Watch Welcome to Kutsher's: The Last Catskills Resort

Welcome to Kutsher's: The Last Catskills Resort is a documentary film directed by Caroline Laskow and Ian Rosenberg that was released in 2012. The documentary is about the history of Kutsher's, a Jewish resort in the Catskill Mountains that was popular in the mid-twentieth century. The film explores the history of the resort, focusing on the Kutsher family, who owned and operated the resort for more than a hundred years.

The documentary is filled with interviews with former guests and employees of the resort, as well as with members of the Kutsher family. The interviews paint a picture of what life was like at the resort during its heyday in the 1950s and 1960s, when it was a popular vacation destination for Jewish families from New York City.

The film touches on a number of different themes, including the rise and decline of the Catskills as a vacation destination, the changing dynamics of the American Jewish community, and the role that Kutsher's played in that community. The narrative is driven by the stories of the people who visited or worked at the resort, who speak candidly about their experiences.

One of the most striking themes that emerges from the film is the sense of community that developed among the guests and employees of Kutsher's. Many of the former guests speak with fondness about the friendships they made at the resort, and the film features several stories of guests who met their spouses at the resort. The former employees, too, speak about the sense of camaraderie that developed among the staff, as they worked long hours to make sure that every guest had an enjoyable stay.

Through these interviews, the documentary also explores the role that Kutsher's played in the larger Jewish community. The resort was known for hosting events like weddings and bar mitzvahs, and many of the guests came to Kutsher's to celebrate these milestones. The film highlights the nostalgia that many former guests feel for the resort, which they see as a symbol of a bygone era when American Jews were more united and more connected to their cultural roots.

As much as Welcome to Kutsher's is a love letter to the resort, however, it also acknowledges the challenges that it faced in its final years. The film explores the problems that many of the Borscht Belt resorts faced as the American Jewish community changed and vacation habits shifted. In particular, the film discusses the impact of air travel, which made it easier and cheaper for families to travel further afield.

Moreover, the film highlights the influence of cultural and social change. With the post-WWII Jewish community enjoying greater affluence and integration into broader society, the Jews started to vacation elsewhere. Other factors contributing to the decline of Kutsher’s include the advent of casino gambling, the changing tastes of American holidaymakers, and, finally, the economic recession which hits every business. The crumble of Kutsher's is predicated upon the macroeconomic factors which the Kutsher family had little control.

Caroline Laskow and Ian Rosenberg do a fantastic job of balancing these two sides of the story, highlighting the nostalgia and love that people feel for Kutsher's while also acknowledging the challenges that it faced. The film is visually engaging, using archived footage (including home movies and TV appearances by famous guests) and carefully curated photographs to bring the story to life.

All in all, Welcome to Kutsher's: The Last Catskills Resort is a compelling and insightful look at an important part of American Jewish history. It offers an affectionate tribute to a bygone era while also acknowledging the complexities and challenges that came with it. For anyone with an interest in American Jewish history, nostalgia, or simply good storytelling, it is worth watching.

Welcome to Kutsher's: The Last Catskills Resort is a 2012 documentary with a runtime of 1 hour and 10 minutes. It has received mostly positive reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 7.1.