The Believer (2001)

Director:

Henry Bean

Writers:

Henry Bean (screenplay)
Henry Bean (story) ...

Release Date:

23 August 2001 (Russia)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A young Jewish man develops a fiercely anti-Semitic worldview. Based on the true story of a KKK member in the 1960s who was revealed to be Jewish by a New York Times reporter.

Plot Keywords:

New York Times | Reporter | Self Loathing | Judaism | New York City

Awards:

5 wins & 9 nominations

Cast

Ryan Gosling	...	Danny Balint
Peter Meadows	...	Orthodox Student
Garret Dillahunt	...	Billings
Kris Eivers	...	Carleton
Joel Garland	...	O.L.
Billy Zane	...	Curtis Zampf
Theresa Russell	...	Lina Moebius
Summer Phoenix	...	Carla Moebius
Jack Drummond	...	Old Coot
Sig Libowitz	...	Rav Zingesser
James G. McCaffrey	...	Young Avi
Jacob Green	...	Young Danny
Frank Winters	...	Young Stuart
Ronald Guttman	...	Danny's Father
Heather Goldenhersh	...	Linda

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence, language and some sexual content.

Runtime:

102 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Hebrew

Color:

Black and White | Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Germany:18 | Brazil:14 | France:U | Peru:18 | Spain:18 | UK:15 | USA:R | Australia:MA | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Fuller Films

Trivia:

Inspired by the story of Dan Burros, an American Jew, who joined (and left) the American Nazi Party, and then joined the United Klans of America (KKK). Not unlike "the Believer", when a journalist unmasked Burros, he killed himself. "The Believer" takes this as a springboard though, and many of the other details are quite different.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the final synagogue segment, while the congregation is singing "Aveenu Malchenu," they keep changing keys from shot to shot, up a half-step and down a half-step and back up again again, indicating a string of takes edited together.

Quotes:

Daniel Balint: You print that in the New York Times, Guy, and I'm gonna kill myself.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Anatomy of a Scene: The Believer" (????)

Powerful but not exploitative

When I read a description of this film, I thought it would go overboard in the violence and "shock sequences." I was relieved and impressed that it left most of the violence to the imagination. The shock value comes from other places--the content, the dialogue. This is a very thought-provoking and smart movie, not at all preachy (and it easily could have been preachy). The acting is unforced and its story does not fall into the "American History X" trap: Its main character does not become an "all race loving" good guy. The protagonist in "The Believer" is a tortured soul, and his fate (although somewhat predictable) is fitting after the events in the film. This movie is another example that cable movies occasionally surpass theatrical movies in their subject matter and execution. Very well done.