Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Binding: DVD
Brand: TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX HOME ENT
EAN: 0024543456087
Format: AC-3
Label: 20th Century Fox
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
MPN: FOXD2245608D
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: 20th Century Fox
Region Code: 1
Release Date: 2007-11-27
Running Time: 122
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Theatrical Release Date: 2007-03-09

Studio: Tcfhe Release Date: 10/14/2008 Run time: 114 minutes Rating: Pg13
Adapted by screenwriter Sooni Taraporevala from the novel by Jhumpa Lahiri, director Mira Nair's The Nameksake is populated by well-drawn characters and filled with memorable shots and engaging scenes. But in the larger sense, the film is a provocative look at the two sides of immigration: the adjustments faced by a couple who move here from a distant land, and the struggles of their offspring to reconcile their parents' traditional culture with their own distinctly American outlook. The tale begins in the late '70s, when aspiring engineer Ashoke Ganguli (Irfan Khan) and his new wife Ashima (the radiant Tabu) move to New York from Calcutta. Life in America is strange, in ways both good (the gas in their apartment stays on 24 hours a day! You can drink water straight from the tap!) and not-so-hot (New York's winters). But for their children, first son Gogol (a standout performance by Kal Penn, heretofore best known for the stoner comedy Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle), nicknamed for his father's favorite author, the Russian novelist Nikolai Gogol, and then daughter Sonia (Sahira Nair), "the American way" is at odds with their folks' more conservative mores. Gogol (who later adopts his more formal first name, Nikhil) smokes dope, calls his parents "you guys," goes to Yale, and hooks up with a preppie white girl (Jacinda Barrett); for her part, Sonia complains that she wants to "go home" when the family returns to India for a visit. Only when tragedy strikes suddenly does the young man realize how totally alienated from his family he has become, prompting some major changes. There's nothing especially original about any of this, and even those who haven't read the book may sense that some of Lahiri's material has been lost on the way to the screen (the treatment of Gogol's marriage to a beautiful Bengali-American girl, played by Zuleikha Robinson, seems oddly truncated). But even while dealing with life's Big Issues (birth and death, marriage and separation, joy and misery), Nair has created a winning, intimate film that reminds us of the strength of family ties and effortlessly persuades us to care. --Sam Graham

Kal Penn Blogs About The Namesake

Welcome to The Namesake DVD. After touring the festival circuit last year, our film opened globally (including North America) in March of this year, and I’m proud to bring you the DVD!

This is a project that has been close to me from the beginning. I was a big fan of the book ever since John Cho recommended it to me during the first Harold & Kumar shoot. John and I tried to get rights to turn the book into the film, but Mira [Nair, director of Monsoon Wedding and Salaam Bombay] had already acquired them. That began a really aggressive campaign on my part to try to get seen for the role. I’d call Mira’s office, have my manager call – but we had no luck in getting in the door. Luckily, unbeknownst to me, Mira’s son Zohran and her agent’s son Sam were lobbying on my behalf (turns out they are huge Harold and Kumar fans, so they were trying to get their parents to bring me in to read for the part of Gogol). Mira finally agreed, and I got a call saying that I’d be able to audition. I flew out to New York, and luckily things worked out.

There are some similarities between my life and Gogol’s. We are both Americans of Indian descent, both born and raised on the East Coast, both bilingual, and both passionate about our careers. But Gogol is much more subdued than I am; he carries a certain silence (which he gets from his father). His place in the world is one of constant shift -- a byproduct of being single in New York, being passionate about his job, close with his family, and so on.

This film is my favorite to -date. Mira has been a role model of mine since I was very young, Jhumpa [Lahiri, author of The Namesake] is one of my favorite authors, Sooni [Taraporevala, screenwriter for Salaam Bombay] one of my most admired screenwriters, so it’s an honor to have the chance to be part of the screen adaptation of this story.

To me, it’s a very American film. It’s about family, about hope – about how we all got here, through the lens of this particular family. With so much negativity every time I turn on the television, I’m proud to be part of something that hopefully leaves the audience with a tremendous amount of hope, and a connection to the people we love. -- Kal Penn

Customer Rating:
Summary: I expected more
Comment: This is an interesting film and I heard nothing but rave reviews for the novel-so of course when I learned they had already turned this into a film I decided to check it out. At the final credits I found myself thinking--"Is that all?" I don't know, I was hoping to be touched on a more deeper level and I just never really got there. It's a decent film, but by no means memorable.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Brilliant
Comment: Yet another five-star review for a Mira Nair film. It's apparently the only rating I'm able to give her.

This is based on a novel that I haven't read yet, although I'm a big fan of the author. The DVD blurb identifies it as an "epic family saga." Yep. It covers a longer time span than the other Mira Nair films I've seen. Brilliant characterizations of its people and its two settings, India and New York. Funny and touching; very perceptive of human nature; brilliantly written, acted and directed.

I'll be watching this one again, which is what's so good about owning DVDs. Once in a while you find one that you want to hang onto.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: 'We all come out of Gogol's Overcoat'
Comment: Jhumpa Lahiri's very popular novel THE NAMESAKE has been successfully adapted for the screen by Sooni Taraporevala and the gifted director Mira Nair has gathered a fine cast to capture the spirit of the original story of family commitment despite cultural changes and challenges. Some of the novel's impact is lost on the big screen, but the tender message remains at the end.

In India a gifted young singer Ashima (Tabu) follows her family's rules of matchmaking and marries the quiet Ashoke (Irfan Khan), and soon after the wedding festivities are over the couple depart to New York for Ashoke's career. The cultural and climate changes are a shock to both, but their marriage soon produces a boy child who, instead of being named traditionally by the grandmother in India, has to have a name assigned in the New York hospital in order to be released with a birth certificate. Out of desperation, Ashoke decides to temporarily name him Gogol (Ashoke's favorite author)-played as a child by Sohan Chatterjee - , and the family of three soon becomes a family of four with the arrival of their daughter Sonia (Sahira Nair). While the parents maintain the customs of their Bengali heritage, the two children struggle with adapting to their preferred life in America and the conflict between parent and child is magnified by the cultural disparities. As young Gogol grows toward manhood (now Kal Penn) he favors Western ways and becomes involved with a non-Indian girl Maxine (Jacinda Barrett) and her family. Gogol tires of the critical comments about his name and decides to change his name to the more traditional Nick- further evidence of his separation from his background. But family tragedies occur and Gogol finds himself drawn to his mother and to his roots. When Gogol's father dies, the significance of his family grows even stronger and being unable to identify with Maxine and her family, he instead agrees to 'date' a Bengali girl from his past - Moushumi (Zuleikha Robinson) has blossomed from the frumpy bookworm into a beautiful and experienced woman. They marry, keeping to Indian traditions, but the marriage is rocky and in the end Gogol discovers that his true happiness is in the rich family history and beauty of his native India.

There are moments of rare beauty, both cinematically (camera work is by Frederick Elmes) and emotionally (musical score is a lovely creation by Nitin Sawhney), and while the film is somewhat brittle at times due to the occasional bilingual nature of the script, the main characters are portrayed by such strong actors that the little flaws become unimportant. It is well to have so many films that deal with the immigrant experience at this particular juncture in our history, and when that theme is enhanced by the beauty of authors such as Lahiri, the messages become even more poignant. Grady Harp, September 08

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Customer Rating:
Summary: The Namesake
Comment:

The Namesake is a moving film about many things. It includes aspects of relationships, love and loss, family, and traditions. But it is mostly about connecting with one's true self. Through great performances from its principals, this concept is beautifully conveyed.

The film opens in India as we are introduced to young Ashima and Ashoke who are about to be wed through an arranged marriage. Thus begins a relationship that will anchor and become one of the main themes of the movie. Soon after being wed, Ashoke who lives in America relocates Ashima there as well. Having spent time in America already, Ashoke is right at home in New York where they now live. Not so for Ashima. She is at first taken aback at being so far from her home, in a strange land and knowing no one. Her aloneness is strikingly played. Through the passage of time, and with help from her new, loving husband, she gradually begins to grow more comfortable here. Eventually, they start a family; having first a son named Gogol, and a daughter - Sonia. The naming of Gogol (he was named after Ashoke's favorite author Nikolai Gogol), becomes another central theme in the movie.

As time passes, and Gogol gets older, the focus shifts towards his life and relationships. He decides to study architecture, after a trip back to India with his parents after the death of Ashima's father. After graduation, he becomes romantic with Maxine, who is not at all the type of girl for a Bengali Indian, straining his relationship with his parents. Another central theme is the disregard of the children toward their parents' Indian customs and culture. After struggling with a tragic event, Gogol and Maxine eventually break up. Ashima suggests that he re-connect with childhood friend Moushumi, who is also Bengali, and they hit it off and eventually marry. Sadly, this relationship would end also after Moushumi has an affair with an old flame.

The relationship of Ashoke and Ashima is also changed through a tragic event and we get to see Ashima dealing with being alone again. Her portrayal is particularly impressive here. Meanwhile, Gogol is coming to grips with loss and delving into some very personal realms where he ends up finding himself.

This film is remarkably beautiful in its cinematography, with scenery and locations that are vivid and exotic. You can almost smell Calcutta in several scenes. The editing is sharp and seamless as twenty five years passes in only two hours without feeling rushed or strained. Director Mira Nair did an outstanding job leading the actors to deliver such emotional and drawing performances.

One other theme that is evident in the picture, although in a small way, is that of religion. In a few scenes, there are depictions of traditional Indian/Hindu wedding ceremonies. These are very colorful and joyous occasions. Very different from our Western practices, and I might add, a little more appropriate. There is also a customary Indian funeral ceremony where the mourners gather in the home and chant and pray, and another in India where the ashes are scattered in the Ganges River as is the custom of that religion.

The Namesake is a must-see if for no other reason, than we can all relate in some way to a character in this film, and learn to look inward at ourselves more deeply than before.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Good movie, but the book is so much better
Comment: Based on Jhumpa Lahiri's acclaimed novel, "The Namesake" tells the story of a young engineer, Ashoke Ganguli (Irfan Khan), and his new wife, Ashima (Tabu), who move from Calcutta to New York shortly after their marriage. Adjusting to life in a new country is difficult, especially for Ashima, but the Ganguli's children have an easier time blending in with American culture, because it's what they were born into. However, being an American-born child with Bengali parents is a difficulty in itself, and it's something that Ashoke and Ashima's son, Gogol (Kal Penn), has a very hard time dealing with. As Gogol grows into a young man, he distances himself from his family and embraces the American way of life. However, when tragedy strikes, Gogol realizes that his priorities are completely out of whack, and he attempts to make some changes in his life, but not everything goes according to plan.

This is a decent adaptation of a stunning book. The cast is fantastic, and I was especially impressed by Khan and Tabu's performances. I think that I expected more out of the film because I am such a huge fan of Lahiri's novel, so it was probably impossible for the film to measure up in my eyes. Lahiri's writing is just so incredibly descriptive and emotional, and it's impossible to transfer her beautiful words onto the screen, so the movie didn't really do it for me...the book is just so much richer and more powerful. I encourage everyone to read the book prior to watching the film adaptation.

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