Shades of Ray

2008

Comedy / Drama / Romance

3
Rotten Tomatoes Critics - Certified Fresh 77%
Rotten Tomatoes Audience - Upright 77% · 500 ratings
IMDb Rating 6.9/10 10 1489 1.5K

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

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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
Bonnie Somerville Photo
Bonnie Somerville as Noel Wilson
Lance Barber Photo
Lance Barber as Karaoke Singer
Zachary Levi Photo
Zachary Levi as Ray Rehman
720p.WEB 1080p.WEB
791.91 MB
1280*720
English 2.0
NR
23.976 fps
1 hr 26 min
Seeds 1
1.44 GB
1920*1080
English 2.0
NR
23.976 fps
1 hr 26 min
Seeds 7

Movie Reviews

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.
Reviewed by kuchynata 7 / 10

Charming family/romantic comedy with a whole lot of heart - pun intended

I was privileged to see this film at its world premier at the Austin Film Festival. Ray's family dynamics were fun and still familiar, making it easy to connect with him. Writer-director Jaffar created endearing characters. Despite some of the story weaknesses, I found this film irresistible. I was even more enchanted when a whole slew of folks got up on the stage for the Q&A after the screening, AND Jaffar introduced his parents who were in the audience. Zach, Sarah and Fran were extremely funny. Made even more so by the fact that Zach and Sarah were functioning on little sleep after wrapping their TV shooting schedules for the week and coming out to Austin almost immediately after. The support shown for this filmmaker only goes to show the passion behind this project; and, imho, those are the only projects worth spending my time on. Jaffar was articulate and very helpful with his responses to questions for us first time filmmakers.If Zach Levi doesn't charm you as Ray, then you're either dead or in a coma. Sarah Shahi as Sana, same. Actually, the same can be said for all the leads, Fran Kranz, Bonnie Sommerville, Brian George and Kathy Baker - all did wonderful work. With my apologies to the rest of the cast for this next statement. Brian George stole the show as Ray's father. It was very obvious in the writing that Jaffar knew this character very well, and Brian picked up that ball and ran with it. He was highly entertaining to watch.Zach is still a young actor, but if he's able to keep at his craft and continues selecting projects with this much heart, I see greatness in his career. He's going to be a tremendously talented actor, and he's already quite good! He made it easy for me to connect with and care about Ray. Sarah Shahi was a surprise. I see her every week on "Life", and really had no idea how talented she was - she acts so effortlessly on that show! Of course her character Sana in "SoR" is quite different from that of Dani Reese on "Life", but her personality during the Q&A is entirely different from both of them. Well done, you, Sarah! I don't know about anyone else, but I'll be watching for future projects with all these folks, including Jaffar of course! I hope you get distribution because I'll pay so I can see this again.
Reviewed by lulubleu-2 8 / 10

Fun film and a great message

I quite enjoyed this film. I saw it at the Ausitn Film Festival and it was one of the best we saw. There was a Q&A that followed that had the writer/director Jaffe and many of the cast. Listening to them speak really made it clear why this film was so good. Zach Levi was wonderful and really did do a great performance. I like the relationship between the family members, it felt real. I really hope this film finds distribution because it truly deserves a shot. It's a beautiful story of family and finding one's own way through life. Jaffe wrote a script that was very heartfelt and honest. Good luck to him and I hope we get to see more of his work. Well done.
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