Of the Cairo Film Festival films about immigration, writes Nahed Nassr, American
East is perhaps the most controversial
Since 9/11 the situation of Arab Americans in particular has been very widely discussed: many parties are involved in the debate but few of them are representatives of the community itself. And this is where American East (2006) -- a feature film by the young Egyptian American filmmaker Hesham Issawi, who was born in Egypt and moved to America in 1990 -- is particularly important. Issawi is clearly embroiled in the post-9/11 day-to- day life of Arab Americans, and he depicts the pressures under which they have lived since 2001 with insiders' eyes. The film may not have been very cheerful; it was certainly cheering to watch. Be that as it may -- and a good topic does not automatically make a good film -- Issawi's talent shines through every scene.
Set in Los Angeles, where Issawi has lived since 1999, American East is the story of a first- generation Egyptian who runs a coffee shop and dreams of expanding in partnership with a Jewish businessman. Mustafa Marzoke (Sayed Badreya) immigrated into the US many years before, along with his family and a sister, and he calls his coffee shop Habibi ("my love"). It is not only his workplace but the locus of his social life, where he meets other members of the community including friends and family members. At a slightly deeper level, the venue reflects the multiculturalism of Los Angeles and, especially, its tensions.
In the opening sequence you see Mohammed, Marzoke's youngest son, questioning his father about the meaning of his name and his being a Muslim -- the dilemma of the second-generation immigrant is thus seamlessly introduced. Later on you see Mohammed parroting his father: "We do not have a Christmas tree in Islam." And later still, to the disappointment of his father, he stops doing his prayers. Reflecting the reality of identity issues among Arab Americans, religion remains an important element, the reason behind numerous prejudices and misunderstandings and, in some sense, the clearest expression of being an Arab. For which crime alone the FBI twice arrests and interrogates Marzoke, who exerts himself to demonstrate that he is a good, law-abiding American citizen. In fact Marzoke's best friend is the aforementioned Jewish businessman, Sam (Tony Shalhoub), but Sam's family -- who have close connections with Isreal -- will not accept the idea of him doing business with a Muslim. And there is one antisemitic Arab friend of Marzoke's, Murad, who really does hate Sam for it.
Religion is also behind the disappointment of Omar (Kais Nashif), Marzoke's eldest, who dreams of becoming a movie star: producers only ever cast him in terrorist roles; and he ends up shot dead when he inadvertently holds the crew hostage. This happens towards the end of the film. "Why did you not listen to me" are Omar's last words to the producer -- and this seems to be the message Issawi is eager to communicate not only to Americans but to Arab Americans as well. Raising the question of stereotypes and their (quite literally) deadly potential is precisely why the film has been dubbed "controversial", a marketing strategy if ever there was one. But Issawi remains genuine.
On a more positive note, Marzoke and Sam manage to establish the American East restaurant in partnership, for the opening of which the entire cast gathers at the end of the film: Jews, bearded Muslims, even Murad are all there. This time they are fighting, rather, to go into the restaurant first. But they accepted the idea of being all together in the same place. According to statements made by Issawi, "This is simply my point of view. We should know each other first, then come the judgments." His point is that Arabs in the West are misunderstood precisely because neither they nor the societies that host them have made the effort to find out the truth.
Equally worthy of praise is the excellent acting -- complete with accents reflecting the characters' exact position in American society. Issawi says the film is based on real-life situations that the cast and crew lived through themselves; all of the actors, more or less, are first-, second- or third- generation immigrants: Palestinian, Iranian, Lebanese, Egyptian... Americn East is Issawi's fourth movie, coming after Saving the Sphinx (a documentary, 1998), The Interrogation (winner of the Best Creative Short Film Award at the New York Film Festival and the best score award at the California Film Festival, 2001/2), and With Dick Grunert (winner of Best Short Film in the Boston and San Francisco fom festivals, 2003).
Set in Los Angeles, where Issawi has lived since 1999, American East is the story of a first- generation Egyptian who runs a coffee shop and dreams of expanding in partnership with a Jewish businessman. Mustafa Marzoke (Sayed Badreya) immigrated into the US many years before, along with his family and a sister, and he calls his coffee shop Habibi ("my love"). It is not only his workplace but the locus of his social life, where he meets other members of the community including friends and family members. At a slightly deeper level, the venue reflects the multiculturalism of Los Angeles and, especially, its tensions.
In the opening sequence you see Mohammed, Marzoke's youngest son, questioning his father about the meaning of his name and his being a Muslim -- the dilemma of the second-generation immigrant is thus seamlessly introduced. Later on you see Mohammed parroting his father: "We do not have a Christmas tree in Islam." And later still, to the disappointment of his father, he stops doing his prayers. Reflecting the reality of identity issues among Arab Americans, religion remains an important element, the reason behind numerous prejudices and misunderstandings and, in some sense, the clearest expression of being an Arab. For which crime alone the FBI twice arrests and interrogates Marzoke, who exerts himself to demonstrate that he is a good, law-abiding American citizen. In fact Marzoke's best friend is the aforementioned Jewish businessman, Sam (Tony Shalhoub), but Sam's family -- who have close connections with Isreal -- will not accept the idea of him doing business with a Muslim. And there is one antisemitic Arab friend of Marzoke's, Murad, who really does hate Sam for it.
Religion is also behind the disappointment of Omar (Kais Nashif), Marzoke's eldest, who dreams of becoming a movie star: producers only ever cast him in terrorist roles; and he ends up shot dead when he inadvertently holds the crew hostage. This happens towards the end of the film. "Why did you not listen to me" are Omar's last words to the producer -- and this seems to be the message Issawi is eager to communicate not only to Americans but to Arab Americans as well. Raising the question of stereotypes and their (quite literally) deadly potential is precisely why the film has been dubbed "controversial", a marketing strategy if ever there was one. But Issawi remains genuine.
On a more positive note, Marzoke and Sam manage to establish the American East restaurant in partnership, for the opening of which the entire cast gathers at the end of the film: Jews, bearded Muslims, even Murad are all there. This time they are fighting, rather, to go into the restaurant first. But they accepted the idea of being all together in the same place. According to statements made by Issawi, "This is simply my point of view. We should know each other first, then come the judgments." His point is that Arabs in the West are misunderstood precisely because neither they nor the societies that host them have made the effort to find out the truth.
Equally worthy of praise is the excellent acting -- complete with accents reflecting the characters' exact position in American society. Issawi says the film is based on real-life situations that the cast and crew lived through themselves; all of the actors, more or less, are first-, second- or third- generation immigrants: Palestinian, Iranian, Lebanese, Egyptian... Americn East is Issawi's fourth movie, coming after Saving the Sphinx (a documentary, 1998), The Interrogation (winner of the Best Creative Short Film Award at the New York Film Festival and the best score award at the California Film Festival, 2001/2), and With Dick Grunert (winner of Best Short Film in the Boston and San Francisco fom festivals, 2003).
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