Movie Released: November 16, 2004

 

 

Santa’s son is on a mission to eradicate Hanukah so The Hebrew Hammer teams up with the Kwanzaa Liberation Front to stop his evil plan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There’s something really fun about a movie that doesn’t pretend to be anything but what it is – absolutely ridiculous. The stereotypes are plentiful and unapologetic and the jokes just awful but the result was a truly hilarious film. The take no prisoners style of comedy reminds me of the great Mel Brooks but  [easyazon_link identifier=”B0002WZTQQ” locale=”US” tag=”rabidreaders-20″]The Hebrew Hammer[/easyazon_link] has a unique flavor all its own.

Watching one of the opening scenes in which young Mordechai’s (Grant Rosenmeyer) dreidel is crushed by Santa Claus and then the jolly old elf gives the young Jew the finger, I wonder how the movie would go over released in the Facebook age. Everyone and their grandmother is on Facebook and every holiday you can set your clock by posts touting the War on Christmas. That the bad guy is named Damien Claus (not to mentioned played by Andy Dick) screams that one should leave their preconceptions at the door and just enjoy the wonderful and crazy stupidity for 90 minutes. Savvy watchers will maybe take something away from how crazy it is that Damien wants December for Christmas and to eradicate all other celebrations. It only makes sense for Mordechai to team up with the other religious organizations to hilarious result.

Mordechai’s love interest is played by the fabulous Judy Greer who, I think, is one of the best comedy actors today. She’s not always permitted to be pretty or the coquette in movies but she played it to advantage in [easyazon_link identifier=”B0002WZTQQ” locale=”US” tag=”rabidreaders-20″]The Hebrew Hammer[/easyazon_link]. She’s a classic Jewish American Princess with a heavy dose of bravado and bad ass that this actor does well. I’ve been a fan of Adam Goldberg since the “Dazed and Confused” days. Goldberg has a good comedic timing and seems to have fun in the role which is fitting with a subject so stretching the bonds of taste. Nora Dunn and Rachel Dratch also have roles in the film.

In short, [easyazon_link identifier=”B0002WZTQQ” locale=”US” tag=”rabidreaders-20″]The Hebrew Hammer[/easyazon_link] was a delightfully fun movie with a few cringe moments. Watched in the spirit in which its intended, [easyazon_link identifier=”B0002WZTQQ” locale=”US” tag=”rabidreaders-20″]The Hebrew Hammer[/easyazon_link]  is a classic addition to any holiday library.

 

The Hebrew Hammer is available as a DVD, Blu-ray and on Amazon Instant Video:

Amazon U.S. • Amazon U.K. • Amazon Canada

Title	The Hebrew Hammer
Director	Johnathan Kesselman
Actors	Adam Goldberg, Andy Dick, Judy Greer, Mario Van Peebles, Peter Coyote
Length	1 hour and 25 minutes
Rating	R
DVD Release	November 16, 2012