The movie East is East takes place in Salford, Manchester in the early seventies. The family Kahn owns a fish and chips shop on the corner.

The father George Kahn, tries to raise his 7 children as good Muslims. But the job is not easy when he has to please both his British wife Ella and the Pakistani community. When his oldest son rejects to get married and leaves the bride at the altar, Georges world seems to collapse, but then he gets an idea. He can marry off two of his other sons and get back the respect he lost when his other son did not marry. Now Ella finds her self caught between her husband and the children. Especially when the two sons finds out that there father has secretly been arranging their marriages, the rebel within the children really comes out.

The movie is based on a play by Ayub Kahn-Din. The same man has also written the screenplay for the picture. The script is full of witty comments, especially from Sajid, how runs around in a big parkas that makes him look like Kenny from South Park. The movie evolves around difficult topics like arranged marriages, religion and identity. The movie uses these topics to make funny situations like Sajid not being circumcised, the children eating bacon before there dad gets home and the girl in the family likes to play football.

The director does a good job. He uses the cameras to make the viewers see things from different points off view. Especially the character George Kahn, very well played by Puri Om, goes through a make over in the director’s camera.

But after all is said and done, the movie is very interesting. It’s not every day a movie about culture and religion is that good!

“Do you want some candy?”