Product Details

• Actors: Martin Henderson, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Nadira Babbar, Anupam Kher, Naveen Andrews
• Directors: Gurinder Chadha
• Writers: Gurinder Chadha, Jane Austen, Paul Mayeda Berges
• Producers: Brigitte Mueller, Cameron McCracken, Deepak Nayar, Duncan Reid
• Format: NTSC
• Language: English, Hindi, Punjabi, Spanish
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Rated: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Studio: ALL
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (280 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0009PBLRM
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #43,116 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Bride & Prejudice" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The exotic sounds, vibrant colors, and ecstatic dancing of Bollywood collide with the cunning storytelling of Jane Austen in Bride & Prejudice (from the writer/director of previous East/West hybrid Bend It Like Beckham). When smart, outspoken Lalita Bakshi (Indian beauty Aishwarya Rai) meets Will Darcy (Martin Henderson, The Ring), she finds this American businessman arrogant and conceited--but because his best friend is falling in love with her sister, Lalita agrees to travel around India with Darcy. On the trip, a childhood friend of Darcy's named Johnny (Daniel Gillies, Spider-Man 2) both tickles Lalita's fancy and confirms her worst suspicions about Darcy. But as events unfold, Lalita wonders if she hasn't misjudged Darcy--and Johnny. Austen fans will be find much to criticize; Bride & Prejudice transplants the basic plot of Pride & Prejudice to modern India, but not much of Austen's sly wit or her insights about character and society have survived the translation. Henderson, though handsome, lacks the intimidating charisma of previous Mr. Darcys (including Laurence Olivier and Colin Firth). Thank goodness for the delightful Rai, here making her first all-English-language movie. She commands the screen like a true star (unsurprisingly, she's hugely popular in India, and previously starred in a more homegrown Austen adaptation: I Have Found It, based on Sense & Sensibility). For Western audiences unfamiliar with the freewheeling exuberance of Indian movies--wild musical numbers can break out at almost any moment--Bride & Prejudice offers an engaging taste of this fantastic cinematic style. --Bret Fetzer

From The New Yorker

Ridiculous, but immensely enjoyable. Jane Austen's most enduringly popular story done as a Bollywood musical comedy, with Martin Henderson as Darcy, a callow American millionaire, and the ravishing Aishwarya Rai as the smartly alert Elizabeth Bennet figure, known here as Lalita, one of four highly nubile daughters living in Amritsar. The ballroom scene is turned into a sprightly Bollywood production number; in the street bazaars, cross-dressers and goofy guys with turbans break into dance. It's a travesty, of course, but also an exuberant, good-hearted movie, and it won't corrupt you or Jane Austen. Directed by Gurinder Chadha. -David Denby
Copyright © 2006 The New Yorker

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

186 of 190 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars No Life Without Wife, February 14, 2005

By 

Andy Orrock (Dallas, TX) - See all my reviews
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It appears Gurinder Chadha is going to suffer for a while from the "Bend It" problem: every movie she makes, people are going to tsk-tsk and say "it's not as good as 'Bend It Like Beckham.'" Well, honestly,how are you going to top that? It's too bad that many people aren't going to allow 'Bride and Prejudice' to stand on its own merits. That includes most mainstream reviewers who have generally been lukewarm about it. For many people though, 'Bride' will be an introduction to the Bollywood Musical genre and - for that reason alone - it's a can't miss. Far from being lukewarm, I was in stiches throughout most of the movie.

It's a brilliant set-up by Chadha and husband/writing partner Paul Mayeda Berges, finding and drawing the parallels between Jane Austen's 1813 novel and the small-town India of today. In both cases, a woman is considered meaningless until she marries.

There are brilliant Bollywood productions in blazes of color, most notably "Balle Balle (Punjabi Wedding Song)," which hits you like a thunderstorm within the first 10 minutes of the movie, and the hilarious "No Life Without Wife" (and for those of you who have seen the movie, I did Mr. Kholi's little gesture with my hand when I wrote that).

In 'Bride,' you grasp right away why Aishwarya Rai has transfixed a nation. With wide-set eyes that seem six inches in diameter, you look at the set pieces that have 50 - 100+ on screen at once and immediately spot her as the standout. Even for the uninitiated, it's going to take five seconds or less to pick her out as the star.

I also have to note Nitin Chandra Ganatra as Kholi. This guy is a real comedic talent. Here he portrays the Indian off to America ("A-Merka" as he calls it) and made good. Now, he's back to his home town to claim a bride. This guy not only gets all the great lines, he delivers them *perfectly*. "This is my crib. It's all good" he says, showing guests around his house. Trust me, it's all in the delivery. What I like about the movie is Kholi turns out to be a really good guy. Maybe a bit too rabid in his pursuit, but a wonderful soul at heart.

Fans of 'Bend It' will note that Anupam Kher, as Rai's dad 'Mr. Bakshi,' was Jess' dad 'Mr. Bharma' in 'Beckham.' This is one classy actor and a regal presence on the screen.

80 of 83 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars When Bollywood meets Hollywood, April 16, 2006

By 

Amanda Richards (Georgetown, Guyana) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Bride and Prejudice (DVD)

When Bollywood meets Hollywood
There’s bound to be some sparks
And for this take on Jane Austen
I give almost full marks

The story line is much the same
Except a little shorter
The noisy Bakshi family
Is short a Bennet daughter

Henderson’s no Colin Firth
He’s just a little bland
They could have found a better bloke
To take Lalita’s hand

The Bingley siblings caught my eye
I’ve seen them both before
He was her Kama Sutra guy
And now he’s “Lost” no more

The ending’s changed up quite a bit
This version’s changed the terms
Singing, dancing, Indian style
And riding pachyderms

A lively, funny musical
Though not for everyone
It’s almost Pride and Prejudice
But a hundred times more fun



Amanda Richards, April 16, 2006

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely Loved it!, November 1, 2005

By 

Colleen McMahon ""Omnivorous Reader"" (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Bride and Prejudice (DVD)

Rented this the other night and was completely blown away. I knew the general idea of the movie-Pride & Prejudice + 21st Century India + Bollywood--but had not seen either any other Bollywood style movie or Gurinder Chadha's big hit, Bend it Like Beckham.

I absolutely loved this movie, nearly everything about it from the music and dancing in the musical numbers (which break out at random intervals) to the acting to the intertwining stories of romance and heartbreak. Standout actors were the incredible Aishwarya Rai (Lalita) and the comic relief of Nitin Ganatra as Mr. Kholi, the gauche returnee from America shopping for a bride.

It was also lovely to see Naveen Andrews outside of "Lost" and just wish there could have been a bit more of him and his storyline with Lalita's sister.

The movie is in English but sometimes when the speech gets rolling quickly, the accents can make a scene a bit hard to follow, but since I want to watch this movie again and again I will get it all eventually. Or you can do what I do sometimes when I have trouble following thick Aussie or British accents on a DVD--turn on the subtitles.

For someone like me unfamiliar with Bollywood and the amazingly beautiful AND talented Aishwarya Rai, this is a great introduction to both, and like me, I'll bet that you will want to see more of both. The exuberant music and dancing are what stayed with me the most from this movie, and I think that queuing up the opening wedding dance scene or the "No Life Without Wife" number will cheer me up on any grumpy day.

This movie is a keeper for me--I'm buying both the DVD and the soundtrack.