故事讲述了从小由有暴力倾向的父亲与宗教狂热的母亲扶养长大，不仅让山姆·奇德斯（杰拉德·巴特勒饰）性格尖锐矛盾，也导致他的人生充满挣扎。少年时期结交恶友后，山姆奇德斯开始沉溺毒品声色，甚至成为一个肆无忌惮的药头与飞车党。 直到他重新皈依上帝后，他接受旨意前往非洲，并在苏丹设立一所孤儿院，组织民兵拯救上百位被迫成为儿童兵的当地孩童，以免受到受到叛军的虐待和性侵。
杰拉德·巴特勒所饰演的山姆·奇德斯(Sam Childers)的黑帮并不是无中生有的戏剧形象,而是一个实实在在的历史人物。山姆·奇德斯1962年出生在达科他州,原先是一个无恶不作的混蛋。后 来,他们举家迁往明尼苏达州,那段时间,奇德斯还比较正常。可是就在奇德斯念大学的那段时间里,他发生了本质的变化。他开始吸烟、抽大麻、酗酒。并最终变 成了一个瘾君子、毒贩子和酒鬼。与此同时,奇德斯爱上了飙车,他还是著名的地狱天使摩托车俱乐部(HAMC)的成员。1992年,奇德斯迎来了自己人生中 的转折,他来到了一个教堂,信奉了上帝。当天晚上,该教堂的牧师就预言奇德斯会前往非洲。1998年,奇德斯果真去了非洲,并且在那里靠自己的力量营救当 地的孤儿。现在,奇德斯是一个举世瞩目的传奇人物,他不仅不再吸毒、不再犯罪,而且还和自己的老婆莲恩一起成立了一个叫做“东非天使”(Angels of East Africa)的国际儿童救助站。这个救助站就设置在苏丹的尼穆莱–苏丹内战最激烈的地方。2009年,山姆·奇德斯把自己的经历写成了一本书,这本叫做 《另一个男人的战争》(Another Man’s War)的非虚构类文学为他赢得了极大的声誉,从此之后,山姆·奇德斯更加坚定了要在非洲开始孤儿院的念头,而且支持他的人也越来越多。
其实,要把山姆·奇德斯的故事搬上银幕并不算难,因为他的一生中就已经有了难以置信的传奇色 彩,而且这种带有些许“动作片”色彩的真实故事也极为适合好莱坞导演将其搬上银幕。只是,不流于表面地塑造这样的人物,绝非易事,因为这需要扮演山姆·奇 德斯的演员能将奇德斯的心灵层面上的转变深刻地展示在银幕上。为此,扮演奇德斯的动作片明星杰拉德·巴特勒做了不少功课。杰拉德·巴特勒说:“我还从来没 有拍摄过一部有这么多冲突的影片。首先是非洲的战争,这是一种冲突;其次是奇德斯所代表的美国文化和当地的土著文化之间的冲突。当然,对于我来说,最重要 的还是奇德斯内心的冲突。他一开始只是一个混混,只信任自己。后来他发现了上帝,上帝成了他的精神支柱。于是他去了非洲,成为了一个真正的男人。当我读到 剧本的时候,我的第一反应是,你在开玩笑么?这么多内容,这么可能放在一部电影里表现?不过,随着我和奇德斯本人的接触和交流,我发现剧本里所表现的奇德 斯的传奇故事只是冰山一角而已。”
杰拉德·巴特勒此言不虚,因为他曾经专程前往宾夕法尼亚州拜访山姆·奇德斯,参加过他的布道、 和他促膝长谈,并且认真去体会山姆·奇德斯的一言一行。杰拉德·巴特勒说:“我和山姆·奇德斯详谈了大概有40个小时,深入地了解了他的生活和经历。我觉 得这是个不可思议的家伙。我努力模仿他的一言一行,努力揣摩他的心理和行为动机。这项工作工程浩大,而且困难重重,不过却很有乐趣。这和我以往拍过的任何 一部电影都极为不同。”
一个人的成长
作为影片的导演,马克·福斯特并没有站在国家和政治的角度来拍摄这部电影,他没有把影片拍成一 部“白人拯救非洲”的主旋律影片,而是进了一步,走到角色的内心中,展示山姆·奇德斯的内心世界。马克·福斯特说:“我第一次听说这个故事的时候,也认为 这是无中生有的杜撰,直到我见到了山姆·奇德斯本人,和他详谈并深入了解这个人之后,才开始相信这个世界上绝对有奇迹和奇人。在这种巨大的转变背后,是宗 教的力量使然。宗教让一个街头的毒贩、飙车党成为了一个堪称圣洁的人。”
山姆·奇德斯的故事可以从任何角度入手,可以强调他的黑帮生涯、可以渲染他的非洲故事,甚至可 以拍成一部福音电影。面对这这么一个从各种角度都能动手拍摄的题材,马克·福斯也犯了难。山姆·奇德斯说:“以前的我和现在的我完全不同,现在的我找寻到 了生命的意义和动机。”按照这种思维,马克·福斯特为影片找了一个“宗教使人崇高”的基调,他说:“一个人在做这些事情的时候,他的道德水准和这个人的宗 教信仰是很难分开的两件事。也就是说很难说明一个人是因为宗教才有了道德,还是因为道德水准才选择了宗教。我在影片中的处理方式是让山姆·奇德斯成长,用 他自己的眼睛去观察世界并得出一个结论。他的转变是因为宗教引起的,但是到了影片的最后,他目睹了非洲发生的一切,所以他对自己所信仰的万能的主产生了怀 疑,他向自己发问–上帝在哪里?我觉得,在展示一个人的成长的历程中,这种从盲目信仰到主动实践、有选择的信仰的过程是极为重要的。”
有人批评影片说,这是一部文化沙文主义的电影,导演在片中塑造了一个拯救黑人的“白色救世 主”,并没有展示什么主角的内心的转变。面对着这样的批评,马克·福斯特说:“其实,对于西方观众来说,他们接触到的非洲只是新闻、电影和报纸等等,根本 没有真实地了解和接触过非洲。在这些观众的眼中,山姆·奇德斯只是一个来到非洲,实现自己内心的宗教需求的人,而忽视了他之前的身份和他的成长历程。如果 不去关心他的心理层面的变化,只是看着非洲人民的生活和疾苦,仅仅是猎奇或者是把电影里的故事当做新闻的注脚,那么谁还能去理解山姆·奇德斯的所作所为 呢?很多西方观众过于自大,因为他们在看电影的过程中总是在以自己的标准衡量山姆·奇德斯的所作所为,他们会问他是不是为了自己才去的非洲,或者是他真的 是为那些小孩才去非洲的么?这些完全都是不必要的胡思乱想。”
Rizwan Khan is a Muslim child who grew up with his brother Zakir and his mother Razia Khan in a middle class family. Rizwan is a child with Asperger's syndrome and this leads to special tutoring from a reclusive scholar and extra attention from his mother. He has a special ability to repair mechanical things. Rizwan come to meet and live with his brother Zakir in San Francisco after their mother dead. Rizwan begins to work and he meets a hairdresser Hindu woman, Mandira. She has a young son, Sameer or Sam from a previous marriage. Despite Zakir's hostility to the match, Khan and Mandira marry and settle down in the fictional town of Banville. Both Mandira and Sameer take Rizwan's last name as their own.
The Khan family begins to experience post 9–11 prejudice in their community after the 11 September attacks on New York City and Reese begins to turn against Sam as well. One afternoon, an argument between them turns into a racially motivated schoolyard fight between Sameer and a gang of older students. Reese acting on behalf of Sam, tries to stop the fight, but is held back and Sam dies from his injuries. A shattered Mandira blames Rizwan that Sam died only because his name was Khan and she wants to leave him. When he asks her what he has to do to be together with Mandira, she sarcastically tells him that he has to tell the people of the United States and the President that his name is Khan and he is not a terrorist.
Rizwan takes Mandira's request seriously, and thus sets out on a journey that takes him from one US state to another, in order to first meet President George W. Bush and later the new President-elect. During this quest, he travels to Wilhemina, Georgia and be friends with Mama Jenny and her son Joel. Later, in Los Angeles, he prays in a Mosque and overhears violent rhetoric from Faisal Rahman. He reports this to the FBI but there is no response at that moment. While waiting in a crowd to meet President Bush and repeating again and again, "My name is Khan and I am not a terrorist," Rizwan is arrested by police who misinterpret his statement thinking he said he was a terrorist.
While in the prison he is interrogated as a terrorist suspect and meets the psychiatrist Radha who believes he is innocent. He is later released after a media campaign by some Indian student reporters Raj and Komal and Bobby Ahuja, who prove his innocence by unearthing his attempts to inform the FBI about Faisal Rahman. After his release, he returns to hurricane-hit Wilhemina to help Mama Jenny and her son. His efforts attract media attention and numerous Muslims come to help as well.
At the same time, a remorseful Reese confesses to Mandira and reveals the identities of the gang who killed Sam. She informs Detective Garcia who has been assisting her on the case, and he arrests the gang. Mandira realises her error, she joins Rizwan in Georgia, and their love rekindles. At last, Rizwan survives in a stabbed accident and meets President-elect who tells him, "Your name is Khan and you are not a terrorist."
Theme
This movie has touch about the value of humanity, moral value, and some of the issue of religion. In short, there are the three important components, like a love story, Islam, and a mild form of autism.
Firstly, love story can be divided into three phrases in this film“my name is Khan”. On the first stages, the love story is telling about the parental love between mother and the son in this movie. Although Rizwan Khan is a very special kid when he is born in this movie, but his mother do not abandon and keep on encourages him. Next, the second love is about the love relationship between him and his wife. This stage started when he was went to the united state to stay with his brother. He meet a Indian lady, Mandira and her son, Sameer from a previous marriage. Mandira is a hairdresser. Despite Zakir's hostility to the match, Khan and Mandira marry and settle down in the fictional town of Banville. Both Mandira and Sameer take Rizwan's last name as their own. The third stages, the drama has shown how the main character bring out their kindness of love to help the people who had suffered from the hurricane hit on Wilhemina. Rizwan Khan was helping the Mama Jenny and her son. Because of his efforts attract media attention and numerous Muslim come to help as well.
Secondly, the theme of this film has gone through little bits of religion issue like Islam. The theme of the story line has touched about the Muslims and Hindu, and the Muslims and Christian. This film has talked about the islamphobia. Islamophobia can be define as the dread or hatred of islam and therefore, to the fear and dislike of all Muslims, stating that it also refers to the practice of discriminating against Muslims by excluding them from the economic, social, and public life of the nation. This movie has brought out the relationship between Muslims and western was not that good. Especially, after the cases of 9/11 happened on 2001 at the united state. The people in the country are fear to the Muslim and this has made that Mandira feel unbelievable when she gets a job that the employer knows she is a Muslim. This situation also indirectly causes Sam dead and Rizwan be caught by the police. Although Rizwan Khan and his family have been discrimination by the western people, he still believes that only have good person and bad person.
Next, the script writer in this film has touched about the issue of autism. Autism can be state as a disorder of neural development characterized by impaired social interaction and communication, and by restricted and repetitive behavior. The main character, Rizwan Khan was the Asperger syndrome kid when he is small. But he has got extra attention from his mother and has a kindness heart.
Morals that observe from the movie
Mother love to the children is the greatest thing in the world. Rizwan as an Asperger syndrome kid is more difficult to communicate and look after compare with the other children and his brother. Razia Khan as the mother of these two children has shown her love to Rizwan. She has spent the rest of her life to take care and teach Rizwan to become a good person. This has shown that no matter what position of us now, we need to respect our parents as they have giving us much more than we see.
Rizwan as a Muslim is doing well in his duty. Although the people fear of the Muslim after the 9/11 happened, he still believes in his own religion and being a helpful person in the Georgia flood. Through this man we may noticed that, we cannot just differentiate the characteristic of people in consider their religion but their performance and heart. Somehow we may agree that there only have good person and bad person.
Reese is one of the Sam friends and he begins to turn against with Sam after the 9/11 happened. Sam dead when Reese was there but Reese did not tell the authorities the truth as he threatened by the gang. At the end of the movie, Reese becomes remorseful and he confesses to Mandira and reveals the identities of the gang who killed Sam. From this incident, we can know that no matter what wrong we have been doing, we must admit it and bear the consequences.
