Heat and Dust (1983)

Unusually structured and travelling at about the speed of India's Metupalayam Ooty Nilgiri Passenger Train, this film still delivers an intriguing story.Set in India it has the bonus of authentic locations, and features two beautiful actresses at different stages of their careers in the same movie, although they don't share a single scene together.The story takes a little getting into. It's actually two intertwined stories and starts with Anne (Julie Christie) travelling to India to find out about the life of her great aunt Olivia (Greta Scacchi) - a forerunner of "Who Do You Think You Are?" Flashbacks reveal Olivia's story and the film cuts back and forth from one story to the other as we see that Anne's journey follows Olivia's path, and also begins to parallel her story.A fascinating aspect of the movie is how it reveals two Indias: one under the British Raj during the 1920's, which Olivia inhabited, and the modern one of the 1980's that Anne experiences.Over the years there have been many films about British rule in India - Hollywood loved an earlier period especially along the Northwest Frontier, but of late, British films and television have concentrated on the decades just before India's independence - the twilight of the Raj.Another critical element in the drama is the relationship between a semi-independent prince, the Nawab of Khatm (Shashi Kapoor), and the British rulers. The film shows the attitudes of the British and Indians towards each other, and also the attitudes of the British towards their fellow Britons. It highlights the class system that existed between the races and how crossing that line was linked to the balance of power.Despite being married to Douglas Rivers (Christopher Cazenove), a British colonial official, Olivia crosses the line, has an affair with the Nawab, and is virtually banished from both societies. Although Anne also has an affair with an Indian, it is 60-years later and no longer has the significance of her great aunt's fall from grace.This film looks good and composer Richard Robbins created an evocative score blending electronics with Indian instruments.Although the script and direction understates just about everything, even using narration to glide over what could have been emotion charged scenes, the combination of stars, locations and the lovingly recreated depiction of an era ensures that "Heat and Dust" still leaves an impression.

Excellent film, maybe Merchant-Ivory's best. The story is wonderfully compelling. I love how the lives of the two British women are linked together. It's fascinating to see how differently they were treated by falling in love an Indian at different times in the same century. Great roles for Julie Christie and Greta Scaachi to play in this beautiful and poetic film. It's filled with great character parts for the English and Indian people surrounding them. Lots of food for thought, the film touches on the traditions and ways of life of both cultures showing how trapped people could be. There are some funny incidents when the cultures clash. The end brings both sadness and hope. A very underrated film that deserves to be seen and remembered!

I just discovered this movie, which I must have missed when it was originally released. I am a big fan of Greta Scacchi since I saw her in "White Mischief" and I just lately admired Julie Christie in "Away from her". In the eighties, I went myself on an exploration trip through India and have been fascinated with this country forever. I was really looking forward to see the movie.I was a little bit amused to see Greta Scacchi again cast in the role of the adulterous wife in colonial times. In White Mischief, she decides first against poor Hughes Grant and marries a much older wealthy man, only to fall later for a dashing tall British officer in Kenya. In "Heat and Dust", she, playing Olivia is happily married to the dashing tall British officer but cannot resist a pompous wealthy Indian prince. I wonder if casting directors think that beauties like Greta have to be the toys of rich men? While Greta is constantly naked in "White Mischief" there is only one half nude scene in "Heat and Dust" and she is not yet quite as stunning as she is in "White Mischief". However, her character dominates above the character of Julie Christie and not only because of her beauty. The movie's charm is supposed to be the juxtaposition of the India in the 1920s versus the India in the 1980s. Julie Christie, as Ann explores the life of her great-ant, Olivia, who scandalously left her husband for the Indian nawab, but ended up living alone in the Himalayas... Both women fall for Indian men and both get pregnant. Olivia decides to abort the child, as she is not sure if it is her husbands or the nawab's child. The movie is filmed at the same locations. In the colonial times everything looks splendid and well maintained, in the eighties things have deteriorated . But all in all it gives an interesting insight in Indian life.Maybe the more exotic and luxurious costumes and decorations in the 1920segments make this part of the movie more memorable. The affairs in-between the British women and the Indian men are only sketchily shown, but it is made clear that they were as unacceptable in the 20s as they were in the 80s by both sides. The Indian society is governed by even more rules than the British one. This was Greta Scacchi first major film out of drama school , but she leaves a much stronger impression than Julie Christie, who took this role over a better paying offer for another film. Definitely, a very beautiful and entertaining film and worth while to have in a DVD collection.

Based on Ruth Prawer Jhabvala's Booker Prize winning novel of the same name, this film is not so much as being about India but rather using the country as an effective setting to tell a story spanning approximately 3 generations. Two story lines - one set in the past and one in the present - are juxtaposed and connected by the narrative of a young British woman who seeks to uncover the truth about an ancestor who once caused quite a scandal by having an affair with a local Nawab. The story lines examine the impact of Western and Indian cultures as lifestyles, social mores, and centuries of history clash and collide. A tapestry of India is woven, as seen through the eyes of the narrator, a foreigner, who sincerely attempts to grasp and interpret her observations. The story and the screenplay for this movie speak volumes about Ms. Jhabvala's extraordinary literary and cinematic talents as a social and historical commentator, storyteller, and screenwriter.