<!--QuoteBegin-ramana+Jun 30 2008, 10:24 PM-->QUOTE(ramana @ Jun 30 2008, 10:24 PM)<!--QuoteEBegin-->After Veera Pandya Kattabomman, the next favorite one is Kandukondain the Tamil rendering of Jane Austen's 'Sense and Sensibility.' Its the best rendering of that great English novel.[right][snapback]83583[/snapback][/right]<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->Personally I think the Brits have rendered Sense and Sensibility better at least in 2 out of 3 versions I've seen (don't much find the Thomson/Winslet/Grant one that memorable). Brits just do their own literature <i>and</i> American literature better than others. They are terrible at adapting French or Russian literature, I must say. Filled with distracting impossibilities like Latin rites in Tsarist Russia (Russia is Orthodox not Roman Catholic, even I know that), and English uppitiness vis-a-vis Republican France even when <i>playing</i> the French.
But as a Tamizh movie in a Tamizh setting, with a typically Indian plotline (come on, the story is <i>so</i> general, one can mistake it for a number of stories/books/movie plots you've often seen before), Kandukondain Kandukondain is exceptionally well-executed.
<b>ADDED:</b>
The plot elements that it shares with Austen's book:
- family of mum and 3 daughters kicked out by greedy sister-in-law
- middle sister's more into a 'romanticised' idea of romance, but finds out that her 'ideal' choice isn't all that great. Older steadfast soldier wins in the end.
- thwarted romance of more careful/rational older sister and her lover that comes out alright in the end.
I think that about covers the 'striking' similarities with Austen. Sounds like every other story. Next to that, these similarities are only in the <i>general</i> lines as described here; the details differ greatly. Plus, those general elements hardly constitute enough material to make a 2.5 hr movie: the rest derives from Kandukondain's own plot. That's why Menon didn't bother crediting Austen: a number of old films could sooner claim credit for inspiration. (In comparison, can't fathom why Herbert never sued Star Wars for blatantly ripping off a great many and very particular elements of his Dune series in detail <i>as well as</i> obviously the very unique larger setting, all while not mentioning Dune or Herbert in the credits.)
IMO, Kandukondain is not the better "Austen adaptation" compared to the 3 other Sense and Sensibilities I've caught on tele, but it <i>is</i> the better film.
But as a Tamizh movie in a Tamizh setting, with a typically Indian plotline (come on, the story is <i>so</i> general, one can mistake it for a number of stories/books/movie plots you've often seen before), Kandukondain Kandukondain is exceptionally well-executed.
<b>ADDED:</b>
The plot elements that it shares with Austen's book:
- family of mum and 3 daughters kicked out by greedy sister-in-law
- middle sister's more into a 'romanticised' idea of romance, but finds out that her 'ideal' choice isn't all that great. Older steadfast soldier wins in the end.
- thwarted romance of more careful/rational older sister and her lover that comes out alright in the end.
I think that about covers the 'striking' similarities with Austen. Sounds like every other story. Next to that, these similarities are only in the <i>general</i> lines as described here; the details differ greatly. Plus, those general elements hardly constitute enough material to make a 2.5 hr movie: the rest derives from Kandukondain's own plot. That's why Menon didn't bother crediting Austen: a number of old films could sooner claim credit for inspiration. (In comparison, can't fathom why Herbert never sued Star Wars for blatantly ripping off a great many and very particular elements of his Dune series in detail <i>as well as</i> obviously the very unique larger setting, all while not mentioning Dune or Herbert in the credits.)
IMO, Kandukondain is not the better "Austen adaptation" compared to the 3 other Sense and Sensibilities I've caught on tele, but it <i>is</i> the better film.