Ancient Law takes on the theme of Jewish assimilation in 19th-century Europe as it contrasts the closed world of shtetl life with liberal society. With its depiction of a rabbi’s son who breaks with family tradition to become an actor, this 1923 film was clearly the inspiration for the 1927 American film The Jazz Singer.
Introduction by Martin Koerber and Cynthia Walk
The new restoration by Deutsche Kinemathek marks a reconstruction corresponding to the lost 1920s German theatrical release will be shown, both in its original length, and with the color digitally restored.
Special support provided by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences
Copresented by the Jewish Film Institute, Jewish Community Center of San Francisco, Flicker Alley, and Berlin & Beyond, Goethe-Institut