By Travis Johnson
With 65 films from 26 countries, the 2017 Jewish International Film Festival promises to be the biggest and best yet, offering eager Australian audiences a varied menu of movies that reflect the diversity and depth of Jewish culture around the world.
This year’s opening night film is the Yiddish language festival fave Menashe, set in New York City’s Hasidic community, which traces the efforts of a widowed man to maintain a connection with his son.
Closing out the festival is Rebel in the Rye, a biopic of acclaimed writer JD Salinger starring Kevin Spacey (American Beauty) and Nicholas Hoult (X-Men: Days of Future Past)
Other highlights include the Australian documentaries The Last Goldfish and My Mother’s Lost Children; showbiz doco Bombshell: the Hedy Lamarr Story, narrated by Diane Kruger (Inglourious Basterds); madcap romantic comedy The Wedding Plan; and Humor Me, a father-son comedy starring Elliot Gould (The Long Goodbye, M*A*S*H*)and Jemaine Clement (Flight of the Conchords),
“I am thrilled with the incredible creativity and diverse storytelling of our films in the line-up this year. With the first commercial release Yiddish language film in over 50 years, and fantastic events including a live jazz night and a collaboration with Sydney Writer’s Festival, we’re extremely proud to present our 2017 program,” said Jewish International Film Festival Artistic Director, Eddie Tamir. “We’ll see you at the movies! JIFF and chill.”
The 2017 Jewish International Film Festival is on in Melbourne from October 25 – November 22, Sydney from October 26 – November 22, Brisbane from October 26 – November 1, Canberra from November 2 – 12, and Perth from November 8 – 19. For full details, head to the official site.
