A Stranger Among Us
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Movie Reviews of A Stranger Among Us
Movie Review: A Film I watch over and over.
Summary: 5 Stars
A Great movie. I watch this over and over! A good intro to Chassidic Brooklyn.Movie Review: Melanie at her most hilarious
Summary: 4 Stars
I have a love/laugh relationship with Melanie Griffith. Sometimes I love her films as they are intended, even if the critics don't, and other times, the films are so stupid they're hysterical. This falls into the latter category. She's this brash, foul-mouthed, trampy, tough-as-nails NYC detective who investigates a murder in the Hasidic jewish diamond district. Naturally, as we see later, she also has a heart of gold. Melanie, as the hard boiled and tough as nails cop, ends up dying her dried-out bleach blonde locks brown and goes "undercover" as a returing Hasidic jewish woman in the community to get to the bottom of the murder, as she thinks it's an "inside job." Right! To believe this premise, she'd have to have the acting ability of Meryl Streep, or there would have to be a sly reference in the film that these were brain damaged, under 80 I.Q. Hasidic jews. Nothing like this is mentioned in the film, and Griffith is no Streep. Then there's this totally silly romance subplot as the girl on the prowl, take no prisoners, use 'em and lose 'em Melanie falls for a quiet, intellectual, sensitive, much younger (they downplay that in the movie), gorgeous Hasidic jewish guy whose house she is sharing while "undercover." Luckily for him, and the audience, the romance goes nowhere, and crass, hard as nails Melanie, ends up respecting his decision that he ought to marry within his faith, and remain pure up until that point. And that other reviewer is right, Melanie, after all the hardwork to go "undercover," does virtually no investigating once a part of their world. The murder solves itself. If NYC detectives were anything like this character, anarchy would rule in NYC. On a most significant note, even though she's hard boiled and tough as nails, she says "okey dokey" in her high little Melanie voice about 15 times in this movie. I have known both devout Jews and hard boiled NYC police. Neither group uses the term "okey dokey" to my knowledge. Where did she come up with this one? I never see it in any of her other movies. Did someone play a cruel joke on her during filming and tell her "okey dokey" is an authentic Jewish term or something and her adding it to the script would help her "transformation"? I guess we'll never know, because when she was on Actor's Studio, this wasn't a movie they discussed (shocker).
Needless to say, I watch this movie whenever I can. It's pretty terrible if you're looking for some kind of action/thriller as the film is billed. If you can appreciate Melanie Griffith's body of work as I can, this is one of her top comedies.
Movie Review: A Shiksa Among Us * * * 1/2
Summary: 4 Stars
A STRANGER AMONG US is almost universally considered one of Director Sidney Lumet's weakest creations, a wholly derivative film based on Harrison Ford's small but memorable tour de force in WITNESS. Lumet takes Ford's sojourn among the Amish of Pennsylvania and transmogrifies it into Melanie Griffith's sojourn among the Hasidim of Brooklyn.
Lumet does his usual splendid job of presenting New York City dynamically and organically, not just as a city of steel and glass, walls and bridges, towers and tunnels, but as a place where people live.
Lumet couldn't have found a more shiksa-ish shiksa to play the shiksa than Melanie Griffith, but Griffith doesn't carry the role of tough as nails plainclothes Detective NYPD Emily Eden very well. To start, the name "Emily Eden" is redolent of crinolines, bubble baths, and lavender. Sure, her character is as crude, profane and inappropriate a cop as the role demands in the face of the exclusively Commandment-driven life of the Hasidim, but Griffith herself is as soft and squeaky as a plush toy. She's CUTE, which makes her very unbelievable.
This would have been a breakthrough role for the beautiful, hard-edged Theresa Russell a la IMPULSE, but chalk it all up to a missed opportunity. Good supporting roles are played by Tracy Pollan as Mara and James Gandolfini in his debut performance as---guess what--a Mafiosi.
The plot is strictly generic and off-the-shelf. One of the younger Hasidic diamond merchants is murdered, and all evidence points to it being an inside job. Assigned as investigator, Griffith is posted in the home of the aged Rebbe, a Holocaust survivor, and becomes acquainted with, and then attracted to, his adopted son and lineage heir Ariel.
This film excels (and it does excel) in giving the general audience a glimpse into the close-knit community and mutually interdependent lifestyle of Hasidic Jews. This may not seem like a very big acheivement in our fractionalized modern world, but the film is a wonderful vehicle for presenting the multiculturalism of New York's varied communities with respect. The people portrayed in this film become far less alien, familiar and likeable---understandable---when seen through Lumet's lens. For this, if for no other reason, A STRANGER AMONG US is a worthy addition to Lumet's body of work.
Movie Review: Great Topic, So-So Acting
Summary: 4 Stars
OK, I'm biased -- so much of the action in this movie takes place very close to my hometown, and the police precinct was actually *our* police precinct when I was a kid. And every New Yorker is familiar, to a greater or lesser extent, with Hasidim, so this was a great chance to explore the culture from the "inside"; I think the movie did a great job of debunking the myths, it treated the religion with respect (always important to me), and the plot was actually believable.
So -- what was Melanie Griffith smoking when she sleep-walked through this role? She is the main character in this film, and her performance is so dead! There are so many places where a little passion was called for, a little emphasis, and the line comes out as if she had simply memorized it; even the places where she displays passion, it's as if someone had said, "Melanie, you really need to put a little more oomph into what you're saying here." This actress was not at all "invested" in this role -- she didn't become the character at all -- and that's what acting is all about, stepping out of yourself and putting on someone else's skin for awhile.
Bottom line: If you love to explore other cultures, if you are Jewish, if you live in close proximity to Jews -- definitely buy the movie. It's a beautiful description of the culture, and the final scenes lend credence to the whole premise that there's a "beschert" -- a "fate" -- for each of us in this world. If really good acting is important to you...well...I'd still buy the movie, but just be aware that the main character is just that, a character -- not a person.
Movie Review: Ignore the plot, watch for the details
Summary: 4 Stars
Ok, so I feel a little silly giving this movie four stars. Melanie Griffith portraying a hardened New York detective? Uh, no. The romance? Silly. The killer's identity? Not exactly a shocker. And yet I really enjoyed this movie because someone did their research. This is really a sensitive, non-prejudiced introduction to the world of Hasidim, a small, ultra-Orthodox segment of the Jewish population.The story revolves around a murder in the Hasidic community of jewelers in New York. Emily Eden (Griffith) is dispatched to investigate and ends up going undercover within the community. The film has wonderful details about Hasidic life and customs, the role of the Rebbe, the antagonism from the mainstream Jewish community, and addresses the unfortunate sheet rumor which I won't go into here. As I said, Griffith's miscasting makes Angie Dickinson's work on Police Woman appear the height of feminist role models. Mia Sara fares better as the daughter of the Rebbe (the leader and epicenter of Hasidic communities.) Also, fine work from Eric Thal as the Rebbe's son who is destined to become the next leader of the Hasidim. This film is both a guilty pleasure and a surprisingly informative introduction to a fascinating community. Come for the dreck, stay for the halachah.