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Movie Review: Between The Temples
September 10, 2024
By Bessy ADUT
I recommend watching this film whether you are Jewish or not because it is hilarious and feels so real! I should say the story is original within itself and performances are beyond real. I didn’t feel like I was watching a movie with actors performing but felt like I was secretly watching them. The film is a success in the festivals and I am wondering if it would end up in the Academy Awards considering particularly the performances, since both actors are stellar.
The official trailer of the movie is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UNPfUU0UZI
In a nutshell, Ben (Jason Schwartzman) which you may recognize from several Wes Anderson movies is the lead. And his supporting actress is the wonderful Carol Kane. They have a wonderful chemistry.
Carol Kane & Jason Schwartzman
In the subtext of the movie, it says what’s most important is the genuine connection between people, you simply can’t force this. The looks or age doesn’t really matter, love is blind and has its own language. Love knows no boundaries. When the world is against you, everyone around you thinks you are doing something wrong and maybe you should be doing what society expects of you. When we accept what is enforced onto us instead of listening to our own hearts the result is simple; an unbearable sadness and dissatisfaction with our lives.
That’s how we meet our protagonist at the beginning of the movie. He is a cantor at a synagogue. He is very depressed and lonely. He lives with his two moms. Kudos on that. The screenwriter chose to make Jason’s family a lesbian Jewish couple. And one of the Jewish moms is actually a converted-to-Judaism mom. They are donors of the synagogue and that lets Ben get away with a few weird things he does instead of getting fired. His family constantly tries to match him with a young, beautiful woman. He was married once but unfortunately he lost his wife to a freak accident. He doesn’t seem to be looking for romance but is constantly family-pressured into it with 'J' dates and then he is introduced to Rabbi’s daughter who is an actress. She is beautiful and quirky. However, in the meantime, he meets Carol Kane’s character and they develop a beautiful friendship starting from a teacher-student relationship.
For the curious ones, apparently the film is made based on a true story and here is the article on it:
The film was directed by Nathan Silver and co-written with C. Mason Wells. It was premiered this year at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival and released in the US by Sony Pictures Classics.
"A spiky, hilarious, and thoroughly unorthodox screwball comedy." — David Ehrlich, indieWire
Beyond this point spoiler alert! I recommend reading after watching :)
In this American comedy-drama, we witness a newborn friendship. They show a funny past where they change the teacher/student roles later in life. And a friendship turns into a romance later on.
We are introduced to cantor Ben as he is having a depression and a mid-life crisis in faith, he has trouble singing. He meets Carla O’Connor at a bar fight and finds out she used to be the music teacher at his school. The original part of the story is when she comes to his class and requests to prepare for a bat-mitzvah which is a very strange request at her age. There is a refusal of the call by Cantor finding this request ridiculous and odd however it gets approved by Bruce, the synagogue rabbi and that’s how their journey begins.
Ben and Carla’s friendship grows in time. One time, Ben brings a tape to watch together on a nostalgic VHS tape. Carla’s roommate gives them a drugged tea and Ben ends up hallucinating his younger self. We find out he has sleeping problems ever since his wife passed but he finds some comfort and sleeps like an angel at Carla’s place. Maybe he does need a little bit of mothering affection as he is used to due to a home with two moms.
We can’t really put our finger on it. Is this really just a student-teacher/friendship? Or are we witnessing a romance being born regardless of the age gap?
Both families object harshly to their relationship. First, Carla’s son comes to visit and she invites Ben to the dinner. When Ben mentions Carla’s planned bat-mitzvah his son objects to it as he was raised Catholic and is now an Atheist. His son Nat’s wife and daughters seem to like the idea and are supportive. Son dismisses Ben from the dinner table and doesn’t support the idea of bat-mitzvah at all.
Meanwhile Ben goes on a blind date with Ruth, Rabbi’s daughter. They have a fun interaction. She is a beautiful, young woman who is assumed the new possible wife of Ben. However, there is a big plot twist. When this time Ben invites Carla to his family dinner, things get tense at the table. Ben drinks enough to gather the courage and confess his love for Carla. Young and beautiful Gabby starts crying and laughing at the same time. One of the moms particularly gets really upset about this. His real mom Meira is more supportive and encourages Ben to go after Carla. A whole conversation begins with how he wants to make Carla’s bat-mitzvah sooner due to her strokes.
At the end of the movie, with no support from either of their families, they decide to do the bat-mitzvah ceremony in the backyard as it was first performed in 1926 in a home. They both sing and chant her Torah reading.
It’s very surprising to see Ben choosing Carla over beautiful and -according to his family- appropriate young Gabby. The film shows what truly matters is the deep connection and friendship between people.
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