Film
What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases
Bookmark this pageMad, Sad & Bad (2009)
Director: Avie Luthra
Movie review
From Time Out London
Young, Indian writer-director Avie Luthra delivers a jaundiced, sporadically funny and sharp-mouthed comedy-drama in 'Mad, Sad & Bad'. Bracketed by the funeral of a conventional if dangerously Bacardi-addicted Indian mother (Leena Dhingra), it examines in flashback the lives of her offspring: unmarriable Rashmi (Meera Syal), ‘sex addict’ psychologist Hardeep (Zubin Varla) and sitcom writer Atul (Nitin Ganatra). The movie shows initial promise, not least in the way Luthra’s stiff, almost philosophical script attempts to adjust its attitudes towards cultural assimilation and dysfunctional familial relations to reflect those of its conflicted thirtysomething, British-born protagonists. But his touch deserts him elsewhere, and a disconcerting fluctuation in tone – from sorrowful satire to cheesy sitcom – proves the film’s fatal flaw.Author: Wally Hammond
Time Out London Issue 2032, 29 July -4 August, 2009
Cast & crew
Director: Avie Luthra
Cast: Meera Syal, Nitin Ganatra, Zubin Varla full cast
Rated: 15
Duration: 90 mins
UK Release: Jul 31 2009
Top Stories
Ridley Scott interview
Director Ridley Scott tells Cath Clarke why he's making a science fiction comeback
Cannes Film Festival 2012: half-time report
Dave Calhoun reports on the hits, misses and a shocking new masterpiece from Michael Haneke
What do you think?
Post your review now