Part of Deepa Mehta’s talent lies in her ability to bring the drama behind women’s realities to the fore with sensitivity. Her last outing, the Oscar-nominated Water, was a gorgeous, affecting film that touched upon the plight of impoverished widows in India.

Heaven on Earth’s central theme, domestic violence, is no less worthy a subject and far more relevant to local audiences. Like Water’s Lisa Ray before her, the entrancing Bollywood actress Preity Zinta tackles a loaded storyline—a Punjabi woman leaves her homeland and moves to Brampton to enter into a far-less-than-fairy-tale marriage—with skill.

In some ways, Mehta has returned to her early effort Fire, both stylistically and thematically. These films deal with deeply unhappy unions, cultural divides and the supernatural. Here, the writer-director also made the very conscious decision to shoot Heaven on Earth on a hand-held camera and alternate between scenes in black and white and colour, depending on the protagonist’s state of mind. But it’s been 12 years since Fire, and after the success of Water, this film seems less like a trip back in time than a step backwards.—Stéphanie Verge

Related:
• View the photos from the opening night gala of Heaven on Earth