Guru

Guru

MAIN CAST:
Abhishek Bachchan -- Guru
Aishwarya Rai -- Sujata
Mithun Chakraborty -- Nanaji
Vidya Balan -- Meenu

BRIEF PLOT OVERVIEW:
Guru is a small-town Gujarati boy and, in his father's mind, a failure. But despite all odds, Guru has big dreams: he wants to return to his village and start his own business rather than work for the white men who still control much of India's economy. He even goes so far as to marry Sujata, his friend's older sister, in an attempt to gain enough capital for the business via her dowry, and his profit-making practices slowly become more and more corrupt.

FILM -- 4/5
This is going to sound like a strange complaint, so let me get it out of the way right now: Guru's cinematography often reminds me of a tripped-out MTV music video, where the characters seem disconnected from the background. I mean, look at "Barso Re": Aishwarya often looks like a CG character with equally-computerized backgrounds slapped up behind her. It's not necessarily bad, but it's definitely different, and it caught my attention every time that happened. The movie itself flows relatively well, although there are some more minor plot elements that pop up out of nowhere. Some beautiful imagery, like a train driving between Sujata and Guru, makes up for this flaw. The script is excellent and includes individualized dialogue, including some adorably plucky pieces from Sujata.

CHARACTERS -- 5/5
Guru is one of Abhishek Bachchan's best roles. Guru comes off as being simple and naive at first, but he slowly evolves in to an interesting character with many minor complexities. Charming and down-to-Earth, there's no better actor for this role than Abhishek. Aishwarya Rai is physically confusing to me in this movie; though still pretty, she looks 10 years older than she really is, and her facial expressions are often frightening. Her acting, however, has also aged, and I think that's far more important than how she looks at this part in her career. Her chemistry with Abhishek is very natural and, finally, believable. Nanaji and Meenu add some earthiness to the cast, although I would've liked it if Vidya had had more time to flesh out her character. The supporting cast is superb, and everyone fits their role like a glove.

SOUNDTRACK -- 3.5/5
A.R Rahman can't produce a bad soundtrack--it's just not in him--so even his worst work is, at the very least, "decent." Guru is a perfect example of this. "Barso Re" is proof that nobody can write a rain song like Rahman, but "Mayya" is a mediocre item number that sounds far too modern for a film set in the 1950s. The choreography in "Tere Bina" is mostly terrible, but the song itself is a beautiful love ballad. There's a chant about "Guru-bhai" that runs throughout the film that's powerful and fun at the same time. "Ek Lo Ek Muft" has silly lyrics and vocals that are too slurred to be "good," even if Guru is supposed to be drunk, but the beat is catchy. K.S. Chithra's vocals on "Jaage Hain" are beautiful. "Shauk Hai" is hauntingly beautiful.

OVERALL -- 4/5
Guru is simple, character-driven, and well-crafted. It can be slow, but thanks to your emotional investment in the characters, it's never dull. Though the soundtrack isn't one of Rahman's best and Aishwarya Rai isn't at her prettiest--and lets be honest, those are two reasons why people attend many of their films--Abhishek Bachchan is at the top of his game. Please note, however, that the morality of the ending is easy to call in to question, and while I enjoyed the movie, I was a little perturbed by the excuses it used for some of the characters' actions. This isn't a movie for everybody, thanks to its lack of action and melodrama, but it's definitely worth a rental.

TOTAL SCORE -- 16.5/20 (great)