Disobedience

Ronit (Rachel Weisz) returns to her hometown in England after a long absence, when her father – the great spiritual leader Rav Krushka – has passed away. In the years that have passed, Ronit has been leading a bohemian artist’s life as a photographer in New York – miles away from the strictly religious, tradition-bound environment in which she grew up. Her visit home soon turns into a chain collision of emotions, past and present as she reconnects with childhood friends, relatives, and the empty space left by her late father.

Is there such a thing as an absolute divide between any person’s past and present? And if so, what happens when that fragile divide is erased? These are some of the questions posed in Disobedience. Ronit’s past is embodied by her childhood friend Esti (Rachel McAdams), who is leading the life they were both raised to – no matter what the two girls might have wanted for themselves and one another.

Disobedience is an intense and at times almost claustrophobic drama, where the viewer is constantly up close with Ronit and Esti, floating on the unspoken tensions between the two. It’s about finding yourself, about returning to someone else, and how much it takes from a person to turn their back on what they have grown accustomed to.