Unorthodox is a story of liberation and freedom. Esty is a young Hasidic Jewish woman raised in a very conservative community in Brooklyn. Unhappy with her fate, she decides to flee from her community and arranged marriage towards a different life across the ocean.
Cultural Shock
The show represents a massive cultural shock for all of us that were born and raised in modern western society. Even if you are incredibly open-minded, I assure you that some things may disturb you.
Through this show, we have access to a few practices and cultural beliefs, unfortunately, not always explained. I would love to know more.
The language they speak in the community is very curious and sounds a bit like German. Many practices are strange for us and even difficult to follow sometimes. For example, in the first episode. Why can't they leave? I had to do a bit of research to understand what was going on.
The Husband
The men have the power, and a woman is a breeding tool. That was the message I got from the show.
Esty seems "lucky" nonetheless, Yanky isn't a bad person; on the contrary, he is truly innocent. Yet, he kind of annoyed me. There were a few scenes that made me want to scream! He is dominated by the community and people around him, many times, not being able to think for himself. Why would he share EVERYTHING with his mother? Poor Esty.
Like in other small communities, privacy is a rarity. Everyone seems to have a word to say about Esty's life. They are extremely intrusive in a way that is objectionable for most of us.
Being a Woman
Being a woman clearly leaves Esty at a disadvantage. Moishe left the community and was allowed to come back. He breaks the rules in many ways, but there is always a way to justify it. He always finds some kind of exception that suites him.
Apparently, for a woman, there is none: no exceptions, no forgiveness, no second chances.
Berlin is Freedom
Esty flees to Berlin, where her mother, also expelled from the community lives now. The modernity of the city and the freedom of the music students she met contrasts with everything she knows. They come from different parts of the world. They have different cultures, genres, languages, sexual orientations. A diversity that seems to scare and fascinate Esty from the first second.
The scene where she enters the lake and takes her wig off is a symbolic and beautiful metaphor. She is free now—her liberation made by the water, right in front of a spot of historical interest.
The discover of the self
Who is Esty outside her community? She doesn't know but grabs this opportunity with all her forces to find out. She looks frail, small and thin, quite naive. Yet, she is one of the strongest women we could meet.
She grew up in a closed community, surrounded by a sense of protection and restricted rules. She was kept apart from the big wild world out there. Now, she lost her community and the protective feeling of belonging. She is starting over as a new birth.
What now?
Like it happens many times at the end of a show, I felt that it was something missing. The story isn't over.
Will they come back for the baby, as Moishe said? Will the baby be raised like Esty, believing that her mother abandoned her? Is Yanky finally ready to impose his will on the community and his family? Will Esty be able to raise her child? Will she get a spot in the music school?
Too many questions, a remarkable story.
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