A Passage to India
Product Details | Similar Products | Customer Reviews | Starring: ~ Judy Davis, Victor Banerjee Peggy Ashcroft James Fox Alec Guinness List Price: $19.94 Our Price: $17.49 You Save: $2.45 (12%) Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours  |
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 | Product Details: Studio: Sony Pictures Region: 99 Number of Discs: 1 Format: Closed-captioned, Color Dolby Dubbed DVD Subtitled Widescreen NTSC Rating:   Sales Rank: 16017 | | Look for similar DVDs by genre: | | Customers who bought this item also bought:
| | Customer Reviews: A passage to the culture, politics, and complexity of British India (23 July 2010)It's been a while since I last watched this movie, so I gave it another try. A Passage To India, like Gandhi and The Jewel in the Crown, give viewers a sense of the political and social tensions between that minority of British civil servants dominating the majority of Indian Hindus and Muslims (as well as all the other religious and secular groups that make up India). The interactions of Dr. Aziz (played by Victor Banerjee) with the British demonstrate with clarity the culture clash of east and west. Obviously, there had to be more people than just "Mr. Felding and Mrs. Moore" that strived for understanding and tolerance, but it probably would not be an overstatement that their concerns and behaviors were in the minority. And one thing this movie did not address was the dynamics of the Indians who interacted well with the British in commerce and social life. Could this have been that rare? Regardless, the movie is extraordinary. Recommended. Perfet in all realms (Blu-ray, story, characters) (03 April 2010)I had seen the movie in theater a long time ago. And was not surprised by this Blu-ray edition. Same details in terms of image. Juddy Davis and James Fox are really English in the characters. Worth bying if you are fond of this kind of historical dramas. Has become one of my favorite Blu-rays. David Lean's last film and quite a gem (18 January 2010)The Bottom Line: Another one of Lean's patented seem-like-epics-but-actually-focus-on-character type movies (like Lawrence of Arabia or Bridge on the River Kwai), A Passage to India lasts a good 160 minutes but earns its running length by developing interesting characters and then putting them through interesting situations against the lavishly exotic background of India; if anything at all interests you about the film, be sure to watch it for I doubt you'll be disappointed. 3.5/4 A Passage to India (26 December 2009)I read this book years ago. I then saw the original movie on PBS. The DVD I received was delivered very timely, in good condition, an excellent item. I am very happy. Thanks, Tom AZ Final proof the Lean was an overweening ham. (12 December 2009)Boooooring. Cheesy. Insanely overacted. "A Passage to India" is all of these things and more -- an unsubtle depiction of the colonial world which is a monumental snoozer, falling prey to the worst cliches of "sophisticated" fiilmaking. No wonder Sony chose to release this turkey with the first wave of BluRays; one of the few ways for studios to milk some profits out of dud titles in their catalogue is to offer them up when converts to a new technology will snatch up anything, or give otherwise totally forgettable films a second chance. Lean took pleasure in using the powers of a film director in drawing extreme juxtaposition and counterpoint. It's all over the place in his films, things like Lawrence blowing out the match, cutting to the desert, Zhivago walking past a pot of dying flowers -- at its best it was inspired, at its worst its cloying and self-conscious. The opening credits of "APTI" feature ancient Hindu paintings dissolving in and out while a brassy British march plays in the background...ugh. It sets the tone for the whole affair. This is a tiresome slog of a script, and I really do not feel like recounting the whole thing here. Suffice to say, it is about English aristocrats trying to get into the spirit of India and the painful social friction that occurs as a result. Yes, Forster did have some relevant things to say about the clash of cultures, but it's all just a subject I'm just not very fascinated by -- the ramifications of British snobbery. I actually think that David Lean was most interested in finding stories to use as canvases for shooting various epics about distinct countries / regions: The Middle East, Ireland, Russia, and now India. This was the wrong story. Alas, Sir David gets utterly bogged down in the overwrought interplay of his cast, and the one character who could really help out the goings-on is played by a horribly miscast Alec Guiness dressed up like something out of an Austin Powers film. A Passage to India is a highly mannered clunker from a syrupy and aging director. All of this is frustrating because the British Raj is (from what little I know of it), a fascinating subject, and deserves a far better film. This is not a "passage" to India no matter what the irony inherent in the title suggests. And special mention has to be given to the absolutely horrid epilogue in the Himalayas which plays like something from an Epcot exhibit, ending in an utterly grating final shot and fade to black. |
