The Far pavilions is based on M.M.Kaye's book 'The far pavilions'. It is a good but not completely faithful adaptation of a 1200 page novel condensed into a 5-hour miniseries, on a two-disk set.
It is a visual feast depicting the British period in India, in the 19th century. The central character Ashton/Ash Pelham-Martyn spends first 11 years of his life in India, as an Indian (Ashok), after his birth parents who are British, are dead. Upon his return to India (from England), as a member of the British Army, Ash meets again the love of his life- Princess Anjuli- who was his childhood friend. She is about to be married to an old man who is a ruler of a princely state (Bhithor) in India. Anjuli is doing this only to help her younger sister, while sacrificing her own love. Anjuli, a Rajput woman with one-fourth Russian blood in her, would keep her word even though it means sacrificing her love for Ash/Ashok. While narrating their struggle against a society that strongly believed in caste and race, the movie paints a picture of the British and the Indians in that period of history quite well. The art direction, background music, and cinematography are excellent, showing the richness of the land. Many scenes were filmed in Rajasthan, a western state, that is rich in history of its people. The snow capped peaks of the Himalyas are lovely.
Ben Cross does a superb job of expressing the inner struggle of Ash (Ashok/Ashton) as "two persons in one body" and the passionate but disappointed lover of the princess Anjuli. Amy Irving succeeds in showing the quiet strength, pride and sadness of Anjuli. Many well known actors have added to the characters- Christopher Lee as Rao Saheb (the uncle of the two princesses), Omar Sheriff as Koda Dad- the horse expert, and others.
Where the movie/miniseries comes up short is toward the end.
SPOILERS AHEAD...........
About three fourth of the miniseries stays faithful to the book. However, the last 300 pages have been condensed considerably, and the events are shown in a different order. The fight in Afghanistan and the death of Wally Hamilton (and others) takes place earlier in the movie.
In the book Anjuli, after escape from Bhithor, goes through a period of recovery. She has been emaciated due to starvation and torture. There are few signs of this in her appearance when she escapes Bhithor with Ash and his companions. In the book Ash marries her on a boat, because no one would perform religious rights for them. Although married, it is too dangerous for them to openly live as a couple. They eventually decide to move to a valley in the Himalayas -their Far Pavilions. The miniseries ends after escape from Bhithor, when Ash and Anjuli are finally together for good. Some of the earlier scenes (the wedding, the Suttee ceremony) are long drawn out. They could have been shortened to include the rest of the story, in its original order (the Afghan war takes place after the escape from Bhithor in the book).
I had a problem with making Koda Dad such a major character in the movie. In the book, although an important influence on young Ash, he was not on that trip to Bhithor. He had long retired. Including him took away from some of the other characters like Sarji and Ash's favorite horse Dagobaz.
The first disk is much more entertaining and more faithful to the book than the second one.
The end in the miniseries seems sudden, compared to the slowness of earlier parts, and has less impact than in the book, which takes the time to show the struggles and strengths of the two main characters.
Other than that, this is a good adaptation of the book. It fits in the 'movie' format. I like the book better for its details, but the movie is a feast for the eyes. It created in me the desire to read more about this period in history. Definitely recommended.
It is a visual feast depicting the British period in India, in the 19th century. The central character Ashton/Ash Pelham-Martyn spends first 11 years of his life in India, as an Indian (Ashok), after his birth parents who are British, are dead. Upon his return to India (from England), as a member of the British Army, Ash meets again the love of his life- Princess Anjuli- who was his childhood friend. She is about to be married to an old man who is a ruler of a princely state (Bhithor) in India. Anjuli is doing this only to help her younger sister, while sacrificing her own love. Anjuli, a Rajput woman with one-fourth Russian blood in her, would keep her word even though it means sacrificing her love for Ash/Ashok. While narrating their struggle against a society that strongly believed in caste and race, the movie paints a picture of the British and the Indians in that period of history quite well. The art direction, background music, and cinematography are excellent, showing the richness of the land. Many scenes were filmed in Rajasthan, a western state, that is rich in history of its people. The snow capped peaks of the Himalyas are lovely.
Ben Cross does a superb job of expressing the inner struggle of Ash (Ashok/Ashton) as "two persons in one body" and the passionate but disappointed lover of the princess Anjuli. Amy Irving succeeds in showing the quiet strength, pride and sadness of Anjuli. Many well known actors have added to the characters- Christopher Lee as Rao Saheb (the uncle of the two princesses), Omar Sheriff as Koda Dad- the horse expert, and others.
Where the movie/miniseries comes up short is toward the end.
SPOILERS AHEAD...........
About three fourth of the miniseries stays faithful to the book. However, the last 300 pages have been condensed considerably, and the events are shown in a different order. The fight in Afghanistan and the death of Wally Hamilton (and others) takes place earlier in the movie.
In the book Anjuli, after escape from Bhithor, goes through a period of recovery. She has been emaciated due to starvation and torture. There are few signs of this in her appearance when she escapes Bhithor with Ash and his companions. In the book Ash marries her on a boat, because no one would perform religious rights for them. Although married, it is too dangerous for them to openly live as a couple. They eventually decide to move to a valley in the Himalayas -their Far Pavilions. The miniseries ends after escape from Bhithor, when Ash and Anjuli are finally together for good. Some of the earlier scenes (the wedding, the Suttee ceremony) are long drawn out. They could have been shortened to include the rest of the story, in its original order (the Afghan war takes place after the escape from Bhithor in the book).
I had a problem with making Koda Dad such a major character in the movie. In the book, although an important influence on young Ash, he was not on that trip to Bhithor. He had long retired. Including him took away from some of the other characters like Sarji and Ash's favorite horse Dagobaz.
The first disk is much more entertaining and more faithful to the book than the second one.
The end in the miniseries seems sudden, compared to the slowness of earlier parts, and has less impact than in the book, which takes the time to show the struggles and strengths of the two main characters.
Other than that, this is a good adaptation of the book. It fits in the 'movie' format. I like the book better for its details, but the movie is a feast for the eyes. It created in me the desire to read more about this period in history. Definitely recommended.