The Guru is a fun movie. It centres on the idea of going to America and getting rich, becoming an actor, buying a red Mercedes and living the good life, but it's not that easy for Ramu who ends up working in a restaurant and then accidentally auditions for a porn movie. It's there that he meets Heather Graham who seems quite happy working there and offers to help teach Ramu why she does the things she does, and how she feels when doing it. Ramu then meets socialite Marisa Tomei who is really funny in this movie. she is gullible and quite silly, trying so hard to please other people and falling for Ramu's charms. Ramu becomes a sex guru, gaining immediate fame, money, cars, women and publicity!
The plot is pretty typical - does he tell the truth or carry on being a sex guru? Jimi Mistry is okay in this, he takes on a bit of a cool John Travolta stance but I thought that the movie itself was highly predictable. He has great potential though. There is a mix of Indian and Hollywood cultures and there are some scenes which have the two and it is full of fun, colour and music. Ramu really wants a better world for himself and his friends in this movie, but he starts to fall in love and we all know (or should!) what happens when we start to fall in love, it puts our deceits into perspective. It also displays how gullible American society is and how they are prepared to believe anything, but with the tone staying light the movie is just fun. Marisa Tomei has some great lines in this movie and the focus is on finding her own happiness. I really liked Chantal (Baranski) in this. She plays a stony elitist disapproving mother who typically finds her wild side. See The Guru on video when you want a bit of a laugh and to just take you away from everything that's going on in the world. |
