DVDebut for VICEROY'S HOUSE, Gurinder Chadha's superb distillation of India/Pakistan's "independence"

History, we are told, is always written by the winners. In that case, the history of the independence from Britain of India (and the concurrently-created country of Pakistan) has none of these. Certainly not India nor Pakistan, though some might suggest that the British Empire itself was the biggest winner here, being able, first via its colonization of India, to vastly increase Britain's wealth at the expense of the conquered, and then, depleted of its superpower status by World War II and unable to hold on to India, by "granting" the sub-continent its independence while starting one of the world's most vicious religion wars, which resulted in thousands dead and thousands more homeless -- while allowing, for awhile at least, Britain to hang on to those ever-necessary oil reserves. Good job!

If the above description would seem to simplify things a bit, when you take the long view, the simplification is not by much. One of the remarkable achievements of VICEROY'S HOUSE, the latest film from Kenya-born, raised-in-London filmmaker Gurinder Chadha (shown at left, of Bhaji on the Beach, Bend It Like Beckham and Bride and Predjudice) is how she is able to capture the pomp and ceremony, the history and politics, and the personal lives and motives of a half dozen leading characters and then blend all this together into an intelligent, detailed and often quite moving film.

As deftly written, with an eye to both history and drama, by Paul Mayeda Berges and Moira Buffini (with some help from Ms Chadha), the movie posits as its heroes Lord Louis Mountbatten, the final British Viceroy of India (played with his usual class and flair by Hugh Bonneville, above, left), his wife (a reasonable, stern and loving Gillian Anderson, above, right) and their daughter, all of whom are presented as more caring of the Indians than were their predecessors. In each of their ways, these people are shown to genuinely want to do what is best for India. But as history consistently reminds us, what is "best" must take in an amalgam of viewpoints.

In this case, is "best" a division into two separate states made up of the Indian Hindus and a new Pakistan of predominantly Muslims, as Jawaharlal Nehru (Taveer Ghani, above) and Muslim leader Muhammad Ali Jinnah (Denzil Smith, below) both want (depending, of course, on the territory they will be given)? Or is it having India remain an undivided state, as populist leader Mahatma Gandhi (Neeraj Kabi) insists?

The Viceroy and his family have been plunked down in the midst of all this, and whatever they can do or decide is, as always, dependent on the powers-that-be, working their magic (or horror) in the background, unseen but never unfelt. All this plays out beside a Romeo & Juliet kind of love story between a Muslim young woman (Huma Qureshi) and a Hindu young man (Manish Dayal), shown below.

Fortunately this love story is brought to enough life and force that it manages to compete for our interest without detracting from the politics and history involved. Ms Chadha is smart enough not to insist on heroes and villains among the Muslim or Hindus, both of whose viewpoints, needs and demands are shown us with surprising force, brevity and often wit. The more we see and learn, the more awful and intractable the situation seems.

TrustMovies was but six years old when the partition of India took place, so he has only come to understand the situation haltingly and certainly not fully since that time. Yet the results of this partition have continued to plague the world, as these enforced divisions of state -- Korea and Vietnam, to name a couple more -- so often do.

If you are looking for an intelligent, thoughtful and moving example of "history goes to the movies," I don't think you could do much better than Viceroy's House -- the only major vice of which, I feel, is the tacked-on finale that brings our love story to a not very believable end. I suppose Ms Chadha wanted to give her audience its feel-good moment. And indeed it does feel good. But much too convenient and not particularly real.

From IFC Films and running 106 minutes, the film hits DVD tomorrow, Tuesday, December 12 -- for purchase and/or rental. And it's now available for streaming via Netlfix.

HEAT AND DUST: Blu-ray/DVD debut for Merchant/Ivory's 4K-restored semi-classic tale of India in the 1920s and the 1980s

If it is not quite up to the levels of those James Ivory and Ismail Merchant classics, Howard's End, Maurice, A Room With a View, or The Remains of the Day, not to worry.  The Cohen Film Collection's new release of the 4K restoration of the duo's 1983 film, HEAT AND DUST is more than good enough to rate a viewing (or two -- if not an outright purchase).

This lesser-known but quite fine collaboration, featuring a screenplay by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala (based on her novel), continues the team's exploration of the sub-continent, its history, culture and mores, with the usual accent on the stupidity and cretinous entitlement of British rule -- without ever leaving out India's own stupidity and backwardness in its attempts at self-rule. The ironies here literally stumble over each other in their sad, merry dance.

Director Ivory, pictured at right, and his screenwriter also poke fun at the American search for "identity and inner peace" that grew ever more assertive during the latter half of the last century, as the young and naive, impacted by the Hare Krishna and other sects, descended upon India in record numbers, searching and/or whining to beat the band.

The young actor, Charles McCaughan (shown below, right), who embodies this American abroad, is a delight, and thanks to the filmmakers' ability to explore human frailty, hypocrisy and denial so cleverly and gracefully, no taint of nastiness or the misanthropic is ever felt.

The director and screenwriter also excel at making clear how the British view of the Indians (just as vice versa) is tainted, so that anything we hear from either about the other must be taken with that proverbial grain of salt. Oh, it very well could be true. But ambiguity always remains.

The stories here span two time periods: India of the 1920s, during which the assistant collector (Christopher Cazenove, above, left) and his new bride (the gloriously beautiful Greta Scacchi, above, right) must adjust to both their British bosses and the India royalty around them.

This tale plays out against another of India in the 1980s, where we find Scacchi's great niece, played by Julie Christie, above, setting out to learn as much as possible about her great aunt's story. Both tales fascinate, and both actresses are, as expected, first-rate -- as is the entire cast, which is also to be expected in a Merchant/Ivory presentation.

Also important to the story is royalty, personified via the Nawab (above, played by Shashi Kapoor, who died only this past week, at age 79), who is quite drawn to the wife of the assistant collector, even as Ms Christie's character finds herself growing closer to the husband (Zakir Hussain) of the Indian family with whom she is boarding during her research.

Back and forth we go, but under Ivory and Jhabwala's firm and constant hands, we are never confused nor unsure about where we are -- even if, quite intentionally, we can not always be certain of motive or even occasional actions. Eventually all (or most) is revealed, and the results leaves us satisfied but a little sad, as does so much the fine work of this storied team.

Along the way, we're treated to some gorgeous and amazing set pieces --state dinners and the like -- and even get another small but sharp and juicy performance from Merchant/Ivory regular Madhur Jaffrey (shown below, behind those binoculars), playing the mother of the Nawab.

And so it goes, for yet another of this pair's remarkable forays into human nature and cultural prisons. Running a lengthy but always interesting two hours and ten minutes, Heat and Dust will hit Blu-ray and DVD this coming Tuesday, December 12, in a two-disc set packed to the gills with Bonus Features. I hope that Cohen Media Group will continue its restorations of these Merchant/Ivory films until we're able to see every last one of them so beautifully and rigorously restored.

Catnip for seniors: John Madden's THE BEST EXOTIC MARIGOLD HOTEL arrives

Sure to be a huge winner at the box-office of theaters smart enough to court the elderly, John Madden's latest directorial offering has none of the truly clever caché of Shakespeare in Love (there's no Tom Stoppard-level scribe involved here), but THE BEST EXOTIC MARIGOLD HOTEL, adapted by Ol Parker from the novel by Deborah Moggach, is certainly good enough entertain-ment to please most relatively discerning seniors. Just to find an A-level movie about and cast with  the over-6o set is enticing.

Not being on the list for most mainstream movies, I wasn't invited to a press screening of this one, but a senior friend of ours wanted so much to see it, we accompanied her to a weekend showing -- where the long line trailing out of the theater lobby had almost no one under 60 in it. If Fox Searchlight markets this one well enough, we can expect a hit and maybe a number of other decent films with and for seniors in the offing.

The trailer has managed to ruin some of the movie's best laughs, but don't worry, there are others. There are also good stories that come out of the half-dozen lives shown here: all elderly folk who have decided -- for reasons involving money and security -- to leave England behind to go live their twilight years in India.

The characters and the cast who portray them prove a good mix of types and "stars." Every one of them -- from Maggie Smith (two photos up) and Judi Dench (above, center) to Bill Nighy (three photos up), Tom Wilkinson (center, two photos below), Celia Imrie (seated above, center right, Penelope Wilton (below, in the penultimate photo) and Ronald Pickup (seated above, right) -- does crisp, thoughtful, concise work, making the most of those moments that add up to as full a character as this kind of movie can create.

The Indians are represented by Slumdog Millionaire's Dev Patel (above, on motorcycle), with his girlfriend (played by Tena Desai) seated behind him. He's the young man who's trying to make a "go" of the dilapidated hotel in which our ensemble is staying. Because this is, above all, a feel-good movie, that "go" is made, of course -- as is everything necessary for everyone on view. Even death, when it comes, is somehow wonderful, graceful, easy and timely. Hey, we seniors need to know that all will be well.

Patel's character quotes a saying which is then repeated at movie's end to the effect that everything will turn out all right. And if it isn't all right, this simply means that it isn't yet finished. Ah, if only. Anyone who knows history -- choose any country -- knows that, over time, thousands, millions of people have led awful lives, and then they've died. The movie also cheats by making difficult things look easy. Just when did Maggie Smith's character's hip replacement happen? And where was even a touch of the post-op therapy she'd be needing? Ah, well: It's feel-good. So feel good, for Christ sake!

I know it may sound like I am down on this movie. But I thoroughly enjoyed it as it was being digitally delivered. It's a fun ride, driven by consummate actors, and written and directed (Mr. Madden is pictured below) with a good degree of care and skill. So go, enjoy, revel even. (It will be recommended by nearly every senior you know, so you might as well give in early and see it.)

Afterwards, in the quiet of your own thinking, a little doubt may creep in, and you'll be aware that, unless you are among the one percent, life in the twilight years will not be this easy (even, or maybe especially, in India). Nor will death. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel has opened all over the place,  in a number of our major cities and probably at several theaters in each -- with more theaters and cities to come as the weeks go by.