My Uncle Jens Film Review: Funny & Fitting

Brwa Vahabpour’s My Uncle Jens deftly balances humor and serious subject matter, thanks to competent direction and committed performances.

The film gets right to it in its first scene, depicting the uncle’s (Hamza Agoshi) arrival at Akam’s (Peiman Azizpour) apartment. One of the movie’s charms is its ability to cut out potential fluff that often weighs down comedies like these. Director Brwa Vahabpour, in his feature debut, knows the story he wants to tell and does not let potential distractions or comedic rabbit holes get in his way. He knows the perfect time to hit the audience with a joke or witty moment from one of his characters, and he also knows the perfect time to go serious. He lets his competent direction and editing take the story where it needs to go, rather than simply hitting his audience with one punchline after another. Perhaps My Uncle Jens’s greatest accomplishment is that weaving of serious topics into the fairly comedic story. 

For a movie like this to truly work, the leads need to not only give good performances but also play off each other. Both Peiman Azizpour and Hamza Agoshi understood the assignment, knowing when to be goofy and when to be grounded. Both characters, along with the supporting players, feel like real people, giving this film a dose of reality a story like this needs and often lacks. 

Many comedies lean into their humor at the risk of their dramatic impact, but My Uncle Jens takes a different, ultimately satisfying approach. Touching on themes like family, immigration, and cultural and generational differences, this film clearly has more on its mind than the average comedy. While none of these themes are deeply explored, their very presence is a welcome touch, one that gives the film an air of importance. It continuously peels back its own layers, as Akam and the audience continue to learn more about the mysterious uncle. There’s an almost mysterious quality to it all, making it interesting, thought-provoking, and, yes, quite funny in its situational settings.

Throughout the story, Akam helps and tutors a young high school student struggling in one of his literature classes. These scenes offer a glimpse into Akam’s life outside of the turmoil happening with his newly arrived uncle. This is another example of the film’s maturity, allowing the audience a glimpse into these characters. “Mature” might be the best word to describe Vahabpour’s debut. My Uncle Jens may not be quite as impactful as it could be, but it delivers laughs and, probably more importantly, gets us to think about our world and some common, universal issues in a nuanced way, especially for a comedy. 

My Uncle Jens had its World Premiere at SXSW on March 10, 2025 and will be screened again on March 11-14. Read our SXSW reviews and our list of films to watch at SXSW 2025!