Jude Anthany Joseph's third feature, after Ohm Shanti Oshana and Oru Muthassi Gadha, released on Prime Video at midnight today. This seemingly feel-good film, also seemingly made in limited spaces and with a shoestring budget, tackles a concept and issue never tested before in Malayalam cinema circles. In Sara'S, we follow the life of Sara Vincent (Anna Ben), a young, bubbly, yet unapologetic filmmaker who struggles to make it big in the industry. She continuously assists male directors and is in the scripting works of her dream film. Sara has decided, from her school days, that she would not bear any kids. This is when she meets Jeevan (Sunny Wayne); her relationship with him subsequently brings her ideology and decision into a confrontation with the established norms of society, family and child-rearing. Anna Ben in Sara'S The best aspect in which Sara'S has excelled, without doubt, is its hard-hitting taut script. Debutant Akshay Hareesh deserves praise for managin...
The Red Phallus, Bhutanese director Tashi Gyeltsen's directorial venture, depicts the tale of an innocent teenage girl as she faces ostracism and harsh remarks from a traditional society. The film, which had traveled to international film festivals like Cannes, Berlin and Locarno, recently had its' screening at the 3rd Guwahati International Film Festival.
Sangay, portrayed by Tshering Euden, is the daughter of an atsara, an individual of high class who dons masks of clowns to entertain audiences in Bhutan's villages. He also earns a living by crafting phalluses out of wood, considered spiritually and traditionally relevant by the traditional village society. It is in this conservative background, that we are introduced to Sangay. The sequence which introduces Sangay sums up the entire film and the girl's life. As she walks down the green pastures, above which looms dark, ominous clouds, to cross a narrow bridge, she is followed by a posse of masked atsaras clacking the eponymous wooden phalluses in a cacophony that increases in intensity and irritability, when camera shows Sangay more closely. This scene is a fitting prelude to what is going to happen, a mental reminder to the viewers of the psychological turmoil Sangay could encounter.
Sangay, in The Red Phallus, is the symbol of abuse and ostracism in an apparently traditional society, which lives by its' rules, norms and symbols. Depicting a society which considers phallic sculptures as holy might be the directors' subtle way of criticising a patriarchal community, the origin of all the vitriol, contempt and mockery for the lead character. Sangay isn't in just the receiving end of her father's abuse, but adding to her woes is her boyfriend, Passa, a married man older than her. His profession, that of a butcher, places him in the bottom strata of society's class distinction. Rather than portraying a relationship where the girl finds solace and redemption in the hands of another man, Tashi Gyeltshen changes the narrative, where Passa becomes an even bigger headache. His contempt is directed toward her meek nature, her timidness and her lack of courage. She becomes an hindrance to Passa's plan to elope to Thimphu when she expresses her desire to study. This aggravates a narrow-minded Passa who begins throwing scathing and abusive remarks at Sangay and her father, with whom he shares a huge rift in class positioning.
The Red Phallus is a study of a girl's psychological travails amidst patriarchal society's abuse and vitriol. The film is rife with symbols and metaphors, and these have really helped in creating a masterpiece out of the movie. The scene mentioned before is a perfect example. Only minimal dialogues are spoken from the part of the protagonist, while most of the dialogues are from the repressive males in the movie- the father, the boyfriend, and the headmaster. Yet, the one powerful sentence spoken by Sangay sets the objective the director tried to achieve with this film- "Who said I am not strong enough?" The climax is creepy and horrifying yet redeeming to the entire narrative.
There is an unnoticeable sense of eerie that will wrap the viewer from shot one of the movie. And that, personally, has been the movie's greatest success. It comes from Gyeltshen's masterful direction and Jigme Tenzing's impeccable with the camera. The visuals have been very effective in communicating the dark nature of the film, its' setting and its' characters. The characters, regardless of whether big or small, are mostly lit in low light and there is a lot of interplay between light and shadow. The camerawork and visuals, like Sangay's situation and mind, is complex, but wonderfully pulled off. It cannot be denied that the long establishing takes are a bit tiring, but even they become breathtaking visuals, as it achieves the goal of capturing Bhutan's natural grandeur even in it's ominous setup.
The Red Phallus can turn out to be a worthy contender as it does its' rounds in film festival arenas.
Runtime: 85 minutes
Reviewer-The Blog©
Sangay, portrayed by Tshering Euden, is the daughter of an atsara, an individual of high class who dons masks of clowns to entertain audiences in Bhutan's villages. He also earns a living by crafting phalluses out of wood, considered spiritually and traditionally relevant by the traditional village society. It is in this conservative background, that we are introduced to Sangay. The sequence which introduces Sangay sums up the entire film and the girl's life. As she walks down the green pastures, above which looms dark, ominous clouds, to cross a narrow bridge, she is followed by a posse of masked atsaras clacking the eponymous wooden phalluses in a cacophony that increases in intensity and irritability, when camera shows Sangay more closely. This scene is a fitting prelude to what is going to happen, a mental reminder to the viewers of the psychological turmoil Sangay could encounter.
Sangay, in The Red Phallus, is the symbol of abuse and ostracism in an apparently traditional society, which lives by its' rules, norms and symbols. Depicting a society which considers phallic sculptures as holy might be the directors' subtle way of criticising a patriarchal community, the origin of all the vitriol, contempt and mockery for the lead character. Sangay isn't in just the receiving end of her father's abuse, but adding to her woes is her boyfriend, Passa, a married man older than her. His profession, that of a butcher, places him in the bottom strata of society's class distinction. Rather than portraying a relationship where the girl finds solace and redemption in the hands of another man, Tashi Gyeltshen changes the narrative, where Passa becomes an even bigger headache. His contempt is directed toward her meek nature, her timidness and her lack of courage. She becomes an hindrance to Passa's plan to elope to Thimphu when she expresses her desire to study. This aggravates a narrow-minded Passa who begins throwing scathing and abusive remarks at Sangay and her father, with whom he shares a huge rift in class positioning.
The Red Phallus is a study of a girl's psychological travails amidst patriarchal society's abuse and vitriol. The film is rife with symbols and metaphors, and these have really helped in creating a masterpiece out of the movie. The scene mentioned before is a perfect example. Only minimal dialogues are spoken from the part of the protagonist, while most of the dialogues are from the repressive males in the movie- the father, the boyfriend, and the headmaster. Yet, the one powerful sentence spoken by Sangay sets the objective the director tried to achieve with this film- "Who said I am not strong enough?" The climax is creepy and horrifying yet redeeming to the entire narrative.
There is an unnoticeable sense of eerie that will wrap the viewer from shot one of the movie. And that, personally, has been the movie's greatest success. It comes from Gyeltshen's masterful direction and Jigme Tenzing's impeccable with the camera. The visuals have been very effective in communicating the dark nature of the film, its' setting and its' characters. The characters, regardless of whether big or small, are mostly lit in low light and there is a lot of interplay between light and shadow. The camerawork and visuals, like Sangay's situation and mind, is complex, but wonderfully pulled off. It cannot be denied that the long establishing takes are a bit tiring, but even they become breathtaking visuals, as it achieves the goal of capturing Bhutan's natural grandeur even in it's ominous setup.
The Red Phallus can turn out to be a worthy contender as it does its' rounds in film festival arenas.
The Red Phallus is a film made with finesse, in its technical aspects, while it can pride in the way it has boldly and subtly talked about the life of a girl in a repressive patriarchal society. Gyeltshen deserves praise for his use of symbols and breathtaking visuals to highlight Sangay's woes and depict a land where the people live by its' traditions and beliefs. It is a not just criticism to Bhutan's patriarchy, but an assertion of female strength and the power of the human psyche in the midst of turmoil.
Runtime: 85 minutes
Reviewer-The Blog©
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