
Total Film
Some will balk at Pinto’s passivity, but Trishna again shows Winterbottom to be one of the few directors today who are liberated, rather than constricted, by classic literature.
Full reviewFreida Pinto (Slumdog Millionaire) stars in this modern day, Indian set adaptation of Thomas Hardy's tragic novel Tess of the d'Urbervilles. Directed by Michael Winterbottom (The Trip).
Set in contemporary Rajasthan, Trishna (Pinto) meets wealthy British businessman Jay (Riz Ahmed, Four Lions) who has come to India to work in his father's hotel business. Trishna works for Jay, and they fall in love. Despite their feelings, they cannot escape the conflicting pressures of a rural society which is changing rapidly through industrialisation, urbanisation and education. Trishna's tragedy is that she is torn between the traditions of her family life and the dreams and ambitions that her education has given her.
LessSome will balk at Pinto’s passivity, but Trishna again shows Winterbottom to be one of the few directors today who are liberated, rather than constricted, by classic literature.
Full reviewOn the one hand the original's complex texture is gravely weakened; on the other, the rambling narrative structure is transformed into a taut fable.
Full reviewWinterbottom's location work in Jaipur and Mumbai has richness and spectacle, but somehow this does not come fully to life.
Full reviewAn admirable but disappointing effort, then. By no means Winterbottom’s worst but some way off the heights of Butterfly Kiss and In This World.
Full reviewThe ever-versatile Winterbottom's loose and limber adaptation doesn't entirely mesh with Hardy's more formal narrative, leaving this feeling disjointed and underpowered. Nevertheless, there's still plenty to enjoy in the director's customary flourishes.
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