The World’s Top 10 Jewish Films
Image by Courtesy of the Criterion Collection
After he reviewed Lawrence Baron’s “The Modern Jewish Experience in World Cinema,” we asked contemporary Jewish film scholar Nathan Abrams for his choice of the best recent Jewish films. Below are his choices (in no particular order) of films over the last few decades that have made a significant impact in challenging stereotypes worldwide.
“La Haine” (France), Mathieu Kassovitz
A French goy playing a Jewish skinhead; a French Jew playing a goyish skinhead. What’s not to like?
“The Big Lebowski” (USA), Coen brothers
“I’m shomer f**kin’ shabbes.” ‘Nuff said.
“The Governess” (UK), Sandra Goldbacher
That rare creature: an excellent British Jewish film. Beautiful and lyrical with a strong female Sephardic heroine at its heart.
“Black Book” (Netherlands), Paul Verhoeven
Verhoeven does for the Jewish heroine what he did for female serial murderers in Basic Instinct.
“Inglourious Basterds” (USA), Quentin Tarantino
Not quite the “Jewish porn” Eli Roth promised it to be, but his portrait of Shoshanna is superb.
[“The Believer” (USA), Henry Bean][1]
A Jewish neo-Nazi, wrapped in a tallit, in a right-armed Nazi salute, while chanting “Va-zot haTorah…” Does challenging cinematic stereotypes get better than this?
“Homicide” (USA), David Mamet
Mamet brings Midrash and Torah to the age-old questions of identity and dual loyalties. You see, you see?
[“Europa Europa” (Germany), Agnieszka Holland][3]
Does for foreskin what Schindler’s List did for the Holocaust.
“Borat” (UK), Larry Charles
Too many scenes to mention but “the Running of the Jew” has got to be one of the most imaginative Jewish moments ever conceived.
“Munich” (USA), Steven Spielberg
Food and ethics intertwine to challenge not just America’s response to 9/11 but Israel’s targeted assassination policy. And can anyone beat Eric Bana’s angry Israeli impression?
[1]: http://www.amazon.com/Believer-Ryan-Gosling/dp/B00049QQJ6/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1329174613&sr=1-1 &tag=thefor03-20 [3]: http://www.amazon.com/Europa-Marco-Hofschneider/dp/B00007KQ9X/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1329174727&sr=1-1 &tag=thefor03-20
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
