Bride & Prejudice

I wasn't sure I wanted to watch this film at first. Both the title and the DVD box image are rather cheesy - but then I saw the trailer, and it convinced me that this would indeed be something worth watching. Thank goodness for that trailer because I absolutely adored this movie. Bride and Prejudice introduced me to a whole new world of cinematic magic. It's an explosion of vibrant colors, exotic settings, incredible music and dancing, and genuine pleasure. The story itself, combining romance, drama, as well as comedy, was also a treat in its own right. If you haven't guessed by the title, this film was inspired by Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice - and I hope Austen enthusiasts will give this film a try, despite whatever misgivings they must surely have about it. I prefer to judge the film on its own merits, and I can't find anything not to like here. It's just exquisite. The film is primarily set in India. Will Darcy (Martin Henderson) has come with his friend Balraj (Lost's Naveen Andrews) to attend a wedding - and what a wedding it is. The whole town is in full celebration mode, and the song and dance numbers that come spinning at you in kaleidoscope fashion entrance you with their beauty and grace. Darcy is immediately taken with a gorgeous young lady named Lalita Bakshi (Aishwarya Rai), who just happens to be the sister of Balraj's object of affection. She comes from a family full of girls and a mother working tirelessly to find husbands for her older daughters - hopefully rich ones. Darcy and Lalita, despite a lot of meaningful eye contact, don't exactly hit it off, but that's largely Darcy's fault. Henderson really isn't very charismatic in the role, and he's not all that eloquent either. Lalita finds him to be a rude, arrogant American who looks down on her and everyone else in India. Darcy's also a bit of a wimp, seemingly incapable of standing up to his domineering mother's influence. She would never approve of an India-born daughter-in-law, of course - but Mrs. Bakshi wouldn't necessarily leap for joy at an American son-in-law, either (no matter how rich he is - and Darcy is filthy rich). Darcy does get to spend a little time with Lalita (but not because she wants to), but then an acquaintance of his shows up in the form of Johnny Wickham (Daniel Gillies) - why the son of Darcy's nanny suddenly shows up there in India is a complete mystery to me, though. Wickham's no good, but the ever-ineffectual Darcy won't tell Lalita why. As for Lalita, she has to fend off a new suitor in the form of an incredibly annoying fellow who has come back from America seeking a bride. It looks like Darcy and Lalita just weren't meant to be, as he returns to London and Lalita finds herself having to fend off a new suitor in the form of an incredibly annoying fellow who has come back from America seeking a bride. The world's a small place, though, and fate brings Darcy and Lalita together again in Los Angeles (where the Bakshi family has come to attend another wedding). The romance is quite predictable, but it does take interesting twists and turns along the way. I found it pretty compelling, but in many ways the love story is just the excuse to put on an awe-inspiring spectacle of music, dance, and incredible entertainment. I can't adequately describe the lavish nature of this film, except to say that it is a visual and auditory treat. I haven't had this much fun watching a film in a long time. Singing and dancing can start at the drop of a hat, and as often as not it doesn't end until the entire village has joined the fun. Lalita and her sisters are just wonderful, adorable characters (even the one who does the rather unforgettable Cobra Dance) - and Aishwarya Rai, the true star of this film, shines like the heavens on a dark night. I'll eagerly watch any movie she appears in. You won't have to worry about nodding off in the middle of this one - as Bride and Prejudice has the contagious energy to revive even the weariest of souls. Hollywood just doesn't make films like this; until you see this Bride and Prejudice, you probably won't even know what you're missing.

Gurinder Chadha produces a fantastic film with a new twist to the classical conundrum: how does an independent minded female connect with the opposite sex? Jane Austen could never in her wildest dreams imagine the outstanding Bollywood like dance and music numbers which make this film such a delightful viewing experience. Ashanti does a magical song and dance called "Take Me to Love." The Bakshi sisters sing and express appropriate sentiment in "No Life without Wife" which is a delightful song mocking the awkward attempts by Mr. Kholi, an accountant of Indian background who lives near Hollywood, who returned to Amritsar, India to find himself a wife. Despite his obvious material successes in the USA, which he keeps pointing out to the Bakshi family, he can not connect socially with the right kind of female who appreciates his hard work and who possesses the cultural traits which he is seeking in a wife ... Mrs Bakshi is over-joyed to present and introduce her daughters to him. She wishes to marry her daughters off, one after the other to socially prominent, wealthy successful men, with the goal of climbing to a higher social class. The humorous lyrics of the song and amusing delivery by the Bakshi sisters captures the mood and feeling of the film. Nor could Jane Austen envision the beautiful Lalita played by one of India's most gorgeous and popular actresses, Aishwarya Rai. Mrs Bakshi plays a well meaning but scheming mother whose main concern is marrying off each of her four daughters to wealthy but worthy gentlemen of suitable families. Mr. Bakshi is a devoted and doting father who worked hard to build his business into a success. It provides his family a comfortable middle class lifestyle, nonetheless it still leaves his wife trying to improve upon the social status of her daughters through suitable marriage matches ... Lalita is the most beautiful and outspoken of the four girls in the Bakshi family. She is pleased her older sister Jaya met a barrister from London, who is of Indian background, whose busy lifestyle prevented him from meeting eligible female companions. He obviously fell head over heels in love with the lovely and quiet Jaya, after returning to Amritsar for exactly the purpose of finding a wife. His sister came along on the trip as did a wealthy American friend whose family is in the hotel business. The American friend, Will Darcy is captivated by the beauty, quick mind and outspoken nature of Lalita. She assertively voices her opinions which is not a trait held in high esteem by most eligible handsome wealthy bachelors. Will discovers Lalita is intriguing and attractive yet is put off by her outspokenness. He occassionally finds himself on the defensive when conversing with her but in the end her ideas cause him to ponder and question his personal values ... and also the ethical motives behind business deals. Lalita also discovers to her chagrin she is attracted to Will who is a handsome, worthy and intelligent opponent ... At social gatherings they manage to magnetize and repel each other with their heated debates about social and cultural values and differences. To Lalita's surprise, one of her best friends agrees to an arranged marriage to Mr. Kholi ... The Bakshi family is sent an invitaton to the wedding along with economy class airline tickets to attend the ceremony in America. The wedding takes place on the grounds of the magnificent hotel owned by Will Darcy's family. Will takes Lalita on a whirlwind tour of California and the Southwest. She sees a different side to Will Darcy, one she never knew existed. She falls in love with him but then overhears someone whisper how something Will had said to his Indian barrister friend caused the break up of his romance with her sister Jaya ... Lalita is broken hearted and devasted. She confronts Will. He admits the break-up was his fault. The reader must view the film to discover how these two people of such vastly different backgrounds make peace and rekindle their romance and love. In the end it burns brighter than ever. The film is filled with passion, energy, romance, class differences, cultural clashes and to the viewer's immense satisfaciton, a happy ending. It is a colorful pageantry of the sights, sounds, and music of India in the best Bollywood tradition. A most hightly recommended film. Erika Borsos [pepper flower]

My sister rented this movie from the library many years ago & I fell in love with it. I love "happily ever after" movies. I'd been looking for this movie for ages (ok, years😊). I kept my eyes open for it whenever I went to book (new & used) or movie stores. I searched online for it now & then to no avail. I couldn't find it anywhere. My 15 year old daughter really likes this movie, too. In fact, it came in the mail early in the week but my daughter didn't want me to watch it until we could watch it together (which wouldn't have been until the weekend). I waited to watch it with her but it wasn't easy 😀. I don't usually write reviews about anything, but the story line, the costumes, the music, the colors are worth it. Did I mention that it's a "clean" movie that's safe for all ages? No violence. No swearing. No nudity or sexual undertones. Not even kissing. Just clean entertainment.

Absolutely adore this movie! Showed it to a friend and she loved it too! All the music and colors and dancing!

This movie is very entertaining. I watched it again after having it for many years. The mother had me laughing at loud. I thought she was terrific in the role. Lalita is beautiful, smart and caring. I thought the acting by Martin Henderson was good; his expressions showed his love for Lalita. He was easy to read. I thought the girl who played Lucky was excellent. Loved the music.

I would like to apologize for my last post on this movie. I do love it.

Great DVD

Update to my original post: The seller has contacted me about the poor quality of the movie as I reported below and has resolved the issue very promptly and to my satisfaction. I still rate the movie itself poorly but I rate the seller’s customer service as 5/5. Original post: The movie runs okay until around the middle of the movie, then it pauses and skips on it’s own and then get stuck in a loop that repeats the paused/skipped sections multiple times. To get past this I have to manually select the next following section. This happened in 4 places in the DVD. I know the DVD was advertised as Used/Good Condition and accordingly came unsealed, but I was expecting a better quality than what I got. Very disappointing.