Arranged (2007)

Sometimes I just get lucky. I wasn't even in the mood to watch a movie, so I closed my eyes, pushed the little arrow button on my Roku remote, and stopped without looking...I landed on this little gem of a flick.  I don't even know why I originally added it to my list, but it was exactly what I was looking for, without even knowing it.  I love movies like this, that make you really care about the characters and the decisions they make.  This was a nice, fresh little movie.  The story is kind of wholesome, a young Muslim girl and an Orthodox Jewish girl become friends while working at a small public school in Brooklyn. Of course, throughout the movie we find out that of course, they are more alike than they are different, as they share with each other the complexities of each of their religious/cultural beliefs about arranged marriages.  I found the whole thing to be not only interesting, but gave me a little bit of insight into a practice (would we call it a practice?) that I assumed wasn't really an issue anymore. I was both surprised and interested to see how each family approached the experience and how each girl both worked through their emotions and feelings about their upcoming "matches".  I really liked this movie.  Both girls were excellent, I especially became fond of Zoe Lister-Jones who played Rochel, the Orthodox Jewish girl.  I feel like I may have seen her before, but I think she absolutely beautiful and did an amazing job at really making me feel the struggle that she was going through about finding a husband.  I really recommend this movie, I think it is sweet, charming, romantic comedy. And even though the movie was most definitely about the cultural and religious experiences of these two girls, its underlying themes of friendship, family, romance and hope for the future are universal. I can't think of anything bad to say about it.  Watch it...you won't be sorry.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0848542/