rbjeremy Reviews

Sangam (I) (1964)

Over four decades

[8/10 · 9 February 2010]

When I first saw Sangam back in 1965 on its initial release in Malaysia, I was a young boy whose deep impressions of the film was the lady in a white sari. I saw it again in 1974 on its re release. For the second viewing, it was the music and the songs. Unfortunately I had seen "Bobby" by then and thought all the three leads looked far too matured for the "teenage" and "young" characters they were playing on screen. But that was the trend of those bygone days when older actors played younger roles. It is rare for any musical that every single tune is as enduring to the ears as in Sangam. Only "My Fair Lady' "The Sound Of Music" and "Bobby" (1973) comes to mind. Since then with the convenience of television and now the DVD I had seen watched it once every few years and I revisited the film again last night. The male bonding and the sacrifice of Rajendra Kumar is very Asian and may well be on its way to be extinct. This sense of Asian obligation and moral value was and to some extend still is prevalent is a sense of maintaining a status quo and not rock the boat in a bad situation for want of not turning it worse. It is not a wrong or right decision. Everything that needs to be said about the acting, about the cinematography and its importance in Hindi cinema by taking the musical numbers out of the studios to exotic locations has been elaborated in these pages. What strikes me is the way in which Raj Kapoor with the use of music and only three principal characters hold our attention for more than three hours. All other characters appear briefly solely for narrative development. Although it is not a masterpiece, it is an enduring example of a simple love story (which has been done a million times over); with its chemistry between the characters and its music does not seem dated and still shine above others more than 40 years after its premier.

Rhapsody in August (1991)

America Apologises to Japan for Pearl Habour

[1/10 · 13 June 2009]

As an admirer of Kurosawa, I have been warned by many on the political slant of the film. I do not blame Kurosawa for having made "The Most Beautiful" (1944) as it was probably a film which he was forced to make, but with "Rhapsody" made 45 years after the war ; his view of things in nothing short of being fascist. Japan was the aggressor. When Italy and Germany fell, they still believed they could win the war on the Asian front. If not for the bombs, how many more non Japanese nationals would have lost their lives or endured torture? They invaded. They caused such atrocities which human history had never before recorded. The Japanese militia was trained to commit suicide rather than surrender. If not for the H-Bombs, Japan will never have surrendered. The H-bombs were a necessity of the time. Why should an American feel embarrassed and apologise to the Japanese for Hiroshima and Nagazaki? It is the Japanese who should say no more to Japanese imperialism and apologises to the entire world for having invaded plundered raped mutilated and caused such suffering to the entire human race living in the east at the time. It is the Japanese who should say they have learned their lesson. After this I doubt if I will be able to see "the humanism" of Kurosawa in "Red Beard" in the same light. For those who think America wrong in 1945, well maybe it is high time they finance a film made by Jews apologising to the Germans for the concentration camps of WWII.

Lust, Caution (2007)

If you are lost; it is no fault of Li An's

[8/10 · 19 January 2008]

This is a Chinese film. Made with the sensitivity and sensibility of a meticulous Chinese director. At the end of the film, Mr. Yee sacrifices his Love for patriotism and Jia Zhi sacrifices patriotism for Love. The film is based in a period of turbulence where simultaneous to resistance struggle against the Imperial Japanese Army was the Civil War between the KMT (Nationalist Army) and the Communist Army. Many reviewers are concerned with the sex scenes which were nothing more than a metaphor for domination (first sex scene) and lust and finally passion where the two protagonists without so much a word of endearment falls in love and in the historical status quo beyond their control surrenders it. Mr. Yee's act of love by the gift of the diamond ring was initially construed as a conspiracy thereby ending up in the tragedy. It is an illustration of the national dichotomy. In spite of its length, the film was neither boring nor long drawn. It was full of suspense : the physical war between the imperialists and local populace and the war that was raging between the interlocking political Parties due to differences in ideology. Li An though has not brought this out in a detailed and explanatory manner has somehow blended them into the background of the plot. And finally when it was all over Mr. Yee returns home and sat on the bed, I burst into tears for the personal tragedy which has been shaped and caused by divided ideology of the fractions. The acting and especially of Tang Wei's was very good and very convincing. Jia Zhi at the offset was not particularly involved in the patriotic movement : the movies she went to watch on her own were Western Movies; the books she took to school were books in English; her father was in England and she was expected to join him. Even the clothes that she wore was meant to reflect her role for the moment : from Western designs to the traditional Qi Bao. It seems to me that it was more of peer pressure than a specific sense of patriotism that she was involved in the plot. Probably it was also due to her hope to be near Yu Min. Her infatuation for him was admitted when she made up her mind on the man in her life. With every film of this nature; some background knowledge would be useful to put the film in its historical context. From what I can gather the reviewers who gave bad reviews were those who failed to see that context and like most people who do not want to think beyond their initial reaction; this film is lost on them. No fault of Li An.

With "Brokeback Mountain" and "Lust Caution"; Li An is well on his way to become one of the great directors to emerge in the last twenty years. I believe that where his films are unsatisfactory, the studios have interfered too much. This is evident by the fact that all his uneven films are inevitably American Films with an American Cast.