C ommunity / deaths
L ifestyle /C ulture
DEATH NOTICES
Licorice F I N E
Iris Fine (nee: Chinofsky) Dec. 11, 2021. She
was the wife of the late Michael Ira Fine, the
mother of Alan Fine (Michael Wilkie, Jr.), and
Faith Fine, sister of Steven (Rose) Chinofsky,
and the daughter of the late Sidney and the
late Lillian Chinofsky. Iris was a tax examiner
at the Internal Revenue Service. Memorial
contributions may be made to The American
Diabetes Association or Congregation Beth
Or. BERSCHLER and SHENBERG
BerschlerAndShenberg.com Continued from Page 15
L E V E N S O N
Rita Levenson (nee Cravetz) on December
18, 2021. Wife of Harold. Mother of Alan
(Merav) Levenson and Donald (Debora)
Levenson. Sister of Leah Pleat. Grandmother
of Lance, Elah, Mia and Netai. Contributions
in her memory may be made to the
Alzheimer’s Association, www.alz.org
GOLDSTEINS' ROSENBERG'S
RAPHAEL-SACKS www.goldsteinsfuneral.com
M O S S
Dr. Herbert Moss on December 19, 2021. Be-
loved husband of Sandra (nee Goodman);
Loving father of Jacqueline Moss and Jen-
nifer Moss Abramson; Adoring grandfather of
Leon and Allyson. Contributions in his
memory may be made to Friendship Circle,
754 S. 9th St., Phila., PA 19147, www.philly-
friendship.com or Old York Road Temple-
Beth AM, 971 Old York Road, Abington, PA
19001, www.oyrtbetham.org or a charity of
the donor’s choice.

GOLDSTEINS' ROSENBERG'S
RAPHAEL-SACKS www.goldsteinsfuneral.com
S C HW A R T Z
Theodore A. “Ted" Schwartz, Esq. on Decem-
ber 17, 2021, beloved husband of Linda (nee
Hirschhorn), loving father of Pamela Rosen-
berg (Scott), and Scott Schwartz, and to his
stepdaughters Jennie Pisnoy (Richard) and
Paulette Strauss (Stuart), and brother of
James. Adoring Poppy of Samuel, Benjamin,
Max, Rachel, Simone, and Lily. Contributions
in his memory may be made to the Special
Olympics of Montgomery County or Gift of
Life Donor Program. Contact J. Levine &
Sons for Zoom information.

JOSEPH LEVINE and SONS
www.levinefuneral.com Honor the
memory of your
loved one …
CALL 215-832-0749
TO PLACE YOUR
YAHRTZEIT AD.

classified@ jewishexponent.com
Gary takes Alana to an
agent later in the film, hoping
to help her land some film
and television roles. Alana
comes prepared to say ‘yes’ to
everything and bolsters her
qualifications with the claim of
speaking multiple languages,
including Hebrew. The agent,
despite proclaiming that
“Jewish noses are becoming
more popular,” is largely
dismissive of Alana’s talent.

Alana is a chaperone, a
babysitter and a beard for a
closeted gay man, all of which
seem to frustrate her chances
of finding her passion.

But she’s let down by no
one more than Gary and his
illusions of grandeur when it
comes to his businesses. She
parades around in a bikini at
the opening of Gary’s waterbed
business, while everyone else
remains clothed.

As Gary finds success, acts
impetuously and is able to act
Andy Gotlieb in a June
review, this movie does
him justice.

It’s lean, colorful and
revealing. It also hones in on
the theme that defined Begin’s
life: Jews were not going to
stand down anymore. They
were going to fight.

“Asia” This Israeli film focusing on
a mother-daughter story stars
Jewish actress Shira Haas of
“Shtisel” and “Unorthodox”
fame. Haas plays the 17-year-old
daughter, Vika, of a 35-year-old,
Russian expat single mother,
Asia, portrayed by Alena Yiv.

While Asia works long
hours to make ends meet,
Vika starts hanging out with
skaters, smoking weed and
drinking. But over the course
of the movie, they form a
gradual bond.

Somehow, too, according to
a July review in the Exponent,
that bond was uplifting without
being overly sentimental. l
srogelberg@jewishexponent.com; 215-832-0741
Continued from Page 15
Movies “Upheaval”
Menachem Begin was a
soldier in the Zionist movement,
the founder of Israel’s conserva-
tive Likud party and, eventually,
Israel’s sixth prime minister
from 1977 to 1983. Described
as a “terrorist” by the British
government, as a young man,
Begin would grow up to preside
over the Camp David Accords
with Egypt.

In other words, Begin is
a fascinating character. And,
according to the Exponent’s
DECEMBER 30, 2021
his world with fastidious details
and color, he sometimes goes
too far. His decision to have a
white man in the film mock
his Japanese wife’s language
by speaking in a caricature of
broken English felt particularly
egregious and unnecessary.

The term “Licorice Pizza”
is slang for a vinyl, and it’s the
name of a chain of Southern
California record stores for
which Anderson had a clear
affinity. Without any hints or
explanation of the film’s title
in the film itself, “Licorice
Pizza” is an in-joke only
Anderson gets.

Maybe that’s why “Licorice
Pizza” feels more like a
spectacle than a relatable
bildungsroman. Anderson has
manufactured a film to fulfill
his own nostalgia in “Licorice
Pizza,” not the audience’s. l
Screen and “Booksmart,” pulled off a
portrayal of Monica Lewinsky:
“It was an important retelling
of a narrative from the 1990s
that redeemed Lewinsky in
the eyes of popular culture.”
20 as the businessman and also
enjoy the immaturity that
comes along with turning
everyday objects into phalluses,
Alana struggles. She’s caught
in her need to find success in
adulthood, but she is trapped
by her desire to stay by Gary’s
side, relishing in never-ending
youth, flawed as it may be.

As Anderson is wont to
do, he creates an ensemble
of complex characters, places
them into a specific yet
resplendent setting and lets
them roam free, exposing their
shortcomings in the process.

As Gary and Alana’s relation-
ship falls into the background
of the story, replaced by their
own individual journeys, the
obvious age gap and illegality of
their relationship falls away as
well — out of sight, out of mind.

But the audience’s discomfort
remains, as it does in many of
Anderson’s other films.

In Anderson’s effort to fill
JEWISH EXPONENT
“Tick, Tick… Boom!”
“Rent” playwright Jonathan
Larson’s semi-autobiographical
story got the Lin-Manuel Miranda
treatment in this 2021 adapta-
tion. It’s a dramatic story about
the Jewish playwright’s struggle
to make it, and his uncertainty
about his career choice.

When those are the
notes, Miranda is probably
the guy to play the music. jsaffren@jewishexponent.com;
Larson himself died in 1996. 215-832-0740
JEWISHEXPONENT.COM



C ommunity
NE WSMAKERS
TruMark Gives Out Items to Those in Need
KleinLife Spreads Word about Meals Program
On Dec. 20, TruMark Financial Credit Union delivered children’s hats, gloves
and sweatshirts to local nonprofits that help people in need.

All five organizations — APM Neighborhood Community, Emilie United
Methodist Church Safe Sanctuaries, the Maternal and Child Health Consortium,
Mitzvah Circle and Our Closet — provide services to families who may need
food, health care, clothing and shelter.

KleinLife’s Sharon Kaplan, Shelley Geltzer and Benjamin Toledano told people
about the Subaru Share the Love Event at the nonprofit’s weekly Grab and Go
Meal Distribution. The Philadelphia organization is a partner of Subaru in
its Meals on Wheels effort, which delivers meals to homebound seniors. Now
through Jan. 3, when you buy or lease a Subaru, $250 will go toward Meals
on Wheels.

From left: Sharon Kaplan, Shelley Geltzer and Benjamin Toledano spread the word about
Meals on Wheels during KleinLife’s Grab and Go Meal Distribution. 
Courtesy of KleinLife
From left: Mitzvah Circle’s Susan Giuliano and Fran Held, as well as TruMark Financial’s
Mary Ellen Kull, prepare to distribute clothes to area nonprofits.

Courtesy of TruMark Financial Credit Union
Akiba-Barrack Class Gathers for Reunion
Members of the Akiba Hebrew Academy’s Class of 1959 gathered on Zoom
recently to celebrate their 80th birthdays. Akiba is now the Jack M. Barrack
Hebrew Academy.

Barrack Student Hosts Talk on Israel
Jack M. Barrack Hebrew Academy junior Raphael Englander hosted a talk
on The Abraham Accords on Dec. 8. Dr. Driss Moussaoui, the founder of
the Department of Psychiatry at the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy in
Casablanca, Morocco, and Robert Greenway, president of the Abraham Accords
Peace Institute, addressed the audience.

Raphael Englander
Courtesy of Jack M. Barrack
Hebrew Academy
Akiba-Barrack alums talk on Zoom during their recent reunion.

Courtesy of Jack M. Barrack Hebrew Academy
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DECEMBER 30, 2021
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