Review of The Namesake (2006) by Heidi S — 24 Sep 2008
Engaging, touching film about discovery, and ultimately, acceptance, of oneself and one's most natural place of mind and heart. Beautifully filmed, the film uses flashbacks superbly to remind us of the past being as much of who we are as the present. Just as the Ganguli family and Gogol each are immigrants learning to fit into new surroundings -- trying to balance the urge to cling to the known as they face the unknown -- so also are we all immigrants in some ways, wherever we're from, wherever we are.
This is what makes the film so strong, so moving... it resonates on such basic human levels regardless of the cultures portrayed. Bengali culture, so invitingly different than American and other Western cultures, is displayed with color and ritual, exposing starkly and realistically the contrasts and dilemmas so many of us face in today's globalizing world.
The book the film was based on, by Jhumpa Lahiri, is even more rich and pulls you even more deeply into the story and characters, their thoughts and emotions, and the swirling fusion of longing, discovery, and eventual rejuvenation.
This review of The Namesake (2006) was written by Heidi S on 24 Sep 2008.
The Namesake has generally received very positive reviews.
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