Review of Gandhi (1982) by Mjs M — 15 May 2009

I?ve had a pretty low opinion of this film for years, probably because I had a pretty bad attitude when I first saw it. Watching it now with less of a chip on my shoulder, I think it works pretty well.

Ben Kingsley is really pretty damn good here, he?s doing a great impression but does it in a way that doesn?t feel like an impression, that?s a pretty big achievement alone. The rest of the film is a really ambitious epic.

It desperately wants to be Lawrence of Arabia (it?s structure is ripped right from that David Lean epic), and it never reaches the heights of that film, but there are worse ambitions to aspire to than that.

Richard Attenborough is clearly very good at assembling obscene numbers of extras, but never loses sight of the man at the center of the film. The dialogue effectively delivers historical exposition without being clunky.

It?s good stuff, I?m glad I stopped being a hater and picked this Blu-Ray up.