From Deseret News archives:

The Namesake

Delightful 'Namesake' is a character study

Published: Friday, March 30, 2007 12:52 a.m. MDT
 |  E-MAIL | PRINT | FONT + - 
THE NAMESAKE — *** 1/2 — Kal Penn, Tabu, Irfan Khan; with English subtitles (for Indian dialects); rated PG-13 (sex, violence, profanity, drugs, brief nudity, vulgarity, brief gore).

Kal Penn has shown an aptitude for comic acting in such movies as "Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle" and "National Lampoon's Van Wilder" — in fact, in the latter film, he was the only bright spot.

But the comedy-drama "The Namesake" reveals Penn to have more dramatic chops than we might have thought. His credible lead performance is just one of the delights of this low-key character study, an adaptation of Jhumpa Lahiri's well-regarded novel of the same name.

Penn stars as the title character, Gogol Ganjuli, whose father (Irfan Khan, from "The Warrior") named him after the famous Russian writer Nikolai Gogol. However, the know-it-all "namesake" isn't too impressed. And having been born in America, he's constantly butting heads with his more tradition-bound parents, who were born and raised in India.

Like the novel, director Mira Nair's adaptation (penned by screenwriter Sooni Taraporevala) is more character-driven than plot-driven. Most of the film examines the parents' early relationship, as well as the cultural differences they encounter in America.

Story continues below
As a result, the movie might be perceived as being a little slow but it's surprisingly engrossing, and the occasional bits of humor are welcome and in keeping with the tone of the entire piece.

It helps that most of the characters are interesting. Penn is impressive, and his Bollywood co-stars, especially Khan and Tabu as his parents, are quite good as well.

The film also boasts a few scenes that highlight some beautiful Indian locales. A brief glimpse of the spectacular Taj Mahal is itself worth the price of admission.

"The Namesake" is rated PG-13 for simulated sex and other sexual contact, a brief scene of violence (a train wreck, mostly overheard), scattered strong profanity, drug content (marijuana use), brief female nudity, use of vulgar gestures, and brief glimpses of some gory and disturbing imagery. Running time: 122 minutes.


E-mail: jeff@desnews.com

Comments

You can be the first to comment on this story.

Movie Info
Rated PG-13 for violence, brief gore, profanity, vulgarity, brief nudity, sex, drug use.

Cast: Jagannath Guha, Kal Penn, Zuleikha Robinson, Irrfan Khan, Tabu, Ben Bauman, Jessica Blank, Gabriel Byrne, Sabyasachi Chakravarthy, Supriya Choudhury
FIND LOCAL MOVIE SHOWTIMES
Image
Abbot Genser, Fox Searchlight Pictures

Kal Penn, left, and Zuleikha Robinson in "The Namesake," an adaptation of the book by Jhumpa Lahiri.

previousnext

Latest comments

TCU showdown has big implications

National stats are in TCU's favor Stats Total Offense in Nation-Points...

The World Cup Bobsled Races are coming to Park City this weekend. The USA #1...

I think the "simple minds" are the ones that just watch the biased mainstream...

Jazz blow big lead, hang on

gee that would not be the coaches fault would it? How stupid an excuse,...

Jazz blow big lead, hang on

Only if the players get swagger and confidence back they can make the big...

I agree Kim should also be on this list!!

First let me make it clear that I am a BYU Fan. But Honestly I have to say...

Letters: Vegas should conserve

To judge the Las Vegas water usage by simply watching a TV in the hotel room...

Anybody asking themselves what they can do at this point and getting that...

12 high schools ready for 'The Turf'

When will the State Championship games be played? anyone know?

Advertisements
Advertisement