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Film

The Other Story

The yawning divisions between secular and religious Jewish Israelis run deep and may even be unbridgeable. This unsettling schism manifests itself in practically every nook and cranny of Israeli life, as Avi Nesher suggests in his newest movie, The Other Story, which is now available on the ChaiFlicks streaming platform. The film is centered around […]

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Film

Eyes In The Night

When Fred Zinnemann’s murder mystery, Eyes in the Night, was released early in 1942, the United States had already entered World War II as a combatant and fears about the presence of Nazi spies on American soil were on the uptick. Zinnemann was well into his illustrious career when he directed this black-and-white feature film, […]

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Film

My Grandparents Had A Hotel

Decades ago, explicit racism in public places was a common and acceptable phenomenon in the Canadian province of Ontario. Jews, in particular, were impacted by this odious practice, which affected employment, housing and recreational facilities. Impacted by this variant of antisemitism, Jews created their own ecosystem of neighborhoods, jobs and resorts. The Monteith Inn, situated […]

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Film

Summer Vacation

The past never dies, always ready to burst out of our subconscious with all its granular details. Summer Vacation, a short Israeli film by Tal Granit and Sharon Maymon, expertly addresses this theme. Currently being presented online by the Toronto Jewish Film Foundation, it is set on a quiet beach on the Mediterranean Sea as […]

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Film

Suskind: A Dutch-Jewish Hero

Walter Suskind was a heroic figure during an exceedingly dark time. Against all odds, he saved upwards of 1,000 Dutch Jewish children during the Holocaust. Rudolf van den Berg’s Dutch-language movie, Suskind, which is now available on the ChaiFlicks streaming platform, charts the trajectory of his heroism. Suskind, a German Jew living in Holland, managed […]

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Film

Silicon Wadi

Due to its position as a startup nation, Israel has often been compared to Silicon Valley in California. There is something to be said for that comparison. Investments in Israel’s high-tech industry are forecast to reach $7.5 billion this year. This is a substantial figure, but investors poured $15 billion and $25 billion into Israeli […]

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Film

Crossing Delancey Thirty Five Years Later

Thirty five years have passed since Crossing Delancey was released in the United States. A low-budget romantic comedy directed by the late Joan Micklin Silver, who died three years ago, it shot into cinematic fame after a succession of favorable reviews. Screened on the Turner Classic Movies channel recently, this likeable film, set in New […]

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Film

Seltzer Works

Clean, crisp, fizzy and refreshing, sparkling water, or club soda, is a real thirst quencher, especially during the warm and hot summer months. Originally known as seltzer, this bubbly elixir was particularly popular among East European Jewish immigrants and their descendants in New York City during the first half of the 20th century. A multitude […]

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Film

Tiger Within

Appearing in his final movie before his death in 2021, Ed Asner plays a Holocaust survivor in the poignant drama Tiger Within, which opens in U.S. theaters on July 7. He portrays Samuel, a frail and lonely widower who lives alone in Los Angeles. He befriends Casey (Margot Josefsohn), a coarse but attractive down-and-out young […]

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Film

Persian Lessons

Desperate times call for desperate tactics. Vadim Perelman’s skillfully-crafted feature film, Persian Lessons, which opens in Canadian theaters on June 16, explores this theme from a unique perspective. Supposedly inspired by true events, and based on a short story by Wolfgang Kohlhaase, it unfolds in Nazi-occupied Europe and turns on an extremely unusual relationship between […]