By Kevin Muller

The Jewish tradition of Shiva is defined as a seven-day mourning period for the dearly departed. In this time, friends and relatives offer food, prayer, comfort, and an overall support system to the family of the deceased. Emma Seligman, who wrote and directed this film, and who is also Jewish, knows plenty about the customs that go into this tradition. Thankfully, Seligman is a well-versed comedic director who uses this practice as the backdrop to her feature film debut, based upon her short film. The results are hilarious and introduce us to two new and exciting talents.

Danielle, played wonderfully by Rachel Sennott, is in the part of her life where one must transition into adulthood, but she doesn’t seem to be ready. She is aimless, anxiety ridden, confused, and an overall mess of a person. She joins her mother and father in attending a Shiva. Unfortunately for her, this is where all her problems come to her head on. She is bombarded by questions about why she doesn’t have a job lined up, why she is single, and, most importantly, if she is eating. Her childhood friend, Mya, played by Molly Gordon, who was her prom date and who she experimented with during her teenage years, is also in attendance. Unlike Danielle, Mya is successful and knows Danielle better than she knows herself, so she knows something is up. The cherry on top is Max, the married man that she is having an affair with, is there with his non-Jewish, successful, and beautiful wife, Kim, both played by Danny Daffari and Dianna Agron. In short, young Danielle is in her own personal hell.

Based upon her short film, which also starred Sennott, Seligman’s micro-budget is noticed by the fact that this was shot in an AirBnB that the was chosen for its décor.  The space adds to the claustrophobia that Danielle feels trapped in. Yes, she could leave but that would warrant a lot of Jewish guilt. She is also trying to do the right thing. Sennott can make us laugh at the misguided Danielle, but also make us both understand and feel the inner turmoil that she is going through. The film does an exceptional job at portraying anxiety through using slow and ominous music, having tight script, film editing, and most importantly, the choices Seligman uses with the cinematography. Whenever Danielle goes through a conflict, the camera is right in her face reading all the uncertainty and doubt. The technique makes the emotions feel stronger, as if they are being contained in a bottle that is ready to burst.

The supporting performances around Sennott are just as good. They elevate both the film and the lead actress’ performance. One of the stereotypes of Jewish parents is how evasive they are of their children’s, others, lives around them. Fred Melamed and Polly Draper play Danielle’s parents, Joel and Debbie, to a fantastic comic delight.   Melamed plays the well-meaning father, while Draper gets to test her comedic skills as an over-the-top Jewish mother. Debbie is as concerned about the family’s reputation as she is about her daughter trying to find a path in life. Draper is careful not to making this character appear evil, but an overly concerned one that becomes a nag when her daughter won’t give her straight answers. The two have many scenes of mother and daughter arguments that are hilarious.

Molly Gordon’s Mya is spicey. Since there is history between the two, she knows Danielle better than anyone at that party, even her own parents. Danielle tries to avoid any awkward feelings, which in turn, dials Mya’s confusion and irritation up to 10. While they do care for each other, Mya is not above making her friend/former lover feel embarrassed at points of the film. Gordon’s fierceness is convincingly felt through the screen. Danny Deferri’s Max is the alpha male at the party. To them, who are unaware of the cheating, he is a mensch, or the ultimate catch, to all the gossiping women there. Max does experience uncomfortableness, since he is hiding something as well. This mainly comes from his wife Kim, played by Dianna Agron. She is smart, successful, and has intuition. Seligman doesn’t paint her as an idiot, because she is far from it. Kim is passive-aggressive and puts Danielle through her own hell as well. There is a scene where she uses her baby as a weapon to further the embarrassment. It is one of the more intense scenes in the film. Agron does “RBF,” resting bitch face, well and can switch from that to charming those around her in the snap of a finger. Agron took a role that could’ve been a throw away and creates something memorable.

Shiva Baby is a comedy of manners, with a vile center. Its performances make all this uncomfortableness hit harder to its audience. While the film is 75 minutes long, it does so much in that time. Seligman understands the one aspect of filmmaking that many films, with million-dollar budgets, don’t, that you must create characters that connect with the audience. If you don’t have that, nothing will work. Fortunately, her debut film accomplishes this and so much more!

I am giving Shiva Baby a 4 out of 5 Hairpieces!

#ShivaBaby #MovieReview

Readers! Check out the video review I did for this film with my fellow Cinephella, Armando!