Yentl: Gender-bending, Barbra Streisand, and a LOT of rain...

Okay, so I finally got around to watching "Yentl." I know, I know, decades late to the party, but hey, better late than never, right? Look, I'm generally a sucker for movies that push boundaries, even if they're a little... theatrical. And "Yentl" Definitely delivers on theatricality. Barbra Streisand directing herself as a woman dressing as a man to study the Torah? It's a LOT. From a technical perspective, the atmosphere was something else. Seriously, it felt like it rained in every single scene. I wonder if that was deliberate to wash away Yentl's secrets or something symbolic. The sound design during the study scenes especially stood out. That echoing, chanting, it really builds the tension and shows how much she was risking. And even if it's low budget special effects, how they managed to make Yentl appear so convincingly as a young man is genuinely impressive. I do feel like Mandy Patinkin was under utilized, though. I LOVED him as Inigo Montoya, and he was so good in scenes where he and Yentl got to interact. Look, the romance felt a little rushed, and I wouldn't consider it the high art or "masterpiece" some claim, but Streisand's passion is undeniably there. It's a fascinating snapshot of a different era and a pretty bold move for her as a director. I definitely came away thinking about it afterwards, which is the goal, right? Final thoughts: worth a watch if you're into historical dramas with a feminist edge and don't mind a healthy dose of Barbra Streisand's singing. Just don't expect mind-blowing CGI, cuz this ain't that kind of movie lol.