The Argentinian comedy musical Transmitzvah is exactly what it sounds like—a movie about identity and religion. The film opens with a young boy named Ruben, who is just about to turn 13, putting on a show in a red dress, bright red lips, and heels. As his family rejoices watching him strut around confidently, his father looks down and notices the ease with which Ruben dances in heels. Later he’ll say this was always sign enough that Ruben identifies as a girl. In Transmitzvah, after Ruben tells his family that he doesn’t want a Bar Mitzvah but a Bat Mitzvah, we skip to around 20 years later. His dad couldn’t get himself on board with it at the time, not because of gender identity but because Ruben’s name is a prophecy; he is the “son seen by God.” But, Ruben doesn’t care about this and abandons his transition from childhood to adulthood ceremony completely to become Mumy Singer, a global Yiddish sensation. Clearly, Mumy feels tied to her faith, but she regrets wanting to come home. However, after her performance in her hometown, Mumy has to rush to the hospital where her father is dying. Unlike what you’d imagine, though, it seems the two souls are understanding of each other. Mumy has long forgiven her father, but her father suffers from guilt. However, the big problem arises when Mumy’s dad passes and she loses her voice. Why does this happen, and what does she need to do to find it again?
Spoiler Alert
What Do Eduardo and Mumy Have in Common?
Sure, the movie is called “Transmitzvah,” but it isn’t just Mumy’s story. Director Daniel Bruman called it “A love story of siblings,” and I couldn’t think of a better way to describe it. In Transmitzvah, Eduardo is suffering in his marriage and wants to get a divorce; however, he’s unable to tell his wife so. I suppose joining Mumy on her journey allows him to introspect as well while being distracted by her problem—not being able to sing anymore. Mumy’s lover Sergio and she conclude that she’s gone back to her 13-year-old self and the voice she has now is that of Ruben’s. Mumy’s father’s death sent her back in time because she needed closure. She needs to go back to having her transition ceremony. This isn’t about physical transformation; it’s the process of going from childhood to adulthood. Mumy never got to fully become an adult because she didn’t get her Bat Mitzvah. At present, Mumy wants to give Ruben a proper ceremony. For this, she’d have to get a bar mitzvah and not a bat mitzvah.
Eduardo and Mumy spend days on end trying to convince multiple rabbis to help them, because she’d have to wear items traditionally worn by boys in order to do the ceremony. While one traditional rabbi says he will do no such thing even though Judaism is “tolerant” of the trans community, another wants to give Mumy a genderless or genderfluid “they/them” mitzvah. Ironically, in the process, Mumy and Eduardo find a pair of walkie-talkies their grandma gifted them for “communication.” The toys never had any batteries in, so they never actually used them, but I suppose there’s no better time than today.
“The road goes forward, but the journey is backwards,” says a man who taught Mumy martial arts when she was a kid. He always saw the Mumy inside of Ruben, but she needs him to tell her about Ruben. Of course, Mumy has to look backwards to move forward; without history, or rather “her story,” you don’t know what to do with your future. When Mumy breaks the wooden plank he presents to her, he tells her that this journey has to be of two people, Ruben and her, but it could also mean Eduardo and her. The two of them try to get batteries for their walkie-talkies in the old Jewish quarter of town. Now, at this point, it doesn’t matter if the toys work or not because the siblings have already started to bond. Mumy tries to get Eduardo to figure out how to tell his wife he doesn’t want to be married anymore, and he helps her figure out her mental transition, or, I guess, how to get her voice back.
In the middle of all of this, while Sergio rehearses Mumy’s Mitzvah present, a dance number with him and her backup dancers that seems to be choreographed by her mom Miriam, Sergio discovers some books Mumy’s father left behind. He tells Eduardo about this, and the two of them essentially confront Mumy in a swimming pool out of all places about this. Remember that prophecy about Ruben’s name? Well, it seems Mumy’s father had done everything in his power to prove that Mumy was destined to be a she and to become a renowned singer. I guess this was his way of supporting his daughter’s dream, a way to be a good dad, though he never actually got to show it to her. Apparently, Mumy’s father changed a Hebrew letter and made Reuben-Reubat, making it “to see a daughter,” which led him to the word “conversion.” But the whole point of this discovery or this conversation is that Mumy’s dad discovered the ultimate truth, “Destiny doesn’t lie in one’s name but in one’s dreams.” But instead of convincing Mumy to have a Bat instead of Bar Mitzvah, this conversation leads to Eduardo and Mumy having a little fight and calling each other out.
Does Mumy Make the Bells Ring?
Before dying, Mumy’s dad gave her a broken bell. She wondered why he would do such a thing, and he says the sound of the bell is in the listener, not the instrument itself, it’s like in “The Polar Express,” as long as you believe, you’ll hear the jingle. He tells her that she will make the bells ring. While Eduardo finds an ancient rabbi who can help them all the way in Toledo, Sergio has new plans for Mumy’s family-run business. I guess it is in a way progress for the whole family, this one small affair of identity-searching. In Toledo, Mumy meets with her agent Freddy. While he’s just meant to drive them to the rabbi, he books her a show on the way too. Mumy, of course, gets furious about this, but they conclude that Eduardo can sing instead. The gig is a wedding, and nobody is able to show up because the duo was meant to be married in Israel, but it didn’t end up happening. They think with Mumy singing they can finally be married in the Jewish way.
Eduardo sings a song about siblings, and after a bit, Mumy joins in. Together they’re melodious and joyful, a true love story that essentially brings her voice back. They’re gifted a scooter that was meant for the married couple, and they drive off somewhere in the middle of the mountains to find Abulafia. They don’t find the man himself, but possibly a disciple of his. The man claims he’s been waiting for them for 8 centuries. He tells Mumy that her ceremony will be held the next Thursday at 7:30, and she needs to gather women dressed in white—a women’s minyan. A minyan is a Jewish gathering of 10 women, which is like a communal prayer service. In Jewish culture, boys wear tefillin, a leather box and strap, on their arms. When Eduardo asks about it, the man says those are simply details that don’t matter in the grand scheme of things. Before parting ways, he tells the duo that he could see a flame around the two siblings, a display of their loving bond. At this moment, while Mumy follows the man, Eduardo goes the other way to send a message to his wife. He’s finally found the courage to tell her how he feels, completing his journey.
At the time of the ritual, Mumy and Eduardo watch a young boy with a sheep come up to them with 10 women dressed in white. This boy is a representation of Reuben, and it’s almost like he’s passing the baton to Mumy. He relays the mystic’s message that he won’t be able to make it, but he’s sent the women for the ritual instead. He then repeats a sentence that Ruben used to say as a kid about the products at his father’s shop: “Touch it, it’s real merino wool,” proof of the quality of the wool. Maybe we can compare the wool to the siblings’ personalities—pure and wonderfully real. Mumy then asks the boy to lend her his voice, and he says he can’t do that because she’s a grown woman and he’s just a boy. He tells her that she has turned out gorgeous. He then asks for his walkie-talkies back because the siblings finally know how to communicate. He gives Eduardo the tefillin, and his parting message to Mumy is that the best and the worst singers sing in the same way—the best that they can. So, everything will be okay at the end of the day; all she needs to do is try again.
In Transmitzvah’s ending, Mumy “borrows” Eduardo’s Jewish name, Ariel. Maybe this is to say that only together they can find her voice again. In the film, names are very important, and Eduardo allowing Mumy to borrow his name is a symbol of his affection for her. He says he wouldn’t let anybody else in the world borrow his name or his identity. Essentially, with Eduardo’s identity, Mumy’s able to wear the tefillin and get her voice back. The movie ends with Mumy singing in the middle of the 10 women with the leather band on her arm. As she sings, the bells start to ring. Of course, it’s the women ringing them, but Mumy made that happen, just like her father said she would. Eduardo then grabs her hand and raises it to the sky. Together, they’re undefeatable. Together they have gone on this journey to find themselves, and though it is an endless journey, they can get through to the end together. The board of the family clothing store lights up behind them, “Singman Fashion: smart and casual wear,” to show us that family and home are where our identities lie. Only when you look back can you move forward. It was never about Mumy’s gender, but it was about a cluster of things surrounding her. Identity isn’t simply one thing; it’s your entire personality, so don’t get stuck up on gender and explore your entire being.
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