Yesterday marked the start of the now annual Christmas countdown of the best 25 movies of the year. Today we come to the second on my list, the 24th best movie of 2010.
So without further ado here it is…
Four Lions is a movie that shouldn’t work. It’s a dark, satirical comedy about a bunch of British Muslims, and their red-bearded converted best mate, who are intent on declaring a Jihad and destroying something, anything to further their cause. In fact the heroes/villains here are so criminally inept they might well have stepped out of a South Park parody and on to the big screen. That the whole concept does work, brilliantly at times, is a testament to all involved.
Why it’s worthy: First things first this movie is hilarious. It’s smart and funny while never caricaturing the protagonists or laughing at their quest. The humour is in their actions, not their end goal. Particularly good is Riz Ahmed, as Omar the de-facto leader of the group and seemingly the only one with any sort of intelligence. The onscreen relationship with his wife (Preeya Kalidas) is very warm and quite believable and their bond, together with Omar’s totally inept brother Waj (Kayvan Novak) form the emotional heart of the story. The comedy aspect is tempered by reminders of the very real threat that these guys, or guys like them, pose. This works to the movies credit as it grounds the comedy and deepens the satirical nature of the movie.
Fatal flaws: Some gags fall flat, some gags fall so flat as to produce groans and take an audience out of the uneasy comfort zone that it finds itself in. Barry, the convert, is mainly at fault for these moments in the movie as his bravado and bluster soon wears thin. Also terrorism is not really all that funny and some people, and I imagine it would be quite a number, would have severe problems with the movie from the outset. They shouldn’t, but them’s the breaks. A lot of the dialogue is ludicrous, and if this wasn’t a comedy would be laughable in itself. Then there’s the fact that there is no real morality to this tale, which is a little odd but forgiveable.
Verdict: This film walks a very thin line between what people should find funny and what they actually find funny. That people can have a guilty giggle without feeling ashamed is a clear sign that the filmmakers got this spot on.
I really loved that film. I felt wrong watching it.
I would debate how satirical it actually is though. I thought a lot of the ‘satire’ was just an excuse to make some very inappropriate jokes. But they were great jokes.
Still haven’t seen it. No excuse now.
Sounds pretty good! I’ll give it a try and let you know!
Damn it I have not seen the first 2 films on the list!
I feel so bad right now
Ok I am over it. This looks good!