Bollywood reviews and general discussion

[Drama Queen]

So lately I've been enjoying a lot of Bollywood movies and figured rather than clutter up the general movie thread with reviews of movies that probably appeal to very few, I would have a separate thread.

Does anybody else here have any experience with them?

Last night and today I enjoyed Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham. (I sometimes don't finish them in one sitting for as much as I enjoy them, they tend to be at least 3 hours long, and that's a long time to read subtitles).

The story behind this one is of a very successful businessman disowning his adopted son because he rejects an arranged marriage and chooses his own bride.

I'll be honest, my tolerance for sentimental crap is a lot higher in foreign films than in western culture. Maybe they are more believable (aside from the breaking out into song and dance sequences) or maybe it's easier for me to suspend disbelief in a culture I'm unfamiliar with.

The cast is amazing, some of Bollywood's biggest names with Amitabh Bachchan playing a very believable austere father and Shah Rukh Khan playing the son. It is my second time see Bachchan, and my third seeing Khan, and I can see why they are rated amongst India's greatest. Khan is rapidly becoming my favorite actor of any genre.

It is also my second look at Kojal who plays the bride, and well, it's hard not to fall in love with her to be honest. She seems to always play a lovable quirky character with very endearing mannerisms. Jaya Bhaduri shows what a great actress she is as the mother caught in the crossfire.

I don't want to give to much of the plot away in case anybody is inclined to check it out, but basically it is the younger brother who goes on a mission to repair the broken family. What's nice about this is that it deals with a lot of relationships, and the focus is not on romance.

The musical numbers are not as catchy as I've heard in other movies, but I put that down to a more serious tone in general.

The dialogue is clear, because I'm able to pick out many of the Hindi words that I've learned. As someone who is learning the language, this is a dealbreaker in my overall enjoyment of a Bollywood movie. Also there is very little dual dialogue which I find annoying. (Many movies switch from Hindi to English and back again every other sentence, an Indian friend of mine informed me that this trend is to cater to a growing pattern of English being seen as cool, and understanding it is something of a status symbol apparently.)

Overall, really enjoyable, well worth the three plus hours I put in. I'm definitely going to look out for more films that feature one or more of the above mentioned cast members.