Jewish Movie Review: Disobedience

Based on the novel with the same name by Naomi Alderman, Disobedience is a subtle discourse about the freedom of assuming one´s identity. 

Set in the Orthodox community of Northern London, it explores the triangle Esti-Dovid-Ronit. Ronit is back from NYC to attend the shiva of his father, Rav Krushka, a respected local authority. Estranged from her family and community, she mets again Esti who is married now with Dovid, the logical successor of the Rav. Ronit´s relocation to NYC was caused by the love story between her and Esti that seems that after so many years it is still alive.

Ronit, now a successful photographer, come at terms with her own past, but longed for forgiveness from her father. She is too late though. Esti, a teacher at a girls´ school is playing her role assumed to her in the community, until the meeting with Ronit will wake her up from the life that did not represent her. In a couple of days, this is about to change as she is asking her husband to be free: `I was born in this community. I had no choice. I want my child to decide`.

What will happen after that, how Esti will deal with her newly discovered freedom, if she will follow Ronit or not to NYC are open questions we are left free to guess. What mattered for the story was the main choices of the characters between their appeareances built for the sake of the community and their real selves. 

There are many reasons why I really love this movie: the authentic ambiance of the Jewish Orthodox North London, the natural ways the tensions between the characters and the unfolding story is flowing, the excellent play of the actors, among which Rachel Weisz, as Ronit.

First and foremost I appreciated the quality of a movie who doesn´t want to convince anyone from anything, and just has a story to tell. The fact that it takes place within an observant Jewish community is only the context, what matters is the struggle of the characters and their personal destinies and choices. 

I also recommend reading the book which is a good read too. 

Disobedience the movie is available on Netflix.