|
TOUCH OF PINK
|
||||||||||||||
|
If "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" needed a remake with a bit of a twist, this should have been it, instead of the crappy remake with Ashton Kutcher. Because in many respects it's very much of the same formula except with the lifestyle as an obstacle instead of race. The homosexuality serves as more of a gap for the modern age than race would. This has more humanity and grace in its story than "Guess Who" with Kutcher ever hoped to be. What I found truly fascinating was how in this story, no one ever refers to the two lead characters as gay. Ever. It was not only interesting but it serves to show how Rashid, instead of categorizing his characters, just makes them one of the same and lessens the gap throughout the film. Though low-key and noticeably short, it's very human and has a lot of heart managing to break from its formula and really give itself life and treat its characters as people that aren't just black and white in personality. What makes the film more enjoyable is Rashid's addition of Kyle McLachlan. Throughout the movie, Alim gets guidance from Cary Grant who pops up in every moment to help him come to grips with his life. McLachlan is good as Grant as either his conscience, guardian angel, or just a manifestation of someone he needs as a guide. We don't find out what he is until the end, and that's where Rashid hits on the humanity. It's a bittersweet finale that really managed to give a punch. As with its predecessor of "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner", much of it is a commentary on how tradition can conflict with the changing of times and create the gap between family who discover they're not always the same people they think they are. Rashid's film is very personal and sweet and is genuine in its storytelling while McLachlan is a lot of fun to watch as Grant. He's the heart of the movie.
The film just scratches the surface in terms of what it can explore with these characters and just holds itself down in the formula of a romantic comedy that really annoyed me. Many times, Rashid is so caught up in the whimsical, he fails to give us any real humanity within any of the characters and much focus could have been made the back stories which seemed so tragic. And as for McLachlan, though he is entertaining, is just more of a spoof of Grant than homage, and he looks like him about as much as I do. In the end while it does give the pay off, it feels very incomplete in its story and concept.
|
|||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||
| What did you think? Discuss this film at the Cinema Crazed Forum |
I believe someone, I don't remember who, once made a very true statement
that there has yet to be a good film concerning the homosexual lifestyle
in presenting its characters as human. It's true, but "Touch of Pink"
comes extremely close and does it very well. Based on the true story
from director Ian Iqbal Rashid's real life events as a homosexual and
his partner. What's so pleasing about "Touch of Pink" is though, it
adheres to the exact same formulas of conventional romance comedies,
it's very human in the end. With engaging characters and a very
whimsical atmosphere, Jim Mistry plays Alim, a young man who is in love
with his partner Giles, but the problem is, his mom isn't aware of their
relationship and fears telling her of his unorthodox lifestyle.
The film is often much too simple for what could be a truly complex
portrait of these characters. For a film about two homosexuals seeking
to break through the Muslim traditions of marriage, there's not a lot of
analyses on that concept nor is it ever discovered with as much depth as
I had hoped in the end. Often times "Touch of Pink" is much too low-key
for what I would have liked in a bigger scale and the story is too short
to garner and involvement from the audience.
Yes, it's cliché, and derivative, and shallow, but it also has heart
within its intimate story with some three-dimensional characters,
top-notch acting, amusing sequences that really push the film along and
a standout performance from McLachlan who is fun to watch as Cary Grant.