Set within the New York Hasidic com­mu­ni­ty in Borough Park, Brooklyn, Menashe fol­lows a kind but hap­less gro­cery store clerk try­ing to main­tain cus­t­ody of his son Rieven after his wife, Lea, pas­ses away. Since they live in a tra­di­ti­on-bound cul­tu­re that requi­res a mother pre­sent in every home, Rieven is sup­po­sed to be adopted by the boy’s strict, mar­ried uncle, but Menashe’s Rabbi deci­des to grant him one week to spend with Rieven pri­or to Lea’s memo­ri­al. Their time tog­e­ther crea­tes an emo­tio­nal moment of father/son bon­ding as well as offers Menashe a final chan­ce to pro­ve to his skep­ti­cal com­mu­ni­ty that he can be a capa­ble parent.

Shot in secret enti­re­ly within the Hasidic com­mu­ni­ty depic­ted in the film, and one of the only movies to be per­for­med in Yiddish in near­ly 70 years, Menashe is a warm, life-affir­ming look at the uni­ver­sal bonds bet­ween father and son that also sheds unu­su­al light on a noto­rious­ly pri­va­te com­mu­ni­ty. Based lar­ge­ly on the real life of its Hasidic star Menashe Lustig, the film is a strikin­gly authen­tic and deep­ly moving por­trait of fami­ly, love, con­nec­tion, and community.