Gett: The Trial Of Viviane Amsalem

The characters of Viviane and Elisha were first seen in “To Take a Wife” and in “The Seven Days.” With “Gett,” they’ve returned to a tighter focus, crafting each shot as if it were being seen from another character’s gaze. Familiarity with the earlier films isn’t a requirement for comprehending what’s happening, or why. More vital as background info is the fact that Israel doesn’t have civil marriage or divorce: Matrimony is controlled by the Orthodox rabbinate, which decides who can get hitched or unhitched.

In this expertly written, brilliantly acted film, Viviane struggles against her passive-aggressive husband and the rabbinical judges to legally end her marriage (a “gett” is a divorce document, obtainable in Israel only by going through religious courts), but the process takes years thanks to a bias that keeps women shackled to their husbands. Set entirely in the courtroom and judiciously alternating between scathing drama and bitter comedy, “Gett” documents the painful five-year process for one woman attempting to obtain a divorce…

Jay Weissberg, Variety