Yentl (1983) review

Desperately curious to learn all the "secrets" in "sacred books" at a time when females weren't allowed to know such things, Yentl (Streisand) trims her hair and dresses like a male after the passing of her dear father (Nehemiah Persoff), then sets off to educate herself and gains acceptance at a yeshiva - while there, she becomes good friends with fellow student Avigdor (Mandy Patinkin) but finds herself in an uncomfortable romantic situation with him and the woman he's madly in love with, Hadass (Amy Irving).  I can't help but agree with producer Jon Peters that Streisand is too feminine to make this totally convincing (ironically, I watched Mrs. Doubtfire the previous day and took issue with Robin Williams' "transformation" as well), but the narrative (which is based on a short story by Isaac Bashevis Singer) is quite endearing (even though Babs allows herself just a few too many songs) and the message about the importance of delving into literature and history (and religion) speaks to me personally.  Some critics didn't care for Irving's performance (she was nominated for both a Razzie and the Academy Award!) although I think she's fine ... and in my view Patinkin is exceptionally underrated: he's a genuine pal, and then goes through a medley of emotions once Yentl reveals her "true identity."  To bring up a point mentioned in 1997's In & Out: was she too old to play the lead?  I'm not sure, but at 41 (her character is supposed to be 26) ... it's pushing it.