mesmerising biopic

Rating: 8/10 (3 August 2004)

This film from Richard Attenborough was the second 1980s success story for British cinema, and rightly so, winning Oscars including Best Actor for Ben Kingsley - playing Gandhi brilliantly here. Even if you don't know the story of Gandhi and where he was coming from, you can gain some understanding of and empathy with the man through this film.
Famous faces appear in brief roles throughout, including Edward Fox, Trevor Howard, John Mills, John Gielgud, and Saeed Jaffrey. Weightier roles go to Candice Bergen, Geraldine James, Roshan Seth (as Nehru), and Ian Charleson, and all have a chance to shine. There's also a brief early appearance from Daniel Day-Lewis as the chap who hassles Gandhi for walking on the pavement in the company of the white reverend.
A lengthy film and one which, of necessity, focuses on the politics of the time and the liberation of a state under the thumb of imperialist rule; but 'Gandhi' doesn't shy away from showing its subject as a human being and a man of integrity.