May 4 - film screening: Hester Street

Once again, Oy Vey and Kriterion join forces to commemorate May 4 (Dutch remembrance day for WWII) and celebrate May 5 (liberation day) at the historic location of Kriterion, through Jewish rituals, customs and stories. We combine Jewish film, discussion and ritual to make sense of these days.

On May 4 we screen the film Hester Street and organize an Oy Vey commemoration in the foyer of Kriterion.

Date: May 4
Time: 16:30 – 18:20
Location: Bioscoop Kriterion, Roetersstraat 170
Tickets: get your tickets here

Hester Street (Joan Micklin Silver, 1975, 90 minutes, English and Yiddish with English subtitles)

One of the most beloved American films of the 1970s, this recently restored and subtly crafted period drama by the groundbreaking independent director Joan Micklin Silver beautifully captures the life of Jewish immigrants on the Lower East Side at the turn of the century. Carol Kane, nominated for an Oscar for Best Actress, shines as Gitl—a young Jewish immigrant from Eastern Europe who arrives in New York as a wife and mother. To her surprise, she discovers that her husband Yankel (Steven Keats) has abandoned his old traditions and expects the same from her.

Using crystal-clear black-and-white cinematography and a restrained narrative style, Silver sketches a simple yet moving story centered on Gitl’s gradual quest for independence. The film casts light on the tensions between age-old customs and the demands of a new world, remaining relevant in its exploration of gender and tradition. With Hester Street, Joan Micklin Silver presents a timeless portrait of a world in transition, where the personal journey of a young woman symbolizes the broader search for identity and belonging in a changing society.

The film will be introduced (in English) by Lievnath Faber.