DRESSING AMERICA: TALES FROM THE GARMENT CENTER (Stephen Fischler, Joel Sucher, U.S.). 57 minutes. Sunday (May 6), 1 pm, Sheppard Grande May 10, 3 pm, Al Green.
THE TORONTO JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL at various locations from Thursday (May 3) to May 13. $8-$13, opening night $20, closing night $18. 416-324-9121, tjff.com. See Indie & Rep Film. Rating: NNN
Dressing America: Tales From The Garment Center is an affectionate look back at the predominantly Jewish shmatte district in midtown Manhattan, where American fashion was invented by Yiddish-speaking immigrants and distributed to the rest of the nation.
Co-produced by New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology as something of a marketing tool, it doesn’t delve too deeply into its subject, preferring long-winded stories from the children and grandchildren of rag traders to any exploration of the working conditions of the early 20th century. (You won’t hear the words “Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire,” for example.)
But audiences of a certain age who are looking for a pleasant, slightly kitschy stroll through a vaguely remembered past will have a fine time.
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