As this ten part series opens we are introduced to the protagonists; Adam Rubin, a police officer; Dr. Yael Danon, a surgeon at a Jerusalem hospital; her husband Eyal and their teenage children Noa and Assaf. Yael has been scheduled to perform routine surgery on the Prime Minister; an operation certain people would rather he did not survive. To this end a group of four people, led by Rubin, take the Danon family hostage
if her family is to survive Yael must ensure the Prime Minister dies. She manages to force a postponement of the operation but that doesn't end her troubles; the hostage takers are prepared to wait and while they do the family will remain prisoners in their own home.
As time passes the family's secrets start to emerge; each member having certain details they would have preferred to keep secret. Confined with their captors they start to talk and to a degree become friendly with some of them. It isn't just the family that appears to be unravelling; as time passes the hostage takers argue amongst themselves and start to worry how things will go for them as what should have been a short operation drags on for days. Matters are further complicated by the arrival of Noa's boyfriend, an off duty soldier. All the time Yael must weigh up what to do if she is to save her family without killing the Prime Minister.
This Israeli drama series quickly gripped my attention and kept it right up to the end. While there are some clichés, most notably the fact that the family is somewhat more dysfunctional then they realise, it doesn't really matter though as it helps drive some of the events later on. I liked the fact that we don't learn the motives of the various hostage takers and their backers early on; indeed we don't learn why an apparently good man like Adam would be involved until the final episode. The setting inside the Danon's house helps create a claustrophobic atmosphere and as tensions rise viewer is kept at the edge of their seat wondering how things will work out. When the series does approach its conclusion expect lots of twists and turns as well as some genuine surprises and a degree of ambiguity
whether this is allowing the viewer to decide what happens next or setting things up for a second season only time will tell. The cast do a fine job, making their characters believable even when the events seem a little far-fetched; most notable of these is Ayelet Zurer, who plays Yael. Overall a gripping drama that is well worth watching if you are looking for something a little different.
These comments are based on watching the series in Hebrew with English subtitles.
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