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Plot Summary
The story of Water begins in 1938 India as an 8 year old girl, who barely even remembers her wedding and has little comprehension of her marriage, has just been widowed. Required by ancient Hindu laws to now leave society, she is brought to a dilapidated widow house or ashram where, according to custom, her hair will be shorn, her clothes exchanged for white robes and the rest of her life, until her death, will be spent in renunciation. But the feisty, precocious, disbelieving Chuyia (Sarala) soon turns the house upside down with her rebellious spark. She begins to have a profound affect on the other women who live there, in particular the devout Shakuntala (Seema Biswas) and the beautiful Kalyani (Lisa Ray) who has been forced into prostitution by the domineering head widow, Madhumati (Manorama). It is Chuyia who leads Kalyani to meet the alluring law student and Gandhi nationalist Narayan (John Abraham), with whom Kalyani falls in love, despite the taboos. What happens next - an attempt at escape fueled by passion and bravery -- will change Chuyia forever and bring both tragedy and an unexpected ray of hope to the widow house.
Credits
Director
Screenwriter
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Rotten Tomatoes Movie Reviews
TOMATOMETER
91%- Reviews Counted: 90
- Fresh: 82
- Rotten: 8
- Average Rating: 7.6/10
Top Critics' Reviews
Fresh: Quite possibly the best picture of the year thus far, with no fewer than three of the most luminous female performances I have ever seen onscreen.
Fresh: The film is lovely in the way Satyajit Ray's films are lovely. It sees poverty and deprivation as a condition of life, not an exception to it, and finds beauty in the souls of its characters.
Fresh: Below its surface, Water isn't about religion, politics or even India. It's about timeless and universal divides between people, when humanity is eclipsed by self-serving subjugation.
Fresh: It levels its criticisms within a climate of respect, a combination that creates a work of true humanity.
Customer Reviews
A Beautiful Masterpiece
This movie will forever be on my top five movies to see. I originally rented the movie from Blockbuster because the cover was interesting and I was indesperate need of a movie to watch. I'm very glad to have discovered this movie. It's a very powerful and captivating story. The filming and editing is exceptional and smooth. I highly recommend this movie. It will make you laugh and cry and leave you with a deep feeling that's ultimately indescribable.
Outstanding!!!
I own this movie via a purchase I made at Target. I was browsing through the movies and came across this random title. The movie is beautifully made and the actors performances are excellent. Deepa Mehta is an inciteful and brilliant director. This is one of 4 movies in the genre. I'm glad to see that iTunes has added this thought-provoking film to their collection.
incredible and Breathtaking
This movie is amazingly powerful ! You will laugh and cry watching this film . But mostly we should be grateful this movie was ever allowed to be filmed and finally was seen by audiences . It was orignally banned from ever being filmed . The acting especially by the little girl is amazing ! I would highly recommend this film . I cried so much by the end but the message the films says is really powerful and needs to be seen.
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- $14.99
- Genre: Drama
- Released: 2006
- © 2006 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All rights reserved.