Justice and Hope is a very intelligent and well thought out film. It's a documentary that interviews participants in a UK rally around the popular slogan "never forget 1984." I always wondered what is the use of remembering past pain if there is no solution put forth to prevent such problems in the future. This film identified the human rights issues behind 1984 and how they are still going on, and pointed out that it's now a matter of how to move on with 'justice and hope'. I liked it because it was a film with a positive mood rather than one that made me feel hateful and wanting vengeance. This film is an example of a new way to relate to 1984 with positive change, justice, intelligence and progressiveness.
OUTLAW provided a very entertaining 26 minutes of action-filled fun. Filled with Quentin Tarantino style combat sequences complete with spraying blood and lots of special effects. I found the first chapter a bit long, but the rest of the chapters were well paced and action packed. When i was watching it I kept saying to myself "Oh my god, how did they do that?" For me it was a wide-eyed special effects romp created with advanced production skills like crane shots. Hey, who hasn't wanted to see gatka done with light sabres? This film contained some of the best production quality we've ever seen in four years of conducting the SikhNet film festival. So why didn't it win? Well, even though it was a modern day portrayal of the time in the 18th century when Sikhs had a price on their heads and were openly hunted, the plot was almost non-existent, if it was there at all it seemed like an afterthought. Though really fun to watch, it didn't have much of an impact on me in terms of spirituality or inspiration. It wasn't something i would necessarily want to watch twice because once I've seen the action I've seen it. I guess we're kind of spoiled these days when it comes to martial arts effects and action sequences. Outlaw was more of a novelty in that it was an amateur project that featured a Sikh hero.
Don't Mess With Manmohan
This comedy had a certain charm to it, and that's what I liked about it. It was filled with humor - clever from the subtitles explaining the British gang-speak slang to the infomercial spiritual jive. The plot flowed well and it held my attention throughout. The message of Don't Mess With Manmohan was a little thin. My best guess is that the whole point is to not follow TV psychics or spiritualists, but to look towards Sikhi. That's a good message but the plot and the message seemed rather disconnected at some points, and the hero becoming the UK Prime Minister in the end was humorous but over the top silly. The music was great which really boosted the personality of this video. Do watch this one. 
turBAN
This film was my favorite right away, even though we received it before any of the other films. It has great production quality; it's very original and relevant, and the message hits close to home. Inspired by the ban on turbans in the French school system, turBAN is all about message. With its French dialogue intrigue and suspense, it was really exciting, and the original rap song by GNE was amazing. This effort definitely deserved my applause. It's an example of youth combining modern urban culture with their strong Sikh identity and using that to make a universally appealing plea for human rights.
Through The Ashes
A road film in search of the answer to the question, "WHY?," Through the Ashes takes us along on journey of Harjus Singh, who travels to interview a wide range of people about their Sikhi. This is a very honest and personal film. I loved the interview with Bhai Darshan Singh, and young Dilroop Kaur made some very good points. Those two interviews were the highlights of the film for me. I personally didn't relate so much to the interview with fellow filmmaker Ari Gold, who became fascinated with the tabla player he featured in his recent film Adventures of Power: Air-Drumming in America, but some viewers will appreciate it more than I did. The sound quality was a it poor in some scenes, but overall, the technical quality of Through the Ashes was fine. What I enjoyed most about it was that it was a genuine introspective journey which was completely original and personal. That's why it was a winner this year, because it was an innocent search for answers, in which the journey itself was the goal.
Oct 21, 2009