Holy Smoke

Director: Jane Campion Jane Campion

Overview

It's said that sex and religion are two subjects that no one can discuss without arguing; writer/director Jane Campion tackles both head-on in this satiric comedy drama. On a trip to India, Australian Ruth (Kate Winslet) has a spiritual awakening and embraces the teachings of a guru named Baba. Back home in Sydney, Ruth's mother and father (Julie Hamilton and Tim Robertson) are appalled to learn that their daughter now answers to the name Nazni and has no intention of returning. Mother visits her daughter in India in hopes of convincing her to come home, but it's not until she suffers a life-threatening asthma attack that Ruth agrees to return for a visit. Mother pretends to arrange a meeting with Ruth's father, who has been ill, and this trick lands Ruth in the clutches of P.J. Waters (Harvey Keitel), an American exit counselor who deprograms members of religious cults. Waters begins to loosen Ruth's belief in Baba's teachings, but P.J. finds himself sexually attracted to Ruth, and in time she allows him to seduce her. Ruth soon turns the tables on P.J., as she discovers that sex allows her to make mincemeat of his long-held beliefs as a macho, misogynist male. Jane's sister Anna Campion, herself a director, co-authored the screenplay; Pam Grier appears in a supporting role as P.J.'s partner and girlfriend.

Product Details

Release Date:	07/13/2021
UPC:	0810072543240
Original Release:	1999
Rating:	R
Source:	Miramax
Language:	English
Time:	1:54:00

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Kate Winslet	Ruth Barron
Harvey Keitel	P.J. Waters
Julie Hamilton	Mum
Tim Robertson	Dad
Sophie Lee	Yvonne,Cult Video Reporter
Dan Wyllie	Robbie,Robbie
Pam Grier	Carol
Paul Goddard	Tim
George Mangos	Yani
Kerry Walker	Puss
Leslie Dayman	Bill-Bill
Samantha Murray	Prue
Austen Tayshus	Stan
Simon Anderson	Fabio
Savrash	Dancing Boy
Saurabh Srinivasan	Dancing Boy
Dhritiman Chaterji	Chidaatma Baba
Genevieve Lemon	Rahi,Woman with Trolley
Robert Joseph	Miriam's Taxi Driver
Arif	Boy Who Runs with Taxi
John Samaha	Chatiwali, Shiva's Diner
Jane Edwards	Priya
Miranda Cleary	Priya's Daughter
Tamsin Carroll	Jodie
T'Mara Buckmaster	Zoe
Ante Novakovic	Man with Trolley
Diana Kotatko	Woman with Trolley
Ethan Coker	Toddy Barron
Ellie Burchell	Tiffany Barron
Morgan Watt	Boyfriend
Luke Testo	Boyfriend
William MacKay	Boyfriend
David Franco	Boyfriend
Eleanor Knox	Meryl
Mark Gray	Dope Peddler
Cameron McAufliffe	Seducer
Johannes Brinkmann	Ruth's Boyfriend
Eric Schussler	Cult Video Reporter
Joan Bogden	Cult Video Reporter
Doc Neeson	Member of the Angels
Rick Brewster	Member of the Angels,Member of the Angels
Jim Hilburn	Member of the Angels
Brent Eccles	Member of the Angels
Eva Martin	Devotee
Mira Wright	Devotee,Devotee
Lior Aizenberg	Devotee
S. Samaran	Devotee
Michelle Abel	Devotee
Adina Kumar	Devotee
Jeff Silverman	Devotee
Andreas Wagner	Devotee
Vandana Mohindra	Devotee
Angelo Badalamenti	Composer

Technical Credits

Jane Campion

Jane Campion	Director,Screenwriter,Screenwriter
Alison Barrett	Casting
Andy Brown	Special Effects
Jan Chapman	Producer
Julie Goldstein	Executive Producer
Billy Hopkins	Casting
Bob Weinstein	Executive Producer,Executive Producer
Lawrence Woodward	Stunts
Animal Logic Film	Special Effects
Kerry Barden	Casting
Lee Smith	Sound/Sound Designer
Ben Osmo	Sound/Sound Designer

Editorial Reviews

Director Jane Campion and actor Harvey Keitel, who worked together on Campion's critically acclaimed 1993 film, The Piano, renew their collaboration in Holy Smoke. Kate Winslet stars as Ruth, an Australian girl whose mother lures her away from an Indian guru and hands her over to a macho, American "cult exiter" played by Harvey Keitel. The intimate, three-day, one-on-one deprogramming session that ensues turns into a battle of the sexes that leave both parties in an emotional free fall. The story bounces easily between farce and drama: The scenes involving Ruth's family approach broad satire, while the charged encounter between Winslet and Keitel gives these two let-it-all-hang-out actors plenty of opportunity to strut their stuff. Striking photography of the Australian outback gives Holy Smoke a strong visual impact, which is further enhanced by Angelo Badalamenti's exotic score and an ironic use of pop music (including a couple of songs by Neil Diamond.) Campion, a sublime stylist, directs moments both intimate and absurd with real self-assurance, resulting in a film that is engaging and unpredictable throughout.

Barnes & Noble - Gregory Baird

Nobody makes a fascinating mess quite the way Jane Campion does, and she pulls that off once again in this sometimes difficult, but always arresting examination of the uneasy war of the sexes. The film sometimes stretches credibility to a breaking point when laying bare (often literally) its potent themes of sexuality and deprogramming (not to mention about two endings too many to resolve them), but as always, Campion is a gifted storyteller and an even more astute, visionary director, getting gutsy, layered performances from the two leads, especially Kate Winslet, whose tour-de-force portrayal of womanhood is rife with piquant observation and a healthy sexual prowess. Dion Beebe's glorious widescreen photography gives the story an otherworldly loveliness and gravity, and Campion's use of music remains as brilliant as ever. The film failed to live up to the reputation of Campion's breakout 1993 hit The Piano, despite great notices for herself and star Winslet, who was an Oscar hopeful before the film's chilly reception.

All Movie Guide - Jason Clark