Adam, played by Faraz Ayub
In this British movie, Adam, played smartly by Faraz Ayub, toils away as a night shift short-order cook who also has kitchen cleaning custodial responsibilities at Sky Deals. One day he learns of the death of his estranged father. He seeks answers about the dad whom he never really knew – as well as learning more about his family – and subsequently suspects – uh oh – that he might be the son of an extraterrestrial from another planet. Like father like son? Sins of the father?
The father-son dynamic frequently serves in literature and other creative works as a microcosm of larger societal issues, such as political turmoil, family dynamics and the struggle for power. It is generally understood that many Shakespearean father-son relationships are marked by significant conflict and tension, often stemming from issues like power struggles, personal flaws and the burden of family legacy. Shakespeare often explored the complex moral choices faced by sons when dealing with their fathers’ actions, particularly in situations where they must decide between loyalty and justice.
The character Adam undergoing a celestial event.
WORD patrons should know that SKY PEALS is a sublime, allegorical piece by Director Moin Hussain. WORD patrons should also know that this reviewer drew on a 2023 review by The Guardian.comby Xan Brooks as well as an August 16, 2024 Hyphenonline.com article by Husna Rizvi. Those articles helped this reviewer to get a really good grip on the allegorical nature of SKY PEAL. Otherwise, without those pieces, it could have taken a whole lot more time and work to do this review.
Director Moin Hussain has said that his debut feature, science fiction as it is, was the right film genre for him to explore the concept of mixed-race identity, as well as for this reason too: “There was a lot about Adam, the main character’s life — like his mixed heritage identity — that is close to mine.”
Director Hussain, recalling Steven Spielberg’s CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND (1977), said that it impressed him as a story about a family man abandoning his family responsibilities – his understanding of the movie pretty much clashed with the popular perception of the movie, shaped by film reviews. That is, the Richard Dreyfuss character Roy Neary, according to Director Hussain, abandons his family to convort with aliens from another planet. What, the director wondered, happened to the family, especially Neary’s kids?
“It’s presented to us as a hero’s journey instead of an abandonment,” he is quoted as saying in the film’s production notes. The director thought about his own family and how absences were dealt with and sometimes “mythologized.”
Director Hussain: “I think at the same time I was probably having a bit of a minor identity crisis, my grandad had died a couple of years earlier and with him being my last direct link to Pakistan I felt like a door was closing to me.”
“Being half Pakistani but never having visited the country, not speaking the language and knowing very little about the culture I felt like I wanted to connect with a part of myself that felt inaccessible, distant and alien, but didn’t know how to. I ended up arriving at the character of Adam who’s a person who exists in between things, living in this in-between place at the side of a motorway. Not really knowing how he fits into anything he finds himself swept up in this quest to understand and make contact with the place and people he has originated from.”
“I think we try to understand where we’ve come from to try make sense of who we are and I liked the idea of exploring whether these stories can help ground and connect us to something bigger or whether becoming too focused on these things can become unhelpful and limiting.”
Produced By Michelle Stein
Executive Producers: David Kimbangi//Kristin Irving // Caroline Cooper Charles
Cast: Faraz Ayub as Adam // Natalie Gavin as Tara // Claire Rushbrook as Donna // Simon Nagra as Hamid// Steve Oram as Jeff // Jeff Mirza as Hassan// Bill Fellows as Terry
Hod Crew
Editor: Nse Asuquo // DOP: Nick Cooke // Co-Producer: Jennifer Monks // Sound Designer: Paul Davies // Casting Director: Heather Basten CDG CSA // Production Designer: Elena Muntoni //Composer: Sarah Davachi // Costume Designer: Sophie O’Neill //
Hair & Make-up Designer: Martin McClean
Run Time 91 Minutes
Adam – in the only film scene with him smiling – shares a romantic moment with a colleague.
Publisher, Editor Gregg W. Morris