The Chosen (1982)

Chaim potok's novel about the friendship between two very different jewish youths in 1940's brooklyn.

The Chosen

Opened my eyes of my heart to the Jewish way of life with more understanding of traditions and beliefs. How I appreciate these types of filming. We need more of them.
May 27, 2008

EXCELLENT DVD TRANSFER! "The Chosen" and their choices

First off,the DVD transfer of the 1981 Jeremy Kagan directed THE CHOSEN is outstanding, both in WIDESCREEN and FULL SCREEN.The picture and sound are crystal clear as if filmed yesterday.Great buy for $4+.
Now...the film itself; I saw this wonderful film 3 times in the arthouses in 1981.Jeremy Kagan, who directed this wonderful E.Gordon screenplay adaptation of Chaim Potok's novel, was to go on to win Emmy's for "Chicago Hope";but in 1981 he took on the task of assembling Oscar winners Rod Steiger and Maximilian Schell, along with then young talents Robby Benson and Barry Miller,both later Golden Globe nominees,to tell the complex story of two Jewish teenagers and their vastly different fathers from vastly different Jewish sects in 1940's Brooklyn.
The story surrounds Danny (Benson), who is a "sauvant of sorts" from the highly orthodox Hasidic Jews and Reuven (Miller), a product of liberal "Zionist" Judaism.Danny's father, (Rod Steiger, who won International Awards for this role!), is a "righteous" leader who has immigrated to the U.S from Russia with all of his followers.From Danny and his Rabbi-Father, Reuven enters Danny's "strange" world of religious ultra orthodoxy and culture.Through Reuven and his father,(Maximilian Schell) who is a "liberal" Jew who writes about the necessity of the Palestinian Homeland, Danny enters their world of modern thought and all-embracing Americanism. The two boys form an unusual respect and friendship amidst their incredibly different cultures,and yet both are able to transcend both and forge a bond that will be tested amidst paternal disruptions and the end of WW2.
THE CHOSEN is an intimate film,evenly paced and features truly exquisite acting from the four principle actors.Each character is well developed and reaches an epiphany,which makes for pleasant viewing where everyone learns something.The revelations are numerous and cut deeply into the minds and souls of each character.
NOTE: The author of the book,Chaim Potok, worked very closely with the production of this film and cameos as one of the Talmudic Teachers!
The only other film that deals with Hasidism that I would suggest is A Life Apart - Hasidism in America and to a certain degree Ushpizin.
To learn more about the conflict and the founding of the Israeli State and the conflict with the Arabs, I highly recommend the PBS documentary Arab and Jew: Wounded Spirits in a Promised Land, which adds great dimension to the Zionist vs. Hasidic view of the Jewish State as mentioned in THE CHOSEN.
February 23, 2008

Great Insight Between Two Cultures

A very well written and acted movie. It gave me a great insight into the Hasidim community and a thought provoking view into a very complex time in our history as is experienced between two friends from two different backgrounds.

I had viewed it in 1988 and never forgot it, and am glad that it is available in DVD format. The performances were outstanding.

I highly recommend this film. February 22, 2008

school report turned fantastic movie

I bought this movie out of necessity, and it will now be in my collection for years to come. The description does not do the movie justice. I had to write a report on the differences and similarities of the families in this movie for a college course, who would have guessed that what I was getting was fantastically entertaining. The struggles and family values you see here are really missing in today's family groups, though we express our culture very differently now this movie transports you to a better way of life at a troubled time in the history of the world these two teens teach us about life and friendship in the face of adversity and change.
As for my experience with Amazon, it was spot on, my shipment came quickly and the movie was priced very competitively I will defiantly be purchasing more in years to come. I was getting nervous about finding this movie because it was not in any rental place or video store I went to but I had to go no further than my home computer and that was delightful.
Thank you Amazon.
December 24, 2007

Great book, good movie, marginal dvd version

If you loved the book, you'll really enjoy the movie. Though the characters don't always resemble their written siblings, it isn't distracting. Unfortunately, the DVD is uneven in color and audio. Rod Steiger is fabulous, though his accent doesn't reflect the character's russian origins. This you should enjoy! November 25, 2007

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