brilliant actors, brilliant editing

Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%

Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

I've only seen a few Bollywood movies, so my experience with them is limited. But even I, a German-American, could appreciate the humor of this movie and the way it poked fun at the Bollywood formula. I never expected it to be so funny and charming. I even loved the silly musical numbers. The Shakespeare-quoting grandmother was one of my favorite characters.My only experience with Deepa Mehta before this had been the wonderful trilogy Earth, Water, and Fire, so this was an unexpected surprise. I don't understand the people who are rating it so low. You can't take a movie like this seriously. Enjoy it for what it is.

This movie was a tad formulaic, but it's a nice formula and one that is sure to please. In many ways it's similar to DOUBLE HAPPINESS (1994), though instead of Chinese culture, this film centers on Indians living in Canada. Rahul brings home a Caucasian girl to his mother and grandmother, who immediately disapprove--they demand that he MUST marry an Indian woman. Well, this being a VERY strange movie, the girlfriend is soon killed in a freak transcendental meditation accident (I am not kidding). Mom and grandma continue to hound him to find a nice Indian girl but with no success. Then, out of desperation (as well as a need to be controlling hags), Rahul is told that his younger sister will not be allowed to marry the man she is engaged to until he brings home an Indian fiancée. In a bind and wanting to do the right thing, he meets and convinces a woman named Sue to pose as his fiancée to make everyone leave him alone. He offers her thousands of dollars and she agrees. The problem, though, is that although she LOOKS Indian, she doesn't sound very Indian. In fact, she speaks both English and Spanish--and tells him she's from Spanish Harlem. So how will he manage to fool everyone and get his sister married? Well, tune in and find out.The movie features wonderful acting, weird and quirky touches (the dead ex-girlfriend and his deceased father come back for occasional visits and the chauffeur has a double life as a female impersonator), song and dance numbers almost exactly like those always found in Bollywood films and a sweet script--making this a must-see experience. Also, when the film concludes, do not turn off the film--keep watching for a nice song and dance number featuring about all the characters from the movie plus the crew. It's highly reminiscent of the end of the latest ZATOICHI film (by Takeshi Kitano).By the way, the URL that flashes on the screen for Killer Khalsa in the middle of the movie is a working site. Photos of his friends, this movie, etc. are at http://www.killerkhalsa.com/

I enjoyed this movie tremendously, not only because it is a spoof of most Bollywood movies but because it played so well on east Indian stereotypes. I found the love story interesting as it was so uncommon to see in some movies, and especially the fact that some of the content is somewhat taboo in the culture. It was also an over all fun movie. As you went on, the characters came to life until the love story suddenly hit you. I enjoyed very much the east meets west side, without focusing too much on the west (as some American movies tend to do.) I enjoyed very much the social commentary Mehta was talking of in the religious backgrounds of the two families, Sikh and Hindu. Religion played a very interesting and sometimes humorous role, and Grandmaji's comments about Hindu Gods being number one was so random and funny. Of course my most favorite part was Grandmaji's reaction to the death of the 'white whore' in a levitation accident. Overall a very funny, and witty movie and in my mind packed with social commentary.

About an hour into "Bollywood/Hollywood," Rahul (Rahul Khanna) tells Sue (Lisa Ray), "You're so unpredictable." Really? Because there's nothing she does in the film, and nothing in writer-director Deepa Mehta's script, that's even remotely unpredictable. Sue's about as unpredictable as the sunrise.The premise: Forced to find a nice Indian bride before his sister gets married, westernized Rahul Seth meets Sue in a bar. And in a deal stolen right out of "Pretty Woman" (1990), she agrees to pose as his bride in order to satisfy his mother.Well, it doesn't take a genius to figure out what will happen.It's obvious Mehta set out to make a lighthearted parody of romantic comedies and meld the genre into the suddenly popular Bollywood movies. I enjoy good Bollywood films. But in trying to find the best of both worlds, Mehta falls horribly short.The romantic-comedy aspect of the story doesn't work because the characters aren't all that interesting. The outcome's a foregone conclusion and both Khanna and Ray have such poorly defined characters that, although they look nice, there's nothing beneath the surface. Ray has screen presence to spare. But Mehta needed to give the poor girl a stronger role.The film's Bollywood angle does worse. What's fun about good Bollywood movies is that their songs are peppy and the song-and-dance sequences are fun to watch. Here, there's just one song-and-dance number - Sue's routine - that comes close to emulating a Bollywood number. The rest are unimaginative and completely forgettable.Mehta tries to gently poke fun of and respect Bollywood films and Indian culture. Unfortunately, she does a lousy job straddling that fine line. Subplots and characters, including a bit about men in drag and a grandmother who quotes Shakespeare, make no sense and one female character keeps popping up in various scenes repeating the same line of dialogue: "What a bunch of losers." Why? Mehta also tries to capture the Bollywood essence with some ridiculous supertitles, including one during a kiss that says, "Kiss to end all kisses. No debate." It's a horrid, desperate attempt at humor, trying to force laughs out of us because nothing in her story makes us chuckle.Intermingling western and eastern genres could have made for a fun, exotic, unpredictable film. But Mehta doesn't seem to quite know what she's doing. I'm certain the initial idea sounded terrific and the film likely looked good on paper. But it suffers when translated on to the screen."Bollywood/Hollywood" is the kind of film that makes "The Guru" (2002) seem like a masterpiece.