America is a compelling and evocative slice of life in the world of a divorced Palestinian Christian immigrant Muna (played by Nisreen Faour) from Bethlehem and her son Fadi (Melkar Muallem) who travel to the U.S. to seek a better life, post-911 during the Iraq War and downfall of Saddam Hussein.
Muna and Fadi travel with what little belongings they possess and stay with Muna's sister, Raghda (played by Hiam Abbass), Raghda's husband Nabeel (Yussuf Abu Warda), and their three daughters, the eldest of which is Salma (played by Alia Shawkat) in Chicago suburb. The film follows the struggles and tribulations of Muna and Fada as they seek a better life, free from the troubles of the on-going Israeli Occupation while experiencing a clash of cultures that makes their assimilation difficult.
Amreeka (the Arabic pronounciation for America) is Palestinian-American Director Cherien Abbass' debut film, and heavily inspired by true life experiences of Abbass while she struggled with her identity as both an American and a Palestinian. Certain events depicted in the film are ficitionalized retellings of things she personally experienced. This fact, that the film was written directed and acted by Palestinians and based on real-life experiences of Palestinians, makes it extremely authentic and a refreshing change from the usual stereotypical "reel bad arabs" of Hollywood.
The film was beautifully shot on location in both Bethlehem and Chicago, documentary style with a handheld camera, well scripted and acted and truly a directorial debut launchpad from which Cherien Dabis' career will continue to soar. All around stellar performances by Hiam Abbass, Alia Shawkat, Melkar Muallem, and Nisreen Faour.
Muna and Fadi travel with what little belongings they possess and stay with Muna's sister, Raghda (played by Hiam Abbass), Raghda's husband Nabeel (Yussuf Abu Warda), and their three daughters, the eldest of which is Salma (played by Alia Shawkat) in Chicago suburb. The film follows the struggles and tribulations of Muna and Fada as they seek a better life, free from the troubles of the on-going Israeli Occupation while experiencing a clash of cultures that makes their assimilation difficult.
Amreeka (the Arabic pronounciation for America) is Palestinian-American Director Cherien Abbass' debut film, and heavily inspired by true life experiences of Abbass while she struggled with her identity as both an American and a Palestinian. Certain events depicted in the film are ficitionalized retellings of things she personally experienced. This fact, that the film was written directed and acted by Palestinians and based on real-life experiences of Palestinians, makes it extremely authentic and a refreshing change from the usual stereotypical "reel bad arabs" of Hollywood.
The film was beautifully shot on location in both Bethlehem and Chicago, documentary style with a handheld camera, well scripted and acted and truly a directorial debut launchpad from which Cherien Dabis' career will continue to soar. All around stellar performances by Hiam Abbass, Alia Shawkat, Melkar Muallem, and Nisreen Faour.