This week’s selection as part of Todd Mason’s (Sweet Freedom) ongoing “Overlooked Films” series is the 2005 Canadian culture clash romantic comedy Sabah, directed by Ruba Nadda (Cairo Time).
Sabah (Arsinée Khanjian) is a 40-year-old Arab woman living in Toronto. One day, when Sabah least expects it, she falls in love with the wrong man (Shawn Doyle): shes Muslim, hes not. Keeping him secret from her family, she embarks on a whirlwind affair before both culture and love collide. (Source: Mongrel Media)
I happened upon this film by accident one early evening when I was flipping through the channels. In some of the reviews of the film I have seen it likened to My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Sure I can see the similarities but there is a feel-good authenticity to this film that I preferred to the relative gloss of the Hollywood-backed Greek Wedding.
The film is definitely worth a look-see, especially on a comfy night in 🙂
TRIVIA
Nadda had only 20 days to complete principal photography of this project. (Source: Wikipedia)
This is one of the classic cases of religious beliefs versus one’s feelings. I haven’t watched the film yet, but I hope to be able someday.
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It’s available on Netflix streaming 🙂
Great choice as far as I’m concerned as I’ve never come across this – and you make it sound like a very sweet movie.
Cheers,
Sergio
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It was seriously a random IFC catch!
Will look for it. I love films like this.
I’m still meaning to catch, somehow, Canadian televisions perhaps similar LITTLE MOSQUE ON THE PRAIRIE…
🙂
or even Can. tv’s with apostrotphe. These days, sadly, I barely see too much compelling or new on IFC in film, though they have some good to excellent series. Sundance is doing its best to pick up the slack, and the other semi-premium and premium services are doing middlin’ fair…amusing to see an incursion of rare 1970s tv films on Fox Movie Channel, aka FX Movie Channel, of late.
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IFC is a big let down especially once it got taken over by Cablevision and became commercial. Went the same way as AMC.
The MGM Movie Channel was okay for a minute but that now also has ad breaks 🙁
This sounds intriguing. I actually knew a couple who went through a similar thing in college, but the situation is reversed as he’s the Muslim. Boy I still haven’t seen ‘Cairo Time’ yet, the trailer looked interesting as well.
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