The Messianic Times - International Messianic Jewish News and Information

Ushpizin is an out-of-theordinary- love story that affords us a rare glimpse into the heart of Jerusalem’s Orthodox community. Beautifully written by Shuli Rand (who also stars) and seamlessly directed by Gidi Dar, set against the backdrop of Sukkot, this comedy-drama is an artfully crafted tale of love and loss, faith and forgiveness, and fruit. Yes, fruit—the most exquisite and sought after citron in all of Jerusalem.

The story opens with Moshe Bellanga (poignantly played by Rand) eyeing a jewel that precious few can afford- a perfectly formed yellow citron, or etrog (a fragrant fruit similar to a lemon), one of the four species necessary for the Sukkot rituals. Moshe and Mali Bellanga, an ultra-Orthodox couple longing for a child, are both baal teshuvah —a Jew who has “repented and returned” to Judaism through a Torah-observant lifestyle. Deeply committed to one another, Moshe devotes himself to daily prayer and Torah study, while she keeps the home. Sukkot is fast approaching, but Moshe and Mali (played by Rand’s real life wife, Michal Bat Sheva Rand) are more than a few shekels short of the rent and without the means to build a sukkah, much less buy an etrog. They implore HaShem for a miracle.

A split screen technique is used to dramatic effect when their prayers uttered separately, rise in crescendo, hers from a prayerbook, his from sorrow, both from the soul. When $1,000 miraculously shows up, Moshe celebrates by spending an exorbitant sum for the prized etrog, a blessing to ensure sons. Their prayers for a sukkah answered, surely God will send ushpizin—an Aramaic word meaning “righteous guests”—to share their abundance. Guests they get, but righteous they are not.

Enter Eliyahu and his sidekick Yossef (in a delightful comic turn by Shaul Mizrahi and Ilan Ganani), bumbling jailbirds on the run. Unbeknownst to Mali, Moshe’s secular, freewheeling past included imprisonment with Eliyahu. Mali sees their arrival as yet another blessing, but Moshe isn’t so sure. Mali offers hospitality in the spirit of sheli shelkhah—what’s mine is yours— and the unrepentant Eliyahu and Yossef decide to supersize their portion. Skeptical of Moshe’s conversion, Eliyahu goads his old friend, believing he still harbors a violent temper. Is Moshe merely making pretensions at Orthodoxy? Or does his desire to depend completely on the Lord cause him to surrender his anger in exchange for God’s mercy?

Few films delve into the subject of Orthodox Judaism. Hollywood gave us Sidney Lumet’s A Stranger Among Us, a whodunit set among the Orthodox in the diamond district of New York. Chaim Potok’s The Chosen examined the cultural differences between Orthodox and Hasidic Jews through the lens of a friendship between two teenage boys. In 1998, PBS aired the documentary, A Life Apart: Hasidism in America, a surprisingly candid look into three generations of Hasidic family life in Brooklyn. Traditionally, Hasidim don’t own televisions, nor do they go to the movies, steering clear of anything that might lead to idolatry. So how did Ushpizin, written by Shuli Rand, a baal teshuvah, with a cast almost entirely of Hasidic actors, make it to the big screen?

Director Gidi Dar, a secular Zionist, who felt disconnected from the centuries of religious tradition that preceded the modern State of Israel, wanted to shoot a film which celebrated his heritage. Rand, who became friends with Dar while working on a film together in 1992, wanted to bridge a gap that polarized not only secular and religious Jews, but religious and Hasidic Jews. Rand became a successful stage and screen star in Israel before he left it all behind to study Torah as a Breslov Hasid. His rebbe granted him permission to work on the film.

Since Orthodox men cannot make direct eye contact with women other than their spouses, he could only perform as an actor as long as the character of his wife was portrayed by his real wife. Rand prayed. Dar negotiated. The first hurdle Dar overcame was getting Rand’s wife Michal to accept the role. Not being an actress, she initially protested. When she realized that Shuli would not be allowed to participate without her, she finally consented. (Onscreen she is brilliant as Mali. Hers may be a patriarchal society, but Mali is no pushover.) Next, Dar had to agree to abstaining from working on Shabbat, not allowing women on the crew, serving glatt kosher meals on the set, and lastly, breaking every two hours for the Hasidim to dance.

The success of this film lies in its ability to explore the heart and soul of a man not only passionately in love with his wife, but desperately in love with HaShem. As the film progresses, we become the “ushpizin,” invited guests into a world not easily entered or understood. It is a small miracle that this film was even made, but the true wonder is the insight and joy Ushpizin delivers to its audience. MT