Plot Details: This opinion reveals minor details about the movie's plot.

Bollywood made a huge step toward mainstream recognition in the Western world when the lavish historical drama Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India was one of the five nominees for the Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award in March 2002. While it is the first film of the traditional musical Bollywood mold to make the final Oscar cut, Lagaan is remarkably Yank-accessible, from the presence of prominent British characters to its straight-out-of-Tinseltown underdog sports movie formula (never mind that the sport in question was cricket). It makes for an ideal "Bollywood for beginners" film, which is not meant to be taken dismissively. The film is a rousing entertainment with catchy music and terrific choreography; it's just that the Bollywood touches are made all the more palatable for the Western viewer through familiar, comfortable packaging.

India's official entry for the 2003 Foreign Language Film Oscar race, Devdas, is a more undiluted taste of Bollywood and, perhaps not so coincidentally, a far stronger film than last year's breakthrough entry. An adaptation of a famous and oft-filmed 1917 novel by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhye, Sanjay Leela Bhansali's masterful film is full of the broad strokes characteristic of popular Indian cinema: some of the acting isn't exactly subtle; the comedic bits are sometimes overripe; the extreme drama is strictly befitting the prefix of "melo-"--and made all the more so, of course, by the musical sequences. But such hyperreality couldn't be more appropriate for this sweeping, operatic romance. As the film begins, the title character (Shahrukh Khan) returns to India after studying law in England, intending to rekindle his romance with childhood sweetheart Paro (Aishwarya Rai). She certainly eager to reciprocate, but less than eager to see these two soulmates share a life together is Devdas' family, who'd rather see him find a match more equal in social and financial station--thus setting into motion a series of events that proves to be destructive to all parties involved.

One doesn't need to know of Devdas's celebrated literary origins to recognize it as being an archetypal romantic tragedy of Romeo and Juliet proportions, and Bhansali literally spared no expense to make his version just as larger-than-life as the novel's legacy. At a budget of $15 million, it was the most expensive Bollywood film in history at the time of its production, and every last cent shows in every last inch of this lavish enterprise. Binod Pradhan's stunning cinematography makes the bold colors of the opulent sets and the gorgeous period costumes even more ravishing to behold.

Undoubtedly the eye candy and hefty price tag played a part in the film getting tapped to premiere at 2002's Cannes Film Festival (though out of competition), but there's more to Devdas than extravagance; the emotion and passion of the story is felt just as strongly in every frame as the budget. Khan and Rai's chemistry is palpable from their first scene together, instantly creating a rooting interest in Devdas and Paro's coupledom. Apart, the pair create believable, fully fleshed-out people though Khan lays on his character's self-destructive streak a bit too thick at times. Better is Rai, who makes Paro's evolution from sheltered girl to mature woman quite compelling As courtesan Chandramukhi, Madhuri Dixit turns what could've been the throwaway third point in a triangle into a character just as complex and sympathetic as the other two.

And then, of course, there are the musical numbers, which intensify the gamut of emotions that run through the film. Dixit and Rai are excellent dancers, and their joint number, superbly choreographed and captured with bravura Busby Berkeley-style camera work, is an exhilarating highlight; on the flip side one has to be made of stone not to be moved by the heartbreaking pre-intermission duet between Devdas and Paro. Bhansali does hit a wrong note by stalling the tragic momentum with a late lighthearted number, but this minor stumble doesn't blunt the emotional impact of the finale.

Eros Entertainment released a beautifully packaged two-disc DVD edition of the film; the slim keep case, as well as an informative booklet and a postcard, are housed in a sturdy, book-like cardboard case. The anamorphic widescreen transfer of the feature film on disc one isn't quite so lovely as the packaging; the print exhibits some scratches and the subtitles (which, thankfully, are on the bottom black bar, so as to get a clearer view of the picture) have a strange tendency to sport quotation marks at random, but the flaws won't ruin one's enjoyment of the film. Disc two offers a wealth of supplemental material: a making-of documentary, footage from the premieres in Cannes and India; the film's (many) trailers and showreel; and a haphazard, completely context-free and unsubtitled assemblage of scenes from other films starring Khan, Rai and Dixit. Aside from the last feature, all of the extras are in English, making a nice capper to a film that should bring further Western attention to the Indian film industry.

Recommended: Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Good Date Movie