Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)
Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)
2xDVD9 | VIDEO_TS | PAL 16:9 (720x576) | Scans | 03:36:01 | 6,26 Gb + 6,20 Gb
Audio: Hindi-English AC3 5.1 @ 448 Kbps | Subs: Arabic, Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Dutch,
English, Finnish, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Norwegian, Polish, Swedish, Turkish
Genre: Drama, Romance | Nominated for Oscar + 44 wins | India
2xDVD9 | VIDEO_TS | PAL 16:9 (720x576) | Scans | 03:36:01 | 6,26 Gb + 6,20 Gb
Audio: Hindi-English AC3 5.1 @ 448 Kbps | Subs: Arabic, Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Dutch,
English, Finnish, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Norwegian, Polish, Swedish, Turkish
Genre: Drama, Romance | Nominated for Oscar + 44 wins | India
One of the most expensive films ever to come out of Bollywood, Lagaan tells the tale of the Indian village Champaner, beset by drought and British colonialism in the year 1893. Without a drop of rain in months, the worried villagers of Champaner decide to ask the local authorities for a temporary repeal of their taxes – the hated lagaan. Led by the heroic Bhuvan (Indian superstar Aamir Khan) they bring their plight to the military governor, Captain Russell (Paul Blackthorne). But the sadistic Russell threatens to raise the lagaan threefold, unless the villagers can beat his men at a game of cricket, in which case he'll lift taxes on the entire province for a period of three years. Bhuvan accepts the challenge, but there's a problem – no one in Champaner knows how to play cricket. A band of misfits come to the rescue, coached by Russell's soft-hearted sister Elizabeth (Rachel Shelley), and the race is on to be ready in three months' time. An epic reworking of Victory with eye-popping song-and-dance routines, Lagaan was a major cinematic event in India upon its release.
IMDB
Lagaan is the story of an oppressed 19th century Indian farming village struggling with drought and cruel taxation. It's nearly four hours long. You wouldn't think such a recipe would add up to one of the most charming, joyous celluloid spectacles you'll see all year.
Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)
![Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)]()
It's 1893 in British-occupied India. Despite a crippling drought that has stunted the farmers' essential crops, British overlords are demanding this year that the provincial Rajahs squeeze double the taxation (Lagaan) rate—a levy that comes straight from the crops—out of the starving local villages. The British claim that they offer protection, but really it's a classic case of the rich stealing from the poor. The local commander, Captain Russell (Paul Blackthorne), suffering from a uniquely British superiority complex, starts the story moving when he responds to the pleading villagers with a ridiculous wager—if these lowly farmers can beat him and his uppity comrades in a game of cricket, about which the farmers know nothing, then he will cancel the Lagaan for three years. If, on the other hand, the farmers should lose, the Lagaan will be tripled.
Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)
![Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)]()
What follows is a rousing, energetic tale of a ragtag group of farmers—led by Bhuvan (Aamir Khan)—achieving the impossible by assembling a team and lifting the spirits of the village from parched despair to singing optimism. Speaking of singing, Lagaan has lots of it. As the village unites and spirits begin to soar, the soundtrack comes alive with percussive Hindi song and the screen bursts with choreographed dance. You might think that this story of drought and sport isn't necessarily conducive to song and dance, but you'd be mistaken. The music here adds amazing vitality and emotion to the proceedings, lifting Lagaan to greatness.
Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)
![Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)]()
The remarkable fact about Lagaan is that it was produced on a minuscule budget, on location in an actual rural village in central India. And yet it's one of the premier efforts out of Bollywood—India's Hollywood—boasting excellent acting and a fun, if somewhat derivative, plot. I was particularly impressed by the dramatic and musical efforts of Gracy Singh as Gauri, the young woman who's in love with Bhuvan but feels threatened by Elizabeth, sister of Captain Russell, who's helping the villagers learn the game. But the cast is uniformly appealing, creating distinct personalities for whom you'll find yourself cheering—or, in the case of Captain Russell, booing and hissing.
Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)
![Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)]()
If you'll excuse the cricket pun, I was bowled over by this delightful film. Apparently, so was the Academy—Lagaan has just received a nomination for Best Foreign Language Film of 2001.
Despite its length, Lagaan is a complete joy. This is a film that's very much worth your time.
Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)
An outstanding and fully accessible piece of Indian filmmaking that manages, over its near four-hour running time, to combine the colourful trappings of its nature — singing! dancing ! melodrama! ribbons! – with the classic Hollywood sports formula. Think Rocky goes Hindi with cricket, and if that sounds crazy it shouldn’t, Ashutosh Gowariker’s film is truly beguiling and very stirring.
Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)
![Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)]()
Lagaan is a folktale writ-large and paradoxically Westernised while still being about the constraints of colonialism. This is a film that dwells in an arch-world of archetypes — the snidely British captain (Paul Blackthorne) has a moustache fully available for the twiddling — and wound ever tighter by its allusions to Spaghetti Westerns and the meaty glories of Kurosawa. There are training montages, last minute reprieves, downtrodden fools who will have their day and a comeuppance for the British swine so sweet you have to suppress a cheer. Yet, with its cultural origins still intact, the film remains bracingly foreign and magical, loudly commenting on the ailments of colonial tax (known as “lagaan”), religion, class and cross-cultural romance (English rose Elizabeth Russell will fall for dashing hero Aamir Khan).
Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)
![Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)]()
Awhirl with colour and magnificence — it is beautifully shot — and long but never stretched, this is a film that will contradict every prejudice you might have against that most elusive of worlds — Indian cinema. It isn’t subtle, it doesn’t want to be, but a better entryway into the alien complexities and designs of Bollywood, or, for that matter, the dizzying rules of cricket (if even stops to clearly explain the vagaries of spin bowling) you will not find.
With an equally stunning soundtrack, this rollicking yarn is a must for all film lovers.
Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)
Special Features (on DVD 1):
- Deleted scenes (17:45)
- Bonus trailers for "Ghandi" and "Lawrence of Arabia"
- Filmographies
Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)
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