The Wedding Plan
Description
A 32-year-old Orthodox Jew makes a dangerous wager with her marital status in this effervescent romantic comedy by Rama Burshtein. Michal, a charming but anxious woman who has longed for marriage for many years, finds herself in a challenging position when her fiancé says he no longer loves her and calls off their impending nuptials. Rather than cancel the wedding, Michal decides impulsively that all she needs is to find another groom. Using the comic scenario of this self-imposed betrothal deadline, Burshtein explores the urgency of marriage within the Orthodox community. While this is a serious topic, her film finds plenty of opportunities for playfulness, from Michal’s series of dates with unsuitable partners (one won’t even let himself look at her) to her encounters with business clients and friends who have their own romantic travails and beliefs. As her wedding date nears, Michal makes a desperate graveside pilgrimage and meets a rock singer named Yoss, but whether he will be the literal answer to her prayers remains to be seen. As she did with her debut feature Fill the Void (Festival 2013), Burshtein marries romantic comedy with the traditions of Orthodox Judaism, and the result is a film bursting with insight, humor, and compassion. —Rod Armstrong
Biographies
Rama Burshtein was born in New York in 1967 and raised in Israel. She graduated from the Sam Spiegel Film and Television School in Jerusalem in 1994. During this period, she became deeply religious and, upon graduating, dedicated herself to promoting film as a tool for self-expression and began writing, directing, and producing films for the Orthodox community. Her first film Fill the Void (Festival 2013) was presented at numerous festivals and won seven Ophirs (the Israeli equivalent of the Academy Awards), including Best Picture.