Movies: Match and ‘5 to 7’

MatchAt the 2015 Palm Spring Film Festival, two films stood out from the 8 that we viewed:  ‘Match’ and ‘5 to 7’   They are must-see movies for 2015.  Match is set to debut in theaters on January 14th.  ‘5 to 7’ is slated to be screened sometime in 2015, but has no release dates set.

Match is an adaptation of a play written by Stephen Belber.   He directs here and does a nice job.  However, while is directing may not be revelationary, his script is taut and well-honed.  It is a gripping, funny and fast movie that holds your interest and addresses some very compelling issues.  Patrick Stewart gives a masterclass in acting….it’ll be a shame if he doesn’t get an Oscar nomination.   Independent filmmaking doesn’t really get any better than this.  And Stewart is a joy!   The actors play off one another well  (in person at the Film Festival, they seemed to truly enjoy one another and displayed an affection that is somewhat unusual in that line of work).  Their mutual enthusiasm and affection shows – the film sparkles.

5 to 7‘ doesn’t quite have the acting bravado of ‘Match‘, but what it does have is a wonderful Woody Allen-ish script written by Howard Levin (the writer also directed) that tickles, amuses and pushes the audience into dealing with some uncomfortable but fun questions about relationships.  It is an excellent piece of writing.  The screenplay introduces us to struggling but gifted young writer (Anton Yelchin) who begins an affair with an older woman (Bérénice Marlohe) from France whose open marriage to a diplomat (Lambert Wilson) dictates that they can meet only between the hours of 5 to 7.   Frank Langella and Glenn Close join in laugh-filled supporting roles playing the funniest and most unlikely Jewish parents since Laurence Olivier in ‘The Jazz Singer’.  But unlike Olivier,  these two are hilarious, as is the movie.   A definite must see in 2015.

2 thoughts on “Movies: Match and ‘5 to 7’”

  1. For future reference:
    Actors of fully Jewish background: -Logan Lerman, Natalie Portman, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Mila Kunis, Bar Refaeli, James Wolk, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Julian Morris, Adam Brody, Esti Ginzburg, Kat Dennings, Gabriel Macht, Erin Heatherton, Odeya Rush, Anton Yelchin, Paul Rudd, Scott Mechlowicz, Lisa Kudrow, Lizzy Caplan, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Gal Gadot, Debra Messing, Robert Kazinsky, Melanie Laurent, Shiri Appleby, Justin Bartha, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Margarita Levieva, Elizabeth Berkley, Halston Sage, Seth Gabel, Skylar Astin, Mia Kirshner, Alden Ehrenreich, Eric Balfour, Jason Isaacs, Jon Bernthal, William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy.

    Andrew Garfield is Jewish, too (though I don’t know if both of his parents are).

    Actors with Jewish mothers and non-Jewish fathers -Jake Gyllenhaal, Dave Franco, James Franco, Scarlett Johansson, Daniel Day-Lewis, Daniel Radcliffe, Alison Brie, Eva Green, Joaquin Phoenix, River Phoenix, Emmy Rossum, Rashida Jones, Jennifer Connelly, Sofia Black D’Elia, Nora Arnezeder, Goldie Hawn, Ginnifer Goodwin, Amanda Peet, Eric Dane, Jeremy Jordan, Joel Kinnaman, Ben Barnes, Patricia Arquette, Kyra Sedgwick, Dave Annable, Ryan Potter.

    Actors with Jewish fathers and non-Jewish mothers, who themselves were either raised as Jews and/or identify as Jews: -Ezra Miller, Gwyneth Paltrow, Alexa Davalos, Nat Wolff, Nicola Peltz, James Maslow, Josh Bowman, Winona Ryder, Michael Douglas, Ben Foster, Jamie Lee Curtis, Nikki Reed, Zac Efron, Jonathan Keltz, Paul Newman.

    Oh, and Ansel Elgort’s father is Jewish, though I don’t know how Ansel was raised.

    Actors with one Jewish-born parent and one parent who converted to Judaism -Dianna Agron, Sara Paxton (whose father converted, not her mother), Alicia Silverstone, Jamie-Lynn Sigler.

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