- Actors: Gillian Anderson, Hugh Bonneville
- Director: Gurinder Chadha
- Format: Color, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
- Language: English
- Subtitles: English, Spanish
- Region: Region 1
- Number of discs: 1
- Rated: Not Rated
- Studio: MPI Home Video
- DVD Release Date: December 12, 2017
- Run Time: 106 minutes
Despite the
title, Viceroy’s House is about the
elimination of the position of Viceroy of India with the transition of British India to independence in 1947. A final Viceroy is
tasked with the job of overseeing the transition, which inevitably divides the
country even further due to certain political aspirations. Had this remained
the focus of Viceroy’s House, it
could have been a compelling historical drama, but the screenplay by Paul
Mayeda Berges, Gurinder Chadha, and Moira Buffini splits the time between
actual events and an imagined melodrama between star-crossed lovers torn apart
by the politics. The result is uneven, often feeling as though more time would
be necessary to care about this collection of characters. One critic remarked
that this material might have been better suited for a mini-series, and I tend
to agree.
When Lord
Mountbatten (Hugh Bonneville) arrives in New
Delhi to oversee the transition to independence with
his wife Edwina (Gillian Anderson) and teenage daughter Pamela (Lily Travers),
he is faced with a country divided by religion and cultural differences. Though
the population is largely Hindu, a section of the country is also Muslim.
Fearing that they will be treated as second-hand citizens once the British have
left, the Muslim leaders advocate for the partition of India and the formation of Pakistan.
Despite his efforts to keep India
united, Lord Mountbatten soon discovers the political agenda behind the
decision.
Although we are
given plenty of scenes with political leaders arguing about the direction of India, there
are many gaps in the historical context of events. We are told that there are
riots and people dying all over India when plans for partition are made clear,
but the reason for this violence is never fully explained. It also feels
somewhat shameful that despite these events having a deep impact on India,
much of Viceroy’s House is focused on
the white characters. The only element of the story countenancing this is a
contrived romance between a Hindu man and a Muslim woman.
Jeet (Manish
Dayal) is a Hindu working in the staff quarters of the palace who is in love
with a Muslim girl named Aalia (Huma Qureshi), who father he met while they
were imprisoned together. Although Aalia also loves him, she has been promised
to a Muslim soldier who has been fighting for the British. This love triangle
is supposed to show the personal sacrifices made when India was
divided, but it mostly comes off as contrived melodrama. Purposefully
sentimental in the most unnatural way, this love story adds heart to the film
but rarely meshes with the scenes of political struggle. Even the director’s
own personal connections to these events in history don’t feel naturally
introduced, so that the sentimentality of the narrative always feels
manufactured the way a true story shouldn’t.
The DVD includes
a handful of deleted scenes and the film’s trailer.
Entertainment Value:
5.5/10
Quality of
Filmmaking: 6.5/10
Historical
Significance: 4/10
Special Features: 2/10
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