WATCH THE TRAILER HERE
First, the Recap:
“Seeing life through rose-colored glasses–or through the clear plastic cup your perfectly made mango lassi is in, perhaps? When our future is in any state of question or our current dreams are not yet coming to fruition, it’s easy to see everything, especially a new place to seek it all within, as the “land of opportunity”. However, why does it more often turn out that things are simply never THAT simple, seeing as we have, well, ourselves, to get out of the way first. Sisters Sam (Aizzah Fatima) and Maryam (Salena Qureshi), while Pakistani by familial heritage, have known America since birth. Trying to deal with career aspirations and discovering the challenges of finding the ideal man, the arrival of their cousin Ameera (Shenaz Treasury) from Lahore signals an abrupt transformation in all their circumstances and sends them on courses of not only potential life path prospects, but their entire understanding about what’s most important to grasp onto, always with the “assistance” of their deeply traditional mother, Khala (Lillete Dubey), of course!
Next, my Mind:
Served up via its Texas Premier as part of the Pakistani Programming as well as being the opening night feature film at the 2022 DFW SAFF sponsored by Toyota USA and hosted by Jingo Media Founder/Festival Director Jitin Hingorani and Artistic Director Ambica Dev, this absolutely brilliant slice of indie cinema’s creative prowess shines brightly and with absorbing, addicting, wholly entertaining, smartly conceived and executed writing, direction, characters, and should-never-go-out-of-style messages that more than warrant being heeded and applied to our own lives when it comes to assessing the misplaced value we put on so many elements of our existence we shouldn’t while likewise ignoring so many we SHOULD. Far from offering any standard romcom/dramedy cliches one might expect here, the film instead engagingly transcends them all while still maintaining the degree of realism and genuine heart that is purely undeniable and definitely necessary to guide the viewer through the emotional spectrum encountered.
As would be anticipated from that same line of thought above, the narrative that finds two sisters and their cousin desperately attempting to navigate notions of the American Dream while also being steeped in traditional Pakistani societal “norms”, parental expectations, and gender roles accompanied by racial and immigrant-based discrimination, the plot finds SO many tangents along these foundational thematic lines to explore while providing us more than a fair share of consistent laughs and stirring dramatic instances to highlight it all. From making a playful joke about the Americanization of their home culture (aka: things that are “…ish”), having an overly idealistic envisioning of what America is, the push to make things happen, stepping out of comfort zones to excel and/or experience more, ingrained perceptions and misconceptions about color and accompanying beliefs, past hurts, decisions made too quickly, the concept of children “leaving the nest”, the importance of family, and discovering who you really ARE and NEED to be rather than being at the whim of other’s wishes, these still only provide us a relatively broad portrait at what the film delivers so magnificently and impactfully through humor and gravitas.
There is also the focus on traditionalism vs. modernity explored on many occasions. Even if one does feel that the romantic angles the story takes are “expected” or anticipated as the film progresses, frankly, SO WHAT? It doesn’t remotely remove the consummate enjoyment we are entreated to from start to finish, nor does it diminish the beauty of the effort’s finale and the positive reinforcement about the challenges faced and victories won that life throws our way to confront. It’s the complete relatability factor that works so smartly and effectively here, regardless of what gender you are or country of origin you herald from. It’s the melting pot of America we see and while it does remind somewhat, sadly, of the real-life division, anger, and fear we’re facing in this nation over immigration/immigrants and color, it also illustrates ultimately what America SHOULD be about as well–a wellspring of real freedom, colorblind, equal for all, and offering the exact kind of latitude TO chase attainable dreams and accomplish them while being YOU. Basically, we are in REAL, REAL, DEEP need to get BACK to “one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for ALL”.
A truly spectacular ensemble cast leads this movie forward, and I start with Fatima in her role as Sam, the elder of two sisters born and bred in America but of immigrant parents from Pakistan, who’s currently found her strivings aimed at becoming a successful businesswoman. Given that the amount of work this entails dominates her daily life, it’s clear that certain ideas about what America is supposed to be vs. how she has seen and experienced it has had an impact on her mindset and attitudes, even more apparent when cousin Ameera arrives fresh off the proverbial boat with her notions about the country. As Sam maneuvers through the ups and downs of her workplace goals and her family’s varying struggles and endeavors, it could become an unanticipated wake-up call for her that has been long overdue and that she herself has perhaps been a tad blind to, even when it comes to real love. Fatima delivers a fantastic performance that shifts from intense to tender, and it befits the character so overtly well, lending total realism to Sam’s journey.
Next, Qureshi brings out an unequivocally endearing level of beautifully innocent charm and dormant-but-bubbling-under-the-surface vigor through her role as Sam’s younger sister Maryam, a medical student whose world is filled with nothing but studying for the MCATs to then see her medical career path propelled ahead. Also immersed in the grander exercising of her cultural background that she seems reluctant to relinquish despite Sam’s perceived and direct insistence, Maryam soon finds herself wrapped up in serious puppy love that may add a decidedly drastic alteration to her plans. Even as she also tries to maintain a close bond with her mother as the “proper” daughter, it soon causes a war within her as to what she will desire to achieve vs. what presumed outcomes for her life are upon her. It is a sometimes understated, other times blatant dichotomy of realizations Maryam must handle, and watching Qureshi guide the character through it all is wonderful to witness and take in.
Then there is Treasury who honestly plays “scene stealer” in almost every moment she’s on screen through her role here as Ameera, Sam and Maryam’s cousin who arrives to America for the first time with the precise magnitude of starry-eyed, “I’m in AWE of America”, fully imagined hopes and dreams in mind elation that just cries naiveté incarnate. Her effusive joy, sunbeam-inspired smile, and plucky attitude are hard to ignore or not get swept up in, but even as Ameera begins to have her own collisions with a myriad of American societal fundamentals that challenge all the often comically addressed ideas she has about everything, it might take an extreme situation for her to finally acknowledge that fact that the main facets of her life she’s seeking may not turn out the way she’d pictured, but that this ISN’T a BAD thing. Treasury is a definitive gem here, an effervescent presence that just commands the screen and provides such an unavoidably loveable measure of sweetly delightful, often hilarious merriment to the events while also being serious when needed.
Superb primary supporting roles arrive first through the awesome veteran talent of Dubey as the Sam and Maryam’s HIGHLY traditional mother Khala, a woman with a difficult past possessing equal amounts love and stubbornness when it comes to the plans SHE sees for her daughters and Ameera, though whether she can actually GAIN what she wishes with this remains quite in question. Godfrey plays Gabriel, a local shop owner and black Muslim who has the fortunate (?) happenstance to meet Ameera and become a mentor in America for her, though more could be brewing. Kapil Talwalkar is Shahid, on of Maryam’s study group members with whom she is more than infatuated with and soon might become both her biggest joy or burden. “Sledge Hammer” himself David Rasche arrives as Sam’s boss Jim, who needs to learn his own lessons on gender equality and who’s really right for a job while trying to maintain a tenuous relationship his firm has in representing a senatorial candidate named Douglas Smarts, played by the late character actor extraordinaire George Wendt, a politician with some serious issues when it comes to his thoughts on immigrants. Ajay Naidu is Jawad, a doctor whom Ameera believes is “the one” when she meets him–or is he?
Mohammed Amer is Zane, a police officer with whom Sam has initial run-ins with and could spell an unforeseen connection between them. Additional turns come aplenty and with wonderfully entertaining skill from Anuja Joshi, Lucie Pohl, Purva Bedi, Meghan Rafferty, Natasha Chandel, Bettina Bilger, Stephen O’Reilly, Vic Noto, Catrina Ganey, David Alan Madrick, Ratnesh Dubey, Debargo Sanyal, Ajna Jai, Sydney Farley, Mario Brassard, Dean Obeidallah, Geeta Citygirl Chopral, Ruba Thérèse Mansouri, Kapil Bawa, Elle Vertes, Vinny Anand, Natalie Kim, Marian Licha, Foster Reisz, Kabir Chopra, Shetal Shah, Ioannis Athanasios Zavolas, Fahad Ahmad, Fawzia Afzal-Khan, Theodore Samuels, and Jake Stafford. So, in total, “American*ish” soars above so many films in the wider genres it resides within by providing us a view of immigrants that is heartening, credible, relevant, necessary, wholeheartedly fun, compellingly dramatic, and all soul, a winning indie effort that deserves to be seen, talked about, recommended, and awarded. It’s another example of how South Asian filmmakers can refresh and renew our thirst for quality cinema with a potent message.
As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!
