High energy, UPLIFTING and fun!

What's not to like?

I've never read any Jane Austen, and only know her work from the film adaptations. SENSE & SENSIBILITY, EMMA, etc. So I cannot comment if "BRIDE" AND PREJUDICE does a good job of translating Austen to Bollywood. I suspect it does a fine job of translating the "spirit" of her work however. It's a movie where misunderstandings and hurt feelings are unravelled, and love triumphs over all. The kind of movie where even the "villains" end up being likeable.

For those who need a plot summary, let me just say that this is almost beyond the point. We see the eldest daughter in a well-off Indian family and a rich American businessman who are obviously right for each other, but their own stubborness and the disapproval of those around them conspire, briefly, to keep them apart. Will the right people all end up together? It's a Jane Austen story...so what do you think? The journey is the point here, not the end result.

This movie is a musical, and the musical numbers (which are inspired by the Indian movie musical, or Bollywood) are mostly extremely high energy and well choreographed. What I like is that the movie obviously understands how ridiculous the idea of two people (or an entire city block) breaking into song and dance can be...yet it does a fabulous job of making that very act a blast! The beautiful colors that the Indian women wear make every production number a visual treat...and the music is heavily influenced by Indian music, with a bit of pop beat for us Americans. Truly, the music makes you want to get up and move around! (Although I must say that for all the fun I had with the music while watching the film...none of it really stuck with me afterwords.)

They say that in musicals, the reason people burst into song is that their emotions are too strong to be expressed any other way. Well, this movie shows that the excitement of love and impending marriage just boils up and spills over into song. My 12 year old daughter, who was VERY skeptical when I brought this movie home, immediately watched it a 2nd time.

The performers mostly top rate. Best known to Americans will be Martin Henderson (THE RING, TORQUE) and Naveen Andrews (LOST, THE ENGLISH PATIENT). But the little known Indian performers, particularly the women, are the true soul of the film. I don't recall the names of most of the actresses, except star Aishwarya Ray, who is simply radiant. The female characters have by far more depth and complexity than the men. They are tough yet quick to melt. They are smarter than most of the men. They have great clothes!

The only reason the movie doesn't get five stars is because it is SO light and frothy. It's a confection of a movie. It doesn't make many demands...so it doesn't rise to the level of a "classic." Also, to be a little nitpicky...Martin Henderson isn't fabulous in the part of Darcy. Granted, his character is supposed to be a bit of a stick-in-the-mud, but he's actually mostly dull at first. Towards the end, he gets to let his natural charisma go a little and we warm to him. And as with many foreign accented films, it takes a while to "tune" your ear to the goings-on, particularly as the 2nd or 3rd scene in the film is a crowded celebration scene, and the background noise makes it that much harder to follow.

But these minor quibbles aside, I HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommend this little gem for lovers of fun and romance and great music!