Touch of Pink (2004) directed by Ian Iqbal Rashid

[reviews_and_ramblings]

Director: Ian Iqbal Rashid

Writer: Ian Iqbal Rashid (writer)

Plot: A gay Canadian living in London has his perfectly crafted life upset when his devoutly Muslim mother comes to visit.

Nuru was born and raised in Africa. She was fond of watching Doris Day and Cary Grant classic movies, and wanted to be like her. After the death of her husband, Nuru leaves her young son Alim in Africa with her sister and immigrates to Britain, hoping to leave behind her grief and start a new life. Alim is four when she leaves him. Nuru returns after being rejected by the England, and suffering racism. Nuru and her sister Dolly immigrate to Canada with their families and Alim grows up in Toronto. Fast-forward to the present. Nuru is going to attend her nephew Khaled's wedding but feels that she is missing part of herself because of her separation from Alim. She longs for him to marry a nice Ishmali Muslim girl and raise a family in Toronto. She goes to London to convince Alim to come home. What she does not know is that Alim is living with someone in - but that someone is not Muslim, nor a female - but a male Caucasian. Watch as events unravel this mystery for Nuru when she finally gets to meet her son's life-mate.

@IMDb
@Amazon: Touch of Pink
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Cast (in credits order)
Jimi Mistry ... Alim
Kristen Holden-Ried ... Giles
Kyle MacLachlan ... Spirit of Cary Grant
Dean McDermott ... Alisdair Keith
Suleka Mathew ... Nuru
Brian George ... Hassan
Veena Sood ... Dolly
Raoul Bhaneja ... Khaled
Liisa Repo-Martell ... Delia
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Andrew Gillies ... Raymond
Quancetia Hamilton ... Airplane Woman
Malika Mendez ... Sherubai
Barna Moricz ... Alex
Sam Moses ... Vendor
Les Porter ... Caterer
Niki Sabet ... The Bride
Sanjay Talwar ... Karim
Linda Thorson ... Giles' Mother


Alim & Giles

 
Cary & Alistair

Comments

[elisa-rolle.livejournal.com]

The movie is a nice comedy of good quality. The gayness of the main character, Alim, and of his lover, Giles, is not over the line. It's more an insight in a very possible modern couple in London. Other than Alim's conservative mother doesn't know about his son. Even if it's not so highlighted, I believe there is not only a prejudice but also a custom trouble.

The love story is between Alim and Giles, but truth be told, most of the scene are between Alim and "Cary Grant", the imaginary friend Alim built in his mind to replace the lost figure of his father, and that now is an excuse for him to not totally commit to Giles: no one can be at the same level of Cary Grant.

I like Giles's character, even if his affair with Alistair let me with a bitter taste... but in the end everything goes in the right direction. In the end, this is after all a romantic comedy.

[shadownyc.livejournal.com]

I saw this movie and thought it was very sweet. I, too, wasn't thrilled with Giles' affair but understood his desire to force himself to move, despite his true feelings.

The end was truly uplifting -- something we don't often get in gay-themed films.

[elisa-rolle.livejournal.com]

Yes, I most of all like the happy ending that is not so common in gay themed movies. I don't understand when a movie is nice and sweet for all its course and then end in a bad way... Elisa