My Name Is Khan (2010)

You already know the story, and I am 7 years late in watching this movie. The election of Barack Obama was historic, and here this movie has effectively used that event in the narrative. The most honest salesman in the world can repair almost anything and here he is sending out positive vibes throughout the film.Wonderfully realistic acting by Shah Rukh Khan, and great script, direction and music.

I don't post reviews on IMDb much but once in a while I come to see a movie which compels me to write one and let others know of this masterpiece.Such is the greatness of this movie My Name Is Khan. Preview:This movie is about a man named Rizvan who embarks on a journey all across United States of America just to prove his love and that he is not a terrorist. Direction:This movie is directed by Karan Johar who has given masterpieces like Kuch Kuch Hota Hai,Kabhie Khushi Kabhie Gham,Kal Ho Na Ho etc and yet this time nothing less was expected from him.He is very sincere to his work.He directs a movie and takes his time to move on to next movie but his work is nothing but pure class and hard work.He direction is very good in MNIK(My Name Is Khan).Set in America this movie shows his hard work.He has done a great job.He always knows what he wants from his actors and his writers.Acting:This whole movie is driven by non other than Shah Rukh Khan.Ifit wasn't for him maybe this movie wouldn't have gotten this mush praise and hype no matter how great direction was because the character of Rizvan is such a complicated character that nobody could pull this off.He put in a a lot of hard work preparing for this character.His acting is just unbelievably awesome and upto the level of Leonardo DiCaprio and Jack Nicholson. And then comes Kajol who is evergreen as always. She nails her character very much and gives her best.Story:Writers did a great job because writing something like this is very difficult job but they did really very well. Music :An other great aspect of this movie is its soundtrack and other songs which add even much soul into movie. Overall:At the end its a much watch for everyone cause something like this is out there and you are missing it.So go now grab a DVD and get yourself mesmerized by this masterpiece.

As a middle school teacher, I think there aren't many better movies for showing how 9/11 effected our migrant community. The movie is a bit broad, and it is definitely not flag waving, but it tackles real issues, and is emotionally taxing. The lead actor is very, very popular in South Asia, Africa, and China. Many of my students whose parents are from other countries easily recognize the actor. My students are at a point where they are very concerned with others opinions, and are not sure of their place in the world. This film allows my students to empathize with other cultures. It makes my students whose parents are foreign feel less alone. If you are looking for a great American drama, this is not it. If you want a window in to how the rest of the world lives, views America, and how they sometimes feel left out, this is it. I have yet to have a parent, a student, or a fellow teacher watch it and say, "blah".

"My name is Khan, but I am not a terrorist", At the Berlin film festival, Feb. 4, 2010 Following Polanski's "Ghostwriter" and Scorcese's "Shutter Island, the third biggie of the first three days of the fest was the Bollywood entry "My Name is Khan" starring Shah Rukh Khan, arguably the most popular actor in the world today (though not necessarily in the West). In the film Shahrukh (known affectionately back home as SRK) plays a Moslem from India who suffers from a form of Autism, (Aspergers syndrome) similar to the role undertaken by Dustin Hoffman in "Rain Man" some years back. In the mood of anti-Muslim hysteria following 9/11 the protagonist Rizwan Khan, who has married a Hindu single mother (Kajol) in San Francisco, is taken for a terrorist on two different occasions because of his erratic syndrome induced behavior. Repeating his mantra "My name is Khan, but I am not a terrorist" in a salad bowl full of situations where unreasonable anti-Islamic reactions run rampant, Khan eventually undertakes a cross country trek to Washington to see president Obama in person and clear his good Moslem name. The political statements are laid on with a heavy hand by extremely successful Bollywood masala-romance director Karan Johar, and will undoubtedly be taken with a grain of salt by American audiences, although Indian and Middle-eastern auds will surely eat all this up with unbridled relish. In any case, the love story between the stricken Shahrukh and his frequent co-star Kajol is touchingly portrayed. A dramatic climax is reached halfway through when Kajol's teenage son is killed on a soccer field by a mob of enraged anti- Muslim Americans and the Hindu wife (Kajol) holds her Moslem husband responsible for the loss of her non-moslem son. It is at this point that Rizwan sets out on his quest to meet the president and win back her love.Intermission; Part II...Johar could use a lesson in US geography because Georgia is not on the way from SF to DC, but, nevertheless Rizwan finds himself befriended by a black American family in rural Georgia, which is then struck by a hurricane of Katrina proportions. Rizwan heroically saves many people from drowning and becomes something of a national figure on TV. When President Obama finally receives him it is both a touching and a comic moment -- oops --I was weeping out of one side of my face and chuckling out the other--at the naive, borderline Saturday Nite Live, staging of this climactic finale. An eye-popper for L.A. locals was the scene where Khan momentarily encounters President George Bush on his visit to California, filmed, of all places, in front of landmark Royce Hall on the UCLA campus. At the press conference following the press screening, most of the talking was done by a supremely confident Shahrukh Khan dressed in a neat black suit and hair more combed back than usual, as director Johar and comely co-star Kajol looked on injecting an occasional comment. SRK was extremely articulate in perfect English and basically had the assemblage in the palm of his hand, despite the fact that the overall press reaction to the film was decidedly negative. He tried to portray the movie as more of a touching love story and a personal battle against a physical handicap than a political statement in defense of the Moslem image, while the press backed off politely, not pressing too hard on perceived defects but obviously curious to see what a relatively unknown Asian mega-star is like in person. I suppose you could day that Shahrukh Khan is quite cool by any standards and doesn't need the adulation of the West to bolster his ego. He gets enough adulation everywhere else, and rightfully so. I don't think that even the most jaded Western film critic would question his acting chops or natural charisma whether they liked the film itself or not. -- Alex Deleon, Berlin Film Festival