However, when a comedian decides to tackle the issue of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the punch line is never tactful. Coexistence, My Ass! The Sundance award-winning documentary by director Amber Fares comes to Los Angeles on Friday, November 7 at the Monica Film Center and NoHo 7, armed with humor, blunt truths, and a heroine that will not remain silent.
Peace Poster Child to Comedy Provocateur
The documentary traces the life path of Noam Shuster Eliassi, trilingual comedian and social activist from Neve Shalom/Wahat al-Salam, Israel’s only intentionally integrated Jewish-Palestinian village. The ‘poster child for coexistence’ Noam grew from being the face of coexistence to becoming a comedian, using her disillusionment for her act, “Coexistence, My Ass!” She performed monologues in Arabic, Hebrew, and English that bombarded the silence, making people both laugh and squirm in their seats.
Laughing Through the Firestorm
This documentary was recorded over five tumultuous years, during which it portrays Noam’s transformation in both her personal and professional life, set against the growing violence in the region. Noam’s increasing popularity in the Middle East and around the world, performing at the Palestine Comedy Festival, and also creating her solo theatrical production at Harvard, meant that her world was becoming ever more perilous.
Jokes Sharper Than a Sword
“She speaks truth to power in three different languages, and she’s really funny,” Noam’s director, Amber Fares, who is also known for Speed Sisters, said about Noam’s unique qualities. However, Noam’s humor also has a darker significance, particularly in the context that “coexistence will only remain a reality if justice, equality, and human rights are made possible,” Noam added, apropos of the reality of the breakdown in Gaza.
The movie has been hailed by critics as “urgent, eye-opening, and enormously compassionate,” “sharp-witted, sympathetic, and illuminating,” and “a compelling guide to the Middle East mess,” according to Variety, Screen International, and The Hollywood Reporter, respectively.
One Festival Performance that left Viewers Shook
The movie has already assembled an impressive pedigree. It has won the World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award for Freedom of Expression at Sundance 2025, along with various major awards from top-tier festivals such as Thessaloniki Film Festival (Best Film), CPH: DOX, Hot Docs, Full Frame, DC/DOX, and Sheffield DocFest.
Rachel Leah Jones (Advocate) produced it, and it was cut by Rabab Haj Yahya (The Feeling Of Being Watched) for Coexistence, My Ass! – without a doubt, both the funniest and also the most critical documentary that marked this year’s production output.
The Rebel With a Microphone
Noam is no ordinary comedian. She has performed in front of Arab crowds in the Middle East, making her the first Jewish comedian to perform at the Palestine Comedy Festival. Noam’s videos, laced with sarcasm, are viral hits in Arab speaking countries. She’s a disruptor in the Arab world, and Noam does so through jokes.
Her mantra is simple but searing: comedy may not solve conflict, but it can slice through propaganda, false narratives, and empty platitudes.
Curtain Call in Los Angeles
Coexistence, My Ass! will premiere in New York on October 29th, prior to its appearance in Los Angeles on November 7th. This is a must-watch for viewers that believe documentaries can also feature elements such as humor, anger, and urgency, all at once, without ever letting its audience off easy, yet still challenge it to ‘laugh in the face of despair.’
“Rarely has comedy felt this serious and urgent,” wrote Variety critic Tomris Laffly.
