In the twentieth century, there lived a brilliant polymath who wandered the world, a vagabond of immense intellect who taught the likes of Emmanuel Levinas and Elie Wiesel. He was a master of many studies, from theology and philosophy to mathematics and the sciences. His name, while debated among those who know of his existence, is unknown to the world; he known only as Mr. Shoshani. While working on a different film, Director Michael Grynszpan happened to learn of this enigma of a man. As interest turns into obsession, Gryszpan spends a decade of his life trying to unravel the mystery of Shoshani’s life in The Shoshani Riddle.
On a narrative level, Grynszpan’s journey is compelling to watch. The obsessive pursuit of knowledge, even when everyone around you is warning you against it; the conflicting (and often strange) narrative of the interviewees; the frustration of dead end after dead end; the feeling that with each new discovery, the truth becomes more and more incomprehensible. Honestly, if this were a work of fiction, instead of a documentary, I’d be tempted to call this a cosmic horror film. In fact, there’s a part near the end of the film that does seem like cosmic horror. When Grynszpan realizes that Shoshani wrote his notes in code, there’s an animated sequence from his point of view, where he literally falls into one of his notebooks, trying to find the polymath through a maze of his words.
The animation is what really made this film stand out. The style is entirely unique, with hyper-realistic, black and white drawings that almost give off that uncanny valley feeling. In addition, the way that the characters move reminds me of NPC in a video game like Grand Theft Auto or Watchdogs, as if they were being controlled by computers that were trying to imitate how humans move. All in all, the animation style comes off as unsettling to the viewer. However, it’s strangely fitting for the topic of the documentary, as Shoshani himself was a very unsettling person.
All things considered, Shoshani is an excellent person to make a movie out of. Everyone who had interacted with him was unable to deny his genius. He had a (to put it lightly) masterful understanding of Jewish theology, created a secret language to write his notes in, knew the logarithm table by heart, etc. And yet, no one can ever recall anything he truly said about any given topic (yet another point towards cosmic horror). He wandered the world, homeless and sleeping on benches, and in terms of personality, he could generously be described as a provocateur. In essence, there’s a lot to work with when making a story about Shoshani.
With its unique animation style, interesting narrative, and intriguing focal character, The Shoshani Riddle is an entertaining experience. Come watch as Michael Grynszpan delves into the rabbit hole that is Mr. Shoshani.
The Shoshani Riddle screens at the New Jersey Film Festival on Sunday, February 1, 2026 – Online for 24 Hours beginning at midnight Eastern USA time on this day. Get more info and buy tickets here.
The 44th Bi-Annual New Jersey Film Festival will be taking place on select Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays between January 23-February 22, 2026. The Festival will be a hybrid one as we will be presenting it online as well as doing in-person screenings at Rutgers University. Most of the films will be available virtually via Video on Demand for 24 hours on their show date. VOD start times are at 12 Midnight Eastern USA. Each General Admission Ticket or Festival Pass purchased is good for both the virtual and the in-person when both are offered. The in-person screenings will be held in Voorhees Hall #105/Rutgers University, 71 Hamilton Street, New Brunswick, NJ beginning at 5PM or 7PM on their show date. General Admission Ticket=$15 Per Program; Festival All Access Pass=$120; In-Person Only Student Ticket=$10 Per Program. For more info on the Film festival go here: FESTIVAL WEBSITE
