Helena Hawkins Let me start by saying that I watch a lot of movies. I try to watch a broad range of movies, from the terrible flops to cinematic masterpieces. I'm honestly not too picky when it comes to movies; I basically expect a movie to provide entertainment and to engage me, whether it's comedy, or a romance, or a deeply moving and provocative film that leaves me thinking for hours afterward. So essentially what I'm searching for is a movie that involves me somehow - even if I'm just relating on the most basic levels to characters or situations.This movie failed to deliver any of my basic requirements. I'd be surprised if it fulfilled anyone else's desires or expectations, but I saw quite a number of good reviews for this movie on here. My question is, HOW did those other people become engaged with this film?First of all, the characters in this movie are, at best, lifeless. The acting is stilted, but even if we overlooked that, the characters themselves are flat and don't seem to have any realistic qualities or depth. The Jewish characters in this movie are depicted as selfish and immature to a nonsensical extent. Their main preoccupations seem to be money and sex. David himself fails to reveal any human qualities beyond a childish attitude toward everything. The Muslim characters in this movie are portrayed in a much more favorable light, but are equally undeveloped.There is not one character in this movie who isn't insipid and unrealistic.Second of all, having a fairly intimate understanding of both Jewish and Muslim culture allows me to see all the hilariously misconceived or at least overly generalized traditions and attitudes of both families. It seems as though the screenwriters took some big ideas from each religion's tradition and slapped them clumsily into the film, thinking it would lend an authentic, informed quality to the film. Instead, it made me wonder if they had ever met a Muslim or a Jew. The tidbits of information about both groups were laughable in their lack of perception.Which leads me to my next problem with this movie; it clearly attempted to be funny but had no liveliness or wit. I gave the movie 1 star because I laughed in two places, but they were remarkably unmemorable. It also tried to be moving in parts, but it missed the mark in that area as well. Overall, the plot does not flow and it has no original ideas to offer. I found myself waiting to be engaged the entire movie; I should have given up in the first ten minutes when I realized that this movie was so poorly done, but I can't leave any movie unfinished.This isn't even one of those movies that can be enjoyed for its low quality. I would not recommend this movie to anyone; it doesn't even achieve the level that a typical bad movie achieves. My suggestion is to find a bad movie that at least can be laughed at for its terrible quality. This movie does not even reach that low standard.

themanwho81 To put in bluntly, David & LAYLA is an indie movie lover's wet dream, a thinking man's romantic comedy that truly deserves to be seen by as many eyes as possible. Writer-Producer-Director Jay Jonroy, a name that is sure to blip on the everyone's radar with his distinctive vision and voice, makes an impressive feature film debut. D&L has a lot going for it: acid-tongued wit, richly drawn characters, and razor sharp observations of cultural differences. Let's face it: a Jewish-Muslim romance in lesser hands runs the risk of being a cringe-inducing MY BIG FAT Greek WEDDING ripoff with cultural-clash ethnic punchlines sophisticated viewers can telegraph from light years away. But Jonroy clearly adores the titular leads (David Moscow and Shiva Rose, who really click together) and the world they inhabit (a beautifully shot New York City), and has lovingly crafted a palatable and believable love story that doesn't insult its audience. See it!

Amir Shirazi I find the Jewish and Kurdish culture so fascinating. They are both have given so much to the world. I've always been baffled that the story of Kurdish struggle and all the massacre and the horrific things that have happened to these people has continued to be marginalized. I applaud Jay Jonroy for going against the current to write, direct, and produce a movie that raises awareness, educates and yet manages to make the audience laugh and cry! The movie is entertaining and more importantly is based on a true story that not only shows that love is more powerful than any prejudice or misconception we have about each other, but also shows that there is more that units us than divides us. You walk out of the theater curious to learn more and that's the greatest accomplishment of Jonroy which is motivate people to think, be curious, and seek the truth! Bravo to the cast and crew of the film!

zuluf This was the first time in my life that I left the theater before the end of the movie. I just couldn't bear it. You can watch a bad movie and enjoy it for the sake of badness. This was not one of them. This was truly bad, in the sense that it wasn't watchable.This movie is supposed to be, and advertised as, culturally aware and actually promote diversity awareness. On the contrary, its political standing is completely based on stereotypes, superficial knowledge about Middle Eastern cultures, and normalization of hate speech and sexual abuse.There are a lot of offensive and hateful comments about different cultures and identities and these are shown as normal or funny. For example, David makes an offensive comment that stereotypes Muslims ("Have you seen a peaceful Muslim?"), and gets away with it. When Layla asks for explanation, he just ignores and does not try to defend his position; he does not apologize either. The relationship between the main characters is also strange. In their first date, David is drunk and it is clear that his attitude toward the female character would be legally considered as sexual harassment. However, this is presented as romantic and Layla is shown to enjoy it. Moreover, I did not understand why the Kurdish girl is required to "speak English very well" (and this is explicitly mentioned in the movie) to deserve to be loved by an American man.It is an amateur movie in terms of cinematography and acting, and this makes the lack of depth in the intellectual content even more unbearable. The sex jokes are so immature that they are tasteless, if not offensive.