Disobedience **** (2017, Rachel Weisz, Rachel McAdams, Alessandro Nivola) – Movie Review

Co-writer/ director Sebastián Lelio’s 2017 lesbian romantic and religious drama Disobedience is engrossing and moving. It is intelligent and sympathetic.

It is very well and quite subtly written by Sebastián Lelio and Rebecca Lenkiewicz, based on the novel by Naomi Alderman, and beautifully acted by the three stars, Rachel Weisz, Rachel McAdams and Alessandro Nivola.

Weisz is on her top form as Ronit Krushka, who returns to her London Orthodox Jewish community on the death of her father. The community had shunned her for her attraction to a female childhood friend, Esti Kuperman (Rachel McAdams), who is now married to Dovid Kuperman (Alessandro Nivola). Inevitably, their passions reignite challenging both their faith and sexuality.

If Weisz is good, so is McAdams, born in London, Ontario, Canada, not London, England, but she manages her accent as effectively as her whole performance. Both actresses give delicately balances, nuanced turns. Nivola is outstanding too, with the film giving some surprising sympathy and a lot of screen time to his character and his dilemmas.

There is some strong sexuality, but the central lesbian relationship is handled very discreetly, though frankly and directly enough. The main issue, though, is the scandal in the London Orthodox Jewish community, and that is explored very profitably in a detailed, layered way.

© Derek Winnert 2018 Movie Review

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