On June 19, 2024, the film ‘Guns & Moses’, directed by Salvador Litvak, premiered to a full house at the Saban Theatre, in Beverly Hills California.
The Los Angeles, Jewish Film Festival (LAJFF) is back in full force, this year with the theme “Fighting Anti-Semitism One Film at a Time.”
First and foremost, I strongly suggest you go and see this good plot, funny suspense film that subtly and wisely touches on many current aspects of our life.
I must state here that the film is a good filmgoer surprise in all aspects.
About the Los Angeles, Jewish Film Festival
LAJFF’s screenings this year spread from June 19 to June 24, 2024. The festival stands strongly behind its cultural ethos of building community awareness, appreciation and pride in the Jewish community’s diversity through a cinematic experience.
Hilary Helstein, LAJFF Executive Director leads the festival along with its goals to bring to the screen in order to preserve and celebrate the rich Jewish heritage; to cultivate Jewish values and the quality of Jewish life, not only for the affiliated but unaffiliated, for the Los Angeles community; and to create and maintain a sense of community by providing important and exciting programming for individuals, families and organizations.
About Guns & Moses – Film and Actors
Not giving away an inch of the plot Mark Feuerstein as the main character, Rabbi Mo Zaltzman, is that type plot’s persona you simply want to hug.
With the disturbing social phenomenon of Antisemitism on the rise in the United States, when Jews are a target and are attacked and when Jews are arming and learning to master the use of the gun in order to protect themselves, Guns & Moses, a neo-western action thriller relates to this new junction in Jewish life in the US.
The film is about a much esteemed and beloved small town rabbi who, after his community is violently attacked, becomes an unlikely perfect gun-shooter.
Director Salvador (Sal) Litvak
Sal was born in Santiago, Chile and moved to New York City at age five. He attended Harvard, NYU Law, and UCLA Film School. Sal wrote the film’s script with his wife, Nina Davidovich Litvak. Sal, an American Jew, shares daily posts on Jewish wisdom, history and humor with over a million followers.
Guns & Moses Lines of Wisdom
As Gun & Moses strongly depicts, the basic Jewish nature is to see the goodness in people which does not always bode well for them, not in their favor.
The cliché used in the film “no one looks like a killer until they kill” caught my thoughts. It indirectly addresses the brutal Hamas massacre that took place in Israel on October 7, 2023. The hundreds of Israeli-Jews in southern Israel, whom Hamas massacred, strongly believed that treating Hamas members along the Torah Command “you shall love your neighbor as yourself” is the remedy that would provide the much desired peace.
These Jews hoped that by treating the Hamas Gazans with civility and kindness such behavior would appeal to these terrorists’ inner murderous nature and would change them for the better. Their hostile intent will be replaced with goodness and civility. How did that work for them?
The ‘Guns & Moses’ film plot could easily take place in real life nowadays. Written well, with funny, kind of ‘very Jewish’ with underlying indications to antisemitism and widespread corruption elements, it certainly has an almost for-real story plot.
The line from the film “God and the Glock protect you today” very well addressed Jews in the US who were forced to employ armed guards in their houses of faith. Also in Israel, the Jewish state, they strongly believe in their God but also in their self-determination and the ability to defend themselves with the gun.
The ‘Guns & Moses’ film is timely. It touches a nerve and encompasses many elements of our life today.
I strongly suggest that you go see the film ‘Guns & Moses’. It is a joyful movie-going experience. Thanks to The Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival for showcasing it.
