Berta Gersten Movies
Steve Allen makes his dramatic film debut in The Benny Goodman Story. Outside of Goodman's conflicts with his parents over his career choice, and his early frustration over not being able to play his kind of music, the film tends to be more a series of musical highlights than a biography. The film features guest appearances by Gene Krupa, Lionel Hampton, Teddy Wilson, Harry James, Martha Tilton, Ziggy Elman, and Sammy Davis Sr. (as Fletcher Henderson). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Steve Allen, Donna Reed, (more)
- 1949
The substance and tone of the Yiddish-language God, Man and the Devil is implicit in its title. Told in an allegorical fashion, the film details a wager made between God and Satan over the soul of an ordinary mortal. Elements of Faust then creep into the story, leading to a most unpredictable denouement. Long but never draggy, God, Man and the Devil was based on a popular stage play by Jacob Gordin. It was also one of the last Yiddish films to be produced in the United States. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Gustav Berger, Berta Gersten, (more)
- 1938
Filmed in Yiddish, the unabashed tearjerker stars Berta Gersten as a strong-willed Jewish mother. Gersten is determined to carve out a better life for her children, something she has little chance of doing in the Polish Ukraine. She arranges for her oldest son to emigrate to New York. The story fluctuates between the son's experiences as an immigrant, and the effect of his leaving on those he left behind. A Brivele Der Mamen was also released as A Letter to Mother, A Little Letter to Mama and The Eternal Song. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Lucy Gehrman, Alexander Stein, (more)
- 1938
The Yiddish-language Mirele Efros is based on a play by Jacob Gordon. Berta Gersten plays an aggressively independent widow who finds success as businesswoman. Reasoning that she can control lives with the same impunity as she controls her company, Berta personally selects a bride for her son. But this leads to near-disaster when the daughter-in-law proves to be as indomitable as Ms. Gersten. While most existing prints of Mirele Efros carry English subtitles, the expressive acting of the principals enables even monolingual viewers to catch the drift of the storyline. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Berta Gersten, Michael Rosenberg, (more)
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