Part One of ‘1983 was a bad year for cinema’.
Three days ago I watched Yentl for the first time and have been left dazed and confused by the experience. The film goes something like this: A kindly religious academic has a curious daughter named Yentl. Said religious academic teaches Yentl texts forbidden to be studied by women in secret then passes away. After grieving for one scene Yentl disguises herself as a man and joins a male only religious school. While at school Yentl falls in love with a fellow student named Avigdor who is love with someone else. On the brink of his wedding Avigdor is forbidden from marrying his love interest because his brother committed suicide about a year ago. As a ‘compromise’ Avigdor asks Yentl to marry her instead… WHICH SHE DOES WITHOUT TELLING HER SHE IS A WOMAN.
Somehow Yentl avoids telling her wife that she is a man and consummating the marriage for at least A WEEK before having second thoughts and running away. While in self-inflicted exile Yentl confesses she is a man to Avigdor and that she is in love with him. After an intense adjustment period of about five minutes Avigdor is weirdly into the situation but Yentl inexplicably turns him down and encourages him to go back to his first girlfriend, her wife, instead. Letter writing follows, which is apparently sufficient explanation for all concerned of her various betrayals. Satisfied she has ‘done the right thing’ Yentl yeets herself onto the first ferry to America and leaves the country for a whole new life of emotional…
