October 8 (film)

October H8TE
Theatrical release poster
Directed byWendy Sachs
Produced by
Cinematography
  • Tom Gat
  • Cameron Edwards-Wallis
Edited by
  • Inbal B. Lessner
  • Nimrod Erez
Music bySharon Farber
Distributed byBriarcliff Entertainment
Release date
  • March 14, 2025 (2025-03-14)
Running time
100 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$1.3 million[1]

October H8TE – The Fight for the Soul of America (October 8)[2] is a 2025 documentary film produced by Wendy Sachs and Debra Messing.

Synopsis

The film covers the 2024 pro-Palestinian protests on university campuses after the October 7 attacks.[3][4] It describes how "anti-Israel sentiment came to a fever pitch in the immediate aftermath of the massacre" and argues such sentiment "morphed into antisemitism".[5] The film includes interviews with Michael Rapaport, Noa Tishby, U.S. Representative Ritchie Torres, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, Sheryl Sandberg, Dan Senor, Scott Galloway, Deborah Lipstadt, Bari Weiss and Mosab Yousef.[3][6] It explores the organization Students for Justice in Palestine, and argues that SJP promoted anti-Zionism and antisemitism on campus.[7] The film also covers the role of social media in allegedly stoking antisemitism among young people.[8]

In the film, University of California, Santa Barbara's (UCSB) student body president describes how she was harassed online and on campus after she condemned the October 7 attack.[9]

Production

Co-produced by Wendy Sachs and Debra Messing, the film was co-edited by Inbal Lessner and Nimrod Erez.[10]

Sachs said she wanted the film to show a non-Jewish audience "what antisemitism looks like today—for them to see, when they see a 'Zionists not allowed' sign, that means 'Jew'".[11]

Release and Distribution

The film had its U.S. theatrical release on March 14, 2025, distributed by Briarcliff Entertainment. It became available for streaming starting April 1, 2025. The runtime is approximately 100 minutes, and as of mid-2025, it has grossed about $1.3 million at the U.S. box office.[12]

Rotten Tomatoes reports a 68% critic score based on 19 reviews and a 99% audience score.[13]

Critical reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 72% of 18 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8.4/10.[14]

The documentary was shown at Miami's Jewish Film Festival.[15] Sharon Farber's score was nominated for a Hollywood Music In Media Award.[16][17]

The Times of Israel criticized the film for not closely examining Qatar's influence, citing its own reporting claiming Qatar contributed as much as $4.7 billion to US academic institutions between 2001 and 2021.[7] In The Jerusalem Post, Greer Fay Cashman called the film Sachs's "crowning achievement".[8] In Haaretz, Judy Maltz said the film paints a "black-and-white picture" of the conflict.[18]

Michael O'Sullivan of The Washington Post praised the film's "often-moving first-person student testimony" and noted its easily disproven claim that Hamas may be behind SJP, while lamenting its lack of criticism of the Israeli government and military.[19] Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter called out some cherry-picking and "questionable conclusions", adding, "But there's no denying the importance of its message and the need for corrective action by political, academic, religious and civil leaders".[5]

Siddhant Adlakha criticized the film for "its omissions, which circumvent any history of Israeli-Palestinian conflict both before and after Oct. 7, 2023."[20] Writing for Variety, Alissa Simon called it "one-sided", but wrote that it was still "worth seeing" for its coverage of antisemitism and the political fallout of the campus protests.[21] In Defector, Jake Romm wrote, "calling it a film at all is generous" and that watching it is more akin "to being trapped in a room with someone as they show you posts on their phone". Romm described the film as being about American Zionist paranoia and asserted that it is the pro-Palestinian movement that is being persecuted.[22]

See also

References

  1. ^ "October 8". The Numbers. Retrieved April 8, 2025.
  2. ^ Carey, Matthew (2025-01-29). "Briarcliff Entertainment Sets March Release Date For 'October 8', Documentary On Explosion Of Antisemitism After Hamas Attack On Israel". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 2025-02-18.
  3. ^ a b Griffin, Laura (2024-11-27). "South Orange Filmmaker Takes a Hard Look at Rise in Antisemitism in U.S. Since Oct. 7 Terror Attacks". The Village Green. Retrieved 2025-01-20.
  4. ^ Brownstein, Bill (2025-01-07). "Brownstein: Documentary on spiralling antisemitism makes its Canadian debut in Montreal". Montreal Gazette. Retrieved 2025-01-21.
  5. ^ a b Scheck, Frank (2025-03-12). "'October 8' Review: Disturbing Documentary Surveys Surge in Antisemitism After Hamas Attacks". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2025-03-16.
  6. ^ Carey, Matthew (2024-12-13). "Briarcliff Entertainment Acquires Oscar Contender 'October H8te,' Documentary On Exploding Rise Of Antisemitism After October 7". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 2025-02-17.
  7. ^ a b Steinberg, Jessica; Magid, Jacob; Bachner, Michael; Fabian, Emanuel (2024-11-05). "'October H8te' documentary aims to understand US college alignment with Hamas". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 2025-02-17.
  8. ^ a b Cashman, Greer Fay (2024-11-07). "'On October 8, American Jews woke up': New documentary 'October H8TE' explains what's at stake". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 2025-01-20.
  9. ^ Melman, Lana (2025-01-14). "Documentary exposes campus protests and hateful vitriol for what they are". Jewish News Syndicate. Retrieved 2025-02-17.
  10. ^ "About the Filmmakers". oct-8-landing. 2025-02-17. Retrieved 2025-02-17.
  11. ^ Gilson, Grace; Fabian, Emanuel; Levaton, Stav (2025-04-05). "Five new documentaries shed light on the post-October 7 American experience". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 2025-04-09.
  12. ^ "October 8". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2025-08-10.
  13. ^ "October 8 | Rotten Tomatoes". www.rottentomatoes.com. Retrieved 2025-08-10.
  14. ^ "October 8". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved April 20, 2025.
  15. ^ Solomon, Michelle F. (2025-01-06). "Directors with Miami ties examine Oct. 7 attacks in Israel at Jewish Film Festival". Miami Herald. Retrieved 2025-02-17.
  16. ^ "2024 HMMA Winners & Nominations". Hollywood Music In Media Awards. 2024-11-21. Retrieved 2025-02-17.
  17. ^ Willman, Chris (2024-11-06). "Hollywood Music in Media Awards Noms Led by 'Emilia Pérez' and 'Blitz,' With Elton John, Hans Zimmer and Scores More Among the Nominees". Variety. Retrieved 2025-02-17.
  18. ^ Maltz, Judy (2024-10-23). "'OCTOBER H8TE': What a New Film on Repercussions of Israel-Hamas War on U.S. Jews Leaves Out". Haaretz. Retrieved 2025-02-17.
  19. ^ O'Sullivan, Michael (2025-03-13). "'October 8' documentary probes the rise in U.S. antisemitism". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2025-03-16.
  20. ^ Adlakha, Siddhant (24 March 2025). "'October 8' is a danger to both student protesters and Jewish Americans". Joy Sauce. Retrieved 26 March 2025.
  21. ^ Simon, Alissa (2025-03-24). "'October 8' Review: A Searing Look at the Eruption of Antisemitism on College Campuses and Social Media". Variety. Retrieved 2025-03-26.
  22. ^ Romm, Jake (23 April 2025). "The Paranoid Fantasies Of 'October 8'". Defector. Retrieved 23 April 2025.
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