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Sony Pictures Classics announced today via a press release that they have acquired all US rights to the Israeli film, Lebanon, from Celluloid Dreams. From director Samuel Maoz, Lebanon is set almost entirely inside an Israeli tank, where four young men set out on a mission that turns out to be a trip filled with fear, anxiety and ultimately death and the revelation of what makes life worth living. Recently included in the recent Toronto Film Festival where the film played to great acclaim, Lebanon also was an official selection of the New York Film Festival.

Lebanon is of those important films that will last forever in the marketplace. We are honored to be bringing Lebanon to the American public,” said Sony Pictures Classics.

What’s interesting about this film — or at least, what interests me — is that it is set almost entirely inside of an Israeli tank. It sounds like the kind of environment that lends well to thick tension. Variety’s Derek Elly had this to say about it:

Visceral, torn-from-the-memory filmmaking that packs every punch except one to the heart, “Lebanon” is the boldest and best of the recent mini-wave of Israeli pics (“Beaufort,” “Waltz With Bashir”) set during conflicts between the two countries.

Sounds interesting to me. The film is getting a lot of buzz from its run in Toronto, with people throwing around the word “Oscar,” something that SPC has seen before with international contenders as Persepolis and Waltz with Bashir. Sony Pictures Classics has not yet set a release date for the film, but that should be coming soon. We’ll keep you up-to-date.