Izzat, les versets du mal

After watching this movie, I just thought "what a movie!".

Well - Norwegian directors hasn't been the greatest and cleverest action-movie makers like Spielberg, Roland Emmerich and Peter Jackson. Every time a director tried, the movie failed.

But in 2005, the fresh director Ulrik Imtiaz Rolfsen took, with his movie, a little step for a man but a big step for Movie-Norway.

The actors (Emil Marwa, Elyas Mohammed, et cetera) performs very well in the film. Everything feel so real, so intense.

We meet three Pakistani-Norwegian boys in Oslo, 1984, named Wasim, Riaz and Munawar. Those boys gets involved with the East Side Crew gang. First, there is small jobs like thieving and things like that - after ten years, they become dangerous, hard armed and drug-dealing gangsters.

Applause to Rolfsen and his cast!

Izzat is a realistic portrait of the gang culture among immigrant children in Oslo in the 80-90's. The movie portraits the destiny of Wasim, Riaz and Munawar, three young boys growing up in Oslo's east side at the time. They find school hopeless and boring when they get drawn to the environment in East Side Crew -a gang ruled by the hardboiled brothers Sadiq and Khalid. It starts with petty theft, but soon develop into drug dealing, abuse and murder. The scriptwriters, both immigrants, grew up in Oslo east and observed the environment at close range and the director capture the story in an raw way. The movie also explains the big gap between cultures and why the gang environment could flourish the way it did. Izzat became a big hit in the movies and have been praised among the audience and critics.

Izzat may be the very first movie from Norway which can be classified as a good movie, not just a "good-to-be-Norwegians"-movie.

Izzat paints an image of Oslo, Norways capital, and its crime-environment in the mid-90's. We follow Wasim and his involvement in Westside Crew, the Pakistanian crime-gang.

What makes this movie extra special, is the realness of it all. Several Pakistanis which are familiar with the crime and the gangs in Oslo, say that the movie is extremely real, with the exception of a few details.

Unfortunately, Izzat has got a few problems with the acting. Both of Wasims friends, and his sister, suffers from bad acting.

The soundtrack however, is outstanding. Typical rock music from the mid-90's, and even better, several Norwegian bands! All in all, if you speak Norwegians, or if this movie is dubbed into English sometime, absolutely one of THE films this year.

The word Izzat means 'respect' in Urdu. In a way the movie was all about gaining respect in society. Unfortunately many people enter in to a one way street to get their place in society. A street where there is no turning back...ever! This movie is about 3 boys who were disappointed with poor state of their migrant Pakistani families and the fact that very few Pakistani were enjoying real respect in Norwegian society at that time. One day they come across to a drug gang run by a very ruthless Pakistani 'Sadiq'. They grow up with the gang doing small jobs for them and ultimately becoming the core members of the gang. The main character of the movie Wasim comes across many ugly situations which were all due to his involvement with the gang. That includes shooting his best childhood friend, seeing his sister being raped by his enemies and trying to pay off his younger brother gambling debt. I don't want to spoil the movie for others by telling a lot but this movie does succeeds in gripping it's viewers with it's realistic yet ugly events in underworld crimes. You will almost wish for Wasim to somehow get out of the whole thing.

I will agree with one of the reviewers that acting might have been better in the movie. The Urdu acting was not fantastic either. But the movie still managed to grip me with its strong plot and realistic events. I will certainly recommend this movie for people who like gangster type movie with underworld background.

This movie has it all, a good realistic story, good directing and a very good screenplay. Unfortunately, the acting is sometimes terrible. The main character, Wasim, is not this years Oscar's favorite. A couple of the other actors is also bad. This movie would have been av "section" 8, without any doubt, if it wasn't for the bad acting. The soundtrack is also superb with bands like Kjøtt and Raga Rockers. The violence is also portrayed quite realistic and without to much blood. Honour is an important theme in the name and as the title says in norway, "Livet er en æresak" Translated, "Life is matter of honour" The movie contains several humoristic scenes which fits the film nicely. Kurt, Arendal, Norway.