Outsourced (2006)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

John Jeffcoat

Writers (WGA):

George Wing (written by) &
John Jeffcoat (written by)

Release Date:

29 November 2007 (Israel)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

Todd just lost his job. Now he has to find his life.

Plot:

After his entire department is outsourced, an American novelty products salesman (Hamilton) heads to India to train his replacement.

Plot Keywords:

India | Affair | Assimilation | Kiss On Forehead | Cultural Difference

Awards:

5 wins

Cast

Josh Hamilton	...	Todd Anderson
Matt Smith	...	Dave
Rudolf Rodrigues	...	Rickshaw Driver
Jai Neeraj Raj Purohit	...	Man Catching Train
Siddharth Jadhav	...	Gola Vendor
Asif Basra	...	Purohit N. Virajnarianan
Sudha Shivpuri	...	Aunt Ji
Raghu Mama	...	Aunti Ji's Old Man
Parvati	...	Aunt Ji's Server
Sitaram D. Kadam	...	Shop Till You Drop
Feroz	...	Kid
Raja Kadale	...	Aunti Ji's Handyman #1
Harish Chandra	...	Aunt Ji's Handyman #2
Prashant Mahesh	...	Aunt Ji's Handyman #3
Ayesha Dharker	...	Asha

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for some sexual content.

Runtime:

USA:103 min (theatrical version) | Canada:98 min (Toronto International Film Festival)

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Hindi

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:PG-13 | Taiwan:GP | Germany:o.Al. | Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

India

Company:

ShadowCatcher Entertainment

Quotes:

Purohit N. Virajnarianan: I'm Purohit Narsimacharaya Virajnarianan. But you can call me Puro.

Movie Connections:

References To Have and Have Not (1944)

Soundtrack:

The Long Road

From the heart.

I had an absolute blast watching this movie today. It was funny, moving and most of all, sincere. It would have been very easy for the filmmakers to fall back into stereotypes while writing and shooting this movie, but they skillfully steered clear of any pitfalls that plague so many other movies out there, especially in this genre.

I got the chance to see this movie at a special screening at UW in Seattle today and join in a Q&A session with the writers (and director) John and George, Ayesha, who plays Asha, and a few of the producers. John, the director and co-writer, mentioned he had spent quite some time in Nepal and India during his student years. And although the story itself is a fictional one, the cultural shocks and experiences Todd goes through were largely based on John's own experiences during his time abroad. This seems to make for a very honest take on the nuances of this story. Luckily the movie not only focuses on Todd's shock of arriving in a completely new culture. The local people that Todd deals with on a daily basis also find they need to adjust to Todd's American way of running a call center. This makes for a balanced telling of a story about cultural differences and, maybe more importantly, the similarities.

It may not be a groundbreaking movie by any blockbuster standards, but the sincerity seems to be coming straight from the heart. And that's something you rarely see in movies nowadays. This movie deserves all the attention it gets. So go see it! And if you like it, tell your friends.