Esther Kahn (2000)

A Jewish girl in nineteenth century London, dreams of becoming a stage actress.

Director:

Arnaud Desplechin

Writers:

Emmanuel Bourdieu, Arnaud Desplechin

Stars:

Summer Phoenix, Ian Holm, Fabrice Desplechin

2 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Summer Phoenix	...	Esther Kahn
Ian Holm	...	Nathan Quellen
Fabrice Desplechin	...	Philippe Haygard
Akbar Kurtha	...	Samuel Kahn
Frances Barber	...	Rivka Kahn
László Szabó	...	Ytzhok Kahn
Hilary Sesta	...	Buba
Claudia Solti	...	Mina Kahn
Berna Raif	...	Becky Kahn
Paul Regan	...	Joel
Arnold Brown	...	Rabbi
Leon Lissek	...	Theatre manager
Ian Bartholomew	...	Norton
Samantha Lavelle	...	Christel
Paul Ritter	...	Alman, the photographer

Storyline

A Jewish girl in nineteenth century London, dreams of becoming a stage actress.

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Plot Keywords:

character name as title | two word title | esther kahn character | girl | jewish | 

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Bac Films [France] (French) Empire Pictures [France]

Country:

France UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 October 2000 (France)

Also Known As:

Szenvedélyes színdarab

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Arts Council of England, British Screen Productions, British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB)

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Chosen by "Les Cahiers du cinéma" (France) as one of the 10 best pictures of 2000 (#01)

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Quotes

Nathan Quellen: Because what has to happen, is that every step you take has to be more unbelievable than the step before. E-Every step has to be - well it has to have an idea behind it, an idea t-that is so complex, it would take, 10 philosophers just to decipher it. Each step has to stretch like a rope - in the audiences mind. Until they can't bare it anymore and they wan to cry out, "Careful Esther you're going to break it".

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Connections

References Wild Strawberries (1957)

User Reviews

A terrible endurance test without convincing substance for the art of acting.

A shame that even a talented director, Desplechin, could not muster a decent performance out of a bleakly-talented actress, Phoenix, Esther Kahn lacks the substance to convey a very concise and clear plot. In an attempt to fulfill the concentric circle of an actor's plight, the performance and presentation is too contrived and poorly executed to draw any compassion from the viewer. In an overly long running time, the redundancy of Esther's struggle is too melodramatic to be effective and reduces the storyline into a frail frame of a disastrous display. The content is incoherent and gratuitous as Phoenix struggles to carry out Desplechin's instruction, just as Esther is supposedly trying to do the same. Never feeling a convincing victory over Esther's pain, we never feel a victory in Phoenix's talent.