Detroit Unleaded
Nashef, Rola
dir. 2007, U.S., 20’. Free with newsletter signup
A young man named Sami believes his family’s Detroit gas station will provide him with a place to meet his girl, Naj, away from family pressures and friends. His cousin Mike is sure it holds the key to an empire built on cigarette papers and fake perfume. This gritty, daylong view of a neighborhood convenience store probes relationships between its Arab–American owners and their African–American customers by exploring themes of race, economics, friendship and love through the identities and encounters that shape the Arab–American and immigrant experience.