Citizen Mankiewicz’s Hyper-Jewishness
Vincent Brook reviews David Fincher’s biopic Mank. Commenting on the cast of Woody Allen’s Stardust Memories (1980), film historian Patricia Erens observed, ‘The rolling credits probably contain the largest list of Jewish names in film history, apart from the Yiddish cinema of the 1930s’. David Fincher’s Mank (2020), about Herman ‘Mank’ Mankiewicz’s writing contribution to Citizen Kane, may not compete with Allen’s film in the number of Jewish actors (Mank himself is played by […]
Spartacus: A Jewish Epic
Nathan Abrams explores the Jewishness of a landmark film on its sixtieth anniversary. Conceived by Kirk Douglas and executed by Stanley Kubrick, the Roman epic Spartacus is still considered one of the best examples of its genre. It has left an indelible mark on our popular culture and has been much mimicked as well as parodied. […]
John le Carré’s Jews
To mark the passing of the legendary spy author, Phyllis Lassner reflects on his questioning Jewish characters. John le Carré, who died on December 12, at the age of 89, relished the ambivalences, suspicions, and deceptions that mapped his fictional spyscapes. Like his life story, in the end, they remain riddled with unanswered questions. What […]
Naivety not Nativity: 40 Years of Limmud
Alastair Falk looks back at four decades of Limmud. For forty years, every Christmas, Jews have been wandering the wildernesses of deserted university and school campuses. This is because of Limmud, the energetic alternative to the traditional festivities in Britain. This year’s Limmud Festival ( even the name now hints at its seasonal feel) may need to […]
The expulsion of the Jews in 1496
Dora Guennes explores the first brain drain from Portugal. On December 5, 1496, King Manuel I signed the decree that expelled most of the Jews from Portugal. The resulting legal act – The Expulsion of the Jews and Moors from the Kingdom of Portugal – marked the diaspora of the Sephardi Jews, a community of […]
Ten Reasons Why ‘Shrek’ Is Jewish
Nathan Abrams provides ten reasons why Shrek is Jewish. Every year, the Library of Congress’s National Film Registry chooses 25 films of historical, cultural, or aesthetic significance to be marked for preservation. Among this year’s inductees is Shrek (2001). The Registry commended the film thus: Even by DreamWorks standards, the charm and magic of ‘Shrek’ […]
Roald Dahl’s Antisemitic Legacy
Sean Alexander takes a deeper look at Roald Dahl’s antisemitism. There is a trait in the Jewish character that does provoke animosity, maybe it’s a kind of generosity towards non-Jews. I mean, there’s always a reason why anti-anything crops up anywhere; even a stinker like Hitler didn’t just pick on them for no reason. I […]
The Mysterious (Jewish) Monoliths
Nathan Abrams considers the religious symbolism of the mysterious monoliths that have been recently appearing. Strange monoliths have suddenly started appearing and disappearing at various locations around the world. No one knows who put them there or why. Immediately, the lyrics of the immortal Spinal Tap came to mind: In ancient times,Hundreds of years before the […]
On Jewish communal sex-that-is-not-sex
Continuing our series, Keith Kahn-Harris revisits Jews & Sex from a more sociological standpoint. Featured image: The Naughty Jewish Boys Calendar In 2018, American Jewry became embroiled in the then-current ‘#MeToo’ movement when multiple allegations of sexual harassment by the prominent sociologist of Jewish life Steven M. Cohen were made public. Cohen did not contest […]
Flash Gordon, Moshiach of the Universe
Nathan Abrams tells the hidden Jewish history of a childhood favourite, Flash Gordon, which is 40 years old today. Imagine if the creators of Superman had read Susan Sontag’s ‘Notes on Camp’ and the result is Flash Gordon which celebrates the fortieth anniversary of its release today. In a nutshell, scientist Dr. Hans Zarkov, football […]