One of the big differences between foreign films and American films? In American films, the guy with a scar is a villain. He just is. Don’t bother asking. Very few exceptions. In a foreign film, we’re open to the concept that a scraggly middle-aged schemer with under-the-table dealings and a huge scar crossing from the one eyebrow across the bridge of the nose to under the opposite cheek might just be a title character. Foreign film can be confusing.
Set in 1968 Israel, The Matchmaker is your standard coming-of-age film. Set this film anywhere – Americana in the 50s, turn-of-the-century Manhattan, Hogwarts in 2007, anywhere … the standard elements apply. A slightly post-pubescent male noob gets thrown into situations he’s unprepared to handle and there’s sexual discovery, often a voyeur 
encounter that becomes face-to-face.
What sets Matchmaker apart? Well, Arik (Tuval Shafir) starts working for a Holocaust surviving friend of his dad. The survivor, scarred Yankele Bride (Adir Miller) takes his matchmaking duties very seriously and doesn’t have a good feel for age-appropriateness. The result is Hebrew Hagrid, a gruff-but-lovable semi-well intentioned bear-man constantly asking his lackey spy-boy to do questionable things. As this tale is told in memory from, I am curious that older Arik didn’t find this disturbing. What does he tell friends? “Oh yeah,” he’d sigh, pause, and then continue, “I remember that summer … I was just past puberty and I got a job doing sordid legwork for an ex-holocaust ape. Yeah, he had me follow people, break into houses … spied on a guy getting blowjob from a hooker a few times. What? Dangerous? No, what danger could there possibly have been? I was in a comedy.” Comedy, that is, in the traditional sense, of course, as with most coming-of-age films.
In you’re gonna make a coming-of-age film, this is a pretty good formula. See, the key is to get your boy-to-man involved in adult situations. And here he is playing sheqelstore gumshoe spyin’ through keyholes and participating in PG-13 antics. OK, so it’s not exactly adult peril, but close. And Tuval, while amiable, is hardly George Clooney; for the most part, he kinda just smiles with a subtle sweet awkwardness as a response to 85% of stimuli. And now it’s my turn to smile with sweet awkwardness as I sort of recommend Matchmaker.
Arik’s summer of age to attain
Was equal parts sunshine and rain
Working as a tool
He proved mostly fool
Oy vey! To do it over again
Not Rated, 112 Minutes
D: Avi Nesher
W: Avi Nesher
Genre: The lighter side of holocaust memories.
Type of person most likely to enjoy this film: Friends of the big-chested girl next door
Type of person least likely to enjoy this film: Nazis
