KAUM DE HEERE
Cert 15
120 mins
BBFC advice: Contains strong bloody violence
Well, here's me thinking that the assassination of Indira Gandhi was a straightforward case of terrorism.
Not according to Ravinder Ravi's account in which the Sikh killers are seen as martyrs.
The movie begins in the courtroom where those responsible for Mrs Gandhi's death are about to face trial. It then spins back to the events which led up to the moment when her bodyguards turned their guns on her.
This was something of an enlightenment for me because, although I was aware of the raid on the holy Sikh temple at Amritsar in 1984, I did not know of its connection to the assassination.
Kaum De Heere shows the outrage of Sikhs to the attack on the temple and further ruthless measures against their religion by a government which was, apparently, in fear of uprising.
The latter point is never made in the movie - indeed, if Kaum De Heere is to be believed, the government's actions were unprovoked.
Ravi's film shows how one bodyguard, Beant Singh (Raj Kakra) is persuaded to abandon his loyalty to the prime minister and attack her on behalf of Sikhs across India.
In turn, he asks a younger colleague, Satwant Singh (Sukhdeep Sukh) to join him.
The movie explores their motives and, in particular, their family life, leading up to the shooting and its fall-out.
The problem is that Kaum De Heere is so one-eyed that I didn't gain a clear perspective of what happened at that infamous time in India.
And, as a film fan, there are times when I found it a trifle amateurish. For example, the ludicrous fight scenes with fellow bodyguards after the slaying.
I am thankful to Kaum De Heere because I will now read up on what happened in 1984 in India with an open mind but, while it is illuminating, it is not a well made movie.
I watched it at Vue, Star City, Birmingham.
Laughs: none
Jumps: none
Vomit: none
Nudity: none
Overall rating: 4/10