Written and directed by Cherien Dabis, May in the Summer is a disarmingly humorous, sharply observed and deeply affecting story about a Palestinian-American writer, May, who returns to her childhood home in Jordan in preparation for her summertime wedding.

Schnabel has succeeded in two fields that are notoriously difficult to making a living at: art and film. Now he has taken on a real challenge: making a movie about a Palestinian girl.

It's that time of year again, the time when film critics and aficionados remind you of those great films - most of which you missed. Here are the top 10 movies of 2009.

Amreeka is an artful, moving testimony to the perils of making assumptions about individuals or groups. It is a is a film of impeccable taste that unites instead of divides.