Amira & Sam (2014)

The romantic comedy Amira & Sam (2014) follows Sam (Martin Starr), a United States army veteran trying to adapt to civilian life after a lengthy tour of duty in Iraq. Upon his return to NYC, he crosses paths with Amira (Dina Shihabi), his war buddy’s (Laith Nakli) niece and Iraqi refugee. It’s love at first sight for Sam, but Amira is suspicious of military men, so she wants nothing to do with him. But Amira’s tune changes when she runs onto some immigration problems and Sam steps up to help her out. After a troublesome beginning, the unlikely pair strike up a friendship that eventually leads to something more. Trying to make ends meet, Sam hooks up with his hedge-fund manager cousin, Charlie (Paul Wesley), and takes a lucrative job that has him tapping veterans as new clients. Sounds good? It gets even better when Martin Starr loses his shirt to go for a dip in the lake.