A young Jewish American flies to the Ukraine in search of his grandfather's past. He has a photograph and the name of a village. He hires the Odessa Heritage Tours, made up of a gruff old man and his English-speaking grandson. The three, plus grandfather's deranged dog, travel in an old car from Odessa into Ukraine's heart. Jonathan, the American, is a collector, putting things he finds into small plastic bags, so he will remember. Alex, the interpreter, is an archetypal wild and crazy guy. Alex asks the old man, 'Was there anti-Semitism in the Ukraine before the war?' Will they find the village? The past illuminates everything.
Director: Liev Schreiber
Writers (WGA):Jonathan Safran Foer (novel)
Liev Schreiber (screenplay)
Cast:
Eugene Hutz... Alex
Elijah Wood... Jonathan Safran Foer
Jonathan Safran Foer... Leaf Blower
Jana Hrabetova... Jonathan's Grandmother
Stephen Samudovsky... Jonathan's Grandfather Safran (as Stepan Samudovsky)
Ljubomir Dezera... Young Jonathan
Oleksandr Choroshko... Alexander Perchov, Father
Gil Kazimirov... Igor
Zuzana Hodkova... Alex's Mother
Mikki... Sammy Davis Jr. Jr.
Mouse... Sammy Davis Jr. Jr.
Boris Leskin... Grandfather
Robert Chytil... Breakdancer
Jaroslava Sochova... Woman on Train
Sergei Ryabtsev... Ukrainian Band Member (as Sergej Rjabcev)