jodha-akbar.
It feels like friggin' ages since I've written a "proper" review of a recent movie. Hence I feel like this review is somehow pseudo-clever or just plain retarded. But whatever, here it is.
Vaguely spoilerous (mentions specific things I adored/disliked) so under cut. Shorter, unspoilerous version in my Bollywood blog: linky
I use the word 'epic' in stupid internet slang a lot because I'm an idiot. But it's every now and then that I discover the true meaning of epic, and no, it's not by picking up Kalevala or the Iliad, but this time, by sitting down in the enormous warmth of Manchester's Trafford Centre to watch Ashutosh Gowariker's historical epic Jodha-Akbar.
The film is long enough to make sure you really do feel like you're living in the world of the legendary Mughal ruler Akbar. The main character is naturally glorified in order to make him a true Bollywood hero; in the same way Mangal Pandey is credited with the 1847 uprising in The Rising, or the same way history is ignored in Asoka. It would be of course important to establish Akbar wasn't a fair guy all along, that he grew up to realize the violence against Hindus would not do his empire any good, and a more tolerant approach would be ideal. But perhaps Gowariker wants to hammer the message home clearly, and leave no arguments in the movie for the religious fanatics of modern day India, no “but look how many Hindus he killed before he became a fair ruler!” shouted at his movie. Of course, the polemic will happen and has happened, but I personally decide to shrug and move along. I know the facts, I know the arguments; now let me enjoy the movie.
Even if Jodha never existed, it's a lovely tale within this epic. I saw zilch of Hrithik-Aishwarya chemistry in Dhoom 2, but in here, they were really something (even if Hrithik is again doing most of the work). I enjoy the course of the relationship, and the few key scenes (sword-fighting, calligraphy, sharing the bed - with curtain, sharing the bed - sans curtain) were simply terrific and loaded with hotness.
Aishwarya's acting is sufficient, and sadly that's the only word I can use to describe it. She captures Jodha's determinism but doesn't exactly blow me away with her performance. With Hrithik I'm slightly more at odds. He makes an incredibly intense romantic hero and just the little expressions he has in the sword-fighting sequence show how good he is at that. He also has the presence of a Mughal ruler; I love my shorter actors but I can't really imagine a great emperor being closer to Aishwarya's height. On the other hand, I've never been in love with his more dramatic acting. Combined with the movies constant dramatic sound effects, it lends to a certain over-the-topness that becomes more amusing than believable.
The long movie is not without slow moments but thankfully avoids being the dragged out film Swades was. On the other hand, who can complain when the movie is this pretty? The visuals make you feel at home in your seat, even though I also had moments when I was wondering what time it was, how I should eat, how I will probably faint, not thanks to Hrithik but to starvation, before the credits roll.
But back to epicness. My friend and I discussed during interval how the movie was so epicly dramatic that it sometimes felt like the air was too heavy to breathe. Even a simple home cooked dinner could not be eaten without dramatic pauses and heightened emotions. Dun dun dunnn! More positive aspects of Jodha-Akbar's epicness are the crowd scenes, the sets, the battles. While they in no way rival those of Lord of the Rings, on the Indian scale they are very impressive. Plus, elephants. You simply cannot go wrong with some elephants.
While I didn't love Jodha-Akbar, it was quite the ride, and definitely one of those films Bollywood fans at large should make sure to watch. I will also offer tons of sympathy to everybody who, like me when I'm not travelling the globe, will not be able to see this on the big screen but will have to wait for DVD. I hope the DVD will be good enough to be nearly the same as in the dark of the theater, but sadly that is hardly ever the case.
Vaguely spoilerous (mentions specific things I adored/disliked) so under cut. Shorter, unspoilerous version in my Bollywood blog: linky
I use the word 'epic' in stupid internet slang a lot because I'm an idiot. But it's every now and then that I discover the true meaning of epic, and no, it's not by picking up Kalevala or the Iliad, but this time, by sitting down in the enormous warmth of Manchester's Trafford Centre to watch Ashutosh Gowariker's historical epic Jodha-Akbar.
The film is long enough to make sure you really do feel like you're living in the world of the legendary Mughal ruler Akbar. The main character is naturally glorified in order to make him a true Bollywood hero; in the same way Mangal Pandey is credited with the 1847 uprising in The Rising, or the same way history is ignored in Asoka. It would be of course important to establish Akbar wasn't a fair guy all along, that he grew up to realize the violence against Hindus would not do his empire any good, and a more tolerant approach would be ideal. But perhaps Gowariker wants to hammer the message home clearly, and leave no arguments in the movie for the religious fanatics of modern day India, no “but look how many Hindus he killed before he became a fair ruler!” shouted at his movie. Of course, the polemic will happen and has happened, but I personally decide to shrug and move along. I know the facts, I know the arguments; now let me enjoy the movie.
Even if Jodha never existed, it's a lovely tale within this epic. I saw zilch of Hrithik-Aishwarya chemistry in Dhoom 2, but in here, they were really something (even if Hrithik is again doing most of the work). I enjoy the course of the relationship, and the few key scenes (sword-fighting, calligraphy, sharing the bed - with curtain, sharing the bed - sans curtain) were simply terrific and loaded with hotness.
Aishwarya's acting is sufficient, and sadly that's the only word I can use to describe it. She captures Jodha's determinism but doesn't exactly blow me away with her performance. With Hrithik I'm slightly more at odds. He makes an incredibly intense romantic hero and just the little expressions he has in the sword-fighting sequence show how good he is at that. He also has the presence of a Mughal ruler; I love my shorter actors but I can't really imagine a great emperor being closer to Aishwarya's height. On the other hand, I've never been in love with his more dramatic acting. Combined with the movies constant dramatic sound effects, it lends to a certain over-the-topness that becomes more amusing than believable.
The long movie is not without slow moments but thankfully avoids being the dragged out film Swades was. On the other hand, who can complain when the movie is this pretty? The visuals make you feel at home in your seat, even though I also had moments when I was wondering what time it was, how I should eat, how I will probably faint, not thanks to Hrithik but to starvation, before the credits roll.
But back to epicness. My friend and I discussed during interval how the movie was so epicly dramatic that it sometimes felt like the air was too heavy to breathe. Even a simple home cooked dinner could not be eaten without dramatic pauses and heightened emotions. Dun dun dunnn! More positive aspects of Jodha-Akbar's epicness are the crowd scenes, the sets, the battles. While they in no way rival those of Lord of the Rings, on the Indian scale they are very impressive. Plus, elephants. You simply cannot go wrong with some elephants.
While I didn't love Jodha-Akbar, it was quite the ride, and definitely one of those films Bollywood fans at large should make sure to watch. I will also offer tons of sympathy to everybody who, like me when I'm not travelling the globe, will not be able to see this on the big screen but will have to wait for DVD. I hope the DVD will be good enough to be nearly the same as in the dark of the theater, but sadly that is hardly ever the case.