History Film / TheBeliever

* CastingGag: Carla, Danny's girlfriend, is played by Summer Phoenix, who's Jewish (as her mother was born to Jewish parents), though has never practiced Judaism. Her character starts out as a Neo-Nazi, while involved with Danny (a secret self-hating Jew), gets drawn to Judaism and starts practicing the religion.

* GodIsEvil: Danny is shown discussing the Binding of Isaac story in the yeshiva, saying that it was not really about Abraham having faith in God, but rather God trying to get unquestioning obedience, and concludes God is really a malevolent bully. This is the only hint which we get as to why he turned against his heritage.

* TheNothingAfterDeath. Deconstructed. Danny during the interview with the reporter describes Jewishness as "nothingness without end." This phrase is echoed later when a rabbi is quoted translating the kabbalistic term ''ein sof'' (a mystical term for God) as "nothingness without end." (The director Henry Bean has admitted this was deliberate [[ArtisticLicenseReligion artistic license]], as the term translates simply as "without end.") [[spoiler:The final scene, after Danny dies, shows Danny endlessly ascending a staircase as his schoolteacher tells him "There's nothing up there."]]

* VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory: The film is loosely based on an incident in the 1960s in which a ''New York Times'' reporter uncovered the fact that a high-ranking member of the American Nazi Party was Jewish. The movie is set in the present day and makes the closet Jew into a Neo-Nazi skinhead. The portrayal of this character and his psychological profile is largely fictional, but it was inspired by anecdotes about the real person in which he would bring knishes to the Neo-Nazi meetings, oddly seeming to embrace parts of his Jewish heritage even as he scorned it.

* BoomerangBigot: The film is about an Orthodox Jew who becomes a Neo-Nazi. Based loosely on [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Burros Dan Burros]].

* GodIsEvil: Danny is shown discussing the Binding of Isaac story in the yeshiva, saying that it was not really about Abraham having faith in God, but rather God trying to get unquestioning obedience, and concludes God is a malevolent bully. This is the only hint which we get as to why he turned against his heritage.

* MsFanservice: Carla is shown topless having sex with Curtis (to spite Danny's overtures), then after they sleep together later. She also wears a very revealing top at one point.

* ConvertingForLove: A particularly interesting instance, where the girl appears to have converted to Judaism by the end of the movie. Thanks to her self-hating Jewish boyfriend, who's also a Neo-Nazi.

* ThoseWackyNazis: It's a character study of the inner conflict a Jewish man feels when he decides to [[BoomerangBigot become a fanatical Neo-Nazi]].

* VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory: The film is loosely based on an incident in the 1960s in which a ''New York Times'' reporter uncovered the fact that a high-ranking member of the American Nazi Party was Jewish. The movie is set in the present day and makes the closet Jew into a skinhead. The portrayal of this character and his psychological profile is largely fictional, but it was inspired by anecdotes about the real person in which he would bring knishes to the neo-Nazi meetings, oddly seeming to embrace parts of his Jewish heritage even as he scorned it.

* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler: At the end of the film, Danny reveals to the synagogue congregation that there is a bomb under the pulpit where he's standing set to go off, giving them time to escape. He does not join them, however, but waits there to die apparently out of guilt.]]

''The Believer'' is a 2001 drama film. Creator/RyanGosling plays an Orthodox Jew who turns to Neo-Nazism as a result of his poor self-image. The film follows the character as he tries to reconcile his heritage with the ideology which hates it.

* VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory: The film is loosely based on an incident in the 1960s in which a New York Times reporter uncovered the fact that a high-ranking member of the American Nazi Party was Jewish. The movie is set in the present day and makes the closet Jew into a skinhead. The portrayal of this character and his psychological profile is largely fictional, but it was inspired by anecdotes about the real person in which he would bring knishes to the neo-Nazi meetings, oddly seeming to embrace parts of his Jewish heritage even as he scorned it.

''The Believer'' is a 2001 drama film. Creator/RyanGosling plays an Orthodox Jew who turns to Neo-Nazism as a result of his poor self-image. The film follows the character as he tries to reconcile his heritage with the hateful ideology.

* BoomerangBigot: The film is about an Orthodox Jew who becomes a neo-Nazi. Based loosely on [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Burros Dan Burros]].
* ConvertingForLove: A particularly interesting instance, where the girl appears to have converted to Judaism by the end of the movie. Thanks to her self-hating Jewish boyfriend. Who's a Neo-Nazi.

''The Believer'' is a 2001 drama film. Creator/RyanGosling plays an Orthodox Jew who turns to Neo-Nazism as a result of his poor self-image. The film following the character as he tries to reconcile his heritage with the hateful ideology.