Moving and beautifully shot.

i LOVED this movie-so many messages about what love is and what it isn't

Director/producer Mira Nair (Vanity Fair'04) brings yet another deeply personal story to the screen - based on the book by Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Jhumpa Lahiri, with a screen adaption by prize winner Sooni Taraporevala. Director Nair invests a great deal of effort into analyzing the generation gap in an Indian-American family, as they navigate their differences in moral and ethical issues, alongside their traditional family ties from the mother country. Irrfran Kahn (Life of Pi) gives us another superb performance as the father, while gifted Indian actress Tabu equals him as his dedicated wife. Together they try earnestly to connect with their adolescent son (Kal Penn) who's drifting towards a ‘modern' shallow existence - failing to connect with those who have dedicated their lives to supplying a loving family base. Cinematography and Music play an important part in guiding the audience's attention through the multi-layered issues that live within this quality, mature work.

Is it possible to overcome the culture clash?

I read the book first, and recommend that, as there is much more content in the book that there isn't time for in the movie. But the movie added a wonderful taste of the flavor of the Bengali lives, and the actors playing the mother and father were superb and made those characters really come alive.

It was a pretty good generational drama. I enjoyed most of it, Irrfan Khan can make any movie watchable. I didn't like the pretentious son and his acting though.

There are few films that accurately capture the struggles of being a first-generation immigrant in the US. Disclaimer: I have not read the book before watching this film so my review may be biased. The Namesake is a beautiful film that weaves together the life of father & son and their journey through life. It contrasts the traditional Indian life vs idealistic American values. It's a movie about father-and-son love, family, and one's own identity in the world. This is a film that gets its viewers invested in every character. From the start, the legendary Irrfan Khan plays one of the most memorable roles I've seen as Ashoke Ganguli. We get a sense of adventure that awaits him before he moves to America. As the movie goes on, we also get to see Ashoke becoming the well-meaning loving father who only wants the best for his family. Kal Penn plays the rebellious Gogol/Nikhil/Nick who feels frustrated with why he is "different." Audiences understand his sense of rebellion and seeking his own place in the world. And Tabu plays a stellar performance as Ashima. We get a sense of understanding as she gives up her old life for a new one in a foreign country. The Namesake is an emotional and beautiful film that blends cultures. Mira Nair did wonders with the plot and bringing the stories and characters to life. Small subtleties from the first-generation experience are captured that few people understand. It's a beautiful film that deserves praise. 4.5/5. Congrats to Mira Nair & Jhumpa Lahiri for bringing to life such a wonderful story.

The whole arranged marriage thing is so bizarre to me and I don't think I'd agree with it for myself personally, I mean unless the girl is exactly my type and we end up hitting it off. It's so crazy though how they just met, got married and literally a day after they're off to America. But wow, Ashima is really pretty, he definitely lucked out with her. She's a sexy woman. That was kind of sad how Ashima was trying to get in touch with Gogol to tell him happy birthday but couldn't reach him. Oh my god… my heart sank when they told her Ashoke passed away from a heart attack. I like how Gogol shaved his head, almost like he's been reborn. Oh wow, that uptight girl that detested American television really grew up to be a sexy chick, goddamn! Hmm, I knew this new hot chick was going to be trouble. When she mentioned she had a lot of affairs, I was like shit I don't know about her. I really love and admire this movies honest look at cultural tradition and family matters. I like how the movie presents the importance of coming to terms with your heritage and background from a young person's point of view. There's something very beautiful about Indian culture and tradition. It's enlightening. The whole belief in reincarnation and passing on. I felt myself relating to it on different levels. This movies about the importance of family, tradition, it's about the importance of heritage and background, it's about the ups and downs of romance and love, but most importantly it's about learning to move on especially from those most difficult and trying times in life. I loved this movie and I would watch it again in a heartbeat. This is one I want to own.

Really good sad but interesting movie starring kal Penn and the guy from Slumdog millionaire. This movie makes you feel for the family and you get to see every perspective of the family except gogols little sister but she wasn't that important to the story. Gogol is a really interesting character and you get to see him grow from a little kid to a obnoxious teenager to a wise adult. It felt like I got to meet gogol and I like when you feel like you have a personal connection with a character in this movie. The dad was good, same with the mom. This movie is just really good and you need to watch this. It feels like a rollercoaster ride of life.

Moving and beautifully shot.

Excellent account of what a typical immigrant kid goes through; I feel that the cultural divide growing up between two fundamentally different cultures has been captured very beautifully, ranging from the scene where Gogol smokes a marijuana doobie at his graduation to where he comes out with his head shaved after Gogol's passing. However, the best scene in my opinion turned out to be the one where Gogol starts reading the book by his namesake on the train. It is a very poignant moment; the moment when someone comes to terms with being alone, and seeking comfort in it: that cannot be captured better than that.

The Namesake is an affecting drama spanning two generations of an Indian American family and exploring the generational and cultural conflicts that arise as a result of their assimilation into society. By carefully developing her characters and allowing us to believe the exist beyond what is shown on screen, director Mira Nair is able to cover 25 years without making the audience feel that the plot leaps forward awkwardly or that story gaps are left unfilled. It's difficult to overstate what the director and her screenwriter, Sooni Taraporevala, have achieved with this adaptation of Jhumpa Lahiri's novel. They have taken events specific to one culture and produced a movie that is universal in its appeal and thematic content. The Namesake is a rich and moving motion picture.(Universal themes showcased beautifully).

Really good sad but interesting movie starring kal Penn and the guy from Slumdog millionaire. This movie makes you feel for the family and you get to see every perspective of the family except gogols little sister but she wasn't that important to the story. Gogol is a really interesting character and you get to see him grow from a little kid to a obnoxious teenager to a wise adult. It felt like I got to meet gogol and I like when you feel like you have a personal connection with a character in this movie. The dad was good, same with the mom. This movie is just really good and you need to watch this. It feels like a rollercoaster ride of life.

Brilliant adaptation of the novel.

This movie is based on a man named Ashoke. He was born in New York but grow up in India. He travels back to India to meet Ashima for the very first time. She soon becomes his wife and goes back to America with him where they have two kids, one boy named Gogol, and one girl named Sonia. As his son gets older he cares less and less about his Indian culture, because he has lived in America his whole life. He starts dating a white girl and breaks the Indian culture of marrying an Indian woman. He takes her to meet his parents for the first time and it goes way better than he expected. He tells his family that he wants to change his name back to his good name and stop being called Gogol. His father becomes very upset with this, so he takes him to the place where he came up with his name to show him how much his name means to them. He tells him how he came up with the name. When he was on a train his grandfather gave him a book named Gogol, and it was the last thing his grandfather gave him before they got in a train wreck. He tells him how every day since then was a blessing and how he cherished every moment of it. As Gogol goes back home he never calls or contacts his parents. He just lives his life with his girlfriend, even though his mother tries to get in touch with him over and over again. Ashima soon find out that Ashoke had a massive heart attack and died as he was away for work. They finally get in touch with Gogol to tell him the terrible news about his father. He rushes to his family to be with them during this hard time. He then cuts his hair and begins living his life like his father wanted him to. His mom then tells him to go back to living his life. Gogol's girlfriend end up cheating on him so he leaves her to finds his purpose in life. This is a great movie for anyone who is questioning their family religious beliefs. This movie relates to religion the most, because a lot of times when kids become adults they start to move away from the strict religious beliefs that they have grown up with because they really don't understand them. Then when they become older and realize the things they were taught were very meaningful and had good reason. Tradition is an important thing, and when they realize that they see that they want their families to grow up the same way, with tradition and family.

On it's own, it could be ok. But, as an adaptation, it fails spectacularly.

Good, too long, I did not watch the 1st half closely.

This was a pretty good movie. If you like movies that follow the book closely this movie would not be for you. This movie jumps through time a lot, you do not really get to experience what Gogol childhood was like. I really liked that this movie showed the differences between cultures here in America and back in India. Overall this is an ok movie.

Movie Review on the Namesake by Leander Herring Jr. The Ganguli family in Jhumpa Lahiri's The Namesake has a problem. The mother and father are traditional Bengalese from Calcutta, and they are not particularly interested in assimilating into the United States, their adopted home. Gogol, their son, however, was born in the United States and is somewhat embarrassed by his parents Bengalese practices. Gogol is also uncomfortable with his name. It is neither a Bengalese nor an American name. No one he knows has a name like his. In school, kids make fun of it. But the conflict goes deeper than that. Gogol's father tries to explain why he gave that name to his first-born child, but Gogol could not care less. Gogol, in his attempts to get out from under the Bengali culture, even tries to completely disassociate himself from his family. But when his father dies, Gogol is surprised by how much he misses him. Slowly he turns back to his mother and sister. His new closeness makes Gogol's American girlfriend question why he is acting so differently. The strain breaks down their relationship. Later, when Gogol's mother suggests that Gogol call the Bengalese daughter of her friend, Gogol resists, for a little while. Then he gives in, somewhat curious about dating a Bengalese woman. As Gogol slowly realizes the importance of his family and his culture, he falls in love with Moushumi, the Bengalese woman. The story appears to have finally come to a happy conclusion. Gogol and Moushumi are married. But this is not a romantic happily-ever-after tale. Moushumi, who was a quiet and shy young teen, has tasted freedom in her twenties, a freedom from her parents and their strict Bengali ways. Now Moushumi feels confined in her marriage, no matter how well Gogol treats her. She turns away from him in the only way she knows how: she has an affair. The Namesake takes movie goers, behind the scenes to see just how other cultures handle situations such as the one that they had. The movie relates to World Religion, because half of the cultures such as the India, Hindi, Japan etc. all have arranged marriages and they go thru the same things that Moushumi, went thru in this movie!! This was a great movie to watch!!

Quite impressive movie.