2. Minyan; movie review

MINYAN

Cert 15

119 mins

BBFC advice: Contains strong sex, language, drug misuse

An Auschwitz survivor, a gay man discovering himself at the height of the Aids epidemic and the backdrop of the strict Russian Jewish community of New York.

Minyan has some very spicy ingredients so it was a disappointment that the overall dish lacks the punch we expected.

Eric Steel's film stars Samuel H. Levine as David, a young man who is conflicted about his religion and his sexuality.

But he is unconditionally devoted to his grandfather (Ron Rifkin) who he helps settle into a retirement facility following the death of his wife.

In this Russian Jewish enclave, David meets Itzik (Mark Margolis) and Herschel (Christopher McCann), two closeted men who show him the possibilities of finding love.

However, he still has the frustrations of a meddling mother (Brooke Bloom) a violent ex-boxer father and being enrolled at a Jewish school which he loathes.

Thus, he turns to vodka and seeks solace in a bartender (Alex Hurt) at his favourite drinking den.

This should have been the backdrop for a riveting movie but, disappointingly, Minyan never moves out of second gear.

Accompanied by a melancholic saxophone soundtrack, we see David trying to keep his life on a level, rarely showing heightened emotion.

Meanwhile, stories about the Aids epidemic and the horrors of Auschwitz are largely kept under wraps.

I wanted more of both and extra layers for David's own story. Instead, too much is left unsaid and the audience is left to presume his future direction of travel.

Some cinema-goers enjoy filling in the gaps with their own imagination. Mrs W and I would have preferred the movie's makers to provide completion.

Reasons to watch: Great story premise

Reasons to avoid: Doesn't exploit some potentially rich seams

Laughs: None

Jumps: None

Vomit: None

Nudity: Bare bums

Overall rating: 6/10

Did you know? In the mid-1970’s, Brighton Beach in New York became a popular place to settle for Soviet immigrants, mostly Ashkenazi Jews from Russia and Ukraine. So many Soviet Jews descended on Brighton Beach that the area became known as “Little Odessa”after the port on the Black Sea.

The final word. Eric Steel: "There is a particular way that strangers move through strange lands. Immigrants, Jews, homosexuals — in order to survive, they have learned to be keen observers, listeners more than talkers, always on the lookout for danger and openings."

 

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