The second feature film collaboration between producer Ismail Merchant, director James Ivory, and screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, Shakespeare Wallah (1965) is loosely based on the experiences of British actors Geoffrey Kendal and Laura Liddell, who ran a traveling theater company that staged Shakespearean works in rural India. The pair play versions of themselves here, along with their daughter Felicity Kendal, who makes her film debut at the age of 17 as Lizzie. The film is roughly divided between the travails of the company as it tries to eke out an existence in an environment that displays minimal interest in Shakespeare, and impressionable young Lizzie’s falling into a love triangle involving a somewhat immature Indian aristocrat (Shashi Kapoor) and his mercurial Bollywood starlet girlfriend (Madhur Jaffrey). The filmmakers were clearly influenced by Satyajit Ray’s visual style in capturing the challenging Indian landscape, even bringing in the master Indian filmmaker to compose the fetching score. But whereas Ray created complex works that plumbed emotional experiences, Shakespeare Wallah often feels like an overextended travelogue with half-considered social commentary and a ho-hum love story tacked on. Still, fans of the Merchant-Ivory canon will appreciate this new 2K restoration in an edition with extras including cast and crew interviews. A strong optional purchase. (P. Hall)
Shakespeare Wallah
Cohen, 122 min., in English & Hindi w/English subtitles, not rated, DVD: $25.99, Blu-ray: $30.99 Volume 33, Issue 4
Shakespeare Wallah
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