Life Apart: Hasidism in America
by Oren Rudavsky, Menachem Daum
List Price:
Our Price: $14.85
You Save: $15.10 (50%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Category: VHS Video
See more movie releases
Buy this VHS video movie at online store in your country
Canada
Canada
VHS Tape Cover Information
Actor: Leonard Nimoy, Sarah Jessica ParkerDirector: Menachem Daum, Oren Rudavsky
Cinematographer: Oren Rudavsky
Producer: Oren Rudavsky
Producer: Menachem Daum
Writer: Menachem Daum
Editor: Ruth Schell
Producer: Arnold Labaton
Producer: Immy Humes
Producer: Martin Dornbau
Producer: Martin Dornbaum
Producer: Sari Fensterheim
Writer: Robert Seidman
Edition: VHS Tape
Audio: English (Original Language), Analog
Format: Black & White, Color, NTSC
Running Time: 96 minutes
Release Date: 1999-11-09
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Publisher: First Run Features
Studio: First Run Features
VHS Movie Reviews of Life Apart: Hasidism in America
Movie Review: Informative but rather superficial
Summary: 3 Stars
This film is informative but rather superficial. If you know well the hassidic world or search for a deep understanding of his ways and thinking, this will be not enough for you. It gives information and (bless God!!) is sympathetic, but if the mind and professional expertise of the fim makers is there, the soul is not. And the soul, the neshameh, is an important thing in hassidism after all...
Summary of Life Apart: Hasidism in America
Hasidic Jews seem alien, and even hostile, to those outside their culture, which frequently includes other Jews. They dress differently, don't mingle between the sexes, speak Yiddish, and wear side curls, all in an attempt to rigorously follow the commandments of the Torah. They tend to keep to themselves, shunning television and the media so outside influences cannot corrupt their values and views. Yet filmmakers Oren Rudavsky and Menachem Daum were able to enter their world, and the result is the fascinating documentary A Life Apart: Hasidism in America. Using interviews with academics and members of the community and some historical footage, the filmmakers trace the growth of Hasidic groups in the United States. Groups formed around particular Rebbes (learned leaders) and they took their names from their Eastern European home cities (the Samovar Hasids, the Breslover Hasids, and so on). Leonard Nimoy and Sarah Jessica Parker narrate, explaining how this movement came to America and how it was able to flourish. Dissenting voices also appear, in the form of neighborhood people who are distressed at the Hasids' refusal to speak to members not in their community and of a young woman, Pearl Gluck, who left the community in order to pursue her writing and to follow a life of her own choosing. Many Hasids refuse to speak on camera, and we see many shielding themselves with hands or coats so as not to appear on film. But those who do appear are poignant in their discussions of why the Hasidic life is important to them. One man speaks to the directors, even as he acknowledges that he will never see the movie, but he will do it "in order to help a Jew make a living." One couple, Holocaust survivors, are not Hasidic, but their children are, and the reasonings of both the parents and the children are interesting. This film, shown on PBS, is a consequential look into a lifestyle many of us don't understand, and it may help in increasing an understanding. --Jenny BrownDocumentary VHS Video
VHS Video Movies
- Action & Adventure
- African American Cinema
- Animation VHS Video
- Anime & Manga
- Art House & International
- Classics VHS Video
- Comedy VHS Video
- Cult Movies
- Documentary
- Drama VHS Video
- Educational
- Fitness
- Gay & Lesbian
- Horror VHS Video
- Kids & Family
- Military & War VHS Video
- Music Video & Concerts
- Musicals & Performing Arts
- Mystery & Suspense
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Special Interests
- Sports VHS Video
- Television VHS Video
- Westerns VHS Video
Movies most talked about in Films When Learning Introductory Judaism
Keeping the FaithRelease date: 2000-10-17; DVD
Best price: $4.41
Price in other shops:
The Prince of EgyptParamount; Release date: 1999-09-14; DVD
Best price: $7.03
Price in other shops:
KadoshRelease date: 2000-11-28; DVD
Best price: $17.30
Price in other shops:
Into The Arms Of Strangers - Stories Of The KindertransportRelease date: 2001-08-28; DVD
Best price: $3.01
Price in other shops:
Left LuggageRelease date: 2001-07-10; DVD
Best price: $12.85
Price in other shops:
Survivors of the HolocaustTurner Home Ent; Release date: 1996-04-09; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $9.94
Price in other shops:
Jazz Singer (1927)MGM (Warner); Release date: 1994-11-04; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $13.97
Price in other shops:
The Man Who CriedUniversal; Release date: 2002-01-02; DVD
Best price: $5.50
Price in other shops:
Schindler's List (Widescreen Edition)Universal Studios; Release date: 1995-08-29; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $4.86
Price in other shops:
KorczakNew Yorker Video; Release date: 1998-11-11; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Price in other shops:
Similar VHS Movies
Paper ClipsHART SHARP VIDEO; Release date: 2006-03-07; DVD
Best price: $11.78
Price in other shops:
Image Before My Eyes - A History of Jewish Life in Poland BeforeNEW VIDEO GROUP INC; Release date: 2006-04-25; DVD
Best price: $16.48
Price in other shops:
A Price Above RubiesRelease date: 2000-01-18; DVD
Best price: $3.95
Price in other shops:
KadoshRelease date: 2000-11-28; DVD
Best price: $19.35
Price in other shops:
The Jewish AmericansParamount; Release date: 2008-02-05; DVD
Best price: $19.96
Price in other shops:
Time of FavorRelease date: 2002-09-10; DVD
Best price: $18.50
Price in other shops:
A Stranger Among UsRelease date: 2003-06-03; DVD
Best price: $4.94
Price in other shops:
Left LuggageRelease date: 2001-07-10; DVD
Best price: $24.91
UshpizinWarner Brothers; Release date: 2006-04-04; DVD
Best price: $17.47
Price in other shops:
The ChosenRelease date: 2003-09-02; DVD
Best price: $89.96