Netflix keeps on giving good stuff
An incredibly unique Israeli series brings us back to the essences of life
The discussion of what people are watching on Netflix and similar channels is reaching intense heights as the pandemic has given us a good reason to catch up on the latest and greatest shows. Friends and family rain recommendations on us, which now leads to debates about why we do not always follow that, our daughters are quite offended we are still not watching ‘Money Heist’. In fact, they wonder if we take them seriously at all now given the effort they’ve put into their recommendation. At the same time I am more than willing to impress upon others what to watch, I tell some friends very simply ‘watch this’ or ‘consider that’. We spent some six months working our way through ‘Nordic Noir’, crime series from Sweden, Finland and Iceland. But now there’s a series that is not just recommended, but almost mandatory watching. Netflix has just dropped season three of Shtisel and we are sold.
Shtisel is the name of an orthodox Jewish family who live in the Geula neighbourhood in Jerusalem. They live the typical life of ‘haredim’: men do not really work and primarily study the bible, women take care of the families and money is therefore often an issue and you have to be really creative to make it. In real life the poverty among the growing and very separate group of haredim is a real issue for Israeli policy makers. At the same time the crises that haunt normal and secular people are equally present for the Shtisel clan: strained relationships, depression, anxiety and fertility issues. On top of that is the force that the older generation uses to get its way over the younger offspring, even the dead have serious influence on the day-to-day lives of the younger Shtisels. All of these things are indeed doubly challenging as they take place in the context of orthodox biblical values and limited financial means.
The result is a truly beautiful work of art and some have compared it to the Sopranos (and no it’s not a crime series) as it really depicts family drama in a unique cultural setting. It does not dive too deep into the religious aspects of life, but it does frame the omnipresence of biblical values as a structure that enables the family members to live good and meaningful lives. Having some wise rabbis in the neighbourhood is actually quite useful in resolving deep moral struggles, they always have an answer or are able to interpret the scripture in a practical way. But make no mistake, these orthodox believers do enjoy earthly pleasures. The Shtisels do know how to hit the bottle and grandpa and his son, protagonist Akiva, happily smoke their way through the three seasons.
The magic here is that you start to identify with the characters, in particular grandpa Shulem and his ‘hard on herself and hard on others’ daughter Giti. You almost feel compelled to jump into the screen and tell them what to do to resolve yet another family mishap or step back from an incredibly stupid decision. It is hard not to be moved to tears as you get to feel their losses and failures and moreover the relationships that often fail to work out, despite the best intentions. There are numerous emotionally raw scenes, you feel for the characters in ways that few other shows are able to elicit. That says a lot about the actors too, most of whom are secular Israelis whose daily lives are lightyears away from the people they portray here. But it is not all drama, the typical Jewish sense of humour and ability to self-ridicule have made the series intensely funny. You basically laugh and cry through each episode essentially.
But the biggest compliment for the series is no doubt the fact that we sleep really well after watching one or two episodes each night. You wrap it up and go to bed to rest in a very relaxed way, whereas an evening with Nordic Noir leaves you disturbed and restless, waking up wondering who did it or how they’d come up with such gory murders. Not with Shtisel. What you are seeing in essence is yourself: normal people trying to free and better themselves in circumstances that are not always that conducive to make that happen easily. So yes, really highly recommended. Go for it.