‘Farewell Mr. Haffmann’ addresses the Holocaust’s moral compromises

It takes the Nazi Occupation to air the resentments between Jewish jeweler Joseph Haffmann (Daniel Auteuil) and assistant François Mercier (Gilles Lellouche). Handing the store to Mercier after conditions deteriorate to such a degree that he has to pack the family off to Switzerland, Haffmann asks if he can live in the store basement until

Miami Jewish Film Festival 2024 (II) — Kidnapped

The best of the six or seven films I’ve screened at Miami Jewish Film Festival, Kidnapped inspired me to go long because I love films about papal intrigue: it’s why I condemn The Godfather Part III to life imprisonment instead of death.

Miami Jewish Film Festival 2024 (I)

The largest venue for Jewish film kicked off on January 11. The Miami Jewish Film Festival will show feature-length and short films from 25 countries, including 10 world premieres and a dozen North American premieres through January 25. I’ve been asked to serve again as a member of the Critics Prize committee. I’ll be posting

A beloved French children’s book hero & the perils of stepmotherhood among subjects covered at Miami Jewish Film Festival

The selection below adduces the diversity of Miami Film Festival 2023: the first good movie of 2023 and an animated adaptation of a classic French character.

Miami Jewish Film Festival 2023 returns to its full strength

Returning to full in-person screenings for the first time in three years, Miami Jewish Film Festival boasts a slate of 105 film premieres representing 25 countries. This event, the largest Jewish festival in the States, began its programming Thursday, January 13 and runs through Thursday, January 26. The selections, thanks to executive director Igor Shteyrenberg,

Miami Jewish Film Festival 2022 continues a bold tradition

One of the cool things about South Florida life in January besides the weather is the Miami Jewish Film Festival. With 108 feature and 40 short films representing 25 countries, the festival offers fare that adheres to no political line except exploring the subtleties of Jewish identity. The 25th edition starts today and will run

Exploring British jazz scenes and gay blues: Miami Jewish Film Festival 2021

The curious have two days until the end of the Miami Jewish Film Festival. I wrote about two other screenings, one of which I had some involvement. The best part for the interested: you pay a donation of your choice instead of a flat admission fee to stream a movie.

Miami Jewish Film Festival 2020 boasts its usual diversity

With over a hundred films from twenty-five countries screening since Jan. 9, the Miami Jewish Film Festival celebrates its twenty-third year. For cineastes, MJFF presents almost two weeks of opportunities at the start of a new year. For film critics with second jobs, it’s a way to reactivate muscles dormant since the onslaught of end-of-year

Entries in Miami Jewish Film Festival 2019 grapple with identity and history

In its twenty-second year, the Miami Jewish Film Festival, which began on January 10, has set a new benchmark: of eighty films from twenty-five countries, twenty-seven of them were directed by women.