Dancing Arabs

"Of course, I'm aware of the animosities destroying brain cells on both sides, and I know all about the obstinacy of the warring parties, their refusal to reach an agreement, their devotion to their own murderous hatred…." Yasmina Khadra, The Attack

Identity is indeed the heart of A Borrowed Identity about Palestinian boy, Ayed (Tawfeek Barhom), sent to a premiere boarding school in Jerusalem, but beset by prejudice against him and decisions about which culture he should embrace. This informative film is a crash course in cultural clash with enough character and interpersonal drama to satisfy the most discerning cinephile. Those who found The Attack an unforgettable interpretation of the conflict will have a similar reaction to this film.

From the early '80's nothing is going right for Palestinians: Israel dominates the split of the region while Hamas begins to retaliate. Meanwhile Ayed has the misfortune to fall in love with a Jew, Naomi (Daniel Kitsis), whose love will drive some of his basic decisions, like staying at the boarding school, and therefore his life.

The charm of this film is that it does not take sides, just empathizes with the protagonist, whose love is not only natural but also an emblem of the absurdity of cultural wars when one considers that it's really about people, whose loves cannot be controlled, and shouldn't be. Her mother would rather Naomi be "a lesbian, a drug addict, or has cancer" than be in love with an Arab.

The more time director Eran Riklis lets us spend with these Romeo- and-Juliet lovers, the more we are convinced the Arab-Israeli conflict is an absurdity born of historical hatreds that really shouldn't apply in the modern World. The tragedy is that Ayed must deal with the debilitating prejudice daily and make decisions on it rather than his natural love and brilliance.

But that conflict is what makes A Borrowed Identity such a watchable drama that gives more insight into that region of the world than all the Wikipedia articles touching on the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Eran Riklis in collaboration with gifted writer Sayed Kashua has brought to the screen a thoughtful and riveting film based on Kashua's 'Dancing Arabs'. Released in North America as 'A Borrowed Identity', it unfortunately is shown only in select art houses, to a limited audience. 'Borrowed Identity' has come on to the American scene at a time of racial and ethnic tension, which in the US context is a reflection of the strain in defining who and what a person is. Kashua's script is informed in the ongoing debate in Israel for its Arab citizens of what its means to be an Israeli, at a time of rabid Jewish nationalism: at a time when the degenerative Zionist elite dreams of expelling 20 percent of Israel's population, i.e., Arabs of the right of citizenship. 'A Borrowed Identity', in a Hegelian trope, in a rude dialectic informs us that the only way Eyad, a gifted Arab Israeli, can find complete fulfillment in Israel is to become a Jew by assuming the identity of Jonathan, his doppelganger, who dies after a long bout of muscular dystrophy, with the complicity of the deceased Israeli's mother. Riklis' film should strike a chord in America in the light of the Rachel Dozeal brouhaha, whereby a white woman passes as black. The connection is problematic? And the climate in the US is hardly welcoming for understanding the plight of Arab citizens of Israel, who, as it turns out, are 'les negres d' Israel'. There is nothing to fault in the probing eye of Riklis' camera. Yael Abecassis is as ever the embodiment of discernment as Jonathan's mother, the young Tawfeek Barhom has a shrewd understanding of the film's protagonist Eyad; he infuses his character with a delicate understanding of the transformation of what Hegel calls the alter ego and then becoming Jonathan. However the love angle is predictable, but creditable, and shows the limits of Israeli liberalism. Above all, the talents of Riklis and Kashua have produced a film worthy of prizes, which the hands of less talented artists would render 'Dancing Arabs' cartoon like if not soppy in sentimentality.

In the 80's, the Palestinian Eyad Barhum is a smart boy that lives with his father, his mother, his two brothers and his grandmother in a small village. His father works picking fruits despite had going to the college because he was a terrorist when he was young. Eyad (Tawfeek Barhom) is accepted by the best high school in Jerusalem and leaves his family to stay in the boarding school. He befriends his Jewish roommate Yonatan Avrahami (Michael Moshonov), who has a degenerative muscular disease, and his Jewish schoolmate Naomi (Danielle Kitsis). Soon Eyad and Naomi fall in love with each other, but they date in secret since Palestinian are not accepted by the Jewish in general. When Naomi's mother learns that she is dating an Arab boy, she takes her daughter out of the school. However, Eya quits school to let his beloved girlfriend continue studying while he studies in homeschooling. When his father learns that he left the prestigious school, he kicks Eyad out of home. Now Eyad needs to find a job, but Arabs can only wash dishes and do not work as waiter, He decides to borrow Yonatan's identity to find a better job, while his friend is languishing at home, and lives with Yonatan and his mother Edna (Yaël Abecassis), who loves Eyad like a son. Soon he must take an ultimate decision to survive in Israel.

"Dancing Arabs" (2014) is a movie with a beautiful story of love, friendship and hatred in a country divided by the hatred of two people. The plot is engaging and heartbreaking in many moments. The cast has magnificent performance and the chemistry between Danielle Kitsis and Tawfeek Barhom is amazing. Danielle Kitsis is one of the most beautiful actresses that I have ever seen, but unfortunately there is only a few information about her in Internet. Her son is also a beautiful child. The friendship of Edna, Yonatan and Eyad is also very beautiful and a hope that one day in the future these two people can forget hatred and live in peace. I sadly learned through this film that Arabs do not speak the "p" and Israeli Arabs are treated like second class citizens in Israel. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Os Árabes Também Dançam" ("The Arabs Also Damce")

Director Eran Riklis is a filmmaker with great responsibilities on his shoulders. Although Arabs citizens are a minority in Israel, no special treatment is reserved for them. This aspect of Israeli society, its rules and regulations have been depicted by him in this film. It revolves around a young boy who has to make personal sacrifices in order to be accepted in Israeli society. It is no surprise that his life undergoes major upheavals when he is accepted with some reticence, reservations in a prestigious boarding school in Jerusalem. It is not a generalization when it is said that anybody can face issues related to culture, identity and language. If watched from this perspective, 'Dancing Arabs' is neither 100% pro Arab nor 100% anti Israel. "What does it mean to be an Arab in Israel ?" This key questions emanates from this film. 'Dancing Arabs' was the opening film during 19th International Film Festival of Kerala. Its lead actor Tawfik Barhom was the darling of the local media in Kerala state of India for more than a week. Before him, no other actor from Israeli cinema managed to become so popular.

The film started off innocently, much like Eyad / Iyad is at the beginning. It's sweet, funny and almost carefree and gets serious overtime as Eyad grows up and tries to understand and fit into this adult world. Dancing Arabs' comedic tone reflects Eyad's childhood innonce, the tension and drama later on in the movie attests of this young arab's struggles to find his place and his identity around jews in Israel.

Eran Riklis succeeded in capturing Iyad's evolution in My son, coherently interlacing different tones and getting a good performance out of Razi Gabareen & Tawfeek Barhom who both embody Eyad's life. Years of Eyad's life are smartly intertwined with the tensions in the region and Eyad's choices. Although Riklis, very skillfully took on a difficult subject and managed to make a movie advocating coexistence, My Son felt at times a bit too sugar coated. There's no denying that it is about Eyad and his journey to self discovery but some of the characters - although secondary - completely lacked substence or development. The mothers for instance, both brilliantly played by Abecassis & Eido kind of lacked personality. The Arab-Israeli tensions are in the film but they are addressed very subtle, hinted.

The cast nicely played the bonds and chemistry between the characters. Tawfeek Barhom, awkwardness and isolation in his new surroundings is on point. He is utterly believable and convincing as the good- intentioned young arab who wants to fit in. My Son is a beautiful, funny film shining a good light on both population.

@wornoutspines