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| Mothers of Today |
A classic tale of parental sacrifice and filial ingratitude,
Mothers of Today exemplifies the Yiddish film genre of shund, a brand of popular entertainment that appealed to Jewish-immigrant audiences with broadly drawn stories reflecting their daily life and anxieties.
Featuring the only motion-picture performance of radio star Esther Field, who was well-known on US radio airwaves in the 1930s as the 'Yidishe Mama', it is about a mother coping with her children's troubles resulting from their straying from Jewish tradition.
Sentimental, farcical and tragic by turns,
Mothers of Today is remarkable for its low-budget artistry and vitality. Featuring an exuberant musical score that erupts at almost every opportunity with lively production numbers, this is a film for dyed-in-the-wool Yiddish fans. It is bound to have you singing along and marvelling that everyone in New York, even its police, speaks Yiddish.
