Letters to the editor
Readers respond
Where are the Jews?
In over 100 years of film and decades of television, we Jews have rarely been portrayed well. How is it that while we have been living in a time and place where we have been the most free to practice our religion and celebrate our beautiful culture and traditions — and where we have been both intricately involved with and extremely influential in Hollywood since its inception — we are still depicted in stereotypical and comic fashion, and our religious leaders in an irreverent light?
And now we have “Between the Temples,” which was reviewed positively in the Chronicle as “the most mainstream Jewish movie of the year” (“Jason Schwartzman plays a small-town cantor with a spiritual crisis in ‘Between the Temples,’” via JTA, Aug. 23). Yet the acting was poor. The plot was confusing and difficult to follow. The dialogue was puerile and vulgar and, most definitely, the Jewish characters were portrayed in negative stereotypical fashion.
Where are all the influential Jews in film and television who will have the courage and depth of feeling for our Judaism to portray us better, to ensure an honest representation of our beautiful culture and religion — true portraits of us that don’t play into stereotypes or play down to expectations? Let’s show the general public — and ourselves — the good stuff!
Howard Meyerwitz
Pittsburgh
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