Amreeka (2009)

Screenshot from trailer

Oh wow. I just watched the trailer to get a few screenshots and had to hold back tears. I hadn't expected that.

Amreeka tells the story of one Palestinian woman's immigration, with her teenage son, to the United States, in hopes of  leaving behind an unsteady life and embrace one of opportunity. The film is a comedy, and it will make you laugh. It is also a drama, and it will make you feel, feel hopeful, feel angry, feel warmth.

Muna (Nisreen Faour), is absolutely lovable. She is easy to root for, and it makes her many faux pas empathy-inducing and her struggle to be accepted in her new country painful. The story is primarily about her, but also follows her son's adjustment and the life of her sister's family, who has been living in the U.S. for awhile now.

Screenshot from trailer

The film is not perfect, but it is overall very well done. The acting is generally very good, the script is solid, the camera work is great. Cherien Dabis wrote and directed the film, her first, and did a phenomenal job at making a heart-warming comedy (even a bit of a romantic comedy) that is distinctly American in style, covering a topic and a life that is not the traditional American idea. This proves to be a beautiful combination. The style alone begs the question of what is American, and who is American? Questions that reverberate throughout the film. With a tone balancing between amusement at cultural discrepancies and heaviness at hardships of immigrating to the US.

Screenshot from trailer

Also, if you're an Arrested Development (2003-2013) fan, the film also features Alia Shawkat aka Maeby.








Watch the trailer here