If you've given me an E and I haven't thanked you, I apologise - trying to catch up. Really apprecia...
If you've given me an E and I haven't thanked you, I apologise - trying to catch up. Really appreciate all ratings.
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George Khan leaves his native Pakistan, settles in the north of England just before the Second World War and marries an English woman, Ella. Many years later, the couple are still happily married and have six sons and a daughter. But whereas George tries to bring his family up to be good Muslims, they have other ideas, choosing to embrace the freedom that is open to their friends. When George tries to arrange a marriage for his eldest son, he flees on his wedding day, after which he is classed as dead to George. Then the battle to marry off two of his other sons begins. Will he be successful? Or will his wife and children finally be able to lead the lives they chose?
There is a whole wealth of British Asian talent in this film and I spent the first half people spotting, recognising faces from The Bill, Casualty, Coronation Street and Eastenders. Jimi Mistry, who plays the most rebellious of the Khan sons, Tariq, is probably the most famous, after having made his name in Eastenders. The role of Tariq is probably the most prominent in the film - he certainly has the juiciest lines and his face, when trying to cope with his father's parental
control, is a picture. Abdul is played by Raji James (Ash from Eastenders) and at first is a direct contrast to Tariq, choosing to obey his father. However, when the crunch comes, he show that there is more to him than meets the eye, and Raji James gives a really good performance.
Chris Bisson as Saleem is another familiar face - he played Vikram Desai in Coronation Street, and so is Ian Aspinall as Nazir (Mubbs from Holby City. Both are good, although they don't have quite as much gritty dialogue as Tariq and Abdul. Chris Bisson in particular is very well cast - he has a very appealing face that I find very attractive, and is perfect for the rather cheeky little sod that he plays. There is even a brief performance by Jimmi Harkishin, who plays Dev in Coronation Street. The fact that there are so many actors in the film means that there is little character development, which I would usually see as a disadvantage. In this case though, I don't think it matters.
George Khan is played by Om Puri, an Indian actor about whom I have heard great things, although I haven't really seen him in much before. He gives a really brilliant performance as a father determined that his children will grow up to be good Muslims, even though he himself didn't marry into Islam. Linda Bassett also gives a sterling performance as Ella, who is determined that her children will be happy, even if it means going against her husband. She clearly loves George, but her hurt and confusion at what he is doing to her children comes clearly through in her face. Fantastic.
This film is a very interesting look at the difficulties imposed by settling in a foreign country and adapting, or not as the case here is, to a society where life is not as tightly regulated as you may want it to be. For George's children, this obviously causes all sorts of dilemmas. They want to please their father, but at the same time, they have grown up surrounded by Englishness and are desperate for a good time with their friends. Having myself lived abroad for a number of years, I could relate to their issues and thought that the writer, Ayub Khan-Din, and the director, Damien O'Donnell, dealt with them very well.
Although racism is not really dealt with in the film - this is about the Khan family and their relationship rather than the position of the Khans in society - there is one recurring reminder that not everyone is accepting of 'foreigners'. This is Enoch Powell's face on posters, put up all over the town. For those of you who don't know, Enoch Powell is well known for his far right views on immigration. At one point, one of the Khans, the only daughter, kicks a football straight through a window into Enoch Powell's face - a nice touch, I thought, and very to the point.
Despite the subject matter, this is a funny film. The Khan children are full of the joys of life and get into all sorts of scrapes behind their father's back. Ella brings a great deal of good old northeast English humour to the film in the way that she deals with her husband. It is perhaps this very humour that some have found insulting to Islam - I can't say that I found it so, but then I am not religious - I suppose the only way to deal with this is to avoid watching if you think you will be upset. There is a great deal of swearing, which may also offend some, as well as the odd bit of wife beating - again, if you are concerned about any of this, then stay well clear.
I really enjoyed this film. I thought the multicultural issues were dealt with really well; I certainly felt very deeply for the characters involved and really wanted things to work out for them. Obviously if any of the content I have mentioned is likely to offend, then you should probably stay away from this film, but otherwise, I think most people will find something to enjoy in it. Highly recommended.
Production Year: 2004 - Drama - Director: Nick Cassavetes - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over, 12 years and over - Starring: Rachel McAdams, Ryan Gosling, Gena Rowlands
May 11th, 2008
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