Customer Reviews

Mississippi Masala

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The DVD has nothing but the movie itself--not a single extra. They could have done a documentary on the 1972 expulsion of people of Indian descent from Uganda which is where this movie starts. It certainly got me interested to wiki info on that especially given we had many Indian immigrants at that time move to Canada from Ugnada.

The story itself is a wonderfully layered look at cultures in collision, ethnic identity and traditions old and new. I felt the weakest link was the female lead Sarita Choudhury. This was her first ever movie so I'll cut her some slack but if you check her imdb filmography that covers 44 appearances in TV and film since then and nothing spectacular stands out. So maybe it was just her. I just wasn't drawn to her character as much as the other Indians in the flick.

Also, considering this came out in 1991, the whole out of Africa setup seems almost eerie when you consider what has happened on the African continent since from Rwanda to the Congo as far as people being displaced (and outright slaughtered in their millions).

Anyway, a very young Denzel Washington is superb in this and strikes just the right tone of a young man trying to make his way in a Mississippi still struggling with its racist past.

The whole racist card, too, is flipped and twisted all around with Indians and blacks in the Deep South having so much in common yet the mixing of these two races causes no end of unintended trouble for both sides in this movie.

This movie sort of bombed at the box office only making $7 million at the time but it deserved a far better fate.

I love this film. I saw this film when I was a young. My aunt had free tickets to the first showing at the Ritz, in Philly (The Ritz only shows movies that are not well known, such as independent films, documentaries, etc.) This movie stayed in my mind and now I own it on DVD. It is excellent. I loved Denzel in it and Charles S. Dutton is funny also. If you are a Denzel fan, you must have this one in your collection.

If you aren't familiar with Mira Nair, the brilliant Indian filmmaker who has brought us magnificent (and more recent films) like Monsoon Wedding, this is a great introduction to her genius. I happen to be a Denzel Washington fan, and wanted to see his earlier work, which led me to rent this film.

It is set in the South, and is centered on Meena (Sarita Chudhury), an young, ethnically-Indian, Ugandan national who immigrated to the Southern United States with her parents after the uprising of Idi Amin (Ugandan president) who decided that the way to rid the nation of the "Asian problem" was to expel them from the country to begin with. She settles in the States, cleaning hotel bathrooms with her Mum, and living with her parents as a 24 year old woman. Demetrius (Denzel Washington) is a young African-American man who cleans carpets and helps support his family and stays out of trouble. What initially starts out as a "rebound" relationship turns into something more--which upsets both sets of families. Though, Meena and Demetrius are outcast in a White culture, there are still divisions between their races that are reinforced by their parents and relatives. It also is an interesting juxtaposition of Meena's family and their experiences with Black Ugandans (ethnic Indians as the ultimate "untouchables" in the African nation), and how Indians in the U.S. South are viewed in comparison with African-Americans who endured White racism, and, before that, slavery and great oppression for many years.

The acting is beautiful in this film, and the love story of the interracial couple is engaging, funny, and touching. For Mira Nair buffs---she makes an appearance in the wedding scene, early on, as one of the gossipy guests! Hint: She has short black hair.......
Don't miss this beautiful, heartfelt and thoughtful film.

What a wonderful film. Kudos to Mira Nair, all of the actors and crewpeople, the producers, and the extras. This little gem of a film has not only stood the test of time, but is quietly growing in stature. Certainly one of the better efforts in Denzel Washington's body of work.

Other commentators have noted how good of job Nair does in making this film a "Masala" at many levels. Everything from the story, to the actors, the sets, the lighting and much else besides communicates and celebrates the vibrancy of life and of culture. Another sometimes overlooked aspect of the film's appeal is that this story is emblematic; we all KNOW and can relate to these characters, because we sense that they are based on real people.

This is a dignified story, told with passion and humor and spice. In short, this film is exactly what the title says it is. In short it's a wonderful slice of life.

Job well done.

I'm a big fan of Denzel, and all reviewers are right about the quality and sensuality of the love story that is central to this movie. And where else will most of us get to see Denzel do "The Electric Slide?" But...having said that, I found that the love story was the least interesting thing about this movie! I was fascinated to learn about the Indian culture in the South (and I have seen the "American owned" signs on motels in the South, an obvious attempt to attract patrons who don't want to stay at an Indian owned motel). The deep pain of exile felt by the father was the most moving element to me. I felt moved to tears at several points, and at the end. As a Jew, I identified very strongly with the father's and family's distress at being forcibly and violently evicted from home based on racial and ethnic hatred. A wonderful film.

This film is a wonderfully acted, directed and scripted parable on the power of love to overcome racial and ethnic divisions, filled with humor, insight, pathos and inspiration, and which completely avoids the trap of becoming preachy.
One of its particularly interesting insights for me was its take on the polarizing nature of black-white racial divisions in this country. This is shown not only by the negative reaction of the local Indian community in this small Mississippi town to the romance of one of its women by a black man, but, even more revealingly, by the response of the local whites, which results in the bank calling in its loan on Denzel Washington's carpet cleaning business, along with the loss of his white clientele. Even though the relationship in question is between two dark skinned people, the whites react to this as though the Indian woman is white. In otherwords, for the whites, if you are not black you are white, or, at least, the equivalent of white.
I strongly recommend this movie.

What a brilliant piece of low-key, realistic movie making, from the days when Mira Nair was making in your face movies such as Salaam Bombay and Mississipi Masala.

The first thing admirable about it is Nair's ability to merge three cultures (Uganda, India, & Southern American) into an enchanting love story. An Indian family of a man, his wife and their young daughter Mina are expelled from Uganda under the reign of dictator Amin. The family eventually moves to the U.S. When Mina grows up she finds herself caught in a curious cultural twist and considers herself a mix "masala". She later falls in love with a black carpet cleaner (played immaculately by Denzil) only to stir up a hornet's nest in her family, culture and community.

The movie is from 1992, so the mild racism undercurrent may be a bit tired but wasn't when it came out, in fact most of the ironies (e.g., both the lovers are "colored" in different shades) are shown in a light-hearted and dignified manner.

The movie has a clutch of hilarious moments as well, which make it an all round fun movie to watch. Both the protagonists, Denzil as the southern man and Sarita Chaudhari as the Indian woman, are actually quite likeable characters and you end up caring about both of them.

A very wholesome treat to watch!

I have waited years for the release of this DVD. It does not have a lot of extras but the picture is clear and the movie just as wonderful as I remember.

Other reviewers have given opinions about the movie. I just want to point out that this is one of only two romantic films with Denzel Washington and this is the only one where he plays someone who is both sexy and monogomus.

The movie tells the story of Mina's father played by Roshan Seth and his struggle with what happend when their family was expelled from Uganda by Idi Amin. The romance between Mina and Dimitrius is a terrific plot device that forces Mina's father to examine his views of the past. He has to resolve his feelings for his best friend, Okelo, who he felt betrayed him because of race in order to get on with his life.

The resoloution of the love story is not given as much time as I would like but you do know the outcome.

Buy this movie it is well worth it!

I've been a fan of Mira Nair's "Mississippi Masala" since seeing it's original theatrical release in the early '90s. I was very dissapointed, when for a good period of time it was out of print.Now to my great surprise and delight the movie has been released to DVD."Mississippi Masala" is a wonderful comedy/drama about coming of age, race relations and ruminations of home and the heart.Director, Mira Nair has deftly told the story of a transplanted Indian family, who has uneasily settled in rural Mississippi.We learn (in a series of backflashes) how the family had to sadly leave their native country of Uganda, under a mass expulsion ordered by dictator,General Idi Amin in the early '70s. The family's father, Jaye (well played by Roshan Seth) loses everything including his property, his best friend, his country and his self respect.Fast forward eighteen years later. The immigrant family's daughter, Mina (Sarita Choudury) has grown into a beautiful young women and is the 'Masala' of the film's title (a hot & spicey mixture of exotic ingrediants). Through a series of comical incidents she meets and falls in love with an pesonable, African American man named Demitrious (Denzel Washington), who runs his own carpet cleaning business.Sparks fly as the area's two minority communities (African-American & Indian) react with both hostlity and humor to the lover's interacial romance.This is a story about discovering one's place in life. About finding out where you belong and being with the one you love. Eventually the main characters learn the lesson that "home is where the heart is".This is wonderful moving film that touches both the heart and the funnybone.I highly recommend it!