138 of 1001 Movies: The Brave Hearted Will Take Away the Bride (1995)

So I had my first Bollywood experience. It really is almost it's whole genre on it's own. What more appropriate way to be introduced to Bollywood than with it's biggest hit ever to come from that area of film than, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenege, or translated The Brave Hearted Will Take Away the Bride. This film is very different in tone than anything you would watch from any other country I've seen movies from. It's colorful, it's very positive, musical, and over the top romantic with no holding back. The director, Aditya Chopra just wanted to force as much goodness into a film as he could. I will say it definitely makes sense now as to how much Baz Luhrmann is inspired by Bollywood, so when you watch The Great Gatsby just think it's Bollywood's version of it, except without any Hindu.

Summary: Two Indians living in London are phasing out of their youth, and moving into adulthood. They both value their heritage, but their fathers respond very differently to how they adhere to their values. Simran's father has raised her in a very conservative Hindu household, while Raj's father is more liberal about the approach of his culture, and has allowed his son to enjoy the life of living in London's atmosphere as well. When the two go on a tour of Switzerland together, they both fall in love, but Simran is already arranged to marry another man in India preventing Raj from being able to be with her. Raj will stop at nothing to make it possible for the two to be together, and travels to India to win over her family to have her hand in marriage.


Acting: In this movie the acting was very over the top. There is a lot of facial expressions, and then when the music starts, and they begin mouthing the words it's definitely obvious. It took me time to get used to the acting of the two lead actors, but after a while I could feel their chemistry, and enjoyed how they interacted with one another. I found Raj to be more over the top than Simran though. She was definitely the easier one to like quicker.

Cinematography: What did catch me about the movie was the attention to color. Not only in the clothes that the people wear, but also just in their surroundings. The director caught the beauty of the land whether it was in Europe or in India, and brought it to life. The shots are a tad over done, which seems to be pretty characteristic of this type of film. There are quick pans and zooms that go into someone's face rather quickly.  This done in it's own strange way grow on you, and it does add this very light, magical vibe to the movie.

Plot: The plot is very unrealistic. It's basically like if someone brought a Disney princess cartoon to life.  The lead actress even looks like a Disney character. These two characters keep bumping into each other, and before they know it they have fallen, but with her very over bearing dad the guy has a lot of obstacles to get through. I do like a lot of the themes in this movie though. Unlike, a lot of other movies from other countries the movie focuses on topics that aren't too popular or considered cool. There is an emphasis on honor, sacrifices, family, and love that really tie in nicely together. I also like how unselfish the characters are. Raj doesn't go to elope with Simran or steal her away from the man she is arranged to marry, but instead he wants to keep everyone on a good page, and gain the approval of her family. Everyone is working for the good of someone else.

This movie is unlike any other I've seen. It does run a bit too long at 3 hours! There were a lot of parts that could have been chopped down to save time. By the end you are emotionally invested in the characters. For many though the strange musical scenes and the acting may deter you from enjoying it, but for those enjoying a good story with good values it is appealing.

Rating 7 of 10.