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Reviews
Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love (1996)
Good Eye Candy
Its probably hard to take a subject like the Kama Sutra and distill it into a good movie that's not rated X. That being said, this movie does a good job at creating a plot around a tale of forbidden love that is set in an India of ages past.
The staging and art direction are all well done-- and one certainly gets a sense of the opulence of India, simply through the luxuriant costume design that pops up in every scene. Where the movie has problems is that the protagonists are attractive, but not compelling as actors. We feel pity for their plight as part of a caste, but the villains are so equally cardboard that its hard to feel much empathy for anyone in this movie. The other curious aspect of this movie is the ending-- which isn't happy... and seems more a statement on the caste system itself. The feminism of the main character in the final scenes seems quite absurd, but perhaps that is just the nature of this difficult to adapt material.
Whatever Happened to Harold Smith? (1999)
Brilliant!
This film is absolutey delightful, a combination of a well-written and hilarious script, and some amazing art direction. Every scene in this movie presents its audience with an eyeful of imaginative staging. If you liked the movie The Royal Tennenbaums, see this... its more funny and even more visually rich.