Movie Review - Arranged

I’m moving to Stamford, Connecticut sometime soon.  Stamford is a bedroom community of New York City.  My daughter is already there with her father.  She tells me that the city is filled with people from all over the world. 

I’m excited to be headed to such a diverse situation.  I’m also nervous.  I have always lived here on the West Coast and know very little about cultures other than that of Mexico.  So I have decided to spend my summer educating myself about other cultures.  I am a visual learner so movies are invaluable to me.

Today I learned much about the marital process for women of two faiths.  In the movie, “Arranged” they introduce Nasira and Rochel.  They are both novice school teachers, working for the first time in a New York school.  Nasira is a Muslim and Rochel an Orthodox Jew.  Despite the weirdness all around them, they become close friends.

Because they have finished college and started work, it is time for them to consider marriage.  As is the custom in both religions, marriages will need to be arranged for both young women.  The process goes well for Nasira.  Her father finds the right match for her.  This is not the case for Rochol.  Her available suitors are very bad and this leads her to momentarily question the whole process.  It is actually her friend Nasira who assists in arranging the right suitor.

The movie showed me that these two sometimes at odds cultures are very much alike.  Family and traditions are important to both.  The mothers of both are very much the same.  The two even laugh about it.  Friendship is also possible across the cultures. 

I recommend the movie.  Humorous are the reactions of people who observe the friendship of the young women. 

When I get to Connecticut, I will know a little bit more about the Orthodox Jews and Muslims.  I will continue to educate myself.