Abstract
The incorporation of Latin American economies into the process of globalization and the consequent hegemony of neoliberalism brought about a crisis in national identities. One manifestation of these changes in the continent’s cinemas has been the increasingly frequent appearance of Jewish narratives and characters in movies intended for the general public and the global movie market. The trend is indicative of the reconstruction of a white ethnicity, almost invisible in Latin American films until three decades ago. This article analyzes Cinco días sin Nora (Nora’s Will), directed by Mariana Chenillo (Mexico, 2008), and El brindis (To Life), directed by Shai Agosín (Chile, Mexico, 2007), concluding that they construct the cultural difference and the subaltern identity’s alterity by negotiating the legitimacy of Jewish religious rites in the face of each country’s hegemonic identity, while the presence of the characters in the public space is a testimony of certain ethnic minority conflicts in the national context.
Recommended Citation
Tal, Tzvi
(2014)
"Ethnic Rituals and the Public Space: Mexican and Chilean Jews in Film,"
Jewish Film & New Media: Vol. 2:
Iss.
1, Article 3.
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/jewishfilm/vol2/iss1/3