The Believer (2001)

Director:

Henry Bean

Writers:

Henry Bean (screenplay)
Henry Bean (story) ...

Release Date:

23 August 2001 (Russia)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A young Jewish man develops a fiercely anti-Semitic worldview. Based on the true story of a KKK member in the 1960s who was revealed to be Jewish by a New York Times reporter.

Plot Keywords:

Self Loathing | Reporter | New York City | Judaism | New York Times

Awards:

5 wins & 9 nominations

Cast

Ryan Gosling	...	Danny Balint
Peter Meadows	...	Orthodox Student
Garret Dillahunt	...	Billings
Kris Eivers	...	Carleton
Joel Garland	...	O.L.
Billy Zane	...	Curtis Zampf
Theresa Russell	...	Lina Moebius
Summer Phoenix	...	Carla Moebius
Jack Drummond	...	Old Coot
Sig Libowitz	...	Rav Zingesser
James G. McCaffrey	...	Young Avi
Jacob Green	...	Young Danny
Frank Winters	...	Young Stuart
Ronald Guttman	...	Danny's Father
Heather Goldenhersh	...	Linda

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence, language and some sexual content.

Runtime:

102 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Hebrew

Color:

Black and White | Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Germany:18 | Brazil:14 | France:U | Peru:18 | Spain:18 | UK:15 | USA:R | Australia:MA | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Fuller Films

Trivia:

Inspired by the story of Dan Burros, an American Jew, who joined (and left) the American Nazi Party, and then joined the United Klans of America (KKK). Not unlike "the Believer", when a journalist unmasked Burros, he killed himself. "The Believer" takes this as a springboard though, and many of the other details are quite different.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): When Danny (Ryan Gosling's character) sings the Jewish prayer known as "The Sh'ma," he mispronounces two of the Hebrew words. He says "YIZ-ra-el" with a Z sound instead of an S, and "El-OO-hay-noo" with an OO sound in the second syllable instead of an O. The Sh'ma is a cornerstone prayer in Judaism, and given the character's religious background and studies, he would never mispronounce these words.

Quotes:

Guy Danielson: People hate Jews, do you agree?
Daniel Balint: The very word makes their skin crawl. They undermine traditional life, and they deracinate society. Just take a look at the greatest Jewish minds ever. Marx, Freud, Einstein. What have they given us? Communism, infantile sexuality, and the atom bomb.
Guy Danielson: Danny, this is great. But how can you believe all of this... when you're a Jew yourself?

Movie Connections:

Featured in A Conversation with... Director Henry Bean (2003) (V)

Nazi-Jew Identity Crisis

Like "Romper Stomper" and the intensely powerful "American History X," here we have another brilliant film which revolves around National Socialism and the fiercely racist ideals behind it. This movie, however, varies strongly from the two previously mentioned in that it seems to have been researched far more heavily, and, focuses on not a general Neo-Nazi or skinhead, but on a young Jewish man—who has turned to Neo-Nazis and fascism for strength. This film revolves around a young man who was born and raised into Judaism only to become heavily fed up with the styles, rules, rituals, and apparent hypocrisies therein. Ever since his youth he'd been questioning the Jewish faith and the very meaning of being Jewish. The film follows him as he struggles with the faith he was raised with and the Nazi ideals he adopts against it. Through it all, he also struggles with his own identity and the hypnotic way that these two opposing ideologies have power over people. On top of that, he's later recruited by a group of neo-fascists, so to speak, looking to make fascism a reputable political movement, much like Communism has evolved into Democratic societies these days as Socialism. Here's the breakdown: The Good: --The acting, for the most part is excellent. --The amount of information about both Nazism and Judaism is staggeringly well researched. At least, that's how it seems. --Nice cinematography and atmosphere. --Interesting story. Didn't Hurt It, Didn't Help: --Decent music. --This film focuses very little time on "Neo-Nazis versus everybody;" it's more about Nazism and Judaism butting heads. The Bad: --Often times with movies of this nature, Nazi Movies, there is strong violence used in part to hammer home the intensity of the subject matter. This film focuses on the ideologies more than the violence and as such, actually doesn't feel as powerful as, say, "American History X." --During flashback sequences where we see the main character in his youth in school, the kid playing the part isn't exactly a great actor. --Somewhat predictable ending. The Ugly: --With the ideologies, stories, and characters—there's an awful lot going on in this film. Unfortunately, when the movie ends, if feels like there was a lot left unanswered, or simply, not fully explored. Memorable Scene: --There were actually quite a few. For me, it was the first several times we get to know the girl who becomes the main character's love interest—and all the ways it seems she's just not right in the head. Acting: 8/10 Story: 9/10 Atmosphere: 7/10 Cinematography: 8/10 Character Development: 9/10 Special Effects/Make-up: 0/10 (Movie didn't require any) Nudity/Sexuality: 3/10 Violence/Gore: 6/10 (Not as much violence as is common in films of this type) Dialogue: 9/10 (Some brilliant conversations and ideas throughout) Music: 7/10 Direction: 8/10 Cheesiness: 1/10 Crappiness: 0/10 Overall: 9/10 Be prepared to stomach a lot of harsh words and racism, but this is an intense film with a lot going on. Another one recommended to those with an interest in National Socialism, Judaism and their histories and ideologies. Full-fledged Nazis, ironically, will not like many of the directions this movie takes, and neither might serious Jews—the views expressed in this film are that strong. My final rating comes from the overall intelligence and strength of the film, despite is drawbacks.