The insular world of Orthodox Jews in Jerusalem comes to the screen (with their blessings) in this warm comedy drama. Moshe (Shuli Rand) was once a secular Jew, but he rediscovered his faith and became an ultra-Orthodox Jew, and with his wife, Mali (Michal Bat Sheva Rand), he struggles to support their family. With the harvest festival of Sukkot around the corner, Moshe is broke, and asks for help from a yeshiva charitable fund. Moshe is told the fund has been depleted, and he and Mali are left
with no options but to pray for a miracle. To their surprise, the next day they're informed some money was found in the fund after all, and they are given 1,000 dollars; Moshe and Mali believe this is the miracle they asked for, and they joyously make plans to build a sukkah, a gazebo-like structure where Orthodox Jews entertain guests and serve their meals. Just as he completes the new sukkah, Moshe is surprised by the unexpected arrival of Eliahu (Shaul Mizrahi) and Yosef (Ilan Gannai), two old friends from his restless days before he embraced his current faith. Imagining the Lord has sent him guests as part of the miracle, Moshe takes in his old pals and tries to make peace with their rambunctious ways, but what he doesn't know is that the two are on the run from the law, having recently escaped from jail. Ushpizin was scripted by leading man Shuli Rand, who is in real life an ultra-Orthodox Jew and demanded a number of conditions before agreeing to participate in the making of the film (such as the producers agreeing to never show the picture on the Sabbath). ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
Viewers who aren't familiar with Orthodox Jewish culture might have trouble fully relating to this Israeli film. But everyone should be able to appreciate its heartwarming tone.
Ushpizin is engaging, entertaining and has something to say about us humans, through the prism of discovering %u2013 or re-discovering %u2013 the importance of faith, and the strength it can impart. Especially under duress.
In addition to providing a fascinating, agenda-free look at an unseen way of life, the film presents a lesson that should be welcome among people of any faith or none at all.
The film provides a valuable glimpse into the religious practices of ultra-Orthodox Jews living in Jerusalem. But it's also a cleverly plotted film, which, refreshingly, also features a few welcome comic elements.
The type of well-written and thoughtful family film that some may have been clamoring for since the hugely successful and hugely formulaic My Big Fat Greek Wedding.
Very good; very Israeli. I would only recommend it for those who don't need constant amounts of action in their films, though. Even then, you may want to have some basic knowledge of Hasidism or at least Middle Eastern culture.
Pretty entertaining and funny throughout, and, oh, such a funny but sad conclusion!
Those who haven't seen it will probably never guess it, either.
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