Minyan

Sensitive and uplifting, director Eric Steel's coming-of-age sexy drama won the Best U.S. Narrative Feature Prize at Outfest. Channeling the obstacles of growing up gay in a conservative Russian-Jewish community in 1980's Brooklyn, it brings a career-changing performance by Broadway's The Inheritance's Samuel H. Levine, in the role of the rabbinical student David, a teen struggling with hormones and family expectations. A beautiful portrait of a Brighton Beach boy exploring his sexuality, identity and culture, as well as a rich meditation on generational values (he's educated by his grandfather and other local elders), Steel conceived a powerfully perceptive debut.

An exceptional, moving performance all the way around. Every aspect exuded excellence yet this is a film that isn't for everyone. Deep dive into an ethnic that most of us only very slightly know and even fewer understand without being one of them. It's one of those rare glimpses into the unknown and still one can never thoroughly understand unless it is YOUR story.

I can not imagine y'all watching it. Painfully slow but so exacting in every detail. Beautiful in the extreme when it explores things you are familiar with, but mystifying in the unknown pieces of those lives and loves.

And the soundtrack featuring clarinetist David Krakauer takes you on a wild ride to heaven and back. Just took my breath away...

This film plods along and you don't really know where it's going, but I felt like the residue of it lingered on me even though it didn't feel like it knew what it wanted. It's a unique - maybe even odd - addition to the queer indie film canon.

I had no idea what to expect from this film, but it didn't disappoint. The storyline is a bit all over the place at parts but you still get the tale it tells. The acting is good, and I like how the dialogue of the main character, David, opens up more and more as he discovers who he is. The ending is not clean and wrapped in a bow but makes you think about the untold story. Solid movie, not great , but solid.

Extraordinary film. Feels completely real. Great cast and directing.