Good food, good company, and good TV – it doesn’t get much better than that. This past Saturday, Film Club, led by juniors Thomas Ferguson, Yassin Mokbel and Howard Huelster, hosted a showing of the first five episodes of the recent Netflix series “Mo.”
This event, the third of its kind hosted by Film Club, was situated in the Bigelow Commons, an open space with plenty of seating and a large projector. Around 15-20 people, including faculty advisor Andrew Inchiosa, showed up to enjoy the show.
“Mo” is based on a true story about a Palestinian refugee, Mo, living in Texas. The show is both a humorous comedy and a serious drama, quickly featuring themes of shootings, drug addiction, immigration challenges and familial pressures. A highly entertaining watch, it also serves as intrepid social commentary, especially as immigration (and deportation) is so relevant in Americans’ lives today.
Much like their previous events, Film Club was inspired to choose “Mo” by timing, April being Arab American Heritage Month. For instance, they hosted a similar event with the Black and Brown Student Union (BSU) for Black History Month in February, where they showed Stomp the Yard.
“We wanted to bring some different voices, especially during these heritage months, [as] another way to celebrate those cultures,” Mokbel said. “Film is a really good outlet for celebrating cultures because it’s something that everyone can enjoy, and, often, films are good representations of cultures. I’ve widened my global understanding through film because I try to watch a lot of movies from a lot of different places with voices that I would never [otherwise] hear. It’s even a way I’ve been able to connect with my Egyptian culture.”
Mokbel, who’s seen both seasons of “Mo,” appreciates the show’s accuracy in depicting the Arab-American experience: “Mo is very much lost in between two cultures. He has one culture from his home that he was basically forced out of, but he’s not welcomed into the US culture because he’s not a citizen, and the citizenship process is really hard,” he said. “ There’s something very thematic about him being both stuck legally, but also culturally, in between two different cultures that are so different.”
In addition to striving for inclusivity in their film choices, the club prioritizes making movie nights as fun and open of a space as possible. Many of the filmgoers present shared Mokbel’s appreciation for the openness of the film community. Junior Roman Farley, a nonmember, is a big fan of the movie nights: “Even if I’m not part of Film Club, I’m still part of the community, which is why movie nights are so great,” he said.
Plus, attendees are provided with free food, sweetening the experience even further. “I’m eating Film Club for dinner. I’m going to be able to eat food right here, and I don’t have to pay a dime,” Farley said jokingly.
Although there may be another event in May, Film Club plans to institute movie nights more regularly, likely on a monthly basis, next year. In the meantime, they advise all students and faculty to keep their eyes peeled and to keep watching and enjoying film.
