zanyrox Review of Mooz-Lum

Mooz-Lum (2010)

Paints an exaggerated and unrealistic portrayals of Muslims

[30 August 2011]

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-