When I saw the trailer for Between the Temples, I found myself fascinated and hopeful. With both Jason Schwartzman and Carol Kane in the movie, I knew both are very capable actors and funny. Once I watched the film, I was struck by how quirky and upbeat it is as it explores how messy and complex life is as we make connections and learn from each other.

Between the Temples is a comedy drama directed by Nathan Silver and written by Silver and C. Mason Wells. In the film, a cantor, Ben Gottlieb (Jason Schwartzman) is having a crisis of faith and is unable to sing. His rabbi, Bruce (Robert Smigel), puts him in charge of teaching bat mitzvah students. While his mothers throw none too subtle romantic liaisons his way, Ben finds his new adult student, Carla (Carol Kane) happens to be his grade school music teacher. The pair connect as he teaches Carla and forge a friendship that puzzles the others around them. 

The writing wanders the viewer through the mess that is Ben’s life. He’s lost faith after his alcoholic writer wife lost her footing on the icy pavement a year ago. His mothers keep setting him up with women and he is unable to sing, which is his primary job as a cantor. At one point, Ben even lies down on the road in front of a truck but instead the trucker helps him. The messiness and his quirky offbeat relationship with Carla, as she shows him how to laugh again is what is charming about this movie. The friendship between the two and how they help each other is sweet and warm.

The comedy is warm and steeped in the Jewish culture and faith. One of the funniest moments is when Carla accidentally feeds Ben food that isn’t Kosher. Ben’s mothers are also funny in their set up attempts especially when they try to get him to date the Rabbi’s daughter in from out of town. There are pointed references to his mother being a big contributor to the synod. Carol Kane’s character Carol is also funny, especially at the moments when she calls Ben out and makes sure he’s actually listening to her. Awkward family dinners with both Ben and Carla’s families also provide entertaining and humorous scenes.

The biggest reason for the success of the movie is the dynamic between Jason Schwartzman and Carol Kane. Carol Kane is charismatic and the warm chemistry between the pair makes the friendship of the characters believable and authentic. Jason Schwartzman does a wonderful job of portraying Ben as awkward and disillusioned, worn down by life and its complications. And as the pair connect, both are brilliant as they portray the impact on the other. Jason does an excellent job of showing how much lighter Ben becomes as he connects with Carla. The small details, the way they look at each other and joke illustrates the warmth and connection between the two. The film also stars Dolly De Leon as Judith Gottlieb, Caroline Aaron as Meira Gottlieb, Robert Smigel as Rabbi Bruce and Madeline Weinstein as his daughter Gabby. These supporting actors are talented and add to the messy complications of Ben’s life.

While the film is warm, quirky and upbeat, it is also very entrenched in the Jewish culture. This is absolutely to be desired but may cause the mileage on the humor to vary depending on your familiarity with the culture. There were also moments where there wasn’t much happening in the movie, scenes that could have been trimmed or cut to build more humor. The humor is very much about the messiness of life and the complications of connections, especially connections that others don’t understand. While that creates a warm dramatic story, that did leave the humor uneven and far more gentle than expected. 

If you like dramatic films with humor, then this is a film you might appreciate, especially if you are familiar with the Jewish faith and like films about unexpected connections and friendships. The chemistry between Jason Schwartzman and Carol Kane is warm and dynamic, a beautiful presentation of a quirky and upbeat relationship. While the comedy can be subjective and awkward, it does have some funny scenes and the connections are impactful.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 women 

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