German and German co-productions at NCJF Fest
THE INVISIBLES / Die Unsichtbaren
Sunday, May 6, 11:00 am @ Coolidge Corner Theatre
Thursday, May 10, 5:00 pm @ Museum of Fine Arts (Remis)
NEW ENGLAND PREMIERE
In June 1943, as the Nazis declared the Reich judenfrei “free of Jews,” thousands of Jews were living in hiding or under false identities in Berlin. In this suspenseful and fascinating film, filmmaker Claus Raefle focuses on the stories of several young people (nicknamed “U-Boats” or “submarines”) who, through various means, attempted to evade capture. The Invisibles brings narrative and emotional intensity to these astonishingly true stories by using a hybrid of documentary and highly accomplished drama (gorgeously photographed by Joerg Widmer, whose credits include Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life and Wim Wenders’s Pina). Starring Maximilian Mauff (Bridge of Spies), Florian Lukas (Good Bye Lenin!), and Andreas Schmidt (The Counterfeiters).
Winner, Audience Award, Mill Valley Film Festival
Director: Claus Raefle | Germany | 2017 | 110m | German w/ English subtitles
© Menemsha Films
THE CAKEMAKER
Saturday, May 5, 6:30 pm @ Museum of Fine Arts (Remis)
Friday, May 11, 2:00 pm @ Museum of Fine Arts (Alfond)
MASSACHUSETTS PREMIERE
One of the most moving, original, and emotionally surprising films of the year, The Cakemaker is a must see. Ofir Raul Graizer’s stunningly acted film explores the evolving connection between Thomas, a gay German pastry chef (Tim Kalkhof), and Jerusalem café owner Anat (Sarah Adler, Jellyfish) in the aftermath of a personal tragedy that unknowingly ties the two together. This Israeli-German production is an indelible film about loneliness, love, family, and the fluidity of identity—religious, national, sexual. Also starring Zohar Strauss (Eyes Wide Open NCJF’10), Roy Miller, and Sandra Sade. Winner, Ecumenical Jury Award, Karlovy Vary Film Festival; Winner, Jerusalem Film Festival Lia Van Leer Award & Best Editing Award. “Pastry dough is far from the only thing that requires—and duly receives—delicate handling in The Cakemaker, a tender, tactile and just-sweet-enough story of hidden love, challenged faith and unwittingly shared grief that marks an auspicious feature debut for Israeli writer-director Ofir Raul Graizer.” --Variety
Director: Ofir Raul Graizer | Germany/Israel | 2017 | 105m | English, Hebrew & German w/ English subtitles
© National Center for Jewish Film
SHELTER
Thursday, May 10, 7:30 pm @ Museum of Fine Arts (Remis)
BOSTON PREMIERE
John le Carré meets Lemon Tree in this gripping psychological neo-noir from acclaimed Israeli director Eran Riklis (Dancing Arabs NCJF’15, Human Resources Manager NCJF’11, Syrian Bride) where nothing is safe and no one can be trusted. Mossad agent Naomi (Neta Riskin, Norman) is dispatched from Israel to a safe house in Hamburg charged with “babysitting” an important asset: Mona, a beautiful Lebanese informant (Golshifteh Farahani, star of Jim Jarmusch’s Paterson). Mona is recovering from plastic surgery that's altered her appearance and a bond develops between the two women. But in this high-stakes game of deception, loyalties will be tested. Also starring Lior Ashkenazi (Foxtrot). Loosely based on a novel by the late Shulamith Hareven who published under a pseudonym and whose husband was a senior Israeli intelligence officer. “Take shelter with these two women. Shelter is fun because, like Naomi, the audience gets seduced by Mona.” –Jerusalem Post
Director: Eran Riklis | Israel/Germany/France | 2017 | 93m | English, Hebrew & Arabic w/ English subtitles
© National Center for Jewish Film
THE PRINCE AND THE DYBBUK
Sunday, May 6, 2:00 pm @ Museum of Fine Arts (Alfond)
NEW ENGLAND PREMIERE
The director of the Yiddish classic The Dybbuk is variously remembered as a Polish aristocrat, Hollywood producer, a reprobate and liar, and an open homosexual. But who, really, was Michal Waszyński (born Moshe Waks), the son of a poor Ukrainian Jewish blacksmith, who died as Prince Michal Waszyński in Italy? Waszyński made 40 films with Sophia Loren, Anna Magnani, Orson Welles and other stars, but his most spectacular creation was his own life. A fabulist constantly shifting identities and blurring the lines between reality and illusion, Waszyński became obsessed with his adaptation of The Dybbuk and its mythical imagery of the shtetl. A modern take on the narrative of the Wandering Jew, The Prince and the Dybbuk asks whether it is ever possible to cut oneself off from one’s roots, and at what cost.
Directors: Piotr Rosolowski & Elwira Niewiera | Poland/Germany | 2017 | 82m | English, Italian, Spanish, Polish & German w/ English subtitles
© National Center for Jewish Film
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