“Nothing but poison comes out of your mouth,” her aunt tells her. Dorona is the age of a mother, yet she broods like a teenager. Her head is down, and her shoulders are hunched forward as if her hands are always dug deep into invisible pants pockets. She is irritable, and moody, and even says disparaging words to a hospital security guard who attempts to search her bag.
Played by Rotem Zissman-Cohen, Dorona is a character that the audience follows closely. We cannot help it. We catch only glimpses of her long beautiful hair, which is pinned up in a bun that she reties from time to time. We enjoy fascinatingly simple and yet intimate shots of her sleeping, opening her eyes to wake, and eating pieces of bread.
Her character’s story unfolds. Why does she brood? Is it her medical history? Her relationship with her mother? Perhaps her relationship with her father. Her husband declares that she is not “normal,” and threatens to find a normal girl instead.
The movie’s plot unfolds. Dorona and her brothers embark on a journey for group closure. Will the instigation of this journey, a bout of tragic news, change the character’s disposition? Perhaps her personality which assumes tragedy will be lightened by actual tragedy. Perhaps a journey away from home will inspire her and give her perspective. Perhaps time away from work to “ponder” will make room for an epiphany. And most of all, the audience wonders if Dorona’s search for answers about her own life’s beginnings will finally put a smile on her face and enlighten her from her darkness.
Ultimately, the viewers are on the edges of their seats until the end. “The Kind Words” addresses questions of personality, the extent to which one can change one’s disposition, and whether or not we have the ability to change our disposition at all.