This film starts out slowly. The first half an hour is a little political, wrapped up in a guise of casual racism against Arabs. There's only a hint of the romantic tension between the two leads.

As the story progresses and the bond between the two leads strengthens, it's a tale of how different religions and cultures hold people hostage, and have expectations that clash with peoples' sense of freedom. One culture has a strict belief that women should grow up and gain happiness by becoming wives and having children, bestowing honour on their families by doing so. The other, more religious culture has a firm view that you can only find happiness by falling in love, marrying and having children, therefore following God and extending the faithful flock.

Similar outcomes for different cultures but stemming from the same fervent belief in how life should be under God's and society's gaze.

However when two women meet and fall in love it results in chaos for both families, with fervent efforts against the women being able to live their own lives.

It is a film about religion and culture and how they mould peoples' lives, and two women who fall in love and face the struggle to be together against every belief they've ever held, and the ostracising of their families. Even a man who shows hatred and aggression can be forgiven, and showed kindness, but not a woman who crosses the line of expectation.

I particularly like the fact there's only a couple of kissing scenes and no steamy, desperate sex to display the depth of their love. It's not about the sex and it's all the stronger for that. It's all about the struggle to be oneself against society's expectations, and I love how the director made that work. He could teach modern, sex-obsessed Hollywood a thing or two.

The acting is a little bland at times and the script occasionally weak, but overall its not a bad film and does a great job in illuminating prejudice, even amongst loved ones, and having a dogged commitment to try and become what or who you want to be.

I gave it a strong 6.

The most sought-after session pianist in the Nashville music industry was a blind man named Hargus Melvin Robbins, who went by the mononym "Pig." He was self-taught and couldn't read Braille-scribed music, but he could listen to the first few bars of the song about to be recorded and instantly have his entire piano score fixed in his mind and ready to record.

I feel a little like Pig about the film Polarized. From the moment the two main characters were introduced in their own separate worlds, I could have fired up Final Draft and banged-out the bones of the script before the sun set.

That's not to say Polarized isn't a good film, but it definitely has permanently-attached training wheels. It would have been more "polarizing" fifteen or more years ago. Today, in 2024, it's like teaching remedial math to college graduates. Been there, done that, and it's comfortably all around us now.

There is tentative romance but no hungry passion between the leading characters.

The Palestinian family's reactions are unrealistically tamed to hints of mild anger; in the real world there would have likely been a degree of violence that leads perpetrators to courtrooms.

Finally, if Disney ever starts making films about budding first-time lesbian relationships, I guarantee their endings will all be virtually identical to the ending of Polarized.

Even with all this being said, I still recommend you watch Polarized for the level of enjoyment it does bring. No, it's not going to be nominated for an Academy Award, but neither do most of the films we all enjoy and come back to more than once.

Lisa (Holly Deveaux) lives in a small farming community. She's a singer/songwriter with no hopes of making it. Her father is dying of cancer. Her family's farm has been foreclosed by the bank. She's making ends meet by working at the high tech farm which is replacing the local traditional farms. Highly-educated Dalia (Maxine Denis) started the high tech farm which is owned by her conservative Palestinian family. Despite running the place, she is expected to marry, have kids, and stay home.

I found this really interesting initially. I like the women's developing friendship. I like the clashing cultures. That would have been a nice story. It's a little disappointing to transition into a lesbian movie. Forty years ago, this would be breaking grounds. Twenty years ago, this would still be edgy especially with the Palestinian part. Today, it's derivative, predictable, and too obvious. The boyfriend is too clueless. There are a lot of family issues, but they often feel under-developed. It would be more compelling to concentrate on fewer characters. This is a sincere movie. It's not as edgy as it thinks it is.