East is East East is East

A comedy of families, a chip shop... and a very randy dog.

In 1971 Salford fish-and-chip shop owner George Khan expects his family to follow his strict Pakistani Muslim ways. But his children, with an English mother and having been born and brought up in Britain, increasingly see themselves as British and start to reject their father's rules on dress, food, religion, and living in general.

Om Puri Linda Bassett Ian Aspinall Jimi Mistry Archie Panjabi

Film4 BBC Assassin Films

comedy foreign

97 mins   More details at IMDb / TMDb

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  • Chris Gelderd

    Review by Chris Gelderd ★★★½

    A low budget UK film turned into a successful hit in Europe and even America. It was written by Ayub Khan-Din and directed by Damien O'Donnell.

    It is set in a British household of mixed-ethnicity, with a Pakistani father and an English mother in Salford, Lancashire, in 1971. George Khan (Om Puri), the father, expects his family to follow Pakistani ways, but his children, who were born and grew up in Britain, increasingly see themselves as British and reject Pakistani customs of dress, food, religion, and living in general, leading to a rise in tensions and conflicts in the whole family.

    A powerful film at times that does hit home the seriousness of living around a mixed faith family and…

  • Ben Trout

    Review by Ben Trout ★½

    [Seen in 2000, not sure when, neglected to date stamp back then]

    Shows us its message in the first fifteen minutes and then struggles to decide (practically every other minute) whether it wants to milk comedy or shock out of Om Puri hitting Linda Bassett in the face while saying “bastard”and “bleedin”over and over and over again. Nearly impossible to separate the “dad’s-way-or- no-way” plot from the “goofy-mixed-kids-coming-of-age-in-the-goofy-seventies’-plot” - so why try.

  • Charlie Derry

    Review by Charlie Derry ★★★½

    This film always hits quite close to home - aside from the Indian culture - so I find it quite hard-hitting to watch. However, it also makes me laugh a lot, so the combination of comedy and drama works really well. It's a very true-to-life family drama and a great British comedy at the same time.

  • salliejane2

    Review by salliejane2

    Excellent film, a true to life film with hilairious moments!

  • Dick Whitman

    Review by Dick Whitman ★★★★½

    As funny as it is movie, East is East is a fantastic family dramedy that is very universal even in its specificity.

  • Arnold Furious

    Review by Arnold Furious ★★★

    My pc has no internet right now so I'm stuck on this godawful piece of shit ipad. I want to kill someone. Seriously, its made me realise how much I fucking LOATHE touchscreen technology. Which is how George Khan must have felt about his kids. But angry or not, I still wouldn't hit my wife. Which is why I can't truly love or understand East is East. No matter how much it makes me laugh.

  • Paul Docherty

    Review by Paul Docherty ★★★★½

    A really excellent family drama that depicts the life of an interracial family living in the Manchester borough of Salford in the early 70s, during the height of anti-immigrant rhetoric in Britain.

    Charming, witty and poignant. Rewardingly complex emotionally. A fine balance of comedy and drama. A small film but a grand achievement.

  • Chris76

    Review by Chris76 ★★★½

    Have seen this film several times; it shows a realistic slice of life in the north of england in the days of mini skirts, big hair and fish and chips. Simple but powerful, this film tells a good story, both sad and funny, sometimes at the same time!

  • anne_f_

    Review by anne_f_ ★★★½

    "I don't know what to make of this tale of the clash of cultures in 1970s England. It seems to me that a very different film would be made if it was set in the 21st century."