The film "Yasmin" by Kenny Glenaan is about a young Pakistani woman who has to rearrange her world past 9/11. Yasmin, who lives in the Muslim area of a north English town, has a double life. In the Muslim society she is the daughter of the mosque's custodian and a good Muslim wife, but in her job in the "white, English world" she is an atheist and trendy single woman. The truth lies somewhere in between, which she has to face when 9/11 hits her life and people start treating her with mistrust and suspicion.
The conflicted Yasmin has a conservative, religious father. Her brother is also religious but he can easily be influenced and becomes an extremist. In contrast to them there is John, her English friend, who is obviously in love with Yasmin but is finally overtaxed by Yasmin's problems. One of those is Faysal, her bogus husband, who is completely misplaced in England because he is incapable of the language and isolated.
Kenny Glenaan has created a movie which shows a woman finding her identity in the middle of a religious conflict. He shows how prejudices can destroy lives, and how they can affect everyone. But he also explains how extreme situations can make you think about yourself and find your place in the world.
I really liked "Yasmin" because it is about real people, issues and emotions. You can feel that there are real stories behind this fiction.
One could say this movie is too simple, no work of art. But I guess it is in fact this simplicity which makes this film that good, because it is not artificial- it is simply a captivating story. That's enough.
I recommend this film to everyone who is interested in real issues and people, in the problems of our time and the impact they have on us. Everyone fascinated by the complex relations between people will be captivated by this study of microcosm of a conflicted family.
