The Infidel DVD
From 9th August 2010, box-office smash hit The Infidel will be available to own on DVD and Blu-Ray.
An original screenplay by David Baddiel and directed by Josh Appignanesi (Song of Songs, Ex Memoria), The Infidel is a timely, irreverent, comedy centered on Mahmud Nasir, a loving husband, doting father, and something of a ‘relaxed’ Muslim who discovers that he’s adopted and Jewish.
Baddiel wrote the script for British-Iranian actor and comedian Omid Djalili (The Mummy, Gladiator and BBC’s The Omid Djalili Show) who plays our culturally confused hero, Mahmud. David Baddiel, also a former stand-up comedian, is best known for his television shows The Mary Whitehouse Experience and Fantasy Football League.
He is also a successful novelist with best- selling titles including Time for Bed, Whatever Love Means and The Secret Purposes and a regular columnist for Esquire, Psychologies and The Times. THE INFIDEL is his first feature film.
Omid Djalili’s comedy career spans two decades, performing stand-up across the globe. Referring to himself as the 'perfect ethnic everyman bit-part specialist', Djalili has become a familiar face in big budget Hollywood.
The Infidel also stars Emmy award winner Richard Schiff (The West Wing’s 'Toby', I Am Sam) playing Jewish cabbie Lenny, Igal Naor (Greenzone, Munich, Rendition, Saddam Hussein in HBO’s House of Saddam) as fanatical Muslim cleric Arshad Al-Masri and Archie Panjabi (A Mighty Heart, The Constant Gardener) as Saamiya, Mahmud’s long-suffering wife.
The cast includes cameos from Matt Lucas (Little Britain), David Schneider (Alan Partridge), Miranda Hart from hit comedy Miranda and Paul Kaye (actor and Dennis Pennis creator).
The team behind The Infidel - those who shaped the story and made the film - are from Muslim, Jewish, Christian, Atheist, Buddhist and Bahai’ backgrounds. Producers Arvind Ethan David (CEO and Producer, Slingshot) and Uzma Hasan (Development Producer, Slingshot) worked closely with writer David Baddiel since he first conceived the idea for The Infidel making sure that it celebrates religious diversity whilst deriding the ‘Fatwa Fanatics’ that have so often hijacked the headlines.
"I think that people are terrified about race and religion, especially issues surrounding Muslims and Jews, and when people are terrified, what they really should do is laugh" - David Baddiel