'The Beauty Queen of Jerusalem' is in a harrowing Netflix movie

"Kissufim" was filmed before October 7, but it's especially resonant now.

It’s impossible not to be captivated by Israeli actress Swell Ariel Or, her soulful green eyes, her grace. While I think that “The Beauty Queen of Jerusalem,” the Israeli period drama about the Jewish Ermoza family, is one of those cases where the book is better than the show, I do find it to be a sweeping, fascinating portrait of a Sephardi Jewish family, full of beautiful Ladino dialogue and delicious Sephardi fare. It very much does tug at the heartstrings, especially Swell as fabulous and haunting Luna, a gifted designer, a woman with dreams ahead of her time, the eponymous beauty queen of Jerusalem.

I recently got to talk to the young Israeli actress about a very different project, “Kissufim,” now streaming on Netflix alongside the first two seasons of “Beauty Queen.” It was two days after the news broke out about the murders of six hostages in Hamas captivity — Hersh, Ori, Eden, Alex, Carmel and Almog — and that was very much fresh on our minds. I was thinking about Eden especially, not just because she was a huge fan of “Beauty Queen,” but because of how much her story was like that of Eli, Or’s character in “Kissufim.” Eli is based on Elian Gazit, an Israeli killed during a terrorist attack when she was driving from Kissufim, a kibbutz in the south of Israel, to the market in Gaza in 1980. Just like Eden, Elian was in her early 20s. Just like Eden, there had been warnings about an uprising in Gaza that were ignored by security forces that led to her death, at least according to Elian’s sister. Just like Eden, Elian, and the “Kissufim” character based on her, is a woman full of life and dreams that ended long before she could achieve them. Just like Eden, Elian’s family is still grieving her senseless death.

But the echoes weren’t just in Or’s character, it was all around her. Because Kissufim, the kibbutz where this film was shot during the height of the pandemic, where Elian volunteered with her friends after their military service, is no longer what it was, evacuated and scorched after October 7. Early screenings of the movie last year raised money to rebuild it, but it will still be some time before it can be safely resettled. And its beloved carpenter, Shlomo Mansour, is still being held in Gaza.

Or was as lovely as I imagined in our Zoom conversation, looking beautiful and soulful, gesticulating with her nails painted bright green, thoughtfully answering my questions (you can read my full interview with her and the movie’s director Keren Nechmad on Kveller). I lamented to her about how, in so many interviews since October 7, I feel like I want to cry, and she and Nechmad really got it. I could hear in their voices how they were, too, trying to keep their grief at bay.

I asked Or if she saw any similarities between Eli, her character in “Kissufim” which takes place in 1977, to Luna, her character from “Beauty Queen,” and she answered that she doesn’t really feel like they’re alike at all.

“Luna is very much provocative; she wants reactions from people. She loves making a scene. She loves making the drama,” Or said. “I feel like Eli, she's provocative just because she just wants her freedom. She wants people to leave her alone so she can do whatever she wants.”

“Also, Luna doesn't have a lot of friends,” she added, while “the connection of Eli to her friends, it's so strong and such a big part of her life.” With Luna, the anchors in her life are “her family or her work.”

Of course, I also had to ask about the potential of a third season of “Beauty Queen,” and she told me she hopes she can share some good news soon (back in the spring, fellow star Michael Aloni told me that the season was in the works).

In the meantime, you can watch “Kissufim,” which is also a period piece, and full of beautiful, talented Israeli actresses and actors that you’ve probably seen in other shows, like Mili Eshet from “The Tattooist of Auschwitz,” Adam Gabay from “Our Boys” (who is the son of “Shtisel” and the upcoming “Kugel” star Sasson Gabay; the two also starred together on “The Band’s Visit” on Broadway!!), Erez Oved from “Your Honor” (the OG Israeli show, not the American adaptation) and Tamir Ginsburg from “Tehran.”

Will you be watching “Kissufim?” Did you watch “Beauty Queen of Jerusalem?” And are you excited for a third season? Let me know in the comments!