Shiva Baby

From the opening scene in which Danielle (Rachell Sennott), a senior student, and Max (Danny Deferrari) make love before she hurries to a Shiva with her parents Joel (Fred Melamed) and Debbie (Polly Draper), the action is planted and one suspects that this comedy will approach Woody Allen's best films by showing the Jewish milieu without a sarcastic prism. Apart from this introductory scene, the whole film will take place in a unique place and will show the relationships of different friends and families.

Danielle for her part was educated by her parents on how to answer questions about her love life, her degree and her career and was warned about the tortuous past of Maya, her ex-girlfriend from high school. Unfortunately for Danielle, Max will also be invited to the party along with his wife and their baby. In addition, Danielle will forget her phone somewhere in the house and Maya will intercept the phone and realize the connection between Danielle and Max... Shiva Baby is a comedy that has all the structure of a New York theater play with an adulterous husband, deceptive appearances and a rhythm that seems to make this film easily impose itself as an excellent comedy.

Shiva Baby has its origins in a short film of the same name that director Emma Seligman directed in 2017 as part of her doctoral thesis while studying film at New York University. However, unlike many first feature films based on a short film, Shiva Baby manages to transcend its basic material through a sustained rhythm, an inspired direction and the presence of a young actress Rachel Sennott, a true revelation of the film.

The director Emma Seligman, despite a reduced budget, proves to be particularly original in the way she tells her story and gives each character a real depth. By trying to be credible and paying particular attention to the dialogue, Shiva Baby shows that this director is not finished making the news and we are already looking forward to her new feature film.

Shiva Baby
Written and Directed by Emma Seligman
Produced by Kieran Altmann, Katie Schiller, Lizzie Shapiro
Starring Rachel Sennott, Molly Gordon, Polly Draper, Danny Deferrari, Fred Melamed, Dianna Agron
Music by Ariel Marx
Cinematography: Maria Rusche
Edited by Hanna A. Park
Production companies : Dimbo Pictures, It Doesn't Suck Productions, Bad Mensch Productions, Thick Media, Neon Heart Productions
Distributed by Utopia (USA)
Running time: 77 minutes

Seen on September 11, 2020 at the Centre International de Deauville

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