Naz & Maalik is bound to be controversial, but it's such a quiet, sweet movie, that viewers might fail to see what the fuss is about. Kerwin Johnson, Jr. and Curtiss Cook, Jr. play the titular duo, hanging out over the course of one day in Brooklyn with a normal start but a somewhat tragic ending.
Both devout Muslims, they're torn about their growing attraction, which culminated in sex for the first time the previous night. Naz is the more shy of the pair, far more reluctant for anyone to discover. Maalik is the brash, more experienced of the two. On this day (and probably not for the first time), they cut class to sell lottery tickets on the street, hoping to make some untaxed and unregulated profit. In these scenes, it's easy to see that Maalik is the more charismatic of the pair, effortlessly chatting with bystanders, while Naz typically takes no for an answer.
As the day goes on, they chat about the future, racial profiling and their plans for Maalik's mom's birthday party. But the little moments have a ripple effect, especially after they run afoul of the FBI. After one undercover agent attempts to sell a gun to Maalik, who entertains the idea, they're put under surveillance from Agent Mickel (Annie Grier).
The agent's barrage of questions brings out Naz's nervous tendencies, and in a panic, he lies about his whereabouts the previous night. That only adds to the FBI's (unwarranted) suspicions. But the topicality is where the movie stumbles a bit. It's a bit too on the nose, and ultimately doesn't add much. The impact of racial profiling is much more powerful in scenes like the one where an imam greets the men who have come to pray by welcoming any police officers or FBI agents who might be among the faithful. The explicit confrontation makes it feel too obvious. The movie's better when operating in grey areas.
Homosexuality will always be a hot topic in African-American and Muslim communities, but a movie like Naz & Maalik will hopefully bring more understanding and discussion to the table. Jay Dockendorf has made a good debut that never quite achieved the quality of film he was going for. But his lead actors and camerawork are stellar, and he's delivered a peek into lives that many of us have never experienced. And that's good for all of us.
