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Movie Takes
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
British geriatrics with sex on the brain in neo-colonial India.
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is a Richard Curtis movie without Richard Curtis. Director John Madden (Shakespeare in Love) and screenwriter Ol Parker have produced something a little more down-to-earth than the truly awful Love Actually (2003) by Mr. Curtis, but not by much. Both films treat the initiation of extramarital sexual congress in the same way Victorian novelists treated marriage, that is as a synecdoche for happiness and the reward of virtue. Both, too, appear to regard this image of human felicity, treated as an unquestioned end in itself, the way Keats regarded his identification of truth and beauty: that is, as “all/Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know.” In practice, of course, everyone knows that this is absurd, just as the Victorians were not such fools as to suppose that marriages are always happy. But in neither case does that affect the literary usefulness of the symbolism, or what it tells us about our respective cultures.
What is mildly more interesting about Mr. Madden’s movie as compared to Mr. Curtis’s is the extent to which its theme of culture clash between contemporary Britain and India is at odds with and renders even more incoherent than it would otherwise be the theme of self-realization and self-fulfillment through sex. Both men would presumably call this self-fulfillment “love,” but it signally lacks love’s unselfishness and desire for permanence, its resolution and its well-known downside, which is what makes resolution necessary to the hope of permanence. Mr. Madden’s tale of seven elderly English folk seeking a cheap retirement community and, as some of them are more aware than others, sexual hook-ups in Jaipur, India, thus reduces love among these old people to what it mostly is for young ones: namely, sexual attraction and response. The only married couple in the bunch can find their fulfillment only by splitting up.
Of course, the movie could never have been made if not for the fact that this is more or less what love means to many more people today than Richard Curtis or John Madden, but it is helpful to have the idea put forth so crassly once in a while. It provides a mirror in which we can see ourselves, though we may find that we don’t much like what we see — namely, the trivialization of sexual relationships, which is the inevitable consequence of treating a means to an end as the end in itself, and ourselves as worshipers of the now, engaged in an inevitably futile attempt to abolish time. For that is the subtext of the film. The promise of India for these seventy-somethings is the promise of a chance to do away with the promises, implicit and explicit, of their earlier adult lives, along with the rest of those lives, and to start again as twenty-somethings.
There is a natural contrast with a still comparatively tradition- (and therefore time-)bound India, but the film has almost no interest in it. Mr. Madden’s Indians are a grotesque and sentimental caricature. There are of course hints here and there that they have a rather different view of love and sex from that of the Europeans. Graham (Tom Wilkinson), the high court judge who is the homosexual member of the party, has lived a lifetime of regret after his youthful affair with an Indian friend resulted in the latter’s disgrace. Sonny, the principal Indian character and entrepreneurial proprietor of the eponymous hotel, played by Dev Patel of Slumdog Millionaire, is also in love with (and sleeping with) Sunaina (Tena Desae) in defiance of an arranged marriage to someone else as planned by his domineering mother (Lillete Dubey). But these outdated notions are no match for the more enlightened views now typical in the land of India’s former imperial masters. Likewise, Graham, who is at last reunited with his long-ago inamorato, gets a tender embrace from him as his wife (another arranged marriage) looks on approvingly, before conveniently dropping dead.
It would be tedious to go over the other characters’ quest for personal fulfillment, though that of one of them (Maggie Smith) does not involve the epiphanic bliss of what the Brits call legover action — perhaps because her motivation in going to India is to get a cheap hip replacement — and that of another (Judi Dench) does so only incidentally and by implication. More interesting is Sonny’s entrepreneurial dream of business success by finding a way “to outsource old age,” though from his point of view it would more accurately be called insourcing. Anyway, what it amounts to is uprooting these old folks from their families and communities, none of which seem to matter very much to any of them, or to exert any countervailing pull on them to lessen the sexual one, and putting them instead on what amounts to a permanent singles cruise. It turns out to be an easy sell.
Interestingly, the idea of a permanent cruise as a solution to the social and economic problem of our ever-increasing numbers of useless oldies is also a feature of Albert Brooks’s novel 2030: The Real Story of What Happens to America — a book whose “dystopian” character perhaps gives a more accurate picture of what this would actually be like in a world where the young have the strongest interest in relieving themselves of the burden of the aged by cutting them off from the more traditional harbors in which old age and enfeeblement find refuge. Mr. Madden, like the cruise director, obviously has an interest in persuading the oldsters that this deracination means they are once again young and fancy-free in a place where no one will care what they get up to with each other, and there are a fair few who must be more than willing to be persuaded. All the same, I doubt that Sonny’s business plan could be a big success, though we may find that there are more takers for the dream of geriatric sexual questing among movie-audiences, which are mostly made up of young people.
About the Author
James Bowman, our movie and culture critic, is a resident scholar at the Ethics and Public Policy Center. He is the author of Honor: A History and Media Madness: The Corruption of Our Political Culture, both published by Encounter Books.
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Appleby| 5.23.12 @ 7:12AM
Thank you for revealing that this movie is one I do not want to see; I had been thinking, from the advertising, that it might be the way to spend my points toward a free movie ticket in a field of utter trash. Apparently this one is just better looking trash, and I will skip it too.
Sooner or later, somebody will make a movie that is not primarily about nudge-nudge-wink-wink-say no more sexual hi-jinks among aging hippies of all ages and conditions. Until they do, I will stay home.
Jack in Wi.| 5.23.12 @ 7:51AM
There is a vast subculture of old geezers heading to the 3rd world for sexual high jinks. I have an old friend who has been going to Brazil for decades, for the the young mulllato girls who are very friendly, for a price, to old timers, from America, and other rich places. My wife and I were on a cruise last year and stopped in Rio for a few days before hand. We met up with my old pal for lunch. He has a condo just off Coppa Cobana beach, which he comes down to several times a year.
While my wife rested later, a walked a few blocks to a cafe to meet he and his pals for a few drinks. There were several other sex tourists who talked about their lives and why they came down for the hot young sex. It was really rather disgusting listening to guys in there 60's and 70's talking about their " girl friends. " These guys were often well to do or had big government pensions. They keep in touch and plan to be down to Rio at the same time so that they can all pal around together. There are lot more like them in other tropical hot spots. These old geezers actually think some of these girls like them for who they are , not their big bill folds.
While in Rio I saw a huge oil drilling rig a mile off the beach. The Brazilians have no problem with drilling right next to one of the most famous beaches in the world. We have a huge coastline with huge oil and gas desposits left untouched. We have to drill, drill, drill to get us energy self sufficient.
Jeamar| 5.23.12 @ 9:20PM
Why don't you SEE the movie, then make a comment about it. It's hard to accept that AS readers rely on professional critics to form their views.
chris Marshall| 6.16.12 @ 10:37PM
I completely disagree with the reviewer's opinion that this is an elderly sex romp movie. Sex was really NOT the focus or central to the theme of the movie. It was a visual treat of Indian city life, and was about the unique personalities, hopes and disappointments of a disparate group of British retirees. and it pointed out that you are never too old to change and accept new experiences. Well worth seeing, in my opinion.
gearjammer| 5.23.12 @ 7:38AM
Well if dame Haggie Smith aint gettin nekked count me out too.
Chalkdust| 5.23.12 @ 7:49AM
Movie review........supposition about supposition.
Not Special Ops Bill| 5.23.12 @ 8:44AM
Older people going to a foreign land, where they can use their first-world wealth to subvert a second-world set of values. With sex as the object.
I thought it was brilliant of Mr. Bowman to point so succintly that sex without love is merely "treating a means to an end as the end itself." Thanks for that.
Also, my wife wants to see this flick very much; I personally think I'll encourage to see it with a female friend. This one is entirely missable for me. I don't care much for the cartoonish nature of the current crop of films that feature explosions and car chases, but I'll go see The Avengers a dozen times before coming anywhere near the doors of the theater where this Marigold opus is being shown.
Judy | 5.23.12 @ 9:10AM
Shoot, I was excited about seeing the movie but if the storyline is about old geezer sex, I may just pass. Shoot.
chris Marshall| 6.16.12 @ 10:32PM
I must have seen a different Best Exotic Marigold Hotel movie--because geezer sex was NOT the main subject matter in any way, shape or form!
Steve| 5.23.12 @ 1:12PM
The reviewer can't seem to come to grips with the fact that some people like sex and intend to have sex a lot until they day they die.
Not Special Ops Bill| 5.23.12 @ 2:03PM
But as the subject-matter for a movie that is looking to make a profit?
There's nothing wrong with old people having sex, it's just not all that pretty. A bit prune-y, it you ask me, and I'm 65 and can speak from experience. Old-person sex is best kept private.
shipley130| 5.23.12 @ 3:08PM
Sex has always been cheap in the minds of humans, it's just that we are in another cycle of talking about it and using it out in the open. This time, the extreme open. See the reign of Charles II and various French and Roman rulers as past examples.
PolishKnight| 5.23.12 @ 4:36PM
Something all of you missed. The baby boomers are hitting their 60's and the joke goes that it's impossible to find handicapped parking at a rolling stones' concert. :-)
If there are young people going to see this, it's an indication they don't know how to spend their money even in a frivolous manner. Bleah! But no doubt a lot of aging 60's hippies will get their walker and go to the theater to remind themselves they can still be "cool swinging hipsters".
Jeamar| 5.23.12 @ 8:59PM
We saw the movie last night after three different people recommended it. It was a great movie. Not often does one hear so many people laugh aloud at the same time. Poignant, funny and entertaining. One needs to remember that critics of all the arts primarily write for other critics. They are frequently negative indicators of what the general public enjoys.
chris Marshall| 6.16.12 @ 10:39PM
Agree.
Jeamar| 5.23.12 @ 9:01PM
By the way--Am I the only one posting on the movie who actually saw it? Mmmmmm?
Jeremy Buxton| 5.25.12 @ 2:07AM
Thanks for a rare intelligent comment on what was a lovely inspiring film undeserving of sour moralising attacks. Judi Dench often plays the same sort of character, but one who is wise and kind. The film is not about sex but about love and emotional fulfilment. Are we to prefer arranged marriages and the imprisonment of people in dead, loveless relationships?
Herb| 5.23.12 @ 10:03PM
Sixtysomething sex can be a beautiful thing between husband & wife. In fact, it's as wonderful now as it ever was. Life is indeed good, thank you L-rd.
Daniel| 5.23.12 @ 11:17PM
Sorry, but I stopped reading in the first paragraph. I liked "Love Actually" and I watch it every Christmas. I don't give a whit if the self-important movie critic with oatmeal between his ears disagrees, either. Suck on that, Pal.
POST American| 5.24.12 @ 12:05AM
'Masterpiece Theatre' in espadrils.
MEANWHILE, Hollywood continues to
search for the plot ----ANY plot! ---as they
BURY without a trace the yet unfolding,
EUGENICS 'friendly' RED Chinese Halocaust
-------------------------AND!-------------------------
the 60th Anniversary of the RED China,
Globalism and EUGENICS 'very unfriendly'
------------------KOREAN WAR------------------.
TAKE HEED!
----------------------------for this is the 11th hour.
grant1863| 5.24.12 @ 12:27PM
Mr. Bowman should look into "The Villages" in Florida, one of the highest rates of VD in the country. I think everyone living there has to be over 55. Funny its also where Republicans kick off alot of campaigns.
Roadmaster| 5.24.12 @ 7:22PM
EEEeeeyoooo!!! The gratuitous old people sex in "World's Fastest Indian" just about wrecked that great movie for us.
The only geezer sex I'm interested in is my own, thank you very much.
Note to self: running low on Saw Palmetto & Horny Goat Weed.
POST American| 5.25.12 @ 2:58AM
----KEEEEEEP worrying about your genitals
------------while THEY plant their genes
-------------------on YOUR grave.
-----------------JUST KEEP ON GOIN'
Elimination --VIA--
--------------------SSSSSSSSS --------HEX!
Tried and true. Works like a charm.
"--Keep the 'ITs' at it --n' out of the way."
Known within the capstone itself as the
-------------------'MASTER BAIT'----------------------
TRUTH OPENED
"Eros is relation'
-Sigmund Freud
FURTHER
"Sex without fertility
-----like fertility without sex
------------is a EUEGNICS OP.
--------ALWAYS-----------and EVERMORE."
-POST American
NOT convinced? ----keep a goin'!
Just days ago GM reported to be
moved to RED China ----at YOUR
'X---pence'.
How are those latest downloads?
-----Catch the playoffs?
----Porn sports n' 'X---spurts'----
KEEP A GOIN'!
---------------------Go ON!
-----------------------------------MOVE!
The BILL Gates are open ----and waiting!
O'Reilly's watchin' out for ya'!
-----------OPRAH's runnin' the buffet!
-----------------GATES GM food --is the menu!
---'Dancing With the Stars' --at 8!
-------------------------------------------GIT!!!!!
Bilwick| 5.26.12 @ 4:15PM
"Older people going to a foreign land, where they can use their first-world wealth to subvert a second-world set of values. With sex as the object."
Oh, horrors! Let's all go to church and pray for forgiveness!
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chris Marshall| 6.16.12 @ 10:26PM
Not just for seniors! This movie was wonderful. The cast was stellar. For anyone who’s fascinated by India, as I am, this is a must-see; two of my VERY favorite novels are about the culture of India, “Random Placement” by Lindsay McFerrin Bates (about the secretive Jogini culture of abuse of Untouchable girls) and “A Suitable Boy” by Vikram Seth (about the tradition of arranged marriage.) Will continue to seek out India movies and books!