiran?

Hey, Asher.

Only one more exam to go.

In literature.

We have a good teacher, we'll do fine.

I handed in a paper, I hope he likes it.

Hey, bro, how's it going?

I handed in a paper with questions,
real personal.

-Personal?

"Dad,
how is it you're so strong in my life?

"How can beating..."

Let's go, dude. - And most important...

He's drunk.

Keep an eye on him.

Come sit down.

Pass these back, people.

Pass these back.

Who wants to read
the article? Yossi?

Some other time.

Anastasia?

Yacov. - I'll read it.

Go for it.

"In Fukushima,
two weeks after the disaster,

"two residents found a baby dolphin
that washed up into the rice paddies.

"It was injured,
they knew he didn't stand a chance,

"yet they tried to return him to sea,
and one of the men said:

"After all he's been through,

"even if he doesn't survive,
it's best he die at sea."

These two men

know exactly what's
the right thing to do.

"After all he's been through,

"even if he doesn't survive,
it's best he die at sea."

Rami, did you always have that twitch?

Yes. Since I was a
kid. It's called a tic.

It's tension that you
feel you have to release,

twitching helps that for a
while but then it comes back.

It's an urge to twitch,
so you feel at ease.

Some people have twitches in their arm,
their leg, their eyes.

It's always inside, in your body.

Got it.

Rami, how old are you, if I may ask?

41. - So is Biton's mom.

What a bunch of morons.

Are you married? - Yes.

What does your wife do?

She's a poet and
a literature teacher.

At our school?

She used to teach immigrants
here in small groups,

but this year she's not teaching.

Do you have kids? - No.

What are you waiting for?

Don't you wanna meet the
people you'll love the most?

How old's your wife, Rami?

Bye.

Bye, Rami.

Bye.

Please be quiet,

the exam is starting now. Good luck.

Yacov.

We gotta do all this?

Quiet, please.

Chill! I just asked him a question.

The instructions are on the form.

I'm doing the oral exam and I'm ready.

You going to the game?

Those fuckers,
100 shekels a ticket.

Quiet!

This is a matriculation
exam. Watch your mouth.

We gotta go party tonight.

After these exams,
I'll burn the school down.

If you keep talking,
I'll remove you from the class!

This is a matriculation exam.

Keep your pants on.

Add up the entire class
we won't score 100,

why are you so worked up?

Watch your mouth!

Fine,
but I told you I'm doing an oral exam.

Why do I have to wait so long?

Those are the rules!

See that teacher? She's so mean.

Do you know who's testing me?

The exam's hard, huh?

Hey, Rami,
Pnina's not testing me?

No, I am.

Thank you.

You know history?

Yes, sit down, Asher.

Nice,
history and literature. Economics, too?

Did you bring the forms? - Yes, here.

Great.

I'm supposed to read
you the questions.

Yes.
-Okay.

Shall we begin? - Yes.

Good luck, Asher. - Thanks.

First question, chapter one:

"Why did Antiochus issue his
decrees and name three of them."

Let me see that.

"Why did Antiochus issue his
decrees and name three of them."

Do they want the background?

What's the background?

Can I name the decrees
first and then the reasons?

Yes.

Antiochus' decrees humiliated the Jews.

Okay.

Okay, how...

how were the Jews humiliated?

Hold on.

Hey, Mom.

I'm taking my exam,
I'll talk to you later.

Okay, bye.

She calls me 20 times a day. - Really?

Yeah, she's been driving me
crazy since she moved up north.

She moved? - Yeah, with Nissim.

Is Nissim your brother?

No, her boyfriend,

they've been together for years.

Back to the exam. - Okay.

So how were the Jews
humiliated? Give me some examples.

You know the answer, Rami?

Think, Asher,

because you were right,
they did humiliate the Jews.

But what could humiliate
the Jews in terms of religion?

Eating pork? - Very good. What else?

Wearing a yellow patch?

Yes.

But that happened later,
during the Holocaust, remember?

Let's go back to what you said first,
pork.

What things are important to Jews?

Circumcision? - Yes.

Good. What else?

The Sabbath?

Yes. Put circumcision and
the Sabbath in a sentence.

He forbade circumcisions
and observing the Sabbath.

Good.

"Observe the Sabbath
day to keep it holy."

Right.

When I was 14 I became religious,
sidelocks and all.

I don't know where that came from.

Interesting.

Okay, second question.

Rami,
I'll get us something to drink.

No, Asher.

From the teacher's lounge.

Asher, sit down.

I'll be right back.

Rami, you take sugar?

You guys got an espresso machine?

Rami, isn't this a spelling mistake?

You're right.
Let's correct it.

Forget it, fuck them.

Thank you, Rami. I really appreciate it.

You better be my tester in literature,
too.

Rami, did you check my paper?

What paper? - The questions.

I will in the next few days.

Okay, thanks.

Excuse me, do you know where my dad is?

Who's your dad?

Milo, he was in that room.

He's in recovery. We delayed
surgery because of his blood pressure.

He's in the room on the right,

but just five minutes, okay, sweetie?

Dad.

Dad.

Haemon's aim is to save Antigone.

That's his aim, his mission,

to save his love and persuade his
father not to sentence her to death.

But the exact opposite happens.

Not only does he not agree,
he says: "Bring me Antigone and here,

"right in front of my son Haemon,
I will slaughter her."

And Haemon warns his father:

"Antigone's death will cause
another." What does he mean?

He tells his father
that if he kills Antigone,

he'll kill him in return.

Yes,
but what's the other option?

He tells his father,

"If you hurt my fiancee Antigone,
I'll kill myself,"

and he means it 'cause he loves her.

Exactly.

So there are two options.

And what's the answer? What happens?

Patience, Asher.

Can't you tell us what happens?

Open to page 67.

Remember, Antigone is taken to
the cave where she'll be buried alive.

Creon doesn't bury the dead,

he buries the living.

But Rami,
what happens in the end?

Patience, Asher.

Page 67. Yossi,
do you want to read?

No.

Come on.

Asher... - Yacov,

go to the end, tell us what happens.

Asher, sit down.

We wanna know what happens.

Yacov, don't read.

Yacov, we wanna know.

Yacov, don't read.

Read it out loud, Yacov,

everyone wants to know!

He kills himself.

Thank you.

Get out.

Why should I?

Get out. - Why should I?

Get out!

Where's that bastard taking her?

These streets are so fuckin' narrow.

Nice, sweetheart.

Nice and slow...

You son of a whore,
she's taking her test!

Calm down, buddy.

Don't tell me to calm down, you moron!

Fucking asshole.

Good one.

You did it, sweetie.

Rami, what's going on?
Why don't you read my paper?

I read it, I'm still thinking about it.

You did? Really? Did you like it?

You were honest and that's what counts.

Rami,

I apologize for what happened in class.

It's just that I have a lot going on.

It's okay.

Rami, the bell hasn't rung yet.

I'm off duty now.

Hello?

Hello?

At the game.

What?

What happened?

"May His great
Name grow exalted."

Amen.

"May He give reign to His kingship

"in your lifetimes

"and in the lifetimes of the entire
Family of Israel, now say: Amen.

"May His great Name be
blessed forever and ever.

"Blessed, praised, glorified,
exalted and lauded

"be the Name of the Holy One.

"May there be abundant peace from Heaven

"and life upon us and upon
all Israel. Now say: Amen.

"He Who makes peace in His heights,
may He make peace upon us

"and upon all Israel. Now say: Amen."

O God, full of compassion

Who dwells on high

Grant true rest

upon the wings of the Divine Presence

in the exalted spheres
of the holy and pure

who shine as the
brightness of the heavens

to the soul of

Rami, son of Avigdor and Sara,

who has gone to his world

for charity has been
donated in memory of his soul

May his place of rest
be in the Garden of Eden

Therefore, may the All-Merciful One

shelter him with the
cover of His wings forever

and bind his soul in the bond of life.

God is his heritage...

My condolences.

My condolences.

My condolences.

"A 41-year-old male jumped to his death.

"He was pronounced dead at the scene."

That sentence is so cold.

I knew something was wrong with him.

Gimme a fucking break.

I'm telling you, sometimes he wouldn't
even bend down to tie his shoelaces.

No one knew, not even him.

He put on sunscreen this week,
who does that if they're gonna jump?

Face it, Asher, it's because of you.

They said he didn't leave a note.

He's a literature teacher,
I bet he left a long letter

with imagery, metaphors...

And he doesn't have a sister.

What do you mean?

He was just screwing
with us about his nephew?

Cut it out, poor guy.

His poor wife and parents.

Good morning. - Good morning.

Let's sit in a circle.

Again with the circle...

I said I want a circle.

What for? - So we can talk.

Well, this is a sad time for all of us,

this tragedy during
your matriculation exams,

but we'll get through it together.

We're here with you, for you.

Did he leave a letter?

Why do you ask, Asher?

I wanna know, yes or no?

If you don't know, just say so.

It's not as simple as that.
We don't know all the details.

It's the type of thing
that has no answers.

But if we read the letter,
maybe he explained himself.

Who did he give the letter to?

Asher, it's complicated,
let's leave it at that, okay?

Would you like to share what
you liked most about his class?

The bell.

What's wrong with you?
Show a little respect.

He was your teacher.

We could tell that...

it mattered to him.

You mattered to him.

He never yelled at us.

Is it true his dad abandoned
him when he was a kid?

Yes, it's true.

Take it nice and slow.

One of our teachers died.

Was he young or old?

Young. - You don't say.

His dad is old, he walks with a cane,

he said the mourner's prayer for him.

He was buried in the new cemetery,
in the wall.

Dear God.

Tell me about it when we get in,
I'm tired.

Want me to get us something to eat?

No, no, stay home with me.

Open the door.

The Greek tragedy

is one of the cornerstones
of Western culture.

Hello. - That's right.

And who might you be?

Please shut the door.

Sit down.

Thank you.

What are your names?

Names? - Avi.

Nimrode.

Amos.

Amos.

Okay.

For those who were late,

I'm your new teacher, Ora.

So as I said to the students
that were here on time,

we'll pick up where you left off.

Ode 3.

Who's this clown? - After the conflict

between Creon and Haemon...

We get all the clowns.

Creon's hybris comes to light

when he won't take back the
disgraceful act he committed.

What the hell is this?

Leave her alone,
she's a literature teacher.

Couldn't they give
us a real teacher?

Quiet!

Notebooks out, I'm going to dictate.

Whoever doesn't
like it can leave.

Dude, I'm gonna fuck you up.

Notebooks out now. - But why?

Because I said so.

Ode 3. - You're dictating now?

That's it, as if nothing happened? San,
put your pen down!

Asher, we gotta prepare for the exam!

Why are you so quiet?

I'm studying for the literature exam.

Asher, you know who this is?

That's a 50-shekel bill.

Not what, who? Who's on the bill?

It's Tchernichovsky, a great poet.

If there's a poet on a bill,
it means literature is dead.

A poet or writer on money
is like a pig in a synagogue.

Soon no one will
teach or study literature.

Understand?

There's 10,000 shekels
here. Pay them tomorrow.

It's not all about school, Asher.

We have lots of work coming up.

Where will you find a job outdoors,
no boss and make a living?

This is the best for us.

Count it,
count it. Make sure there's 10,000.

With teachers jumping off rooftops
no wonder you came out like this.

What's that got to
do with anything?

Count it.

Count like that,
it'll take a week. Give it to me.

You'll be graduating soon.

Will you ever read a book?

Read a poem? A story?
Write a play? Anything?

Watch this.

I said, watch.

Tchernichovsky.

Count.

Count.

Smile. - Anastasia, smile.

Big smile. - Great, thanks.

Thank you.

I heard that Rami was
at last year's graduation

and he read something that he wrote

and it was exactly the same
as he read the year before,

he just changed the kids' names.

You believe everything you hear?

Rami was totally burnt out.

Guys, come on.

Yacov, Asher, go in,
you'll have this photo forever.

Okay, chill.

San, take off your shirt a sec. Yossi,
come here, bro.

What is it? - Get your picture taken.

Change shirts with me.

Take this one.

Let's do it, bro.

Oz, take off your shirt so
I can get my picture taken.

Write your name and
get your picture taken.

Chin up. Great, thanks.

You had yours taken, right?

I wrote you down.

Write me down and we're all done.

Come on. - Smile.

Nice, look at me.

That Asher is so hot.

Asher of the scaffolds!

Smile!

Excuse me...

What do you think you're doing?

Excuse me, we're in a meeting,

why are you barging in? - I knocked.

Listen,
what about the teacher's picture?

What are you talking about?

Rami. We want him in our class photo.

Okay.

I promise to think about it.

Cool.

Help yourself.

Enjoy. - Thanks.

Close the door on your way out.

I was asked about that, too.

Sorry for interrupting again,
but did he leave a letter?

Some things are off limits.

He was my teacher!

Did he leave a letter? - Leave now!

Who's this new teacher?

Ora is our literature coordinator.

Ever seen her teach?

You'll make every effort
to do well in the exam.

Now leave.

Hey, Shiran.

How's it going?

You got a minute?

I'm looking at the
literature study guide

and I see all kinds of things

like imagery, metaphors, contrasts.

Do you know the difference between them?

No, he didn't teach us that.

But I got it now.

Thanks.

What else is new?

How are you?

Asher, you gonna get a truck license?

Yeah, a crane license, too.

I wanna do some scaffolding
work in the summer.

Sounds good.

But you know you can't
horse around with Milo.

There's Rami's wife.

She's pretty.

She looks like a dyke.

You look like a dyke.

Can you imagine her and Rami having sex?

I think she's pregnant.

She's just fat.

Wanna bet? - Sure.

My condolences.

What's with you, you morons?

She's a singing teacher?

A poet, asshole.

We're sorry for your loss.

We're Rami's students. - Hello.

We liked him, he was the best.

I'm glad to hear that.

He was personal,
not like the other teachers.

Will his family come? - What?

No, his parents are elderly, so...

Which class are you in? - 12B.

Did he talk about us? - Sometimes.

Said we drove him crazy?

Said he knew how class
would begin but not how it'd end.

That's true.

Our exam is coming up. - Yes.

Rami's gonna be in our class photo.

Good.

Good.

Are you coming to the library? - Yeah.

Study hard, okay?

She has a belly, she's pregnant.

God is great.

Giving an offspring to his family.

If she's pregnant,
I feel sorry for the kid.

Why? - What'll they tell him?

That's what nature wanted.

Now she and his
parents have an offspring.

Quiet.

What's your problem?

Show some respect.

How did they arrange this so fast?

These nerds plan ahead,
even mourning rituals.

Bunch of motherfuckers.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you very much.

What a beautiful dance. Hello, everyone.

The students of Class
12C initiated this gathering

to unveil Rami's shelf

of books that he loved and taught.

Hello?

Hi there, doctor.

No, we're working, of course.

No, I'm not working hard. Yes.

No, don't worry.

Thank you, doctor.

Remember I was in the hospital
after the prison guards beat me up?

Were you in fourth grade?

Third.

Remember what you and Mom wrote to me?

"Climb as high as you can."

"Dear Daddy,

"climb as high as you can."

You're a good boy, Asher.

Take care of that.

"Polynices, whose one idea
was to spill the blood of his blood

"and sell his own people into slavery -

"Polyneices, I say,
is to have no burial."

"But his brother who broke his
exile to come back with fire..."

I can't concentrate with that. - Okay.

How old is she? - Four.

Wow.

I wonder what they wrote
about Rami in the yearbook.

I heard his students
didn't get the best grades.

Who said?

That's what I heard. They
said he was a good teacher,

but the parents said he
didn't focus on the exams.

Who cares what they say?

Did they even know him?

What does it mean
when someone's prickly?

I think it means he's
stressed out all the time.

Like, when you can't study,

when you can't concentrate,

when you're always restless,

always troubled.

I thought it meant something else,

like someone who gets fired up fast,
like prickles.

That's what I thought.

Like, it's easy to tick me off,

I get mad by
every little thing.

Yeah,
someone who gets mad fast.

Asher...

why do you think Rami killed himself?

I can't answer that.

Hi. -Hi.

How's it going? - Praise God.

Radi. Hi.

How are you?

Listen. This guy gets to heaven,

they say to him: "You're
not on the list. Try in hell."

He goes to hell, they say:
"You're not on this list either."

He says: "Make up your minds,
'cause I ain't going back to my wife."

What are you doing? Get over here.

How are you doing, Dad?

Now that's a neck. This
son looks out for his father.

Took me to the hospital, sat at my side.

You tell me you're working

and I find you sitting on your ass,
reading?

Radi, does that seem right to you?

You're here, you work, you hear me?

Radi will work while you what?

Want me to get you a desk, too?

A tanning bed?

To hell with this book! Go!

I said go!

Okay, guys, get to work.

Get to work, Radi.

There's Ronny with our class photo.

Ronny, what's that?

You know exactly what it is.

I came out ugly, bro.

Where is it? That bitch.

They're all liars, what did you expect?

That cunt didn't include his picture?

You coming to class? - Look at Biton.

She won't let us in.

Who cares about class, dude?

You lied to me, you're liars.

Who lied to you?

You did, you're a liar.

I have witnesses.

I said I'd think about it and I did.

You have no idea what you did, I swear.

Stop right here.

You don't threaten anyone.

You have one week to
leave here with a diploma.

You hear me?

And that diploma is the best way
for you to honor Rami's memory.

The best way.

Look, Asher,

you studying while everyone
is working doesn't look good.

For 20 years if a worker lifts,
so does Milo.

If a worker dismantles, so does Milo.

All my workers know that about me.

I'm watching your back.

If a worker sees you slacking off,
he won't work hard for you.

How long do I have left?

"Lax Scaffolding" isn't Milo
Lax anymore, it's Asher Lax.

Understand?

Now let's finish the job early
so you have time to study.

Yeah, I have a matric exam tomorrow.

Around noontime.

I know the material more or less.

Yeah, I'm good,
I just wanted to hear how you're doing.

Yeah.

Okay, Mom, talk later, bye.

"Polynices, whose one idea
was to spill the blood of his blood

"and sell his own people into slavery -
Polyneices, I say, is to have no burial.

"No man is to touch him or
say the least prayer for him."

Good morning, Asher. - Good morning.

Did you go over the form? - I did.

Good. Shall we begin?

First question?
-Yes.

"Describe how
the end of the piece

contributes to the
meaning of the piece."

I chose "The
Lament" by Chekhov.

Excellent choice.

At the end, lona the
sledge-driver sits by his donkey

and tells him what he never told anyone.

He says:

"You don't know how it
hurts to bury your own child,

"how hard it is."

He says: "Imagine your son
dies and you have to bury him."

And you can tell that the
donkey understands lona

because of the tears in his eyes.

And how does that contribute
to the meaning of the piece?

Chekhov describes it as
if no one cared about lona,

no one ever listened to him,

and what did he need?

For someone to listen to
him for a minute, to be heard,

but no one was there
for him but the donkey.

Okay. - Okay what?

Fine.

What? I answered everything.

Look, there were some inaccuracies.

It's not a donkey, it's a horse,

and you didn't refer to the
eye motif or the alienation.

So change it to horse,
big deal.

Let's move on.

Change it, what's the problem?

This is an exam.

Horse, donkey, same difference.

Not really.

How much did I get?

How many points?

Don't you think
you're going too far?

14 points?

I wanna know if I
should continue.

If you don't stop this,
I'll...

What did I do?

It's my exam, not yours.

Would you like some water to calm down?

If you wrote "donkey" in a written exam

I can assure you, you'd lose points.

Donkey, horse, what's the difference?

There's a big difference,

it shows that you didn't read the piece

and this is a matriculation
exam in literature.

Of course we read it.

If the tester sees that
you didn't read the piece

that's that.

But we read it in class,

he read it to us.

We don't read on our own.

Oh. I see.

I don't want you to test me,
I want another tester.

I'm your tester.

There is no one else. Understand?

Whether you like it or not.

The Education Ministry
appointed me as your tester

so you have no choice. - You're a bitch,

not a horse or a donkey. Rami
was 10 times better than you.

Fuck this.

How much did I get?

You failed.

But you have to include my prelim score.

I don't care about that. You failed.

Stupid teacher who can't teach.

Your behavior didn't help you either.

I want someone else to test me.
Rami was a way better teacher.

What's going on?

She said I failed,
she doesn't care about my prelim.

You got 55 on your prelim
and 40 on your exam.

Sadly, that's not enough.

You gave me 55? After
teaching me for two weeks?

Rami should be grading me.

I went to all his classes,

I handed in my papers to him.

Calm down, okay?

I gave Rami a paper last
month and I got a good grade.

Really? - Yes.

Do you have that paper?

I have to look for it.

How was the exam? - Awesome.

Went real good, man.

You gonna keep the beard?

The beard's killer, bro.

The exam was easy, huh?

It was a joke.

There's Rami's wife.

Let's go talk to her.

You coming, Asher?

In a minute.

Rami's wife. - Hello.

We just had our exam. It was easy.

It was? - Yeah, it went well.

You knew everything? - Almost.

I think I passed.

Great.

How did it go? - Okay.

Great, you did it. Good job.

It meant a lot to him.

It's all thanks to Rami.

He loved teaching you.

What Rami did was wrong.

He should've first helped us
with the exam and then jump.

What good is everything he taught us?

Shut up, I'm talking to her.

What good is it?

If he didn't have the guts... Hands off!

Asher, that's enough!

I'm talking to her!

He didn't have the guts to live!

He wasn't real with us or with you!

Why did Rami write,
"I can't find any rest in the world..."

Where did you read that?

Where did you read that?

Where did you read that?

Why didn't you help him?

Why didn't you help him?

Asher.

Asher.

Good morning, sweetheart.

Good morning.

Your mother told me what happened.

I got a call from the school.

They want us to come in...

They want to talk to us.

About an apartment you went into.

If there's a cop,
I'll talk to him, okay?

And if they want to take you in,
don't make any problems.

Let's go.

We'll grab something to eat first.

Dad,
how is it you're so strong in my life?

Why did you and Mom
have me and then split up?

Why didn't you ever read me stories?

How can beating and loving go together?