Full Review

Ten years later he's good for his word; the family lives in a mansion while Rahul (Rahul Khanna) has his own penthouse. But he's also got Kimberly (Jessica Pare), a rock star fiancee, of whom mom and grandma definitely don't approve. Fate intervenes with Kimberly's comic-tragic demise below the giant "Hollywood" sign while trying to levitate off the cliffs.

Under pressure from his whiny mother, Rahul agrees to find a proper Indian woman so his sister can proceed with her own wedding. Secretly, he hires self-professed Latina escort Sue (Lisa Ray) to pass as his Indian fiancee so that his expectant sister can marry posthaste. Alas, Sue is as duplicitous as Rahul and their apparent clash of cultures is only further complicated by budding romance.

An underachieving "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" wannabe, the movie's many contrivances eventually wear down even patient viewers. All of the plotting is accomplished Bollywood-style as English-speaking characters suddenly burst into Hindi singing and dancing, which Mehta colorfully presents with affection but limited skill. Nor are the characters all that endearing. Chatterjee's self-pitying mom is a hammy and irritating portrayal. Grandma's habit of speaking in literature quotations quickly becomes grating. Rahul's cross-dressing chauffeur (Ranjit Chowdhry) seems tossed in just to add a transvestite dance number. And the written titles on the screen are either annoyingly self-serving or utterly unnecessary.

The stereotype of a very religious family is unflattering and Grandma admitting that she prayed for Kimberley's death is off-putting as is her bragging about being a liar. Another character claims that profanity is OK since as Hindus they don't believe in Christ, which is hardly comforting to the Christian audience.

Khanna and Ray are lovely to look at as the would-be lovers but their lame dialogue and the bogus, melodramatic situations in which they find themselves turn what might have been a charming and often funny tale into a drawn-out disappointment.

In English with musical numbers in Hindi.

Due to an implied affair, fleeting strip-club shot of pole dancers and some profanity, the USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 -- parents are strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

Movies have been evaluated by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishop's Office for Film and Broadcasting according to artistic merit and moral suitability. The reviews include the USCCB rating, the Motion Picture Association of America rating, and a brief synopsis of the movie.

The classifications are as follows:

• A-I -- general patronage;
• A-II -- adults and adolescents;
• A-III -- adults;
• A-IV**
• L -- limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. L replaces the previous classification, A-IV.
• O -- morally offensive.