Haim-Aaron
could be the Orthodox Jewish Dannion Brinkley or Betty Eadie, but notoriety is
the last thing he wants. He was not seeking grounds to question his faith
either, but it happens just the same in Avishai Sivan’s distorted and disorienting
auteurist vision, Tikkun (trailer here), which opens
today in New York.
This
is not your father’s Yentl. Viewers
should be able to quickly figure that out from loving attention Sivan focuses
on kosher slaughter practices during the opening sequences. Initially,
Haim-Aaron is the devoutly obedient son his father always wanted. He studies at
the Yeshiva with a zeal approaching martyrdom. Unfortunately, his most recent bout
of fasting leaves him so weak a fall in the shower nearly kills him. In fact,
Haim-Aaron is effectively dead for forty minutes. Yet, somehow after the paramedics
give up, Haim-Aaron’s father manages to revive his comatose son.
Of
course, nothing is the same for Haim-Aaron after his death. He seems like the
same submissive wet noodle, but he now has trouble stifling his sexual stirrings.
Even though Haim-Aaron cannot conceive of a life outside religion, he simply is
unable to maintain his previous level of intense devotion. He even starts
falling asleep in class. Soon, his father’s sense that something is amiss is amplified
by his visions of a talking alligator slithering out of the toilet to chide him
for interfering with God’s will. Yes, seriously. In fact, that doom-saying
gator gets enough screen time to be considered a significant supporting player.
Shot
in a strikingly chilly black-and-white, Tikkun
a harshly intimate examination of cloistered alienation, punctuated by
moments of absolute madness. Sivan never engages with genre cinema conventions,
but the alligator scenes will still inevitably draw some curious midnight movie
patrons. Frankly, Tikkun is so
uncompromisingly realized, it is hard to say whether they will be disappointed
or dazzled by its severity. However, even those closely familiar with Eraserheads and Audition will be taken aback by the film’s climatic transgressions.
It is not just the Hasidic community who are likely to be offended by Sivan’s
ultimate destination.
The
formerly Hasidic Aharon Traitel (who also helped translate Yiddish texts for
Sivan) is uncomfortably believable as the emotionally stunted Haim-Aaron. At
times, we can almost see his muscle memories guiding his performance. Yet the
real soul-plumbing, knock-you-back-on-your-heels performance comes from Khalifa
Natour, as the tormented butcher. Despite his problematic decisions and an
extreme faith bordering on insanity, he remains a deeply human and perversely
sympathetic figure.
