Esther Kustanowitz: June 2007 Archives

Who really "knocked up" Katherine Heigl's character in the film of the same name? Was it co-star Seth Rogen's character? Or was it really a film character crossover from Steven Spielberg's controversial film "Munich"?

If you've seen the film, you know what I mean. Those of you who haven't can watch the clip below:

If we think back to the release of "Munich," Jewish men weren't hailing Bana as their long-awaited post-biblical Jewish action hero. Jewish writers were unhappy, denouncing both Spielberg and his film as anti-Israel (although the ADL's Abe Foxman later released a statement that he did not consider the film to be either anti-Israel or as a moral equivalency between Israelis and Palestinians).

Still, I can state with some certainty that before Judd Apatow/Seth Rogen committed the thought to film, no one thought to "reclaim" the film as an inspiration for Jewish singles that would encourage them to feel like they deserve love. Perhaps this is Apatow's way of courting Spielbergian clout for his next film. (Very clever, not that he needs it--after "The 40 Year Old Virgin," "Knocked Up," and with the imminent release of "Superbad," Apatow's got a home in Hollywood with or without Steve.) Or perhaps we just needed the simplicity of a Ben Stone(r) and the bad-ass attitude of the Mossad to show us the way to love.