Devdas

I owned this film for 8 months but did not see it because of all the negative hype on the board. Then I took the plunge. First off let me say that I was not a great Saratchandra admirer. His stories (except SWAMI) mostly portrayed women as weak minded, subservient (maybe true to the time, but not to be admired), and men as weak and mostly well bred but not well educated. I had no real recollection of the story as written. And, not being a great Dilip Kumar fan, I never watched the old version. So, I have no comparisons to draw, no plot line differences to talk about.

I came away moved by the tragic love story that unfolded. It was not flawless, most Bollywood movies are not.

Negatives - the sets were beautiful but over the top, ditto for the costumes. The duo dance was a great way to compare Aish vs Madhuri dancing skills (both were pretty even matched for me) but in the story line it was quite silly and should not have been there. There was no real need for the the two to meet, but this was Mr, Bhansali's directorial license. Chandramukhi's kotha and environs were lifted straight from Pakeezah, which was a very stylized movie and not authentic.

Positives: Shahrukh Khan gave a very restrained performance, the silent tears accompanied with an anguish that only his eyes portrayed was a real departure from the screwed-up face crying. He was very very good in the drunk bits, very good in the anguished bits. It is remarkable how much this actor is accused of being typecast when every other year he pulls out an amazing performance - Dil Se (1998), Asoka (2001) and Devdas (2002) are all departures from his usual typecast romantic hero image. Recent roles in Swades and KANK are even more varied. The detractors will keep saying he overacted, or he portrayed no emotions, for me this was a truly great role as an anguished lover. Mr. Khan - your best actor award for this role in Devdas was well deserved.

Madhuri - what can one say about this truly great icon? She was amazing, you felt her pain, her caring, her selfless love, the moments between her and Shahrukh sizzled. And her dancing was brilliant.

Aish - was a bit wooden at times, but not always. She had a chemistry with Shahrukh that was understated until she was beyond his reach, but come on - the woman looks amazing, is there any doubt that a hundred Devdas types are dying for her?? She was better as the movie progressed to the more serious part.

The movie went into an emotional downward spiral a third of the way in and I sat there moved and almost crying for these tortured souls the rest of the two hours.

The movie was eye candy in the sets and costumes department. The two leading ladies were stunning, Shahrukh was easy on the eye, yet there was something that did detract from this being a great film. Upon much thinking I have come to the conclusion that it was the over the top beauty of everything that really made everything a little unreal for me. How could such perfect people have such imperfect lives? In essence the little black mark on the lip was missing and that left me a little dissatisfied.

If Mr. Bhansali had stated that this was an adaptation from the original novel, people would forgive him the fact that Devdas in his version is a mature man and knows his mind (although fails to act decisively on it), and the fact that an aristocratic lady visits a courtesan's establishment and the two dance together.

If you do not compare with what did or did not come before, this was an intense emotional experience, anchored by great performances from Shahrukh, Madhuri and yes, even Aish.

What can I say, Devdas is a spectacular classic on par with Gone With the Wind and Cecil B. DeMille. At first I was pleased that there was an English version, and I would not have to read subtitles BUT - IT'S CUT!!! The final song is missing, and parts of most of the other songs are snipped. Whole scenes are missing!!!! Luckily I watched the Hindi version first. It is far superior in that it is complete, plus it looks better. I did need the English version to iron out some of the plot - although a couple of the scenes that I needed translated had been cut. In future, if they are not going to English version the whole movie, subtitles are better. Dola Re is the best song/dance number ever!!!!!!!!!!

I had never seen a Bollywood film before (being a white girl who only knows a few swear words in Punjabi) so Devdas was a new experience for me. I thought it was simply wonderful, rich, vibrant and full of colour. I couldn't recommend it enough for someone who wants to see what all the fuss is about Bollywood. The story is Romantic and timeless, a spin on Romeo and Juliette if you will. The story unfolds through song and dance sequences that feature beautiful women who do not need to expose themselves to be erotic. The humour in the film for me came when Devdas started speaking like an English gent in the middle of an argument with his father...very amusing view on the Western world! Anyway, as I said, I would encourage anyone with an open mind to have a look at this film.

Right from the opening credit sequence it is apparent that this is not your typical Bollywood movie. There are no iffy dance sequences with multiple costume changes. During those dance sequences the location does not change inexplicably - thus no bemused Swiss folk staring at the actors in bemusement in the background. Devdas' dance sequences are sexy without being sleazy. They are lavish but not gaudy.

The women do not ape western fashion (badly I may add) with pleated miniskirts and glittery tops. The men, thank God, do not wear tight PVC muscle tops and leather trousers (it may be all the rage in India for all I know, but its a big nono everywhere else). The fashion in Devdas, historically inaccurate as it probably is, is nevertheless stunning.

The obligatory fight sequence where our hero beats the crap out of a dozen armed 'bad-guys with moustaches' without breaking into a sweat is notably absent. No goofy comedy sidekick either.

All in all, its difficult for me to categorise this film as a 'Bollywood movie' at all - it's just too damn good.

It does have flaws, the main one being that you do not get a clear idea of how much time has elapsed between events in the movie. However, I look forward to Sanjay Leela Bhansali's next film.

Gloriously excessive Bollywood epic starring former Miss World Aishwarya Rai. Set in the 30s and sumptuously shot, it follows a lovelorn suitor's slide into alcoholism and despair

Bhansali's film boasts the biggest budget for an Indian film ever and boy, does it show. An extravagant tale of love, loss and serious drinking, it operates on a scale previously unseen in Bollywood.

Essentially a tragic love triangle, the story follows tortured Devdas (Khan) as he mucks things up with childhood sweetheart Paro (Rai), meets courtesan Chandramukhi (Dixit) and then drinks himself to death. A spirited anti-hero, in India his name his synonymous with a sort of heroic failure.

Everything about the film - costumes, sets, songs and sentiments - is larger than life and the sheer spectacle demands respect. The musical numbers cast Devdas and Paro as the mythical lovers Krishna and Radha. Cheeky, sexy and dizzyingly complex, the dancers display astonishing energy and precision, whole sequences shot from above to resemble the shifting patterns of a kaleidoscope.

Certainly there are moments of daftness. A half-cut Devdas resolves a financial dispute by setting fire to a sofa, for example, and nobody tries to stop him. But there's also humour, style and a conclusion that's plenty teary. As Western directors continue to look to Bollywood for inspiration this is a shining example how it should be done. Intoxicating.

Verdict Starts big, gets a whole lot bigger then gets twice as big after that, this is Bollywood at its most flamboyant. The song and dance numbers alone are worth the price of entry and whether you're familiar with the genre or not this is irresistible from start to finish.