Shoshana review
By Joel Humphries · Watched 08.03.25
★★★★ 4 / 5
Spoiler-free review
Shoshana uses a romance between a Zionist woman and a British officer to enter the volatile politics of Mandatory Palestine and the hunt for militant Avraham Stern. The period detail, cinematography and bursts of political violence create real tension, while Irina Starshenbaum and Douglas Booth keep the history emotionally accessible. Its clarity is also selective: Arab Muslim and Christian perspectives are largely absent, disparate Zionist factions need more depth and Stern remains underwritten. This is a visually striking, well-acted drama worth seeing for the history and love story, but its narrow frame prevents a good film from becoming a great one.
Full review — contains spoilers
Shoshana is a interesting dive into 1930s/1940s British Mandatory Palestine, anchored by a love story between Shoshana Borochov (Irina Starshenbaum) and British officer Tom Wilkin (Douglas Booth) set against the tense hunt for Zionist militant Avraham Stern. The film’s strength lies in its straightforward historical clarity, laying out the era’s complexities with a steady hand. The romance is the core, but the pursuit of Stern crackles with tension, especially in jolting scenes of terrorist attacks that left me rattled. The cinematography and period settings were well done.
All of that said, the film stumbles in scope. While it captures the socialist Zionism-British rule clash well, the absence of Arab Muslim and Christian voices leaves a one-sided portrait of the conflict. I wish the film had spent less time with the romance and more time with the disparate Zionist elements to flesh out their motivations—Stern’s character in particular felt underwritten. The film satisfies, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that broader perspectives, were underexplored. In sorry Shoshana is a visually striking, well acted, emotionally engaging drama that’s worth a watch for its historical insight and poignant love story. A good film that's not quite great.