The Guru Reviews

York is a rock star off to India to learn the sitar and find a life more peaceful than the harried London pop scene. Dutt is the sitar master/guru who works with York, slightly bemused and annoyed with the new arrival. Tushingham is a young hippie who comes along and stays. She can't play the sitar, but the guru is impressed with her eagerness and sincerity. Complicating matters are the master's two wives, Madhur Jaffrey and Sen, who jealously compete for Dutt's affections. Eventually, Jaffrey's rage carries over to Tushingham. The film is really a mixed bag. It keeps hinting that it has great spiritual understanding to share, but never quite delivers on its promise. The East-versus-West conflicts are nicely handled, however, especially the contrast between York's frenzied life style and Dutt's peaceful existence. The Indian locations are marvelously photographed and well-used by the director. There is some problem with the movie's pacing, and re-recorded sound also hampers the film. Nevertheless, THE GURU remains an interesting, if imperfect, film. Songs include "Tom's Boat Song," "Where Did You Come From?".