On G List of Movie Reviews
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Gandhi (1982)
Rate:
4
Viewed:
1/08
1/08:
Gandhi is an overrated film that lacks power.
The sagacious lines Gandhi spouts has the same effect of what John "Big Words, Small Balls" Kerry would come up with.
Worse, the film has nothing interesting to say or for me to be awed of. In fact, most of the formula is similar to
Lawrence of Arabia.
Director Richard Attenborough makes things worse by including Martin Sheen, Candice Bergen, and John Ratzenberger.
Had the American thespians been removed, the film might recover some credibility. Ben Kingsley is full of himself as
Gandhi. The only positive thing I can say about his performance is the makeup.
On the other hand, Gandhi is too long, clocking for more than three hours which is expected for an epic, and
therefore leaves me for dead. Granted, the first hour is well-done, but the rest doesn't hold up. The main character
is hardly developed which is Richard Attenborough's fault. Just because Mohandas Gandhi was an extraordinary leader doesn't
mean the biopic should be automatically labeled as extraordinary. Furthermore, it does a good job of distorting
the truth and omitting the ugly side of Gandhi.
It's a fact that, although under the yoke of the British Empire, India was a well-run country. After Gandhi took over to
help India declare independence, the country became worse for it. Also, Gandhi was a true racist, not believing in
equality for all people of different races and social classes. He forced a lot of women, especially his relatives, to
sleep naked with him. There are many more negatives, but the list is too long to go through. In other words, Gandhi wasn't a
saint, so it's best to read an unbiased biography about him.
There's one nice gem, and it's when the young-looking Daniel Day-Lewis made a cameo appearance before hitting big later.
Well known as Eric Liddell in Chariots of Fire, Ian Charleston can be spotted
walking alongside Ben Kingsley during the South Africa segment before bumping into Daniel Day-Lewis.
All in all, filled with historical inaccuracies, Gandhi needs to be shorter.