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March 5-13, 2011 Produced in partnership with the Harry Portman Charitable Trust, the Louis and Frances Swinken Supporting Fund of the Jewish Community Foundation, the Norman and Jean Burstein Glazer Memorial Fund, the Louis and Dorothy Davidow Cultural Arts Fund, and the Helen and Sam Kaplan Fund of Country Club Bank.
2011 Kansas City Jewish Film Festival Line-up Anita In the wake of the 1994 bombing of the Buenos Aires Jewish Community Center, a young woman with Down syndrome searches the city for her mother, receiving help and companionship in unexpected quarters through the simple force of her ingenuous personality and open heart. Ana Feldman, nicknamed Anita, lives with her devoted mother, Dora, in modest comfort above the shop Dora’s late husband started in a commercial district of Buenos Aires. Beloved older brother Ariel is making his own way in business, his young wife by his side. Into this intimate, sweetly sedate domestic world—where for Anita the biggest imaginable disaster is a delayed trip to the zoo with Ariel—the world outside intrudes with unexpected fury. When Dora does not show up at a prearranged time, Anita gets lost in the city while searching for her, receiving help and companionship in unexpected quarters through the simple force of her ingenuous personality and open heart. On her meanderings, she learns not only to care for herself, but touches the lives of those around her. The Yankles Sunday, March 6 - 1:00 p.m.Director: David R. Brooks | Narrative | USA | 2009 | 115 minutes | English In this fun-for-the-family feature, a washed-up Major Leaguer gets a second chance—as coach of a yeshiva baseball team. Charlie Jones (Brian Wimmer) is a former baseball star whose alcoholism ended his career in center field, and ruined his personal life as well. After one too many DUIs, Jones has to serve 192 hours of community service, and while he's eager to coach an amateur team as part of his penalty, no one seems willing to take a chance on him. But then he meets Elliot (Michael Buster), an Orthodox Jew studying to be a rabbi who's trying to salvage the hapless baseball team at Yeshiva Torah V’Limud—these buchers of the base paths, nicknamed “The Yankles,” are desperate enough to try anything. After a rough start, Charlie finds a home with the team, and with his help, The Yankles strive for success on the field, while Charlie works to rebuild his reputation in society and his relationships with those whom he wronged in the past. Sponsored by Scott Slabotsky.
The Little Traitor Based on the novel Panther in the Basement by renowned author Amos Oz, The Little Traitor is set in 1947 Palestine, just a few months before Israel becomes a state. This captivating coming-of-age tale centers on Proffy Liebowitz (Ido Port), a precocious 12-year-old boy who has grown up under British occupation and wants nothing more than for the British to get out of his land. But when he’s caught breaking curfew by the worldly and kind Sergeant Dunlop (Alfred Molina), a unique friendship develops between these two “enemies” as tensions escalate and friends and neighbors (including the great Theodore Bikel) grow suspicious and are quick to judge. Writer/director Lynn Roth skillfully blends history and life lessons in this amusing and ultimately touching gem of a film. Sponsored by the Alon family in memory of Michal Alon. Nora's Will A Jewish family in Mexico is turned upside down when a long-held secret is uncovered in this brilliant, dark comedy. Nora (Silvia Mariscal) is in poor health, and with Passover coming up, she decides she wants to end her life so that her family can come together for the funeral and the holiday at the same time. With a Machiavellian flourish, she cleverly manipulates her former husband Jose (Fernando Lujan) into handling the details of her funeral and bringing together her friends and family for the occasion, a task Jose isn't very enthusiastic about, given some unresolved issues between them and his ambivalence toward religion in general. Despite it all, Jose sets out to honor Nora's request, but the discovery of a hidden photograph among her effects leads to a surprising revelation about Nora that changes everyone's perspective on the late lamented—and reminds us all that sometimes the greatest love stories are hidden in the smallest places. Sponsored by Michael Klein. The Klezmatics: On Holy Ground Follows the CenterSeason performance of New York’s “Hebrew Mamita”—see both and save! The Klezmatics’ holy ground is where a Quaker bassist and Reform Jewish trumpeter, Yiddish language, Hasidic dance, gospel music, and Woody Guthrie meet. This quick-paced portrait is the crown of a four-year journey alongside the band members, their music, and their creative process, capturing the restless energy, infectious concert performances, and on-camera candor of the New York-based band that has been redefining Jewish music for more than 20 years. Time Out, New York announced, “The Klezmatics aren’t just the best band in the klezmer vanguard; on a good night, they rank among the greatest bands on the planet.” From New York’s Lower East Side to Krakow, Poland, this film shows why. Festival Pass holders and ticket-holders for this film will receive $5 off any ticket for the stimulating and thought-provoking performance by spoken-word artist Vanessa Hidary, “The Hebrew Mamita” (7:30 p.m. in the White Theatre). Join us between shows for complimentary fresh-brewed Roasterie Coffee!
Sponsored by Ron and Susie Goldsmith. Against the Tide Against the Tide is a compelling film that documents what happened in the United States during the Holocaust, highlighting how a young activist, Peter Bergson, challenged Washington and the establishment Jewish organizations to demand that the rescue of Europe’s Jews become a top priority for American Jews. Through a never before seen 1977 interview, Bergson gives a first-hand account of what occurred. The more successful he became in attracting support from important non-Jewish members of Congress and Hollywood personalities such as Ben Hecht, Edward G. Robinson and Paul Muni, the more threatened and resentful Jewish establishment leaders became. Only the ultra Orthodox Vaad Hatzala, led by Rabbis Aaron Kotler and Eliezer Silver worked with him. Against the Tide addresses the attitudes of President Roosevelt and his senior advisors, who used the pretext of winning the war against the Nazis to block any Jewish immigration to the U.S. and juxtaposes the events in America with heart-wrenching heroic stories of the doomed Jews of Europe and the leaders of Polish Jewry who had faith that their powerful brothers and sisters in the United States would somehow be able to save them. Sponsored by Gail and Allen Gutovitz in honor of Bertha Gutovitz and in memory of Joseph Gutovitz. A Matter of Size A coming-out story of a different kind: Fed up with the “dictatorship of thinness” of their weight-loss workshop, four friends from the Israeli city of Ramle—Kansas City’s Sister City—ditch their diets and find new fulfillment in the world of sumo wrestling. An overweight, underemployed chef who still lives at home with his mother, Herzl (Itzik Cohen) can only find a job as a dishwasher at a Japanese restaurant There, he notices the employees gathered around the television watching sumo wrestling. For Herzl, sumo is a revelation: it's the one sport on the planet where his weight is actually an advantage. But sumo wrestling isn't as easy as it looks on television, and in order to become the first Jewish sumo wrestler Herzl will enlist the aid of Kitano, his boss who happens to be a former coach, and three hefty friends who aren't afraid to throw their weight around. Pound for pound, this film is a pleasure. Sponsored by Bonnie and Herb Buchbinder. |
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