Plot
The latest production of Moriah Films is It Is No Dream: The Life of Theodor Herzl, exploring the life and times of Theodor Herzl, father of the modern state of Israel. Narrated by Academy Award winner, Sir Ben Kingsley and starring Academy Award winner Christoph Waltz as the voice of Theodor Herzl, the film examines how Herzl, a well known journalist and playwright, an assimilated, Budapest born Jew, horrified by the Dreyfus trial in Paris and the anti-Semitism he saw spreading across Europe, took upon himself the task of attempting to create a Jewish homeland in Palestine against all odds. Over the span of 8 years, Herzl organized and led a worldwide political movement that within 50 years led to the establishment of the state of Israel. The film follows Herzl as he meets with Kings, Prime Ministers, Ambassadors, a Sultan, a Pope and government ministers from Constantinople to St. Petersburg, from Paris to Berlin, from Vienna to Vilna in his quest to build a Jewish nation.
The Dreamer who became the Father of a nation...
Plot
This early film biography of the founder of modern Zionism depicts a young Herzl learning about Jewish persecution throughout the ages, and developing his theory of political Zionism, which he saw as the only solution to anti-semitism. The film then follows Herzl's efforts to implement his ideas by converting European leaders and Jews to his cause.
Keywords: israel, jewish
Theodor Herzl (Hebrew: תאודור הרצל, Hungarian: Herzl Tivadar; May 2, 1860 – July 3, 1904), born Benjamin Ze’ev Herzl (Hebrew: בִּנְיָמִין זְאֵב הֵרצְל, also known as חוֹזֵה הַמְדִינָה, Hozeh HaMedinah, lit. "Visionary of the State") was an Ashkenazi Jewish Austro-Hungarian journalist and the father of modern political Zionism and in effect the State of Israel.
He was born in Pest, Hungary, to an Ashkenazi Jewish family originally from Zimony (today Zemun, Serbia), which was then part of Austria-Hungary. He was second child of Jeanette and Jakob Herzl, who were German-speaking, assimilated Jews. A precocious, moody daydreamer, he aspired to follow the footsteps of Ferdinand de Lesseps, builder of the Suez Canal. He did not succeed in the sciences, and he developed a growing enthusiasm for poetry and the humanities. This passion would later develop into a successful career in journalism and a less celebrated pursuit of play-writing.
Herzl had minimal interest in religious Judaism as a child, consistent with his parents’ lax adherence to the Jewish tradition. His mother relied more on German humanist Kultur than Jewish ethics. Instead of a Bar Mitzvah, Herzl's thirteenth birthday was advertised as a "confirmation". He grew up as a "thoroughly emancipated, antitraditional, secular, would-be German boy" who dismissed all religion, and spoke of Judaism with "mocking cynicism." He exhibited a secularist disdain toward religion, which he saw as uncivilized. Even after becoming interested in the "Jewish question," Herzl's writing retained traces of Jewish self-contempt, according to Elon.
Adolf Hitler (German: [ˈadɔlf ˈhɪtlɐ] ( listen); 20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party (German: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (NSDAP), commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945 and dictator of Nazi Germany (as Führer und Reichskanzler) from 1934 to 1945. Hitler is commonly associated with the rise of fascism in Europe, World War II, and the Holocaust.
A decorated veteran of World War I, Hitler joined the German Workers' Party, precursor of the Nazi Party, in 1919, and became leader of the NSDAP in 1921. In 1923, he attempted a coup d'état, known as the Beer Hall Putsch, in Munich. The failed coup resulted in Hitler's imprisonment, during which time he wrote his memoir, Mein Kampf (My Struggle). After his release in 1924, Hitler gained popular support by attacking the Treaty of Versailles and promoting Pan-Germanism, antisemitism, and anticommunism with charismatic oratory and Nazi propaganda. After his appointment as chancellor in 1933, he transformed the Weimar Republic into the Third Reich, a single-party dictatorship based on the totalitarian and autocratic ideology of Nazism. His aim was to establish a New Order of absolute Nazi German hegemony in continental Europe.
His Imperial Majesty, The Sultan Abdülhamid II, Emperor of the Ottomans, Caliph of the Faithful (also known as Abdul Hamid II , Abd Al-Hamid II Khan Ghazi and The Crimson Sultan) (Ottoman Turkish: عبد الحميد ثانی `Abdü’l-Ḥamīd-i sânî, Turkish: İkinci Abdülhamit) (21/22 September 1842 – 10 February 1918) was the 34th sultan of the Ottoman Empire. He was the last Sultan to exert effective control over the Ottoman Empire. He oversaw a period of decline in the power and extent of the Empire, ruling from 31 August 1876 until he was deposed on 27 April 1909. He was succeeded by Mehmed V. His deposition following the Young Turk Revolution was hailed by most Ottoman citizens, who welcomed the return to constitutional rule.
Abdülhamid II was born in Topkapı Palace in Istanbul (formerly Constantinople). He was the son of Sultan Abdülmecid I and one of his many wives, the Valide Sultan Tirimüjgan, 16 August 1819 – Constantinople, Feriye Palace, 3 October 1852), originally named Virjin. He later also became the adoptive son of another of his father's wives, Valide Sultan Rahime Perestu. He was a skilled carpenter and personally crafted most of his own furniture, which can be seen today at the Yıldız Palace and Beylerbeyi Palace in Istanbul. Abdülhamid II was also interested in opera and personally wrote the first-ever Turkish translations of many opera classics. He also composed several opera pieces for the Mızıka-ı Hümayun which he established, and hosted the famous performers of Europe at the Opera House of Yıldız Palace which was recently restored and featured in the film Harem Suare (1999) of the Turkish-Italian director Ferzan Özpetek, which begins with the scene of Abdülhamid II watching a performance. Unlike many other Ottoman sultans, Abdülhamid II traveled to distant countries. Nine years before he took the throne, he accompanied his uncle Sultan Abdülaziz on his visit to Austria, France and England in 1867.
Henry (Hillel) Abramson is the Dean for Academic Affairs and Student Services at Touro College's Miami branch (Touro College South). He is also currently the interim Chair of Judaic Studies there.
Henry Abramson was born and raised in Iroquois Falls, Ontario. He received his doctorate in history from the University of Toronto. He was Assistant Professor of History/Jewish Studies at Florida Atlantic University from 2002–2006 and during that time held appointments at a number of institutions including Oxford University, Cornell University, Harvard University, and Hebrew University. While teaching at Hebrew University, he simultaneously attended a class with Rabbi Mendel Weinbach at Ohr Somayach, Jerusalem. In 2006, Abramson moved to his current position at Touro College South.
Henry Abramson is largely known for his scholarship in Ukrainian Jewish history and antisemitic iconography. However, at the 40th Association of Jewish Studies Conference, Abramson chose to deliver a paper which reflected on his interest in the work of David Weiss Halivni and Joshua Rubinstein as regards the savoraim.