FILM

USA 2010 83 mins Dir: Eyad Zahra Starring: Bobby Naderi, Noureen DeWulf, Dominic Rains

Crudely filmed, clumsily plotted and tiresomely iconoclastic, this Sundance-oriented indieflick does at least have originality on its side, being set in the fictitious US Islamic punk rock scene. It's divided into seasonal chapters, punctuated by monochrome montages and rants from right-wing talk radio, and follows conservative, virginal young Pakistani engineering student Yusef (Naderi) as he moves into a riotous, run-down shared house in Buffalo, New York. Here he encounters pot smoking and beer drinking Muslims, a camp gay Muslim, a feminist Muslim, and so on. Each has a pick'n'mix approach to their faith, but all worship at the altar of the Taqwacores: the Californian Muslim punk scene, which boasts bands with such splendid names as Osama's Tunnel Diggers.

The characters get to express their youthful rebellion with much stilted speechifying and dollops of indigestible dialogue ("I'm too wrapped up in my mix-matching of disenfranchised subcultures, man!"). If they all seem rather confused, that's presumably the point. But one does wonder why colourfully mohicaned Jehangir (Rains) doesn't simply have done with Islam altogether, given his enthusiasm for blasphemy. Similarly, we never get an explanation as to why Rabeya (Dewulf) chooses to wear a full burqa while crossing out bits of the Koran that offend her feminist principles, such as the verse advising husbands to beat their wives (director Eyad Zahra doesn't actually show her doing this, suggesting he knows just how far he can push it without getting a fatwa on his ass). Still, Noureen DeWulf deserves some kind of commendation for acting inside a sack for the duration. It all climaxes with a gig whose English punk equivalent would be a show featuring Crass and Skrewdriver on the same bill - with predictable consequences. (Robin Askew)  

Website www.punkislam.com/

Opens August 26

Copyright Robin Askew 2011