Menashe (2017) Characters, Setting & Themes Explained

The film takes place within a close-knit Hasidic Jewish community in New York, where family honor and religious duties guide daily life. The settings include Menashe's modest apartment, the cemetery during memorial services, and other communal spaces. Rituals like the mikvah and traditional meals illustrate an intimate, tradition-driven world where community norms shape every interaction.

• hasidic community
• new york
• tradition
• jewish
• setting

The movie explores three interconnected themes: Family, centered on Menashe's fight for custody of his son Rieven; Tradition, which dictates that he must remarry to provide a proper two-parent home; and Struggle, highlighting his financial precarity and the pressure to meet community expectations while maintaining his dignity.

• family
• custody
• tradition
• struggle
• themes

The core conflict centers on family responsibilities and Menashe's determination to provide a stable home for his son Rieven. Following his wife Leah's death, tradition requires him to seek help from his brother-in-law Eizik, who challenges his ability to care for Rieven. The movie examines the tension between personal longing and communal rules that define what counts as a proper family.

• family
• custody
• rieven
• parenting
• community

Tradition drives nearly every decision and ritual in Menashe's life, from the obligation to remarry to create a two-parent home, to the mikvah visit and the funeral memorial. The community's norms influence every choice, and even small acts like cooking kugel become tests of adherence to tradition. Menashe must navigate these expectations while trying to prove his worth as a father.

• tradition
• jewish law
• rituals
• community expectations
• remarriage

Menashe is a recently widowed Hasidic man played by Menashe Lustig (the actor's real name). He works as a grocery store worker and is determined to regain custody of his ten-year-old son Rieven. He grapples with pressure to remarry for a stable home while balancing a modest job and stubborn pride. He ultimately seeks respectability within his community.

• menashe
• widower
• father
• custody
• grocery store

Rieven is the ten-year-old son currently living with his aunt and uncle following the Rabbi's ruling. He forms a bond with his father during their time together and shows awareness of the expectations around his family and appearance. He represents the emotional stakes driving Menashe's fight for custody.

• rieven
• son
• father son relationship
• custody
• child

Eizik is Menashe's successful brother-in-law who looks down on him and pushes for his sister's family to follow strict norms. He prefers the finer circumstances of his home for the memorial meal and dismisses Menashe's circumstances. He represents the judgmental pressure Menashe faces from within his own family.

• eizik
• brother-in-law
• family conflict
• judgment
• community pressure

The Rabbi serves as the community authority who rules that Menashe must first remarry to provide a proper two-parent home for Rieven. He attends the memorial service and ultimately praises the kugel Menashe prepares, reinforcing the community's view that ritual adherence matters. His ruling sets the central challenge Menashe must overcome.

• rabbi
• authority
• custody ruling
• community leader
• jewish law

Menashe's financial precarity and demanding job at a grocery store highlight the dignity and fragility of everyday life. A difficult store manager adds pressure to his already tight finances and daily struggles. The film shows how poverty and pride intersect in a man's bid to care for his family while meeting community expectations.

• poverty
• finances
• job
• grocery store
• economic struggle

The film has a bittersweet tone, balancing the sadness of loss and the frustration of Menashe's situation with glimmers of his love for his son and his attempts to prove himself. The intensity is medium, driven by constant emotional pressure from his community and family, but grounded in relatable human drama rather than high-stakes suspense.

• emotional tone
• bittersweet
• grief
• drama
• hasidic

Menashe takes place within the Hasidic Jewish community in New York City. The story unfolds in everyday settings including Menashe's modest apartment, the local grocery store where he works, the cemetery during memorial services, and other communal spaces that define the characters' daily routines.

• setting
• new york
• hasidic neighborhood
• locations