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AJFF Presents: Live and Become (FREE!)
April 18, 2025 - May 4, 2025
Free
The anguished saga of an Ethiopian boy airlifted to Israel during the 1980s Operation Moses to escape persecution and famine, unfolds in this sweeping epic. After his mother sends him to Israel under false pretenses, Schlomo arrives posing as a Jewish orphan. Taken in by a liberal Jewish family, he bears the burden of living a lie and struggling with racism, while navigating love, family, and belonging. Three superb actors portray Schlomo at different ages, with Yaël Abecassis poignantly playing his adoptive mother. Writer-director Radu Mihăileanu’s emotionally charged exploration of immigration, assimilation, and self-identity won the French Best Screenplay César, the Berlinale Audience Award and Ecumenical Jury Prize.
WHY WE LIKE THIS FILM: Celebrating the season of freedom this film is first and foremost a great drama, but it also explores a number of interesting themes—freedom (especially the escape from famine and poverty), identity, acceptance, the treatment of migrants, and so much more that is still very timely. For those celebrating Easter, there are also interesting ideas of redemption and rebirth. This is just one of the many great films available on ChaiFlicks.
