Big League Jews

You went to a bar mitzvah once. You played the dreidel in grammar school. You learned about Judaism by watching Fiddler on the Roof, Schindler’s List, and comedienne Sarah Silverman. With that kind of education, you’re still clueless about the Jewish experience. Time to get your Gentile booty down to...

By Wynter Holden

February 18, 2010

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You went to a bar mitzvah once. You played the dreidel in grammar school. You learned about Judaism by watching Fiddler on the Roof, Schindler’s List, and comedienne Sarah Silverman. With that kind of education, you’re still clueless about the Jewish experience.

Time to get your Gentile booty down to the Greater Phoenix Jewish Film Festival’s opening event, which features Mediterranean food, traditional music from Pam Beitman, and the Arizona premiere of A Matter of Size; a comedy about an unemployed Israeli chef who travels to Japan and becomes a sumo wrestler.

“Some people mistakenly think a Jewish film festival is all about the Holocaust,” says artistic director Roni Zee. “That is not the case.” She's right: this year’s flicks run the gamut, ranging from a documentary on Maria Altmann to The Debt, a Hebrew-language thriller that’s being remade with Helen Mirren as the star.

Sat., Feb. 20, 7:30 p.m., 2010

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