Kites [Blu-ray]

Hot, sexy, exotic, and wild are the only words to describe this "lovers-on-the-lam blast of pure pulp escapism." (The New York Times) Indian superstar Hrithic Roshan stars as J, a Las Vegas hustler engaged to the daughter of the city's most powerful and dangerous casino owner. But all bets are off when he falls in love with the ravishing Natasha (Barbara Mori), an illegal immigrant engaged to J's jealous and violent future brother-in-law. When their illicit romance is discovered, J and Natasha flee for the border with the police and relentless hired killers on their trail. Pulse-pounding action and sensational musical numbers propel this passionate love story to its stunning conclusion. This special edition contains the "deliriously entertaining" (Variety) full-length version that became the first Bollywood movie to make the American box office Top Ten, and Kites: The Remix, the edgier and sexier English language version produced by director Brett Ratner (Rush Hour, X-Men: The Last Stand).

A story that once would have been set in Paris or Vienna now occurs in Las Vegas, where ne'er-do-wells and courtesans have become mobsters and hustlers. Kites follows J, played by handsome Bollywood superstar Hrithik Roshan, a lowlife with smooth dance moves who marries green-card-seeking immigrants for cash. He thinks he's hit the jackpot when the daughter of a wealthy mobster falls in love with him--but when he sees Linda (played by delectable Uruguayan actress Barbara Mori), the fiancée of the mobster's son, J falls in love and discovers that he'll risk anything for her… and risk he will! J and Linda end up on the run, robbing banks, fleeing by car, train, and hot-air balloon with the mob and police on their trail. Kites is a staggering compendium of over-the-top clichés and preposterous romanticism; only a Bollywood movie--even one in English, Spanish, and Hindi--could get away with this kind of straight-faced absurdity. From the '80s dance-off to the operatic tragic conclusion, Kites is both ridiculous and ridiculously entertaining, like Titanic, Badlands, and Moulin Rouge thrown in a blender, with a time-bending narrative that cunningly teases out a new twist every time you think you know everything. Roshan and Mori are genetic marvels, blessed with astounding physiques and piercing hazel eyes. Silly, sexy, and compulsively watchable. --Bret Fetzer