At a family event Danielle (Rachel Sennott), a directionless bisexual Jewish woman runs into her sugar-daddy Max (Danny Deferrari), who is accompanied by his wife and screaming baby. Her ex-girlfriend Maya (Molly Gordon) is also at the gathering.
Shiva Baby is writer/director Emma Seligman’s debut feature, an entertaining black-comedy centred around a shiva, the Jewish mourning period in the wake of the death of a relative. Over the course of this sober occasion various secrets, lies and revelations are unravelled, causing much awkward, wince-inducing humour to ensue. In the middle of it all is Danielle, anxiously trying to navigate her emotions as well as a slew of questioning relatives; why is she so thin, what is she going to do with her life etc.
Her parents, (Polly Draper and Fred Melamed), are the typical Jewish couple, overbearing matriarch and benign, resignedly passive father. They are characters we have seen represented in this way countless times before, but this doesn’t stop the formula from working. The same is true for the rest of the cast, a roll call of Jewish stereotypes.
Cliches aside there are moments of genuine humour, for example in the cattish barbs between Danielle and her sugar daddy’s new wife Kim (Dianna Agron), or a mobile phone containing sex photos accidentally falling into the wrong hands. It is very much played for laughs, but deadpan and careful not to slip too far into the self-referential territory.
The humour is light in tone, nicely juxtaposed with the solemnity of the occasion and fully intended to make you cringe. It is divisive, toe-curlingly embarrassing, crude and excruciatingly inappropriate. In other words, all the elements make for compelling viewing. Following this the story doesn’t particularly go anywhere, nor does it develop any further. It doesn’t really need to. The fun is in watching the emotional tensions rise, along with the anticipation for a dramatic conclusion.
Shot in a simple fly on the wall style, we too are embedded in the situation, drifting with the camera as it drops in on conversations, picking up comments in passing. It’s claustrophobic and cleverly leaves us unable to escape the awkwardness.
For what is essentially a feature-length riff on one simple scenario, Shiva Baby succeeds in maintaining interest through a well-paced script and strong characterisations. Seligman’s direction has a youthful energy and verve. An accomplished debut.
Witty coming of age comedy drama exploring the anxieties of adulthood.
Movie title: Shiva Baby
Movie description: A young Jewish girl unexpectedly runs into her sugar-daddy at a family event.
Date published: June 11, 2021
Country: United States - Canada
Duration: 78 minutes
Director(s): Emma Seligman
Actor(s): Rachel Sennott, , Danny Deferrari, , Polly Draper, , Fred Melamed
Genre: Comedy
Summary
An amusing black comedy of toe-curling embarrassment.
Thomas is a musician, writer and film enthusiast with a broad taste in films, from Big Night to The Big Combo. When he isn’t immersed in these activities his passions extend to the kitchen and food.
