A Stranger Among Us (1992)

Director:

Sidney Lumet

Writer (WGA):

Robert J. Avrech (written by)

Release Date:

17 July 1992 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

In a dangerous world of mystery and intrigue, she's going undercover searching for the truth.

Plot:

In this attempt to revisit the success of Witness in which a cop goes Amish, we here have a cop go undercover among the Hasidic Jews of New York City...

Plot Keywords:

Undercover | Murder | Rabbi | Police | Jewish

Awards:

1 win & 3 nominations

Cast

Melanie Griffith	...	Emily Eden
John Pankow	...	Levine
Tracy Pollan	...	Mara
Lee Richardson	...	Rebbe
Mia Sara	...	Leah
Jamey Sheridan	...	Nick
Eric Thal	...	Ariel
David Margulies	...	Lt. Oliver
Burtt Harris	...	Emily's Father
James Gandolfini	...	Tony Baldessari
Chris Latta	...	Chris Baldessari
Jake Weber	...	Yaakov Klausman
Ro'ee Levi	...	Mendel
David Rosenbaum	...	Mr. Klausman
Ruth Vool	...	Mrs. Klausman

Also Known As:

Close to Eden (Australia) (UK) (cable TV title)

Runtime:

110 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | Brazil:14 | USA:R (original rating) | Argentina:Atp | Australia:M | Germany:12 | Spain:T | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:PG-13 (edited for re-rating) | Singapore:PG | Portugal:M/12 | Canada:PG

Filming Locations:

83rd Precinct, Bushwick, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Hollywood Pictures

Trivia:

James Gandolfini's film/television debut.

Goofs:

Continuity: The position of Melanie's handbag when she visits her father.

Quotes:

Ariel: I got a hot flash for you. Sex is nice.
Emily Eden: Sex is nice... How would you know?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Will & Grace: Star-Spangled Banter (#4.8)" (2001)

Lame story and mediocre acting but good portrayal of Hasidim

There is not much of a plot in this movie and fortunately it wastes relatively little time in developing it. Melanie Griffith is miscast as a cop. However, her acting, while not great, is not as bad as some have said. The main point of the movie, as far as I am concerned, is to portray aspects of the Hasidic community, which most people do not know much about. This movie tells much more about the Hasidim than Witness told of about the Amish. For this alone the movie is worth watching.