The Namesake (2007) Review

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(More customer reviews)This movie deals with Bengali culture in India and families both in their native lands and abroad - and I have to say is one of the most satisfying and beautiful watches I had the pleasure of sitting down to. To an Irishman of 49 and typical multiplex type, I'd admit that most of the cast is unrecognizable to me, but that makes no odds, because all are uniformly superb. And I love the insights the film gives into a culture as fascinating as theirs.
It begins in 1977 when a young Bengali man (who has been to study in the USA since 1974) is back in his native Calcutta to meet his new bride - one that is picked out for him whether he likes her or not. He is Ashoke, an engineer with prospects - played subtly and gently by a fantastic Irrfan Khan. Ashoke gets real lucky - his bride is the quietly beautiful Ashima (it means limitless, played by the gorgeous Bollywood star Tabu). Waiting with her parents, Ashoke looks uncomfortable but resigned - its been done this way for centuries. Before Ashima goes into the room to see him for the first time - she tries on his American shoes he's left outside the room - they fit and she likes them - a good sign. Ashima takes them off and meekly enters - ultra respect to her elders. Ashoke is not traditionally handsome, but his big soppy bug-eyes and equally studious glasses tell you that this is a good man - and an intelligent one. They marry in full traditional dress and custom. Ashima waves her family goodbye at the airport and then on to New York.
Life in America is foreign to her, but she adapts. Besides, something else is happening that makes it all bearable; Ashima is slowly but surely falling in love with her 'chosen' husband. It's in these scenes that the film shows it true charm - it's so beautifully and realistically handled (many scenes returned to later in flashback to flesh out dialogue that is important and pivitol to the story). Their relationship is an evolving love, away from need and initial awkwardness into a mutual respect for each other. The believability of the two lead actors here is crucial - and you can feel their drawing together - year after year after year.
The story continues to both of their kids being born (a boy and a girl), then young, then grown up and full of New Yawk attitude and difficulty with the 'old ways' - even with their names. 1st born - and most rebellious - the boy's name is Gogol (played by Kal Penn), which he hates with a passion until he finds out why his father called him that (a train journey and a passenger who changed his life). Gogol and his sister's dual identities cause them both conflict and even heartache. They endure racism, work, snobbery, meet potential partners, they marry - and on it goes - to sad and joyful surprises as their life journey progresses. It's set across 25 years and there's a lot crammed in. (Gogul's sister Sonia is played by Sahira Nair)
The Namesake is as much about Indian culture (then and now) as it is about the power and pull of family - that one thing that unites us all with love and misery in equal measure! I can't recommend this movie enough - in my Top 20 with a bullet. A gentle and beautiful surprise I heartily recommend.
P.S.: Like Gustavo Santaolalla's music in "The Motorcycle Diaries" and "Babel", Nitin Sawhney's music is one of the reasons the movie has such slow and majestic power - an absolutely gorgeous soundtrack - and one I'm going to buy pronto!
P.P.S.: The title of this review is from the dedication in the credits by the director Mira Nair.

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Babies (2010) Review

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(More customer reviews)A short time ago, my wife and I were joined by a new baby and our remarkable little boy is now at 19 months. The baby was a first for both of us and neither of us had almost any prior experience with an infant. Everything that unfolded was new and a very interesting experience. When my wife spotted the new "Babies" movie, we just had to see it. We both enjoyed it very much and will be buying the DVD when it becomes available.
The movie is a very unusual documentary of four babies in four different parts of the world (San Francisco, Tokyo, Mongolia and Namibia) and four different cultures. There is no story. There are no spoken words, only background sounds. The movie goes from scene to scene, back and forth, back and forth from baby to baby and location to location. We watched with fascination as each baby learned to adapt and cope with it's new life as it unfolded in it's particular environment. Very interesting to watch. We cringed at some of the baby experiences and laughed at others. Of course, we had our own living example for comparison and it has promoted a wealth of conversation.
If you have a newborn/toddler, be sure to see this movie. You'll enjoy it immensely. Actually,babies are so interesting and humorous that almost anyone could enjoy the film. It's a very unusual movie to view. The photography in the various settings is excellent. The sound is good. Relax and enjoy.
Gary Peterson

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La Mission (2009) Review

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(More customer reviews)Writer/director Peter Bratt had the choice in LA MISSION to make a film about the Hispanic culture in San Francisco's Mission district to create a predictable imitation of life or a sensitive study of a culture with all of its beauty and with all of its problems: gratefully he took the latter. This is a film bursting with fantastic color from the inimitable clash of pigments used for the interiors of the homes of this culture to the fantasyland carefully restored old cars painted with religious and emotional scenes - the proud mark of the Low Riders - and the street celebrations full of lust and glamour and the intoxicating foods and dance. But it is also an internal film dealing with such realities as alcoholism, prison time, single parenting problems, pride in a child's educational and athletic achievements - and the delicate issue of responding to the presence of same sex relationships. It is a banquet of delights and problems that Bratt handles magnificently well.
Che Rivera (Benjamin Bratt in a role that defines his fine acting abilities) has served time in prison, is an Alcoholics Anonymous member, and since his wife's death early in their marriage is the loving father of his well-educated and well-loved son Jesse (Jeremy Ray Valdez, in a role that should mark him for an important career). Che works hard as a bus driver, spends his free time restoring old cars to ride every Friday evening - 'slow, low riding through the streets of San Francisco's Mission neighborhood'. His family includes Rene (Jesse Borrego) and Ana (Talisa Soto) who share as much pride in Jess as Che: their only son was born with a cardiac defect that has made them more sensitive to the differences in children. Che has only one problem: Jesse is gay and has a boyfriend Jordan (Max Rosenak) and the discovery of Jesse secret life destroys Che image of his family and of himself. A neighbor Lena (Erika Alexander) befriends Jesse and eventually Che and Lena are draw together over a tragedy that occurs: Jesse is shot by a homophobic fellow student, forcing Che to face his own demons and begin to understand his son more fully. The excellent way in which Bratt handles these major crossroad confrontations is written and directed and acted with such sensitivity - nothing occurs as expected and everyone maintains dignity - a very difficult range of emotions to handle.
The entire cast is excellent, the dialogue is spicy, the characters are well conceived, the particular gifts of Erika Alexander as a woman with a history of abuse who is devoting her life to working in a women's shelter who allows her physical needs to be met while maintaining her ownership of a wise woman of experience are extremely well utilized, and this film offers a platform deserving of the talent of Benjamin Bratt and Jeremy Ray Valdez. It is a tough story told with great sensitivity and truth. Hiro Narita's cinematography and Mark Kilian's musical score round out this very fine achievement in cinematic art. Grady Harp, August 10

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Set in the colorful, seedy streets of the San Francisco district that bears its name, La MISSION is a haunting story of healing and transformation: the healing of a broken man, of a father s relationship with his son, and of a neighborhood struggling to break the chains of violence.

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