It’s a nice place, but it’s not home - or rather, the house he lived in for decades before his estranged daughter and grandson made him relocate. The plot revolves around Dov (Shlomo Bar-Aba), a sad-sack widower and retired postal worker who’s just moved into new digs in an upscale retirement community. That may explain how the 2020 movie corralled a remarkable 12 Ophir Award nominations -including Best Film, Director, Screenplay, Actor and Actress - and also how it didn’t win even one of those Israeli Oscars. But the absence of anything remotely edgy gives the movie an odd vibe, as if it’s taking place in the comparatively innocent 1970s or 1980s rather than the present day. The good news is that Greener Pastures delivers none of what passes for humor in some circles: bodily function jokes, embarrassing sexual situations, gratuitous swearing, viciously insulting banter.

OK, let me be blunt: You’ve got to be high to find it funny. I’m saying that your viewing pleasure will be enhanced by being under the influence.Ī genial, easygoing effort populated by generally likable characters, Assaf Abiri and Matan Guggenheim’s debut feature provides mildly diverting entertainment. I don’t mean to suggest that the movie’s inclusion is cause for celebration. If you’ve been waiting for the right occasion to partake of medical or legalized marijuana, here it is: The Israeli comedy Greener Pastures plays the Lenore Marwil Detroit Jewish Film Festival at 7 p.m.

() The premise is both simplistic and implausible, but it does offer fertile ground for comedy.

Greener Pastures by Isla Ryder