MOVIE REVIEW

In Alain Zaloum's film, an idealistic Israeli Jew falls for a Palestinian Muslim.

If you've seen any of a hundred movies about star-crossed lovers, the fate awaiting the titular teens in "David & Fatima" can be predicted from the start. Still, this journey of David (Cameron Van Hoy), an idealistic Israeli Jew who falls for the gentle Fatima (Danielle Pollack), a Palestinian Muslim, is an earnest, reasonably absorbing drama, particularly in its first half.

In Alain Zaloum's movie, a chance meeting leads to a forbidden romance in which the pair eventually flee Jerusalem -- and their apoplectic families -- to elope, though no one in Israel, not even a once-radical rabbi (Martin Landau), can legally perform an intermarriage. They manage a makeshift honeymoon night anyway, but it's downhill from there.

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Unfortunately, the picture shot in Israel and L.A. loses impact by casting Americans in virtually every key role. This decision lends the film a somewhat ersatz quality, resulting in a jumble of imprecise accents that makes one long for native speech and English subtitles.

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Gary Goldstein

"David & Fatima." MPAA rating: Unrated. Running time: 2 hours. At Laemmle's Monica 4-Plex, 1332 2nd St., Santa Monica, (310) 394-9741.