The main complaint about 'Heaven on Earth' seems to be in regard with its slow pace. I was quite engaged by the film and the pacing did not bother me at all. It only made it better that Mehta took her time to unfold Chand's character more. Many have stated that Chand lacked development and this I disagree with. The film centers around Chand's struggle with her new life and her character is excellently written. The mother-in-law was portrayed as one-dimensional.
Speaking of writing, I think Mehta did a very good job with the story and I loved the Chand's beautiful monologues. Her use of symbolism and mythology is effective. The film is delicately shot mostly with hand-held camera. I like how Mehta distinguishes the private moments of the characters with black and white. The washed out colours only stress on the tense atmosphere. In terms of execution, 'Heaven on Earth' is on par with 'Water' (which was also stunningly filmed) but I think the former ranks as her best.
Preity Zinta delivers one of the finest performances of her career. She is like one has never seen before. Her portrayal of Chand is subtle, nuanced, heartbreaking and strong. I used to admire Zinta a lot during her pre-'Kal Ho Na Ho' days and saw a very promising actress in her. However, I almost gave up on her when she limited herself on doing movies with the Khans and Yashraj. Now I am glad to see her back on track and hope she keeps doing great work. In my humble opinion, Mehta's 'Heaven on Earth' is a winner and definitely miles better than the not-even-good-enough-for-TV types like 'Provoked'.
Speaking of writing, I think Mehta did a very good job with the story and I loved the Chand's beautiful monologues. Her use of symbolism and mythology is effective. The film is delicately shot mostly with hand-held camera. I like how Mehta distinguishes the private moments of the characters with black and white. The washed out colours only stress on the tense atmosphere. In terms of execution, 'Heaven on Earth' is on par with 'Water' (which was also stunningly filmed) but I think the former ranks as her best.
Preity Zinta delivers one of the finest performances of her career. She is like one has never seen before. Her portrayal of Chand is subtle, nuanced, heartbreaking and strong. I used to admire Zinta a lot during her pre-'Kal Ho Na Ho' days and saw a very promising actress in her. However, I almost gave up on her when she limited herself on doing movies with the Khans and Yashraj. Now I am glad to see her back on track and hope she keeps doing great work. In my humble opinion, Mehta's 'Heaven on Earth' is a winner and definitely miles better than the not-even-good-enough-for-TV types like 'Provoked'.