Jews Protest Portman Scene in Jerusalem

[Louis Cypher]

Feb 24, 7:59 AM (ET)


JERUSALEM (AP) - Dozens of ultra-Orthodox Jewish worshippers confronted Natalie Portman and her co-star, objecting to the couple kissing during the filming of a scene beside Jerusalem's Western Wall.

The incident Tuesday evening underlined the sensitivity of the site, a remnant of the biblical Jewish temples, the holiest place where Jews can pray.

The site is controlled by strictly observant Jews. Male and female worshippers are separated by a barrier perpendicular to the wall, following Orthodox Jewish rules forbidding casual contact between the sexes.

Police said they had to step in when worshippers spotted Portman and Israeli actor Aki Avni embracing and kissing as part of a scene for "Free Zone." The daily Yediot Ahronot said ultra-Orthodox Jews charged the couple, shouting, "Immoral, immoral!"

Police said they asked the actors to leave and return later, and they agreed.

The rabbi in charge of the site, Shmuel Rabinovitch, said that codes of conduct under religious and state law prohibit acting or romantic interaction near the wall. "That code was not followed," he said.

The Israeli-born Portman, 23, has been studying at Hebrew University in Jerusalem in recent months.

[count zero]

Acting is prohibited near the wall.

Gotta love mankind.

[TTinCO]

lol......it's not like Tommy Lee was standing there priming up the man juice pump....

Geezzzzzzzzzzzz

[SlipperyPete]

Gotta respect the law of the land, no?

[TTinCO]

In the end.....yeah, I "guess so"

[Louis Cypher]

Portman: Jerusalem Kissing Scene a Mistake

Mar 1, 12:23 PM (ET)


NEW YORK (AP) - Natalie Portman says filming a kissing scene beside Jerusalem's Western Wall for her upcoming movie "Free Zone" was a mistake.

"I really don't want to offend anyone's beliefs or impose anything on anyone and it was mistaken to do it," Portman told "Access Hollywood" in an interview broadcast Monday.

The 23-year-old Israeli-born actress and her crew were confronted by ultra-Orthodox Jewish worshippers last week while filming the scene with Israeli actor Aki Avni. The incident underlined the sensitivity of the site, a remnant of the biblical Jewish temples, the holiest place where Jews can pray.

The site is controlled by strictly observant Jews. Male and female worshippers are separated by a barrier perpendicular to the wall, following Orthodox Jewish rules forbidding casual contact between the sexes.

"As soon as it offended people, we moved," Portman said. "We had a very hectic work schedule, so we weren't thinking. We shouldn't have done it."

"Access Hollywood" also aired an interview with Antonio Banderas, who explained why his wife, Melanie Griffith, arrived at the Academy Awards show Sunday with a broken foot.

Banderas said Griffith "was a little upset with her performance and she kicked in the door" while playing Roxie Hart in the musical "Chicago."

Said Griffith: "I was singing and I am not a singer."

[Mjulian]

"Acting is prohibited near the wall.

Gotta love mankind."

You don't have to love anything, just respect others; but I know how hard that is for a Nihilist like yourself.

[count zero]

You're right, Mjulian, but I don't agree that finding a given behavior silly is the same thing as overtly disrespecting it (as by willfully acting near the wall, for example, or even going out in public with a sign ridiculing the prohibition against acting near the wall). I believe religious obsession is a human foible we'd be better off without, and I thought I indicated that very gently and without ridicule. The silliness of institutionalized obsession seems especially clear in this case, where the prohibition is so vague (how close to the wall is "near?" Does improvisation or rehearsal count as "acting?") and so far removed from the vital matters we normally think of as being within the purview of religious regulation that the entire concept seems to be a function of the belief that art forms such as film or the theater are somehow profane and unworthy. I wonder what the rule is on self-flagellation near the wall? I'm guessing it's OK.