The Film
Mrs. Adelay Quested (Judy Davis), a young woman soon to be married to a British magistrate, and Mrs. Moore (Peggy Ashcroft), the magistrate’s considerate and wise mother, arrive in Chandrapore, a fictional city within the British Raj. The magistrate to whom Quested is to be wed is Ronny Heaslop (Nigel Havers), a young, authoritative figure who means well, but nonetheless shamelessly flaunts his insensitivity and general derision toward most everything Indian. It is their impending marriage that brings the two ladies to Chandrapore, though Quested is also excited to experience the culture and atmosphere of India for the very first time.
She is met with disappointment, however, when she comes to realize that nearly everything in Chandrapore is permeated by British customs; life day to day in the region consists of Indians merely playing the part of the British, offering tea at proper times, helping to put on plays, and trumpeting traditional British music via their brass ensembles. It is quite clear by both the nature of Chandrapore and the attitudes of the occupying English that the intent is to produce as British an environment as possible within this new land. Quested’s frustrations are exacerbated by the fact that her fiancé seems also to subscribe to this level of cultural apathy.
Seeking adventure, Quested and Moore bump into Dr. Aziz, a highly expressive and sometimes haphazardly emotive Indian who is quite taken by Mrs. Moore’s kind face and uncommonly respectful approach toward Indian culture. Dr. Aziz’s good friend, the Brit Mr. Fielding (James Fox), and his fellow professor named Godbole (Alec Guinness), first meet the couple here as well. It is immediately obvious that Fielding is a man of integrity and compassion; Godbole, on the other hand, is exceedingly Buddhist in his complete removal from all emotion and concern. Throughout the film, Godbole indicates his firm belief in predetermination and the futility of worry, and the pairing of his character with two of the most emotionally-driven characters in the film makes for an interesting contrast.
Aziz enthusiastically plans an trip for the women to see the “real” India—an expensive picnic in the mysterious Maramar Caves, which are truly nothing more than a series of holes in the side of a mountain that happen to be home to a strange echo that reverberates unnaturally and seemingly endlessly. So the trio embarks on their expedition to the far-off region, accompanied by no fewer than a couple dozen servants.
After having entered the first of the caves, the elderly Mrs. Moore finds herself overwhelmed with claustrophobia and insists that she stay behind while Aziz and Quested explore the more inaccessible caverns without her. What happens next sparks a controversy that completely shifts the mood of the film, cutting Aziz’s troubled expedition tragically short and bringing the cultural and political tensions between the British and Indians to a head.
A Passage to Entertainment
The film is well-written and well edited. David Lean’s expertise is in full force here, after his fourteen-year hiatus between films. The characters are all believably portrayed, most especially Mrs. Moore, whose role Peggy Ashcroft fits so perfectly that it’s hard to imagine anyone else in her place (the same is said by a cast member in one of the special features). The soundtrack is also equally fitting, dominated by majestic brass and an unmistakably eastern feel.
The video transfer seems to have gone well, though some digital noise is definitely evident throughout the film. Overall, however, the movie looks fantastic in HD—the transition to blu-ray was definitely worth the effort here. Sound-wise, the mix is perhaps questionable at times (as Sony remixed two channels into 5.1, and there’s really only so much you can do when you’re attempting that), though the audio quality overall is still pretty good.
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