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Monsoon Wedding | Year: 2001 Classification: Comedy Directed: - Mira Nair Actors/Actresses: - Naseeruddin Shah - Lillete Dubey colorful, joyous Indian film Occasionally, we Americans are treated to a delightful foreign film. I suspect that lots of these are made every year, but the powers that be long ago decided that we have neither the patience nor the inclination to watch them. One that did get through was the joyous Indian treat, "Monsoon Wedding". A family in Delhi is overjoyed after one of its daughters accepts an arranged marriage with a successful Indian engineer who lives in Houston, TX. The girl's reason for accepting isn't out of respect for tradition. She's simply given up hope that her married lover will ever divorce his wife. When the prespective groom arrives, he turns out to be a really nice guy, and the bride-to-be agonizes over whether or not to be honest about her past. Meanwhile, the man hired to build the wedding tents finds himself head over heels in love with the family's shy young maid. There are lots of laughs in "Monsoon Wedding", as well as many witty and insightful observations about middle-class Indian society. While there is a fascination in seeing some of the more exotic aspects of life in India, the most satisfying aspect of the film is its way of showing how universal the joys of love and of family are. Typical of cosmopolitan families outside of the USA, the characters often switch from one language to another while speaking. In this case, they speak Hindu, Punjabi and English. I know some moviegoers can't stand subtitles, but, to me, the use of multiple languages simply adds to this film's charms. Open your mind and discover this wonderful movie I have now seen Monsoon wedding twice, and it's without a doubt a great movie. Depicting a modern indian culture, the film gives you an insight into the preparations during the days leading up to a family wedding. It often has a "fly-on-the-wall" feel/look to it, and the director successfully manages to juggle several characters within the film, with none leaving the screen for too long. Sometimes funny, often romantic, the occasional drama, and even some quite moving scenes later in the film when a terrible family secret is revealed, but ultimately Monsoon Wedding is best catergorized as a feel-good movie. The cast are excellent, though I haven't heard of any of them previously. Special mentions go to Naseeruddin Shah who plays Lalit (the bride's father) who gives a touching performance when faced with a relative's shameful history. Also good are Shefali Shetty (Ria), Vijay Raaz (dubey) and the gorgeous Tilotama Shome, who plays the shy house maid Alice. Ironically, the most heart-warming romance in the film isn't between the two people who are about to wed!, but between two others (who I won't name here, in the interests of people who haven't yet seen the movie). Monsoon Wedding is also something of a multilingual film, with no fewer than 3 languages being used - English, Hindi and Punjabi. This means the viewer (presuming they're not multilingual) will often be switching between listening to the conversations, to reading the subtitles, but you'll soon get used to it. Overall then, a wonderful movie. Great direction from Mira Nair, who manages to make everything hold together perfectly. Good performances from the cast, and a worthy soundtrack that I'm now considering buying. Along with "Amelie", it's nice to see some excellent "feel-good" films recently that don't overdo it with the schmaltz factor. Once is Not Enough... I rented this movie and enjoyed it so much that I immediately rewound it and watched it again; now THAT'S a first! And it was even better the second time around, as I didn't have to concentrate so hard for fear of missing something. Cross-cultural/generational and traditional vs. modern themes have always been a favorite of mine, but here these ideas are explored in layered levels, w/ all of their subtle complexities. There is nothing hackneyed in this presentation. There are various subplots weaving throughout, carrying the viewer through many twists and turns at a perfect pace. Observing the wedding planner Dubey (Vijay Raaz) as he falls in love is especially sweet and charming and funny. Yet this film is by no means a frivolous fluff piece. It has its dramatic and unexpected moments, which serve to enrich one's understanding and empathy for the characters involved. Oh, and did I mention that the music is delightful? Can't wait to get my copy of the soundtrack (it's on order) to play in the car. I'm also eager to view some of Mira Nair's other films, since she certainly did a superb job with "Monsoon Wedding". Buy Monsoon Wedding at Amazon.com Buy posters at Allposters.com Jamster - the latest ringtones for your phone!  Search with Walhello on the Internet on Monsoon Wedding Search with the Priority Search Engine on Monsoon Wedding This page in other languages: Suomeksi | Nederlands | Deutsch
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