Shades of Ray

2008

Comedy / Drama / Romance

4
Rotten Tomatoes Critics - Rotten 77%
Rotten Tomatoes Audience - Upright 77% · 500 ratings
IMDb Rating 6.9/10 10 1501 1.5K

culture clash romantic comedy romcom pakistan los angeles, california mixed heritage

Plot summary

American-born Ray Rehman comes home one night to find his Pakistani father on his doorstep. Ray's Caucasian mother threw him out. It's an awkward time for his father to move in as Ray just proposed to his Caucasian girlfriend - who hasn't given him an answer. While trying to get his parents back together, Ray meets a South Asian girl of mixed descent, just like him, and must decide where his identity truly lies.

Director

Jaffar Mahmood Photo
Jaffar Mahmood

Top cast

Sarah Shahi Photo
Sarah Shahi as Sana Khaliq
Lance Barber Photo
Lance Barber as Karaoke Singer
Nazanin Boniadi Photo
Nazanin Boniadi as Farah
Zachary Levi Photo
Zachary Levi as Ray Rehman
720p.WEB 1080p.WEB
791.91 MB
1280*720
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 26 min
Seeds 3
1.44 GB
1920*1080
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 26 min
Seeds 4

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by suite92 6 / 10

The protagonist's trajectory resembles that of a pinball.

Reviewed by robcheca 8 / 10

A well made romantic comedy

I saw "Shades of Ray" in New York city. The theater was a jam packed for this entry to the South Asian International Film Festival. The plot of the movie deals with the age old issues faced by new immigrants and their next generation so it is in some ways the story of all Americans, only that this one deals with the cultural dichotomy faced by an Asian (Pakistani) father. Such is the screenplay that all the characters are endearing and so real.Zachary Levi, playing the lead role of Ray is really funny. Playing the role of a second generation immigrant (born and bred in America) with all its complexities in comedic situations, he is awesome. Sarah Sahi is ravishing. The rest of the cast played their roles very well. I hope this movie is released for general distribution as it is a very funny romantic comedy, so that those who did not attend the special showing at the festival don't miss a very well made movie.
Reviewed by anhedonia 7 / 10

A pleasant romantic-comedy with lots of charm

It's truly a shame that a charming little romantic-comedy such as "Shades of Ray" does not get a distribution deal, but rubbish rom-coms - "Made of Honor" (2008), "What Happens in Vegas" (2008), "My Best Friend's Girl" (2008) and "My Life In Ruins" (2009) - do.Writer-director Jaffar Mahmood is playing well within the conventions of the genre. But what makes his film work is that he doesn't rely on stock characters. Even when he has a stock character or two - such as the protagonist's controlling father, Javaid Rehman (Brian George), or the wacky roommate, Sal Garfinkle (Fran Kranz) - Mahmood tweaks their personalities just enough that they seem fresher than they otherwise might be.I realize there are no Renée Zellwegers, Ashton Kutchers or Cameron Diazes in this film to make it sell to a wider audience. But the lack of such actors is what makes this film all the more appealing.Films about southeast Asian families and the vagaries of growing up in one are terribly rare and Mahmood should be commended for taking a whack at the subject matter.Despite tackling issues such as parental control, tradition, familial obligations and love, Mahmood makes his film work because his characters seem new and rather unconventional, even though many of them are just that.The film is helped immensely by terrific performances all around. I have not seen the TV series, "Chuck," so I was unfamiliar with Zachary Levi as an actor. He makes Ray Rehman an entirely believable person, even managing to bring a sense pathos to a rather funny audition scene.Kathy Baker and George are terrific as Ray's parents. Baker, especially, gives her role such substance that she takes a minor bit and makes it much more than that. And, finally, it's wonderful to see the lovely Sarah Shahi given a role with some meat and bones on it. I have seen two other films recently in which she was never used to her full potential - "AmericanEast" (2007), in which she has a superfluous role, and "Crossing Over" (2009), in which she was purely window-dressing. In "Shades of Ray," Shahi gets a juicy role that allows her to be alluring, lovable and provocative. She has a sensational scene in a bar where she turns into a playful vixen that is thoroughly enticing.One character who feels short-changed is Noel Wilson (Bonnie Somerville). In fairness to Mahmood, he resists the temptation to turn her into a bad person, though, given the trappings of the genre, in one scene, he gives her dialogue that seems completely out of character."Shades of Ray" does not turn the romantic-comedy genre on its head or anything of that ilk. It's a pleasant diversion and explores a side of American society rarely seen in Hollywood movies. It's most definitely a far cry better and more enjoyable than the romantic comedies Hollywood studios chuck out by the dozen.
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