Musings: Little Zizou movie review

written by Unknown at Friday, March 13, 2009

Little Zizou is a f film in Hindi, Gujarati, and English, written and directed by Sooni Taraporevala .
Little Zizou is a fast-paced, exuberant, yet poignant comedy about how two battling Mumbai families finally come to terms. Xerxes, 'Little Zizou' as he's known, is an eleven year old soccer-mad Parsi boy whose fervent wish is that his idol, the world famous Algerian-origin French soccer/football player Zinedine Zidane visit Mumbai. His older brother Ataxerxes, or Art, is a talented artist whose wild fantasies come to life in surprising ways. Their father Khodaiji is a self-proclaimed protector-of-the-faith who thrives on the attentions (and donations) of hopeful believers.
Art burns with unrequited love for the daughter of Khodaiji's arch rival, Pressvala, a free thinking newspaper publisher. And to the extreme displeasure of their other daughter, Xerxes adores the maternal Mrs Pressvala. But the real fireworks begin when Pressvala writes a scathing critique of Khodaiji and public reaction is widespread. As the two households fight, life becomes complicated.
Sooni Taraporevala is an award-winning screenwriter (The Namesake (film), Salaam Bombay!, Mississippi Masala), professional photographer (PARSIS: the Zoroastrians of India - a Photographic Journey), and debuting director..