Film
What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases
Bookmark this pageThe Chosen (1981)
Director: Jeremy Paul Kagan
Movie review
From Time Out Film Guide
A worthy but irretrievably dull homily (based on the novel by Chaim Potok) about the conflict between adolescent friendship - two Jewish boys, one orthodox and Zionist, the other a Hasidic - and filial devotion within the demands of the faith. This is post-war New York, and The Issue is the founding of the Jewish state in Palestine, a little-known piece of history but here uncomfortably yoked to a story of heartfelt human relationships, and topped off by Steiger's most mannered performance ever as the Hasidic rabbi. Whispering into his patriarch's beard and rolling his eyes heavenward, Steiger milks the role you suspect he has longed for ever since The Pawnbroker, and director Kagan makes little attempt to hold the ham in check.Author: MA
Cast & crew
Director: Jeremy Paul Kagan
Producer: Edie Landau, Ely Landau
Cast: Maximilian Schell, Rod Steiger, Robby Benson, Barry Miller, Hildy Brooks, Val Avery full cast
Duration: 108 mins
Most popular on this site
Top Stories
Has David Cronenberg turned tame?
Has director David Cronenberg veered too far from his radical and bloody roots with new film 'A Dangerous Method'?
The 10 worst date movies
Just in time for Valentine's Day, we present ten of the least romantic films ever made
Where to watch this year's Oscar-nominated films
Find out where to watch 2012's Oscar-nominated films in London cinemas
10 unlikely badboy biopics
Featuring Phil Collins, Jeremy Clarkson, Nick Clegg, David Starkey and a host of other unlikely subjects
Interview: Sean Durkin on 'Martha Marcy May Marlene'
The first-time director of the brilliant new thriller discusses religious cults and robot boxing
Pop-up cinema for Valentine's Day
Side-step romantic clichés with some alternative Valentine’s viewing
What do you think?
Post your review now