Year One: Biblical Blasphemy is Back

Sunday school just got a lot more interesting. The new movie Year One is an Old Testament version of the classic Monty Python comedy The Life of Brian.

 

Now, for some people, that’s not exactly a ringing endorsement. Not everybody approved of the Pythons’ outrageous spoof of Biblical epics, which featured something to offend everyone. Yet, thus far Year One hasn’t generated anything like the controversy the latter did decades ago. Why not?

The plot, for what it’s worth, centers on two cavemen who get kicked out of their tribe. They embark on what you might call history’s first road trip, bumping into biblical figures, like Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, Abraham and Isaac and other people from the Torah, and goofy comedy ensues.

Yes, this slapstick summer flick takes a lot of poetic (and comedic) license with its sacred source material. As I rabbi, I feel obliged to point out, for example, that Adam and Eve lived over a thousand years before Abraham and Sarah were even born. But remember: it’s only a movie!

The two cavemen are played by Jack Black and Michael Cera, Black’s character Zed is a hunter, in contrast to Cera’s timid gatherer named Oh. Oh loves a girl from his tribe named Eema (which is Hebrew for “Mom”, by the way.) After Eema is enslaved by a more advanced tribe – one that’s invented wheels and swords and stuff – Zed and Oh vow to save her.

That’s when they meet all those Biblical patriarchs and matriarchs. Adam is played by Harold Ramis (who also wrote and directed the film.) Cain is played by David Cross, and Abel by Paul Rudd, who play out the world’s first sibling rivalry, although this time for laughs.

We’re never told how Zed and Oh manage to miss the Flood, because soon they’re meeting Abraham and Isaac. Abraham is played by the Hank Azaria, in his second “ancient” role of the year – he also plays a Pharaoh in the Night at the Museum sequel. Christopher Mintz-Plasse plays Isaac and was also in Superbad and Role Models, thus earning a coveted spot in film phenom Judd Apatow’s growing comedy ensemble. (That Apatow is the producer of Year One comes as no surprise.)

So what’s this rabbi’s take on making mockery of the good book? Humor is a double edged sword: it can make people more receptive to exploring the Torah, but comedy also runs the risk of being all surface and no substance, not to mention irreverent.

Yet, it’s fresh to see a bunch of bright, funny, creative Jewish guys embracing their religious heritage, even for laughs. Jack Black, Harold Ramis, David Cross, Paul Rudd, Hank Azaria, Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Judd Apatow are all “members of the tribe”, and I don’t mean Zed and Oh’s. They may be poking fun, and laughing from the pews at the back of the synagogue, but at least they’re back in.

Besides, even a movie full of potty humor like Year One can include surprisingly serious philosophical insights. When faced with the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden, Michael Cera explains: “It’s not about the fruit. It’s about doing what you’re told.” Not a bad interpretation of an often-misunderstood story.

With so many “Jew-ish” movies coming out this summer, from Woody Allen’s Whatever Works, to Funny People and Bruno, we’re witnessing the dawn of a new age in Jewish comedy. Big stories in recent issues of Vanity Fair and New York magazine have noticed this too. I’m proud to say I predicted this trend in my latest book, Shtick Shift: Jewish Humor in the 21st Century (Barricade Books: 2008).

So if Judd Apatow or Sacha Baron Cohen are reading this, just to let you know: I’m available for weddings, bar mitzvahs – and cameo appearances. And unlike Jack Black and company in Year One, at least my beard is real.

Simcha Weinstein is an internationally known best-selling author. His first book, Up, Up and Oy Vey! received the Benjamin Franklin Award for the best book of 2007. He has appeared on CNN “Showbiz Tonight,” and NPR, and has been profiled in leading publications including The New York Times, The Miami Herald and the London Guardian. He is a regular contributor to the Jerusalem Post and Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA). He chairs the Religious Affairs Committee at the renowned New York art school, Pratt Institute. His latest book Shtick Shift: Jewish Humor in the 21st century (Barricade Books: 2008) is on sale now.