ilcorago-97740 Review of The Beauty Queen of Jerusalem

The Beauty Queen of Jerusalem (2021– )

Good acting, adequate writing, non-existent art direction

[4/10 · 29 July 2022]

I'm not sure what I was expecting from this, but it's basically an Israeli soap opera. The story barely touches on the incredibly complex political turmoil that Israel went through in the early 20th century. The most impressive component of the series is the deft switching between Hebrew, Ladino, Arabic and English, which, unfortunately, will be lost on most American viewer. The least impressive component is the art direction; hairstyles, costumes and furniture do absolutely nothing to distinguish between the 1910s, 1923 and 1937. 1950s typewriters miraculously show up in 1923, as do 1940s cocktail hats. I've just finished episode 5 and I realized they've managed to avoid showing any automobiles, since those pretty much would have had to have been authentic and I'm sure there was no budget for that. I'm hoping that the uniformly good acting and empathy for the characters will keep me watching.