Mahmud, a British-born Pakistani Muslim, is a grouchy middle-aged man who loves ‘80s techno-pop and, as he admits, “now and then a small sip of the pale ale passes my lips.” Although fiercely tribal when baited, he has always been opposed to radical Islamists. Suddenly, the widowed mother of the London girl who will soon become his daughter-in-law marries a notorious radical Muslim cleric. Trouble looms. “We need him to think we’re proper Muslimsobservant Muslims,” the son insists.
The forthcoming conflict with the future in-laws would be a sufficiently humorous hook for The Infidel, the British comedy by director Josh Appignanesi and screenwriter David Baddiel (out on DVD). But there another twist yanks the movie into Mel Brooks territory. Mahmud discovers that he was adopted as an infant and his birth parents were Jewish. Already with one foot in two cultural worlds, he must come to terms with a third mode of identityone he has always viewed with hostility.
The Infidel satirizes many things, from fundamentalist fanaticism to attempts at legislating tolerance. The writing ripples with humor but often it’s the deadpan, often physically comic delivery by Omid Djalili that puts the story over the top.
