of princesses and motherlands
And I just finished watching Jodhaa Akbar. Boy, did it not disappoint.
Well, no, that's not entirely true. It only disappointed on one point. Everything else was pretty impressive.
Cos oh my dear fucking god, the sets and costumes. The level of detail was kinda orgasmic. And yet it was just enough for you to notice and go "woah, omg, nnnghhh!" and then focus in on the emotional action. It was never distracting to the point of intrusion, never overpowering. And I can kinda understand how they can achieve that with camera angles and frame compositions but what really had me marvelling were the costumes. That for our royal couple, the costumes were so incredibly lush with this mindboggling level of detail but still perfectly colour matched and toned so they never actually overpowered the actor's own self. That is SO.UTTERLY.FUCKING.COOL! Especially for a Hindi movie.
And now as I write that, I realise exactly how the level of detail was focused on just those two. So they always stood out, larger than life and vivid. Which was verrah clever, I'm realising now, cos they certainly didn't play the roles flamboyantly. They almost went the other way, very quiet and understated and naturalistic. And both the Aunt and I were very puzzled by how different Aish looked. "She looks old!" the Aunt said. I wasn't quite sure if that was it or whether it was a bizarre lack of make up. She certainly didn't look anything like her normal glossed up self and it was kinda nice after the initial shock and bewilderment.
Acting wise, she was her usual decent self. I mean, I can never really complain about Aish's acting. In all the films I've seen, admittedly not that many, she's believable enough to make me like her. She's never really done anything amazing although people keep telling me she does in Provoked but frankly I couldn't be arsed buying a movie just for her.
As for Hrithik, I thought he acquitted himself rather well. Never a moment of cringe or transparency. And really I'm inclined to credit Ashutosh Gowrikar's direction for that. Cos it would have been very easy and all too tempting to overplay the heroics of Akbar. But he never did. Always kept it real and kept it human. And that's something I absolutely adore about Ashutosh Gowrikar films, the very thing I loved in Lagaan and Swades.
I think I kinda love Ashutosh's politics. Okay, it was a bit critical in Swades and I did quail accordingly. I wonder if he gets accused of didacticism, if people tire of his pointed morality and statements about political issues. With this, I kinda fucking loved it. And I love how Bollywood keeps hammering home the Hindu-Muslim message, that "Damnit, Hindus and Muslims can get along and live and love, just listen!" story borne through love and social change. Kinda warms the cockles of the heart.
With Jodhaa Akbar, the issue of religious tolerance was very clear and quite incisively handled, I thought. No tip-toeing. And it was bloody excellent to do it in the name of patriotism. Yeah, for once I'll cheer on the nationalism. Cos excellent device to use the birth of a Mughal emperor in India as an illustration of uniting both faiths under one ruler, no matter his own personal faith. Good writing, that!
I suppose with the focus on the story being the royal couple, there wasn't as much of a chance as in other films for Ashutosh to be egalitarian. But I did like the Siddhartha-esque going out in disguise among the commoners and having his eyes opened to injustice. Mind you, even I bolted upright and went "What, are you fucking KIDDING ME?!" when he got told that the Hindus were being taxed for going to temple. Dunno how historically accurate that is but bloody excellent plot device yet again.
So clever to have the whole movie prefaced with an explanation of how there are many versions of the Jodhaa Akbar story to the point where she has many names and that this is just one version. So right off the bat, they've insured the story against claims of historical inaccuracy, protecting their artistic licence. Most cool. And I like that I know exactly how to place the film. Not quite canon but preferable.
The one quibble I had was with the sex scene. *scratches nose* Cos I read about it somewhere enough to expect one. And certainly they spent half the damned film leading up to it, the whole battle of wills between the sexes trope that I love so well as Kate/Petruchio fan. And we'd already had total back-and-arm-muscle!porn in the form of Hrithik practising his swordplay with his shirt off. I realised the guy's sex appeal quotient goes through the roof with eyeliner. *nod* Plus a passable swordfight tween the two where Aish was definitely letting the team down with not knowing what to do with her other arm. But that definitely got the sexual tension racketing up.
And I suddenly realised just how brilliantly that sexual tension had built up with all the not touching and keeping distance they had done. Because when they actually embraced, the top of my head nearly fell off. OMG THEY'RE TOUCHING! Oh my god, that is so hot. Problem is though after that initial guh moment, I wanted to see all those intricate clothes and jewellery coming off. And that didn't happen. Noooooo, we got the tender back and forth and the chaste comforting touches. And I did love that she finally went to his bed, sitting there just like she had on their wedding night.
But urgh, it was so damned frustrating when the stupid curtains floated translucent closed before us. Goddamned chaste Hindi films. *squirms* I demand sex, damnit! If not clever misdirection like in Salaam Namaste, at least tasteful impressionistic unidentifiable flesh like in Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna. Although I prolly should have expected as such cos I don't think neither Aish nor Hrithik have done any to date. *sigh* And especially now that they're married.
That aside, it was quite a good film. Hellishly long and a tad confusing with all the various names and factions and kings but hey, that's Indian history for ya. Wasn't made any easier by the shitty subtitles cos this was definitely one or more dialect I didn't know. The Aunt and I were only getting one or two words in a sentence so when a whole damned sentence that seemed important wasn't translated, there was gnashing of the teeth from moi. I'll wait to buy it for my own cos then hopefully what's available will have better subtitles. I'm sure there was a whole hell of a lot of nuance of expression I was missing. But god, there were some great lines, especially the metaphors. "No matter how shiny the mirror is, the back is always black" and "Even a falling sun can burn." OOF! Excellent shit!
And oh I did like the ending fight very much. I wonder if it's a trademark of Ashutosh Gowrikar films, that he has this great ability to narrow the entire film down to one hugely symbolic scenario, this great image or simile that has all the force and weight of political or social history powering it along. And here it was as simple as two men fighting for the fate of India. And oh man, so awesome to see Akbar get thrashed before gaining the upper hand and achieving that final most excellent defeat.
The gender play was rather interesting to a certain extent. First I really liked that there was a female minister. Even if she was a widow and therefore neutralised to some degree. Then I absolutely loathed that she was one of the bad elements cos that carried way too much subtext of "don't give the little woman too much power cos she'll become demonic and evil", not to mention the bonus of Bad Pseudo-Mummy Hand That Rocks The Cradle Syndrome. Urgh. I hate that shit.
But I did like how subtly the wives wielded their own power, that yes women were more successful when they were subtle. That the good mother triumphs because she is good and picks her moments and isn't aggressive. That Jodhaa, even though she sword fights and holds fast to her religious beliefs, only makes the greatest impact when she takes her husband to task for not being in touch with reality. That it's the bad guy's wife who earns him mercy at the hands of the enraged emperor.
It's extremely subtle. If I was in a more aggressive mood and not quite so sated with good food, I might be insulted at that subtlety. Because the women only have power when Akbar listens to them. And they're bloody lucky he does. As is the overarching notion that the whole motherland of India is bloody lucky she has Akbar looking out for her best interests.
But hey, verisimilitude and all that. Those were the times, those were the men. If you want your story to ring somewhat true, you fit your artistic liberties into as much real life parameters as possible. Right?
Perhaps.
I kinda wish I had seen it on the big screen now.
Well, no, that's not entirely true. It only disappointed on one point. Everything else was pretty impressive.
Cos oh my dear fucking god, the sets and costumes. The level of detail was kinda orgasmic. And yet it was just enough for you to notice and go "woah, omg, nnnghhh!" and then focus in on the emotional action. It was never distracting to the point of intrusion, never overpowering. And I can kinda understand how they can achieve that with camera angles and frame compositions but what really had me marvelling were the costumes. That for our royal couple, the costumes were so incredibly lush with this mindboggling level of detail but still perfectly colour matched and toned so they never actually overpowered the actor's own self. That is SO.UTTERLY.FUCKING.COOL! Especially for a Hindi movie.
And now as I write that, I realise exactly how the level of detail was focused on just those two. So they always stood out, larger than life and vivid. Which was verrah clever, I'm realising now, cos they certainly didn't play the roles flamboyantly. They almost went the other way, very quiet and understated and naturalistic. And both the Aunt and I were very puzzled by how different Aish looked. "She looks old!" the Aunt said. I wasn't quite sure if that was it or whether it was a bizarre lack of make up. She certainly didn't look anything like her normal glossed up self and it was kinda nice after the initial shock and bewilderment.
Acting wise, she was her usual decent self. I mean, I can never really complain about Aish's acting. In all the films I've seen, admittedly not that many, she's believable enough to make me like her. She's never really done anything amazing although people keep telling me she does in Provoked but frankly I couldn't be arsed buying a movie just for her.
As for Hrithik, I thought he acquitted himself rather well. Never a moment of cringe or transparency. And really I'm inclined to credit Ashutosh Gowrikar's direction for that. Cos it would have been very easy and all too tempting to overplay the heroics of Akbar. But he never did. Always kept it real and kept it human. And that's something I absolutely adore about Ashutosh Gowrikar films, the very thing I loved in Lagaan and Swades.
I think I kinda love Ashutosh's politics. Okay, it was a bit critical in Swades and I did quail accordingly. I wonder if he gets accused of didacticism, if people tire of his pointed morality and statements about political issues. With this, I kinda fucking loved it. And I love how Bollywood keeps hammering home the Hindu-Muslim message, that "Damnit, Hindus and Muslims can get along and live and love, just listen!" story borne through love and social change. Kinda warms the cockles of the heart.
With Jodhaa Akbar, the issue of religious tolerance was very clear and quite incisively handled, I thought. No tip-toeing. And it was bloody excellent to do it in the name of patriotism. Yeah, for once I'll cheer on the nationalism. Cos excellent device to use the birth of a Mughal emperor in India as an illustration of uniting both faiths under one ruler, no matter his own personal faith. Good writing, that!
I suppose with the focus on the story being the royal couple, there wasn't as much of a chance as in other films for Ashutosh to be egalitarian. But I did like the Siddhartha-esque going out in disguise among the commoners and having his eyes opened to injustice. Mind you, even I bolted upright and went "What, are you fucking KIDDING ME?!" when he got told that the Hindus were being taxed for going to temple. Dunno how historically accurate that is but bloody excellent plot device yet again.
So clever to have the whole movie prefaced with an explanation of how there are many versions of the Jodhaa Akbar story to the point where she has many names and that this is just one version. So right off the bat, they've insured the story against claims of historical inaccuracy, protecting their artistic licence. Most cool. And I like that I know exactly how to place the film. Not quite canon but preferable.
The one quibble I had was with the sex scene. *scratches nose* Cos I read about it somewhere enough to expect one. And certainly they spent half the damned film leading up to it, the whole battle of wills between the sexes trope that I love so well as Kate/Petruchio fan. And we'd already had total back-and-arm-muscle!porn in the form of Hrithik practising his swordplay with his shirt off. I realised the guy's sex appeal quotient goes through the roof with eyeliner. *nod* Plus a passable swordfight tween the two where Aish was definitely letting the team down with not knowing what to do with her other arm. But that definitely got the sexual tension racketing up.
And I suddenly realised just how brilliantly that sexual tension had built up with all the not touching and keeping distance they had done. Because when they actually embraced, the top of my head nearly fell off. OMG THEY'RE TOUCHING! Oh my god, that is so hot. Problem is though after that initial guh moment, I wanted to see all those intricate clothes and jewellery coming off. And that didn't happen. Noooooo, we got the tender back and forth and the chaste comforting touches. And I did love that she finally went to his bed, sitting there just like she had on their wedding night.
But urgh, it was so damned frustrating when the stupid curtains floated translucent closed before us. Goddamned chaste Hindi films. *squirms* I demand sex, damnit! If not clever misdirection like in Salaam Namaste, at least tasteful impressionistic unidentifiable flesh like in Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna. Although I prolly should have expected as such cos I don't think neither Aish nor Hrithik have done any to date. *sigh* And especially now that they're married.
That aside, it was quite a good film. Hellishly long and a tad confusing with all the various names and factions and kings but hey, that's Indian history for ya. Wasn't made any easier by the shitty subtitles cos this was definitely one or more dialect I didn't know. The Aunt and I were only getting one or two words in a sentence so when a whole damned sentence that seemed important wasn't translated, there was gnashing of the teeth from moi. I'll wait to buy it for my own cos then hopefully what's available will have better subtitles. I'm sure there was a whole hell of a lot of nuance of expression I was missing. But god, there were some great lines, especially the metaphors. "No matter how shiny the mirror is, the back is always black" and "Even a falling sun can burn." OOF! Excellent shit!
And oh I did like the ending fight very much. I wonder if it's a trademark of Ashutosh Gowrikar films, that he has this great ability to narrow the entire film down to one hugely symbolic scenario, this great image or simile that has all the force and weight of political or social history powering it along. And here it was as simple as two men fighting for the fate of India. And oh man, so awesome to see Akbar get thrashed before gaining the upper hand and achieving that final most excellent defeat.
The gender play was rather interesting to a certain extent. First I really liked that there was a female minister. Even if she was a widow and therefore neutralised to some degree. Then I absolutely loathed that she was one of the bad elements cos that carried way too much subtext of "don't give the little woman too much power cos she'll become demonic and evil", not to mention the bonus of Bad Pseudo-Mummy Hand That Rocks The Cradle Syndrome. Urgh. I hate that shit.
But I did like how subtly the wives wielded their own power, that yes women were more successful when they were subtle. That the good mother triumphs because she is good and picks her moments and isn't aggressive. That Jodhaa, even though she sword fights and holds fast to her religious beliefs, only makes the greatest impact when she takes her husband to task for not being in touch with reality. That it's the bad guy's wife who earns him mercy at the hands of the enraged emperor.
It's extremely subtle. If I was in a more aggressive mood and not quite so sated with good food, I might be insulted at that subtlety. Because the women only have power when Akbar listens to them. And they're bloody lucky he does. As is the overarching notion that the whole motherland of India is bloody lucky she has Akbar looking out for her best interests.
But hey, verisimilitude and all that. Those were the times, those were the men. If you want your story to ring somewhat true, you fit your artistic liberties into as much real life parameters as possible. Right?
Perhaps.
I kinda wish I had seen it on the big screen now.