“Between the Temples” is a quirky story about Ben, a 40-something Jewish man who finds himself at an emotional low point. His wife has died, he’s moved back home with his two mothers and seems unable to cope with life. Even his job as the cantor at his temple is in crisis. The last straw is his inability to find his singing voice and he hits rock bottom. Or perhaps it’s a punch to the jaw that knocks him to the rock-hard floor of a bar.
His eyes open and he looks up into the face of his grade school music teacher, Mrs. Kessler. She befriends him and eventually reveals she’s never had a Bat Mitzvah. She asks Ben to guide her through the process. Together they support each other as they navigate through some deep, dark and often hilarious emotional waters.
The part of Ben was written specifically for Jason Schwartzman. Once Ben emerges from his state of crisis, he’s a mensch. I looked up the term. One source defines it as “a kind, smart, funny, giving, inspiring, exciting guy who makes your heart smile. The term mensch is shorthand for a Jewish man with ineffable qualities of intense goodness.”
The part of Carla Kessler wasn’t written for Carol Kane, but she’s the ideal choice for the eccentric, clever and attractive older woman. In fact, if a woman could be a mensch, she’d be one.
Robert Smigel plays a convincing Rabbi Bruce. Caroline Aaron and Dolly De Leon are Ben’s wealthy, philanthropic mothers. Their financial generosity has increased their influence at Temple. Their domineering love and concern for Ben has increased their control over him at home.
The most memorable scene takes place at Shabbat dinner. Less scripted than the rest of the film, director Silver intentionally kept the actors confused as to what would happen. This added to the humor and tension. According to Silver, it took two nights, two cameras and lots of film to shoot and three weeks to edit. The end result is a chaotic masterpiece.
I learned about some terms and traditions of Judaism which made the story extra interesting for me. I have a feeling viewers who’ve grown up surrounded by these traditions will relate to the characters and their conflicts with a sense of compassion and understanding.
“Between the Temples" opened in theatres on August 23. It’s rated R and runs 1 hour and 51 complicated minutes.