Ed's Review Dot Com

Eros International, Reliance Big Pictures, Vinod Chopra Productions

Aamir Khan, Madhavan, Boman Irani, Kareena Kapoor, Sharman Joshi

3 Idiots is a Bollywood film. It’s partially English, but has subtitles. It’s the story of 3 friends, well, actually more than 3 who are students in an Engineering University who disagree with the premise of all that is important is grades and a degree and the opportunity to migrate to the United States. Rancho (Aamir Khan) is the leader and is always in trouble with the dean because his view is that they should teach Engineering to people who love engineering. Instead they are teaching memorization and test taking and how to get a good grade. The story is told in flashback where Rancho has been missing five years, and the friends are trying to find him to find out what happened to him. After this setup, we see a series of flashbacks to the trouble the guys get in through following Rancho who seems to be the only student in the school who really loves to learn Engineering.

THis is a very funny film. It also has a lot of Bollywood music and dance throughout and an interesting love story. Rancho meets Pia (Kareena Kapoor) while crashing her sister’s wedding, and doesn’t realize she is the daughter of the Dean. She is engaged to a guy who doesn’t appreciate her and only cares about posessions and wealth and power. Pia is attracted to Rancho, but it’s a difficult row to hoe, as there are many problems to face.

This film has been long awaited by the fans of Bollywood films, and for us white western folk, it’s a great initiation to this genre. It’s got enough English to be easy enough to follow, and subtitles for the rest. It’s got the best of Bollywood in song and dance mixed with a charming love story and humor that matches some of the funniest movies out there. These guys are in trouble all the time, and the way they react is a riot. I highly recommend 3 Idiots for anyone who doesn’t mind subtitles who would like to see the situation from the other side, from inside India where kids are just trying to find a way to support their families and have a better life. It’s not as easy as we think. It’s got a lot of heart and a lot of humor and is well worth it. One warning though. This is a very, very long film. It’s nearly 3 hours and it certainly did not need to be that long. But at least you’ll get your money’s worth as it’s a funny movie and sure to please.

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