Fade Out
A story never ends. It can't.
However, in film and in any other form of story-telling, a great deal of the power that the story holds depends on how and just exactly when does the story-teller (aka the director) decides to stop and let the audience take over.
Won't be indulging in any analysis n shit here. Just feeling compelled to jot down few thoughts about two of the greatest climaxes I had witnessed ever.
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Mr. Santosh Sivan takes us through the training and tribulations of a suicide-bomber all set to assasinate a key political figure. 'The Terrorist', however, is more a story of a woman rather than a hardened, obsessive terrorist. One of the most brilliant examples of low-budget moviemaking (case in point - the accident which Lotus and Malli witness and the climax itself). Given the stereotypes we already associate with Indian cinema, especially the type of characters our lead actresses play all the time, it's not hard to second guess Malli's decision in the end. But the sheer beauty with which Mr. Sivan narrates his tale makes the viewer want to stay till the end and double-check if he's right or maybe the director does have a trick up his sleeves. And when the moment does arrive, one can't help but applaud the way the denouement had been handled. To the point. Bull's eye. And having got his point across, not an extra word or shot was wasted by engaging in some emotional bullshit Indian cinema is (in)famous for.
PS - Having debuted with a beautiful and powerful 'The Terrorist', it's a disappointment that Mr. Sivan had a mediocre 'Asoka' to follow up with. I wonder what went wrong.
[Note-To-Self - Avoid digressions!]
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I can't believe I hadn't watched 'Kramer Vs. Kramer' till last night. How come it didn't pop up in all of those long discussions about movies all this while? It certainly isn't THAT obscure. Anyways.
Dustin Hoffman is Ted Kramer and...I shall re-iterate...Dustin Hoffman is Ted Kramer - he doesn't just plays the character - and Meryl Streep is Joanna Kramer. With a simple enough story of a couple caught in between a litigation involving the custody of their only child after their separation, Kramer is one of the finest screenplays ever to have been put on screen. Euphemistically speaking, its awe-inspiring. Pretty straight-forward story on paper, maybe, but the way the film affects you, the way it teaches you a life's worth of lessons in human behaviour, compatibility in relationships and parenting, and the way in which it, possibly, changes you by the end, has to be seen to be believed. One of those movies which don't take the viewers for granted and, better yet, puts the audience's imagination at work by fading off at the most opportune and brilliant frame possible. Just as the end-credits start to roll off I was blown away and completely overcome by the impact of it all. It hits. And, again, quite a bit of the impression that the flick has at the end is certainly due to the director's decision of not taking the story any further than what it's turned out to be. Prevents any mixed or diluted reactions from the viewer and sets them free to free to 'complete' the story in their mind as they walk out of the theatre, over a dinner table discussion, over a cuppa coffee or while writing some shoddy blog, just as they wish.
Brilliant.
----
However, in film and in any other form of story-telling, a great deal of the power that the story holds depends on how and just exactly when does the story-teller (aka the director) decides to stop and let the audience take over.
Won't be indulging in any analysis n shit here. Just feeling compelled to jot down few thoughts about two of the greatest climaxes I had witnessed ever.
------
Mr. Santosh Sivan takes us through the training and tribulations of a suicide-bomber all set to assasinate a key political figure. 'The Terrorist', however, is more a story of a woman rather than a hardened, obsessive terrorist. One of the most brilliant examples of low-budget moviemaking (case in point - the accident which Lotus and Malli witness and the climax itself). Given the stereotypes we already associate with Indian cinema, especially the type of characters our lead actresses play all the time, it's not hard to second guess Malli's decision in the end. But the sheer beauty with which Mr. Sivan narrates his tale makes the viewer want to stay till the end and double-check if he's right or maybe the director does have a trick up his sleeves. And when the moment does arrive, one can't help but applaud the way the denouement had been handled. To the point. Bull's eye. And having got his point across, not an extra word or shot was wasted by engaging in some emotional bullshit Indian cinema is (in)famous for.
PS - Having debuted with a beautiful and powerful 'The Terrorist', it's a disappointment that Mr. Sivan had a mediocre 'Asoka' to follow up with. I wonder what went wrong.
[Note-To-Self - Avoid digressions!]
----
I can't believe I hadn't watched 'Kramer Vs. Kramer' till last night. How come it didn't pop up in all of those long discussions about movies all this while? It certainly isn't THAT obscure. Anyways.
Dustin Hoffman is Ted Kramer and...I shall re-iterate...Dustin Hoffman is Ted Kramer - he doesn't just plays the character - and Meryl Streep is Joanna Kramer. With a simple enough story of a couple caught in between a litigation involving the custody of their only child after their separation, Kramer is one of the finest screenplays ever to have been put on screen. Euphemistically speaking, its awe-inspiring. Pretty straight-forward story on paper, maybe, but the way the film affects you, the way it teaches you a life's worth of lessons in human behaviour, compatibility in relationships and parenting, and the way in which it, possibly, changes you by the end, has to be seen to be believed. One of those movies which don't take the viewers for granted and, better yet, puts the audience's imagination at work by fading off at the most opportune and brilliant frame possible. Just as the end-credits start to roll off I was blown away and completely overcome by the impact of it all. It hits. And, again, quite a bit of the impression that the flick has at the end is certainly due to the director's decision of not taking the story any further than what it's turned out to be. Prevents any mixed or diluted reactions from the viewer and sets them free to free to 'complete' the story in their mind as they walk out of the theatre, over a dinner table discussion, over a cuppa coffee or while writing some shoddy blog, just as they wish.
Brilliant.
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posted by Anurag at 12:33 AM
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