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The Believer (Henry Bean, 2001)
This is a highly-complex and provocative film looking at Neo-Naziism, anti-semitism and orthodox Judaism in ways which few films have ever attempted, and as far as I know, none have ever succeeded as well. It's loosely based on a true case from the 1960s where a KKK member turned out to be a Jew who wanted to kill Jews for racial reasons and how he was exposed by a New York Times reporter. The Believer seems to be brought up to date, but the central character, Danny (Ryan Gosling in a breakthrough performance), is full of contradictions and internal strife. He truly hates and wants to kill Jews, even though (or more correctly, because) he was raised as a devout orthodox Jew. However, now he's a skinhead and spends his time with fascists who have no idea of his background. He's the most violent person in the film and he does have self-loathing, but whether it's for himself or only his people is something the film portrays expertly.
Part of what makes this film so good is that it doesn't tread familiar territory. Sure, there are violent skinhead outbursts, but they're followed by philosophical discussions on fascism, Judaism and the possibility that they may be more related than you could imagine. This film is not afraid to dig deep into something it seems to know more about than anyone who is not a devout orthodox Jew. In fact, it's difficult to tell if Gosling is great because of his inner presence or because of all the complexities his character is given in a truly first-rate screenplay. I tend to believe both reasons contribute to his strong performance. He's almost matched by the youngest member of the acting Phoenix family, Summer. She plays the daughter of a neo-fascist mother (Theresa Russell), but once she learns that Danny is a Jew and has a copy of a Torah, she becomes obsessed with the words written by the hand of God and even gets Danny to teach her Hebrew. She tries to get Danny to become a better Jew because she wants to find out if it's better than all the things she's been raised on because she needs to find something better than fascist catch phrases and free-and-not-so-easy sex. I liked The Believer the first time I watched it, but it took a second viewing for me to realize just how powerful and thought-provoking it truly is.
This is a highly-complex and provocative film looking at Neo-Naziism, anti-semitism and orthodox Judaism in ways which few films have ever attempted, and as far as I know, none have ever succeeded as well. It's loosely based on a true case from the 1960s where a KKK member turned out to be a Jew who wanted to kill Jews for racial reasons and how he was exposed by a New York Times reporter. The Believer seems to be brought up to date, but the central character, Danny (Ryan Gosling in a breakthrough performance), is full of contradictions and internal strife. He truly hates and wants to kill Jews, even though (or more correctly, because) he was raised as a devout orthodox Jew. However, now he's a skinhead and spends his time with fascists who have no idea of his background. He's the most violent person in the film and he does have self-loathing, but whether it's for himself or only his people is something the film portrays expertly.
Part of what makes this film so good is that it doesn't tread familiar territory. Sure, there are violent skinhead outbursts, but they're followed by philosophical discussions on fascism, Judaism and the possibility that they may be more related than you could imagine. This film is not afraid to dig deep into something it seems to know more about than anyone who is not a devout orthodox Jew. In fact, it's difficult to tell if Gosling is great because of his inner presence or because of all the complexities his character is given in a truly first-rate screenplay. I tend to believe both reasons contribute to his strong performance. He's almost matched by the youngest member of the acting Phoenix family, Summer. She plays the daughter of a neo-fascist mother (Theresa Russell), but once she learns that Danny is a Jew and has a copy of a Torah, she becomes obsessed with the words written by the hand of God and even gets Danny to teach her Hebrew. She tries to get Danny to become a better Jew because she wants to find out if it's better than all the things she's been raised on because she needs to find something better than fascist catch phrases and free-and-not-so-easy sex. I liked The Believer the first time I watched it, but it took a second viewing for me to realize just how powerful and thought-provoking it truly is.