Watching a movie on the VCR in the comfort of home is one thing.
Absorbing a film in a large, darkened room with a group of other people is something else entirely.
The social aspect of filmgoing is one force behind a new Jewish film series for seniors sponsored by Congregation Beth Sholom in San Francisco. The second and third Thursday afternoon of each month, seniors gather in the synagogue social hall to watch a film, then deconstruct it over coffee, tea and cake. Admission to the events are $1; they are open to Beth Sholom members and nonmembers alike.
“The point of the program is for seniors to get together in a social way,” says Janet Harris, program director for the Koret Synagogue Initiative at Beth Sholom.
“There are film series at night that seniors can’t get to. I thought it would be nice to do something during the day that’s entertaining and educational.”
More than 20 seniors, some of them Russians, attended the series inauguration earlier this month. While some found the film, Mel Brooks’ bawdy slapstick comedy “Blazing Saddles,” hysterically funny, others said during a lively discussion following the movie that they were offended by its racy language.
Debate is OK with Harris. The seniors “let me know that they want films with a lot of Jewish content that are thought-provoking,” she said.
The second installment in the series featured “The Frisco Kid,” starring Gene Wilder as a Polish rabbi who makes his way to San Francisco with the help of a warmhearted outlaw cowboy played by Harrison Ford.
Upcoming films include “Hester Street,” the story of a turn-of-the-century Jewish immigrant couple and the impact of Americanization; “Jazz Singer,” starring Neil Diamond as an aspiring performer whose assimilation to American life pains his traditional cantor father; and “Cast a Giant Shadow,” the story of a Jewish American’s involvement in the fight for Israel’s independence. The film stars John Wayne, Yul Brynner and Kirk Douglas.
Also slated is “Americaner Shadchen,” a 1940 musical about second-generation Jews in New York City and their search for love.
Taken together, said Harris, the films in the series present a broad picture of Jewish life that many seniors may find familiar.
“I think people like to connect with part of their own story,” she said.
Ernest Rosenthal, a member of Beth Sholom who attended the first film in the series, thinks programs like the film series are sorely needed.
“The whole idea is necessary,” he said. Sometimes, “the synagogues are doing things for young people, but seniors are left out.”