The Wandering Jew

1933
Passed
1h 8m

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A German-Jewish artist encounters German anti-semitism when his masterpiece is rejected by the Berlin Academy of Art. Later, the figure in the painting comes to life and tells him the histor... Read allA German-Jewish artist encounters German anti-semitism when his masterpiece is rejected by the Berlin Academy of Art. Later, the figure in the painting comes to life and tells him the history of the Jews' persecution. This unusual film ends with footage of an anti-Hitler rally at... Read allA German-Jewish artist encounters German anti-semitism when his masterpiece is rejected by the Berlin Academy of Art. Later, the figure in the painting comes to life and tells him the history of the Jews' persecution. This unusual film ends with footage of an anti-Hitler rally at New York City's Madison Square Garden.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.5/10

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See production info at IMDbPro

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Trivia
The first American movie made in opposition to Adolf Hitler's Nazi regime. It also featured the great Yiddish actor, Jacob Ben-Ami, in his lone film role, that of a Jewish painter driven from Nazi Germany. Shot in New York during the summer of 1933, it incorporated newsreel footage into the film. As of 2000, the film has been newly restored to its original running time of 100 minutes.

Connections
Referenced in The Simpsons: The Wandering Juvie (2004)

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Featured review

10/10

movie was ahead of its time

In 1933, at the height of the depression, Herman Ross focused on producing this movie, warning the world about the Nazis and predicting the atrocities that had yet to occur. It is only in hindsight that we can truly appreciate the insight and wisdom the producer and writers had. Originally filmed in Yiddish, it had a limited distribution, primarily in New York City. Brandeis University was instrumental in restoring the film and it was shown at Lincoln Center for Performing Arts in January 2000. This was the last film Herman Ross produced.

Throughout the 1930's, 1940's and 1950's, he was a film distributor to schools, camps, jails and colleges. His company, Institutional Cinema Service, was the only company to distribute Walt Disney 35mm films to venues outside the legitimate movie theater within the New York metropolitan area. Later, with ISC's yearly catalog listing literally thousands of film in stock, he expanded his business internationally to many countries unlikely to get first-run movies; this became their main source of 35mm Hollywood production films.

Ross's firm was located in the heart of the business (NYC), amid agents and other distributors/ producers. One could see the Empire State Building from his office.