By Holly Shifrah
(AJNews) – There’s a dearth of movies and television centred on Jewish holidays, but when it comes to Jewish holiday viewing, Pesach may have the most abundant choices. Below you’ll find a list of options for various ages. Watch all seven over the course of the holiday or pick and choose one or two. There’s something for everybody, from old Hollywood cinephiles, to theatre kids (of all ages), to history nerds. Chag sameach!
The Ten Commandments
This 1956 Paramount Pictures classic starring Charlton Heston as Moses can only be described as epic. The nearly four hour run time isn’t for very young or impatient audiences, but remains a beloved family watching experience with good reason. It was nominated for seven Academy Awards, winning the Oscar for Best Special Effects (even if those effects may fail to impress contemporary audiences). This dramatization of the Exodus story was partially filmed on location in Egypt.
Where to watch? Purchase or rent from AppleTV or Prime Video, or check your local cable listings to see if it’s being aired during Passover (as it often is).
What’s it rated? G, Common Sense Media rating: 9+. Grown-ups may want to have age-appropriate conversations with kids about outdated depictions of gender and race; but DeMille’s The Ten Commandments holds up well compared to many movies of its time.
Runtime: 3 hours 51 minutes
A Rugrats Passover
Millennial parents especially will enjoy watching this one with their younger kids. This short episode from the 90s Nickelodeon cartoon, Rugrats, is a playful retelling of Exodus as it might be perceived by toddlers. More than that, it’s a humorous look at how various family and friends experience a seder. It is suffused with charming Yiddishkeit that is as warming as a bowl of matzah ball soup.
Where to watch? Purchase this season 3, episode 23 episode on AppleTV or stream it on Paramount+.
What’s it rated? G, Common Sense Media: 6+.
Runtime: 23 minutes
The Prince of Egypt
This star-studded, animated musical was released by DreamWorks in 1998. It features a score by award winning Jewish composer, Hans Zimmer. The equally accomplished Jewish composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz (of Wicked fame) provided the songs; including “When You Believe,” which won the Oscar for Best Original Song. The Prince of Egypt is a uniquely beautiful visual experience featuring over 900 hand-painted backgrounds in a period when studios started abandoning hand-drawn animation for entirely CGI production. Decades after its release, Jessica Toomer, writing for SyFy, called it “the greatest animated movie of all time.” Between the incredible cast, gorgeous art, and chill-inducing music, this is a movie the whole family will love and want to watch annually.
Where to watch? Purchase or rent on AppleTV, Cineplex, Prime Video, or the Microsoft Store.
What’s it rated? PG, Common Sense Media: 8+.
Runtime: 1 hour 39 minutes
The Prince of Egypt
Yes, you read that right. The Prince of Egypt indeed fills two slots in this list. In 2015 Stephen Schwartz and Philip LaZebnik began adapting the beloved family film for the stage. The show had its West End debut in 2020. It featured 18 new songs, including songs which fleshing out the female characters in the narrative as well as the Moses’s beautiful ballad Footprints on the Sand. In 2023 a professional recording of the West End production was made available for digital purchase or rental.
Where to watch? Purchase or rent from AppleTV or stream with a PrimeVideo account.
What’s it rated? Not Rated, but probably best for 10+. Younger kids will likely prefer the original.
Runtime: 2 hours 24 minutes
Moses
This 1995 Emmy-nominated Miniseries by TNT was part of The Bible Collection, which included ten stories from the Hebrew Bible (and seven from the Christian Gospels), starting in 1993 with Abraham. Moses was fifth in the series and is the most accurate adaption of the Biblical account of Moses on this list, perhaps ever. It covers Moses’ life from birth to death without shying away from details often left out (like Moses being slow of speech). The cast includes acting heavyweights Sir David Suchet and Sir Christopher Lee, with Sir Ben Kingsley in the titular role.
Where to watch? The Madain Project has the full movie on its YouTube channel, or you can purchase DVDs of the The Bible Collection on Amazon or eBay.
What’s it rated? Not rated but probably better for 10+.
Runtime: 3 hours 2 minutes
Streit’s: Matzo and the American Dream
This 2016 documentary from director Michael Levine takes an in-depth look at the famous family business, whose matzah factory opened in Manhattan’s Lower East Side in 1925. What better way to spend part of your matzah-eating week than watching how it’s made? The documentary also investigates how life has changed in the Lower East Side, and the company’s fate as it tries to maintain close-knit employee relationships while facing the pressures of gentrification.
Where to watch? Kanopy (free for Calgary or Edmonton Public Library Card holders)
What’s it rated? TV-PG
Runtime: 1 hour 23 minutes
Lost Treasures of the Bible: Mysteries of the Exodus
This episode, from the 2024 National Geographic series which investigates Biblical archeology, spends much time focusing on a dig site uncovering Pi-Ramesses. It provides a fascinating, up-close look at archeological techniques used in this effort. It’s a secular, scientific look at what evidence is already available and what may yet be uncovered that may align with the scholarly theory that the Exodus story is neither completely historical nor completely mythological, but is a “mythologized history.” History nerds comfortable with a less precisely literal interpretation of the Biblical narrative will enjoy this documentary.
Where to watch? Stream on Disney+ or buy on Prime Video
What’s it rated? The series is rated TV-14, but this episode specifically is probably suitable for viewers younger than 14. Parents should view first and make the choice appropriate for their own family.
Runtime: 44 minutes
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