My review was written in March 1990 after watching the movie at a Times Square screening room.
"Torn Apart" looks at the Middle East crisis from a different angle, using a "Romeo and Juliet" type of love story, but the result is a flat picture. Best chances are in commercial tv use.
Adrian Pasdar, currently starring in Fox' "Vital Signs", toplines as a Jew who is brought by his dad (Barry Primus) to New York from Israel after the six-day war in 1967. He returns in 1973 to serve in the Israeli army and becomes romantically involved with Laila (Cecilia Peck), an Arab girl he grew up with.
Of course both families are dead set against such a liaison, but matters are made worse when Peck goes to a friendly Arab professor (Arnon Zadok) for advice. He's a liberal who hopes for improved relations between the Palestinians and Israelis, while Peck's family and friends begin to thin of her as a traitor. All hell breaks loose in a tragic ending tha unfortunately doesn't have the grace of the Shakespeare play.
Debuting director Jack Fisher gets good atmosphere from his location filming in Israel, but pic founders due to an awkward structure built around an undelivered letter and Pasdar's reminiscences. Despite its R rating, film is too bland for its own good and definitely not strong enough to capture the attention of demanding theatrical audiences.
Cast is generally effective, with swarthy Pasdar passing for a sabra, and the graceful Peck, daughter of Gregory Peck in her biggest screen role to date, surprisingly convincing in an ethnic role. Yaffit Mazar is well-matched to Peck in portraying the same character in the '67 prolog.
Exec producer Peter Arnow contributes an interesting, melancholy musical score.
