KISS ME KOSHER Film Review – Rom-Com Lightens the Heavy Air of Competing Cultures

Posted on by Susan Lieberman

Kiss Me Kosher, directed by Shirel Peleg presented at the St. Louis Jewish Film Festival, includes plenty of kissing. Dark and sensuous Israeli Shira (Moran Rosenblatt) locks lips with fair and gangly German Maria (Luise Wolfram) so often, the titular kiss earns its place. Unexpectedly, though, kosher– as in proper Jewish behavior – doesn’t refer to same-sex love.

Two petite firecrackers, Shira and her grandmother Berta (Rivka Michaeli) spar because of Shira’s turnover rate with lovers, not their gender. What trips up Berta, the financial backer of Shira’s lively urban bar, is that her granddaughter’s latest passion is a shiksa from Stuttgart. When Shira and Maria become engaged, it’s just too much for Berta who hid in a cold attic as a toddler during the Holocaust. Meanwhile, Berta has her own kosher violation: a Palestinian suitor named Ibrahim (Salim Dau) with great tolerance for the crusty object of his affection.

Kiss Me Kosher’s Antidote to Reality

Add to these characters the mother, father and brother of the would-be brides.  These improbable characters have everything and nothing to do with the contemporary Israel we know from media coverage. Landmines such as Netanyahu, Hamas, checkpoints, refugee camps and bomb shelters stay off screen completely, despite their impact on the characters’ lives. Kiss Me Kosher’s vibe is funky, the pace swift and the soundtrack popping with, among other sources, the ever-changing tune of a three-person wedding band that follows the plot’s twists and turns.

As an antidote to Israel’s recent reality – with raging extremists filling the streets and explosives filling the skies – Kiss Me Kosher works well, in this writer’s opinion. It’s easy rom-com resolutions to high-stake problems lighten the heavy air of competing cultures with a refreshing breeze.

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CREATIVE TEAM:

Written and directed by Shirel Peleg

CAST:

Moran Rosenblatt

Luise Wolfram

Rivka Michaeli

Juliane Kohler

Bernhardt Schutz

Irit Kaplan 

Aviv Pincas

Eyal Shikratzi

John Carroll Lynch

Salim Dau

For upcoming films in the annual The St. Louis Jewish Film Festival visit their website

To purchase the film visit the Amazon webpage for Kiss Me Kosher.

Images Courtesy of KISS ME KOSHER

Susan Lieberman
Susan Lieberman

About the Author: Susan Lieberman

Susan Lieberman is a Jeff-winning playwright, journalist, teacher and script consultant who commits most of her waking hours to Chicago theatre. Her radio drama In the Shadows aired on BBC Radio 4 last season.

Editor's Note: Click here to find more Picture This Post reviews by Susan Lieberman

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