My Mexican Shivah (Morirse esta en hebreo)

The passing of a Mexican Jew whose appetite for life was stronger than his spiritual discipline makes for a difficult set of funeral arrangements in this comedy from filmmaker Alejandro Springall. Moishe (Sergio Klainer) was a happy-go-lucky guy living in Mexico City's Jewish quarter until the day he died -- appropriately enough while dancing at a party for a local Hebrew theater troupe. While Moishe was a man with plenty of friends, most of the folks he left behind to arrange his funeral don't have… Show more much good to say for him. Moishe's daughter, Esther (Raquel Pankowsky), has long been bitter about the fact that he cheated on her mother, and with a Gentile to boot. His son, Ricardo (David Ostrosky), didn't much care for his dad, and at the moment is more concerned about the unexpected pregnancy of his short-term girlfriend. Moishe's grandson, Nicolas (Emilio Savinni), was forced to flee Mexico after being convicted on drug charges; having returned home, he's become a reactionary Orthodox Jew with nothing good to say about Moishe's lifestyle. The local rabbi (Lenny Zundel) has his own ideas about how to conduct the funeral and mourning period, which don't agree with Moishe's view of the world. And Galia (Sharon Zundel) is too busy dealing with her new passion for her cousin Nicholas to focus on her grandfather's passing. Morirse Esta en Hebreo (aka My Mexican Shivah received its North American premiere at the 2006 New York Jewish Film Festival.~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

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