Back in January, A24 made headlines for its acquisition of “Menashe,” one of the breakout hits at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival and the first foreign-language film to be acquired by the studio. The debut narrative feature by documentary filmmaker Joshua Weinstein, “Menashe” was universally loved by critics who saw it at the festival, with The Hollywood Reporter pointing to the film’s nonprofessional cast of actors as “wonderfully natural screen presences” who deliver an “absolutely sincere” story of growing up as part of an Orthodox Jewish community in Brooklyn. For our part, we gave the movie a special mention on our list of breakout movies and performances of the festival. And now you can enjoy the gentle first trailer for the film, which gets the heart of the main character’s conflict between religion and family. This looks like the perfect movie for those looking for a bit of blockbuster relief come this July.
READ MORE: The 30 Breakout Performers & Filmmakers Of The 2017 Sundance Film Festival
Here’s the full plot synopsis for “Menashe”:
Within Brooklyn’s ultra-orthodox Jewish community, a widower battles for custody of his son. A tender drama performed entirely in Yiddish, the film intimately explores the nature of faith and the price of parenthood.
“Menashe” will be released in select theaters on July 28, 2017.