Yasmin analysis

Summary (back of DVD case): Yasmin is a spirited woman whose life has become a precarious balancing act as she attempts both to please her traditional Pakistani family and enjoy the freedoms of Western life. Having rebelled against her family as a teenager, Yasmin yields to the demands of her widowed father and agrees to marry a cousin 'from home'. The omens are not good when she the goat-herder from a Pakistani village meets the vivacious, Westernised Yasmin. After the shocking event of 9/11, Yasmin's life begins to change; her innate sense of confidence starts to evaporate and she becomes increasingly ostracised at work. Yasmin is only jolted out of her crisis of identity when she witnesses a brutal internment of her husband under the draconian rules of the Anti-terrorism Act. The injustice of this event forces Yasmin to re-evaluate her faith, her culture and her relationships. The scene is set for a compelling and topical personal drama of what it means to be Asian, Muslim and British in the 21st Century.

My own analysis: The down that this is set is in a mainly Muslim-dominated town, that involves racism, for example, graffiti on a shutter door. Non-diegetic music is played throughout the film to create emotion and show the culture they live in. In the film Yasmin goes to the pub with a 'friend', but still sticks to her religion and has a non-alcoholic drink. Extreme close-ups are used in this film a lot to show the emotion of the characters. Diegetic sound is played across the town of Muslim prayers and speeches. Yasmin seems like a totally different person when she is under the influence of her Pakistani family.

Although Yasmin is a film, it relates to a documentary because it deals with real life every day situations. I feel it has helped me watching and analysing this because the film could actually be made into a documentary, because of the situations they have used.