Breaking Fast

A break from the normal gay dramas, this one actually had heart and soul. Amazing script and excellent actors. Just the right amount of comedy too. Loved every minute, and I'm glad there were some loose ends left open. I demand several sequels!! Lol

Ok so the 10 I give is just to negate the 1s by the "peaceful and loving" people

Having said that I enjoyed the movie. It's flawed and mostly because of the writing. It reminds me of the last decade, the good ol'days before all the craziness. Also I recognised the main actor from Nurse Jackie in which he played a gay nurse called Mo'Mo and I still remember the blindingly bright smile of Michael Cassidy from the underrated Privileged. I'm so glad to see both of them again. Takes me back to an era which romcoms are still being shown regularly on the big screen.

Unfortunately the scenarios are unrealistic, IMO IRL Sam and Mo wouldn't be friends unless they're best friends since childhood. And it's labelled a romcom so I shouldn't expect anything realistic but there's not much romance and comedy in it (instead so many awkward moments), I only LOLed once from the facebook post from Mo's mom late into the movie . And the escape clause is the ramadan/fasting month that forbids impure thoughts. So it is very demure, although this means that this movie is safe to watch with your parents. But not really because it shows the gay world as 100% hedonistic/impure *sigh*. Also the promo shots show Mo's bare @$$ so it's misleading.

I think the movie would work better as a TV show. It did say what it wants to say but I wished it has more romance and sweetness (more time to cook the ingredients/the topics that it want to touch on) It's a shame that it's set during ramadan. Gay movies are often very low on entertainment value (so much death and misery) so I guess this will do for the weekend. One last note: it's a hopeless situation between the two communities thus Venus herself must come down here to convince her worshippers to stop hating on us.

Being a straight English non Muslim woman I may not be the target audience for this film but seeing all the new negative reviews for this film, I felt that I had to stand up for this sweet movie as someone who has actually seen it. I am not usually one for romcoms either but a pandemic can do weird things to a person. This has been a go to for me during lockdown, being a gentle funny film to pass the time with. Not having a lot that I recognise in my actual life ie. the LA gay scene or Muslim life I found it to be quite respectful of the ideas of Islam in the way it shows a very demure love story with the American character having respect for the traditions of the Muslim character, calling him out on some of his assumptions but never disrespecting Islam itself, just sometimes questioning Mo's rigid ideas of how others should behave and to see things from their point of view. The idea of this being set in Ramadan has upset some reviewers but honestly it is a framework for the idea of making a connection and sharing an important part of your life with them.

Finally! A film about Arabs that doesn't involve tired tropes and stereotypes. And a beautiful love story at that. This film has everything-its romantic, funny, and clever. It thoughtfully explores what it means to be both Muslim and gay, without assuming those two identities are in conflict with one another. The writing, acting, and directing is top notch. The music is incredible and adds so much to the story. This is quickly becoming one of my favorite films!

Breaking Fast is the type of film that if you watched it in a movie theater you would stay until the very last end credit because you wouldn't want to leave a second earlier. It is a perfect, heartfelt rom-com of the highest order with genuine, lovely performances, wonderful writing and terrific directing. It is exactly the film we need right now, tomorrow and into the future. One of hope, love and learning to be your best self with someone else. Highly recommend it. Prepare to swoon,