Jason Schwartzman and Carol Kane make the perfect odd couple in director Nathan Silver’s Between the Temples, an off-kilter comedy about finding faith — in religion, other people, and the ways life will give us gifts that may not appear that way in the first place. Schwartzman stars as Ben Gottlieb, a cantor at a local synagogue whose voice is as wobbly as his beliefs. Ben’s wife has recently died and there are reminders of her everywhere in the snowy upstate New York town where he lives with his mothers (an excellent pairing of Caroline Aaron and Dolly de Leon).
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It’s about as depressing as it can be — so depressing, in fact, that Ben opts to lie down in traffic in the hopes of getting run over rather than return home. A chance encounter with his former grade school music teacher Carla leads Ben on a journey of self-discovery all over again. Carla helps Ben home from the bar one night and then appears in his Bat Mitzvah classes, insistent that she finally goes through the ritual usually reserved for 12 or 13-year-olds. Naturally, Ben is initially reluctant, but Carla forces him to see things differently.
Jason Schwartzman & Carol Kane Give Between The Temples Its Offbeat Heart
Kane, brilliant as always, sinks her teeth into the role of Carla. She’s an eccentric artist, so far removed from Ben’s high-strung demeanor. For plenty of its runtime, Between the Temples plays a will-they-or-won’t-they game as the relationship between Ben and Carla develops. Other people in their lives are clearly put off by it — Carla’s son is unnerved by the neurotic new man in her life and Ben’s mothers are constantly trying to set him up with Gabby (Madeline Weinstein), the rabbi’s daughter, even as they begin to notice his growing connection with his student.
All that falls to the wayside when Ben and Carla are together, though. Carla has been disregarded because of her eccentricities — it’s clear in the way her son reacts to the news of her Bat Mitzvah. Ben’s mothers are disconnected, too, unable to understand the deeper layer of grief that has enveloped their son. Ben and Carla see each other in a way that no one else does, and it’s a tender kind of care that both Schwartzman and Kane show with beautiful subtlety.
Between The Temples Finds Beauty In The Quiet Moments (Except For One Standout Scene)
Between the Temples isn’t a showy film. Even in its moments of genuine hilarity and absurdity — from a handjob in a cemetery to a recurring sonic gag that is brilliantly paid off — the film maintains a steady warmth that crescendos in a tumultuous dinner scene that serves as a centerpiece of sorts. It’s almost a personification of what could be going on inside Ben’s head, a raucous symphony of grief, love, faith, and the various voices pulling him in different directions.
Eventually, Ben reaches a moment of clarity that startles everyone, especially Carla. It’s a perfect culmination of the film’s cringe comedy and aching sincerity. It also proves once again that Schwartzman is having a stellar run that began last year with Asteroid City. There’s a part of Ben that makes you feel sorry for him, especially as the film begins, but as Between the Temples reveals more layers to him, Schwartzman deftly uncovers something much deeper. There’s grief there, but there’s also a profound ability to love without shame and that is perhaps the most revelatory thing of all.
From writer-director Nathan Silver comes Between the Temples, a comedy film released in 2024 starring Carol Kane and Jason Schwartzman. Schwartzman stars as a cantor currently having a crisis of faith – and his world experiences further turbulence when his former grade school music teacher becomes his new student.
- Release Date
- January 19, 2024
- Director
- Nathan Silver
- Cast
- Jason Schwartzman , Carol Kane , Dolly de Leon , Caroline Aaron , Robert Smigel
- Runtime
- 111 Minutes
- Writers
- Nathan Silver , C. Mason Wells
- Studio(s)
- Ley Line Entertainment , Fusion Entertainment
