UNCHAINED, another extraordinary addition to Israeli television. Prepare to binge! Courtesy of ChaiFlicks.Jewish law allows a woman to divorce only if her husband grants her a Gett (a Jewish bill of divorce). Even if the husband has abused her, committed adultery, or simply disappeared, she must receive his permission to break free and start a new life or have children with another man. Those who are denied a Gett are called Agunot, “chained women.” These rigid, centuries-old laws are still observed in present-day Israel.
This is stated at the beginning of every episode of UNCHAINED, one of the most nuanced, truly remarkable TV series I have seen in a long while. I understand that I’ve probably said something similar along those lines in previous posts where I applaud a movie or show, but trust me: UNCHAINED is just… WOW. I don’t even have words, so forgive me if this spoiler-free review sounds disjointed. In UNCHAINED, I expected one type of show and received something entirely novel and different. I was completely confused yet fully immersed from start to finish. Right now, there are no better television writers than Israeli ones. They are truly unstoppable in their tour de force storytelling. UNCHAINED is another grandiose addition to the ever-growing canon of excellent Israeli television and an exciting reminder that even better television will be here soon.
Anyway, back to that quote. Read that for a moment. It’s crazy, am I right? And read that last line, “in present-day Israel.” This is still happening. If a Jewish woman wants a divorce, her husband must approve it. Even if she is being abused, he still rules the relationship. This shocked me. We read about extreme religions and the egregious rules they used to preach, but to recognize that this situation is still commonly practiced is insane. Getting a divorce is messy enough. Just go watch Kramer vs. Kramer or Marriage Story and you’ll see. To try to get a divorce but your husband won’t let you just exacerbates the situation. It’s a harsh truth that some of us may not want to confront, but UNCHAINED begs you to remember this in every episode.
Now, if I’m making this show sound super political, don’t worry. It’s not exactly. How do I explain UNCHAINED without giving anything away? Well, I would call it a romantic drama. I think that’s definitely accurate. It’s a story about a Jewish marriage that faces a conflict midway through the series. The show builds up this tension like a tightrope. When this conflict happens, the story could have gone down a predictable path, but instead, it treats it in such a surprising, almost sweet kind of way. I think the real question the series presents is this: what do you do when your lover disrupts your religious tradition? Which path do you go towards, the path of your religion or the path of the person you chose to spend the rest of your life with? (That’s actually two questions… My bad.)
UNCHAINED was created by Tamar Kay, Yossi Madmoni, and David Ofek, with Kay and Ofek directing all episodes. (We actually showed Ofek’s film, Born in Jerusalem and Still Alive, back in 2020.) When the first episode begins, it has a strange, almost dreamlike quality to it, from the cinematography to the characters’ peculiar reactions. This is television where you can’t blink because you might miss something crucial. At first, we don’t really know what’s happening. We see a few guys listening in on a conversation between two men inside a hotel room that they’ve bugged. In the next scene, they bust in and force one of the men to sign a “Write and Give”, appointing Rabbi Yosef Morad (Avraham Aviv Alush), the protagonist of the show, as a representative for that man’s gett. It’s almost like a scene from a gangster movie, but way less violent.
Yosef, an Iraqi Jew, is like a detective rabbi. He is devoutly religious and teaches students the beauty of the Talmud, but his main job is assisting agunot, women whose husbands are refusing to divorce them. And this isn’t a “side job” or anything. He has his own office in the Rabbinate and everything. He’s the real deal, and the clients he receives praise him for his work in supporting women.
On one hand, Yosef is a great mensch, but on the other, he’s… a little intense. “Crooked” isn’t exactly the word to use, but there is an animalistic side to this man. He is composed and astute at his job, but at any moment, he can attack. In one scene, he meets with a husband late at night and beats him with a block of wood, admonishing him to sign the gett or else things will just get messier. This is a very interesting character. In a lot of movies and shows, ultra-Orthodox men tend to be portrayed as stern but composed. Yosef is stern, but definitely unpredictable. He’s no villain at all, but he’s human. He’s allowed to yell or just get his frustration out sometimes because it’s healthy. When you live in such a strict lifestyle, you’re bound to cool off some steam in crazy ways.
At home, Yosef is married to Hana (Avigail Kovari), a beautiful wife with an expressionless face. She is enigmatic from the start. She loves her husband, but what lingers behind those eyes? We know off the bat that Yosef and Hana’s marriage is far from perfect. They have been trying to have a baby for four years now and have very unpassionate sex. Hana doesn’t seem to appreciate her husband’s violent methods while Yosef secretly spies on her from his cars some days. His reasoning? “I miss you,” he tells her. There is a disconnect, but their love is still there. In one episode, they loosen up a little bit and take a selfie in front of a store at night. They then kiss in public, right there on the sidewalk. They love each other, but when these passionate moments end, they must return to their austere world and devote their time to one goal and one goal only: have a baby.
UNCHAINED is definitely a slow burn, for sure, but its mystery is all the more effective the more you watch it. Throughout the season, we meet Yosef’s variety of clients. We meet some other characters with secrets of their own that they fear disclosing for their religious sake. Hana grows increasingly distant and cold, refusing sex with her husband and secretly using a non-kosher phone. As his personal life gets in the way of his religion, Yosef becomes faced with a challenging decision that will forever change his life.
As Yosef and Hana, Alush and Kovari are positively outstanding. THIS is how you act! THIS is how you get handed a script, study a character’s emotions and thoughts, and portray it in a three-dimensional way. Their chemistry is dynamite. The more we observe this marriage, the more we sympathize with them. These are people whose religion has hindered them from a lot of things, and if they make mistakes, we understand why. In addition, I should note that Judaism isn’t vilified as the culprit of this story. Similar to Shtisel, UNCHAINED is about people whose love of religion is impacted by “modern” dilemmas.
“Strict” Jews or strict people from any religion have emotions too. UNCHAINED gives them that platform. This is a strange but very poignant show, a series that shines a light on people who sometimes deserve the right to break free.
UNCHAINED is now available to stream on ChaiFlicks.