Viceroy's House

VICEROY'S HOUSE

Director : Gurinder Chadha

Year : 2017

Genre : Historical Drama

Rating : ***1/2

If you were to judge it purely on the design of its terribly airbrushed poster, you would be led to believe that Gurinder Chada's latest film 'Viceroy's House' is a Merchant Ivory-esque historical drama, overladen with stuffy political dialogue, stiff upper lipped performances and lavish sets that express more emotion and character than its traditionally posh and paunchy British cast. However in reality, it is a fascinating, charming, frequently emotional and sometimes distressing representation of one of the most tumultuous events in modern history, an event whose ramifications and consequences are still felt today.

'Downton Abbey' stalwart Hugh Bonneville excels as Lord Richard 'Dickie' Mountbatten, the final Viceroy of India who in 1947, was appointed by the King to oversee the transition of power and reluctantly negotiate the controversial partition of India - an act which ultimately resulted in the formation of Pakistan and a humanitarian crisis the likes of which the world had never seen before. 

There is a great deal to enjoy about 'Viceroy's House', most notably the performances which are all unanimously brilliant, from Bonneville's increasingly powerless Lord and Gillian Anderson's devoted and progressively - minded Mrs. Mountbatten to Denzil Smith who does a brilliant job of following in the great Christopher Lee's indelible footsteps and bringing Jinnah, the enigmatic founder of Pakistan, so convincingly to the big screen.

Another positive is that film looks wonderful, with the titular establishment lovingly adorned with the heavily polished furniture, immaculate upholstery and marbled corridors that have become synonymous with aristocracy. But above its impressive mixed race cast and the sumptious and very colourful production design, what is so truly remarkable about the movie is just how closely director Chada ('It's A Wonderful Afterlife') vehemently sticks to the facts. 

As is made clear by it's evocative final moments, 'Viceroy's House' tells a story very close to Chadha's heart and while some have accused the film of melodramatic indulgence (an undercooked and rather formulaic fictional romance between a Muslim servant and a Hindi maid ultimately bearing much of the criticism), its hard to take against a movie that so desperately attempts to root it's narrative in the truth - a truth further cemented by the intelligent use of news reel footage that perfectly illustrates the disastrous effect of the decisions made by the films central figures.

It may not sound like the most exciting or thrilling of watches but by telling it's very complicated story in a way that is perfectly suited to modern multiplex audiences, 'Viceroy's House' is a surprisingly engaging and quite powerful drama that depicts a chapter in Asian history that up until now, I was completely and utterly oblivious to.