In Between

Sex, drugs, techno and . . . Arab traditions? What sounds like an unlikely combination exerts a strong emotional attraction in this female dramedy about friendship, love and the search for independence by three young, hip, Palestinian women living in Tel Aviv. Struggling against the prejudices of the Israelis around them as well as their own Muslim and Christian families and traditions, Laila, Salma and Nour each face their own struggles. While Salma pursues her work as an electronica deejay, she also toils in an Israeli kitchen where she is forbidden to speak Arabic. Laila won’t date a flirtatious coworker because they both know that a relationship between an Arab and a Jew is impossible in the long run. Nour is engaged to a devoutly traditional Muslim man who may not be worthy of her love, or her respect. The three women each face their own mountains to climb, but they do so with a grace and definitive hipness that makes them a tribe unto themselves. In Between, which premiered at last year’s Toronto International Film Festival, has romance, sex and comedy, but what it’s greatest appeal is the power of friendships between women, who must stick together in a world where even being themselves is considered transgressive. —Maya Lekach

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA PREMIERE