52
Metascore
18 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 90Los Angeles TimesKevin ThomasLos Angeles TimesKevin ThomasNot only is it Merchant's best directorial effort to date but also is among the finest films the Merchant Ivory company has ever made.
- 88USA TodayStaff [Not Credited]USA TodayStaff [Not Credited]Increasingly piquant tale of culture clash in 1954 post-independence India.
- 75San Francisco ChroniclePeter StackSan Francisco ChroniclePeter StackActed with almost maniacal force by Jaffrey, Mary is at once fascinating and despicable.
- 75Christian Science MonitorDavid SterrittChristian Science MonitorDavid SterrittMerchant brings keen insight and rich humanity to this culturally revealing tale of psychological unease in a tense postcolonial world.
- 70Washington PostDesson ThomsonWashington PostDesson ThomsonServes as a fascinating exploration of racial and social prejudice; and an indictment of cultural miscegenation.
- 63San Francisco ExaminerWesley MorrisSan Francisco ExaminerWesley MorrisReally just a lurid potboiler.
- 60Dallas ObserverAndy KleinDallas ObserverAndy KleinIt's unlikely that anyone will walk away unmoved.
- 50New York Daily NewsJami BernardNew York Daily NewsJami BernardAn unsubtle allegory about a way of life withering on the vine.
- 50Chicago ReaderLisa AlspectorChicago ReaderLisa AlspectorDoesn't quite support the weight of its allegory.
- 30The New York TimesA.O. ScottThe New York TimesA.O. ScottForlorn melodrama, which is low on drama and high on mellow.