Hard Truths
The Israeli rapper and singer and her partner Ori Rousso grapple with war, social pressure, and the personal cost of staying visible in the new documentary, Noga
Right before the opening title card of Noga hits the screen, you see Israeli rapper Noga Erez at her Tel Aviv home. It’s December 2023, two months after October 7, when Hamas killed more than 1,200 people and took hostage some 251 others to neighboring Gaza. Erez has just come offstage from a performance in Jerusalem, where she gives everything she’s got rapping her 2021 hit “Fire Kites.” The song’s lyrics — “We don’t need bombs/We have fire kites” — take on an eerie resonance.
Later that pitch-black night, Erez steps to the edge of her terrace, looks down at the sleepy city below, and lets out a blood-curdling scream. Is it a cry for help? Rage at the war? Overwhelming grief? Artistic expression?
The documentary feature Noga, which premiered at the Tribeca Festival last month and is currently making the film-festival rounds, is as piercing as that shriek. It feels urgent at a time of cultural boycotts, polarizing politics, and surging hate.
