Arts Life

Jewish Film Festival

Reel Jews

Seventh annual JCC Lenore Marwil Jewish Film Festival features more than 3 dozen
Jewish-themed films in five venues.

DEBRA B. DARVICK

Special to the Jewish News

T

he biggest challenge presented
by the Jewish Community
Center of Metropolitan
Detroit's Lenore Marwil Jewish Film
Festival is not the selection of 30-plus
films from more than 100 possibili-
ties. Nor is it managing the logistics
of 65 screening opportunities within
a 50-mile, five-city radius in south-
east Michigan and Canada.
Festival Director David Magidson
will tell you that one of his biggest
challenges is driving the films
between showing sites and "not get-
ting a speeding ticket."
The seventh annual Jewish Film
Festival, which this year runs from
April 10-21, has been growing by
proverbial leaps and bounds since its
debut in 1999. In addition to screen-
ings in Windsor, Birmingham, Ann
Arbor and Commerce Township, this
year's festival has expanded to include
Flint as its newest venue.
Magidson was praised by past festi-
val chair and current festival adviser
Susan Marwil for his keen ability to
"put films together for an overall
impression."
He is aided this year by
Birmingham-Commerce Festival
Chair Nancy Glass and Associate
Chair Terry Hollander; Ann Arbor
Festival Co-Chairs Elaine Margolis,
Rachel Seel and Roberta Tankanow;

Windsor Cultural Chair Ruth Berger;
and Flint Festival Chair Karen
Schneider.
"David positions the films in such a
way that by attending an entire festi-
val, you get the full impact of what
the festival really is," says Marwil.
In movie lingo, the 11-day Jewish
Film Festival, which not only show-
cases full-length feature films but
shorts and documentaries as well, is
the highlight of the spring's cinema
schedule.

Something For Everyone

This year's 37 films run the gamut
from comedy ( The Postwoman, The
Hebrew Hammer, Suzie Goldj to his-
tory (Shalom Ireland) to the
Holocaust (Journey to Jerusalem,
Facing Windows) to the Six-Day War
( Silence of Sirens, featuring actor Assi
Dayan's dazzling portrayal of his
father, Moshe Dayan).
Biographical offerings highlight
Julius and Ethel Rosenberg and
Emma Goldman as well as
profiles of the lesser-known,
such as impresario Harold
Leventhal (Isn't This a
Time., who made possi-
ble the careers of the
Weavers, Pete Seeger,
Arlo Guthrie,
Theodore Bikel
and more.

Men on

Chosen People was to
try and understand
what the Messianic
Jewish movement is
telling Jews and what
it is doing to attract
our young people.
There are definite
reasons that young
people are attracted
to this, and the movie
makes it clear.
"Movies create
experiences for peo-
Confrontation at
ple, and they can take
this experience back
Concordia, which
David Magidson: "Movies cre- into their own lives.
charts anti-American
and anti-Israeli student ate experiences for people, and Come see for your-
they can take this experience
self; come and see
activism at Concordia
back into their own lives."
what it tells you.
University in
"If it makes you
Montreal, and The
upset, then do some-
Chosen People, a trou-
thing about it. I want
bling documentary
exploring Messianic Judaism (Jews for people to see this movie and come to
their own conclusions. People who
Jesus).
criticize [the film] without seeing it,
Concordia and Chosen will be
or who don't want others to see it, are
shown in tandem, says Magidson,
"as a way of showing what is hap- those who want to tell you what to
think. That is not a powerful way to
pening to young people today."
learn."
Some in the community
challenge propriety of film
offerings that show threats
Preview Insights
to the Jewish community.
At a recent festival preview for the
But Magidson lives by
the edict "knowledge is National Council of Jewish Women,
Magidson's running commentary on
power."
the clips heightened anticipation of
"Our goal in
selecting The
REEL JEWS on page 42

Wheels provides a rare
glimpse into the world
of two disabled Israel
Defense Force veter-
ans, Omer and •
Sammy, while Broken
Wings empathetically
captures an Israeli
family on the verge of
breakdown.
Contemporary
political and social
issues come into play
with the films

3/31

2005

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