Meet the Patels (2014)

People pleasing, indecisiveness, general inexperience, a little un-savvy--and caught in a very strict, very traditional, but no longer quite functional system--omg. This movie in so many ways relates to my experience as a white girl in the American South, uber Christian. Sure, it would be great if this kid knew himself more, was sure of what he wanted, and went after it tenaciously. But he is evolving slowly. With evolving "rules." I want to believe he'll get there. I want to believe we'll all get wherever it is we really want to go. In the meantime, I appreciated getting to know him, his family, and his dual cultures, and I enjoyed being along for a very relatable ride.It's amazing how well this thing was edited, and how well it came together. Even though the footage was rough, the film was fun to watch.

It's a documentary, but at the same time the narrative does not act as one. Ravi is feeling the pressure of being a about to turn 30 year old Indian-American man, who as far as his parents are concern has never even been on a date, cause he hid his 2 year relationship with a white American girl from them. After Ravi breaks up with her he attempts to give Indian culture style dating a try to please the very large family that thinks he should be married with kids by now. It's a hysterical look at how cultures differ, but at the core stay the same, as Ravi deals with parents who feel that his happiness would be with the perfect Indian wife, his struggle with being both culturally Indian and American, and his annoying older sister, Geeta who thought it would be a good idea to document his turmoil.It is one of the best comedies I have seen. Through her brother, Geeta attempts to document how Indian dating culture is different from American culture, Yet what she accomplished was creating a narrative that's relatable down to the core. It'a a fun comedy, every minute was enjoyable, it was funny throughout.

There has been a lot of publicity about this movie. The best and funniest parts were in the trailers and previews. Prior to seeing the movie, I was so excited. I even liked the Facebook page. I drove 45 minutes each way to see it. What a disappointment! I was hoping to see a lot more of what was in the trailer. I did not. My 7-year-old daughter thought it was funny. But she liked The Martian more. So did I.I think the problem with the movie is that it is not an experience. It's not uplifting, hilariously funny, educational or anything really. The only feeling it left me with was regret -- that I spent all that time and about $20 on it.Oh, I guess the only feeling it left me with was annoyance. It's the journey of of a man who did not know himself.

You do not have an Indian background to thoroughly enjoy this hilarious, heart-felt, & engaging documentary of a beautiful family who truly respect and love one another. I was so sorry to see the film end.I was lucky to see this film through San Jose's Cinema Club led by Tim Sika, & I highly recommend to people of all ages, backgrounds, religions, & cultures. You will actually feel renewed after viewing it!The characters are so real & engaging; of course, this is because they are a real family..with the same wishes and desires for their children's happiness that we all feel for our own children. There is surprising beautiful animation sprinkled throughout the film which enhanced it for me.I wish that they would do a sequel.