Sept. 14: The long-awaited American theatrical release of Arturo Ripstein’s 1966 debut feature, “Time to Die.” It’s a Mexican revenge western that would be worth seeing just for Ripstein’s splendid career alone, but the script is by Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Carlos Fuentes and if that doesn’t grab you, have your doctor check for a pulse. Film Forum (209 W. Houston St., filmforum.org).
Sept. 18: “Crossing Delancey,” Joan Micklin Silver’s charming breakthrough film with a glorious performance by Peter Riegert. Micklin Silver, Riegert and Amy Irving will be present at the screening. Film Forum (209 W. Houston St., filmforum.org).
Sept. 22: Bobbi Jene Smith was a major star in the Israeli dance scene, a mainstay of the Batsheva Dance Company, when she decided to return to New York City to pursue her own creative ideas. Filmmaker Elvira Lind followed her, and the resulting documentary “Bobbi Jene” was a triple-award-winner at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival, winning Best Documentary, Best Cinematography and Best Editing awards. Quad Cinema (34 W. 13th St., https://quadcinema.com/).
Sept. 28-Oct. 15: The 55th New York Film Festival promises a particularly rich haul of Jewish-themed films. Among the main program will be new films by Noah Baumbach, Woody Allen, Arnaud Desplechin, Todd Haynes and Agnieszka Holland. The documentary program includes a film about the historical echoes from the Kindertransport to the current refugee crisis in Europe directed by Vanessa Redgrave, and a portrait of Arthur Miller by his daughter Rebecca. Film Society of Lincoln Center (Multiple venues at Lincoln Center, filmlinc.org).
Oct. 3: “Tomorrow Ever After,” a 2016 feature by Israeli-American director Ela Thier (“Foreign Letters”) offers a serio-comic take on time travel with a scientist from the 27th century inadvertently stranded in 2015. Can she return home? Should she? Of course it’s comforting to think there will be a human race still around in 600 years. Well, maybe. JCC Manhattan (76th Street and Amsterdam Avenue, http://jccmanhattan.org/film/).
Nov. 1: “1945,” a Hungarian film by Ferenc Török about the struggles of an Orthodox father and son who return to their village to bury their dead in the aftermath of WWII. Film Forum (209 W. Houston St., filmforum.org). The film will have a sneak preview screening on Oct. 23 at the JCC Manhattan (76th Street and Amsterdam Avenue, http://jccmanhattan.org/film/).
https://youtu.be/scBAVpRnJWQ
Nov. 2-9: The Other Israel Film Festival, now in its 11th year, has become an absolutely essential stop on the NYC film calendar. JCC Manhattan (76th Street and Amsterdam Avenue, otherisrael.org).
Nov. 10: “Destination Unknown” is a Shoah documentary by first-timer Claire Ferguson, a highly respected editor of nonfiction features, drawing all its text from the words of survivors. Theater TBA.
Nov. 12: “The Eichmann Show,” a 2015 documentary about groundbreaking producer Milton Fruchtman and blacklisted TV director Leo Hurwitz, who overcame enormous obstacles to televise the trial and testimony of one of the world’s most notorious war criminals. Museum of Jewish Heritage (36 Battery Place, mjhnyc.org).
TBA: “One of Us,” a new documentary by Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady, the directors of “Jesus Camp,” examines the emotional and social plight of three young Jews who have chosen to leave their ultra-Orthodox communities. Theater TBA.
