The Women's Balcony

When the women's balcony in an Orthodox Jerusalem synagogue collapses during a bar mitzvah celebration, the congregation goes into crisis. The young and charismatic Rabbi David appears to be a savior after the accident, but slowly starts pushing his fundamentalist ways and tries to take control. This severely tests the women's friendships and creates an almost Lysistrata-type rift between the community's women and men. Featuring some of Israel's top women comics, this rousing, good-natured tale is a warm, humorous, and poignant portrait of a modern Orthodox community whose unity is imperiled by an arrogant interloper. Emil Ben Shimon's feature debut is a comical feminist narrative, at once rebellious and respectful in spirit, about finding the right path to happiness and the subjectivity of righteousness.