Part of Spotlight: Diversity in Israel, LGBT Jewish Films

This entertaining religious mystery is a remarkable and dramatic inside view of women and their struggle to be heard in the patriarchal world of the ultra-orthodox. The Secrets is set in Safed, where the mystical texts of the Kabala were first received. In this closed world a vibrant religious community of scholars is nourished by the sun-drenched hillsides and the holy burial caves of the pious. Naomi, daughter of a revered rabbi, comes to Safed to study in an orthodox women’s seminary. She manages to throw off the yoke of an arranged marriage and eagerly dives into serious Torah study. Naomi impresses her teachers and catches the eye of Michelle, a rebellious new arrival from France. The headmistress assigns Michelle and Naomi to bring meals to the mysterious Anouk (veteran French actress Fanny Ardant), thinking they will learn the lesson of loving-kindness. When Anouk reveals that she is ill and seeking spiritual redemption, Naomi and Michelle start upon a secret journey of purifying rituals. This journey into the forbidden grows ever more intense when they discover their growing attraction to each other.

Screenwriter Hadar Galron grew up as one of the ultra-orthodox. Her story opens a dialogue among religious women who would rather possess themselves than be seen as a man’s possession. With a keen sensitivity to the need to maintain tradition and the need to keep evolving, The Secrets puts faith before religion. The film’s enchanting score incorporates liturgical music sung by women, challenging the traditional custom of forbidding religious women to sing in public.

—Janis Plotkin

Co-sponsored by LGBT Alliance and the Israel Center of the Jewish Community Federation

Co-presented by Frameline and Jewish Community Federation of the Greater East Bay