Seeing Ken Loach's film at AFI Fest, I was positivelly surprised. A Fond Kiss is a very effective portrayal of a love story surviving the toughest social dilemma's. This film dealing with the inter-racial relationship between a Muslim pakistani young man and a catholic irish woman all set in Glasgow, Scotland, does an excellent job in giving insight in the family values of pakistani and Indian muslims in a predominantly catholic British environment. Dealing with generation gaps between parents and children, it also puts the Muslim beliefs in a slightly different limelight, where destiny is not so much determined by faith but by family principles. A great set up has the audience warm up to the film's characters very effectivally and engages us into the story right off the bat. The acting is powerful, and the theme never is 'preached' to us. The director does a fantastic job pulling us in to a world which might be far away from our own beliefs and lifestyles, but has us all look beyond the apparent differences to see the true value of love. The theme and characters might not speak to everyone, but undoubtfully it is a great piece of film making.
Review of A Fond Kiss
