Hiyab

I think this film sets off with a point to make, but it manages to contrive that into something that though possibly thought provoking, is actually all a bit shallow. It's all about a young girl (Lorena Rosado) who turns up at school wearing an hijab. The headteacher (Ana Wagener) is trying to persuade her to remove it as religious forms of dress are prohibited at this school. Using a variety of verbal carrots and sticks, she has to try and convince her to take it off before she goes into the classroom. This short feature asks questions about integration, tolerance, conformity and individuality but it doesn't develop any of those themes. Are we to consider the teacher's behaviour intolerant or is it "Fatima" who has to be the one doing the integrating in a nation that has been Roman Catholic for centuries? Is the host nation supposed to bend it's own rules and traditions to accommodate people of different faiths or are they supposed to be more prepared to immerse themselves in their new culture? This raises some of theses issues, but does nothing with them. Disappointing, I'd say.