Trembling Before G-D
by Sandi Simcha Dubowski
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DVD Cover Information
Director: Sandi Simcha DubowskiDVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Running Time: 84 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2003-10-21
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: New Yorker Video
Movie Reviews of Trembling Before G-D
Movie Review: Putting faces to a verse
Summary: 5 Stars
This moving documentary really merits being seen by everyone, no matter what their religion or sexual orientation. While the issue of being both gay and Jewish doesn't seem like a conflict to those in the liberal denominations, it's a much more complex and anguished issue for those who wish to remain true to both parts of their core identity, living a frum life and being gay. It seems like a dire contradiction in terms to devote your life to a religious tradition that essentially denies who you are, but for the brave individuals who agreed to appear in this film (some of them with false names or appearing in silhouette or with blurred faces), being Orthodox and still gay isn't a contradiction at all.
For too many people, the issue of Judaism and homosexuality is a cut and dried prohibition, one verse in Leviticus. They don't have any real-life experience with it, or think it doesn't exist in their ultra-frum communities. But this documentary puts faces to that one verse, shows the people who are in very real pain and conflict over this. It's easy to condemn or dismiss something when it only exists in theory, something you've read about, not something you suddenly find yourself dealing with in your own family or community. People like Leah, Malka, Michelle, David, Israel, Mark, and Devorah are real people who have been living this double identity for years, struggling to come to terms with their orientation and how to still be frum in spite of it. I think it's quite refreshing how the rabbis who appear in this film, though some of them are quite Orthodox, are speaking from personal experience in dealing with gay people. While the Orthodox hold to the belief that the Torah is 100% the literal word of Hashem, these rabbis are flexible and compassionate enough, within that very conservative framework, to reinterpret the verse to find some sort of realistic solution to this problem. Many people are killing themselves or suffering from depression because there is no support network for frum gays; it's completely unfair to compare not following this one particular mitzvah to deciding to also ignore mitzvot such as kashrut and keeping Shabbos. Halacha is really not set in stone, and an alternative answer can always be found even with an Orthodox approach to reading the text. It's also surprising how some of these long-bearded rabbis are more progressive and understanding than some secular people.
It's unfathomable that anyone, after seeing this film and getting to know these people, could still insist that homosexuality is wrong because it's in the Torah, and that settles that issue. Anyone with a heart would see the pain and frustration in people like Israel, desperate to reunite with his 98 year old dad; Devorah, who is married to a man in spite of being a lesbian; and Mark, who misses the yeshiva world even though he was estranged from it after coming out. One's heart goes out to these people who either have to live double lives or live as openly gay in a world where early heterosexual marriage and large families are considered not only the norm, but the only way to live. Hopefully some halachic solutions will be found for this issue sooner than later, so that the next generation of people like Malka, Michelle, David, and Israel won't have to struggle with being frum gays.
The second disc contains a wealth of extras that really enhance the documentary. Among them are an interview with Rabbi Steve Greenberg (whom I was honored to meet when he spoke at my [Conservative] shul in December '06), an interview with director Sandi Simcha Dubowski, a featurette, 'Trembling on the Road,' the trailer, interviews with five of the prominent rabbis featured in the documentary (and while they're quite Orthodox, they also seem compassionate and open-minded, wanting to find a halachic solution to this issue instead of just telling gay people to live celibate lives or pretend to be straight), a deleted scene, a discussion with people involved in Petach Lev, an Israeli group dealing with these issues, footage of an arcane Medieval ceremony to atone for "sexual sins," and so much more.
Summary of Trembling Before G-D
Trembling Before G-d is an unprecedented feature documentary that shatters assumptions about faith, sexuality, and religious fundamentalism. Built around intimately told personal stories of Hasidic and Orthodox Jews who are gay or lesbian, the film portrays a group of people who face a profound dilemma eligious identity and tradition in the world.Drama DVD Video
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