En llamas

Let me preface this review by stating I have 4 daughters, all under the age of the primary character, so as the narrative plays out my thoughts simmer in what I can only imagine a young woman's experience is like in any country in the 21st century.

Mothers and daughters the world over I presume can indentify to oh so many elements here. Creepy uncles, disjointed dialogues, when twenty somethings have to parent the parent, then there's academic expectations and the topper of them all the uncertainties of life unions and or otherwise potential romances. It's almost too relatable.

In short? Men. Who needs us?

Greetings again from the darkness. One of the unheralded roles movies can play is to help us better understand various cultures around the world. It's important to grasp the challenges others face based on where they live. The first feature film from writer-director Zarrar Kahn takes us to Pakistan and elegantly lays out cultural traditions that may have even outlasted laws that have passed.

Mariam (Ramesha Nawal) spends much of her waking hours studying for the upcoming medical exams. However, the recent death of her beloved grandfather has the film opening with preparations for the funeral service. His passing has left Mariam, her younger brother Bilal (Jibran Khan), and their mother Fariah (Bakhtawar Mazhar) in a precarious situation. The law allows for Fariah to inherit the apartment, car, and belongings; however, family traditions aren't quite in sync. Sleazy Uncle Nasir (Adnan Shah) offers to take care of everything for the grieving family. Mariam is wise not to trust him to act in their best interests, but the passive-aggressive discussions between mother and daughter make it clear that Fariah trusts the Uncle.

A brick through the car window reminds us of other differences between Pakistani law and traditions. Mariam is simply driving herself during daylight hours - an activity that traditionalists refuse to accept. Not long after, Mariam meets Asad (Omar Javaid), and a budding romance blossoms as they enjoy a lovely day at the beach. A tragic accident adds even more stress to Mariam's life, yet the beauty of her character stems from her quiet strength in handling anxiety, grief, and a culture built to hold her back.

The first half of the film employs a relatively slow pace so that we might better understand these people and their situation. Death and visions of departed loved ones play a prominent role, as does the inner-strength of women in a world structured to abuse and take advantage of them. The cinematography of Aigul Nurbulatova deserves special notice here, not just for how the visions and apparitions are handled, but also the interactions which often take place in confined spaces. It all feels as if it could be happening. Ms. Nawal also earns kudos for her performance as Mariam. She allows us to feel the emotions without ever once over-emoting. Kahn's film was Pakistan's submission of Oscar consideration last year and it's easy to see why.

In theaters beginning April 12, 2024.

I noticed In the reviews section that there were only 22 ratings from Pakistan out of the 445 or so. After watching this movie, contemplating over it and checking the cast\crew section I realized why that is so. All the writers and almost all the producers are not Pakistani aside from the main producer who is Pakistani-Canadian and the director who is also Pakistan-Canadian, and I suspect is put there by the westerners as the face of this project. A story about Pakistan forged by and portrayed through the lens of people who are effectively all non Pakistani. No wonder it came out so wrong.

The Film seeks to depict the challenges in a fatherless and underprivileged young girls life in Pakistan and completely misses the mark. The story and the characters are largely divorced from the ground realities of Pakistan, with its poorly written characters and a hollow storyline aside from off course the obvious attempt throughout this movie by the writers to depict Pakistani man as evil personified and the poor woman being subjected to their will as helpless, frail and abandoned by the law and culture at large. This is nothing short of what I would expect what your typical ill informed CNN and FOX watching westerner would think. From its misrepresentation of a culture, Misandry, Inconsistent and unlikeable characters, lack of depth, bad dialogues and poor choice of filming locations, this movie misses the mark by allot.

Misandry in the Movie: The leading roles were played by women in this movie. All the males were cast in supporting roles. All of the main male characters were cast in a negatives role and a substantial amount of all the in and out male characters were also assigned a negative role. To prove this thesis I present to you examples of 7 male portrayals. 3 of the Leading male characters were depicted as; A sleazy, charmer and seducer boyfriend, An opportunist, scheming and unsympathetic uncle and A Shady Rapist rickshaw driver. 4 negative fleeting roles included; A domestic abuser father, A public masturbator, a vicious attacker (Brick thrower) and a uncooperative police official.

The first half of the story Involved depiction of pre marital relationships which is not common within the context of Pakistan and especially not within the context of a below middle class family as is shown here. In fact such relationships are extremely frowned upon and this could be another major reason why the film performed abysmally, because it failed to connect with the wider Pakistan audiences. When you hate on a people however subtly or otherwise and you misrepresent them in the way it is done in this movie, you should not be surprised if they don't show up and don't recommend your content to the next person.

The filming locations were also not attractive. Karachi has allot to offer. Could have chosen a better neighbourhood to shoot the film. Why choose a literal slum adjacent? What is this obsession of westerners with showing slums and dilapidated infrastructure in Pakistan and India?

There were a few critical mistranslations in the subtitles, that could have further caused the naïve viewers relying only on the translations to be appalled for no reason.. The lead character in one instance tried to say that wearing a hijab was at first a habit but as time went on became a form of worship, but it was mistranslate to the following "First it was a habit, then became my duty". Duty being the operative word here, suggesting that it might have been forced. Additionally when someone breaks your cars window with a damn brick, ones first instinct based on the given information would be to think that its a robbery attempt or perhaps an attempt to kill, not what is hinted at in the movie by this unlikeable white saviour indoctrinated British Pakistani character. Further there was mention of sharia by the lawyer which seemed wildly irrelevant given that the problem at hand was a flawed Pakistani judicial system not a flawed religious law as was erroneously suggested, despite the fact that the rights of the women in Islam are protected.

All in all this Western funded film showed Pakistan and especially Karachi in a very poor light. This film is a offense against its people.

In Flames, the debut film by Canadian-Pakistani director Zarrar Khan, is a compelling exploration of life in a patriarchal society. Set in Karachi, it highlights the oppressive, violent world that women navigate, with men who are predatory and manipulative. The film begins grounded in this harsh reality before slowly transitioning into supernatural elements, blending social realism with horror.

At its core, the movie becomes a powerful story about a mother and daughter fighting back against the societal forces working to suppress them. The bond between them is central, and the film captures their resilience in the face of oppression. While the plot may not be filled with unexpected twists, the visuals are striking, and the film uses horror to address serious social issues. In Flames is a haunting tale of empowerment and survival, offering more than just thrills-it's a thought-provoking commentary on societal struggles.

Now let me first say that I'm from Europe and it's not a whole lot of Middle Eastern entertainment media that make it to our screens over here, so I'm not sure how biased this movie actually is, but from what (I believe) I know, it is a brilliant, yet horrific, take on traditional Middle Eastern culture and its problematic gender inequality - at least from a Western POV.

After the death of the family patriarch, the women of the family are left to fend for themselves in a culture that holds them to very traditional values, where men basically own the world and women just live in it (as long as they are claimed and accompanied by men).

Nawal does a terrific job at portraying the bleak existence of a young Pakistani woman, who were raised on traditional values yet struggling to accept and submit to them. I thought the reminders every time she did something, she knew to be "wrong", was a remarkable way of depicting the voice of "reason" in the back of her head. Very well done!

In a nutshell; In Flames is a horror DRAMA about female oppression and empowerment. It is thought-provoking, inspired and very necessary in this day and age.

I highly recommend watching it - although if you are looking for jumpscares or boogiemen, you'll find none here. It is not that type of horror.