The Queen of My Dreams (2023)

-Written by Kyle Bain. 

After a family tragedy, Azra (Amrit Kaur) is forced to reconnect with her conservative Muslim mother, Miriam (Nimra Bucha). The Queen of My Dreams follows Azra halfway across the world as she combats the standards of her religion and her mother’s watchful eye. 

While The Queen of My Dreams initially opens to Azra living in Canada with her girlfriend, the film quickly transitions to the bustling streets of Pakistan, to the home of her parents. Much like what the great directors of our time have accomplished, Writer-Director Fawzia Mirza turns the film’s location into a character. Particularly when we’re first transported to Pakistan, Mirza uses long shots to express the magnitude of the densely-populated nation, presenting both the gorgeous landscapes and the juxtaposing urgency existing among its inhabitants.

The Queen of My Dreams transitions back and forth between modern day and the late 1960’s, in which viewers see Miriam’s story, creating an apt parallel between this mother and daughter who so often struggle to see eye to eye. Much like the juxtaposing landscapes, The Queen of My Dreams employs a series of juxtaposing, but equally tantalizing similarities between Azra and Miriam’s stories that exist decades apart. While we are certainly meant to understand the harsh differences between Azra and her mother, it’s the similarities that bolster the film’s narrative and its ability to connect emotionally with viewers. 

As those similarities become more apparent, as they work their way to the forefront of the film–it’s those moments that most resonated with me. They frustrated me, even angered me from time to time, as I witnessed the hypocrisy that existed within Miriam’s character. As much as The Queen of My Dreams is Azra’s story, Miriam feels more prominently featured, particularly in the latter half of the film. The Queen of My Dreams beautifully expresses Miriam’s story in a way that is accessible and interestingly freeing. Again and again we are reminded that the struggles of Miriam’s past are what have choked out the luster from her present–and the push and pull between the past and present helps to illustrate this point. 

While The Queen of My Dreams is glowing in some regards, the film certainly has its issues as well. The Queen of My Dreams looks to be real, honest–and I found quite a bit of the dialogue to be troubling in this regard. There were many moments in which I felt that the dialogue lacked gravitas, lacked the gusto needed to insert the necessary tensions in Azra and Miriam’s stories. While the argument could be made that real-life conversations don’t always play out like a script, I needed something a bit more polished from this aspect of The Queen of My Dreams. 

There’s a delicate balance that needs to be achieved in order for The Queen of My Dreams to find success, and that balance is achieved through the juxtapositional storytelling of Azra and Miriam’s narratives. The storytelling of Writer-Director Mirza is quite impressive, and with the film resting firmly on her shoulders, it shines brightly enough to spark emotion and to remain engaging from start to finish. 

Written & Directed by Fawzia Mirza. 

Starring Amrit Kaur, Nimra Bucha, Hamza Haq, Gul-e-Rana, Ayana Manji, etc. 

7/10 = WATCH IT FOR FREE