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Release Date: February 12, 2010
Studio: New Line Cinema (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Director: Garry Marshall
Screenwriter: Katherine Fugate
Starring: Jessica Alba, Kathy Bates, Jessica Biel, Bradley Cooper, Eric Dane, Patrick Dempsey, Hector Elizondo, Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner, Topher Grace, Anne Hathaway, Ashton Kutcher, Queen Latifah, Taylor Lautner, George Lopez, Shirley MacLaine, Emma Roberts, Julia Roberts, Taylor Swift
Genre: Comedy, Romance
MPAA Rating: PG-13 (for some sexual material and brief partial nudity)
Official Website: ValentinesDaymovie.com
Review: 3/10 rating | 5/10 rating


Story: While Valentine's Day is allegedly the busiest time of the year for the delivery of mushy messages and corny love trinkets all around town, the same should never be the case in a movie. Hyperactively busy in the extreme while negotiating endless crisscross plot lines between way too cute celeb cameos that include geriatric infidelity and worse, Garry Marshall's Valentine's Day is skits-ophrenic moviemaking when less would have indeed been much more.

In other words, where does one begin. It's Valentine's Day morning in LA, and shy guy florist deliveryman Reed (Ashton Kutcher) wakes up extra early to propose marriage to ambivalent girlfriend Morley (Jessica Alba), who seems to more attached to her cellphone. Literally. Which means that Reed has to figure out just how to pry her fingers loose from the notoriously addictive gadget, in order to find that spare finger for his engagement ring.

While on another side of town, anxious television news anchor Kelvin (Jamie Foxx) has just been demoted to puff piece patrol to sniff out human interest holiday stories, while the weathergirl taps dances away to stimulate the sagging ratings. And which Kelvin needs to wrap up, before jogging over to a press conference at which a famous athlete will announce he's gay.

Elsewhere, giddy grade school teacher Julia (Jennifer Garner) who is otherwise fairly luckless in romance, daydreams between classroom lessons about her current surprise requited crush on a possibly too good to be true affectionate physician. This while a more sensible and stern army captain (Julia Roberts) shares a philosophical plane ride with a mysterious stranger. Who will actually get to have the last word eventually in wrapping up this overly crowded scenario, that seems less like a smoothly paced script than a rush hour traffic jam on the LA freeway.

But there's more. Also getting in on the act for some dubious comic relief, is Jessica Biel as a thoroughly unconvincing sad sack who can't get a date. As a frantic Anne Hathaway appears to be revisiting her persecuted workplace drudge in The Devil Wears Prada, with Queen Latifah seemingly preempting Meryl Streep this time around, doing The Devil Wears Plus Size Prada.

And while Hathaway moonlights on the sly during work hours as a phone sex operator to make ends meet and pay for her health insurance and outstanding student loan, her dirty talk conversations are so lame PG, that the actual phone sex industry may end up losing business. Though Queen Latifah's boss from hell secretive impulse to move in and take over Hathaway's seductive operation with virtual bullwhip in hand, couldn't be funnier and saves this collaborative mayhem from looming movie overkill.

                         Nominees for the 82nd academy award




Actor in a Leading Role
•    Jeff Bridges in “Crazy Heart”
•    George Clooney in “Up in the Air”
•    Colin Firth in “A Single Man”
•    Morgan Freeman in “Invictus”
•    Jeremy Renner in “The Hurt Locker”
Actor in a Supporting Role
•    Matt Damon in “Invictus”
•    Woody Harrelson in “The Messenger”
•    Christopher Plummer in “The Last Station”
•    Stanley Tucci in “The Lovely Bones”
•    Christoph Waltz in “Inglourious Basterds”
Actress in a Leading Role
•    Sandra Bullock in “The Blind Side”
•    Helen Mirren in “The Last Station”
•    Carey Mulligan in “An Education”
•    Gabourey Sidibe in “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire”
•    Meryl Streep in “Julie & Julia”
Actress in a Supporting Role
•    Penélope Cruz in “Nine”
•    Vera Farmiga in “Up in the Air”
•    Maggie Gyllenhaal in “Crazy Heart”
•    Anna Kendrick in “Up in the Air”
•    Mo’Nique in “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire”
Animated Feature Film
•    “Coraline” Henry Selick
•    “Fantastic Mr. Fox” Wes Anderson
•    “The Princess and the Frog” John Musker and Ron Clements
•    “The Secret of Kells” Tomm Moore
•    “Up” Pete Docter
Art Direction
•    “Avatar” Art Direction: Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg; Set Decoration: Kim Sinclair
•    “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus” Art Direction: Dave Warren and Anastasia Masaro; Set Decoration: Caroline Smith
•    “Nine” Art Direction: John Myhre; Set Decoration: Gordon Sim
•    “Sherlock Holmes” Art Direction: Sarah Greenwood; Set Decoration: Katie Spencer
•    “The Young Victoria” Art Direction: Patrice Vermette; Set Decoration: Maggie Gray
Cinematography
•    “Avatar” Mauro Fiore
•    “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” Bruno Delbonnel
•    “The Hurt Locker” Barry Ackroyd
•    “Inglourious Basterds” Robert Richardson
•    “The White Ribbon” Christian Berger
Costume Design
•    “Bright Star” Janet Patterson
•    “Coco before Chanel” Catherine Leterrier
•    “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus” Monique Prudhomme
•    “Nine” Colleen Atwood
•    “The Young Victoria” Sandy Powell
Directing
•    “Avatar” James Cameron
•    “The Hurt Locker” Kathryn Bigelow
•    “Inglourious Basterds” Quentin Tarantino
•    “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Lee Daniels
•    “Up in the Air” Jason Reitman
Documentary (Feature)
•    “Burma VJ” Anders Østergaard and Lise Lense-Møller
•    “The Cove” Louie Psihoyos and Fisher Stevens
•    “Food, Inc.” Robert Kenner and Elise Pearlstein
•    “The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers” Judith Ehrlich and Rick Goldsmith
•    “Which Way Home” Rebecca Cammisa
Documentary (Short Subject)
•    “China’s Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Province” Jon Alpert and Matthew O’Neill
•    “The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner” Daniel Junge and Henry Ansbacher
•    “The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant” Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert
•    “Music by Prudence” Roger Ross Williams and Elinor Burkett
•    “Rabbit à la Berlin” Bartek Konopka and Anna Wydra
Film Editing
•    “Avatar” Stephen Rivkin, John Refoua and James Cameron
•    “District 9” Julian Clarke
•    “The Hurt Locker” Bob Murawski and Chris Innis
•    “Inglourious Basterds” Sally Menke
•    “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Joe Klotz
Foreign Language Film
•    “Ajami” Israel
•    “The Milk of Sorrow (La Teta Asustada)” Peru
•    “A Prophet (Un Prophète)” France
•    “The Secret in Their Eyes (El Secreto de Sus Ojos)” Argentina
•    “The White Ribbon (Das Weisse Band)” Germany
Makeup
•    “Il Divo” Aldo Signoretti and Vittorio Sodano
•    “Star Trek” Barney Burman, Mindy Hall and Joel Harlow
•    “The Young Victoria” Jon Henry Gordon and Jenny Shircore
Music (Original Score)
•    “Avatar” James Horner
•    “Fantastic Mr. Fox” Alexandre Desplat
•    “The Hurt Locker” Marco Beltrami and Buck Sanders
•    “Sherlock Holmes” Hans Zimmer
•    “Up” Michael Giacchino
Music (Original Song)
•    “Almost There” from “The Princess and the Frog” Music and Lyric by Randy Newman
•    “Down in New Orleans” from “The Princess and the Frog” Music and Lyric by Randy Newman
•    “Loin de Paname” from “Paris 36” Music by Reinhardt Wagner Lyric by Frank Thomas
•    “Take It All” from “Nine” Music and Lyric by Maury Yeston
•    “The Weary Kind (Theme from Crazy Heart)” from “Crazy Heart” Music and Lyric by Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett
Best Picture
•    “Avatar” James Cameron and Jon Landau, Producers
•    “The Blind Side” Gil Netter, Andrew A. Kosove and Broderick Johnson, Producers
•    “District 9” Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham, Producers
•    “An Education” Finola Dwyer and Amanda Posey, Producers
•    “The Hurt Locker” Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, Nicolas Chartier and Greg Shapiro, Producers
•    “Inglourious Basterds” Lawrence Bender, Producer
•    “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Lee Daniels, Sarah Siegel-Magness and Gary Magness, Producers
•    “A Serious Man” Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, Producers
•    “Up” Jonas Rivera, Producer
•    “Up in the Air” Daniel Dubiecki, Ivan Reitman and Jason Reitman, Producers
Short Film (Animated)
•    “French Roast” Fabrice O. Joubert
•    “Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty” Nicky Phelan and Darragh O’Connell
•    “The Lady and the Reaper (La Dama y la Muerte)” Javier Recio Gracia
•    “Logorama” Nicolas Schmerkin
•    “A Matter of Loaf and Death” Nick Park
Short Film (Live Action)
•    “The Door” Juanita Wilson and James Flynn
•    “Instead of Abracadabra” Patrik Eklund and Mathias Fjellström
•    “Kavi” Gregg Helvey
•    “Miracle Fish” Luke Doolan and Drew Bailey
•    “The New Tenants” Joachim Back and Tivi Magnusson
Sound Editing
•    “Avatar” Christopher Boyes and Gwendolyn Yates Whittle
•    “The Hurt Locker” Paul N.J. Ottosson
•    “Inglourious Basterds” Wylie Stateman
•    “Star Trek” Mark Stoeckinger and Alan Rankin
•    “Up” Michael Silvers and Tom Myers
Sound Mixing
•    “Avatar” Christopher Boyes, Gary Summers, Andy Nelson and Tony Johnson
•    “The Hurt Locker” Paul N.J. Ottosson and Ray Beckett
•    “Inglourious Basterds” Michael Minkler, Tony Lamberti and Mark Ulano
•    “Star Trek” Anna Behlmer, Andy Nelson and Peter J. Devlin
•    “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” Greg P. Russell, Gary Summers and Geoffrey Patterson
Visual Effects
•    “Avatar” Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham and Andrew R. Jones
•    “District 9” Dan Kaufman, Peter Muyzers, Robert Habros and Matt Aitken
•    “Star Trek” Roger Guyett, Russell Earl, Paul Kavanagh and Burt Dalton
Writing (Adapted Screenplay)
•    “District 9” Written by Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell
•    “An Education” Screenplay by Nick Hornby
•    “In the Loop” Screenplay by Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci, Tony Roche
•    “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Screenplay by Geoffrey Fletcher
•    “Up in the Air” Screenplay by Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner
Writing (Original Screenplay)
•    “The Hurt Locker” Written by Mark Boal
•    “Inglourious Basterds” Written by Quentin Tarantino
•    “The Messenger” Written by Alessandro Camon & Oren Moverman
•    “A Serious Man” Written by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
•    “Up” Screenplay by Bob Peterson, Pete Docter, Story by Pete Docter, Bob Peterson, Tom McCarthy

Questions of religious and national identity, of the sense of right and wrong, of combating a certain isolation that comes with a behavioural disorder. But what triumphs over all the complexities unfolding in a tumultuous post 9/11 America is Rizwan Khan and his essential goodness that tells you unwaveringly – his name is Khan and he is not a terrorist.
Director Karan Johar is in unfamiliar territory here. The super intelligent Rizwan, who has Asperger’s Syndrome, a form of autism, his halting voice with his inability to communicate, and his many relationships – with his mother, his brother, and yes, Mandira, and her son Sam.
Rizwan who finds love and loses it some years later when his Khan identity becomes all important in a tense, suspicious America. You sit through three hours waiting to get a glimpse of Shah Rukh through Rizwan Khan, but it doesn’t happen.  All credit to Karan Johar for that.
If Shah Rukh lives and breathes Rizwan in what is one of his finest roles, Kajol as Mandira, the vivacious single mother, is also good – as always. The chemistry between them if not always crackling, then heartwarming..
Like a piece of music that gradually rises to grand crescendo, ‘My Name Is Khan’ begins with Rizwan as a child with his mother – so good to see Zarina Wahab after such a long time – in a tenement in Mumbai and ends with cheers from the US’ first African American president in a crowded rally.
It’s from his mother that Rizwan learns his first lessons of humanity; as the 1983 Mumbai riots rage outside, she tells the young boy that the world is divided into good people and bad people.
It is this essential humanism that carries Rizwan through from Mumbai to San Francisco where his brother stays, then to the suburb of Banville where he moves in with Mandira and Sam, and even when he is taken to be a terror suspect.
Sam, his ‘only best friend’, is subjected to a vicious race attack because he takes on Rizwan’s surname. Mandira hits back, saying that the worst thing she could have done was marry a Khan and Rizwan is out on the roads – unable to articulate his feelings but backpacking his way across the US to meet ‘president sahib’ so he can tell him: ‘My name is Khan and I am not a terrorist.’
It is a road journey through a troubled post 9/11 America towards humanism and the essential goodness of the human spirit.
This is a US where chanting the name of Allah gets you into trouble, where the word terrorist and Khan in conjunction can put you behind bars. Rizwan moves from being a terror suspect to a nationwide hero who exposes a terror mastermind. And then, the man with the mission who travels to Wilhelmina that is literally drowning in a hurricane to supervise a heroic rescue mission.
There’s Afghanistan and Iraq, Bush and Obama too. The US’ first African American president is voted in and, in that final feel good moment Rizwan meets him in front of thousands of people and his goodness is validated.
Plenty of great one liners. When he is refused entry into a presidential fundraiser for the poor in Africa that is only for Christians, he leaves behind $500 saying: ‘This if for those who are not Christians in Africa.’
The music by Shankar Ehsaan Loy is superb. This is not a film without flaws, it is at least 20 minutes too long for one and flags in the pre-interval period, but here is one straight from the heart. It has a message, in these days of tensions over language and religion, one which needs to be heard.