“Ali and Ava” is a true love story told with charm and depth – two ordinary middle-aged and very real people who don’t seem suited to each other at first glance, but because of their determination in their search for happiness, turn out to be one of the great movie couples. The film is thoroughly recommended. (Review by Barry Meehan)
Ali And Ava is one of the films on the forthcoming European Film Festival in South Africa which goes hybrid for its 9th edition between October 13 and 23, 2022.
Writer/Director: Clio Barnard
Country of Origin: Uk
Language: English
Running Time: 95 Minutes
Leads: Adeel Akhtar & Claire Rushbrook
Ali and Ava
is a gentle and somewhat charming love story set in the city of Bradford in
West Yorkshire in England, north of Manchester and Liverpool. Bradford is
rather grey and bleak, a pretty typical middle-class UK city with inherent
racial divides. One might expect the relationship between the two protagonists to
move along the same lines, but this is certainly not the case with this
well-constructed film.
Ali (superbly portrayed by Adeel Akhtar) is a friendly Pakistani immigrant, who exudes an almost childlike warmth, coupled with a great sense of humour, well-liked by those around him. He’s a wannabe DJ, his day job being a rent collector. He is going through a bad patch, as his wife Runa is in the process of leaving him, even though they still live in the same house, as they haven’t told their families and neighbours that a breakup is underway.
Ava (played with genuine warmth by Claire Rushbrook) is a selfless and giving teacher’s assistant with grown children and grandchildren. Her husband, now deceased, was an abuser and an alcoholic, so Ava is content on her own. She doesn’t have much, but then with the demands her children make on her, and her job, she doesn’t have much time for herself.
So we have Ali and Ava, two genuinely nice people in their own worlds. When they meet – through a common concern for a neighbour’s child, Sofia, they find that they share a common interest – music, even though their tastes are radically different – Ali is into rock ‘n roll and rap, with Ava into country and folk. Their initial friendship slowly grows into something more, in spite of some serious objections from family on both sides. The relationship is cleverly driven by the music they share as they grow to understand each other and themselves, along with each other’s musical tastes. There are times in the movie when music is cleverly used instead of dialogue, taking over the narrative.
Ali and Ava is a true love story told with charm and depth – two ordinary middle-aged and very real people who don’t seem suited to each other at first glance, but because of their determination in their search for happiness, turn out to be one of the great movie couples. The film is thoroughly recommended. – Barry Meehan
The European Film Festival 2022 is screened online and runs from October 13 to 23, with all movies screened for free. There are also some showings in cinemas in Cape Town and Johannesburg. For more information, click on the Festival logo to the right of this article or visit www.eurofilmfest.co.za
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