A British Gem: East is East

Back in the day, there was this drama teacher who I still consider to be one of the biggest positive influences of my life. Let’s not mention that she may have been stark raving mad, but she taught me to have an unshakeable belief in myself. I’ve never forgotten this lesson.

It was also this drama teacher that introduced me to East is East; a film I’ve recently re-watched and I’m now convinced was ahead of its time.

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East is East is about a British-Pakistani family struggling to overcome several cultural differences.

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 The most surprising thing about East is East is how it doesn’t turn into a disaster of a movie based on the different themes and ideas it is trying to juggle. There is a hell of a lot of things going on in this film and I’m pretty sure that the 15 year old Bear missed quite a few back in school.

Before I get into the heavy emotional stuff, it’s important to make clear that East is East is a very funny film. Stomach achingly funny. The humour may get drowned out when the film gets dark and serious, but it always finds away to seep through the cracks of the heavy stuff. It is surprisingly and consistently funny.

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With that said, it’s this consistent humour which makes the film’s drama elements feel pitch black. It’s strange, because I have watched this film a number of times and it feels like it has gotten a lot more sinister. I think about what has happened in the world since this film came out and it’s not surprising I feel that way.

The father’s inability to come to terms with the fact that his children will not accept the strict Muslim traditions of his native Pakistan is a subject matter that is more relevant today than it was back in the late 90’s.

I can’t remember how I felt in drama class, but watching the father arrange the marriage of his children is hard to take and hard to comprehend - especially through the eyes of an ethicist African Brit. What is devastating about the way the film depicts arranged marriage is how routine it appears to be within the community, how offended the potential bride’s parents are by George's son's rejection and how this ‘disrespect’ by his own flesh and blood sends George into an almost homicidal rage. 

It’s horrible how real George feels in this film, I wanted him to be a caricature – credit to Om Puri, he’s terrifying.

Like I said earlier, the comedy is always bubbling underneath the surface and the film uses it to address the culture class issue further - whether it’s the children eating pig products or the youngest son needing a circumcision.

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What makes this film ahead of its time is how it deals with the subject matter of religion and clashes in culture. It doesn’t overplay the religion card and I wonder if this would have been the case if it was released three years later. Islam is an important factor within film, but it isn’t the only factor to consider. It isn’t Islam that is the driving force to George’s madness, it’s his desire to exert control over his family and regain some respect.

I also think the ghost of George’s gay son sends him deeper down the rabbit hole than any other issue in the film.

What it does with Islam is use it to ask very interesting questions. Are the circular British culture (the sexual revolution culture) and  the Pakistani/Muslim culture compatible? It doesn't bail the audience out and answer the question either.

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This cultural compatibility question was asked of me and my family when we moved to the UK. I chose to wholeheartedly accept British culture, warts and all, but my parents wanted me to be as devoted to Christianity as they were back in the motherland.

I guess the difference is, my parents didn't violently try to make me conform. Fair enough, I still had to go to church and if I resisted I caught a wooping, but when I was old enough they simply accepted that it wasn't for me and we moved on.

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You can’t watch this film without thinking about what 9/11 has done to the reputation of the Muslim family in the western world. What is most telling about this film to post 9/11 eyes is its complex depiction of family life in the Pakistani community. It is unburdened by the black and white broad strokes of the post 9/11 era. Things are very grey indeed.

It’s a very complicated film, and for me that is refreshing. Like I said earlier, there are a lot of things going on here; I forgot to even mention interracial relationships and racism as themes in this film.

This is a gem of a movie that I hope we don’t forget in a hurry.

                                            @chocoteddyfilms

Piss and Horror

I was put in a really embarrassing situation on Twitter a while back when Malcolm Khalil X/@KhalilHT3 (god, I hope that’s his real name) asked me what was the last horror film which really scared me.

Truth is, I’m not a big horror fan and there are many reasons for this. One is because I hate surprises. Ask anyone who knows me personally; I hate not knowing things before they happen. I hate birthdays/Christmas, because people hide presents from me and have a perverse need to see my reaction when I open their gifts. I hate it so much. You have no idea how many times I’ve had to exaggerate or down-right lie after I’ve opened a gift. And on the rare occasion when someone surprises me with something that moves me emotionally – I hate it more. I hate being speechless, or worse, crying in front of people. I’m not that guy.

Bringing it back to films a little bit – the hatred of surprises is also why I ruin a lot of films for myself by seeking out spoilers before I see them. Yes, I’m that guy that must watch every trailer, comb every forum for every little secret piece of information before I pay the extortionate amount of money in the cinema. And I accept that this tendency has ruined many films for me. For example, I’ve recently read a full blown description of what happens in the new Star Trek film.

And it’s this need to never be shocked, to never be left emotionally venerable that has caused me to not have the greatest relationship with horror films.

But it has never always been that way.

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The first real horror film I ever saw was Michael Jackson’s Thriller – and yes, I’m counting it as an actual film. I loved it, I thought it was cool and I thought the zombies were creepy. But when the zombies started to get to me, which was about the point when the dudes hand fell off, they broke out into a line dance. So, yeh.

My reaction to Thriller was very different to many in my family. My little sister, who is five years younger than me, was so disturbed by it that she refused to watch it every again. I used to tease her by unsuspectingly putting the film on and it used to reduce her to tears (don’t judge me).

This brings me on nicely to another horror film that made an impression on me.

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Once upon a time, my other little sister (only a year younger) was having a sleepover and, for some reason, I was in charge of what films she and her friends got to watch. All she specified was “something scary”. So together with my dad, we went to Blockbusters and hired The Exorcist (god bless my father).

I remember watching that film with my two sisters and their friends (like a pimp) and thinking how boring it was. In fact, a lot of their friends were also complaining about how nothing was happening. Until Linda Blair pissed herself.

After that point, I can’t remember my sister or her friends saying a mumbling word. Just jumping and screaming. After the sleepover, my youngest sister was so affected by the film that she demanded to sleep in my parent room for about a month or so (My other sister crept in for a couple of days as well). I laughed this off – but the hiding I got from my dad after watching that film suggested that it wasn’t a joke (note, he was there with me when I picked the film).

If I was honest with myself, that film messed me up as well. The imagery in The Exorcist may be tame by today’s standards but to an early teen it was pretty piss-inducing stuff. In fact, for me, the more I watch that film with adult eyes, the scarier it gets. There is an actual fathomable story and theme behind that film to support its iconic imagery – and I find that story ridiculous scary.

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Perversely, the older I and my sisters got the more scary films we consumed. With that said, after The Exorcist, the only “horror” film I enjoyed was Interview with the Vampire. I found horror films of the late 2000s to be nothing more than husk vehicles with no point to them other than to surprise you, make you jump and squirm. And I hate that.

I find the Scream, Saw and Paranormal Activity franchise to be utterly pointless. I don’t get them, I don’t understand them and they don’t get under my skin like The Exorcist did.

I appreciate that maybe horror films are not my bag and that I don’t understand them. It also may very well be the case that I am a huge (censor) sissy who doesn’t have the testicular fortitude to stand his ground during such films. I accept that this maybe the case. I tried to watch Shutter Island, but as soon as I saw that scary old lady at the start, I switched the film off.

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I really would love to learn more about horror films. I’d love an enthusiast to show me the soul behind what I feel is a very soulless genre of late. But I fear that horror films are just like those people that want to catch me out by surprising with a gift – but instead of making me smile, they want to see me piss myself.

                                    @chocoteddyfilms

A Forgotten Great: The Usual Suspects

It's crazy, I almost forgot about The Usual Suspects. It used to be one of my favourite films. It's just that over the years I've been so busy watching other films that I haven't gone back to rewatch this masterpiece.

And that is what The Usual Suspects is, a masterpiece. Be in no doubt. This is why I love this guest post by Amila Gacanica - It reminded me of how special this film is. Her passion and genuine love for The Usual Suspect leaks all through this piece.

Have a butchers. 

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When I first saw the Usual Suspects in my A-Level film studies class, it completely transformed the way I watched movies. I was already a big film enthusiast, but Suspects made me want to look deeper into films. After Suspects, I was more analytical of every bit of information offered by the director.

When people ask me about my favourite film, I base the answer on the impact that film had on me. Sometimes I’ll mention Nightmare on Elm Street, simply because I watched it when I was 9 years old and it truly scared the crap out of me when it came to bedtime.

But The Usual Suspects is by far my favourite film, because as soon as it finished I left college, bought the film, and watched it again. I was so amazed by the ending.

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The Usual Suspects (1995!!!) tells the story of five criminals brought together for an interrogation (fun fact: all the actors were drunk in the famous interrogation scene) about a truck hi-jacking. While held for a crime they didn’t commit, they hatch a plan to get their revenge on the police. They pull the plan off perfectly.

While out in LA, a lawyer called Kobayashi gets in contact with them on behalf of a legendary criminal mastermind named Keyser Soze. Each one of the suspects has wronged Soze at one point and to excuse their past wrongdoings he has set them a mission. The survivors of this extremely dangerous mission stood to earn a split of a massive $91m jackpot. What criminal could decline? The mission was to interrupt a massive drug deal that’s taking place on board of a boat, docked in San Pedro. They are instructed to destroy the cocaine onboard and of course take the money afterwards. Obviously.

The story is told through a series of flashbacks by one of the survivors, a crippled small time crook, named Verbal Kint (Kevin Spacey). He tells his story to a police detective, Officer Kujan. Kint is one of two survivors telling the tale, the other is in hospital with 65% of his body badly burnt, describing how Keyser Soze looked like while FBI attempt to construct a picture.

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There is so much going on in this film. On one hand it’s a great action adventure film, but there are hints of film noir peppered throughout it. Bryan Singer does a great job directing this film in a superb style, making what could have been an average caper storyline seem unique.

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The Usual Suspects made such a cultural impact that even for some who haven’t seen the film, they know who Keyser Soze is. He is described as an international underground criminal, who uses people like “pawns" to carry out his work. Almost all the people doing his bidding do not know they are working for Keyser Soze. The film does a great job in building this mythical persona, this puppet master that you are left asking the question pretty early on 'Who is Keyser Soze?'

“The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist.” 

Even the cast didn’t know who he was. All five suspects thought they were Soze at one point. Gabriel Byrne was particularly shocked at a film screening that he is said to have had a few words with the director.

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As the story nears to its end, Officer Kujan presses Verbal to admit that Keaton (Gabriel Byrne) is Soze. Keaton was the only one (being an ex-cop) that could have all the information on the five criminals, and have the knowledge to set-up the whole botched mission.

Verbal buys Kujan’s story. I bought Kujan’s story and I thought it was an amazing end to an amazing film.

But what happened next blew me away.

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Verbal is distraught after talking to Kujan and refuses to accept police protection. As he leaves the police station, the FBI is faxing a photo-fit picture of Keyser Soze provided by the other survivor in the hospital.

Kujan is seen talking to his colleague facing a board with unsolved cases on it. Suddenly the camera is drawn to specific cases, and words and phrases on the board - words and phrases that have been used by Verbal during his interview with Kujan. Kujan finally realises that he’s been had and (in shock) drops his mug of coffee. What’s written on the bottom of the mug? The word ‘Kobayashi’ (Kujan, you’re a mug mate).

For moral reason, I cannot tell you what happens next, just in case you haven’t seen it. But you've probably guessed.

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This film was ahead of its time in 1995 and that is still the case today. It leaves you with a lot of questions, one of them being, was Verbal that clever? Was the whole story false?

When the film was over, I jumped to my feet and started clapping and when a film makes you want to physically do that, you know you’ve seen something special.

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Thank you to Mr Bear for giving the opportunity to ramble on about this fantastic film. If you haven’t seen it, what is wrong with you?

                                                  

                                                              @AM1LL10N

Vue answers my prayer

I’ve had quite a lot of PR stuff come to my inbox since I started this blog. A lot of it straight garbage.

 It’s not that I am hostile to PR, I’m really not - it’s just that the stuff they were offering was... well crap. Simply put, it wasn’t worth my time.

This all changed recently.

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One of my real regrets in life is never seeing some of my all time favourite films on the big screen. It sounds stupid, but it ticks at me.

Some crafty mofo at Vue cinema has come up with an idea so sweet all I have to say is...

Vue cinemas are showing a string of classic films from now until June. I’m not talking arguable classics, I’m talking Trainspotting, A Clockwork Orange and BONNIE AND CLYDE. Let me say that last one again – BONNIE AND CLYDE.

They are holding a Twitter and Facebook vote to decide what will be the last film they show during this festival of classic films. The choices are between Anchorman, Enter The Dragon, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Robocop and The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. I’m going with Robocop.

They are calling this new thing "Back in Vue". I’m calling it a prayer answered.

More details can be found here. 

Brokeback Collins

Jason Collins (some NBA player I’d never heard of until recently) declared, to much fanfare, that he was gay. In his coming out piece to Sports Illustrated he began by saying:

“I’m a 34-year-old NBA center. I’m black. And I’m gay.”

I’m feeling a little proud of myself at the moment because my reaction to this big story is me wondering why it’s a big story. I genuinely don’t care. I didn’t even know who this bloke was until his name started clogging up my Twitter timeline and appearing on news-sites.

What did catch my eye was the emphasis he put on his skin colour. I’ve seen a lot of coming-outs of celebrities in my life time, but I can’t remember them bringing their race into it. In fact, come to think of it, I can’t remember any coming out of a black celebrity at all. And when my lady and a couple of friends asked me why his race was such a big deal in this subject matter, I simply shrugged and said: “we black folks are some homophobic SOBs”.

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About 7 years ago I was probably the most homophobic little runt around. I put this down to many factors. And yes, being black, or more specifically, of African descent, was one of them. I come from a very religious family. Not just religious, but African religious. If you know anything about how African countries treat gay people, you know the term homophobia just doesn’t cut it. On top of this, I am a huge hip-hop fan and that isn’t a gay friendly music.

But I can point to one event that changed my outlook on the LGBT community. To the point, one film that started to make me look at this subject matter very differently.

Brokeback Mountain.

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I have very contradictory views about Brokeback – It’s a very ordinary movie, while also being an extraordinary movie.

I remember the hype surrounding this film, marketed as if it’s a shocking and revolutionary piece of cinema, when in truth it’s simply a love story. In fact, if you swap the two male leads for a heterosexual couple, it becomes an unremarkable love story like the ones in Dear John or The Notebook. But as it stands, with its gay characters, it becomes something more. That unremarkability gives you space to actually think about the subject of gay relationships and homophobia, without being distracted by controversy.

If this was a film with heterosexual leads, they would be unsympathetic adulterous characters. As it stands, it’s still a film about two people cheating on their wives, but all the way through this film I felt sorry for the poor bastards. I mean, I felt excruciating sympathy for them. Not disgust or anger at the fact that they are gay, but heartfelt sorrow for their situation.

The difference between me now and the homophobic me back in 2005 is that I didn’t understand what true desperation was. I am an extroverted person, I wear my feelings on my sleeve. I have never been in a situation where I couldn’t be… well, me. What Brokeback Mountain gets across very well is how these two characters have had to lie for most of their lives about who they are. That time up the mountain is the only time they could be themselves. It also happens to be the case that in 2005 I was at university and actually got to know gay people. They were not just a theory, the proverbial monsters – they were real people I studied with, I talked to and to my surprise (yep I was/am that big headed), they didn’t try to jump me or convert me in anyway. They were cool. Knowing this and watching Brokeback, it was difficult to see Jack and Ennis’ story unfold, brush it aside and quote the “Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve” line.

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In truth, watching Brokeback Mountain was difficult for me. It was bad enough watching the torture of Jack and Ennis, but it was worse watching the behaviour of the farmer, Jack’s wife and ultimately his killers. Their intolerance and homophobia bothered me. It messed me up because in their hatred I saw myself and started to question why I felt that way and the truthful answer is that I didn’t know. I didn’t know why I discriminated and was openly hostile towards a group of people that I had absolutely no dealings with.

Brokeback Mountain is the first film that revealed what an ugly fucking person I was. And importantly, it showed me that I was a hypocrite.

Back then, me and my baby mama (who was just my girlfriend at the time) experienced minor events where complete strangers took umbrage at the fact that we were together (by the way, my lady happens to be white). I remember while watching Brokeback wondering how I have the balls to look down and discriminate against gay people when people were doing the same to me. If me and my woman lived in the American south not too long ago, it would have been illegal to be together. People claimed it was against nature.

Hypocrisy.

And then I started to think about all the arguments against gay people and the stupidity began to unravel. Although I was from a religious family, I wasn’t even a little bit religious. And as far as I know, not a single gay person had tried to convert and break me and Lady Bear up. Now heterosexual folks on the other hand…
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I’m not saying this 180 in thinking took place over one sitting of this film – that wasn’t the case. I’m saying that this film was the catalyst for that change in thinking. Having gay friends that were out and could share their story and experiences helped as well. Also, as stupid as it sounds, seeing Eminem (“Homophobic, nah, you’re just heterophobic”) perform with Elton John helped too. Thinking for myself was a huge revelation. All this helped me to get to a stage where I can shrug off this Collins story and just simply say that it’s not a big deal.

But I know that Collins could inspire some homophobic black kid somewhere to rethink his stupid views until one day we can reach a point where all this hatred isn’t necessary and everyone can just live their lives -minding their own business.


                                                         @chocoteddyfilms

Dissent: The Hurt Locker

I've had a few people talk to me about my Hurt Locker post. Opinions were 50/50 to be honest with you. No one felt the film was as bad as I claimed it was, but not necessary as good as the praise it got when it came out. 

One of my Twitter friends (and yes, I'm one of those people who consider some followers friends), Ben Amponsah, took offense to the post:

"What tosh! As an ex Army man I can comprehensively demolish your theory that it doesn't capture the feel. I was a Demolition, and Officer too and I can honestly say that it does capture a lot of the tensions and mental chicanery necessary for the job! "I do like some of what you post but you are on very dangerous territory when you trash a war film for being inauthentic when you yourself have no military experience whatsoever."

I totally take Ben's point here. I readily say that I am a coward - a coward that respects the sacrifices military personnel make. Ben isn't the first person with combat experience that has told me that the film hits too close to home - members of my own family, that are still serving, have told me similar things about the film.

But, my critique of The Hurt Locker being inauthentic isn't original. Where I was just basing this view on gut instinct, this view has also been expressed by war veterans here, here and here. But, again, this doesn't detract from Ben's wider point. 

He's lived it. He's walked the walk. And I haven't.

Another Disney Classic: Princess and The Frog

I wouldn't be the first person to say that the past 10 years or so has been indifferent for Disney. They went from a company that made classic movies to a company that bought companies that made classic movies. I’m as big of a fan of Pixar as the next bloke, but Pixar doesn't hold the same place in my heart that Disney does. This is the same company that made Aladdin, The Lion King and Bambi – three of my favourite films of all time. I mean, we’re talking about my childhood here.

They've recently made Enchanted (another one of my favourites), Bolt and Tangled, three very good films which show that Disney, as a studio, still know what they are doing; but one film showed that Disney still have that one killer ingredient left in them – magic.

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The Princess and the Frog is a film that has grown on me with every sitting. At first glance it feels like a re-thread of previous Disney classics – the back to basics drawn animation, the music and the Princess – but repeated screenings reveals the film for what it truly is, another Disney Classic.

The animation feels as familiar as my mother’s cooking. It’s delicious and nobody can replicate it, no matter how hard they try.

Every character feels rounded and complex, even the bad guy. The Shadow Man had to live up to a long tradition of scary as hell villains and he, as well as his friends, don’t disappoint. I think he’s up there with the Evil Queen, Scar and Ursula. Frightening.

But it’s Tiana that warms my heart. I’ve recently had a little baby girl and if she grows up to have anything close to Tiana’s attitude, I’ll be delighted. I’ve never rooted for a Disney princess more and her independence and determination is the reason why I think she'll go on to be an icon.

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The music in this film is incredible. The soundtrack is as good as any Disney film. Every song is strong and wonderful – every single one. I’ve already started singing 'Almost There' to my frightened and confused little girl, but I absolutely love the message of that song.
Also, a quick word on the song 'My Belle Evangeline': the first time I heard that song, I had goosebumps. It’s just beautiful.   

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I don’t know if the film made enough money to warrant Disney to consider these types of movies worth it. But based on the product itself, they should be extremely proud to have it in their portfolio.

I can't wait to sit down and watch this film with my own little princess.



                                                             @chocoteddyfilms