With only two full-length documentaries to his name, Sandi DuBowski may not be the most prolific filmmaker in history. However, the movies he’s created, including his latest, “Sabbath Queen” (Rocco Films) leave a lasting emotional impression.
Amichai Lau-Lavie is a descendant of the Lau rabbinical dynasty, 38 generations and counting, dating back to the 11th century. As a gay man, as well as an ordained rabbi, he grapples with his place in the bloodline. In 1993, while in his 20s, he was interviewed by a journalist and was outed without his consent. As his family, including father Naphtali and mother Joan, struggled with the news, Amichai left it all behind, and relocated to New York City.
While in New York he became enmeshed in ‘90s club life and ultimately found his community among the Radical Fairies; a place where he could be both queer and spiritual. In fairy drag, he created the persona of Rebbetzin Hadassah Gross, a “Hungarian sex advisor, matchmaker, and Kabbalist.” Via Hadassah, Amichai could find redemption through transgressiveness.
Nevertheless, there is a constant, agonizing struggle that we watch unfold. Not only is Amichai keenly aware of his extended family’s place in the religious community at large, but he also knows the story of his father surviving the horrors of the Nazis as a child.
Amichai’s ongoing religious quest leads him to create something called “Storahtelling” (a combination of torah and storytelling) and later launching the Lab/Shul, a liberal and welcoming congregation. He takes part in protests against the ongoing war in Gaza. He becomes a father of three as a sperm donor for a lesbian couple and remains active in the lives of his children. Then the turning point occurs when he decides to attend the Conservative Jewish Theological Seminary to become an ordained rabbi. As we discover, even after four years of study and ordination, Amichai still manages to be a rule-breaker.
Throughout the doc, there are interviews with Amichai’s brother Benny (also a rabbi), as well as his father and mother. Perhaps the most moving part of the whole movie is the way that his deeply religious and conservative family eventually came around to acceptance. At least 20 minutes too long, “Sabbath Queen” still deserves to be welcomed into our lives.
Rating: B
