THE
WASHINGTON
POST
.
FRIDAY,MAY
27, 2022
EZ
24
needs someone to play the hero,
and José Andrés is the right man
for the job.messier parts of Andrés’s life,
even if it would have made for a
more compelling film to see what
this man has accomplished de-
spite the hurts he may harbor in
that big heart of his. But I think
Howard could read the room.
This divided country desperatelydisaster zone, says Lucia, the
youngest. The daughters fre-
quently don’t hear from Dad for
days, which is why they joined
Twitter, “just to keep track of
him,” says middle daughter Inés.
The daughters agree their moth-
er is the glue that keeps the
family together.
“We say that José does what he
does because I do what I do,”
Patricia tells the camera.
The documentary — which
follows Howard’s “Rebuilding
Paradise,” another doc that deals
with natural disaster — might
have leaned toward hagiography
if not for the director’s willing-
ness to show Andrés’s harder
edges. Like the moment when the
chef dresses down a WCK worker
for breaking protocol in the Ba-
hamas and giving a woman suste-
nance before relief stations were
set up. He later tries to apologize
to the woman who witnessed the
confrontation, but she won’t have
it, which makes Andrés only try
harder. It’s painful to watch.
I can’t fault Howard, though,
for not digging deeper into theFEED FROM 23
Star ratings are from Post
reviews; go to
washingtonpost.com/
goingoutguide/movies for the full-
length reviews. For showtimes
and directories, see the Movie
Directory. AMBULANCE
Two brothers (Jake Gyllenhaal
and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II)
commandeer an ambulance after
a botched bank robbery. (R, 136
minutes) THE BAD GUYS
As the lupine leader of a criminal
gang, Sam Rockwell leads a voice
cast that also features Marc
Maron, Craig Robinson and
Awkwafina. (PG, 100 minutes) DOCTOR STRANGE IN
THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS
The latest chapter in the multi-
film Marvel Cinematic Universe
takes us on a confusing, effects-
heavy chase across the
multiverse. (PG-13, 126 minutes) DOWNTON ABBEY: A
NEW ERA
In the second “Downton Abbey”
spinoff movie, the Crawleys visit
the South of France and a film
crew sets up shop in Downton.
(PG, 124 minutes)
SEE MOVIES ON 27Movies
stance, to create its earth-toned
palette; how the look of its shtetl
setting, in the fictional village of
Anatevka, based on the stories of
writer Sholem Aleichem, was in-
spired by Roman Vishniac’s ac-
claimed photos of pre-World WarII Jewish life in Eastern Europe;
and how the film’s version of
Tsarist Russia was all re-created
in the town of Lekenik, in the
former Yugoslavia, under Com-
munist President Tito.
Oh, and how the now 95-year-old Jewison — who appears in the
film in both archival and more
recent interviews — isn’t even
Jewish.
It’s not that the director of one
of the most iconic Jewish films of
the 20th century should haveFiddler’s Journey to the Big Screen
Documentary offers fresh insights on 1971’s ‘Fiddler on the Roof’
BY MICHAEL O’SULLIVAN
Last fall marked the 50th anni-
versary of the release of director
Norman Jewison’s Fiddler on the
Roof,” the 1971 film adaptation of
the Tony-winning 1964 stage mu-
sical. An engaging new documen-
tary offers a behind-the-scenes
look at the making of the movie,
which was nominated for eight
Oscars and won three. In the
words of “Fiddler’s Journey to the
Big Screen,” it isn’t just a docu-
mentary about the film’s transi-
tion from stage to screen, but a
“chronicle of a spirited creative
quest.”
That’s a mouthful — but maybe
not undeserved. “Fiddler’s Jour-
ney” aims to tell a story that
delves into more than creative
and technical details. Although it
is also about those details. Direc-
tor Daniel Raim was nominated
for an Oscar for his 2000 docu-
mentary short, “The Man on Lin-
coln’s Nose,” which profiled “Fid-
dler on the Roof’s” production
designer Robert Boyle (also
known for his distinctive work on
such films as Alfred Hitchcock’s
“North by Northwest,” “The
Birds” and “Marnie”).
And “Fiddler’s Journey” does
include some tasty, if typical tid-
bits: how the film was shot
through nylon stockings
stretched over the lens, for in-been Jewish (or ever represented
himself as such). But many peo-
ple, including some associated
with the 1971 film, assumed that
he was. With a name like his,
Jewison jokes, “even I thought I
was Jewish.”
There’s a larger point that “Fid-
dler’s Journey” is trying to make.
On one level, it explores how
“Fiddler” fits into Jewison’s ca-
reer, one characterized by a com-
mitment to social justice that took
off with his Oscar-winning 1967
film “In the Heat of the Night.” But
the heart of the documentary’s
message has to do with the film’s
universality. “Fiddler’s Journey”
won the audience award for docu-
mentary at this year’s Atlanta
Jewish Film Festival, but its ap-
peal — like the appeal of the 1971
film — extends beyond a precon-
ceived niche or demographic.
The themes of “Fiddler on the
Roof” are simple: family, tradi-
tion and its opposite, change.
Also: how life can sometimes feel
as precarious as a musician trying
to scratch out a violin tune with-
out breaking his neck. Those are
notions that, as this winning little
film reminiscence makes clear,
are common to us all.ZEITGEIST FILMS/KINO LORBER
Director Norman Jewison, right, and Israeli actor Topol, who played Tevye, on the set of “Fiddler on
the Roof.” Jewison, now 95, appears in the new film in both archival footage and recent interviews.Unrated. At the AFI Silver Theatre
and the Cinema Arts Theatre.
Contains nothing objectionable. 88
minutes.ALSO PLAYING
Unrated. Available on Disney Plus.
Contains some harsh language
and images of natural disasters
and human suffering. 87 minutes.NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC
José Andrés, left, helps police officers in Pender County, N.C., lift a
food container into a truck in the aftermath of Hurricane Florence.BEN BLACKALL/FOCUS FEATURES
“Downton Abbey: A New
Era.”