7 KHOON MAAF (7 SINS FORGIVEN) Review

Vishal Bhardwaj and Priyanka Chopra's 7 Khoon Maaf (7 Sins Forgiven) is one of the most subdued Indian films I've seen this year, and that is a good thing.  At its surface, it seems difficult to understand how a film that follows a woman as she knocks six successive husbands loose from their mortal coils could be subdued, but there is really very little exploitative about the film.  Except when there is, and when there is, it is a marvelous, rapturous experience.  When the film in which we've been sitting so patiently explodes into madness in the final reel, I swear I should have seen it coming, but, gloriously, I did not.  The film is better off for it, having played straight for a couple of hours allows this digression to have an even greater impact. 

Indian films are notoriously addicted to melodrama, it is this addiction that leads most western viewers away.  We, who have been weaned on films that try their damnedest to stick to reality, even in the most absurd situations, have mostly lost our ability to truly becomes a part of the reality on screen.  Even in the most ludicrous films, we find ourselves watching scenes and thinking, "that could never happen", unconsciously abandoning the film's internal logic, and often dampening our own enjoyment. 

By and large Indian films rely upon suspension of disbelief and a shared knowledge of what their filmic language means.  Vishal Bhardwaj is not a slave to this logic, though, and that makes his films different and more palatable to audiences outside of India.  I've read several reviews and opinions of this film, and the predominantly Indian audience has mentioned that it is boring, however this must be taken in context.  The film is not a sledgehammer, it is a chisel.  Bhardwaj sculpts his audience into a comfortable trance before finally taking his chisel and driving it deep into our brains, letting loose a torrent of relief, and this is the film's great success.

Susanna (Priyanka Chopra) is a woman, orphaned at a young age, who wants nothing more as a young girl, than to find a man who will love and protect her just like dear old Dad.  She doesn't need wealth, Daddy was wealthy and Susanna wants for nothing, she wants someone on whom she can lay her head and feel safe emotionally.  Sometimes she seeks this out, sometimes it falls in her lap.  There are even times when she runs away, but it catches her, and her internal desires overpower her logic in ways sometimes tragic, and sometimes amusing, but always to her detriment.

Six husbands are cut down in Susanna's path.  Each has one fatal flaw, well, perhaps not always fatal in the hands of a woman with the internal strength to overcome, but Susanna is not that woman.  As tough as she seems, especially after she dispatches the first few, she always needs to be in control, and if she were to merely leave these men, they'd go on leading their lives without her.  That cannot be.  If they cross her, they'll be crossed out.

7 Khoon Maaf is Priyanka Chopra's show, there has never been any doubt about that.  Hers was the only face on most posters, and that is deservedly so.  She carries the film beautifully, her character ages from twenty to sixty-five over the course of the film, and while the make-up effects may seem a bit crude by western standards, it is really Priyanka's ability to morph that allows us to follow her on this journey.  Forget the fact that she has no wrinkles or sag at sixty five, and that the only real demarcation of her age is increasingly pallid skin and graying hair, her attitude speaks volumes.  We can see her growing detachment from the idea of marriage in between funerals, however when she does relent, again and again, we can see why.  Her frailty, even after murdering four or five men, still comes through, and Priyanka does a great job letting us know that she's in charge.

Her co-stars, on the other hands, are a decidedly mixed bag.  As usual, Irrfan Khan and Naseeruddin Shah turn in wonderful performances.  Irrfan is his usual understated self as Musafir, the poet for whom Susanna converts from Catholicism to Islam.  His fatal flaw is sexual sadism, and a sadism so fierce that she cannot get away.  My only real concern was the possible connotations this has as far as religion goes. Musafir is the only Muslim in the film, is it coincidence that his character was the only physically violent one?  Strange, but Irrfan is brilliant.  His poetry is mesmerizing, his way of speaking is captivating, he can say more with a whisper than most actors can with a monologue.  Naseeruddin Shah is similarly gifted.  It is no wonder that these two actors are the most well known outside of India.  Shah is one of Susanna's final victim, and his fatal flaw is greed.  Yet, he is true to himself, and when he apologizes directly before becoming the only one of the group to die directly by Susanna's hand, he can only repeat, "I loved you", only in the past tense.  He realizes that he deserves it, and that he's made a mistake, and in that moment, our sympathies almost switch sides. 

The rest of the husbands are a less stellar group.  Neil Nitin Mukesh as Major Rodriques, Susanna's first husband, is the worst of the bunch, in several ways.  Insecure and possessive, he tries to take his wife's pride and self-determination.  Mukesh's performance is stilted and unbelievable, even by Bollywood's standards.  Yes, he is a bastard, but he is all snarls, Major Rodriques has no depth at all.   John Abraham as "Jimmy Stetson", an Axl Rose styled 80's rock star is similarly unremarkable.  I don't think this is all his fault though, as his character is written very narrowly and given some pretty hokey dialogue and songs.  Somehow Priyanka manages to save this chapter from disaster, but it isn't easy.  She shows some insight and forgiveness at first, but it is all for naught.  Jimmy Stetson, too, must die. 

One of the remaining two husbands are a Russian on whom the film spends far too much time, and who's real saving grace for me was that his chapter included the brilliant song "Darling", which allows us the greatest spectacle in the whole running time of the film.  The song is wonderfully choreographed, and imparts upon the viewer the impression that Susanna is truly happy, we feel happy for her, and if we didn't know better, we may feel tempted to feel hopeful for her.  Alas, the film does not allow us that hope, we know going in, that he won't make it, it is just a matter of when and why.  This seems like it would take a lot of the tension away, but strangely, it doesn't every time.

Vishal Bhardwaj avoids bright color schemes for the bulk of the running time of 7 Khoon Maaf.  This is really how he works, though, he isn't in the business of making typical masala films.  He also, for the most part, avoids "filmi" flourishes.  Those moments that western audiences watch and pull out as reasons that they can't sit through Indian films.  7 Khoon Maaf remains mostly very grounded.  The film has its weaknesses, not all of the actors are able to stand up to Priyanka, in particular Neil Nitin Mukesh.  Another minor weak point is Vivaan Shah, the son of Naseeruddin, whose story frames Susanna's adventures.  He just seems like he's not quite ready for prime time.  However, what does work, is marvelously entertaining, and well worth mentioning.

Bhardwaj provides Susanna with a small group of faithful servants who help her perform her dastardly duties and, when necessary, act as a sort of Greek chorus.  This motley crew is very entertaining, and are faithful to Susanna to the death, sometimes literally.  Ghalib, Susanna's personal valet, and Goonga, her one-eyed mute stablemaster, are particularly fun to watch. 

Bhardwaj was not content to simply direct the film, he also composed the music, which is something he often does, and his music is also fantastic.  Not only does he manage to run the gamut of genres, from traditional church music, to pseudo-GNR styled arena rock, to Russian folk; he also has to make each piece feel as though it is a product of its time.  This mostly works, if it weren't for the obnoxious attempt at hard rock.  As I mentioned above, "Darling" is the standout song, and the only real musical number in the film, but I think the film is better off for it.  Similarly, the cinematography and visual language of the film is remarkable appropriate, though not often flashy.  There are a few clever visual tricks that Bhardwaj employs, including one trick where he enters a church to witness a wedding, pans up to the stained glass, and back down to the poor sap's funeral, that was a particularly fun moment.

The film's initial conceit is that Susanna has committed seven sins and our duty, as the audience is to simply sit down and watch them.  While the first six are easy to see, it is the last one that is the doozy.  I won't reveal it here, because that would be a major spoiler, and it really is something that should be experienced first hand.  I will say, however, that even if I were to tell you how the film ends, nothing I could say would be preparation enough for the pure release you'll feel at the film's climax.  I did not see it coming, and based upon the reaction of the crowd in my theater, neither did any of them.  It really isn't the reveal of the answer, but the way in which it is revealed that is a massive jolt to the system.  It reveals not only the "what", but also the "why" of the film, and manages to relieve the pent up tension in a massive wave.

Is Susanna really just unlucky in love?  I'm not sure I have convinced myself of that answer yet.  My wife and friends and I walked out of the theater laughing, but not in a bad way.  It isn't really a comedy, though there are comedic elements.  We were all feeling that same sense of relief splashed with a heavy sense of WTF? as the credits rolled.  Vishal Bhardwaj tried so hard to keep the film on an even keel, to make sure it didn't tip the scales beyond what an international audience would accept in terms of over-the-top moments, and even though the final frames of the film would seem to crush that ambition, I think that he has succeeded.