Product Details

• Actors: Lainie Kazan, Seymour Cassel, Robyn Cohen, Willie Garson, Tony Daly and Greg Cromer.
• Directors: James Sherman
• Format: Dolby, NTSC, Surround Sound, Widescreen
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Studio: Halestone Distribution
• DVD Release Date: November 3, 2009
• Run Time: 98 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B002L3N98E
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #98,406 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

BEAU JEST is the hilarious, heartwarming story about Sarah Goldman, a beautiful young school teacher from Chicago who is involved with Chris, a great guy with just one apparent flaw, he's not Jewish. Sarah tells her parents that she is no longer seeing Chris, but continues to date him in secret.To keep her mother from trying to fix her up with "nice Jewish boys," Sarah invents the perfect boyfriend and regales her parents with stories of the man of her mother's dreams. Eventually they insist on meeting the man, and in desperation, Sarah hires Bob, an actor, to play the part of her new beau. Unaware of the scope of the role he has taken on, Bob accompanies Sarah to dinner with her parents and her brother Joel. He quickly realizes that what he has gotten himself into is much more than he bargained for. It will take all of his charm, wit and improvisational skills to pull off the charade. But Bob rises to the occasion, and the antics that follow is only the beginning of a side-splitting tale that will have you rolling in the aisles, and wiping tears from your eyes at the same time.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Funny Romantic Comedy, September 7, 2009

By 

Charles Grippo - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Beau Jest (DVD)

If you like romantic comedies, you will love BEAU JEST, which writer-director James Sherman has adapted from his long running off Broadway play of the same name. At a screening I caught of the film at a Chicago movie theater last year, the audience laughed almost non stop at Sherman's witty dialog and the sparkling performances of his cast.

The premise is clever: Sara Goldman's parents want her to marry a Jewish boy, but she's really in love with a Gentile. To get her parents off her back, she hires an actor she believes to be Jewish to pose as her boyfriend. Too late she discovers that the actor is also a Gentile, and the closest he has ever come to being Jewish is appearing in a production of FIDDLER ON THE ROOF. But, when Sara's parents fall for the masquerade and decide the actor would be their ideal son in law, that's when the fun really begins.

You don't have to be Jewish --- I'm Gentile - to enjoy BEAU JEST anymore than you have to be Jewish to enjoy --- well, FIDDLER ON THE ROOF. Sara dilemma is universal: being true to yourself while pleasing your parents. Everyone can identify with Sherman's themes and his characters. That's why BEAU JEST is so much fun from beginning to end. This is a must own DVD and I intend to buy it as soon as it is released.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Adorable romantic comedy, December 15, 2009

By 

Jerry Saperstein (Evanston, IL USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Beau Jest (DVD)

The plot has the feeling of being a pastiche of 1930s - 40s screwball comedies. Kindergarten teacher Sarah Goldman (Robyn Cohen) has Jewish parents who incorporate every stereotype that has appeared in a movie or novel since the beginning of time. Sarah has fallen in love with Chris, who isn't Jewish. Lainie Kazan plays Sarah's mother - and totally steals the show.

Sarah hires an actor, a gentile, to play Dr. David Steinberg, her new boyfriend and brings him to meet her parents. Greg Cromer plays Bob Schroeder (sp?) a/k/a Dr. Steinberg.

Well you know how these boy-girl things develop. You've got Chris, the boyfriend Sarah wants to hide; Bob, the imitation doctor, whom the parents fall in love with . . . and . . . well you can guess.

It is romantic. It is funny. It is lightweight, well done and thoroughly enjoyable. And the movie belongs to Lainie Kazan, though the entire cast performs well. It is her movie.

Jerry

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Old fashioned comedy, October 30, 2010

By 

dvd man - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Beau Jest (DVD)

Beau Jest is a light hearted comedy that is a pleasure to watch. No sex, no car chases, no special effects, no filthy language and no violence. Can it still be a good movie to watch? You bet! It works well when staged as a play or done as a movie because the basic premise is still there.... lying to someone, so as not to hurt them, but then realizing that the truth is usually best (though difficult to come out with). I recommend this movie to anyone who wants to laugh and enjoy seeing what love can do ... make us lie so as not to hurt. Love at First Lie! Yes, but only because she loved her parents! Enjoy!