If director Todd Solondz were to bring a Judy Blume book to the screen, "Towelhead" would be the result.

With equal parts dark comedy and even darker drama, this coming-of-age tale takes an unflinching look not just at the awkwardness of growing up but the potential pain and humiliation.

Calling it "Towelhead," an offensive term for a person of Arab ancestry, seems like an intentional shock, but then again, so does much of the movie's content — an attempt to shake us up and make us think.

In directing his first film, Oscar-winning "American Beauty" screenwriter Alan Ball holds nothing back. The performances make the material more human and accessible, though, mainly from the film's brave young star, Summer Bishil.

Bishil stars as Jasira, a 13-year-old who is sent by her American mother (Maria Bello) to live in Houston with her strict Lebanese father (Peter Macdissi of Ball's TV series "Six Feet Under"). Why? Because of inappropriate activity between mom's boyfriend and the girl, which jolts us from the start.

While there, Jasira must navigate not just the difficulty of being different culturally in her predominantly white suburb, but also the conflicting physical and emotional urges welling within her. And the various men surrounding her don't always have her best interest in mind in that regard.

Her father, Rifat, is a swarm of contradictions. He's Arab but Christian. He's an officious, uptight prude who scolds Jasira for dressing too scantily but he also brazenly makes out with his new girlfriend in the kitchen.Far worse is their neighbor, Mr. Vuoso (Aaron Eckhart). He was a bit creepy even before he arranged to have Jasira baby-sit his 11-year-old son, and from there, his relationship with the girl escalates with startling speed.Then there's Thomas (Eugene Jones), a horny classmate who becomes Jasira's de facto boyfriend. He's probably a good guy at heart. But Thomas is also black, and so Rifat prohibits Jasira from seeing him — in essence, denying her of a rare, positive force in her life.Another positive influence is pregnant next-door neighbor Melina (Toni Collette in earth mother mode), who sees what's happening to Jasira and struggles to protect her. But the point of "Towelhead" is that Jasira must endure all these forms of abuse on her own and come out stronger for them in the end.Calling it a tough lesson to learn would be an understatement, but that's also what makes the ending such a letdown. For a film that had been rooted in a bracing honesty, "Towelhead" wraps up way too neatly.

In this image released by Warner Independent films,Peter Macdissi and Summer Bishil are shown in a scene from, "Towelhead."