Devdas review

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After its high-profile launch at Cannes as the only Bollywood movie to ever make the Official Selection, Devdas, the most expensive Hindi epic ever made - is being hurried out by its UK distributors. Which is a shame, as more time and some clever marketing could have yielded Britain's first subcontinent crossover smash.

In the long tradition of Hindi cinema, Devdas (based on a frequently-filmed classic Indian novel) is a song-and-dance spectacular revolving around a heart-tugging tale of thwarted love and hedonistic decline. Devdas (Shahrukh Khan) and Paro (Aishwarya Rai) are Romeo And Juliet-style lovers who embark on separate paths of ruin after his toffee-nosed parents stop them marrying.

With sumptuous sets and costumes, flamboyant musical set-pieces, acting that verges on hysteria and the stunningly beautiful Rai (Miss World 1994) to gawp at, this makes for breathtaking, if long-winded, cinema (the mid-section in particular suffers from flab). That said, if moviegoers can pass the endurance test, they're in for a real treat.

The Total Film team are made up of the finest minds in all of film journalism. They are: Editor Jane Crowther, Deputy Editor Matt Maytum, Reviews Ed Matthew Leyland, News Editor Jordan Farley, and Online Editor Emily Murray. Expect exclusive news, reviews, features, and more from the team behind the smarter movie magazine. 

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