Out in the Dark (2012)

A drama centered on the love affair between two men on opposite sides of the Mid-East conflict: Palestinian student Nimer and Roy, an Israeli lawyer.

Director:

Michael Mayer

Writers:

Yael Shafrir (co-writer), Michael Mayer (co-writer)

Stars:

Nicholas Jacob, Michael Aloni, Jameel Khoury

17 wins & 22 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Nicholas Jacob	...	Nimer Mashrawi
Michael Aloni	...	Roy Schaffer
Jameel Khoury	...	Nabil Mashrawi (as Jameel Khouri)
Alon Pdut	...	Gil
Loai Nofi	...	Mustafa N'amna (as Loai Noufi)
Khawlah Hag-Debsy	...	Hiam Mashrawi (as Khawlah Haj)
Maysa Daw	...	Abir Mashrawi
Shimon Mimran	...	Daniel
Moris Cohen	...	Shabak 1 (as Morris Cohen)
Tal Elimelech	...	Shabak 2
Majd Bitar	...	Bashar
Alon Oleartchik	...	Eitan Schaffer
Chelli Goldenberg	...	Rina Schaffer (as Cheli Goldenberg)
Huda Al Imam	...	Psychologist
Tony Haddad	...	Social Worker

Storyline

Nimer and Roy are two gay men on opposing sides of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict who fall for each other. Much as they'd like to be left alone, both political conflict and orthodox beliefs will not leave their budding relationship untouched, with most of the egregious circumstances befalling Nimer, whom security forces pressure into helping them by stripping his access to education and threatening to leave him without family. Through his eye-witnessed death of a friend, Nimer knows he can't oblige. Can love find a way through this no-win situation?

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Plot Keywords:

gay | israeli | student | lawyer | palestinian | 

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Taglines:

Love knows no borders.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance | Thriller

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Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

Israel USA

Language:

Hebrew Arabic English

Release Date:

27 September 2013 (USA)

Also Known As:

Afuera, en la oscuridad

Filming Locations:

Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel

Company Credits

Production Co:

M7200 Productions, Channel 10, Israel Film Fund

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

The credits spell Roy's last name as "Schaffer" but the business card he passes Nimer says "Sheffer."

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Quotes

Roy Schaffer: Well, you know, a dick's a dick.

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Soundtracks

Mirror
Written by Arthur Eisele
Performed by Kordan
Courtesy of Last Bummer Records

User Reviews

One of the finest gay themed films out there...

When I began watching this movie I didn't know anything about the story, I just knew it was a gay themed film. I will say that I have seen a great number of gay themed films so my only reference in this genre isn't the classic Brokeback Mountain everyone always praises about (which in my opinion is barely an average gay themed film, there are much better films out there that are less known). Out in the Dark belongs now to my Top 5 gay themed films and here are the reasons.

This film represents the reality and how gay people are seen and treated in Palestine/Israel. If you thought that in western culture being accepted as a gay person was a difficult process, it is million times harder if you happen to born in Palestine. This film isn't trying to be "the best film of the year" nor it doesn't have the most "intelligent" storyline, but it is about showing how things can differ from our (western) way of experiencing and seeing things. Out in the Dark takes the viewer to a trip to the streets of Palestine/Israel and shows those moments most Hollywood screenwriters would not add to the screenplay since they are not what the "screenwriting manual" tells you to write. This is also what makes this film so appealing; you are following a journey of a person as it happens, aka "live", without any editing tricks or plot twists taking place all over the film. During the film I was constantly thinking how this could end and if the film can retain that level of intensity during the whole film, it means the film is well-made. At the end Out in the Dark is a film about love and how strong love can be between two people regardless of their sex. The ending will certainly divide people whether they like it or not, but I would have personally loved to see more, but I will not tell more since I would otherwise spoil it for you.

Out in the Dark shouldn't really be compared to films like Brokeback Mountain since this has a completely different narrative mindset as a film. Brokeback Mountain is a classic Hollywood polished love story just made with well-known actors and a director, but I personally feel that Brokeback Mountain gets praised more than it should. Films like Shelter (2007) and Just a Question of Love (2000) are million times better than Brokeback Mountain and I would recommend them anytime for anyone who wishes to see a well-done gay themed film. Even though by itself Out in the Dark isn't in my opinion as good as these two I just mentioned, it is still best gay themed film when it comes to this type of films; films which represent reality as it appears in a current day. Brokeback mountain is simply a reality sugared with all possible drama elements when in Out in the Dark the main thing is not to go through the "beginning, middle and end", it's the part of the journey one person must take to survive.