True story: I was named after the Archangel Michael. When I was born, a name for me had yet to be decided upon. My grandmother, noting my birthdate was the archangel’s feast day, suggested “Michael.” It stuck. It hasn’t gotten me any free lunches or anything, but when you spend your entire childhood in a parochial school system and you are named after the angel who took out Satan in the Book of Revelation, you walk the halls with a certain swagger.

In Mr. Kaplan, a delightful comedy making its Toronto premiere at the Toronto Jewish Film Festival, the titular character’s first name is Jacob. He was named after Jacob of the Old Testament; that’s the same Jacob who wrestled with a being many believe to be the Angel of God, and whose name was changed by God from Jacob to Israel.

Mr. Kaplan (Héctor Noguera), now 80 years old, has carried with him the weight of his name throughout his life, and he feels he has never lived up to it. Despite his 50-year marriage and a beautiful family, that weight is never heavier than when he finds himself without a driver’s license due to the parking lot fender-bender that led to the eye exam that exposed his vision problems. This namesake of a religious hero becomes reduced to being dependent on rides from family, or from family friend and disgraced ex-cop Wilson (Néstor Guzzini) … until Mr. Kaplan has an epiphany.

His granddaughter mentions during an innocuous  conversation an old German man who owns a bar; she and her friends refer to that man as “The Nazi.” Kaplan dismisses it at first, but after a news report reveals that another Nazi was captured elsewhere in the world, Kaplan turns amateur sleuth and starts following the bar owner. Without a license, Kaplan must rely on Wilson to help him get around. His young friend and driver, having formal police training, assists Kaplan on his quest to capture the German and transport him from Uruguay (where they live) to Israel, where he will stand trial for his war crimes.

The last thing I expected from Mr. Kaplan, the funny creation of writer/director Álvaro Brechner, was a buddy picture. Then, once I realized I was getting a buddy picture, I certainly didn’t expect to get one with terrific humor and considerable emotional depth.

The film starts out as a humorous mediation on unfulfilled destiny and an assessment of self-worth, with a wonderful opening sequence. Kaplan and his wife arrive at a wedding reception where their names are not on the guest list, so they are denied entry. It turns out to have been a simple oversight, but it reduces them, and more so him as the alpha male. Already in a fragile mental state, Kaplan overreacts to a conversation that includes his admission that he cannot swim, so he attempts to jump off the high diving board at the country club where the reception is taking place. The whole sequence not only smartly and funnily sets up Kaplan’s driver’s license conflict, it’s also a great illustration of how director Brechner understands visual humor.

As the film progresses, Brechner continues to show his directorial prowess for comedy. He uses certain zooming and panning devices that have been used in countless buddy action pictures and thrillers before, but never to be taken seriously here. Because Kaplan is a man who is overreaching to begin with, the gag is that the shots are overreaching too. They work every time.

Then, as Wilson becomes more involved, and the investigation is less about him just driving and more about him actively participating, a backstory on him is offered that adds great pathos to his character. It also gives Wilson more than just a sidekick role; the character has real skin in the game, and the film expands beyond being about Kaplan’s destiny fulfillment mission and includes Wilson’s shot at redemption. The laughs continue throughout as both men have familial ramifications for their actions, and just about every bit of it is entertaining.

The third act caps off this wonderful film with a twist I didn’t see coming, yet one that never feels contrived.

There are no bad performances in Mr. Kaplan, but the film is unquestionably owned by Noguera, with a great turn by Guzzini. Nidia Telles as Kaplan’s wife and Nuria Fló as his granddaughter also give fine performances.

I know what it’s like to be named after a major biblical player, and while it hasn’t weighed on me the way it has weighed on Jacob Kaplan, well, let’s just say I’m not 80 yet. I suppose it could still happen.

War is frequently used by filmmakers not as the subject of a film or even its primary setting, but as a driving force for other, more personal, conflicts. Such is the case of Haven, from first-time writer/director Amikam Kovner. The story takes place in the shadow of the Second Lebanon War, and the film makes its Canadian Premiere at the 2015 Toronto Jewish Film Festival.

Because of Hezbollah’s attacks, residents of northern Israel, are forced to flee south for their lives. Two of those residents are Motti and Keren (Oshri Cohen and Rotem Zissman-Cohen, respectfully), a young married couple in their 20’s with a baby on the way. They find refuge with Boaz and Yali (Nevo Kimchi and Lana Ettinger), a slightly older couple (late 30’s) who live in a nice apartment and who are kind enough to take in strangers.

There are small conflicts one might expect from such a living arrangement—conflicts that mildly disrupt the life of the older couple: Motti smokes, he leaves beard clippings in the sink, he prefers to eat Kosher, etc. In fact, Motti’s religious conviction is about the most significant difference between him and Boaz (the wives remain neutral) until talk turns to politics. This is when tensions flare, as the younger man would prefer Israel take a more aggressive position in the war, while the older man would rather avoid conflict entirely. Suddenly an apartment that was big enough to temporarily house four people becomes a little more cramped, and the close quarters and unsettled atmosphere leave open the possibility for other precarious situations to occur.

Writer/director Kovner creates great foundation early in Haven. He quickly establishes the conflict between the males not only with overt differences (young/old, devout/secular, conservative/liberal), but he includes subtle things that help contribute to the tension. Kovner is also clever to leverage war reporting as televised-around-the-clock fuel on the conflict fire.

However, once the first act draws to a close, cleverness takes a back seat to completion. There’s an acceleration of events and emotions that occurs where characters move from Point A to Point E without ever stopping at the points in between. It’s frustrating to watch, because when the characters reach their final destinations, it’s completely understandable that that’s where they are supposed to end up. However, they don’t put in the effort; they are simply placed there. The biggest victim in this is the audience, which is denied the pleasure of watching the characters travel the full-length of the road.

Exacerbating that frustration is the film’s lean 74-minute runtime. Kovner wastes little time on frivolity, and what time he does spend there is an enjoyable break from the tension. But surely an extra 10-15 minutes of additional scenes could have been use to develop these relationships more organically.

While there are a few bit parts, this is a four-person film (one that would adapt well to the stage), and each do an excellent job in their roles. Leading the cast, though, is Lana Ettinger as Yali. The experienced actress has competing character types to play against in her three roomies, not to mention her reflective solo scenes, and she plays well against them all. It’s thanks to her and the rest of the foursome that film remains compelling in spite of its storytelling flaws.

Like they say, timing is everything. Just as the superhero blockbuster Avengers: Age of Ultron takes over theaters around the globe, the Toronto Jewish Film Festival swoops in like a caped crusader to offer the ultimate counter-program to the big-budget, big studio offering.

Making its North American premiere is Hebrew Superheroes, from directors Asaf Galay and Shaul Betser. This documentary, clocking in at a lean 54 minutes, offers a rare look at the history of Israeli comics and their creators.

Loaded with appearances from historians, artists, writers, and accented by a variety of animated scenes, Hebrew Superheroes begins its story in 1936, when only kid-targeted comic fare existed. This lone option continues successfully for decades, but other artists and writers are driven to take the medium in other creative directions. Most were influenced by mainstream U.S. superhero comics or inspired by groundbreaking titles like Art Spiegelman’s Maus. These artistic creators talk on-screen about their work, offering a great personal touch to the documentary.

The film’s main issue though, is that it lacks a centeral narrative. While the directors do a good job establishing the (mostly) linear timeline and assembling the talent to present their information, what they offer is simply that: information. One creator’s experiences are followed by another’s and so on, but the least common denominator connects them; there’s never a sense of something bigger. The result of the docuemtnary isn’t a history story, it’s the history’s resume, and the bullet-point feel of the presentation slows the film to a frustrating halt.