Orthodox Stance

I was reading that the Hassidic guy playing Natalie Portman's love interest in the upcoming "Paris Je T'aime" follow-up, "New York, I Love You," has dropped out because of complaints within his real-life Hassidic community. He even claims that they threatened to toss his kids out of the religious school they were in if he didn't leave the role.

Like its predecessor, the movie is a compilation of 12 short films from various directors, involving various stories and relationships. I first heard about it when a friend sent me pics of Portman and co-star Abe Karpen on-set somewhere in the City. At first I thought he was just a random actor, but today's news illuminates that he is the real-deal.

Personally, I think it's ridiculous that community pressure is forcing him out of the film. Yes I understand the notions of propriety and modesty within ultra-Orthodoxy, but appearing in a film where he simply walks interacts with a woman but doesn't ever actually touch her doesn't seem to be immodest to me. It's not like he stripped down and ran around naked or even had a scene where he was kissing her. He was playing a Hassidic man in a clip about Orthodox Jews; how much more kosher can you get?

A Hassidic activist commented in another article - "We don't watch television. We don't go to the movies, so to be in a movie is the worst thing. It's a shame for any Hasid." I quite disagree. In fact, I have seen with my own eyes how allowances are made when the film/music/art is of a religious, spiritual, or otherwise valuable nature. I know Orthodox Jews who go to movies that deal with Jewish issues, that deal with important political issues of the day. I know Orthodox Jews who read the news and watch the occasional TV clip online and cruise the Internet. I know a lot of Orthodox Jews who listen to Matisyahu and attend his concerts. And what about Matisyahu himself? I mean, dude is part of the MTV world. He's around women all the time and so this should suddenly make his job sacrilegious? He should suddenly become a pariah?

I think it's utter nonsense. The whole thing about Judaism is the way in which Orthodox Jews are able to adhere to centuries-old covenants but at the same time function as citizens within the greater society. I understand the desire to isolate yourself in order to better practice your faith, but Orthodox Jews work, and they vote, and they ride the subway and have lunch in crowded cafes and do a whole bunch of other things that "normal" people do. So this guy wanted to be in a movie and suddenly this is a big deal?

The biggest disappointment is that his role could have meant a lot for the Jewish community in general. With few examples within the mainstream media of the relative normalcy of Orthodox Judaism (other than perhaps Matisyahu), this was another chance for America to get a look at Orthodox Jews and to see that, you know what, they're pretty ordinary folk despite the whole hair and black clothing thing. As the executive producer of the film said, "He's a great ambassador of his faith and it came out of the left field...This is the last thing this picture should be doing. This film is about love and understanding between different people and communities." This was a chance for a Hassidic Jew to serve as an "ambassador of his faith." You don't get many chances like that.

This is something that it's extremely important for Jews to do. I am a firm believer in the fact that Jews have not done a good job of explaining their culture to the rest of the world. Most of the rest of the world just knows that a "Jew" is someone who wears a kippa. How much of the world sees Jews as Christ-killers? How much of it sees them as being the primary cause of world instability because of their staunch support of Israel? How much of it sees them all as money and power hungry? And then when you have the chance to show Jews in movies or on TV, what happens? Most turn out to be really funny because, well, you know, Jews are funny. The ones who come off as heroic or strong or simply positive role models are uncharacteristically linked to movies about WWII and the Holocaust or about some other period of time where Jews were persecuted (see: all period of time). How often do we see dramas with an expressly Jewish character who is just a normal, good person? No comedy, no war, just human interactions on an everyday scale.

I think it's a shame to miss such an opportunity. While I understand the concerns of the Hassidic community in regards to situations such as this, in regards to modesty and the desire to not have one of their own associated with the cesspool that often characterizes Hollywood, I think a little investigation would have gone a great way in this instance. Rather than just saying "this is bad because it's a movie, and we don't watch movies," why not ask what this movie was about, why not try to understand its importance and relevance? Movies and film has proven to be the most crucial tool in documenting history and exploring every dimension of society, and to just dismiss them outright like that is simple ignorance.