Before the Rains (2007)

"And when our lives cross together like this, it's our destiny."

The film Before the Rains, from director Santosh Sivan, examines colonialism through the relationships between a white British landowner and two of his Indian servants. Set in 1937 India, the film's lush exotic locations are the perfect backdrop for this tale of adultery, betrayal, and ambition.

When the film begins, British Henry Moores (Linus Roache) has an ambitious plan to carve a road that will expedite trade. Owner of a lucrative Tea plantation, Moores wants to move into the spice trade, but the Indian based British bank due to finance Moores' project is nervous about the rise of the Indian nationalist movement. No one (except most of the natives) wants the good old days of colonialism to end. After all, Moores has a splendid, luxurious plantation-style house and endless servants at his beck and call. Moores basically ignores the growing unrest and doggedly pursues his plan to build the road with native workers.

With Moores' wife Laura (Jennifer Ehle) back in England with the couple's small son, Moores has begun a passionate affair with Sanjani (Nandita Das) the family's married Indian maid who lives in the nearby village. A witness to the affair is TK (Rahul Bose), Moores' right hand man. Although TK keeps silent about the affair, he is fully aware of its ominous social consequences.

Before the Rains is not an overtly political film, however, it is a tragedy with the drama played against the backdrop of the inherent evils and consequences of colonialism. While Moores' affair has serious ramifications, he imagines that he can just step away from the relationship, thinking that his class and race will protect him. When adversity strikes, Moores' racism rears its head, and his gestures of equality are shown to be absolutely meaningless.

TK, as the observer, ends up as the central figure here. A believer in anglo-indian unity, he gets a bitter taste of his true relationship with Moore, a man he admires. He comes to realize the hollowness of cooperation between two vastly difference cultures in which colonialism dictates a master-serf relationship. While Before the Rains is not nearly as powerful a film as Sivan's The Terrorist (an examination of the use of children as suicide bombers by the Tamil Tigers), nonetheless this Merchant-Ivory production is a beautifully realized, thoughtful and thought-provoking study of the three characters who all make terrible choices. September 27, 2008

Beautiful cinematography

Before the Rains is an enjoyable movie with everything going for it. Breathtaking visuals complimented with good acting and a strong storyline makes it a winner. There may be some scenes which wouldn't make much sense to a Western mind but I do think the movie is true to it's timeline of India before independence, the fragile Brit-Indian relationship and finally the endless superstitions some of which continue to prevail to this day.
September 26, 2008

Love It!

This movie was amazing... The writing was great, the acting perfect and the directing superb! Linus Roache shines as always. Just remember to look for hidden meanings and always expect the unexpected! September 21, 2008

In a Lovely, Evacative Time and Place

"Before the Rains" is a recently-released, Anglo-Indian film, set in South India during the waning days of the British colonial Raj; a lovely, evocative time and place that exerts a certain fascination, still; and has been looked at by a number of British films, and several --really slow-moving---films of the Merchant-Ivory film-making school. It's exquisite to look at, while actually boasting a plot that moves right along, and stars some gorgeous people giving us a passionate, moving story of a mature interracial love affair.

Linus Roache( "Batman Begins") stars as Henry Moores, an Englishman who's big in the spice trade: he's settled on an estate in India, and hopes to build a road that would enable him to greatly expand the productivity of his plantations. The beauteous Jennifer Ehle ("Pride and Prejudice") turns in a restrained performance as his wife Laura. Rahul Bose turns in a thoughtful performance as TK Neelan, a resident of the local village, caught between his respect for the past, and his hopes for a bright English-assisted future. The always reliable veteran John Standing is Charles Humphries, a grandee of the local expat English community. And the beautiful Nandita Das is stunning as Sajani,the servant who catches Moores' eye, with disastrous results for all concerned.

Add a star if you are a particular fan of the Raj; and, whatever you do, keep the tissues handy.

September 19, 2008

Beautiful but Tragic

Beautiful scenery, an illicit love affair, a road being built up a mountain with the goal of growing spices, other than just tea. There is a lot to this movie and yet it is a not a complicated plot. An English grower is in India without his wife and falls for the beautiful house girl (played by the absolutely gorgeous and wonderful Nandita Das). The grower's wife shows up with their son and the house girl's husband finds out she is having an affair. Without spoiling the movie, it is enough to say that everyone pays a terrible price in the end for this affair. Some of the Merchant Ivory productions are slow and boring. This one keeps you wondering how it is going to turn out. The end is tragic, but there couldn't have been any other ending. The movie is a little slow in places, but never boring. Highly recommended. September 17, 2008

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