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Reviews
The Namesake (2006)
An excellent rendition of the novel
After over a year of waiting, I finally got to watch 'The Namesake' last night at Houston's River Oaks theater. Having loved Jhumpa Lahiri's novel on which this movie is based, I was excited with anticipation.
The movie lovingly portrays a Bengali family in NY. Ashoke, a graduate student in Physics at Columbia University, and Ashima Ganguli move to the US after a typical Indian arranged marriage in Calcutta, India. They raise a family with a son and a daughter in the US, and in the process, all of them face issues of identity, culture, family and values, and the eternal question that many of us ask: 'Where do I belong?'.
Mira Nair's grasp of minute detail parallels that of the novel. Like her previous movies, notably 'Monsoon Wedding', the movie conveys not just events, but moods, emotions and atmospheres using carefully sketched shots and subtle gestures. The lead actors, Irrfan Khan and Tabu, excel in the roles of Ashoke and Ashima, and the other actors are not far behind.
The cinematography is simply awe-inspiring. The longing shots of Calcutta's narrow lanes induces traveling bugs in the most sedate, and the Taj Mahal begs each of us to awaken our inner Shah Jahan. Nitin Sawhney's music of course, is as stellar as usual. The Asian underground fans among us will find several familiar tracks and a worthy soundtrack. And of course, there are the inside jokes that the Bollywood fan will appreciate.
The movie deviates from the book in a few inevitable ways, the result of the book-to-movie transition. However, the most significant and welcome change was that of focus: while the book portrays Gogol (Nikhil), the 2nd generation Indian as the protagonist, the movie is more about his parents, most notably his mother, and her growth and struggles in unfamiliar cultures. The cultural struggles of immigrants and second-generation 'confused' kids has been related before, but what of the women who bring them up? That was a story that needed to be told, and as is her wont, Mira Nair does it in breathtaking fashion.
A few minor quibbles: the second half of the movie does drag a bit trying to decide whose story to tell more of. Gogol's lovers, Maxine and Moushumi, are portrayed in a more shallow and unsympathetic manner as compared to the book.
However, those minor complaints melt away with the sheer power of the movie, and if you're like most people I've been hearing from, including myself, you'll want to pick up the phone and call your parents as soon as the credits start rolling.
Kabul Express (2006)
Brave and bold movie
Synopsis: Jai (Warsi) and Suhail (Abraham) are Indian journalists in Afghanistan in quest of the elusive Taliban. Unfortunately for them, Talibs are hard to find, and those that are found are promptly and brutally lynched by Afghans or sold to Americans. Jessica (Arsenio) is a Reuters journalist on the same quest who gets thrown together with them. Their driver/guide Khyber (Humghum) helps them in the quest.
The group gets kidnapped by a vicious-looking Talib (Shahid) who's trying to reach the Pakistan border. And this starts off a road trip which provides insights into the Afghan conflict for all of them and us.
On this road trip, they get caught in bushkazi, a sufi trance, kebabs, women's rights and lots of other situations.
Review: On the whole, a very brave and bold attempt by a traditional bollywood production house. Definitely deserves a watch if only for that reason. The cinematography is breathtaking, the Afghan people and actors are wonderfully and heartbreakingly natural. The comedic dialogue and situations keep the movie from getting depressing. The movie tries to tread a politically correct yet sensitive line and provides a sympathetic and humorous portrayal of the ruthless Afghan chessboard from an Indian perspective.
On the cons side, Linda Arsenio is a seriously bad actress. What the heck, she's good looking and probably the only gori they found who was ready to film in Afghanistan! The editing could have been a lot more crisp for a road film: the parts between the 'events' drag a bit. Also, I wished there was some more focus on the lives of the Afghan people.
Westerners also might not like the 9/11 footage used to introduce the movie. Personally, I think it works fine.
However, all these are minor complaints, and should not stop anyone from giving this movie a fair chance.