atul_khare

Well, it came across as total hokum to me -- I mean, when was the last time you came across characters that were so blatantly racist? It's almost like a Forest Gump version of racism -- "Life is like a box of racists".

Take for instance the several deux ex machina interludes that allow the characters to experience the two extremes over a period of 36 hours in a city of millions. Molest a woman because because you are a racist and then redeem yourself by rescuing her from a burning car because you are human after all.

But wait -- maybe we need to throw in a few racists and coincidences into the mix and repeat ad nauseum to beat it into audience's head. Let's telegraph what's going to happen in advance and let's label the bullets in bright red just in case they don't understand what happened when the trigger was pulled.

By golly -- it's a miracle -- we have an Oscar winner here!!!

Pride and Prejudice is a Bollywood crossover musical that's more or less a pretty straightforward adaptation of Jane Austen's novel. The film has the emotional gravity of a feather, but it's aided by some lively cinematography by Santosh Sivan, colorful choreography, a pretty good score by Anu Malik and a comely cast that should set many a heart throbbing.

Gurinder Chadda is well aware of the limitations of the material and genre and does well to keep the film moving at a fairly brisk pace.

This is the kind of film that's best enjoyed in the big screen and the chances are that you will have a good time when you are watching it. Just remember that this isn't something to ruminate about after you leave the theater -- it might be masala flavoured, but it's bubble gum after all...

Jungle features some outstanding cinematography by Vijay Arora. Shot in a 2.35:1 aspect ratio with a wide angle camera lens, it does of stunning job of capturing the ambiance of the jungle, including wildlife. It also features some fine performances by Urmila and the "bad guys", including Vijay Raaz who is especially memorable. In contrast, I thought that Sunil Shetty was passable at best and IMO he's too soft faced to play a cop obsessed with tracking down his arch foe.

Ram Gopal Verma does a fine job of creating suspense and some scenes in the jungle are especially gut wrenching. However, he too is hampered by the commercial considerations of Bollywood cinema and the ill placed songs -- which border on the absurd at times -- don't help matters any.

The film's biggest let down is its screenplay, which cannot decide whether it wants to be romance story or a gritty thriller. The characters seem to engage in downright silly behaviour even when faced with life threatening situations. The villain's actions are inexplicable and some things seem to have been written with the express purpose of driving the storyline forward.

That said, considering the trash that Bollywood churns out, this is certainly one of the better films and Verma should be commended for trying to break the narrow formulaic cinematic mould.

Frankly, hadn't I known otherwise, my credulity would have been stretched to imagine that this movie was actually nominated for an Oscar. Indeed, it's difficult to think that this movie would be deemed as one the year's best films even in a mediocre year, let alone one that includes the likes of Lord of the Rings and Mulholland Drive.

Anyway, it seems that the story unfolds with a lot of promise for the first half hour or so till a tragic incident happens. After that, the film changes gears and goes into a brooding and meandering mode, and for most part the screenplay involves simply lingering on characters going through the motions of their grief. While this isn't bad on the face of it, the characters aren't very interesting and the film labours through the weight of trying to carry its profundity, of which it has none.

The ending is unsatisfactory and completely predictable and looks like it was tacked on to give the audience a sense of closure. Sissy Spacek Tom Wilkinson and Marisa Tomei give fine performances. The bottom line is that some good performances notwithstanding the verdict on the film is pretty clear : it's boring.