Esther Kahn is the intriguing tale of a young Jewish girl (Summer Phoenix) who rises to be a leading actress of her day, playing the title role in the London premiere of Ibsen's classic play Hedda Gabler. Esther's childhood is captured in strangely fragmented scenes that coalesce into a vivid portrait of life in a Jewish slum. As Esther takes to the stage, the movie's focus sharpens, particularly as she undergoes training at the hands of an older actor (Ian Holm, always magnetic). In childhood, Esther kept her feelings deeply submerged to protect herself from her family's mockery. Now, to expand her talent, she sets out to experience love--with consequences that may lead to disaster. The script and direction of Esther Kahn are intriguing; unfortunately, Phoenix portrays Esther's offstage numbness more effectively than her onstage talent. --Bret Fetzer
2.
Summer Phoenix plays a young woman experiencing a crushing and belated coming of age in the Arnaud Desplechin's psychological period film, ESTHER KAHN. Phoenix is devastatingly opaque as Esther--a young girl raised among the poor Jewish tailors of London's East End. Her cramped and compromised youth has left her cold and distant, unable to express any emotions. But when she attends a popular theater production, Esther is thunderstruck by the deep feelings that the performance stirs within her and immediately sets out to become an actress. Her quick success brings Esther into the complex and convoluted world of the theater, where she encounters a helpful aging actor (Ian Holm) who, in teaching her how to act, teaches her how to live. Haygard, a perfidious playwright, becomes momentarily captivated by Esther's strange allure and odd blankness, and in addition to becoming her lover, he secures her a prestigious role in a production of Ibsen's HEDDA GABLER. Stunned and shocked when Haygard abandons her on the eve of the play's opening, Esther has a panic-filled and heart-wrenching epiphany, as twenty years worth of unlived life come tumbling down on her. Desplechin's difficult film about a difficult character carries mysterious and compelling emotional impact in its portrayal a woman who missed out on her life.
This film was screened as part of the Rendez-Vous with French Cinema 2001 festival organized by The Film Society of Lincoln Center in New York City.
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