JEW TALES
THE SERIES
A story about a dysfunctional Jewish family in Brooklyn. Shula and David have two sons: Nick, an alcoholic, marriage consultant who’s watching his own marriage collapse and Ben, (in the closet) who’s having problems with his transvestite partner, Jasmine. Not aware of Ben’s sexuality, the parents decide to fix him up with a nice Jewish girl on Passover night. The supposedly innocent virgin, arrives with her parents hoping to have a great time. Everything goes pretty well until Jasmine; Ben's transvestite partner arrives unexpectedly.
The atmosphere of the film is comical with hints of drama. There are several heartening moments throughout an otherwise quirky gathering of characters. The characters are illustrated immediately in their roles, and the series of events that transpire further outline their intentions.
THE CHARACTERS
Nick, in his thirties, married to Jill and has a drinking problem. He has an almost indifferent mannerism and loathes family gathering because of his nagging mother and authoritative father. Jill is Nick’s wife. She is the sanest of all the characters and has a good head on her shoulders. She is generally non-confrontational but not much gets by her. Although she knows her marriage is on the rocks, she does her best to keep her family together. Shula is Ben and Nick’s mother. She is a Jewish mother and a borderline lunatic, and likes to voice her opinions by shouting at everyone. She likes to believe she is the boss. David is Nick and Ben’s father who at first glance can be described as a grumpy old man. Although he appears to not care much about the goings on of his family, he is generally concerned for his boys and is compassionate for his family. Ben, the younger brother, is a closet gay, and unbeknownst to his family has been living with a transvestite lover. He is nervous in character and is by and large afraid of crossing his parents. Jasmine is Ben’s transvestite lover. She is a drama queen with a diva attitude. She bosses Ben around while trying to maintain a feminine demeanor. Terry is the ‘innocent’ virgin daughter, except she is not so innocent. She is a spunky, bubbly, chatterbox who likes to experiment with the situations her parents throw her into. Mr. & Mrs. Goldstein are the oblivious parents of Terry. They are wealthy, conservative and somewhat reserved, and are anxious to marry off their daughter. Rabbi Sham Tov is a typical Jewish Rabbi. He is non-confrontational and does not like to interfere with family matters, but is happy to attend dinners simply to be fed. He is soft-spoken and extremely boring.