Left Luggage (1998) [Re-UP]

Dutch actor Jeroen Krabbe's first feature film is a touching look at the connected lives of two Jewish families in early 1970s Belgium. Laura Fraser stars as Chaja, the 20 year-old daughter of two Holocaust survivors who eschews her faith and goes to Antwerp to study philosophy and live a bohemian life. However, when she takes a job as a nanny for the Kalmans, a Hasidic family, she begins a friendship with the devout Mrs. Kalman (Rossellini) and her four year-old son, Simcha that forces her to reevaluate the Jewish faith. An affecting and clear eyed look at Hasidic faith, which is so often glossed over and generalized in movies, LEFT LUGGAGE is a moving film, aided immeasurably by Ms. Rossellini's and Ms. Fraser's standout performances.