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Reviews
Yasmin (2004)
Good work!
This is the first time I have seen and heard about this film on channel 4. I must admit speaking as an Iraqi Muslim myself, I liked this film. I was so surprised when I found out that the main writers and directors of the film were not Asian or Muslim. Usually whenever non-Muslims analyse and study Islam and Muslims they don't completely understand the true Islam as we see it, but this time I was quite surprised.
I think the good points of the film is that it is quite a balanced portrayal of the lives of Muslims living in British society. This film captures the dilemmas that second generation Muslims face trying to uphold their religion and values whilst also attempting to integrate into society. It is good in that it shows the positive and the negative of both sides, the Muslim and the English. This is quite realistic. It also distinguishes the different types of Muslims such as the more extremist ones who are less tolerant and interpret Islam inaccurately and the more moderate ones who carry the true Muslim message, such as Yasmin's father who believes in peace and harmony.
However this film still does not go far enough in challenging negative stereotypes about Islam and Muslims. Whilst it is true that there are British Muslims who do reject their religion and culture, just like among other religious groups, there are also a huge number of British Muslims who manage to successfully fulfill their religious and cultural demands whilst also integrating well into the wider society. For example I know many very successful and religious Pakistani and Iraqi people living in Britain who sympathise with Muslim countries but also oppose violence, extremism and terrorism.
I found the acting, directing and production was done very well. Although I found the ending too abrupt, there was no real resolution or conclusion to the film.
Overall I found it was quite an accurate representation that showed the grey areas rather than simplistic representations usually associated with Islam, but still didn't go far enough in challenging some negative attitudes. However still better than the awful representation of Muslims in 'East is East'.
Marmoulak (2004)
An interesting film SPOILER
Being a practicing Muslim myself, hearing the storyline of the film gave me reservations. An Iranian film about a thief escaping prison by emulating and dressing as a religious scholar, I knew the film was going to deal with sensitive religious and political matters. Although not Iranian myself, I was aware of cynicism towards the Iranian government and its religious rulings on its citizens.On that basis I knew that when I had to judge the film I had to also try to understand it from the perspective of an Iranian living under the government.
When I saw the film, however, I realized that it had a deeper meaning than I thought it would. I found it to be an intelligent film that had a comical plot and funny parts but with more serious implications. The thing I most like about the film is that it is quite fair and balanced. The thief, after pretending to be a religious scholar, realises that God is good and finds religion during this point, instead of criticising religion. This helps to show a distinction between the perfection of religion and the imperfection of human beings, who at times misuse religion.
However whilst saying this I did find some parts of the film quite offensive to religion such as the mockery of the young boys who were inspired by the scholar.Overall I thought the film was quite deep and was made in a clever manner but the issues dealt with were too sensitive and quite offensive at times.
The Edge (1997)
Good film
Action/adventure is not usually one of my favourite genres. Good-looking male protagonists who are put through the most difficult trials in life with the whole world against them. Along the way equally good-looking females help them to fight 'evil' and they fall in love together. Nah not my cup of tea.
"The Edge" is a different sort of action/adventure. It tells a story of an old intelligent millionaire married to a young model. The millionaire, Anthony Hopkins, gets stranded with a photographer, Alec Baldwin and others after their plane crashes in snow climates. The film shows the nature of human beings that when put to the test in difficult situations the way negative sides to their personalities arise, as we witnessed Baldwin's intense jealousy towards Hopkins.
The film outlines the importance of the theory 'survival of the fittest' showing that Hopkins the most intelligent, wise and experienced of them all was the only one that survived the predicament. The implication of the film seems to show that in no matter what period of time we are living in, the noble most respectable people are the most threatening to us human beings. Possibly an analogy to monotheistic prophets?
Pretty in Pink (1986)
A must see movie
Pretty in pink is not an average teen-romantic film. It's quite distinctive from other films in its genre. It certainly is not your typical superficial, stereotypical, formulaic Hollywood film.
Simon Hughes, the director, is well-known for his left-wing attitudes in films such as "The Breakfast club" or "Ferris Buller" and this is no different. It portrays a working class teenager, Andie, who falls in love with a much richer boy called Blaine. As can be imagined their love is not straightforward and they face cultural conflicts from family and friends. They do end up getting together at the end but its the way that the film is made that makes it so unique.
There is a great deal of realism in the film. The social issues that Andie faces such as mockery by other pupils, dealing with an unemployed father are placed in an intelligent manner making the viewers understand her problems. Watching the contrasting attitudes of the rich and the poor is not always far from the truth. The humorous parts of the film are not slapstick or silly but are more subtle such as Duckie's singing moment.
Most importantly the message of the film is positive: that materialism is irrelevant and that relationships are more important. There is nothing pretentious or 'cool' about this film which is why I like it. It is a film that is quite realistic and done in a genuine manner which is what makes it so successful. It's worth watching.
East Is East (1999)
Disappointed
I am a Muslim and I absolutely hated this film.
I know that this film is a semi-autobiographical account of the life of scriptwriter Ayub Khan Din and his life living in England, but it doesn't justify anything. This film is extremely stereotypical and gives a distorted view of the Pakistani culture. It seems to feed into and confirm the negative stereotypes on Muslims living in abusive, patriarchal, sexist, oppressive families and children who dream and worship the western culture. Although it may have occurred in Ayub's family there are thousands of Muslim families in which this does not happen.
A lot of Muslims who leave Muslim countries are proud of their background and live 'normal' lives just like western people.
Domestic violence and sexism are universal problems, that occur all around the world and not just in the Muslim community. I also got the impression that the message of this film is that western culture is better than the Muslim religion and the phrase 'when you are in Rome do as the Romans do' arises, which I totally disagree with. The 'comedic' moments in the film were mostly dirty and rude jokes which was what further made this film really bad.
If Ayub Khan Din wants to make good British Asian films, he should look to impressive examples such as 'Bhaji on the Beach'. That was a balanced film that gave out the message that all ethnic groups are similar, in that some people are good and some are racist and prejudiced. Overall I thought that 'East is East' really stank.