Ha-Sodot 2007 Movie Review

『A Quiet Rebellion of Two Souls Blooming Amid Faith and Taboos』

🎥 Movie Overview

🎬 Title: Ha-Sodot (The Secrets, 2007)
🌍 Country: 🇮🇱 Israel
🎞️ Genre: Drama / Queer
🗓️ Production & Release: Feature film
⏳ Runtime: 99 minutes
📢 Director: Avi Nesher
📺 Platform: Limited streaming & DVD

👩‍💼 Cast: Ania Bukstein – Noemi
Michal Shtamler – Michelle
Fanny Ardant – Anouk

🧩 Story Deep Dive (Spoilers)

🕍 The First Encounter at the Edge of Faith and Tradition

The film centers on Noemi, the devout and intelligent daughter of a renowned rabbi. After her mother’s death, she delays an arranged marriage by enrolling in a Midrasha (women’s religious seminary) in Safed, the birthplace of Kabbalah. There she becomes roommates with Michelle, a secular and rebellious student from France.

🌒 The Mysterious Woman

The two, with starkly different personalities and backgrounds, are assigned to care for an ailing old woman named Anouk as part of their community service. Anouk is a mysterious figure who once served time for murder and now seeks spiritual purification before her death.

💒 The Ritual of Tikkun

Noemi, deeply versed in Jewish law, and Michelle, a free spirit, secretly perform a Kabbalistic purification ritual (Tikkun) to help Anouk. Through this act, the two women develop a powerful bond that evolves into romantic feelings, defying religious and social taboos.

🦋 Emotional Resonance and Thematic Meaning

🎬 Boundaries of Faith, Law, and the Role of Women

The film’s central theme is the struggle of women seeking their identity and spiritual voice within the strict framework of Orthodox Judaism.

• Noemi’s Struggle: Although Noemi is brilliant at studying and interpreting Jewish law, she cannot become a rabbi simply because she is a woman, and is expected to obey her father and fiancé. By leading the forbidden Kabbalistic ritual to help Anouk, she steps beyond traditional gender roles. This highlights her conflict between literal interpretations of scripture vs. the spirit of love and compassion.
• The Midrasha’s Contradiction: While promoting women’s education, the institution simultaneously arranges marriages that end their studies, exposing a profound contradiction between education and women’s societal roles.

🌿 Forbidden Love and Self-Discovery

Noemi and Michelle’s relationship is one of the film’s most important “secrets.”

• Sexual Awakening: Within the context of religious asceticism, Noemi discovers true desire and emotion through her relationship with Michelle rather than in a heterosexual marriage. She even searches the Torah and argues that there is no explicit prohibition against lesbian relationships, attempting to justify her feelings.
• Social Pressure: Their romance is intolerable in the strict ultra-Orthodox community. Ultimately, Noemi is excommunicated, while Michelle chooses the pragmatic path of marriage. This illustrates the tragic conflict between genuine personal emotions vs. religious and social obligations, while delicately portraying female same-sex love, rare in Israeli cinema of the time.

📜 The Tikkun Ritual and the Question of Salvation

The Tikkun ritual performed for Anouk is more than just a plot device; it carries deep symbolic weight.

• The Purpose of Law: Noemi uses the law as a tool for mercy and forgiveness, showing that religion can be a source not only of judgment but also of salvation.
• Self-Salvation: In helping Anouk purify her soul, Noemi and Michelle paradoxically search for their own spiritual liberation from guilt, desire, and societal oppression.
• Irony: While attempting to cleanse Anouk’s sins, they themselves are condemned as “sinners” and cast out by society, embodying tragic irony.

Ha-Sodot is more than just a lesbian romance; it is a penetrating exploration of the inner workings of Israel’s ultra-Orthodox Jewish community.

The film critiques the oppressive aspects of religion while also acknowledging the beauty and solace of faith. Noemi’s faith proves most powerful when interpreted not as control and regulation, but as an expression of love and compassion.

Though the ending denies the protagonists complete happiness, their devotion to truth and to each other endures. This conveys a message of hope and self-respect even within a tragic reality.

🎯 Personal Rating (Preference)

💕 Love Scene Intensity: ♥
⭐ Overall Rating: ★★