The Wicked One - What Does He Say?

1934
Silent
16m

A grief-stricken rabbi recollects life in his home country, only to find that tragedy has followed him to his new life

Betrayal, brutality and heartbreak lead a rabbi to a new life in the UK, where a shocking coincidence sparks intense reactions. Flashbacks of past Passover Seder nights reveal tragedy and sorrow, while in the present we see the hardship of poor immigrants in Britain. Taking its title from the 'Four Sons' passage of the Passover Haggadah text, this beautifully evocative amateur film offers a glimpse into the sensibility of Yiddish melodrama.

In a Hebrew class, an old Rabbi teaches young boys. The boys in the back of the room are shooting paper pellets, with catapults, at a new boy who is bullied. One pellet hits the Rabbi who turns and blames the bullied child. As he raises his hand to hit the boy, he looks into the childs face... Flashback to Russia c.1900. Jewish boy with a non-Jewish girl (frowned upon in those days). Cut to shot of Rabbi on Seder night (first night of Passover). The son comes in late: "Where have you been", "To the synagogue" replies the boy. "You Liar". A quarrell ensues, ending with the son hitting his father with a bottle.
One year on - Seder night again and the eldest son is missing from the table. Cossacks enter and kill the Rabbi's wife and other son, and kidnap his daughter. The rabbi emigrates to England and finds work as a teacher. The bullied boy turns out to be the Rabbi's grandson. The 'wicked son' also emigrated to England and insisted his son should learn about his roots. The Rabbi and 'wicked son' are reunited when he picks the boy up from class.

Jewish Britain

Jewish life on screen: a century of insights and hidden histories

This collection uncovers insights, injustices and hidden histories across a century of Jewish life on British screens. It brings together documentary and first-person accounts of Jewish life in the UK, alongside historical dramas and artists’ work exploring the 20th century Jewish experience. The earliest surviving depictions of Jewish characters in British cinema offer a troubling insight into antisemitic representation, yet prejudice was later tackled head-on, with newsreels documenting the anti-fascist movement of the 1930s.

Drop in on joyous family weddings and community gatherings, and see the ways in which UK Jewry supported Jews young and old, and those fleeing persecution, in a selection of fascinating films from the 1900s to the 1980s.

This collection is generously supported by the Neil Kreitman Foundation, Shoresh Charitable Trust, John S Cohen Foundation, and Harold Hyam Wingate Foundation.