Pink Lady

Pink Lady

A young wife and mother of three, Bati (Nur Fibak) has a seemingly blessed life within the close-knit ultra-Orthodox Jewish community of Jerusalem. But, in Nir Bergman’s sensitive, intimately observed domestic drama, Bati’s comfortable certainties are overturned when she learns that her husband Lazer (Uri Blufarb) has fallen victim to blackmail over intimate photos that link him romantically with a male study partner. This film…offers a fresh perspective: a woman’s eye view on the taboo subject of gay male relationships in the Hasidic community. But overall this is a quality picture, with the perceptive screenplay by Mindi Ehrlich, who was raised within Jerusalem’s Orthodox community, a key stand out. It’s a tricky market for Israeli cinema right now, even for liberal, thoughtful pictures such as this one, so Pink Lady’s journey following its premiere in competition in Tallinn is uncertain.

Erlich’s insightful screenplay is as much about what isn’t said as what is. [Cannes and Israeli Oscar Winner] Director Bergman taps into humor in scenes with the meddling matriarchs: a moment of synchronized arm-crossing disapproval from the grannies at the risqué suggestion of scarlet underwear is nicely judged and offers levity that contrasts with the anguish of Lazer’s faith-based conversion therapy.