Masala
[3.5/4.0]
Krishna lost his family to a terrorist bombing years ago. He has finished treatment for his drug problem and shows up to stay with his aunt's family for a little while. Lord Krishna is in Canada (although he admits it is usually out of his jurisdiction) because a temple to him is being consecrated. These two different characters with the same name symbolically represent the two polar components of the Indian immigrant experience.
Srinivas Krishna wrote, directed, and played the lead role of the human Krishna. However, that character is probably the most poorly realized character (Does he need to be constantly brandishing his knife? We caught on early that he is an angry young man.) The roles of his uncle, his uncle's brother, and Lord Krishna are all played by Saeed Jaffrey. The uncle, Lallu Bhai, is bascally the same character that Jaffrey played in "My Beautiful Laundrette" -- the sleazy business owner. He also essays wonderfully the role of Lord Krishna. He is not given much to do as the character of Lallu's brother who is underdeveloped, even though he is central to the main plot. Jaffrey's excellent performances demonstrates good acting and show up the other actors as amateurish. (Jaffrey's real-life daughter Sakina portrays Lallu's daughter and proves that acting talent is not purely genetic.)
There are numerous threads in the story: Krishna's interactions with his aunt's family, the dynamics within that family, the dynamics of his uncle's brother's family, the connection the a Sikh separatist, the influence of Lord Krishna, and the acceptance/nonacceptance of the western culture the Indians live in. Lord Krishna's presence is usually for comic relief since he is depicted in a rather profane, but never really offensive (if one does not mind seeing him dressed in an ice hockey player or airline pilot), manner. Underneath the lightness of his character is a serious role represented, like when he asks himself "Why do these people move to some foreign place where the don't fit and then ask me to bail them out?"
The human Krishna is the personification of the assimilated component of the community. This is usually the younger generation. Lord Krishna is representative of the older generation and their tenuous grasp on a mindset that is often incompatible with their immediate surroundings. The contrast of the different parts of the Indian experience is a recurring dramatic and comedic element. In one scene, one young woman fantasizes about her love interest and it is envisioned as a typical Indian film musical number with the typical cheesy sets and nonsensical costume changes, but with some of the words in English. In another, a young man fantasizes about a prospective arranged bride as an rather explicit Kama Sutra style scene.
This film is not flawless. Some of the acting is wooden, and sometimes the direction is uneven, but overall it is a very good film. The reason it appears to fail in some places is because it aspires to do too much. However, it is good to see a film choose to set high standards and fail rather than set low standards and achieve them all.
Highly Recommended. Non-Indians will enjoy this film, but Indians will be able to fully appreciate the level to which issues involving the Indian diaspora are addressed.
(c) 1999 Murali Krishnan The Art House Squatter http://pages.hotbot.com/movies/murali24/
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