Man Push Cart
| Man Push Cart | |
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| Directed by | Ramin Bahrani |
| Produced by | Ramin Bahrani |
| Written by | Ramin Bahrani |
| Starring |
Ahmad Razvi Leticia Dolera Charles Daniel Sandoval |
| Music by | Atif Aslam |
| Distributed by | Koch-Lorber Films (North America) |
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Release date
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Running time
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87 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Man Push Cart is a 2005 American independent film by Ramin Bahrani that tells the story of a former Pakistani rock star who sells coffee and bagels from his pushcart on the streets of Manhattan.
Early every morning, Ahmad (Ahmad Razvi), a Pakistani immigrant, struggles to drag his heavy cart along the streets of New York to his corner in midtown Manhattan, where he sells coffee and bagels. He encounters a wealthy Pakistani businessman who offers him some work and financial assistance—promising also to introduce him to the NY music scene. He also spends time with a young Spanish woman who works in a nearby newspaper and magazine kiosk. He is haunted by the death of his wife and is unable to spend time with his son. Just as it appears that he is making some progress improving his life, an event occurs that pushes him back down again.
Atif Aslam's three songs were included in the film. "Aadat" is the main track while portions of the songs "Ehsaas" and "Yakeen" are also introduced in the film From the album Jal Pari.
The film was met with critical acclaim; critics have even compared the film to the style and films of the Italian Neorealism and French New Wave movements. The film has a score of 88% with a certified "Fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 48 reviews with the consensus being that "This compassionate portrait of a New York City street vendor is as beautiful as it is melancholy."
Acclaimed film critic Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times awarded the film 4 out of 4 stars and wrote that the film "embodies the very soul of Italian neo-realism" and went on to say "Free of contrived melodrama and phony suspense, it ennobles the hard work by which its hero earns his daily bread" and "Bahrani, as director, not only stays out of the way of the simplicity of his story, but relies on it; less is more, and with restraint he finds a grimy eloquence."
Michael Wilmington of the Chicago Tribune liked the film and wrote a positive review saying "Ahmad's concerns — his sadness and his striving — become universal. Though his early-morning riser's world is gray and threaded with melancholy, it becomes, in the end, a place we recognize."
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Wikipedia