Amreeka

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 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.

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.

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!

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