One of the most outstanding screen biographies

Rating: Null/10 (15 October 2003)

Until very recently major Hollywood Studios seldom attempted to produce biographies, but when they did the subjects were usually legendary figures or long dead historic characters that impose few restraints on the screenwriters freedom - some pseudo-biographies even featured fictional characters. We have only to think of The Ten commandments, Cleopatra, Jason and the Argonauts or even Ben Hur to recognise that freedom from the rigours of historical veracity is the first requirement for the production of such epics. It is British films which have established an enviable reputation for widely acclaimed biographies that do not seriously distort historical facts. These include such masterpieces as Lawrence of Arabia, The Young Winston, Elizabeth (1998), Isadora, and That Hamilton Woman. Richard Attenborough's "Gandhi" also takes a very high place in this collection.

As a Hindu mystic Gandhi is not an easy character for a Western European to fully appreciate but after watching this film one does really begin to develop some understanding of his life and times. Historically there are only a few recorded triumphs of non-violent revolts over the government of the day - the best known are probably the rise of Christianity in pagan Rome, and the independence of India from the British Raj. The latter is better documented, and this film is significant because of the way in which it shows how non-violent protest can be successful against what appear to be all the odds. However this is of less importance than the fine re-creation of life as it was lived in India at the time, and the magnificent acting - particularly the award winning performance of Ben Kingsley as Mahatma Gandhi. The film is lengthy (running for 188 min.) but utterly fascinating, and not overlong as it has such a vast sprawling canvas to cover. It should certainly be seen by every film lover. However it is probably best viewed in two parts as it is too fine a work to allow ones attention to flag.
In the 20 years since this film was made the indigenous Indian film industry has developed to the point where there are now some very fine Indian Directors and a large pool of other talent. There have also been some changes in historical perspectives because of the ongoing friction between Hindus and Muslims on the Indian subcontinent. It can only be a matter of time before an Indian production company creates a new film about Gandhi's life from a strictly Indian point of view. When this occurs it will make a fascinating comparison with this film which still remains one of the truly great screen biographies. I really look forward to the release of such a film.