24 reviews
I seldom comment on movies here but felt compelled to comment on this one. I say "not what you might expect" because I think a lot of people's reactions to this film are going to be heavily influenced by preconceptions about what this film is supposed to be "about." I can't blame them; if I heard that this was "a film about an Arab family's struggles after immigrating the USA after September 11th," I'd probably groan because I'd have certain expectations too. But this is not a "message" film, and if you go into it looking for messages, you're going to miss the point. Rather than political, this film is personal. You could call it simple, but it's not simplistic. Far from it; it refuses to reduce the subtlety and nuance of life to overt messages. I think that an honest, objective viewing of this movie will reveal that, the "stereotypes" and "simplifications" that some reviewers are seeing, were brought in by the reviewers themselves. This is not a perfect film, but it has a lot more depth, beauty and truth than most family dramas, and certainly more than the didactic work one might expect.
- hprockstar
- Feb 6, 2009
- Permalink
"Amreeka" has, I would say, all the freshness and the weaknesses an indie movie comes with. Being about a family of Palestinian immigrants struggling to find their way in America and facing all kind of anti-Muslim and anti-Arab stereotypes, this movie cannot escape its own stereotypes. It is a movie that looks schematic in many of its moments. Not in all moments, let's be clear on this point. It is a movie breathing of sincerity and it has a certain pathos. However, sometimes it seems that it gathers all the bad guys on one side and the good guys on the other (you can guess who are the bad guys, and who are the good ones). And after all these, the end seems idyllic; they want to send the good message so to speak, only I'm wandering whether it happens like that also in real life.
Well, one can say that this movie is dealing with a reality which is by itself schematic. This is true: bigotry of any kind is always schematic (to name the least of its sins). The problem is that a movie has an artistic reality of its own, and this artistic reality must be convincing, regardless how schematic the depicted reality could be.
The great asset of this movie is the lead actress, Nisreen Faour. She creates an unforgettable personage, with passion, with honesty, with conviction and stamina. And she is so amazing that the whole movie is contaminated by her enthusiasm and good will.
Let me mention here also Hiam Abbass , a very good actress that I have also seen in many other movies (The Visitor, Munich, Paradise Now, The Syrian Bride).
Well, one can say that this movie is dealing with a reality which is by itself schematic. This is true: bigotry of any kind is always schematic (to name the least of its sins). The problem is that a movie has an artistic reality of its own, and this artistic reality must be convincing, regardless how schematic the depicted reality could be.
The great asset of this movie is the lead actress, Nisreen Faour. She creates an unforgettable personage, with passion, with honesty, with conviction and stamina. And she is so amazing that the whole movie is contaminated by her enthusiasm and good will.
Let me mention here also Hiam Abbass , a very good actress that I have also seen in many other movies (The Visitor, Munich, Paradise Now, The Syrian Bride).
- p_radulescu
- Aug 12, 2011
- Permalink
Amreeka (the Arabic word for America) is a humorous and warm-hearted first feature from Cherien Dabis that follows a Palestinian woman, Muna (Nisreen Faour) and her sixteen-year-old son, Fadi (Melkar Muallem) from the checkpoints of the West Bank to the checkmates of racial animosity in a small town in Illinois near Chicago. Set in 2003 at the start of the Iraq War, Muna leaves Bethlehem because she desires a better life for her son and can no longer put up with overbearing Israeli police, the harangues of her elderly mother, and reminders of her philandering ex-husband. The opening sequence in which Muna is ecstatic about receiving her Green Card in the mail and says tearful goodbyes to her family on her way to America joyously captures the closeness of family and their caring for each other in a lighthearted manner.
Unfortunately in the rest of the film things do not go as well for the young family. They have to deal with numerous incidents of overt and covert racism including bullying at school as they try to adjust to a new home and a new country. Things start off badly when Muna and Fadi are harassed for three hours at the airport by Israeli customs and a tin box filled with cookies and all of their savings are handed over by Fadi to customs officials. Fadi does not say anything to his mother about this (a most unlikely circumstance) and the loss is only discovered after the two arrive at the home of relatives in Illinois. From there, things go steadily south. Muna tries to get a job in her profession in a bank but is rejected by employers who look at all Arabs as potential terrorists.
Ending up working at a burger joint, Muna conceals her employment from her relatives, pretending to work at a bank close to the restaurant, but her shame is apparent. Meanwhile Fadi is tormented by school bullies who call him Osama and her relatives begin to bicker over their increased expenses at the time when the family breadwinner, a physician (Yussef Abu Warda), is losing clients because of his Arab appearance. While people need to be reminded of the hurt of racism and the Arabs contribution to the world, Amreeka offers one contrived subplot after another in which Americans are caricatures of either hate-filled racists or Christ-like saviors like Mr. Novatski (Joseph Ziegler), Fadi's principal (who happens to be Jewish).
What could have been an excellent opportunity to explore the problems of assimilation or the treatment of minorities instead becomes a litany of clichés. There is no mention of 9-11, issues involved in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, or the problem of bullying in schools, and the possibility of involving teachers, school officials, or even the neighborhood church in helping the immigrant family to cope are not examined. While Amreeka has moments of charm and likability and the performances are excellent, the exercise quickly becomes a big screen version of "As the World Turns", doomed by an overly simplistic approach in which victimization substitutes for cooperation in finding solutions.
Unfortunately in the rest of the film things do not go as well for the young family. They have to deal with numerous incidents of overt and covert racism including bullying at school as they try to adjust to a new home and a new country. Things start off badly when Muna and Fadi are harassed for three hours at the airport by Israeli customs and a tin box filled with cookies and all of their savings are handed over by Fadi to customs officials. Fadi does not say anything to his mother about this (a most unlikely circumstance) and the loss is only discovered after the two arrive at the home of relatives in Illinois. From there, things go steadily south. Muna tries to get a job in her profession in a bank but is rejected by employers who look at all Arabs as potential terrorists.
Ending up working at a burger joint, Muna conceals her employment from her relatives, pretending to work at a bank close to the restaurant, but her shame is apparent. Meanwhile Fadi is tormented by school bullies who call him Osama and her relatives begin to bicker over their increased expenses at the time when the family breadwinner, a physician (Yussef Abu Warda), is losing clients because of his Arab appearance. While people need to be reminded of the hurt of racism and the Arabs contribution to the world, Amreeka offers one contrived subplot after another in which Americans are caricatures of either hate-filled racists or Christ-like saviors like Mr. Novatski (Joseph Ziegler), Fadi's principal (who happens to be Jewish).
What could have been an excellent opportunity to explore the problems of assimilation or the treatment of minorities instead becomes a litany of clichés. There is no mention of 9-11, issues involved in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, or the problem of bullying in schools, and the possibility of involving teachers, school officials, or even the neighborhood church in helping the immigrant family to cope are not examined. While Amreeka has moments of charm and likability and the performances are excellent, the exercise quickly becomes a big screen version of "As the World Turns", doomed by an overly simplistic approach in which victimization substitutes for cooperation in finding solutions.
- howard.schumann
- Nov 8, 2009
- Permalink
- ironhorse_iv
- Jan 24, 2016
- Permalink
And if you don't know what my title is in reference to then you haven't seen this movie. "when you are in this house you are in Palestine", that's another important statement in this movie!
This is actually a very well acted and scripted film! It chronicles the immigration of a single Palestinian mother and son to Illinois and the culture clash they encounter.
Unfortunately the plot is depressingly familiar and the outcome predictable. The mother is honest but wants to save face with her family that is allowing her & son to live with them by lying about her job. Both son & mother face rejection at school and the workplace, but they are resolute in overcoming the odds against them.
So there you have it ... I encourage people who enjoy good cinema to watch this as it is a well crafted movie but I'm afraid a bit forgettable.
This is actually a very well acted and scripted film! It chronicles the immigration of a single Palestinian mother and son to Illinois and the culture clash they encounter.
Unfortunately the plot is depressingly familiar and the outcome predictable. The mother is honest but wants to save face with her family that is allowing her & son to live with them by lying about her job. Both son & mother face rejection at school and the workplace, but they are resolute in overcoming the odds against them.
So there you have it ... I encourage people who enjoy good cinema to watch this as it is a well crafted movie but I'm afraid a bit forgettable.
What happens when your life is turned upside down by your husband divorcing you for a slimmer, younger woman and walls are built around where you live adding hours every day to your commute to work and you spend every penny to keep your son in a private school? You take the first best opportunity that comes along to get out of that situation. Muna, a Palestinian single woman, does just that when she receives an offer to relocate free to America. This begins the adventures and misadventures of someone immigrating to America with the hopes and promises of a better life. She lands in a small town in Illinois to live (temporarily is the plan) with her sister and physician husband and teenage children until she can establish herself and son. She has two degrees and has had professional experience in the work world so it shouldn't take long - wrong! Told with humor as well as heartbreak (it's just after 9/11and anyone from the Middle East is the enemy), this National Geographic film is a reminder of why people still come to AMREEKA and how easy it is to be misunderstood and to struggle to make a living no matter how hard you are willing to work. It is worth watching by families whose children may be finding it difficult to accept those who don't talk or dress or act just like us. Changing schools as an American teenager can be very difficult. Try coming from another country, especially one we see as an adversary. Highly recommend.
Knowing my deep interest in the subject of Palestine, a friend tipped me off to this movie. "Have you seen the trailer yet?" she asked. "It looks hilarious and beautiful, and poignant".
She wasn't wrong.
Over the last ten or twelve years, I have been gleaning as much information and experience as I can about the Palestine/Israel question. I found this film to be an excellent, genuine portrayal of not only life in occupied Palestine, but also of what life is like for those who choose to emigrate. It isn't a high-budget, high-production value film, but it is sensitively written, superbly acted, and the characters stay with you long after you leave the theater.
Not only that, but it is so heartening to be able to see a movie about Arabs that portrays them simply as people instead of terrorists, and is honest about the kind of racism they face in this country on a regular basis. Lets see more of these kinds of films, please! Mabrook to all those who worked on this gorgeous film!
She wasn't wrong.
Over the last ten or twelve years, I have been gleaning as much information and experience as I can about the Palestine/Israel question. I found this film to be an excellent, genuine portrayal of not only life in occupied Palestine, but also of what life is like for those who choose to emigrate. It isn't a high-budget, high-production value film, but it is sensitively written, superbly acted, and the characters stay with you long after you leave the theater.
Not only that, but it is so heartening to be able to see a movie about Arabs that portrays them simply as people instead of terrorists, and is honest about the kind of racism they face in this country on a regular basis. Lets see more of these kinds of films, please! Mabrook to all those who worked on this gorgeous film!
- chicagocamelgirl
- Oct 6, 2009
- Permalink
Back in the late 1980's early 1990's(especially during Operation Desert Scam),there was a plague of anti Arab sentiment that enveloped the United States for a good part of the decade. Things did not fare any better in the wake of September 11th,2001,and only managed to get worse with George W.Bush attacking Iraq. Hollywood,predictably got on that vile band wagon & produced some pretty vile films,depicting all Arab & Arab/Americans as ruthless terrorists. Despite the fact that most of these attitudes still exist,Canada produced a wonderful film about a Palestinian woman & her son coming to America for a better life. This film is 'Amreeka' (the Arabic word for America). Cherien Dabis writes & directs,from her own original screenplay,a tale of finding home. Muna Farah is a single mother,dealing with the daily grind of living in occupied Palestine (spot checks at the border are a regular way of life,as well as the wall separating the Gaza strip from Isreal,where motorists have to contend with driving out of their way, just to get to work,etc.). With the money she has been saving for some time,Muna & her teen-aged son,Fadi,make it to America,where they live with her sister,Raghda & her family. Sounds like an idyllic picture,doesn't it? Guess again. Muna & Fadi have to deal with the growing racism against Arabs. Does she manage to rise above it all & make America her home? That's for you to find out. Nisreen Faour shines as Muna,a woman who has been kicked around for far too long. Melkar Muallem earns kudos as her son,Fadi. Hiam Abbass is her sister, Raghda (a winning performance). The rest of the cast turns in fine performances,as well. This is quality film making that deserves to be experienced,even if you're not Arab. Spoken in Arabic with English subtitles,and English. Rated PG-13 by the MPAA for some salty language,some drug related material & some mild violence
- druid333-2
- Oct 10, 2009
- Permalink
- johnstonjames
- Mar 22, 2010
- Permalink
I discovered Amreeka thanks to looking at past Independent Spirit Award winners and nominees. This American-Canadian-Kuwaiti joint venture was nominated for Best Film. It's a terrifically personal look at a single woman's journey from Palestine to small town rural America. She wants a better life for her teenage son and takes the opportunity to immigrate to the United States. Her son is very excited, knowing full well what great opportunities they can have in the U.S. Unfortunately this is happening just after the United States launched Operation Iraqi Freedom to liberate Iraq from the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein. The film does not delve into the political and stays personal for the most part, dealing with the idiocy of prejudiced morons at the time, intolerant of Arabs as well as the struggles this woman and her son have. Fortunately the film also shows Americans without ignorance who accept Arab immigrants as neighbors and fellow human beings who deserve just as much respect as the next person. I was impressed from the get-go and would recommend this to all.
7.9 / 10 stars
--Zoooma, a Kat Pirate Screener
7.9 / 10 stars
--Zoooma, a Kat Pirate Screener
In the heartfelt indy film, AMREEKA, one of the truly standout acting finds, is the beautifully performed role of Muna, played by Nisreen Faour - a divorced Palestinian woman, with a teenage son, Fadi (played by Melkar Muallem), who decides to leave their home country, and travel to America (actually, it was filmed in Canada).
Muna has several degrees, but, due them not being accepted, she must work at a White Castle.
Her son's quiet, and, as is often the case - but worse - is picked on, as the 'new kid,' but, being Arab, at this time, the whole conflict between westerners and the Arab countries comes into play - with Fadi being use as the totem, for the 'terrorist' as well as the 'cause' another classmate's brother (a soldier) went into the military.
All through this hard, and difficult time of transition, Muna has an optimism, and chutzpa, and, a warmth, that had me wishing she was my mom.
I wasn't planning to watch AMREEKA, but, after seeing the first few minutes, I became so engrossed in this determined woman to MAKE things work out for her, and her son, I watched it through. And, am happy I did.
You will be too.
Muna has several degrees, but, due them not being accepted, she must work at a White Castle.
Her son's quiet, and, as is often the case - but worse - is picked on, as the 'new kid,' but, being Arab, at this time, the whole conflict between westerners and the Arab countries comes into play - with Fadi being use as the totem, for the 'terrorist' as well as the 'cause' another classmate's brother (a soldier) went into the military.
All through this hard, and difficult time of transition, Muna has an optimism, and chutzpa, and, a warmth, that had me wishing she was my mom.
I wasn't planning to watch AMREEKA, but, after seeing the first few minutes, I became so engrossed in this determined woman to MAKE things work out for her, and her son, I watched it through. And, am happy I did.
You will be too.
- fablesofthereconstru-1
- Nov 2, 2009
- Permalink
Amreeka chronicles the trials and tribulations of the lead character and her son as they leave a dissatisfying and violent life in Palestine for a dissatisfying and violent life in the Chicago area of the US. The performances of these two leads define the movie for me. Ms. Faour, as the mother, gives depth to her character way beyond the script, and conveys the proper resilience in the face of all possible indignities that only actors of true star quality can convey. On the other extreme, the actor playing the son is whiny and completely unconvincing when supposedly acting out of anger or supposedly longing to fit in. He is simply inept. With the exception of the poor performance by the class bully, the rest of the acting both by Palestinians and Americans is fairly good, especially given the rambling and episodic script that is chock full of clichés.
Another huge impediment to enjoyment for me was the fact that the English subtitles in many scenes were nearly impossible to read. It seems to me that when letter-boxing first caught on, the subtitles on movies requiring them would appear in the letter-boxed portion of the screen making them highly visible. Then after awhile, that practice ceased altogether and I remember some highbrow critic saying that it was a practice that should be discontinued and shortly thereafter was - but I cannot recall why. In any event, some movies still manage to make the subtitles legible. This is NOT one of them.
Altogether, if you wish to see a magnificent lead actor performance by a very atypical leading lady, there are worse ways to spend 100 minutes. FOr most of us, there are also better ways.
Another huge impediment to enjoyment for me was the fact that the English subtitles in many scenes were nearly impossible to read. It seems to me that when letter-boxing first caught on, the subtitles on movies requiring them would appear in the letter-boxed portion of the screen making them highly visible. Then after awhile, that practice ceased altogether and I remember some highbrow critic saying that it was a practice that should be discontinued and shortly thereafter was - but I cannot recall why. In any event, some movies still manage to make the subtitles legible. This is NOT one of them.
Altogether, if you wish to see a magnificent lead actor performance by a very atypical leading lady, there are worse ways to spend 100 minutes. FOr most of us, there are also better ways.
This is a great film about immigrating to North America as a divorced mother. The interactions between Mona (the mother) and Fadi (the son) are memorable; whether it be at the border at the occupied territories, in the US regarding his rebelliousness in school or confronting the attitude of US rural society.
I just viewed this film and disagree that it is a stereotype. Maybe the reviewers have not taken a good look at "real life" in North America as a newly arrived immigrant.
In this case, they are from occupied Palestine and immigrate exactly when the Bush administration declares war on Iraq. The town shuns them. No one is Iraqi, Palestine is occupied and war is on the way; so the son convinces her to leave when she receives unexpected news.
A twist and tease every step of the way and the end is most unexpected!
I just viewed this film and disagree that it is a stereotype. Maybe the reviewers have not taken a good look at "real life" in North America as a newly arrived immigrant.
In this case, they are from occupied Palestine and immigrate exactly when the Bush administration declares war on Iraq. The town shuns them. No one is Iraqi, Palestine is occupied and war is on the way; so the son convinces her to leave when she receives unexpected news.
A twist and tease every step of the way and the end is most unexpected!
- karterskreations
- Mar 23, 2011
- Permalink
1st watched 1/1/2012 – 8 out of 10 (Dir-Cherien Dabis): Well made drama about a single mother and her son moving from Bethlehem in Palestine to the US, and encounter many different obstacles upon their arrival. This movie is what you'd call a slice-of-life film but focused on a situation that isn't shown much in the movies. They decide to move right in the middle of the Iraq conflict to help the son with his schooling possibilities while suspicions are high against people from their area. This is seen from the perspective of non-Muslim middle eastern folk who just want to live their lives like everyone else. The son first has to encounter being a teen at a Midwest high school where he gets into fights and then gets arrested defending his mother – so things aren't so kind for him in his new surroundings. Nisreen Faour is wonderful as the mother and the rest of the cast is spot on. The experience is not all gloom-and-doom as the mother meets a sympathetic Polish Jew who is the principal of her son's school as well as a friendly teen she works with at the local White Castle. The only real downside to the movie is that it ends too soon. You get attached to these characters and want to see more, but it ends before any major conclusions – other than the fact that life will go on and things are looking up. Don't miss this gem of a movie that deserves a sequel or maybe a reality series on a cable channel?? – Anything to bring back these characters so will can follow them to see how things turn out in the end.
- punishmentpark
- Jul 20, 2013
- Permalink
this movie is wonderful - if you're a big fan of endless nauseating, predictable, clichéd stereotypes.
i don't understand why every independent film to come out of this genre (if you can call it that) has to utilize the same pathetic freshman year film school style.
i'm really bored of making excuses for such films. i'm sick of having to sit through horrible scripts, sub par plots and hand-held crappy cinematography. what makes it even more painful to sit through is the horrible acting.
if after this review you still feel the urge to watch amreeka, you can get the gist of it from the trailer. beyond that, you will feel a waste of time and effort.
it is infantile, at its best.
i don't understand why every independent film to come out of this genre (if you can call it that) has to utilize the same pathetic freshman year film school style.
i'm really bored of making excuses for such films. i'm sick of having to sit through horrible scripts, sub par plots and hand-held crappy cinematography. what makes it even more painful to sit through is the horrible acting.
if after this review you still feel the urge to watch amreeka, you can get the gist of it from the trailer. beyond that, you will feel a waste of time and effort.
it is infantile, at its best.
I am going to immigrate this film review into the unchartered waters of Punsylvania! OK, so I overdo the pun thang in my movie reviews. But it is America, a land of freedom & expression! So I will do the same in my review of the independent film "Amreeka". Are you still with me? Or did you deport yourself to another entertainment medium? OK cool, you are still here! "Amreeka" stars Nisreen Faour as Muna Farah, a Ramallah single mother who moves to America with her teenage son Fadi. They move into the Illinois home of Muna's sister Raghda Halaby and family. Muna and Fadi find the U.S. migration transition process difficult as they encounter injustices and prejudices. Muna is constantly denied jobs for banking employment, which was her occupation in Palestine. So she has no other choice but to follow the trails of Harold & Kumar and visit the White Castle; which is where she eventually finds employment. It becomes a very self-demeaning situation for Muna in not earning the Mula she originally thought she would earn as a U.S. banking associate. Muna lies to Fadi and Raghda & family by informing them that she works in a local bank. She should really work at White Lies Castle! On the other Ramallahian, Fadi is constantly bullied at school by a group of young boys because of his ethnicity. Writer-Director Cherien Dabis presents her Dabis tale on the prejudicial hardships that good-honest middle easterners face in immigrating to United States with an authenticity that does not make one feel sympathy for them but rather root for their success in the so-called "land of opportunity". Nisreen Faour's heartbreaking & courageous performance as Muna was very solid! The fabulous Faour could be saying to herself "I am rica" if she continues her acting proficiency and eventually gets offered lucrative roles. She carried the film from start to finish! Hiam Abbass' supporting performance as sister Raghda was also worth noting and was not a "rag doll" effort. The Abbass also dove nicely into a deep supporting performance in 2008's "The Visitor". "Amreeka" does sometimes almost borders itself on plot boredom, but that never materializes primarily due to Nisreen Faour's superlative starring performance. Visit "Amreeka" today! **** Good
This very moving 2009 film written and directed by Cherien Dabis could hardly be more timely, what with the current Immigration issues in filibuster in Washington and entry into the land of hope and liberty, so long a dream for many, now a country under close surveillance of individual privacy. This is a film, simple on the surface, but one with a significant message that would benefit all to watch and digest.
The story opens in Palestine. After her husband divorces her for a slimmer woman, Muna Farah (Nisreen Faour) lives with her cranky mother and her excellent student son Fadi (Melkar Muallem) in an unnumbered house in Bethlehem. Frustrated by the constant need to cross through insulting armed checkpoints as Muna goes to her bank job and Fadi goes to school, they apply for a visa to escape the Palestinian problems with dreams of an exciting future in the promised land of small town Illinois where Muna's sister Raghda (the always brilliant Hiam Abbass) and her physician husband Nabeel (Yussuf Abu-Warda) live with their daughters. After one last treachery at customs (where Muna's life savings are confiscated) the two arrive in America. Muna is unable to find work in a bank but is secretly employed in a hamburger joint, befriended by fellow worker, high school dropout Matt (Brodie Sanderson). Fadi gets into school but is immediately ostracized by crude thoughtless students for being foreign and therefore a 'terrorist'. Meanwhile Raghda and Nabeel begin to sink into debt when Saddam Hussein is conquered in the Iraqi war and public sentiment is against all Arab speaking peoples. Fadi eventually fights back when the prejudiced students cause an accident for his mother and is arrested for assault, Muna's 'low class' employment is discovered, but when all looks grim the isolated family is befriended by a friendly Polish Jew educator Stan Novatski (Joseph Ziegler), by Matt, and by a worker in the bank that couldn't hire Muna. At least the spirit of a few can intervene to alter Muna and Farid's view of their new home.
Writer/Director Dabis based this story on her family's memories of their lives in rural America during the first Iraq War. It is a potentially painful story to experience, but Dabis fills the dialogue with enough good natured humor that the point of the film is made without excessive preaching yet enough of the realities immigrants from the Middle East face to make the film unforgettable. Excellent performances from a fine cast.
Grady Harp
The story opens in Palestine. After her husband divorces her for a slimmer woman, Muna Farah (Nisreen Faour) lives with her cranky mother and her excellent student son Fadi (Melkar Muallem) in an unnumbered house in Bethlehem. Frustrated by the constant need to cross through insulting armed checkpoints as Muna goes to her bank job and Fadi goes to school, they apply for a visa to escape the Palestinian problems with dreams of an exciting future in the promised land of small town Illinois where Muna's sister Raghda (the always brilliant Hiam Abbass) and her physician husband Nabeel (Yussuf Abu-Warda) live with their daughters. After one last treachery at customs (where Muna's life savings are confiscated) the two arrive in America. Muna is unable to find work in a bank but is secretly employed in a hamburger joint, befriended by fellow worker, high school dropout Matt (Brodie Sanderson). Fadi gets into school but is immediately ostracized by crude thoughtless students for being foreign and therefore a 'terrorist'. Meanwhile Raghda and Nabeel begin to sink into debt when Saddam Hussein is conquered in the Iraqi war and public sentiment is against all Arab speaking peoples. Fadi eventually fights back when the prejudiced students cause an accident for his mother and is arrested for assault, Muna's 'low class' employment is discovered, but when all looks grim the isolated family is befriended by a friendly Polish Jew educator Stan Novatski (Joseph Ziegler), by Matt, and by a worker in the bank that couldn't hire Muna. At least the spirit of a few can intervene to alter Muna and Farid's view of their new home.
Writer/Director Dabis based this story on her family's memories of their lives in rural America during the first Iraq War. It is a potentially painful story to experience, but Dabis fills the dialogue with enough good natured humor that the point of the film is made without excessive preaching yet enough of the realities immigrants from the Middle East face to make the film unforgettable. Excellent performances from a fine cast.
Grady Harp
It's 2003 at the start of the Iraq war. Muna Farah and her son Fadi are Palestinian Christians living in Bethlehem under occupation. They are surprised to find the US has approved their long forgotten visa applications. They join Muna's sister Raghda Halaby and her family in Illinois suburbs. Airport security confiscates a tin of cookies which had all of their money. Muna is embarrassed and tries to hide it. Raghda's husband Nabeel is a doctor struggling to keep his patients. They get a death threat. Raghda is homesick despite being away for 15 years. Muna can't get a banking job and has to work at White Castle. Fadi joins his opinionated cousin Salma (Alia Shawkat) in school as he faces prejudice from classmates.
This is a great little indie of Fresh Off the Boat experiences. Nisreen Faour delivers a perfect mix of hope and bewilderment. She is endearing and is the center of the movie. The experiences are not necessarily new but it is always compelling no matter the era. In this one, the experiences are colored by the middle east and the second Iraq war.
This is a great little indie of Fresh Off the Boat experiences. Nisreen Faour delivers a perfect mix of hope and bewilderment. She is endearing and is the center of the movie. The experiences are not necessarily new but it is always compelling no matter the era. In this one, the experiences are colored by the middle east and the second Iraq war.
- SnoopyStyle
- Oct 17, 2015
- Permalink
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.
- MinistryofDoom
- Jul 9, 2020
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