Le mahâbhârata

As Vyasa (the storyteller) says at the beginning. "If you listen closely, at the end you'll be someone else." Shakespearean layer upon layer of meanings. Gives westerners a glimpse (sometimes shocking) into the different mindset of the East.

All our western ideas of 'good' and 'evil'; 'truth' and 'justice' are flipped on their heads.

And the acting... particularly Krishna,,, is subtle and sublime.

Rather than try to render the 'cast of millions' they strip it down to a minimalist production where only the barest essentials are there. This puts the acting on full display and these people, from around the world, do not disappoint.

Unforgettable. Unique. Incomparable.

This production of the epic Indian poem describes the war between the Pandava and Kaurava, opposing branches of the same family. The 5 brothers of the Pandava driven by light, the Kaurava driven by darkness, though they both exists somewhere in the grey area between good and evil. This enforces the point that they are one in the same. Before the final battle, Krishna shares with Arjuna the knowledge of the Bhagavad-Gita, the Hindu equivalent of the Bible. Brooks does a fantastic job - the minimalist sets focus the attention on the players, and the multinational cast make this production a lesson for all of humanity, not just Hindus. It is more in the style of a play than a movie, which makes it more enjoyable artistically. The 6 hour full-length version seems daunting, but it is all well worth it.

This adaptation of the original play by Juan-Claude Carriere, which was three hours longer (and was in turn the adaptation of the classic poem, which is 15 times the size of the Bible!) will be, for many, the only version they will ever know of the Mahabharata. But rest assured, the essential is all here: all the wisdom, passion and emotion of one of the three or four truly immortal works of literature. This should not be viewed as a feature film, but as the filming of a theater play. Then you will be able to appreciate better the great work of almost every actor and actress, and the sheer boldness of their performance and the director's vision. A clue is the great variety of nationalities and accents: the Mahabharata is a literary work that belongs to all of us.

This movie was a MASTERPIECE! i loved it. The variety of characters really made my mind work to the degree it was meant to. I must say the best scene of the entire movie was when she(forgive my memory has forgotten her name)was giving birth and her maid had to hit her across the stomach with an iron rod and then a ball came out of her. BOY what a creative idea! I must say the entire movie was extremely well done, everything from the characters to the story line, nothing at all was boring about it. The only complaint i can give is that it was WAY TO SHORT. there were so many unanswered questions and i never wanted the movie to end! I give it 4 stars and two thumbs WAY UP! Good job director Peter Brook!

Very simply get a comfortable chair and be ready for a magnificent journey. You will get "inside" the movie and not realise that 5 hours have gone by when it will end. This is one the best movies ever, not only it is entertaining but it will help you get a glimpse of a very foreign culture. The characters will talk to you on an immediate and direct level and, unusually, they will stay with you for a long time. You will find yourself thinking back at this movie, from time to time, and compare what you are living in real life with what happened in the movie. Peter Brook is master and I definitely think this is his best movie ever. Just relax and enjoy.