X
  • 2002
  • PG
  • Cohen Media Group
  • 1 h 57 m
  • 2002
  • PG
  • Cohen Media Group
  • 1 h 57 m

Summary Set during the mid 1950's in Trinidad, this story is rooted primarily in the Indian community and deals with the thwarted ambitions, frustrations, and ultimate triumphs that are possible in this 'restricted' part of the world. (Merchant Ivory Productions)

Directed By: Ismail Merchant

Written By: V.S. Naipaul, Caryl Phillips

  • 2002
  • PG
  • Cohen Media Group
  • 1 h 57 m
  • 2002
  • PG
  • Cohen Media Group
  • 1 h 57 m

The Mystic Masseur

Metascore Generally Favorable Based on 26 Critic Reviews
64
User Score Available after 4 ratings
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Summary Set during the mid 1950's in Trinidad, this story is rooted primarily in the Indian community and deals with the thwarted ambitions, frustrations, and ultimate triumphs that are possible in this 'restricted' part of the world. (Merchant Ivory Productions)

Directed By: Ismail Merchant

Written By: V.S. Naipaul, Caryl Phillips

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Critic Reviews

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Metascore
Generally Favorable Based on 26 Critic Reviews
64
62% Positive
16 Reviews
38% Mixed
10 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
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Critic Reviews

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Metascore
Generally Favorable Based on 26 Critic Reviews
64
62% Positive
16 Reviews
38% Mixed
10 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews
100
This delicious fable reflects Merchant's great love of language, his delicate visual sense, and his ability to make you think and laugh out loud, often at the very same time.
By David Sterritt FULL REVIEW
80
A soft-focused, wistful big-screen art film.
FULL REVIEW
75
A wry, affectionate delight, a human comedy about a man who thinks he has had greatness thrust upon him when in fact he has merely thrust himself in the general direction of greatness.
By Roger Ebert FULL REVIEW
63
It's only because the performances are so vividly entertaining -- Mandvi and Puri are particularly good -- and the painstakingly reconstructed locations so lovely that the saggier sequences are tolerable.
By Jonathan Foreman FULL REVIEW
60
A small story, with fewer lofty ambitions than its lead character, the film runs out of steam at a certain point. Overall, its leisurely pace and lack of overt action will bore some filmgoers, while the movie's final section, during which Ganesh pursues his political aspirations, feels strangely hurried and less satisfying than the rest of the story.
By Jean Oppenheimer FULL REVIEW
50
Offers no tangible sense of Ganesh's genuine convictions (beyond a thirst for fame), nor of the essence of his character. By the time Ganesh's political downfall comes, in the same spiritless fashion in which his fortunes rose, it would take a mystic miracle to care.
FULL REVIEW
40
The Mystic Masseur shows more signs of life than "Cotton Mary," but it's still a producer's movie: attractively mounted, dramatically inert.
By Scott Tobias FULL REVIEW

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Details

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Production Company Merchant Ivory Productions, Pritish Nandy Communications (PNC), Video Associates
Release Date May 3, 2002
Duration 1 h 57 m
Rating PG
Genres
Website http://www.merchantivory.com/mysticmasseur.html
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Awards

Mar del Plata Film Festival
• 1 Win & 2 Nominations

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