Shades of Ray

Shades of Ray was fabulous, i saw it last night in New York City for the South Asian Int'l Film Festival. Great balance of comedy and drama, i am not a particularly indie film savvy person, but i would buy this movie on DVD in a heartbeat. This movie, especially the casting, had the right amount of earthiness as well as a little flair in the roles of Zachary Levi and Brian George. i cant explain how much i love it, i think that the movie truly achieved its purpose, it showed that sadly some prejudices still exist in a subtle yet ingrained ways, and yet people know about it, and just aren't willing to wholeheartedly give them up.

Jaffar has succeeded in producing a movie,that touches the hearts of almost every immigrant in this great nation's melting pot.I brought my wife(who is American)and my son and daughter.Both told me after,they couldn't believe how they could relate so closely to the characters.Very funny,and sweet.I am so excited for Jaffar,and Zach,who I think is just sprouting.He has great talent.And Brian George,my goodness!What immigrant father cannot relate to THAT character!! Loved it,Loved it. Ray's roommate did seem to have a lovable character.The interesting thing is that people were actually clapping at many parts.It seemed that we were being led into our own experiences.And it could have been a story about any ethnicity. I saw the movie at it's premiere in NYC to a sold out audience,and again,I can't remember laughing so hard in a long time.

I saw "Shades of Ray" in NYC this past weekend at the South Asian International Film Festival. The plot of the movie deals with Ray coming to terms with his biracial background. Although this movie focuses on a half Pakistani half Caucasion man it could be any biracial story; it has a universal appeal. All the characters are endearing and after 90 quick minutes, I didn't want the movie to end! Zachary Levi is fantastic playing the lead role of Ray, his comedic timing is incredible. The supporting cast are all amazing; whoever did the casting was very successful. I hope this movie is picked up for distribution. I think it would be a shame if this fantastic romantic comedy was not made available for everyone to enjoy!!

Shades of Ray is an outstanding film. Extremely well written and directed; and the acting by all the performers was top notch. It was very funny and at the same time it gave us the "warm fuzzies" all over.

Although there is a definite ethnic slant, this movie could have been about any first generation immigrants trying to find there way in America. In many ways it also portrays typical family values of Americans across the country.

This film is a breath of fresh air compared to the gratuitously violent and sophomoric films that Hollywood has foisted on us for all too long.

We want to see many more films written and directed by Jaffar Mahmood. He is a great, young talent.

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.