Another Road Home (Not Rated) ê ê ê 1/2

A provocative look at the relationship between two families, one Israeli, the other Palestinian. We are allowed to share the deeply personal chronicle of filmmaker Danae Elon, a young Israeli woman, to reconnect with her Muslim Palestinian caregiver, Mahmoud "Musa" Obeidallah. He essentially functioned as a babysitter for 20 years in her household.

Elon’s emotional and physical journey takes her from her current home in New York to an Arab-American neighborhood in New Jersey, and finally to the West Bank and Jerusalem. This documentary by the daughter of the famed Israeli author, Amos Elon, reaches out with unsentimental perception, to all who believe in the power of family, trust and friendship.

Exploring the fragile boundaries between family, class, and politics Danae illuminates not only the frequently troubled political heritage shared by these two families, but a hope for a future of peace in Israel.

Unlike most films about the conflict in Jerusalem, this one is theoretically apolitical. However, because it’s not trying to make a statement like Michael Moore’s "Fahrenheit 9/11," anytime something is really laid on the line, it’s political.

It’s impossible not to draw comparisons between the current relations of Jews and Arabs and the conditions that existed between Whites and African-Americans in the worse of the Jim Crow Segregationist South. For example, Arabs are not citizens of the country in which they were born because they are now living in the US, presumably as citizens. A pregnant woman may be denied admission to a hospital even though she has possibly life threatening complications. Palestinians can’t use the main airport in Israel and as a result must fly to Jordan and then cross the segregated boarder by vehicle. While the filmmaker and her father support the right of Israel to exist, they are clearly unhappy with many of its policies.

From the point of view of Amos Elon, after the 1967 war, Israel changed from being a pure state that was created in 1948 to having a religious fervor that makes a long-term peace impossible. He was hopeful in the 1960s but he now believes that bitterness, fury and anger make that unattainable at this time. That aspect of the film is sobering.

Mahmoud Obeidallah assured a legacy of achievement for his children (8 sons and 3 daughters), as he worked almost unceasingly as they grew up. He told one employer, who questioned his efforts, that he didn’t want his children to have to stand before anyone in the future and answer such questions. Two of his sons, who live in Paterson, New Jersey, are businessmen; one is a pharmacist with a brand new store.

When talking about the concept of "home," Amos sums it up by saying, "I don’t believe in home." Somewhere in the minds and souls of people in this film is the seed to a lasting peace. It may sound corny to some, but we believe that only love and the need for forgiveness (on all sides) can heal the wounds of the past and allow us experience the future in a peaceful world.