Rating: 
Summary: I laughed, I cried....it was better than Cats!
Review: This movie is a little bit of everything: a great family drama, a musical, a romantic comedy...I LOVED it!The movie is set in New Delhi and takes the audience for a wild ride covering the last 4-5 days leading up to a big wedding between the daughter of an upper-middle-class Punjabi family and a "NRI" (non-resident Indian) who's an engineer living in Houston. They're meeting for the first time in the days before the wedding, which is only one of the movie's engaging storylines. My favorite was the romance between the goofy wedding planner and the family maid (culminating in one of the most romantic, make-you-weep moments I have seen in any movie). The movie also includes the requisite creepy uncle, who drives a disturbing storyline that helps take the saccharine edge off the movie. Director Mira Nair does a fabulous job introducing her characters -- they are so finely crafted that dialogue is totally unnecessary in a number of key scenes. The actors were wonderfully adept at communicating with little more than their eyes and hands. The music is GREAT and makes you want to get up and dance along with the characters (whose exuberance in the wedding scenes was such a joy to watch). The cinematography is lush and gorgeous -- I attended a wedding in India several years ago and this movie really took me back to the riot of color at Indian weddings. I also loved the authentic feel of the movie -- especially where the characters move seamlessly between three languages, sometimes in a single sentence. More than anything, the movie is a lot of fun -- any large gathering of family members is likely to generate laughable moments, and Nair mines the heck out of this one. I can't wait for this to come out on DVD so I can watch it again and again!
Rating: 
Summary: Sweet and familiar
Review: As the wealthy Verma family in India prepares for the marriage of its daughter, a variety of emotions - some expected, some rather surprising - surface from the whole family. There's the bride herself, Aditi, who feels she must level with her arranged groom-to-be about her affair with a married man. Ria, Aditi's cousin, must face a painful memory caused by an important family member, and a tragedy that may ensue if she does not take action. Lalit, Aditi's father, is forced to choose between tradition and righting a past wrong. Then there is Dubey, the goofy wedding planner who yaks on his cell phone while whimsically ordering his haphazard wedding crew around - all the while falling for the Verma's maid, Alice, in a very sweet subplot. Many of its audience members - Indian or not - will relate to the craziness that a wedding or family gathering ensues. The dialogue - a mix of English and Indian languages, with occasional subtitles - can be a bit difficult to follow, as are the relationships between characters somewhat confusing at first, but Monsoon Wedding lives up to its recent international appeal.
Rating: 
Summary: Ho-hum Wedding.
Review: So far as my own point of view goes Mira Nair was quite at an advantage since the last film of her's that I'd seen was 'Cumasutra: A Tale of Lewd' after which any effort would have been an improvement. I do not intend to say here that I liked the film, but I certainly could not dislike it as much as that earlier piece. As for the question of the film bagging Venice's Golden Lion, I will say that it was entirely because of a western audience delighting in the exotic-ness of a third-world film interpretation of the Hollywood/British ensemble romantic comedy.
The film shoots itself in the foot at an early stage with its pathetic attempts at thrill humor (women comparing breast sizes, smart-ass children spying adults naked, an incongruous sequence of a TV debate on censorship where a fat dubbing artiste is called in to recreate the dialogue of a copulation sequence). The plot revolves around a wedding in a rich n' loud Punjabi family whose sundry members include a worried Father-of-the-Bride, his wife, the daughter who's having an affair with a married man, assorted sexually desperate and pedophiliac relatives and the aforementioned smart-ass children. The story moves about in a very predictable way, often painfully so, and at its 120 odd min length asks for too much of your patience. Trimming it down by 45 min wouldn't have improved the quality of the film, but there would have been that less of it to endure. The slapstick element in the form of a romance between the housemaid and the wedding contractor could have been mildly amusing in a film of much better overall quality but like most other elements of this film, it begins to grate. Various models and NRI-recruits display their typical vacuousness and it is left to a handful of seasoned actors to salvage as much of this venture as they can.
So is there any silver lining to this cloud? I'd like to say yes:
Naseeruddin Shah as the bride's father makes for a picture of dignity in this unholy pastiche. Although one could not ever count it among his more striking performances, it goes without dispute the film benefits immeasurably from the experience and essential solidity of this thespian. He builds a rapport with the audience bit by bit and uses this intimacy to lend a touching credibility to his dramatic scenes towards the end of the film.
Lilette Dubey as his wife lends very good support and it's nice to see an Indian film that features sexual intimacy between middle-ageds without sensationalizing it.
Shefali Chhaya as an ex-victim of the pedophiliac relative is sincere but hampered by utter cliché.
One person who seems to have had fun with this film is composer Mychael Danna. The credit titles roll with an amusing blend of typical Punjabi Baaraat and Western March music. Shots of city traffic (while nice to view, wholly unrelated to the film's plot and adding nothing to it) are punctuated with well executed inspirations from Indian classical music and a wonderful thumri plays as the background to a rather tiresome car-sex scene. If Danna himself has composed these then he represents the Western equivalent of our Vanraj Bhatia, being able to easily fuse the music of disparate cultures. To reflect its Punjabi ambience though, some brain-chewing songs have been imported from other sources for sequences including a horrifying one where a younger relative dresses up as a veritable street-walker and prances to a ludicrous beat while her elders and assorted suitors beam on (the former proudly and the latter lustfully).
Rating:
Summary: Open your mind and discover this wonderful movie
Review: I have now seen Monsoon wedding twice, and it's without a doubt a great movie. Depicting a modern indian culture, the film gives you an insight into the preparations during the days leading up to a family wedding. It often has a "fly-on-the-wall" feel/look to it, and the director successfully manages to juggle several characters within the film, with none leaving the screen for too long. Sometimes funny, often romantic, the occasional drama, and even some quite moving scenes later in the film when a terrible family secret is revealed, but ultimately Monsoon Wedding is best catergorized as a feel-good movie. The cast are excellent, though I haven't heard of any of them previously. Special mentions go to Naseeruddin Shah who plays Lalit (the bride's father) who gives a touching performance when faced with a relative's shameful history. Also good are Shefali Shetty (Ria), Vijay Raaz (dubey) and the gorgeous Tilotama Shome, who plays the shy house maid Alice. Ironically, the most heart-warming romance in the film isn't between the two people who are about to wed!, but between two others (who I won't name here, in the interests of people who haven't yet seen the movie). Monsoon Wedding is also something of a multilingual film, with no fewer than 3 languages being used - English, Hindi and Punjabi. This means the viewer (presuming they're not multilingual) will often be switching between listening to the conversations, to reading the subtitles, but you'll soon get used to it. Overall then, a wonderful movie. Great direction from Mira Nair, who manages to make everything hold together perfectly. Good performances from the cast, and a worthy soundtrack that I'm now considering buying. Along with "Amelie", it's nice to see some excellent "feel-good" films recently that don't overdo it with the schmaltz factor.
Rating:
Summary: You are all invited to a wedding....
Review: Film Director, Mira Nair ("Salaam Bombay!","Mississippi Masala") has done it again by bringing us this very entertaining comedy/drama about family, titled "Monsoon Wedding".In this almost Altmanesque, movie we follow four days leading up to to an Indian families'wedding. There are multiple storylines, which unfold as we watch various members, friends, acquaintances and employees of the Verma family get ready for the impending nupitals of their eldest daughter.This includes the Bride, who is trying to convince herself that an arranged marriage is the path to take, while still being in love with a married man.A story line revolving around a female cousin (Shefali Shetty) who holds a dark family secret and finally decides she must take a stand before it is to late.Then there is the touching and almost magical romance between the wedding planner (Vijay Raaz) and the families' maid (Tilotama Shome).This is all presided over by the families' totally stressed out, patriarch (Naseerudin Shah), who seems to be at wit's end trying to keep everything from imploding.This father may be brusque, short tempered, and screaming a lot, but by the end of the film he proves to us how much he really loves his family.'Love of family' seems to be the movie's theme as we watch the various parties, ceremonies and customs. Sure, there are all sorts of little psycho-dramas being played out.That happens in all families no matter what the country or culture.But in the end, just about everybody gets swept up away by the joyfulness of the celebration.You really feel like your at a wedding!The script to this film is complicated and involving. It's captures your attention as you try to figure out who is related to who and what the relationships are. The acting is first rate especially from Naseerudin Shah (the bride's father) and Vijay Raaz (the event planner).The film makes brilliant use of it's cinematography, which just explodes into vibrant color (lots of reds and golds) giving the story an almost magical flavor by the end. Finally, I have to mention the wonderful dancing and music which greatly enhances the film. This is a very entertaining comedy/drama which I highly recommend!
Rating:
Summary: superb film that discusses universally important matters
Review: This was the first film I saw directed by Mira Nair, and produced by her production company, MiraBai films. I had heard a great deal about her films, Salaam Bombay! (which I still need to see), Mississippi Masala (another beautiful treasure of a film that I plan to review on Amazon.com), The Perez Family and Kama Sutra. I was so happy to see this film for so many reasons. For starters, visually, it was beautiful to watch, and very engaging. Everything from the street scenes in the market of New Delhi with shots of young boys selling coconut slices, vibrant saris in multitudes of color, and beautiful shots of the architecture held my attention. The story was a great one, too. It was a real glimpse into the lives of two families coming together for a wedding celebration, and all of the baggage, controversy and eclectic friends that come along for the ride. The young couple is brought together through arranged marriage, and are just meeting about two to three days before the wedding is to take place. The young groom is a successful, handsome, intelligent and sensitive computer scientist form Houston, Hemant Rai (Parvin Dabas), and his bride is a young professional, Aditi (Vashundhara Das), who is caught between two worlds--the modern, more western world that says she can engage in premarital sex, keep a full time job, and even continue to sleep with her still-married boyfriend, and the world of traditional Indian values, that include the importance of familial closeness and arranged marriages. What world will she choose to live in? You have to rent this fine film to find out. Also, the subplots that are finely intertwined with the main story about the wedding preparations are very engaging. One is about the importance of redemption, and the other, about love's power to transform.
Don't miss it!
Rating:
Summary: Great Movie
Review: I watched this without any ideas about the script and actors/director. Probably have just read somewhere that it was a pretty good film. It started out slow, had my usual convictions about "ah..an Indian film, with people dancing and singing, and with funny accents when trying to speak English". But the film was funny, sweet, sexy & romantic, serious, dramatic and poignant all at different times. It turned out to be a most remarkable film, one of the best film ever produced. And best of all, the film was made in only thirty days, and was hit with things like actors' last minute withdrawals and casting of many first time actors/actresses. I'd never noticed!!! Better than most films Hollywood had produced since with budgets ten or a hundred times its size. You must watch this if you have the chance. Not to be missed.
Rating:
Summary: How the monsoon rains wash us all clean
Review: The Verma family are quite under stress, especially the father Lalit. His only daughter Aditi is getting married, a traditional arranged marriage as done in India, but with a twist. The groom, Hemant Rai, is a computer programmer living in Houston, and for Aditi, this is a chance to enter a new world. However, her parents don't know that she has a married lover, Vikram Mehta, a broadcaster for a current affairs programme, and she's counting on him to divorce his wife. And everything about Indian weddings, down to the gatherings of various relatives, the ceremonial engagement rituals, the overbearing loud talk and laughter, is all there (q.v. Bend It Like Beckham). Aditi finds Hemant to be a decent and nice guy, but when push comes to shove, she finds that she doesn't want to start something based on lies and deceit. Lalit has hired P.K. Dubey as the Events Manager, decorating the trees and bushes with marigolds, arranging the tents, etc. He is quite a shrewd businessman and a character who's made lots of money. Something in him changes when he sees Alice, the Verma family's hired kitchen maid. Alice's a quiet, timid, but pretty and simple girl, and as time passes, he has an attraction to her. It causes P.K. to realize he has managed 150 to 175 marriages, and the pleas of his mother to get her a daughter-in-law causes him to wonder if it's time to abandon his lonesome vagabond lifestyle and settle down with a decent, simple girl. Other attractions involve Rahul, who has come from Melbourne to attend the wedding, who falls for the sensuous Ayesha, who will do a dance at the wedding. However, other conflicts come into play. Ria, an adopted daughter who wants to be a writer, seems tense at the presence of an Uncle, Tej, whose family the Vermas are indebted to. She gets a bit nervous when he sees her with Aliya, a young preteen girl. The antics of Varun, their chubby and sensitive son, and his desire to be a chef and rehearsing for a dance for Aditi's wedding frustrates Lalit, who wants his son to more of a man and threatens to send him to boarding school. And when P.K.'s helpers see Alice trying on jewelry in the mirror in a moment of wishful fantasy, they label her a thief, which strains things between P.K. and Alice. Like the parents in the later Bend It Like Beckham, the Vermas are displayed as disciplinarian and strict, but loving parents. Lalit tells his wife that everything he has done has been for their children's happiness, and that he's willing to take on any trouble and any sorrow for them. Despite the expense, as the mother Pimmi says, since it's their only daughter's wedding, nothing's a waste of money. If Mohan Rai, the groom's father looks familiar, that's Roshan Seth, who played Nehru in the Gandhi movie-bio as well as the villainous Chattar Lal in the second Indiana Jones Movie. Intercut with the trials of the Vermas are scenes of Delhi in monsoon season, people in cars, people dragging carts on concrete streets, a mixture of the modern and ancient in the global age. Which leads to this. What of India's role in this global Internet world? As a guest on Vikram's programme states, "just because India is global, why accept everything" at the cost of losing their ancient culture and traditions? When Hemant asks for a tea with no sugar, his friend and person on duty instantly equates no sugar with being American. America may be a land of modern luxury and opportunity, but at the cost of losing one's culture. Why accept everything indeed? Michael Danna's score and the Hindi songs here add to the atmosphere of this foreign treat, as do the colourful costumes. As for why this is called Monsoon Wedding, well, monsoons are unpredictable in what they do. They come during a certain season, they cause great havoc and destruction, but in the end, the rain cleanses all, and life begins anew, as it does for the Verma family and the newlyweds.
Rating:
Summary: Pure Joy
Review: Set in present day Delhi, this comedy-drama focuses on the Punjabi Verma family, who are about to celebrate their daughter's marriage. With days to go, admist the chaotic final preparations, and arrival of the extended family, secrets of the various members of the familt threaten to derail the proceedings. Like in Salaam Bombay and Missisipi Masala, Nair continues her directoral passion for tackling difficult issues. I consider this her best work because in Monsoon Wedding she is able to tackle these issues within the framework of an overall feel-good movie. Her characters tackle their problems openly and honestly resulting in a fresh believable social drama. The family serves as a micro vehicle for India - Like the country, the family is in a stage of transition - Great work of art and a very well executed depiction of chaotic diverse modern India. P.S.: Make sure to work the commentary by Nair on the DVD.
Rating: 
Summary: I hate it
Review: There's something in this movie that really annoyes me. I mean, who enjoies seeing all the loud and nosy relatives getting even louder and restless over a worthless marriage of a girl who's cheating her groom??? And what's up with all the people overacting with obviously dubbed voice?? I just don't see any point in this movie. Be cheesy? Act loud? Be classist and sexist? Cheating fiance is no big deal?? Just go to America and everything's gonna go fine????? (...) .. this movie really annoies me.
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