Devdas (Ltd Edition 3 Disc Boxset) [DVD] [2002] [NTSC]
(Eros International - 2004-02-09)
3 Discs (185 minutes)
- Parental Guidance
Starring: Shahrukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit, Aishwarya Rai, Jackie Shroff, Kiron Kher.




Customer Reviews (Average 4.5 from 22) :
This movie....
Rating:5
I watched this movie waay back in 2002 i wasnt really sure what to expect, my family were all exited to watch it so i tagged along. Little did i know i'd be in for a rollercoaster of emotions which would make me come out of the cinema that night and utter the words "ONE OF THE BEST MOVIES I HAVE EVER WATCHED" This movie made draws you in and creates an attatchment between you and the characters so strong! that it leaves you sharing every ounce of emotion that drives them, from begining to the (incredibly emotional) end. This movie is beyond epic.

Just wriritng about it makes me want to go watch it again. TIme to prepare the popcorn.

A guilty pleasure
Rating:3
This film is no way near the standard of Bimal Roy's 1955 Devdas. It's rather over the top, and smacks of the trend for throw-all-the-money-that-you-can-at-it type films that Bollywood seems to be churning out these days.

Having said that, the costumes are fantastic, the settings lavish and the songs are rather catchy. I especially like the song Maar dala. Shah Rukh Khan is not at his best, but I do have a soft spot for him so I didn't mind that much. As for Aishwarya Rai, she is at least beautiful in this film, as always. So, watch this film for its fantastic lavishness, not for it's acting quality.

Devdas- Bollywood's Diamond
Rating:5
Devdas is a timeless classic adaptation of the famous Bengali novel by Sharat Chattopadhyay. This film is the third adaptation Sanjay Leela Bhansali truly has created a beautiful film. First the story plot. The story revolves around childhood friends Paro acted by Aishwarya Rai and Devdas played by Shahrukh Khan. The beginning of the film starts of with devdas returning to India from England after nine years, his whole family anticipating his return with big excitement. Paro has lit a lamp nine years ago which represents Devdas, a tale that if a lamp is lit, then eventually the traveller will return home. Devdas returns and the love between him and Paro kindles. However, family grudges, pitiful social norms and pride will destroy everything.The acting by Bollywood actors and acctresses is amazing. Aishwarya Rai truly shines in this film as Paro and personally I feel this is her best performance. Shuhrukh Khan plays the Devdas outstanding and Madhuri Dixit turn her minor role to a major one. The film has the most amazing sets, the colours, vividness etc is breathtaking. The culture of Hindu and India is prominant and exhilirating. The music is perfect. The film will make you laugh, smile, get up and dance 'Re Dole Re Dole'and cry. The only minor flaw is the running time. the film is 3 hours long. However, every second is worthwhile. Watch and cherish this unforgettable masterpiece of love, betrayal and tragedy.

THAT'S ENTERTAINMENT !
Rating:5
Once upon a time, there were silent movies. Then a Jazz Singer made movies speak and Dorothy brought them life in color. Cinema was pure magic !
Bollywood movies bring back to our time that magic that seems to have been lost for decades in our occidental world.
A very simple story but such a powerfull screenplay, music that make you want to dance with the actors, perfect choreographies and magnificent costumes. That's all it takes to bring our world some fresh air.
To me, Devdas is to musicals what The Fifth Element is to action movies. It doesnt take itself too seriously, the mix of tears and humor is well balanced, action carries us all the way from beginning to end and the sum of all this leaves the viewers the impression that cinema can again take us to a fantasy world where 25 gunshots a minute is persona non grata!
Bollywood remembers what Hollywood has long ago forgotten.
Thats what we want...Thats entertainment !

Forget Moulin Rouge,THIS is the romantic musical tragedy you want to watch
Rating:5
When I first saw Moulin Rouge,unlike everyone else in the free world who sang its praises,it left me cold.While undeniably a spectacle,and glorious to look at,like all Baz Luhrman's films,I found its inherant superficiality irritating.There was no real charm or heart to the characters:it's a bad omen to be pleased when Nicole Kidman's simpering little Satine kicks the bucket at the end.OTOH,Devdas,so surprisingly similar in plot(and seeing how derivative Bazza Boy can be)I was surprised Luhrmann hadn't done a serious bit of plagarizing,but as both films were made around the same time this seems unlikely.(Perhaps he read the novel or saw the earlier version made in the '50s?)Perhaps the stories of al doomed lovers are essentially the same tale.Anyhow,forget that piece of stale confection,for a true,heartbreaking epic,THIS is the film you want.
Devdas is a wonderful introduction to the world of Bollywood film.It's a visual feast for any romanticist,very much an Indian Romeo and Juliet.It's almost ridiculously heart-breakingly beautiful to look at.So much so it's a tad unrealistic with nary a dirty street or untelegenic person in sight.Every surface seems to glitter and groan in a virtual riot of colour and sumptuousness,every actor seems to have stepped out of an exotic fairytale.Nobody in this world deals with taking the garbage out or the milk running out at 11 pm on a work night.But in a world where the Cult of Ugly Ideas seems to be taking root in every medium these days-meh-who am I to complain about a world that's a little too brightly painted?But it's emotional core is so authentically gutwrenching,I can forgive a little excessive pixie dust.
Two childhood sweethearts,whom everyone assumed would marry,are reunited in adulthood,only to be separated by caste snobbery & personal spite between the two families.This leads the young man into an alcoholic decline and the young woman into a loveless marriage with a wealthy widower,situations neither can extricate themselves out of,except by death.For Devdas,the young man,this escape will come sooner,rather than later.Doomed lovers are always impossible to resist and I found myself even tearing up a bit.Sigh.
While Shahrukh Khan ,who plays Devdas is a bit wooden,it suits his character's impotent passive-aggressive nature,and Aishwarya Rai is as impossibly,luminously beautiful as ever as the haughty Paro.For my money the finest performances however were by Madhuri Dixit as the courtesan with a heart of gold who loves Devdas enough to let him go( frankly better than he deserves,the bounder)and the elegant Kirron Kher,as Paro's mother,whose wonderful speech of revenge after a humilation at the hand of Devdas's mum must surely rank as one of the most electric moments for an older actress in any film anywhere.(Note to Bollywood producers:if you ever decide to make an Indian adaptation of The Scottish Play,look no further than this fine actress to be Lady Macbeth.)
There's no doubt the film is a little over-the-top and melodramatic,but anyone who has known the agony of a fruitless,destructive romantic attachment knows that there is always a bit of melodrama in such heartaches,if on a smaller scale than the big screen.Anyhow,if you're in the mood for a tragic,gorgeous assault on the senses with a bucket of passion and romance thrown in,this is a goer.Great date movie.
As for the DVD package itself,that I can't pass judgement on.I would love to own a copy after seeing this on tv and on a DVD rental,but Amazon seems to have lumped all the reviews for this film together,regardless of which release each reviewer saw,and good issues are reviewed here along with the bad.So which version is Amazon selling here? Goodness alone knows.
Apparently several reviewers on Amazon.UK's sister U.S site have seen copies with very poor video transfer and presentation.If other reviewers could recommend versions(distributor,seller,price) which ARE faithful,quality packages,I would be most grateful.This film is worth a quality distribution.


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