Bride and Prejudice Colorfully Reimagines Austen

If I were to categorize this year in terms of my prevailing preoccupation, I would have to say that 2007 has been the Year of Harry Potter. Just behind the boy wizard, however, were several other fictional fancies, prominent among them the hit ABC drama LOST and Jane Austen's enduring classic, Pride and Prejudice. When I learned that a marriage, however tenuous, between the two could be found in Gurinder Chadha's Bride and Prejudice, a splashy Bollywood adaptation of Austen's novel, I couldn't wait to attend the ceremony.

It was Naveen Andrews, better known to me as (mostly) reformed Iraqi torturer Sayid, whose inclusion in the cast pushed this cinematic take on the Elizabeth and Darcy saga up to the top of my must-see list. Sadly, the happy-go-lucky (and marvelously fleet-footed) Balraj Bingley doesn't get a lot of screen time, but he's sufficiently lovable for this gal who harbors suspicions that, delicious as Darcy is, she may be more of a Bingley devotee at heart. And Martin Henderson is, alas, no Colin Firth, nor is this Darcy written to be nearly as interesting or intoxicating as the original.

Few of the other cast members were familiar to me. Alexis Bledel, whose role in Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants I enjoyed, puts in a sweet performance as Georgie, good-natured little sister of the inscrutable William Darcy, and Ashanti makes a rather random appearance. Otherwise, while I recognized the characters, I can't say the same for the actors playing them. The cast is solid, however, from Indira Varma, who plays the high-falluting, flirtatious Kiran Bingley, sister to Balraj and pursuer of William, to Nitin Ganatra, the insufferable Mr. Collins-like Mr. Kohli who could give Fran Drescher a run for her money in a most-annoying-laugh competition.

Most of the characters have names that are similar to the Austen version, but before they were properly introduced it was fun to point to them and guess which character they corresponded to. I was impressed by how many of the characters remained relatively intact; obviously, since the bulk of the film takes place in modern-day India (with brief forays into London and California) rather than Georgian England, there are going to be changes, but the basic nature of the characters is pretty similar.

The Bakshi family is very much like the Bennets, with an easy-going dad (Anupam Kher), a hilariously high-strung mom (Nadira Babbar) and four unmarried daughters. Poor Kitty, who never was very distinctive, is excised entirely, but Elizabeth is present in all her feisty glory, though this time her name is Lalita (Aishwarya Rai). Her older sister Jane becomes Jaya (Namrata Shirodkar), whose charitable personality isn't as developed as Jane's but who still is perfectly likable. Maya (Meghna Kothari) is Mary-like primarily in one scene in which, instead of a tedious musical performance, she subjects guests to a poorly performed snake dance. Lakhi (Peeya Rai Chowdhary) is the irresponsible Lydia through and through, though her fling with Johnny Wickham (Daniel Gillies) turns out quite differently than in the book.

The most striking aspect of this film, even more than the setting, is the fact that it is a musical, and an incredibly eye-catching one at that. The first half of the movie is loaded with extended, vibrant dance numbers, most of which do little to advance the story, though they are roughly in keeping with the emphasis the novel places on dance. Of course, this is dancing of a very different sort, and even the liberal Elizabeth would likely blush at some of the rather immodest displays - though it's all beautifully coordinated, and still much more tasteful than the half-dressed gyrating of From Justin to Kelly. It's fun to watch, what with the dazzling array of fabrics and the unique cultural dances, particularly those involving sticks that the dancers slap together, and there's an entertaining Matchmaker, Matchmaker-style derisive ode to Mr. Kohli, but most of the songs went on a bit longer than I thought was necessary, and I was rather relieved when the second half focused mostly on character development and dialogue.

If you're a fan of Jane Austen, you're in for a treat with this unique re-telling of Pride and Prejudice, and if you're lost without LOST, prepare to be doubly delighted!