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Amreeka

  • 20092009
  • PG-13PG-13
  • 1h 36m
IMDb RATING
7.0/10
3.6K
YOUR RATING
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
Amreeka (2009)
A drama centered on an immigrant single mother and her teenage son in small town Illinois
Play trailer2:39
8 Videos
2 Photos
  • Drama

A drama centered on the trials and tribulations of a proud Palestinian Christian immigrant single mother and her teenage son in small town Indiana.A drama centered on the trials and tribulations of a proud Palestinian Christian immigrant single mother and her teenage son in small town Indiana.A drama centered on the trials and tribulations of a proud Palestinian Christian immigrant single mother and her teenage son in small town Indiana.

IMDb RATING
7.0/10
3.6K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Cherien Dabis
  • Writer
    • Cherien Dabis
  • Stars
    • Nisreen Faour
    • Melkar Muallem
    • Hiam Abbass
Top credits
  • Director
    • Cherien Dabis
  • Writer
    • Cherien Dabis
  • Stars
    • Nisreen Faour
    • Melkar Muallem
    • Hiam Abbass
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 24User reviews
    • 64Critic reviews
    • 73Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 9 wins & 19 nominations

    Videos8

    Amreeka
    Trailer 2:39
    Amreeka
    Amreeka
    Clip 0:46
    Amreeka
    Amreeka
    Clip 1:08
    Amreeka
    Amreeka
    Clip 0:57
    Amreeka
    Amreeka
    Clip 0:56
    Amreeka
    Amreeka
    Clip 0:51
    Amreeka
    Amreeka
    Clip 0:32
    Amreeka
    Amreeka
    Interview 0:43
    Amreeka

    Photos

    Amreeka (2009)
    Add photo

    Top cast

    Edit
    Nisreen Faour
    Nisreen Faour
    • Muna Farahas Muna Farah
    Melkar Muallem
    • Fadi Farahas Fadi Farah
    Hiam Abbass
    Hiam Abbass
    • Raghda Halabyas Raghda Halaby
    Alia Shawkat
    Alia Shawkat
    • Salma Halabyas Salma Halaby
    Yussuf Abu-Warda
    Yussuf Abu-Warda
    • Nabeel Halabyas Nabeel Halaby
    • (as Yussef Abu Warda)
    Joseph Ziegler
    Joseph Ziegler
    • Mr. Novatskias Mr. Novatski
    Amer Hlehel
    Amer Hlehel
    • Sameras Samer
    Selena Haddad
    • Lamis Halabyas Lamis Halaby
    Jenna Kawar
    • Rana Halabyas Rana Halaby
    Suheila Muallem
    • Jamilehas Jamileh
    Brodie Sanderson
    • Mattas Matt
    Andrew Sannie
    • Jamesas James
    Daniel Boiteau
    • Mikeas Mike
    Jeff Button
    • Jasonas Jason
    • (as Jeff Sutton)
    Miriam Smith
    Miriam Smith
    • Bank Employeeas Bank Employee
    Glen Thompson
    • Nelsonas Nelson
    Mike O'Brien
    • Bank Manageras Bank Manager
    Aaron Hughes
    Aaron Hughes
    • Police Officer #1as Police Officer #1
    • Director
      • Cherien Dabis
    • Writer
      • Cherien Dabis
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
    • All cast & crew

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    Storyline

    Edit
    Muna, a single mother in Ramallah, has applied for a visa to the US. When it comes, her son Fadi, an excellent student, convinces her they should go. After an incident at customs begins their exile badly, they join Muna's sister and family in Illinois. Muna needs a job: although she has two degrees and 15 years' experience in banking, she settles for work at White Castle, telling the family her job's at a nearby bank. It's spring, 2003, and the US invades Iraq. While friends come from unlikely places, Fadi meets prejudice at school. How he'll respond to it and to American youth culture and how Muna will sort things out with her family are the rest of the story. Tragedy or hope? —<jhailey@hotmail.com>
    • bank
    • student
    • white castle
    • single mother
    • palestinian
    • 157 more
    • Plot summary
    • Add synopsis
    • Taglines
      • Life's best adventures are journeys of the heart.
    • Genre
      • Drama
    • Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)
      • Rated PG-13 for brief drug use involving teens, and some language
    • Parents guide
      • Add content advisory

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      There were no White Castles in Winnepeg, where it was filmed, so the White Castle company had the supplies for one trucked there. It never sold food, but people kept trying to order from it.
    • Goofs
      Interviews and luggage searches are performed by people with "Airport Security" patches on their uniforms. These jobs would be performed by Customs officers and Immigration officers.
    • Soundtracks
      Arabian Sea
      Written by David Hilker, John Costello

      Performed by John Costello

      Published by BIGBUZZ Music (BMI) / Music Whirled Publishing (BMI)

      Courtesy of Wild Whirled Music

    User reviews24

    Review
    Top review
    6/10
    An overly simplistic approach
    Amreeka (the Arabic word for America) is a humorous and warm-hearted first feature from Cherien Dabis that follows a Palestinian woman, Muna (Nisreen Faour) and her sixteen-year-old son, Fadi (Melkar Muallem) from the checkpoints of the West Bank to the checkmates of racial animosity in a small town in Illinois near Chicago. Set in 2003 at the start of the Iraq War, Muna leaves Bethlehem because she desires a better life for her son and can no longer put up with overbearing Israeli police, the harangues of her elderly mother, and reminders of her philandering ex-husband. The opening sequence in which Muna is ecstatic about receiving her Green Card in the mail and says tearful goodbyes to her family on her way to America joyously captures the closeness of family and their caring for each other in a lighthearted manner.

    Unfortunately in the rest of the film things do not go as well for the young family. They have to deal with numerous incidents of overt and covert racism including bullying at school as they try to adjust to a new home and a new country. Things start off badly when Muna and Fadi are harassed for three hours at the airport by Israeli customs and a tin box filled with cookies and all of their savings are handed over by Fadi to customs officials. Fadi does not say anything to his mother about this (a most unlikely circumstance) and the loss is only discovered after the two arrive at the home of relatives in Illinois. From there, things go steadily south. Muna tries to get a job in her profession in a bank but is rejected by employers who look at all Arabs as potential terrorists.

    Ending up working at a burger joint, Muna conceals her employment from her relatives, pretending to work at a bank close to the restaurant, but her shame is apparent. Meanwhile Fadi is tormented by school bullies who call him Osama and her relatives begin to bicker over their increased expenses at the time when the family breadwinner, a physician (Yussef Abu Warda), is losing clients because of his Arab appearance. While people need to be reminded of the hurt of racism and the Arabs contribution to the world, Amreeka offers one contrived subplot after another in which Americans are caricatures of either hate-filled racists or Christ-like saviors like Mr. Novatski (Joseph Ziegler), Fadi's principal (who happens to be Jewish).

    What could have been an excellent opportunity to explore the problems of assimilation or the treatment of minorities instead becomes a litany of clichés. There is no mention of 9-11, issues involved in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, or the problem of bullying in schools, and the possibility of involving teachers, school officials, or even the neighborhood church in helping the immigrant family to cope are not examined. While Amreeka has moments of charm and likability and the performances are excellent, the exercise quickly becomes a big screen version of "As the World Turns", doomed by an overly simplistic approach in which victimization substitutes for cooperation in finding solutions.
    helpful•13
    21
    • howard.schumann
    • Nov 9, 2009

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • June 17, 2009 (France)
    • Countries of origin
      • United States
      • United Arab Emirates
      • Canada
      • Kuwait
      • Jordan
    • Official sites
      • Former Official site for the film - site no longer active. (United States)
      • Official distributor's page for the film. (Australia)
    • Languages
      • English
      • Arabic
      • French
    • Also known as
      • Amerrika
    • Filming locations
      • Chicago, Illinois, USA
    • Production companies
      • National Geographic Entertainment
      • Imagenation Abu Dhabi FZ
      • Levantine Entertainment
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $627,436
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $58,823
      • Sep 6, 2009
    • Gross worldwide
      • $2,176,304
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 36 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

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