A Throw of Dice

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A Throw of Dice

1929

1h 27m

Drama

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Watchlist

Tomatometer

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100%

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8 Reviews

43%

Popcornmeter

250+ Ratings

Rival kings, both in love with the same woman, hold a fateful game of chance.

Daily Telegraph (UK)

Osten's film, which features more than 10,000 extras and 1,000 horses, is as excessive and beautiful as any scene from Antony and Cleopatra or Ben-Hur.

Aug 31, 2007

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Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

Extravagantly romantic, with a stirring score by Nitin Sawhney.

Rated: 4/5

Aug 31, 2007

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Stella Papamichael

BBC.com

Entrancing as it is exotic, silent classic A Throw Of Dice (1929) plays like a fairytale for adults.

Rated: 4/5http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2007/08/27/a_throw_o

Aug 31, 2007

Full Review

Jeffrey M. Anderson

Combustible Celluloid

[An] amazingly fluid silent-era Indian feature, with a breathtaking use of open air, space and lots of extras.

Rated: 3.5/4

Feb 21, 2014

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Philip French

Observer (UK)

A Throw of Dice is a remarkable silent movie.

Feb 21, 2014

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Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

The story itself is nothing special, but the lush jungle setting is magnificent and it gives the film a special feeling.

Rated: B

Jul 26, 2010

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S R

1001 movies to see before you die. Impressive to be filmed in India with an all Indian cast. It was well made, simple plot and easy to follow. Saw on YouTube.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/30/24

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William L

Immaculately restored and boasting a great, newly composed orchestral accompaniment, A Throw of Dice can now capitalize on the considerable investment in visual grandeur that Osten devised. The film is visually great, but narratively dodgy. Apparently an adaptation of the Sanskrit epic Mahabharata, there might not have been much in the way of necessary updates to cater to a 1929 audience, but it's pretty dry fare these days - a string of deceptions and plots, exceptionally simple characters, and a straightforward love story. While ambitious from a practical perspective, it seems to be the historical significance to the development of film in India that has earned A Throw of Dice a position on the 1001 Movies; it looks to be by far one of the least watched. What a strange background to a film - a German-born director who becomes a major figure in the Indian film industry, only to go all gung-ho for the wrong number Reich while half a world away and completely drop out of favor as a result. (3/5)

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/31/21

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Audience Member

Lavish & melodramatic.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

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Audience Member

Definitely set in India. You can tell by all the tigers and whatnot (don't tell Michael Bay, he still thinks they live in Egypt or something.) Decent story.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/16/23

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Audience Member

Interesting musical score

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/27/23

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Audience Member

Beautiful music. Just a really beautiful movie.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/19/23

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Franz Osten

Director

Seeta Devi

Sunita

Himanshu Rai

King Sohat

Charu Roy

King Ranjit

Modhu Bose

Kirkbar - King Sohat's Henchman

Tincory Chakrabarty

Kanzler Raghunath

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Synopsis

Rival kings, both in love with the same woman, hold a fateful game of chance.

Director: Franz Osten
Producer: Himanshu Rai, Domenico Procacci
Screenwriter: Niranjan Pal, Max Jungk
Genre: Drama
Release Date (Streaming): May 23, 2017
Runtime: 1h 27m