Gandhi (1982)

Actors: John Gielgud (actor), Richard Griffiths (actor), Edward Fox (actor), Ernest Clark (actor), Anang Desai (actor), David Gant (actor), Daniel Day-Lewis (actor), Tom Alter (actor), John Boxer (actor), Mohan Agashe (actor), Jalal Agha (actor), Ian Bannen (actor), Sudhir Dalvi (actor), Nigel Hawthorne (actor), Günther Maria Halmer (actor),

Plot: In 1893, Gandhi is thrown off a South African train for being an Indian and traveling in a first class compartment. Gandhi realizes that the laws are biased against Indians and decides to start a non-violent protest campaign for the rights of all Indians in South Africa. After numerous arrests and the unwanted attention of the world, the government finally relents by recognizing rights for Indians, though not for the native blacks of South Africa. After this victory, Gandhi is invited back to India, where he is now considered something of a national hero. He is urged to take up the fight for India's independence from the British Empire. Gandhi agrees, and mounts a non-violent non-cooperation campaign of unprecedented scale, coordinating millions of Indians nationwide. There are some setbacks, such as violence against the protesters and Gandhi's occasional imprisonment. Nevertheless, the campaign generates great attention, and Britain faces intense public pressure. Too weak from World War II to continue enforcing its will in India, Britain finally grants India's independence. Indians celebrate this victory, but their troubles are far from over. Religious tensions between Hindus and Muslims erupt into nation-wide violence. Gandhi declares a hunger strike, saying he will not eat until the fighting stops. The fighting does stop eventually, but the country is divided. It is decided that the northwest area of India, and eastern part of India (current day Bangladesh), both places where Muslims are in the majority, will become a new country called Pakistan (West and East Pakistan respectively). It is hoped that by encouraging the Muslims to live in a separate country, violence will abate. Gandhi is opposed to the idea, and is even willing to allow Muhammad Ali Jinnah to become the first prime minister of India, but the Partition of India is carried out nevertheless. Gandhi spends his last days trying to bring about peace between both nations. He thereby angers many dissidents on both sides, one of whom finally gets close enough to assassinate him.

Keywords: 1890s, 1910s, 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 19th-century, 20th-century, amritsar-india, amritsar-massacre, army-vs-civilians
Genres: Biography, Drama, History,
Taglines: His Triumph Changed The World Forever. The Man of the Century. The Motion Picture of a Lifetime. A WORLD EVENT It took one remarkable man to defeat the British Empire and free a nation of 350 million people. His goal was freedom for India. His strategy was peace. His weapon was his humanity.

Quotes:

Gandhi: I am a Muslim and a Hindu and a Christian and a Jew and so are all of you.

Gandhi: Whenever I despair, I remember that the way of truth and love has always won. There may be tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they may seem invincible, but in the end, they always fail. Think of it: always.

Nehru: Bapuji, the whole country is moving.::Gandhi: Yes. but in what direction?

Gandhi: An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind.

Nahari: I'm going to Hell! I killed a child! I smashed his head against a wall.::Gandhi: Why?::Nahari: Because they killed my son! The Muslims killed my son!::[indicates boy's height]::Gandhi: I know a way out of Hell. Find a child, a child whose mother and father have been killed and raise him as your own.::[indicates same height]::Gandhi: Only be sure that he is a Muslim and that you raise him as one.

Gandhi: They may torture my body, break my bones, even kill me, then they will have my dead body. NOT MY OBEDIENCE!

Gandhi: We think it is time that you recognized that you are masters in someone else's home. Despite the best intentions of the best of you, you must, in the nature of things, humiliate us to control us. General Dyer is but an extreme example of the principle... it is time you left.

Kinnoch: With respect, Mr. Gandhi, without British administration, this country would be reduced to chaos.::Gandhi: Mr. Kinnoch, I beg you to accept that there is no people on Earth who would not prefer their own bad government to the good government of an alien power.::Brigadier: My dear sir! India *is* British. We're hardly an alien power! [silence]

Vince Walker: I met him once.::Collins: You mean Gandhi?::Vince Walker: Yeah, in South Africa, a long time ago. I wonder if he'll recognize me.::Collins: What was he like?::Vince Walker: He had a full head of hair then. We were a bit like college students, trying to figure everything out.::Collins: Well, he must have found some of the answers!

Gandhi: You're a temptress.::Margaret Bourke-White: Just an admirer!::Gandhi: Nothing is more dangerous, especially for an old man.