Rating: 
Summary: a cornucopia of treasures
Review: ***1/2 Mira Nair's "Monsoon Wedding" may not be as broadly comic as that other well-attended wedding in town (that Big Fat Greek one), but it is every bit as universal in its observations and appeal. Nair makes sure that the India we see in this film is no technological or cultural backwater. It is, instead, a modern, vibrant land filled with cell phones and golf carts, disco music and high minded TV talk shows. In much the same way, the people we meet in this large extended family struggle with the vicissitudes of life common to us all. There are good, well-meaning parents wanting to do what's right for their children, but not always knowing how to cope with the uncertainties of a modern world. Lalit Verma, for instance, is a father greatly concerned that his two sons are fast becoming directionless nudniks, even though both seem to us to be just average boys trying to grasp onto and express their own individuality. Aditi, his daughter, has decided to acquiesce to a marriage arranged by her parents when she realizes that she has no future with a married boyfriend who apparently has no intention of ever divorcing his current wife. It is in this area that "Greek Wedding" and "Monsoon Wedding" part company. In the former film, an arranged marriage is something to be frowned upon and avoided at any and all costs. In the latter film, the arranged marriage actually serves as an anchor holding the family in place in a time of rough seas and uncertainty. Aditi, after some intense soul-searching, comes to realize that marriage to a stranger she can learn to care for over time is preferable to life as perpetual mistress to a man who seems little concerned for her future and happiness. The difference in attitude between the two films arises, I imagine, from the fact that one is American in origin and the other Indian. "Monsoon Wedding" is replete with beautifully observed moments that go right to the core of the audience's emotions. The scene in which Aditi's fiancé forgives her for the affair she has willingly revealed to him is one of the most genuinely moving and romantic moments I have seen in a film in a very long time. Equally impressive are the sequences later in the film when Aditi's cousin, Ria, finds the courage to expose a close friend of the family who, unbeknownst to anyone else, happens to be a pedophile. This revelation uncovers an unexpected strength not only in Ria herself, but in Lalit as well, as he is forced to cope with the ramifications of a family in major crisis and to take a personally painful but undeniably necessary course of action to preserve the sanctity of that family. Hopefully, none of this will make the viewer think that "Monsoon Wedding" is heavy-handed or gloomy in either tone or outlook. Far from it. It is, in fact, a beautifully acted movie filled with humor, warmth, compassion and life. Nair punctuates this vibrancy by showing us characters dancing from one end of the film to the other. Be they eastern traditional or westernized disco in character, the dances capture the feel of uninhibited happiness that takes over this close-knit family in a time of celebration. And their celebration is ours.
Rating: 
Summary: Monsoon Wedding was wonderful!
Review: I loved this movie! As an Indian, I thought it was a wonderful and very accurate portrayal of Indian families. It was a realistic slice of life in New Delhi. This movie brought back a lot of memories for me visiting India - that shows how right on target it is.
The actor who portrayed the bride's father was absolutly brilliant - with the way he could change from being a negotiating payer, loving dad, leader of the family, and showing his own insecurities.
I particularly loved the part of the movie where the bride has just told her husband to be that she had extra - marital outings, and the husband pours out all of his frustration - saying they would take the family to Disneyland, send pictures of the happy family - it is just how Indians live in this country - this also portrays how they relate back to thier families how they are living.
The bride was very modern in this movie - they made her work at a television station - a working woman - she really represents the vast majority of young Indian women. I loved that.
This was a great example of how little foriegn films can really raise the bar on movie making standards - even with out the big studio budget - it gives the American public a glimpse of Indian culture - which I think is badly needed.
Wonderful movie - with truly great music!
Rating: 
Summary: SPOILERS below
Review: The main problem I had with MONSOON WEDDING is that there was no compelling reason for the wedding to take place. The groom tells the bride that marriage is a gamble whether the partners meet each other at a club or get introduced by their parents, and that's true, but in either case they should get to know each other well enough before the ceremony is planned that they're reasonably sure of making a lifelong commitment. It's obvious that these two aren't very well acquainted, and it's impossible for me to shake the feeling that they got married mainly because it would have been REALLY embarrassing to cancel the wedding at that point (that and the fact that the bride was on the rebound). If this story was set three hundred years ago and the two of them HAD to get married, there would be a certain romance in their falling at least a little in love, but as it is it just seems like a too-little-too-late effort to make the best of a compromised situation. But all in all I enjoyed the film. Like so many other viewers I particularly liked the romance between the maid and the marigold-chewer (though that flower must rank as one of the world's most vile). And what terrific opening credits.
Rating:
Summary: SIMPLY WONDERFUL. PURE DELIGHT.
Review: This movie was amazing. The scenery was so vivid. I felt like I was in India. The storyline was great, the people, the love, the family. It was all very realy and all very moving. I want to see it again. Even more, I want to buy the soundtrack.
Rating:
Summary: A true charming movie
Review: A greatly amusing and heartwarming movie.
No special effects! No shootings! no cars blowing up.
Hope US movie makers learn once again how to make movies;
to represent humanity and to be sanely entertaining.
"Monsoon Wedding" is representative of a true slice of life,
clean and charming.
Bravo!!
Rating:
Summary: An American married to an Indian applauds Monsoon Wedding
Review: This year marks my 30th anniversary married to an Indian from South India. I am a native Coloradoan. Instead of having the traditional arranged marriage within the clan, ours was "far out!" and cross cultural and inter-religious. Watching this movie last night was such a treat! The maze of characters and situations are so skillfully blended, the idiosyncrasies and taboos of the culture are so well-drawn.
The acting is captivating and I found myself identifying with several characters.
Even if you are not familiar with Indian culture or customs, you will enjoy this fascinating take on the Indian version of the Wedding Planner and the bigger story of love and forgiveness.
Buying this DVD is totally worth the money. It will be a movie we'll watch many times.
Rating:
Summary: MARIGOLD-IFIC!
Review: i loved monsoon wedding!...it was so rich and diverse in culture and the characters were magnificent. it was funny, sad at times, and very painful as well. i know nothing of indian culture and really fell in love with the beauty and the way that the family is so tightly woven. (even if this way of indian culture wasn't realistic). still, i planted my garden with hundreds of marigolds in honor of this film.
wunderbahr!
Rating: 
Summary: 4 stars away from perfection.
Review: A completly inaccurate portrayal of Indian culture. With absolutely no ties to originality and uniqueness of productivity.
This is a westernized movie that can only be appealing to a western perspective,thus showing the depth of western influence towards raping unique nations of their sense of unique and different culture. Not much realism or realistic ideas.
Very poor work by very poor minded people.
Rating:
Summary: Cheap Hollywood Melodrama
Review: Nothing really new or interesting in this film. Starts off as a comedy and the second half is devoted at showing how bad pedophiles are. Stereotypes abound, albeit with a distinctive Indian flavour.
Rating:
Summary: An East meets West "Father of the Bride"
Review: A welcome change from typical big Hollywood films that promise but rarely deliver true emotion, respected director Mira Nair commands an ensemble cast with so much realism we feel like a fly on the wall watching an actual Delhi family as they go through the many rituals involved in a traditional arranged marriage. While some of the situations and conflicts ring that warning bell of hey, hasn't this been done before? (father feels son is too pampered, mother says boy is artistic and sensitive} the actors give it such feeling and honesty you end up going with the plot wherever it takes you. It's a bit confusing at first as the entire family, first the bride's, then the groom's, plus a subplot contrasting the wealtheir upper-class family wedding with an enchanting and hilarious working class romance between the wedding planner and the maid. The characters show the conflict between East and West as they switch back and forth between English and Hindi mid-sentence. Some of the subtitles are difficult to read, but don't worry, the themes are so universal you understand right away what's going on. And like most real-life families, there are undercurrents to the undercurrents, and nothing is as simple as it seems on the surface. All of this complex subtext is beautifully telegraphed by the actors and caught by the cameras without being thrown in our face with obvious on-the-chin dialogue. That's why I give this film 5 stars, which I rarely do. The characterization is supurb - the entire cast gets to be both sides of the coin and a very substantial center! For instance, the beautiful bride (any man or woman would agree to an arranged marriage if they could be guarranteed these spouses!) is a modern girl working as a production assistant for a talk show. She is getting married to get closure on an affair she had with her married boss. Her father, however, really stands out as a remarkable man, as he goes through all the frustrations of overseeing the wedding arrangements, having relatives picked up, arranging for more money, and dealing with a beloved niece's tragic past. His ability to be the obtuse father, harangued manager, sentimental dad, fine patriarch, as each scene turns, is amazing. Most of all, I found myself in awe of how universal families are, no matter how different our cultures and beliefs may be. This movie rejoins us to our universal family, that of humankind.
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