Cheap Fond Kiss (DVD) (Atta Yaqub) Price

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Customer Reviews of Fond Kiss

thought-provoking subject matter....didn't hold together....
I was immediately intrigued by the subject matter of this film. From what a friend told me, this cross-cultural account of a love affair between people from opposite sides of the tracks was well done, and that I would enjoy it. The relationship between the Anglo Roisin and her lover, the second-generation Irish-born Pakistani Casim was reminiscent of the wonderful MISSISSIPPI MASALA, directed by Mira Nair. <
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>Unfortunately, this film just wasn't compelling for me, and didn't hang together as well as it could have, if put in the hands of the right director and actors. Historically, there has been a lot of tension and open racism expressed by white Irish Catholics, toward ethnic Muslim Pakistanis. This is the central subject and tension expressed in the film, as the young music teacher, Roisin, has a chance encounter with Casim, who works at his father's store by day, and is an aspiring deejay by night. Though, the couple are immediately drawn to each other, once word gets around of their coupling, and the truth comes about Casim's pending engagement to his first cousin, Jasmin, their worlds are blown apart, with consequences to be faced by both. <
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>The unfortunate thing, for me, was that the storyline was very engaging, but a combination of lack of chemistry between the lead characters, and the overall preachiness expressed throughout the movie, about racism and the narrowmindedness of traditionalists, holding fast to racist and discriminating ways, really took away from what could have been a very strong and well acted story. <
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>Note: The "f" word is sprinkled throughout the dialogue, here, and there is a graphic depiction of sex between the lead characters.

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Ae fond kiss before we sever
"Ae fond kiss" is the love story between a Catholic woman and a Muslim man in Glasgow. The title derives, as I assume many will know, from a Robert Burns poem in which the poet laments the loss of his beloved, and the fond kiss is the last kiss before parting. <
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>The love between Roisin and Casim is impossible, because his family expects him to marry his Pakistani cousin. Marrying outside the faith is out of the question anyway, and the prospect of it risks to sever Casim from his family forever. <
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>The handling of the conflict is very skilful, realistic and far from overly sentimental. We see both the heartbreak experienced by Casim's family as well as that of the young couple, and we understand both: the scene where the disappointed father breaks the windows of the house extension he had built for his son and future daughter in law is tremendous and realistically portrayed. But ultimately, the film creates greater sympathy for the young couple: we cannot bear the overt manipulation of Casim by his family and we want Roisin to win. <
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>As foils for the young couple, we encounter Hammid, Casim's friend, who has been living with his Christian girlfriend for seven years, but finds marrying her impossible (he tells Casim that his family is more important than some woman); his younger sister Tahara, who struggles for her own freedom; and his sister Rukhsana who does all the right and appropriate things. They represent all the possibilities that Cassim faces - hypocrisy, free will, and conformism. Cassim must choose. <
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>The film is thus about the dilemma of the second generation, torn between two identities, and about how this affects both them and others who choose to be with them. It is beautifully acted, and beautifully filmed in Glasgow. Eva Birthistle is excellent in portraying the gentle, vulnerable, delicate, and at the same time, strong willed Roisin, and the young Shabana Baksh is wonderful as Casim's self-assertive, honest, straightforward, sister. They are both very likeable, as well as the driving forces behind the movie plot. <
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>This is a beautiful, realistic, and ultimately optimistic movie, with nothing overdone or overly dramatic about it, with characters and a plot you cannot remain indifferent to. I have seen it twice already, and I liked it even better upon a second viewing, as I understood better the family's manipulative ways, Roisin's vulnerability and her determination, Tahara's strong will and Casim's indecisiveness. This is one of the best Ken Loach films, and makes a wonderful addition to a DVD collection. Do buy it! <
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A Fresh, More Complex Look At Star-Crossed Love
Versions of tragic love alliances have been dramatized many times in fiction and cinema. Bi-cultural, interracial couples of different religions confront difficulties which usually tear them and their families apart. Director Ken Loach brings freshness, fairness and poignancy to his film "A Fond Kiss," (from a poem by Robert Burns), that left me thinking, days later, about the dilemmas it presents. Considerable credit must be given here to the extraordinary cast. Atta Yaqub is Casim Khan, a second generation Pakistani living in Glasgow. His counterpart and sweetheart, Roisin Murphy, is a young Irish Catholic woman, both strong and sensitive in nature, played by Eva Birthistle. The two truly light up the screen and make their characters palpably real with their outstanding performances. The supporting cast also does a superb job. Their roles as Casim's family and friends are important ones. In most dramas of this sort, the main focus is on the star-crossed lovers. Here one gets an opportunity to meet Casim's family also, to empathize with them, and appreciate the gravity of their problem. <
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>The Khan family has lived in Glasgow for over 40 years. While the parents are integral members of their Pakistani community and devout Muslims, their three children, brought up in the west, have totally different life experiences. The eldest daughter Rukhsana, (Ghizala Avan), combines traditional lifestyle with a modern education. She is happily engaged to an attractive Pakistani man, also well educated, whom she met through family arrangements. The couple suit each other well. One gets the feeling they would have been drawn together if they had met on their own. The youngest daughter Tahara, (Shabana Bakhsh), wants to study journalism at the University of Edinburgh, where she has applied against her fathers wishes. He doesn't want her to leave Glasgow and the family circle, even though the course she wishes to pursue is not available in the bigger city. She also wants to go clubbing with her friends. Big brother Casim even objects to this, and he works in a club and takes dates there himself. <
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>Casim, a DJ by night, is planning with best friend Hammid, (Shy Ramsan), to raise the money necessary to open their own club in Glasgow. There are potential investors in London who appear to be seriously interested. Casim's day job is at his father's grocery store. One day, when he goes to his sister Tahara's school to pick her up, she introduces him to talented music teacher Roisin Murphy. Ms. Murphy is a gifted pianist and quite lovely to look at. She had been married briefly, at a young age, but the relationship dissolved, unofficially, as quickly as it was entered into. She is employed part-time at a strict Catholic school with stringent moral standards. <
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>The two make eye contact, there is a rush of chemistry and they begin to date, just casually, never realizing the amount of suffering they will cause each other and those who love them. Casim is engaged to his first cousin in Pakistan. Initially, he never thinks to tell Roisin. During a holiday weekend on the Spanish coast, (a two-for-one deal), Roisin learns of Casim's family obligations and becomes very upset. It is during this period that the young couple realize they are in way over their heads. <
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>Casim is a Muslim, he can never be otherwise. He is a Pakistani, and no matter how westernized he may become, his reality will never change. It is obvious that he is dark, especially against Roisin's fair skin. Although she is does not have a racist bone in her body, others do, throughout Glasgow. Then, the question of potential children comes into play. How will the kids be raised? The Khan family is wonderful. Who wouldn't want the maternal Mrs. Khan, (Shamshad Akhtar) to be their mother or a close relation? Tariq is a strict father, passionate in his beliefs, but understandably so, and his love for his children and his wife is evident. It is unthinkable for Casim to give up close ties with his people and community. Yet, if he refuses to marry the girl he is promised to, this will bring terrible shame on the entire family. Rukhsana might even lose her fiance. Casim is extremely guilt ridden and torn. Yet he loves Roisin too much to leave her. <
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>Roisin Murphy has no close family attachments. Although she is not a particularly devout Catholic, she will not become a Muslim either. I believe, she would accept and honor the Pakistani culture, but it would have to be a bi-cultural arrangement with Casim. Her job at school is threatened by the relationship. In one ferocious scene, the traditionalist parish priest insists she break-off with Muslim Casim. Also, since Roisin already has one marriage under her belt, promising "forever" to another, when she could not honor her first vow, doesn't feel right. She can only promise to try to make the relationship work. Yet, Roisin is a serious person with a strong sense of honor. And the two love each other and are so right together. But how can Casim give up everything...and with no promise of forever? <
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>This is a complex, beautifully acted film - so much more than a love story. It is also a good movie to see with a group and/or on a date, as it makes for terrific post-film conversation. <
>JANA