The Infidel (2010 film)
- Omid Djalili: Mahmud Nasir / Solly Shimshillewitz
- Amit Shah: Rashid Nasir
- Archie Panjabi: Saamiya Nasir
- Yigal Naor: Arshad Al -Masri
- Richard Schiff: Lenny Goldberg
- Matt Lucas: Rabbi
- James Floyd: Gary Page
- Soraya Radford: Uzma
The Infidel! (AKA The Infidel, English: The Unbeliever ) is a British comedy film from the year 2010.
Action
The Muslim Mahmud Nasir lives with his wife Saamiya, his son Rashid and his daughter Nabi in London's East End and takes the rules of Islam is not particularly serious. Rashid reveals to his father that he wants to Uzma, marry the stepdaughter of the fundamentalist preacher Arshad Al- Masri. To get Al- Masri's consent for the wedding, the Nazarite must awaken him against the impression of a devout Muslim family.
Shortly thereafter Mahmud discovers his adoption papers in the estate of his recently deceased mother. Since he knew nothing of his adoption, he is to further research and finds out that his birth name is Solly Shimshillewitz and his biological parents are Jews. Shocked, he tells the Jewish taxi driver Lenny Goldberg of its origin, can call him then the whereabouts of his biological father Izzy Shimshillewitz. He lives in a nursing home. Mahmud's attempt to get to know him, but fails at first, because his father is terminally ill and his rabbi did not want to leave without knowledge of the Jewish faith to him the Muslim.
Without his family of his true ancestors to tell, it can be of Lenny the basics of Jewish culture to teach. He also participates in a pro -Palestinian demonstration in part to impress Al -Masri, and there burns his yarmulke, which he accidentally still wore. Then he is together with Lenny guest at a bar mitzvah. Mahmud's wife Saamiya suspects, meanwhile, due to its frequent unexplained absence, to be betrayed by her husband.
Another attempt to be allowed to visit his father, fails because Mahmoud can not answer the questions of the rabbis about the Jewish faith. On the way home it is for this reason to quarrel with his "teacher" and he decides to reveal his family the truth. When he arrives home, however, is surprisingly Al -Masri to visit. The Nasir family tries hard to act as a good Muslim, and sounds like an Islamic song of the preacher. During the visit, it will ring at the front door and the police takes Mahmud for his racist act - the burning of the kippah - fixed. Shocked he confesses in front of television cameras that he himself is a Jew. Although he escapes so the arrest, but Uzmas stepfather prohibited the planned wedding.
Disappointed leaves him his family and he pulls desperately through the city, where he finds Lenny and again goes to the nursing home with him. There he learns that his father has just died. In the video recorder of the dead they found a videotape with footage of Mahmud, the Lenny had sent the father. In his final hours had written Solly on the video, so his son recognized.
With renewed courage he attended an event Al- Masri and begins a discussion with the fundamentalists. Finally, he revealed that Al -Masri is in reality Gary Page - his favorite singer, who had been missing for years and he is in his voice, a nervous twitch of the eyelid and to his lyrics ( sung by Gary Page Piece Close your eyes content had recognized very similar to the Islamic singing Al Masri ). The unmasked preacher flees, Rashid and Uzma can finally celebrate their wedding.
Background
The film was shown Festival in April 2010 at the Tribeca Film and came on April 9, 2010 in the British cinema. Will be followed by performances in July at the Durban International Film Festival and in November 2010 at the Torino Film Festival. The German theatrical release was on June 30, 2011.
Reception
" The Clash -of -Culture - comedy is refreshingly irreverent with hardliners from Judaism and Islam to and advocates for religious tolerance, but suffers from the weaknesses of the implausible plot. Despite some good punch lines rather a dud narrative without breath. "
Awards and nominations
- Nomination for Omid Djalili for the Peter Sellers Award