The sense of universality in a marital drama can be difficulty to accomplish. Take a few famous examples from the pantheon: Rossellini's Viaggio in Italia, Antonioni's La Notte, Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut, and dare I say, Cronenberg's Crash. As a civilized treatment of an eternal human condition, Ploy comes quite close for joining their rank. Pen-ek Ratanurang should be lauded for curbing his incomprehensible tendency to include gangster subplots in a relationship drama (however much they signify the characters' internal struggles). While we still cannot avoid sudden acts of violence, they are kept to a minimum, and as you may find out (as I did), they are quite tolerable. Despite minor hiccups, Ploy should be noted for its superb illustration of the lackadaisical mental states caused by jet lag. The cinematography is nothing less than stunning - using space and depth to their full sensuous effect. Adding to the elegant atmosphere is the script: economical, precise, and at the same time general enough to be universally appealing. In the film's final moments, the viewers may feel relieved (as I did) that so many things could have gone wrong, but they didn't - or did they? In any case, they have little influence to prevent Ploy from becoming one of the best films ever made about marriage.
Reviews
4 Reviews
In the City of Sylvia
(2007)
The quintessential film about people-watching
8 October 2007
It is about time that we stop using the term "voyeur" to describe every film where the audience is given an opportunity to gaze at women. There is so much else in addition to the gazing, observing, and following. What the film captures is the harmony between the observer and the environment: a total immersion in its atmosphere. In an era where portable audio devices eliminate people's attention to their surroundings, the film almost feels like a timely persuasion: watch what you see, and listen to what you hear. Remember the essence of cinema: sound, images, and movements. The film also bears a sign of timelessness through its universal theme: a romantic's pursuit of his dreams in la vie quotidienne. As an ostensibly subjective film, it also includes many mysterious scenes where the identify of the observer is ambiguous. Some people think that those scenes come from the imagination of our protagonist - or could it be the filmmaker, or the viewer? This movie is nothing less than a timely and timeless masterpiece. It provides compelling evidence that cinema is far from dying; as a matter of fact, it has hardly been as exciting and alive.
Drishti
(1990)
required viewing
2 July 2006
Govind Nihalani's Drishti is totally Scenes from a Marriage. The male lead even looks and talks like Erland Josephson. The female lead can look as confused as Liv Ullmann. Nihalani infuses his characters with psychological struggles less complex than those of Bergman's, though not making them any less valid and cogent. The acting, obviously, is just as amazing.
The film is indeed beautiful to look at. Nihalani's compositions here are impressive, drawing out spaces that resonate with the alienation and breakdown between the couple. The interior shots, that take most of the film, are also remarkable in the use of various lighting sources and the ever flowing curtains. Also note the use of interiors versus open space that bring notable significance to the characters' mental landscape, illustrating the feeling of confinement and openness.
For anyone interested in films about marital discord, Drishti will satisfy, if not offering anything new. For anyone addicted to quality film-making, this is required viewing, especially when Indian art cinema is so buried underneath the country's overwhelming commercial films.
The film is indeed beautiful to look at. Nihalani's compositions here are impressive, drawing out spaces that resonate with the alienation and breakdown between the couple. The interior shots, that take most of the film, are also remarkable in the use of various lighting sources and the ever flowing curtains. Also note the use of interiors versus open space that bring notable significance to the characters' mental landscape, illustrating the feeling of confinement and openness.
For anyone interested in films about marital discord, Drishti will satisfy, if not offering anything new. For anyone addicted to quality film-making, this is required viewing, especially when Indian art cinema is so buried underneath the country's overwhelming commercial films.
Tahader Katha
(1992)
Incredible, simply incredible
2 July 2006
Buddhadeb Dasgupta's Tahader Katha is really up there with the best of Tarkovsky (maybe a slight exaggeration though). The lateral tracking shots are incredibly beautiful. Like Tarkovsky, Dasgupta likes to have his camera wander off to capture the still lives of inanimate objects that are given poetic significance: swings, mirrors, puddles. Like Tarkovsky, Dasgupta likes the sound of cuckoo in the background, and the presence of wandering horses in the distant. To sample Dasgupta's masterful stroke, look no further than the scene with the wife and the husband during a night of pouring rain. I have never seen the environment used to such evocative power, not since Tarkovsky's Sacrifice.
The film runs approximately 91 minutes, half of what IMDb promises, although according to John Hood this running time seems to be correct - at least identical to what he has seen.
The film runs approximately 91 minutes, half of what IMDb promises, although according to John Hood this running time seems to be correct - at least identical to what he has seen.
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