Overview of the 11th JCC Rockland International Jewish Film Festival

The 11th JCC Rockland International Jewish Film Festival was a signifiant cultural event for the county.  With 19 screenings, as well as a preview screening for the documentary, “The Outrageous Sophie Tucker,” hundreds showed up to experience these films that were screened between March 19 and April 30.

One of the most memorable aspects of the festival was the variety of topics that the films tackled.  Some focused on the Holocaust and its aftermath, others focused on LGBT issues, some focused on Israel-Palestine relations, and others were heartfelt coming-of-age stories.  No matter what an audience member’s taste was, there was at least one film in the line-up that had the potential to reach someone.

My top two favorites of the festival were similar to Steven Spielberg’s historical masterwork, “Schindler’s List,” in that they were true-story accounts of individuals who saved many would-be victims from facing certain death during the Holocaust.  Those two films were Rudolph van den Berg’s “Süskind” and Joël Santoni’s “Disobedience: The Sousa Mendes Story.”

“Süskind” tells the true story about Walter Süskind (Jeroen Spitzenberger), a member of Amsterdam’s Jewish Council who, in the summer of 1942, crafts cunning ways to help save as many children as he can from being sent to the concentration camps.  The story is akin to that of Spielberg’s classic, but it’s different because it shows the horrors of the Holocaust from outside the camps.  The camps don’t come in until towards the end, but what comes before that are the horrors in trying to hide from deportation.  The film gives great detail of a man who’s willing to put his life and family in danger in order to do what’s right, which is to give an oppressed people a chance at life.   

In “Disobedience,” the film chronicles Sousa Mendes (Bernard Le Coq), a man who defies orders from his government and issues visas out of Occupied France to around 30,000 refugees, including about 10,000 Jews.  It’s a drama that will draw in both film and history buffs, and includes a strong central performance from Le Coq.  Similar to “Süskind,” the film provides a thorough insight of what a man has to risk in order to save the many that he does, and in the film’s last 15 minutes, we see what his selflessness has cost him.

Ilan Duran Cohen’s “The Jewish Cardinal” tells the story of Jean-Marie Lustiger (Laurent Lucas), the son of Polish-Jewish immigrants, who keeps his cultural identity as a Jew even after he converts to Catholicism at a young age.  Later in his life, he joins the priesthood, and soon starts to rise through the ranks of the church, and eventually becomes Archbishop of Paris.  Throughout the film, it’s interesting to see the inner-workings of the church, as well as the growing conflict involving which side Lustiger will choose: Christianity or Judaism.  Lucas’ performance as a religiously conflicted man deserves him greater recognition from American audiences, and it’s an enriching opportunity to watch Lucas portray this barrier-breaking figure.

One of the most suspenseful movies to be shown at the festival was Yuval Adler’s white-knuckle thriller, “Bethlehem,” which tells the story of a Palestinian teenage boy (Shadi Mar’i) who is recruited by an Israeli intel agent (Tsahi Halevi) to be a collaborator in a terrorist group that’s led by the former’s brother.  The father-son connection between the boy and intelligence agent is one of the most tense aspects of the movie because you can’t foresee where their loyalties will take them in the narrative.  By the time the film reaches its gasp-inducing and shattering conclusion, you’re rendered unresponsive.

There was also Vincent Bal’s fun and fanciful film, “The Zigzag Kid,” about a young boy (Thomas Simon) who yearns to be a police inspector like his father, and goes on a journey to unravel the secret behind the mother he never knew.  It’s a family film that doesn’t become juvenile one bit, and is something that both children and adults can equally enjoy.  With its relatable story about growing up, and a fair share of entertaining twists, the film was one of the most pleasurable of the festival, and of course, the film is brightened by the always-welcome classiness of Isabella Rossellini, who plays a mysterious nightclub singer.

In terms of LGBT topics, there isn’t any denying the importance and social relevance of Doron Eran’s family drama, “Melting Away.”  The story follows teenage boy Asaf (Hen Yanni), who is kicked out of his home by his parents after they discover he’s a cross-dresser.  Years later, when his father is dying of cancer, Asaf’s mother hires a private investigator to search for him.  The detective soon finds out that Asaf now goes by the name “Anna,” and earns money by performing at gay cabarets.  When evading the detective and disguising herself to be her father’s nurse, it’s saddening to have to watch Anna be around her parents all this time and have to hide her identity during this crisis, and it all comes down to wondering if whether or not her parents will learn to love her for who she is.  With a beginning that’s heartbreaking to watch, and an ending that will make your heart whole again, “Melting Away” is a beautiful portrait of parents learning to embrace their children in a world of changing social norms.