Directed by Joseph Cedar (Israel)
A father-son academic rivalry provides fodder for this caustic comedy set in the Talmud Department of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. A bitter old professor, Eliezer Shkolnik (Shlomo Bar Aba), has worked for decades in obscurity, while an unscrupulous rival has stolen his thunder; his reputation rests on a mere footnote in someone else's work. Meanwhile, Eliezer's son, Uriel (Lior Ashkenazi), has become an academic superstar by producing popular books on Jewish culture. The two men are set against each other with the impending announcement of the annual Israel Prize. Israeli-born, New York-educated Joseph Cedar (Beaufort) won the Cannes screenwriting prize for his mordant script about mountains, mole-hills and the popular biblical theme of mean fathers and rebellious sons.
Sept. 12, 5:15 p.m., Lightbox 2; Sept. 14, 2 p.m., AMC 10