American Blend

I agree with the other posters that the husband and wife played their roles well. Other than that this movie was rubbish. It tried to be something interesting and provocative, but instead suffered from a lack of any meaningful plot, characters which one has a hard time sympathizing with, unrealistic Decalogue (give me a break, some of the conversations the characters have is so unnatural and ridiculous), and seemingly pointless side action. I can't believe someone said that this movie was better than American Desi. That movie was a lot better than this by leaps and bounds and portrayed the Indian-American experience somewhat more realistically, at least as per the reality that I have experienced. If you want a movie about the Indian American Experience try American Chai, American Desi, The Namesake, or Leela, but this is on the level of Fillum Star, Banana Brothers, and other similar movies long since forgotten.

Seems as though the director got stuck watching Bend it Like Beckham too many times as this movie created too many instances of deja vu. A stale screenplay that never attempts to rise above itself coupled with stumbling dialogue dooms the movie long before the viewers try to grasp a plot that's really not existent.

While it's not difficult to associate with some of the problems that flash on screen they never really stick into your mind long enough to leave a lasting impact.

The acting laurels rests firmly on the husband and wife and it is through them that some of the warmer and emotional moments are enjoyed. The kids are pretty useless- ignorant, petulant, spoiled and unappreciative they elicit no sympathy whatsoever, especially after the turning point of the movie. If the director wanted the younger cross cultured audience to empathize and associate with the three kids then he got it horribly wrong.

In one scene Raj responds to his wife's query of not adding cream to the Indian food that they're making by stating "We don't Americanize our Indian food, darling." By Americanizing this movie far too much the director lost sight of the vision he started out with and ended up with a confusing, stumbling movie that might have been interesting with the presence of a decent plot. But we shall sadly never know...

I loved this film. A simple family film that was quite a surprise since I had not really heard about the film before. A friend of mine and I walked into the theatre not knowing what we wanted to see. This is such a romantic sweet family film. I love the actress who plays Jaime. I simply love her and anupam kher as husband and wife. Such a sweet simple story. It made me proud as an Indian. The kathak and tap dance has been shot brilliantly. I would recommend this film to everyone to go have a good time. Good acting and good directing. The guy playing dimpy is so funny. The actor playing yogi and lupee are simply great. I laughed so much. Jaime and anupam ker made me cry sometimes.

Where did they get the kids from in this movie? I live in LA and all of those fake wannabe black kids would get laughed at acting the way they did in the movie. Even the "cool" black guy was a caricature and every line he had was cringe-worthy.

If you are going to make a movie taking place in America at least get real Americans to play the part or at the very least people willing to act like real people in America.

The disappointing part is that the movie had potential because of the acting of the mother and father and the overall story was a good one. The script was so poorly written that it made the movie unwatchable and the acting was terrible.

And seriously, the main character in the movie is a British black guy who comes to LA to tap dance? You gotta be kidding me.

Though the movie has not been officially released in India or US till yet, i was one of the lucky chap to watch it during its world premiere at recently held Osian film festival in New Delhi. I must say , the director has done his home work and has done a great job in blending the Indian and US culture. The movie is about an India Father and an American wife, and their 3 children's. the selection of actors is also very nice. Its a kind of movie with which lots of people can identify with. the music was awesome and the characterization was really great. The sequence of tap dancing and kathak was one of the best blend of culture i have seen on the screen.

all in all, a great entertainer.