Naz & Maalik (2015) User Reviews

Rare view of intersecting teen identities

[tshary17 · 7/10 · 16 July 2023]

In my work, I've seen over a thousand teen films, and it's been heartening how many recent examples explore LGBTQ+ youth. Most of them (like this one) deal with family, and some (unlike this one) deal with school, but few take on concerns about religion, and none that I know of have featured gay teens within a Muslim context.

For a low-budget on-location film, there is a lot to appreciate, such as the creative cinematography and the attention to local details. Sure, the acting can be a bit clunky, and a subplot with an FBI agent is rather overblown, but the story feels real, with these young men trying to navigate their attraction to each other, the attitudes of their Muslim cohort, and their treatment by American society.

It does not cohere into a Grand Statement on young Black gay Muslim culture, which is perhaps why some people are disappointed in the ending. Rather, we see literally one day (albeit an eventful one) in which two distinctive and otherwise unseen characters face their adult future, and such a vision is worthy of your attention.

Cute

[Tri-State_Skater · 6/10 · 21 July 2021]

This film had some pot holes, but it was still cute. The boys relationship is very sweet at times, even when they fight.

Many question marks

[jaroslaw99 · 4/10 · 29 April 2016]

Spoilers......

I wasn't sure what to expect. I thought it would be interesting to see a love story about Gay Muslims in NYC. It was repetitive in spots for sure but it wasn't nearly as bad as the two reviews already here would have you believe. Many movies have a lot of things that were unexplained and this movie did also. The leads were portrayed as pretty intelligent, but they barely discussed reconciling their being Gay with their religion or if Islam allows selling lotto tickets and Christian holy cards on the street supposedly for their college fund. It was totally believable that the FBI would be suspicious and I thought the acting by all concerned was just fine. All the walking around NY could have been better spent at least partly discussing their attraction for each other and how their friend Dan knew all along. The film just didn't go anywhere and ended abruptly.

Boring movie about nothing

[ComedyFan2010 · 2/10 · 11 June 2018]

I saw that this movie is about black Muslim gay guys and I thought that it will all be about how super oppressed they are. Actually the word "oppression" is mentioned in the 3rd minute of the movie as a part of a joke made by one of the characters.

But the movie wasn't even about that. I mean they probably tried to make them looked oppressed by FBI and police when they were asked some simple questions after having a talk with an undercover cop about buying a gun and one of them gets a ticket when breaking the rules, but I saw nothing wrong or oppressive about the cops behavior.

Their homosexuality makes them a target of their own families. But this also isn't explored as we really don't get to know anything about their families or their behavior and actions towards homosexuality.

Actually we didn't get to know much about main characters as well. Just that they are gay and spend all the time selling some useless stuff on the street. So yes, a movie about nothing with nothing important happening

A well-acted but meandering film

[ewf1000 · 8/10 · 6 July 2016]

Overall, I enjoyed this movie. I have to agree with some of the other reviews on this site that the movie lacks focus. It spends far too much time on the scenes of the main characters hawking lottery tickets and such on the street. The subplot about government profiling of young, black, Muslim men isn't developed. Nor are many of the secondary characters (such as Naz's sister). The film also needs a good ending. When I watched the final scene, I kept sitting there, waiting for more, because it felt as if the camera just went dark, leaving a lot of loose ends.The film would have benefited from jettisoning the profiling subplot and the many scenes of street sales and devoting more time developing the relationship between Naz and Maalik.

Because this is where the strength and beauty of this film lies. The acting on the part of the two male leads is powerful and well-done. They have a definite on-screen chemistry, and they made me believe in the passion these two characters have for each other. Movies about young black men in love are few and far between, and that fact alone makes this movie a delightful gem. The film conveyed a strong sense of place through its effective use of the gritty urban backdrop (I believe the story is set in Brooklyn.) I will certainly be viewing this one again.

Wasted Potential

[Alvin_tp · 1/10 · 14 June 2018]

Until now, I've never watched a film and felt incomplete at the end. All of the main issues were left unresolved. In fact, the only issue that was resolved was the FBI bit. And who cared about that???

I had hopes for this film. I thought that it would at least attempt to explore the issues of religion and sexuality. Alas, nothing.

I'm leaving this film with mores questions than I had when I started watching it.

Excellent

[mrbgoode-1 · 10/10 · 13 February 2020]

Evidently not for everyone, but I found this to be an engaging NYC slice of life. Too good not to at least try it.

I wish I had read the reviews before wasting my time

[jasnsav-51889 · 1/10 · 4 August 2020]

Just bad. I couldn't believe the movie just ended with no resolution to anything. Why was this film made in the first place? Yikes

I Wish it was better

[ewb5048 · 4/10 · 24 July 2017]

I had really high hopes for this film. The subject matter alone is what drew me to watching it. I was disappointed in that I wasn't clear as to what the director was doing actually; whether he was just telling their story, or talking about the topic of homosexuality in the Muslim community, or just the Muslim community in general. 3 completely different topics that seems is what the director was trying to showcase, but IMO if fell short. We knew nothing of their origin as to why they here hustling in the first place, or their relationship which was hardly talked about. The actors were good as i felt, as a NY'er, was authentic conversation. I really had hoped tho there was a clearer focus on what the story was, or at least the conflict, for I really didn't see a conflict.

An unbelievably bad film

[DCLastcolony · 1/10 · 2 April 2016]

So bad in fact it is hard to believe movie pay sites like the new pay Vimeo and Amazon Video on Demand would hoodwink people into paying for this film. One wants to support independent film-makers to be sure and young actors need to be encouraged, but the script of this film above all is so bad, it drags everything in the film down with it. There are so many scenes in the film that are not only boring and clichéd but totally irrelevant to the main story line and character development. In addition, there are just far too many repetitive scenes, such as on the street and in stores. The theme of the film -- two young Muslim men in New York who bond with each other and love each other -- has possibilities to be sure, particularly for a general American audience unfamiliar with Islam. But the theme is completely wasted in this effort.

Poor

[arifzworld · 1/10 · 10 February 2016]

Poorly written. Bad screenplay. With loads of clichés in most scenes. Also, the amateur actors are nothing but blank. And emotionless. I would say they did not justify with the issue at all. Wasted my time on this pathetic piece of trash! Poorly written. Bad screenplay. With loads of clichés in most scenes. Also, the amateur actors are nothing but blank. And emotionless. I would say they did not justify with the issue at all. Wasted my time on this pathetic piece of trash! Poorly written. Also, the amateur actors are nothing but blank. And emotionless. I would say they did not justify with the issue at all. Wasted my time on this pathetic piece of trash.Bad screenplay.

Snooze-fest

[zdoshi · 1/10 · 3 July 2016]

This movie is a 1:24 long. I kept waiting and waiting for SOMETHING to happen. I don't claim to be a decent creative writer in the least bit but I know that screenplays (and all stories) need structure (http://www.movieoutline.com/articles/the-five-key- turning-points-of-all-successful-movie-scripts.html).

This movie has ZERO structure. Two gay Muslim teenage buddies hang out for the day, selling crap on the streets. They had sex last night and feel guilty about it. Nothing really happens. They get questioned and patted down by the FBI and nothing really happens (for all you kids, don't ever talk to the FBI or any other law enforcement without a lawyer, even if you didn't do anything). One of the kid's sister sees him kissing on the subway and tells him that she disowns him. Nothing comes from that. The high point of action is that one of the kids doesn't want to kill a chicken for dinner (not many of us do) and nothing comes of that.

The movie ends with the don't-want-to kill-chicken kid gets a ticket for riding his bike on the platform. Boom! "Cliffhanger" ending! The high point of the movie was a chicken The high point of the movie is when the I-can-kill-the-chicken kid goes to grab the knife, he gets a bad cut on his hand (he's fine). The chicken jumps off the building and a guy gets in a car accident because of it (he's probably fine too). And what becomes of the chicken/accident/injury scene...not too much.

This movie got 82% on Rotten Tomatoes (Critics). That boggles my mind but 2/3 reviews I've read on this site agree with me, so I know I'm not the one whose crazy. A movie about gay, Muslim, black, inner city youths could've had so much promise. But it's uneventful and full of clichés. I did you all a favor. I watched this so you don't have to.