ballroomofmars You have to be open minded to really enjoy it. As if your trying a new recipe on your pizza.

francescof86 "Holy Smoke !" is an amazing film by one of the most original directors as Jane Campion("An Angel at my table","The piano","Portrait of a Lady").It tells the story of a young Australian woman,Ruth Barron(Kate Winslet),who in her journey in India is manipulated by a guru and is turned into a proselyte. The family tries to get her back by hiring an eccentric and apparently self-assured American cult exit,P.J. Waters(Harvey Keitel)and isolate the two of them in a lonely hut in the middle of the Australian desert. The fight between Ruth and P.J. take an unexpected turn:the battle field changes from religion to sex;Ruth becomes the master and P.J. surrenders to her overwhelming sexuality. The film manages to reflect on the power of ideas, sex fight and the at first glance self-confidence of west culture and beliefs(Ruth's family lacking of values and coherence,P.J. attitudes)and the subsequent quest for paramount meanings(Ruth's absolutism)in a world that can be dangerous. The direction is wonderful and Jane Campion give us a very absorbing film even though sometimes difficult to catch. After a plodding beginning you can't help but feeling captured by this strange but absorbing film. The acting is superb. Harvey Kaitel is a confirmation and delivers particularly well. Kate Winslet is a revelation. She completely disappears in her difficult and sometimes hateful character and becomes body ans soul Ruth. It's a testament for her great versatile acting. My vote is 10/10.

moonspinner55 Young Australian woman from Sydney travels to India on vacation and becomes transfixed by a love guru whose mere touch to her third-eye has touched off something mystical inside of her. Naturally her family back home is concerned, and once they pry her away from her new existence (by falsely telling her that her father is dying), they set out trying to reprogram her with help from another guru, a strutting and self-confident American. Director Jane Campion (who also penned the barbed, impertinent screenplay with Anna Campion) knows a great many tricks to gain an audience's attention; by weaving a cinematic spell of compelling visuals and canny soundtrack choices, coupled with a languorous editing technique, Campion absorbs the viewer rapturously in spite of the fact her characters aren't very interesting. Once that initial spell wears off, indignation can set in (as it does here in the exasperating final 20 minutes). Kate Winslet's brainwashed Ruth actually seems a much nicer person back in India. Once she's been taken out to a Halfway Hut in the Aussie desert to have her mind rearranged, she turns into a vicious, sniping brat. I'm pretty sure Campion was making a point here, but the audience is completely turned off by Winslet's antics (plus a naked seduction scene that seems inserted merely to shock). Harvey Keitel is the overage stud hoping to erase Kate's religious spell, and predictably falls under one himself. Keitel is a very appealing actor (and sexily comfortable in front of the camera), and yet his character isn't warm, either. He's playing daddy-teacher-lover to this girl, but there are no sparks between he and Winslet...and no signs that she's getting any better via his treatment. Campion's use of slow-motion is grueling, as are several of her camera set-ups which bring an artiness to the project where such a studied tone is not called for. The picture is a mess, albeit an intensely watchable one. ** from ****

FilmCriticLalitRao In "Holy Smoke",we are shown how affluent western world perceives India especially through its innumerable religions.Academy award nominee New Zealand director Jane Campion steers her film by showcasing a harum- scarum Australian family whose members make all possible attempts to persuade one of their ilk to disown an Indian religious sect leader.Her film is an attempt to unravel countless affable mysteries surrounding numerous Indian religious men and women and their emotional, intellectual or spiritual ramifications on prosperous westerners.Much of the film centers around a dysfunctional middle class Australian family which is facing tough times.Jane Campion errs occasionally as her film contains some less developed themes involving spiritual aspects versus material comfort and intricacies of mind over body.However,all serious viewers can vouchsafe a good viewing experience as perfect emotional as well as carnal chemistry between Harvey Keitel and Kate Winslet is a joy to behold.A weak and an absolutely terrible ending are some of this film's major thorns.Holy Smoke:one of those rare films where audiences will have tough time to make out how and when a hunter becomes a hunted target ? Film critic/French translator/interpreter Lalit Rao wishes to make a brief yet necessary mention about some of his fiends involved with shooting of "Holy Smoke" in India : a) Famous theater activist Rajneesh Bisht (Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, amateur theater group) and veteran media person Madame Uma Da Cunha.