Tis Me Michelle

This was another plane ride watch. I had back-to-back Westernized brown movies. Wasn’t mad about it. I actually had heard of this one as well, but felt like it was even less advertised than Polite Society. Not entirely sure this even came out in theaters.

I’ll start with the pros. It’s a light and easy watch. Definitely meant to be a romantic comedy vibe. I also adore Emma Thompson, even though she was a bit of a caricature in this movie. I wasn’t familiar with any of the brown cast, but thought they were all great. Again it was a very easy watch, although at times a cringe watch.

So… I think I would have much preferred this topic to be tackled from the brown/Pakistani/Indian perspective. As an Indian, this topic is still super relevant in our community. This movie follows Lily James’ character Zoe and her childhood neighbor Kaz. Zoe is a director in search of her next movie idea when she catches up with Kaz and learns he’s ready to get married and is actually going to go for an arranged marriage, and ding ding ding – she’s found her next big ticket movie idea.

A big point of the movie is obviously that an arranged marriage is a crazy concept, especially in Western communities. Zoe cannot fathom that Kaz would be interested in an arranged marriage. Listen, this is a concept I struggle with. I understand the pros and cons of it because I’ve seen both within my immediate circle. And I won’t lie, I lean against it in general. Mainly because I’d like to either find my person or make the mistake on my own behalf. I also don’t hold judgement with arranged marriages, it still exists, most of my parents generation are products of it. And no relationship is perfect.

I found that it would have been much more interesting to follow Kaz’s perspective, a real deep dive into why he finally decided it was something he would consider. As someone who grew up in England, it’s less common to go the more ‘traditional’ route. He mentions things here and there, but since Zoe is really the main character we moreso see parallels of her current dating situationships. We also don’t see a whole lot behind the scenes of Kaz getting to know the women that are being brought to him. Ultimately the girl he decides to move forward does feel hurried. I don’t want to spoil the movie, but I do feel like the movie leaves people, especially the Western folks, with their preconceptions (i.e. how Zoe was viewing it) of arranged marriage being true.

I just felt like it missed the mark. It could have been a really interesting take on the dating game especially in the brown community. It’s hard out here between traditional expectations and growing up in the modern age. The topic is relevant, but needs to be handled with respect and be told from the right perspective.

Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️