Based on the acclaimed novel by Alicia Erian, Towelhead is the story of a 13 year-old Arab-American girl named Jasira (played beautifully by newcomer Summer Bishil), who lives with her mother Gail (Maria Bello). When Mom's boyfriend makes a sexual advance toward Jasira, does Gail get rid of him? Of course not. She sends her Jasira to live with her ultra-strict Lebanese father Rifat (Peter Macdissi) in Houston. Rifat sends her a lot of mixed messages. For example, she's allowed to have girl friends who are African-American, but he doesn't want her dating an African-American boy named Thomas (Eugene Jones).

Like Gail, Rifat also does not teach Jasira anything about her burgeoning sexuality, which creates a ton of problems. She gets her first period, but her father won't let her wear tampons because he feels they are inappropriate. The neighbor boy shows her pornographic magazines from his father's closet. Also, the boy's father, Travis (Aaron Eckhart), finds himself strangely attracted to her and begins to make advances. Because her knowledge of sexuality has come not from actual parenting but from distorted media images, Jasira assumes she is supposed to welcome - and even nurture - the attention of Travis and, later, Thomas. Toni Collette plays another neighbor named Melina; she and her husband are the only sane adults in the film, and they look out for Jasira's well-being.

There are two provocative themes at work in Towelhead. The first is the sexual exploitation of Jasira. With her parents unable or unwilling to teach her about sexuality, she is left to get impressions about it from unreliable sources. There's a terrific scene where she confides to Melina about the magazines she's looked at, while Melina explains to her how those magazines distort the self-image of women. Jasira is certainly a product of that. As her own sexuality emerges, she mistakenly believes its purpose is to please men, which she does at her own expense. Interesting, too, is the way Rifat tries to protect his daughter from shame, yet ends up bringing shame upon her by failing to take her pubescence seriously. Because he lectures her rather than informing her, Jasira is set up to make the exact kinds of mistakes that infuriate her stern father.

The other theme involves perceptions and stereotypes. At school, Jasira is called derogatory names, but there are other prejudices as well. The movie is set during the first Gulf War, and Travis assumes that Rifat must be a Saddam Hussein supporter simply because he's Middle Eastern. Likewise, Rifat makes certain assumptions about Travis because he's a bit of a redneck. And, of course, he disapproves of Thomas simply because of the color of his skin, apparently oblivious to the fact that people give his daughter a hard time because of the color of her skin.

If Towelhead sounds like it would be heavy or depressing, it isn't. The film was adapted for the screen and directed by Alan Ball, the Oscar-winning screenwriter of American Beauty and creator of the TV show "Six Feet Under." As in his other work, Ball has a distinct way of addressing dark subject matter with humor, insight, and a little bit of hope. For a film that contains some uncomfortable material, Towelhead is more inviting than off-putting. You want to follow Jasira, even in her most vulnerable moments.

I hope this film gets discovered on DVD. The performances are outstanding across the board, with Summer Bishil doing the kind of breakout work that suggests a real future in acting. She's fantastic. I won't lie and say that some of the things that happen here won't make you squirm; Towelhead wants to provoke thought and debate. I am confident that it will. Few may have paid attention during its theatrical run, but DVD should offer a whole new life to a smart, engaging film that genuinely has something worthwhile to say.

( out of four)

DVD Features:

Towelhead arrives on DVD Dec. 30 in widescreen format. There are two bonus features, both of them "community discussions" that further advance the themes of the film. The first brings together Ball, Macdissi, Bishil (who, oddly, looks none to pleased to be there) and Hussam Ayloush from the Council on Islamic American-Relations. Although they liked the film, Ayloush's group opposed the title, as it's a derogatory term. He explains his concerns about how it may "mainstream" the word, making people think it's "not so bad" after all if a Hollywood movie used it as a title. The participants discuss the issue at length and are very diplomatic toward one another.

The second segment features Ball, author Alicia Erian, and Rajdeep Singh Jolly, the legal director of the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund. Jolly, too, objects to the title, calling it a "marketing ploy" and says that the word "cannot be detextualized." The openly gay Ball counters that argument by saying that making words taboo only serves to give them unnecessary power. Regardless of where you come down on the issue, these community discussions are enlightening and interesting, as well as being somewhat conciliatory toward any groups who may have taken offense to the title. For a movie that aims to make you confront prejudice, these bonus features are very appropriate.

Towelhead is rated R for strong disturbing sexual content and abuse involving a young teen, and for language. The running time is 1 hour and 56 minutes.