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Wicket good
The nearly four-hour Bollywood extravaganza "Lagaan" tells how one town's spirit took on the British colonialists armed with nothing but wild dance numbers and cricket.
By GRADY HENDRIX
Offoffoff.com
The nearly-four-hour Bollywood extravaganza "Lagaan" tells how one town's spirit took on the British colonialists armed with nothing but wild dance numbers and cricket.
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| | | LAGAAN | Directed by: Ashutosh Gowariker.
Written by: Kumar Dave, Sanjay Dayma, Ashutosh Gowariker, K.P. Saxena.
Cast: Aamir Khan, Gracie Singh, Rachel Shelley,
Paul Blackthorne, Rajesh Vivek..
In Hindi and Bhojpuri with English subtitles.
Related links: Official site | | SCHEDULE | Film Forum
209 West Houston St. (between 6th and 7th Ave.)
(212) 727-8100
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In 1893 the British Empire was so evil that it sought
out helpless Indian farmers and taxed them without
mercy — especially when said farmers were feeling the
effects of a drought. In fact, when not forcing
vegetarians to eat meat or horsewhipping harmless
villagers, they raise these taxes to incredible
levels. Then, to top it all off, they tell the
villagers that if they can beat them at cricket —
cricket! — they'll eliminate the tax for three years,
but if the villagers lose they'll have to pay triple
the tax. The tax is called "lagaan," just like this
movie! Subscribing to the theory that the power behind
the British Empire was arrogant sneering, "Lagaan" is
the little movie that could. Overbudget and
overschedule, it sailed into Indian theaters with only
one big star, a three hour and forty-five minute
running time (most reviewers are saying "three hours
plus" since they can't wrap their minds around 3:45), and the daunting fact that it's about cricket
— cricket!
One Academy Award nomination later, we all know that
"Lagaan" is a great
movie, and since the current cultural moment is
bonkers for Bollywood, it's getting written up all over
the wicked New York cityscape. Unfortunately,
"Lagaan" is soft on story, just like Hollywood movies,
but it's so long on running time that an accumulation
of blippy details winds up making the two-dimensional
characters feel well-rounded. They're like your
family — none of them are very convincing or
sympathetic, but you've been around them for so damn
long you can't help but feel something for them.
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"Lagaan" delivers the Hollywood trip complete with
cliches, but with more brio and for considerably less
money. Plus, as people will no doubt never tire of
telling you, there are musical numbers. And what music
it is, by A.R. Rahman, the crown prince of Bollywood
booty-shaking. The female lead, Gracie Singh, will
confuse you and you won't understand why she's in the
movie until you see her dance. Ginger Rogers was a
pretty lousy actor too, but who cares, right? Paul
Blackthorne is a revelation, playing the British
baddie who hopes to sneer India into submission. He
looks like a young Burt Reynolds, and his geometric
sideburns give him an air of Teutonic decadence. The
fact that he can snigger convincingly in both English
and Hindi is actually really fascinating.
So it's not a bad movie, it's well executed and
somewhat predictable, but
"Spiderman" is not exactly a brain teaser either and no
one dances in that
flick. But here's what everyone's really thinking:
cricket! Feel your heart sink
when the officials announce the start of the match
with "This cricket match will last for three days."
Apparently that's par for the course (which leaves
long-winded Bollywood the only film industry capable
of monopolizing cricket as a cinematic staple). You
will walk out of the theater with a vague
understanding of how this sport works (very slowly),
because the climax of the movie is a one-hour cricket
match. And, much against conventional wisdom, it
works. I'd actually see this movie again if I could
skip the by-the-numbers exposition and see this
cricket match one more time, because it sure is
something to see.
"Lagaan" is successful and coming to America because
it's very mainstream and middle-of-the-road, only with
more brio and musical numbers and great length, and
cricket. One wishes that Bollywood would explode into
the Western consciousness with a classic like "Taal" or
"Dil Se" or even the nuttiness of "Nayak." But it seems
like it's "Lagaan" or nothing. Given that choice, I'll
take "Lagaan" and like it.
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MAY 28, 2002
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Reader comments on Lagaan:
lagaan from sherin, Sep 23, 2002
lagaan from kiki, Jul 10, 2003
Lagaan from Kat,Vivay,Gernetha,Honey,Stef, Dec 1, 2003
great!! from kakai-bsn2a_addu, May 17, 2004
Lagaan from Gauri, May 1, 2005
Lagaan from Anariel, May 1, 2005
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