Yentl

1983 • 133 minutes

About this movie

Based on a short story, "Yentl, the Yeshiva Boy," by Isaac Bashevis Singer. Yentl is the story of a young Eastern European woman, who, very early in our century (pre-WWI), disguises herself as a boy in order to pursue her passion for studying the Torah. Yentl (Streisand) has no trouble passing for a boy as she pursues her studies, but when she falls in love with a fellow student (Mandy Patinkin) she cannot, of course, express her feelings. Circumstances of Jewish law force the "boy" Yentl to marry a girl (Amy Irving), but the concealment must continue and Yentl must invent reasons for a long-delayed "consumation" of the marriage. Finally, she reveals her secret to her bride, who, after a time of shock, accepts Yentl for what she is.