Based on a best seller novel written by Mosin Hamid. Changez Khan came to America because he thought the playing field would be level in this country. He was able to attend Princeton on scholarships and a well-known Wall Street firm hired him as a business analyst. He's on the fast track to fulfill his dreams. He meets Erica and they become a couple. She is still morning her previous boyfriend who was killed in a car accident. Everything changes after the World Trade Center disaster. Changez doesn't need to choose sides, they are chosen for him because he is seen as an enemy from Pakistan.
I could tell right away this film was based on a novel. The characters don't seem real enough even though the events could be real. Everything seems to remain on the novel pages and they don't come to life on the screen? There are heavy themes including alienation, discrimination, terrorism or the threat of it, economics and geopolitical strife. Teens may see it's appeal minimized? Some edgy and intense content with kidnapping, shootings, demonstrations, moments where violent picture appear. Some swearing, social drinking, kissing rolling around and naked shoulders. It is unlike most post 9/11 films since it revolves around a young Pakistani man who dares to live the American dream but he faces a bitter reality check? 2 1/2* (This movie was so-so)
130 min, Drama directed by Mira Nair and written by Javed Akhtar, Ami Boghani, Mohsin Hamid, William Wheeler with Riz Ahmed, Liev Schreiber, Kiefer Sutherland, Kate Hudson, Om Puri, Shabana Azmi, Martin Donovan, Nelsan Ellis, Haluk Bilginer, Meesha Sahfi.
Note: Goodreads gives the novel 3.72 out of 5* with 59,779 ratings and 6,098 reviews, Imdb 6.9 out of 10 with 13,150 reviews, Rotten Tomatoes 57% with 98 critics 61% with 5,587 user ratings, Roger Ebert 3* Omer M. Mozaffar, Amazon 4* out of 5* with 119 reviews, Metacritic 54 out of 100 with 28 critic reviews (12 positive, 13 mixed, 3 negative, 8.1 out of 10 with 23 ratings (19 positive, 3 mixed, 1 negative), Common Sense Media S. Jhoanna Robeldo, age 17+, 2* positive messages, 3* role models, 3* violence, 3* sex, 3* language, 3* consumerism, 2* drinking, drugs & smoking.
Special Note: The name Changez is a Pakistani version of Genghis from Genghis Khan. On the first day of filming in the tea shop, one of the main actors in the scene refused to say their lines as previously discussed and rehearsed. There was a frantic rewrite of the script in a race against the shooting schedule. The actor was not named but it can be assumed that it was Liev Schreiber or Riz Ahmed?
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