(Rezo Films)
Tawfik and his father Hassan know their way around a car engine, so they get along reasonably well with the Jewish owner of their garage, Reuven Wolf. The boss’s petulant son Meir is a different story. Resentful of his self-absorbed parents, he constantly focuses his anger on Tawfik. At least the Arab mechanic gets along with the boss’s daughter Mali—too well in fact. Furtive lovers, Mali and Tawfik are planning to run away together to marry and raise the baby she now carries.
Will Wolf and his shallow wife Osnat accept Tawfik as a son-in-law? Probably not, but events will intercede before that question can be fairly answered, when Tawfik finally gives Meir the fight he has been spoiling for. Suddenly he and Mali are no longer Romeo and Juliet, tragic though their affair might be.
In Jaffa, Yedaya slathers a layer of Arab-Israeli social conscience atop of a hanky melodrama. Unfortunately, Mali is a deliberately weak romantic heroine, to an extent that taxes the audience’s sympathies. Yes, we understand she desperately craves the love and attention of her parents, yet initially cannot compete with Meir’s acting out. Still, her character is quite frustrating from a dramatic standpoint.
The city itself emerges through Avi Fahima’s production design as one of the most interesting characters.
Dana Ivgy does what she can in the part, but Mali is just a hard character to embrace. By contrast, Mahmoud Shalaby shows a vital screen presence as Tawfik, while Hussein Yassin Mahajneh’s memorable supporting turn as Hassan is touching yet dignified.
STAR CROSSED: Dana Ivgy plays the Israeli Mali, and Mahmoud Shalaby portrays Palestinian Tawfik, in the dramatic love story "Jaffa." (Rezo Films)
Boasting several strong performances, Jaffa is an engaging drama deeply rooted in the title city, but it is periodically hampered by a problematic protagonist. While imperfect, it certainly reflects the complexities of contemporary multi-ethnic Israel, making it an appropriate selection for the Other Israel Film Festival (www.otherisrael.org).
Jaffa screens Thursday (11/12) at the JCC in Manhattan (as part of the opening night gala), Saturday (11/14) at Cinema Village, and next Tuesday (11/17) 92 Y Tribeca.
Joe Bendel blogs on jazz and cultural issues at jbspins.blogspot.com and coordinated the Jazz Foundation of America's instrument donation campaign for musicians displaced by Hurricane Katrina.
