EXCLUSIVE: Alex Gibney-produced Benjamin Netanyahu doc The Bibi Files, directed by Alexis Bloom, has set sales with Goodfellas ahead of a work-in-progress screening in Toronto.
With the global spotlight on Netanyahu as the death toll continues to rise in the Israel-Gaza war sparked by the October 7 Hamas attacks, the doc promises unprecedented insight into the backstory behind the Israeli prime minister’s ongoing corruption trial and how it is informing his current actions.
The work features leaked footage of police interrogation videos with Netanyahu, wife Sara, and son Yair, conducted from 2016 to 2018 as part of the eight-year criminal investigation which led up to the controversial politician’s indictment in November 2019, for breach of trust, bribery, and fraud.
This material has been intercut with interviews with key Israeli figures including former prime minister Ehud Olmert, Netanyahu’s former spokesman Nir Hefetz, former Shin Bet leader Ami Ayalon, and investigative journalist Raviv Drucker among others.
News of the Toronto screening has prompted excitement in the media in Israel, where material from the investigation and trials is under a gag order, with commentators suggesting the work will never get an official Israeli release.
Oscar-winner Gibney, who is producing under the banner of his New York-based company Jigsaw Productions, is hoping to stir worldwide debate and engage with international distribution partners by screening the film at TIFF as a work-in-progress.
The team at Goodfellas, which has never shied away from controversial work, has taken up the challenge of making this happen.
Described by TIFF Docs as “an urgent journalistic exposé”, The Bibi Files Is directed by Johannesburg-born, U.S.-based director Bloom, who began the project before October 7.
She explores how Netanyahu has weathered the corruption accusations and stayed in power by forging alliances with staunch right-wingers who now serve as cabinet ministers.
The doc also looks at the politician’s 2023 attempt to introduce judicial reforms that would give him greater control of the Supreme Court of Israel. Bloom has described this development, which sparked widespread protests across Israel, as the catalyst for her getting on board the project.
The director also addresses how the corruption charges may have informed Netanyahu’s military-led response to the October 7 Hamas attack, and his reluctance to enter into serious hostage negotiations.
Bloom is a three-time Primetime Emmy nominee for Divide and Conquer: The Story of Roger Ailes (2018), which Gibney executive produced, and Bright Lights: Starring Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds (2017). More recent credits include Catching Fire: The Story Of Anita Pallenberg, co-directed with Svetlana Zill, which premiered in Cannes in 2023.
