“What’s wrong with you, boy? Don’t you know the rules?”

Mississippi Marsala is a romantic comedy of sorts that really tackles the subject of interracial dating head on.  We’re shown Romeo and Juliet style love story that, thankfully, doesn’t end quite as tragic.

Meena’s family fled from Uganda after Idi Amin banned on East Asian citizens from the country.  She describes herself as “mixed masala” because of her diverse and unique upbringing in different countries, with her family eventually settling in Mississippi where they open a small hotel.  One day, Meena rear ends a man named Demetrius who owns his own carpet cleaning company.  The two hit it off and a bond is formed.

The film reminded me a bit of The Debut.  Both films really seem to be interested in showing people who aren’t traditionally the main characters of a movie.  The director of Mississippi Marsala goes out of her way to give us a historical context of why Meena’s family fled Uganda in the first place.  It gives the film a richness and a history that invests us in the world she’s created.  Outsourced (2006) is another film I was reminded of.  A man working for a company is forced to move to India to train his replacement who he falls in love with.