Sabah

I just came back from seeing a special screening of this film. And wow, what a charming little movie. I really appreciated the opportunity to sit back and be witness to another unfamiliar culture. I think it is an important story, and well told. A moving portrayal that illustrated many positive aspects of an often maligned culture. Sensitive definition of the many different conflicts that can occur in the life of an unmarried older woman. Humour made all the characters very real. The acting was excellent. Charming and lovely story and it was very nice to see Muslim culture portrayed on screen. Absolutely fantastic. The provocative subject matter was beautifully handled. I loved every minute. This is a winner, and lots of humour. And belly dancing! Wow.

A beautiful, funny and entertaining story which brings back memories of another indie Canadian film a few years ago called DOUBLE HAPPINESS by Mina Shum. Sabah is the name and film title about a 40 year old single Muslim woman who meets and dates a non-Muslim man and tries to hide it from her domineering brother who's in charge of running the family. Sounds serious but it's a light hearted comedy which has some serious moments. Story is about family loyalty, romance and friendship. Great performances by the beautiful and one of Canada's most outstanding actresses, Arsinee Khanjian as Sabah and Shawn Doyle as her non-Muslim boyfriend, well-known series lead from the Canadian TV series "The Eleventh Hour". Overall, a wonderful film. Thumbs up and hope it's a Genie contender this year.

There was an excellent audience reaction to the comedic beats in the screening I attended (as well as all-too-audible thoughts from a guy in the row behind me) so the movie pushes buttons in a light-handed way that earns empathy without cheapening the conflicts and customs it represents. For those of us outside of those trappings, they serve as a metaphor. The story is very relatable. Ruba Nadda's early films had glimpses of humor, but this one is so well integrated scene-for-scene that it feels (in a good way) like Hollywood product. In fact, the trailer I saw didn't do it justice, because a lot of the charm comes from story context and the overall groove of the movie in progress. A Jewish friend I saw this movie with remarked on how she strongly identified with characters and situations which happen to be Arab in origin. The other person I saw it with found many of the family and story dynamics familiar, but it will be clear to most people that Ruba Nadda has mined these areas in a way that makes it all ring as fresh. As a screenwriter myself I suggest that the script can be studied for its briskness and conciseness and a certain fairness in the layers of conflict and consequence as each character speaks up and manages to change our own judgment a bit. But I wouldn't call this a message movie. That stuff may be a bonus. The movie is fun. And in a market that can get pretty stuffy, that is a huge accomplishment. One review referred to an "overly earnest" moment, but I way no evidence of that. The performances play as they should. Ruba has quietly made what may be my favorite current Canadian movie. To be more true to genre, I can safely say that if you liked Moonstruck, there is a good chance you will like Sabah (though it contains no disfiguring injuries nor contemplations of death as far as I recall).

"Sabah" is a wonder, as not only was it a very enjoyable film but according to IMDb it was filmed in only 20 days! For young filmmakers, it's a great lesson on how to film a movie economically and quickly--and it's a nice film for those romantics out there.

Sabah is a 40 year-old Muslim woman. Her family is originally from Syria but they've lived in the Toronto area for many years. But, despite their living in a western culture, Sabah's family is holding firm to their old world customs. Sabah is not happy but she's resigned herself to this existence. However, one day, on a lark, she decides to go swimming--something adult women are not normally allowed to do (unless the pool is 100% segregated--women only). However, this tiny act of defiance turns out to eventually unleash Sabah's repressed feelings. So, when she meets a nice non-believer there and finds she likes him, she is, in essence playing with fire--as her family is bound to be furious. The two begin dating--but Sabah is sure to hide this from everyone--and her boyfriend is, not surprisingly, pretty miserable with this arrangement. What happens next? See this very nice film for yourself and see for yourself!

While the film is not without its flaws (the resolution comes about way too simply and perfectly), it's nice viewing--and very nice for couples who want to watch a so-called 'chick flick'. Plus, it addresses some interesting cultural difficulties in the process. Well worth watching.

Let's face it: SABAH, a joyous feature concerning a Toronto Muslim woman discovering romance for the first time is everything MY BIG FAT OVERRATED Greek WEDDING should have been: hilariously funny, deeply moving, intensely profound, and wonderfully romantic- and I say this as a thirty-something male who doesn't normally like romantic comedies.

Sabah (Arsinée Khanjian) has just turned 40. Bu she's feeling the pressure of having to take care of her elderly mother, all the while trying to live up to the dogmatic standards of her overly protective brother Majid (Jeff Seymour). Taking a break from tradition, Sabah decides to go for a dip in a nearby public swimming pool. There she (literally) bumps into Stephen (Shawn Doyle) a blue-eyed, barrel-chested Caucasian. Needless to say, the twain has met as Sabah conspires to see Stephen whenever she can behind her family's back. Meanwhile, Sabah's increasingly western niece Souhaire (Fadia Nadda, the director's sister) is trying to get out of an arranged marriage that the family's inflicting on her.

Needless to say, East meets West, as it does in other culture-clash comedies, such as DOUBLE HAPPINESS, BEND IT LIKE BECKMAN, and A TOUCH OF PINK. But it's the romantic sparks that fly between Khanjian and Doyle that make this film so engaging. After years of playing the cold fish in her husband's more esoteric films, Khanjian is so bubbly, passionate, sexy, and winsome in this role that it feels like she's actually enjoying herself on screen for the first time (here she should have won the Genie award for best actress as opposed to ARARAT). Moreso, the romance between her and Doyle is believable as well as passionate, complemented by an appropriately dry performance by Doyle as Sabah's ideal, if slightly naive, Canadian Mr. Right.

It also reminds one how phony MY BIG FAT Greek WEDDING actually was. There, Nia Vardalos's relationship was consummated way too quickly, resulting in a film where the happy ending begins in the middle of the story. But here, the romance is far more believable, because every baby step Sabah makes towards Stephen becomes in itself a step to self-discovery. And yet, it never becomes a case of a poor little Muslim girl being freed by some great white hope, but a woman discovering her own independence, finding romance on her own terms.

Also, whereas BIG FAT Greek WEDDING ended up little more than an episode of THE KING OF KENSINGTON, where anyone ethnic is either too loud, hairy or boisterous, Nadda eschews the stereotypes and is able to get laughs without derision or condescension. The tension in Sabah's family, especially between her and Majid (brilliantly played by Jeff Seymour) says volumes more about the complexities of Muslim culture than anything Hollywood could come up with. And it's a fun panacea to the likes of such media nabobs as Margaret Wente or Daniel Pipes who continually preach to us about the evils of middle-Eastern culture or multiculturalism. Mind you, they wouldn't know what to do with a film like SABAH. It just doesn't exist in their books.

Suffice it to say, Nadda's first feature is my feel good comedy for the year. It makes me proud to be Canadian. It makes me want to stand up for multiculturalism. It makes me feel good to be human.

(EXTRA NOTE: I actually chanced upon SABAH when it had its North American premiere last year at the NSI's Film Exchange Festival in Winnnipeg. I was in a bad mood at the time, but half hour into the film I was elated. Actually, the film, due to a projectionist's error, had to be rescheduled to be played again the following Saturday afternoon. Nadda, in the film's DVD commentary, even admitted this to being a painful moment. But just to let her know: I was so in love with the main character's story, I came for the following screening and even got to meet Khanjian herself (who was present at the screening), who was as every bit as charming as the character she played. So don't feel bad, Rubba. It was worth the extra wait. As a result, I convinced the local Winnipeg Cinematheque to theatrically screen it, paying money two more times just to see it. Will be buying the DVD soon. Promise.)