One author actually wrote about the movie: “It feels strange to be discussing Koyaanisqatsi using words since the film communicates its message purely with images and sound, utilizing no spoken dialogue at all.” ‘Koyaanisquatsi’ is a Hopi Indian word which implies ‘life in turmoil’ or ‘life out of balance’. This film, directed by Godfrey Reggio,…
Culture & Society
FILM REVIEW: STRANGER THAN PARADISE (1984)
Jim Jarmusch’s ”Stranger Than Paradise” tells the story of a self-styled New York hipster, Willie (John Lurie) who is paid a most surprising and quite unwelcome visit by his Hungarian cousin Eva, played by Eszter Balint. When she arrives, Willie treats her with cold indifference and they spend all their time doing practically nothing. She…
FILM REVIEW: RED PSALM (Még kér a nép, 1972)
Red Psalm directed by Hungarian film-maker Miklos Jancso, is communist musical, if anything can be called that, a musical allegory, and also a cinematic metaphor. It ranks, quite personally, among the most beautiful and breathtaking films that I have ever seen. The Hungarian title means “And the People Still Ask”. This dazzling, and highly sensual,…
A Look Gay/ Lesbian Expression in Indian Films: Fire, Mango Souffle and Bomgay
Traditionally, the Indian film industry, especially Bollywood, has turned a blind eye toward the issue of gay and lesbian culture in India. A few notable films have made it past the narrow-minded ostracism of the masses, and made the country and the world take notice of certain issues that we cannot shelter ourselves from. India…
REELING THE REAL: A look at the technique of Realism in Indian Cinema.
While the orthodoxies of Neo-Realistic elements have died out in recent years in Indian cinema, it has given rise to a new technique, a new form, a new element to ensure the participation of the masses. Have you ever seen on-screen, in a movie, the sight of someone defecating near the railway tracks in the…
Short Film: FALLEN ART (2004)
FALLEN ART by Tomek Baginski.The film was made in 2004. This is an example of genius. One of my favorite short animated films.
FILM REVIEW: Breathless (French: A Bout de Souffle) –1960 by Jean Luc Godard.
Breathless (French: A Bout de Souffle), directed by Jean Luc Godard in 1960 is one of the most important films of the French New Wave. The script is written by Godard and François Truffaut, who was another significant auteur of the era. The film is entirely shot with a hand-held camera. This was Godard’s first…
FILM REVIEW: Onibaba [Demon Woman] 1964 directed by Kaneto Shindo.
Onibaba (meaning Demon Woman) is a Japanese horror film set in a war-torn 14th century Japan. The story of the film tells the tale of three people: an old woman (Nabuko Otowa), her daughter-in-law (Jitsuko Yoshimura), and friend of the old woman’s son (Kei Sato), who has escaped from war and come back to the…
Film Review: THE RULES OF THE GAME (La Règle du jeu -1939) by Jean Renoir
“Love as it exists in society is merely the mingling of two whims and the contact of two skins.” This quote from Jean Renoir’s masterpiece The Rules of the Game successfully sums up what the film wants to say and the stand that it takes against the French upper-class society of the late 1930s.This film,…
The proclamation of sexual sovereignty of the ‘ideal’ woman in Hindi Cinema, seen through specific song and dance sequences.
This essay explores and reflects on the change in the viewing and depiction of the ‘ideal’ woman in Hindi cinema from the demure in 1950’s to the brave and sexually liberated by the 1980’s as seen through the song and dance sequences of Hindi films, in particular,“Awara” (1951), “Guide” (1965), and “Ram Teri Ganga Maili”…