Man Push Cart poster & wallpaper

Ahmad Razvi, Altaf Houssein, Arun Lal

Ahmad is a hard working Pakistani trying to keep his head above water in New York, serving coffee and treats to the busy Manhattan-ites from his push cart during the day, and earning some extra cash s...( read more  read more... )elling bootleg DVDs by night. He meets affluent fellow countryman Mohammad, who takes him under his wing, offering welcome work decorating his apartment. He also befriends Spanish woman Noemi, who works at the newsstand close to Ahmad's cart. The three start to socialize together, but these ill-defined relationships falter, as we see timid Ahmad patronised by Mohammad and taken for granted by Noemi. We gradually learn more about Ahmad, about how he was a famous singer back home, but also how he is haunted by a past tragedy.

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62% liked it

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46 critics

Unrated, 1 hr. 27 min.

Directed by: Ramin Bahrani

Release Date: May 12, 2006

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DVD Release Date: October 9, 2007

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Flixster Reviews (184)

  • her69eyes
    June 12, 2009
    her69eyes
    Man, push, cart. Three words that completely dehumanize the man doing the pushing. Ramin Bahrani's debut effort, "Man Push Cart", sets his camera on the man that goes through life nameless, a conveniently located cart-owner who only knows his customers by their usual breakfasts. ...( read more)He is not the likely hero of your typical Hollywood film, rather a hero that embodies the Italian neo-realism movement. A scene where he chases after his stolen cart will instantly have you recalling "Bicycle Thieves". He's a hopeless man with seemingly no upward mobility. Nobody is on his side, and even less treat him as an equal person. He's just the guy that provides them their breakfast.

    Ahmad Razvi, an unprofessional actor making his debut, plays Ahmad, a Pakistani immigrant who pushes a cart of bagels and coffee in post-9/11 New York City. Ahmad used to be a rock star in Pakistan, however he moved to America with his wife, who has now died, and his son, whom his relatives don't let him see. We don't know how any of this came to be - why he left for America, how his wife died, or why he can't see his child. This isn't a riches to rags story, it's about a man who can do nothing but continue to push forward. The problem, of course, is that the longer he keeps pushing, the longer he's going to be stuck in the exact same position.

    A glimmer of hope enters his life when he meets the young and attractive Spanish woman, Noemi (Leticia Dolera), who takes over for a neighboring vendor cart. Love is out of the question for Ahmad, however, and she's more likely to end up with his yuppie customer, Mohammad (Charles Daniel Sandoval). Mohammad and Ahmad start up a friendship when Mohammad recognizes Ahmad as one of his favorite musicians. To return the favor for all the pleasure he's brought his life, he allows Ahmad breaks when painting his apartment.

    Like most films in this style, money is the Holy Grail which our characters so desperately need. Ahmad is saving up for a new cart, which will have cost him $15,000 when all his payments are through. He also hopes to get a new place to live with his son, however when he fails to care for a young kitten it's clear that Ahmad may not be cut out for fatherhood either.

    Bahrani, who has gone on to direct "Chop Shop" and "Goodbye Solo", directed this on a shoestring budget in just a few weeks. He's a refreshing director to watch - one that calls no attention to himself and simply lets his camera follow his characters. All of his films have featured unknown actors as these working class heroes, yet each film still manages to be remarkably different.

    "Man Push Cart" loses a bit of it's momentum about an hour of the way in, but it's an important film that fits in perfectly with the other modern "neo-neorealist films" (as A.O. Scott has called them) like "Frozen River", "Wendy and Lucy", or "The Wrestler".
  • bort16
    September 26, 2008
    bort16
    One of the brightest stars who's shine is hidden behind the influx of barely inspired and boldly formulaic audience friendly indie pleasers, Ramin Bahrani made his big leap with this 2006 near masterpiece. Man Push Cart is a stripped bare expose of the life of a push cart worker,...( read more) trying to get by so that he can continue to try and get by. Ahmad (Ahmad Razvi) was a former rockstar in his native Pakistan, but left that life behind to come to America with his wife and child. His family did not approve of him, and so they left their lives behind. In New York, he pulls his heavy cart through the predawn traffic, not noticed by the passing cars unless he is in their way. He has his regular customers with whom he chats, and has his vendor friends, with whom he barters and trades porno dvds for cigarettes or whatever else. He makes friends with a well off fellow Pakistani, Mohammad, who invites him to paint his apartment if he needs extra cash. Once there, Mohammad realizes why he has found Ahmad's face so familiar. He wants to set him up with another friend, who he says is connected in the industry.
    One day, his contact at a paper stand is replaced by a young Spanish woman. Ahmad is clearly attracted to her, and she to him. This is okay, as Ahmad confides in Mohammad that his wife died soon after their arrival. His son now lives with his mother's parents while Ahmad tries to save up the money to get an apartment for them. His cart is his lifeblood. His cart, for now, is his life.
    This interferes with his personal life. His wife's death has left him scarred, and although we're not told, we infer that Noemi and Mohammad are the only friends he has had since coming to this strange new city. Mohammad gets him a job working in a club, one which he leaves midshift so he can get back to his cart, to push and pull it into the downtown core. His inability to communicate his feelings to Noemi leaves her open to Mohammad, who also likes her. It's nonetheless clear that she wants Ahmad. But his life has no space for love right now - only pushing and pulling, selling and bartering. Trying to get by, so he can continue to get by.
    Bahrani, an Iranian raised in America, directs the film as minimally as possible. Man Push Cart is Bicycle Thieves redux - not that it is as good a film as that great one, of course, but simply in the same veign. It's akin to a French Minimalist Italian Neorealist made in America by an Iranian starring a Pakistani. The camera moves and cuts only when it must. Bahrani relies on the quiet resonance of his story and the muted power of his actors to tell it. As much a lover of bold direction as I am, understated direction is often the wisest, and even the boldest, choice a filmmaker can take.
    Man Push Cart is a slow and bittersweet film - often more bitter than sweet. But in the end, instead of being broken, Ahmad finds a spark of hope in his surroundings. He will have taken a tumble, but he has the perseverance to struggle on, not for his own sake, but for the sake of a better day to come. Then he will have time to love, to laugh. But for now, he will keep trying to get by today, so he can try to get by tomorrow, and someday get where he needs to be.
  • Dracula787
    June 29, 2008
    Dracula787
    A micro budget movie about a Pakistani immigrant working at a coffee stand on the streets of New York. Almost the definition of a "sundancy" movie, the film is a neat little slice of life. The film basically just follows this character over the course of a week and see his strugg...( read more)les. Throughout the film there's a real tension the viewer can't quite put their finger on, you just know something bad is going to happen but you've gotten to know this guy so well that you can hardly bear to watch. The film is marred by it's low budget, one can tell that a number of the supporting characters are played by amateurs and a few scenes supposedly set in a nightclub look like they were shot in someone's garage. Otherwise this is a very compelling independent movie.
  • swimbikebeer
    November 23, 2009
    swimbikebeer
    wow, the dude used to have a recording contract and now selling coffee, good story of a man trying to live life after quick fame and death of his wife
  • hfz89
    November 18, 2009
    hfz89
    Ahmad was once a Pakistani rock star. Now he sells donuts. Stricken with grief over the death of his wife and unable to make ends meet in order to live with his son, when he isn't shoving his push cart or selling bootleg DVDs he wanders the streets with nothing but a thin wallet ...( read more)and a heavy tank, more than just its weight tugging at his shoulders. His luck may change, however, when he meets a beautiful Spanish girl and a wealthy Pakistani man who recognizes him as the rock star he once was -- and a business opportunity. Inspired by "The Myth of Sisyphus," we are taken into a melancholic character study of a foreigner's constant struggle to move forward. If Ahmad's situation isn't enough to get you down then the brooding soundtrack will. Man Push Cart is that film that leaves you feeling guilty after viewing -- and even more guilty for having ignored.
  • jam233
    November 16, 2009
    jam233
    The slow pace really works well for this film. Very well acted, touching and so believably presented. Fine direction, gritty and realistic. The character development is excellent.
  • TheHitcher1987
    November 1, 2009
    TheHitcher1987
    Last Viewed: 30/10/2009
  • dukeakasmudge
    October 20, 2009
    dukeakasmudge
    Awesome movie but a lousy ending
  • arindamrchowdhury
    September 23, 2009
    arindamrchowdhury
    05/12/2009
    Story similar like Taxi Driver..but very week acting. Story never went anywhere..:(
  • eahegarty
    July 5, 2009
    eahegarty
    So depressing I turned it off after fifteen minutes.

View All Man Push Cart Reviews

Critic Reviews

October 20, 2006
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Free of contrived melodrama and phony suspense, it ennobles the hard work by which its hero earns his daily bread. full review

March 12, 2006
Nick Schager, Slant Magazine

Like that daily grind, his story of salvation sought and never attained is one of listless, bloodless tedium. full review

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