Amira & Sam

Sam, a veteran of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, has trouble settling back into ordinary life at home. He does stand-up comedy and joins the Wall Street firm of his cousin Charlie, but still feels out of place. His former Iraqi translator, Bassam, asks him to look after his niece Amira, a young Iraqi immigrant who came to the United States after the war and now sells bootlegged films on the street. She distrusts Sam at first because of his time as an American soldier and the death of her brother. When she is caught selling and immigration authorities begin pursuing her, she ends up staying with Sam, and the two grow close even as her possible deportation looms. Charlie, meanwhile, draws Sam into questionable financial dealings.

This is the first film directed and written by Sean Mullin, followed years later by Brothers on Three. Martin Starr plays Sam, with Dina Shihabi as Amira, Paul Wesley as Charlie, Laith Nakli as Bassam, David Rasche as Jack and Ross Marquand as Greg; twenty-six cast members are credited in all. The film runs ninety minutes and blends comedy, drama and romance.

Its critical reception was mildly positive, with reviewers averaging 6.6/10 across twenty-nine reviews. On IMDb, viewers rate it 6.2/10 from around 2,800 votes, while on TMDB it sits at 6/10 from a much smaller group of sixty-four. The gap between the two audience samples is modest, and the critics' average lands somewhat above both.