Yentl

Released by: Twilight Time
Released on: December 9, 2014
Director: Barbra Streisand
Cast: Barbra Streisand, Mandy Patinkin, Amy Irving, Nehemiah Persoff, Steven Hill, Allan Corduner, Miriam Margolyes
Year: 1983
Purchase From Screen Archives

The Movie:

Isaac Bashevis Singer's Yiddish short story “Yentl the Yeshiva Boy” (1962) concerns a young woman who, interested in learning more about Jewish law, has lengthy debates with her rabbi father. After his death, she takes on the name of Anshel and seeks out a yeshiva, a school of Jewish learning, where she can continue her studies. But her study partner, Avigdor, eventually uncovers the truth.

The story, set in a Jewish village in Poland near the turn of the previous century, was a metaphor for the oppression of women in Jewish society, which was generally patriarchal; it was also a statement on gender conformity and sexual identity. Even after being 'outed,' Yentl insists that she is of neither sex, and although she has the body of a woman, her soul is that of a man. The story proved popular, and as early as the late 1960s, singer/songwriter Barbra Streisand expressed interest in adapting it. She bought the film rights, though no one seemed interested in backing the picture, especially if she were to direct. In 1975, Singer, along with Leah Nepolin, adapted the story to Broadway, where it had a healthy run. Taking advantage of the story's newfound popularity, Streisand sought out and acquired the requisite backing to film her own adaptation. Based on the stage play rather than the original story, she reconceived it as a musical, with herself in the lead role.

The movie was considerably different from its source material, though it begins in much the same terrain. Yentl refuses to marry. She has little interest in being subservient to men and wants only to study the Talmud. Her father teaches her the law on the condition that no one ever know. When he dies, Yentl cuts off her hair, dresses in men's clothes, and seeks out a school, where she can live as a man and learn the law. She meets Avigdor, assumes the name of Anshel, and enrolls in Avigdor's yeshiva. Avigdor, whose own younger brother has recently died, takes Anshel under his wing, completely unaware of her true identity. When his engagement to Hadass is broken by her father, Avigdor convinces Anshel to marry her instead, hoping to live vicariously through Anshel. She does so but finds deceiving Hadass to be emotionally draining and unfulfilling; to make matters worse, she's also in love with Avigdor.

Singer hated the film adaptation, upset that his original tale of a woman who identified as a man was corrupted into a musical romance, one in which Streisand, who also directed, placed herself in virtually every frame. But while it does present something of a bastardization of the original story's message, it would be unfair to dismiss Yentl altogether. To a great degree, the film is a successful reimagining. While it's true that the ending—which eschews the notion that Yentl is anything other than a woman—is something of a letdown, everything else about the film works. From Streisand's surprisingly sure hand at direction to the relative ease with which her screenplay introduces and builds believable characters, it establishes an inherently believable milieu while also pushing the cinematic envelope. If there's a failing, it's the notion that anyone would believe Streisand anything other than a woman in men's clothes! Unfortunately, it's this notion that has garnered the film such a nasty and undeserved reputation with critics over the years.

Disregarding the original story and taking the film on its own terms, Yentl is a masterwork. It may be true that Streisand places herself at the center of almost every frame (she is, after all, the lead), but she executes some striking shots nonetheless—shots that portend the later work of James Ivory—while eliciting good performances from her actors. Mandy Patinkin as Avigdor and Amy Irving as Hadass (she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress and a Razzie for Worst Supporting Actress) are standouts, and the sets, costumes, and cinematography are exquisite. More interesting, however, is the way in which Streisand's character, Yentl, narrates the film: her inner monologue is told through a series of songs, which add a touch of class and refinement as well as breaking up lengthy periods of dialogue. The film won the Golden Globe for Best Picture—Musical or Comedy, and Streisand famously and deservedly became the first woman ever to win the award for Best Director (though she was snubbed at the Oscars).

Video/Audio/Extras:

Yentl has been given an AVC-encoded Blu-ray release by Twilight Time, in a special edition limited to 3,000 copies. The film is presented in 1080p with an aspect ratio of 1.66:1. And what a presentation it is! The image is gorgeous. As per the original cinematography (from Oscar winner David Watkins, Out of Africa, 1985), the colors are intentionally subdued; most of the time, Streisand employs chiaroscuro lighting in obvious reflection of her desire that the film look as if painted by a master. Despite this, color reproduction and detail are resplendent; indeed, the film has the look of a live-action painting in much the same way as Terence Fisher's Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell (1974) and Martin Scorsese's The Age of Innocence (1993). The superior transfer serves Streisand and Watkins's compositions well, with a grain structure that is healthy and natural, an amount of detail that is impressive, and black levels that are rich and deep. Nowhere does edge enhancement appear to have been used to artificially sharpen the image.

As with MGM's previous special edition DVD, Twilight Time's release offers two different versions of the film, both in hi-def: the theatrical cut as well as Streisand's preferred director's cut. Though they're only marginally different, viewers will want to go with the longer director's cut. Note, however, that the inserted shots come from separate elements and are not as sharp as those in the remainder of the picture. These scenes are short, however, and retain an appropriate filmic look about them, so they should not warrant undue alarm. More importantly, they offer additional insights into the characters and their situations. This alternate version begins with a special on-screen introduction by Streisand herself, which can also be accessed through the special features screen. Both versions contain 32 chapter breaks, with the 33rd break taking viewers back to the menu screen.

Twilight Time has been wise in offering alternate soundtracks: A DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track and a DTS-HD Master 2.0 track. Both are very good, though fans with a surround system will want to choose the former. This is, after all, a film for which sound is all important, and the 5.1 track offers a full-bodied experience like no other. Streisand's singing voice has never been better served—nor has it sounded more powerful—than it is/does here. And Michael Legrand's score perfectly accentuates Streisand's visual artistry and Streisand and co-scenarist Jack Rosenthal's dialogue. There are no issues to report concerning the sound, not even the usual minor faults. In addition to the two tracks, there is also an audio commentary by Streisand and co-producer Rusty Lemorande. It is recorded in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 and has the benefit of sounding rehearsed rather than improvised during a viewing of the film. Streisand naturally dominates the track, and what an interesting track it is. While Streisand, and to a lesser degree her co-producer, discusses every aspect of the film, the most interesting discussions revolve around the story itself and the direction. She traces the entire production, from its humble beginnings with Singer's original story to the final product, released to theaters in 1983. Though Streisand and Lemorande are in the room together, they are both so composed and controlled that they never sound as if in competition. English subtitles for the deaf and hearing impaired are included as well.

As with the commentary and introduction, the other extras from the aforementioned special-edition DVD have been ported over by Twilight Time. First up are eleven deleted scenes. The collection as a whole is introduced by Streisand, while each individual scene features a written introduction explaining its placement within the greater film. While the film is better off without a few of the shorter sequences, most of the longer scenes should have been restored, particularly one in which Anshel yearns for Avigdor after the dissolution of his engagement.

The remainder of the special features are introduced by Streisand in a three-minute segment in which she discusses the shooting of the film as well as its symbolism. “The Director's Reel Featurette” is a standard-definition, seven-minute short showing director Streisand behind the scenes. It's engaging, often humorous, and sometimes intense. Next up is “The Rehearsal Process with Materials from Barbra's Archives.” When played back to back, the excerpts last just shy of thirty minutes and provide interesting insights into the filmmaking process. “My Wonderful Cast and Crew” is a featurette running approximately seven-and-a-half minutes. It has no dialogue and is a visual introduction to the cast and crew at work, each one accompanied by his or her name. There are two “deleted song” storyboard sequences (for “The Moon and I” and “Several Sins a Day”), each one accompanied by the original song. You can watch “Barbra's 8mm Concept Film” with or without her commentary; it's mostly of interest for its early location footage, shot before the sets were dressed, and lasts less than nine minutes. There are four still galleries for hardcore fans and two trailers: the teaser trailer (1:27) and the theatrical trailer (3:15).

The package comes with a booklet written by Twilight Time's resident film historian, Julie Kirgo. We here at Rock! Shock! Pop! had intended to reveal more about the film in the description above, but Kirgo's liner notes cover the same territory in much greater depth and with a clarity of vision that is befitting a film so important to the feminist movement in cinema. Kirgo's observations are not only spot on, they read like prose, apropos a film that is pure poetry.

Rounding out the list of extras is an onscreen catalogue of Twilight Time's Blu-ray and DVD releases noting which have gone into moratorium and which are still available (at the time of Yentl's release).

The Final Word:

Yentl is a difficult film to pigeonhole. It is simultaneously dramatic and lyrical, transgressive and regressive, cynical and hopeful. It is a work of immense power from a skilled artisan making her directorial debut, one for which she deserves far greater recognition. Twilight Time's Blu-ray is the best the film has ever looked, and it comes with numerous revealing extras. In short, it's the perfect presentation of a masterpiece that melds the visual and the literary into a sublime whole befitting of its status in film history.

Click on the images below for full sized Blu-ray screen caps!