Mooz-Lum (2010) Reviews

• Good movie, but with stereotypes.

  sildarmillion2011-09-21

  I have been brought up as a Muslim, not in the USA. I've lived in the States only the last three years. I don't know what the atmosphere was pre-9/11, but I was shocked by what the movie portrayed. A substitute teacher is unable to pronounce Tariq's name, and when he tells her the correct pronunciation she challenges the spelling and claims it is not in "correct English". Then all the kids in the class laugh about the fact that it's not an English name, but a Muslim name. It shocks me to see this type of behavior, because it is completely contrary to what I have seen at college. Our teachers ask us how to pronounce our names if they're not sure, and the students here are even more tolerant of different names and different cultures than I am. (Yes, I have my prejudices towards certain accents, and certain behavioral patterns, but the Americans I've met tend to respect what is foreign because they know that they can't understand a different culture in an American context.) I was disappointed with the movie when some of the white characters were making such racist comments. If anyone at my college said stuff like that about immigrants, I feel like people would think he is out of his mind. ("I think when people come to America, they should learn the language and learn the religion of this country." He also called some Indian language "jibber-jabber".) I was disappointed with the secondary characters - especially the Muslim roommate and his intended. Seriously? Isn't that being stereotypical? Just because he's Pakistani (at least I think he was based on the language he was speaking with his parents, but then again I don't speak Urdu, so I wouldn't know) the movie is showing him as already engaged? Then again in the classroom, when the white boys were slandering immigrants, why was it only the Muslim girl who was arguing back? Why was it only her who was portrayed as "smart" and "enlightened" and the white boys as "narrow-minded" and "racist"? Other than these issues, I was impressed with the movie. The lead characters delivered splendid performances, the movie has me hooked to find out what was the back-story of Tariq which caused him to be so antagonistic towards his religion, and by the time 9/11 started, I was completely engrossed in it. The secondary characters weren't all stereotypical and they took chances with how they portrayed them (there were several characters who weren't either black or white and there were several shades of grey.) Regarding the reactions of the populace to 9/11 and their behavior towards Muslims, I was completely shocked that people would hit random Muslims on the head, and go out with sticks and try to beat up Muslim girls. (At least one white character was redeemed here when he told his friends that he didn't want to beat up people for revenge because "what is terrorism after all"? Thank goodness for that.) Then again, I know nothing about what it was like for Muslims in American back then. Overall, it was a good film. I'm glad that a film has been made about Muslim issues and with a Muslim main character, but I really wish they had left the stereotypes out.

• Great story, low budget

  miteypen2011-02-23

  It's not entirely fair for me to say that "Mooz-lum" was made on a low budget. I don't really know the facts on that. But it did seem to have some rough spots that wouldn't have been there if it had been a "typical" Hollywood movie. For the most part, the acting was excellent. I'd really be surprised if the main character, Evan Ross, doesn't become more well-known as an actor. Strangely enough, Danny Glover wasn't that good in this movie. He acted almost like he didn't want to be there. Some of the photography, especially at the beginning, was really beautiful. And the use of Qur'an recitations made for an authentic and haunting atmosphere. The movie moves back and forth in time which I didn't catch on to right away. The earlier times were filmed in sepia with color tinting and the present was in full color. I don't want to go into the story line itself for fear of spoiling it. But I will say that it's not quite what most people probably expect. The main character is s young man who was raised quite strictly as a Muslim and is now going to a secular college where he has to struggle with what being a Muslim means to him. That sounds kind of generic, but there's a plot twist that keeps it from being trite. I was a little disappointed that there were no Caucasian Muslims in the film, because I'm afraid that it gave the impression that all Muslims are Arab or black and that's simply not true. But overall, I was impressed with the film and recommend it to others, Muslim and non-Muslim alike.

• Mooz-lum: A fresh perspective on Al-Islam and Muslim Americans.

  taqwatv2011-02-19

  President Obama said in his 2011 State of the Union Address - "American Muslims are part of the American Family". Mooz-lum was in theaters less than 1 month from this historic statement. A story about a yong Muslim boy Tariq (Evan Ross) growing up as a Muslim in America. We experience his challenges, his rebellion and most of all his emotional struggle in accepting the religion that he was born into while living in the country that sometimes reject and ridicule it. I strongly suggest non-Muslims take a leap of understanding the American Family and go see this film. Directed by Qasim "Q" Basir and a star studded cast including Nia Long, Evan Ross, Danny Glover and more.

• Paints an exaggerated and unrealistic portrayals of Muslims

  zanyrox2011-08-30

  I didn't expect good acting or amazing filmography coming in to this movie since it is an indie film, and except for the main character and his mother most of the actors were worse than expected. But I could forgive all that if there had been a story of substance. Muslims made this movie- a world of opportunity existed for them to show the real Islam. But instead the characters are shallow and one dimensional, his father is some kind of psycho maniac with huge creepy eyes ("my son will be a ha-feez of the qoo-raannn!") who can't even pronounce Arabic words and is going to give me serious nightmares. Isn't this the way Muslims are portrayed by Hollywood? Why doesn't this movie try to break the norm? Why isn't it trying to show the average Muslim experience in America? Most Muslims face some discrimination but not insane amounts of it like they are trying to show in this movie. We already have My Name is Khan and multiple others to show that side of it. Stop making white people look like they are all one-dimensional crazy racists who are out to "get vengeance" on Muslims. Why did the mom have such a huge problem with her kids wearing Hijab and Kuffi? One one hand she is portrayed as a Hijabi, on the other she wants her kids to feel ashamed about who they really are. And what is up with that scene of her wanting to wear a low cut shirt? So is she a hijabi or isn't she? And if she doesn't want her kids teased at public school, why isn't she happy about him going to a Muslim school? And don't even get me started on the Professor at the Muslim boarding school. When does that ever happen, a crazy Muslim elder beating children? Stop showing exceptional cases as the norm! Hollywood is already taking care of that! If I wasn't Muslim I would walk away from this movie feeling like Muslim cultures and families are seriously messed up. Except for a few flimsy redemption scenes at the end, as well as a pretty good emotional family scene that weakly tries to "make it all okay", this movie was a disappointment. Seriously...you could have done anything with the budget you clearly had, but you choose to make a movie that paints the worst characteristics of some Muslims as the norm?? C-

• One Word: AMAZING! Americans MUST SEE THIS MOVIE!!!

  b_bluesky2011-02-27

  Just walked in my front door after seeing this movie...One word: Amazing! It truly delivers the right note. The right emotional punch - several actually. A movie like this is a necessary step in bringing the dialog necessary to open minds. A welcome voice of reason and respect in a time of EXTREME and painfully illogical right-wing bullying. A nice message of peace amidst a daily attack by bigot shock jocks who are the true terrorists for inciting violence and fear. I was NOT expecting this movie to be this good. The performances were so on point. You could really tell that this was a labor of love. I really want to see more from this writer/director. If I had to choose the very best performances, I would say Evan Ross (I was not familiar with his work, but I'm a fan NOW!!!) the girl who played his sister (very emotional without once going over the top) and Roger G. Smith (quiet intensity - just amazing). This movie deserves global recognition.