Dancing Arabs
| A Borrowed Identity | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Eran Riklis |
| Written by | Sayed Kashua |
| Starring | Tawfeek Barhom |
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Release date
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Running time
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105 minutes |
| Country | Israel |
| Language |
Arabic Hebrew |
| Box office | $281,540 |
A Borrowed Identity (Arabic: العرب الراقصون; Hebrew: זהות שאולה;) is a 2014 Israeli drama film directed by Eran Riklis. It is based on Sayed Kashua's book Dancing Arabs (2002). In Canada the film was released under the title Dancing Arabs, which was the film's English-language title at its world premiere (one reviewer noted that the title "will prove tricky in marketing campaigns").
It tells the story of Eyad, an Israeli-Palestinian teenager from Tira who moves to Jerusalem to study at an elite Jewish high school, where he meets Naomi, a Jewish student, and falls in love with her. As part of his school-mandated community service, he meets Yonatan, who suffers from muscular dystrophy, and his mother Edna.
Eyad (Tawfeek Barhom) is a gifted Palestinian teenager who is accepted into an elite Israeli school. His father (Ali Suliman) drives to Jerusalem and drops the 16 year old Eyad at the new school. Before entering the school, Eyads Father tells him that the Palestinian people once longed to defeat their Jewish enemies, but will now settle for being able to live side by side with dignity. In school, he struggles to adapt, his Israeli peers refer to him as "Iyad" and is looked down upon by the others. Things change once he meets Naomi (Daniel Kitsis), he helps her with her chemistry schoolwork and the two start to meet at a cafe.
Yonatan (Michael Moshonov) is a disabled Israeli teen whom Eyad is assigned by the school to visit. Eyad and Yonatan get close and the two develop a strong bond since they are both considered outsiders. Back in school, Eyad and Naomi fall in love and meet up constantly, however, things begin to get complicated. Eyad excels in the classroom and begins to earn the trust and respect of his Israeli peers. He begins to sell falafel and bagels and starts to finally feel comfortable at the school. One day as Eyad and Naomi are walking in the streets, Naomi asks to Eyad to tell her he loves her in Arabic, an Israeli soldier hears Eyad and asks to see his ID card and aggressively questions him.
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