The third part of director Deepa Mehta's trilogy (the first two are "Fire" and "Earth") "Water" is set in India in the 1930's. Chuyia (Sarala) is an eight year old little girl was married off to a boy who has now died. She's a widow even though she's not even an adult. In Indian culture widows must remain remain unmarried for the rest of her life or face the prospect of a very unpleasant reincarnation as a lesser creature. Young Chuyia is sent to live with other widows who are much older than her. In a curious contradicition in the Indian culture we discover that widows can be prostitutes (such as Chuyia's older friend Kalyani (Lisa Ray) yet be seen as "pure". On one of their adventures in the city the two meet Narayan (John Abraham) a young student who follows Gandhi's beliefs. He falls in love with Kalyani and she cares for him as well. The difficulty they face is trying to be together in a cul ture that has such strict guidelines for their women. ***

A well made thoughtful glimpse into another culture "Water" is told using subtitles but much of the plot can be gleaned from observing the actors interact with each other. The actors are all natural and appealingand Mehta manages to make the story understandable to other cultures with very different practices. ---

Image & Sound:

The rich cinematography by Giles Nuttgens is a highlight of the DVD. Carefully transferred the strong colors of the Sri Lanka landscape look marvelous. The audio likewise is quite good with nice use of the surround channels for sound effects and to create the environment where the women live. The subtitles are in English and French as the dialog is in Hindi for one version of the film (see below).

We get an audio commentary by director Mehta in English on the second audio track. Mehta discusses the cinematography, inspiration for the story but also falls into describing much of the action as well but usually provides some cultural background as well. ***

We also get another version of the film which was shot at the same time with English dialog. This isn't simply a redubbing of the film but an actual reshooting of the same film at the same time in both English and Hindi. The Hindi version of the film although a little distracting because you have to read subtitles is the superior version as the actors sound less stilted and more natural in their native tongue. There are some minor differences in the scenes that do make a difference in the enjoyment of the story as well with the English version slightly shorter as well. ***

We also get a nearly 20 minute featurette on the making of the movie featuring interviews with the cast and director. "The Making of 'Water'" is also included and is a fine featurette that was sent out to the media as part of an Electronic Press Kit when it was released theatrically. ***

We also get the Canadian TV show "Scanning the Movies" which devoted two episodes to the film. It features interviews with the director and producer David Hamilton. There are two scenes that were deleted and they are included as well as a gallery of still photographs. ---

Final Words: