Stars: Max Beesley, Sanjeev Bhaskar, Kathy Burke, Ayesha Dharker, Lynn Redgrave, Anna Brewster, Chandeep Uppal

Director: Metin Huseyin

Summary: Meena is a twelve-year-old living in the Midlands in 1972 with her Indian parents. They believe that by coming to England Meena has the chance of a better life but when Anita Rutter and her family arrive on the scene things start to change rapidly...

ANITA & ME is a charming, comic look back at the 1970s based on the autobiographical novel by Meera Syal, who also stars in the film as her own aunt. Set in 1972, Meena is a twelve year old girl born to Indian parents whose life is turned upside down when she befriends an outrageous fourteen year old, Anita. Soon the bookish Meena is introduced to a world of fun and music whilst struggling with the problems of adolescence, racism and the culture clash she encounters with members of her own family. As with EAST IS EAST and Zadie Smith's WHITE TEETH, ANITA & ME avoids an earnest approach in favour of presenting a personal dimension to the development of a multicultural society in post-War Britain.

WIN DVDs by rating this DVD

Average User Rating:

WIN DVDS by being amongst the first to review this DVD. Reviewing DVDs earns you bonus entries and lets you WIN DVDs!Please login before reviewing this DVD. If you're a new user, register for free and enter to WIN FREE DVDs!

Anita &Meis the film of Meera Syal's novel about growing up in the Black Country in the early 1970s. Syal appears in the film, playing a somewhat terrifying aunt, and most of the cast will be just as familiar to anyone who has watched many BBC comedies: it also features Sanjeev Bhaskar (The Kumars at No. 42), Mark Williams (The Fast Show) and Kathy Burke (Harry Enfield &Chums, among others). Unfortunately their combined efforts are not quite enough to make Anita &Memore than mediocre.

Ironically the most glaring problem is with the respectable turn-out of comic acting talent--all of whom over-act mercilessly throughout. This may have been an effort to compensate for the stock nature of many of the characters: Bhaskar's ambitious Indian immigrant father, Williams' hippy vicar, Burke's lippy fishwife. The film's central relationship between an awkward adolescent Indian girl called Meena (Chandeep Uppal) and her slightly older English neighbour Anita (Anna Brewster) is rather better handled by the two young actors concerned, but there is nothing here that wasn't done a great deal better in the thematically similar East is East. --Andrew Mueller

Main Language:	English
Region:	Region 2
Special Features:	Feature Length Commentary, Deleted Scenes, Behind The Scenes Footage, Theatrical Trailer, TV And Radio Spots
Year:	2002
Release Date:	May 26, 2003
Runtime:	93 minutes
Certification:
Catalogue Number:	D 094638
Keywords:	Anita, Comedy, General, Me
Genre:	Comedy