When Paul Refsdal, a Norwegian journalist, visited Syria in 2014 and 2015, he embedded himself with Jabhat al-Nusra, the Syrian affiliate of Al Qaeda, the jihadist organization synonymous with Islamic extremism, death and destruction. Refsdal was canny enough to persuade two suicide bombers to submit to interviews. Both were waiting to blow themselves up. Their […]
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Norman Lear Changed The Face Of Television
Norman Lear is 93 now and can look back at an astonishing and perhaps unparallelled career in television. At one point in the 1970s, six of the 10 top shows on American TV networks had been developed by him. He was the king of the situation comedy. With hits like All in the Family, Maude, Good […]
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My Nazi Legacy
How do sons come to terms with their fathers’ crimes? My Nazi Legacy, which will be broadcast on the PBS network on Monday, May 2 at 10 p.m. (check local listings), examines this difficult and morally-charged issue through the eyes of two men whose fathers were certified Nazi war criminals. Hans Frank was the governor […]
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Rabin In His Own Words
Erez Laufer’s biopic, Rabin In His Own Words, humanizes the late Israeli prime minister. Rabin, shy and reserved, invariably projected coolness and aloofness in public appearances. But in this film, scheduled to be screened at the Canadian International Documentary Festival in Toronto on May 2, May 3 and May 6, Rabin comes off as a […]
One of my favorite sections of The New York Times is the obituary page. I enjoy reading obits for two reasons. They’re about interesting people who’ve made an impact on our world, and they’re thoroughly researched and well written. A perfect combination in quality journalism. Vanessa Gould’s thoughtful film, Obit, which will be screened at the […]
Universities are supposed to be havens of civilized discourse where rationality, civility and tolerance prevail, but of late, this hallowed tradition has taken a battering in Britain and the United States. Consider these unsettling developments: Prior to her recent election as president of Britain’s National Union of Students, Malia Bouattia made comments that can only […]
Among the movies to be presented at this year’s Toronto Jewish Film Festival, running from May 5-15, are two films focusing on Israel and an Italian documentary about the former ghetto in Venice. Danae Elon, born in Jerusalem in 1970, left Israel in 1990 and spent the next two decades in New York City, […]
The Jewish Film Festival, which runs from May 5-15 in Toronto, is presenting biopics about the scientist Albert Einstein, the 19th century photographer Solomon Nunes Carvalho and the French politician Leon Blum. Albert Einstein and his wife, Elsa, were invited to Palestine by the Zionist movement in 1923. Noa Ben Hagai’s fascinating film, Einstein […]
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A New Documentary About Jan Karski
He witnessed degradation, starvation and death in the Warsaw ghetto. He clandestinely visited a Nazi transit camp. He warned Western democracies that Jews in Poland were being systematically murdered by the Nazis. He was Jan Karski, the courageous courier from the Polish government-in-exile. The newest documentary about this heroic Polish figure, Karski & The Lords […]
The Toronto Jewish Film Festival runs from May 5-15 this year. On April 18, its lineup was announced at a press conference. The 24th edition is presenting four world premieres and 31 Canadian premieres. Twelve of the films will be seen in Toronto for the first time. Three previews: Edward G. Robinson virtually invented the celluloid […]