~Sunday~ Next in the series of La Streisand movies was Yentl, which I’ve seen before, but it’s been years.
The synopsis
Rebbe Mendel is a single father who teaches the Talmud, a sacred text of Judaism, to the boys of his small Polish town. Behind closed doors, he also instructs his daughter, Yentl, despite the fact that girls are forbidden to study religious scripture. When Yentl’s father dies, she still has a strong desire to learn about her faith, so she disguises herself as a male, enrolls in a religious school, and unexpectedly finds love along the way.
The trailer
My thoughts and observations
- This is your classic boy-who’s-really-a-boy meets boy-who’s-really-a-girl, boy-who’s-really-a-boy is in love with girl-who’s-really-a-girl, boy-who’s-really-a-girl falls in love with boy-who’s-really-a-boy, and boy-who’s-really-a-girl marries girl-who’s-really-a-girl love story, where eventually [spoiler alert] boy-who’s-really-a-boy gets the girl-who’s-really a girl.
- This was a study in gender norms way before its time. Pretty good stuff for 1983.
- I absolutely love the soundtrack from this movie.
- That face. That face. Mandy Patinkin is just beautiful in this movie.
- Themes touched on in this movie included:
- Friendship
- Father/daughter relationships
- Gender roles, stereotypes, and expectations
- Religious traditions
- Shamefulness of suicide
- Following your dreams, and at what cost
- I gave this movie two thumbs up.
Have you seen this movie? If so, what did you think of it?