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Some spoilers below forDisobedience.
So it was a perfect first foray into English-language filmmaking for Chilean director Sebastian Lelio.
I said, Tell me, what is the story?
She did, Lelio says, and I just loved it.
I love this mess that they are, he says.
I grew up in a dictatorship in a very Catholic country, he says.
I have never been religious, but Ive seen the strength of it.
Assembling the TeamWhen Lelio decided to makeDisobedience, he was obsessed with portraying Hendon accurately.
I didnt know much about this community.
Not even people who live in nearby neighborhoods, Lelio says.
They can unbutton from the …!
Lelio gestures between his legs and laughs.
I was surprised to learn that [it was] not unusual for them to wear that.
Underneath the wigs and the very unflattering clothes, there is something else.
She is a great playwright, and she added great texture to the dialogue.
I just had this strong feeling that they would have great chemistry, he says.
I was over the moon.
Its like in a certain way they are the same woman.
Which surely lent itself well to their contrasting story lines inDisobedience.
For starters, he changed Ronits occupation in New York from financial analyst to photographer.
There is a certain rejection [in Orthodox Jewish communities] towards images, Lelio says.
Ronits obsession with imagery, then, he says, felt subversive.
The movies Esti, meanwhile, asks Dovid for her freedom and makes moves toward leaving the community.
Lelio says the new ending was the product of a long discussion.
I wanted to give all of them the chance to be in front of an open space.
A space that is pure potential.
Because you dont really know what Dovid will do.
Will he found a new synagogue, a new shul, or will Esti divorce him?
Will she escape from the community?
I dont think so.
And how Ronits life will change is also an open question.
I love this idea of the things being in flux.
Nothing being fixed, which is something that is a very Jewish idea, he adds.
The novel was written in 2006, while Naomi was part of the community.
My feeling was, I am not part of the community.Ihave nothing to lose.
In a certain way, that allows me to be more irresponsible.
I was a believer that the love scene, the sex scene, was the heart of the film.
I was talking about that all the time, he says.
I presented the Rachels with this idea of, they go through stages.
They start leaning up against a table.
This and this happens.
They are on the floor, and then, we will do that moment, he says.
Their faces are lost in pleasure.
You dont see whats really happening, but you know.
It traps you, because you have to complete with your imagination what is not there.
Lelio covers his mouth with his fingertips for a moment.
Oops, he chuckles impishly.
