Big treats are on from the MAMI Mumbai Film Festival, that runs from October 12-18. Fortunately, as my work with multiple festivals and awards worldwide allows me to see many films from India and around the world, let me share my Top 10 film
Big treats are on from the MAMI Mumbai Film Festival, that runs from October 12-18. Fortunately, as my work with multiple festivals and awards worldwide allows me to see many films from India and around the world, let me share my Top 10 film recommendations.
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A still from the late Abbas Kiarostami's final feature, 24 Frames
FOREIGN FILMS:
1. 24 Frames by Abbas Kiarostami, Iran
Kiarostami's posthumous "film" 24 Frames is an exquisite reverie on scenes from nature. Through still, but precise frames, and aided by subtle staging or effects, he captures the haunting, haiku-like poetry of nature, its beauty, amorousness and brutality. Arthouse fare, but enthralling.
2. On Body and Soul by Ildiko Enyedi, Hungary
This atmospheric Golden Bear winner connects a love story set in a meat company, with dreams, and the lives of animals. There's magic realism, as two employees dream the same dream, of deer in the snow.
3. A Fantastic Woman by Sebastian Lelio, Chile
This one is about the gorgeous transgender singer Marina, whose partner suddenly drops dead, and of her determination to be treated with respect. Powerhouse performance by Daniela Vega.
4. Sweet Country by Warwick Thornton, Australia
This is a powerful period film about the white man's horrific treatment of Aborigines, as slave labour and sex slaves. Magnificently shot. Venice, Toronto festivals.
5. Wajib (Duty) by Annemarie Jacir, Palestine
A father must deliver his daughter's wedding invitations along with his son, who has returned from Rome. We understand the compulsions of daily life in Palestine. Good performances; the sexy Saleh Bakri is brother of the scalding hot Adam Bakri from the film Omar.
Special treat: The Other Side of Hope by Aki Kaurismaki
INDIAN/SOUTH ASIAN FILMS:
1. Mukkabaaz (The Brawler) by Anurag Kashyap
An explosive cocktail of the politics of sport and caste, this is Kashyap's most mainstream film yet, apart from Bombay Velvet. Playing as a thriller, it packs a mean punch. Vineet Kumar Singh is superb as a low caste boxer, forced to make appalling sacrifices in the game, for the sake of the woman he loves.
2. Machines by Rahul Jain
Hard to believe this mesmerising, accomplished documentary on textile workers in Surat is a debut feature. While using a contemporary narrative, with Sundance award-winning cinematography and editing, it asks old fashioned questions about how India exploits its labour.
3. Gali Guliyan (In the Shadows) by Dipesh Jain
Manoj Bajpayee puts in a powerful performance in this psychological drama about a man trapped in the walls of old Delhi — and his own mind. His obsession over the neighbours' domestic violence leads to an unexpected revelation. Debut feature.
4. What Will People Say? by Iram Haq
This portrait of a Pakistani family in Norway explores horrific, honour-obsessed Asian families settled in the West. It is about a teenager who is caught flirting, and banished by her nasty dad (Adil Husain) to Pakistan. OK, it's not an Indian film, but a very Indian subject, and art transcends political borders.
5. Village Rockstars by Rima Das
This quiet, low-budget feature from Assam is about 10-year-old Dhunu, brought up by her single mother in penury, but who dreams of her own rock band. Shot in the director's village with non-professionals, it underlines how poverty allows girls more freedom than upper class girls.
Also watch for: Kamal Swaroop's Pushkar Puran and Anushka Meenakshi and Iswar Srikumar's Up Down And Sideways.
Meenakshi Shedde is South Asia Consultant to the Berlin Film Festival, award-winning critic, curator to festivals worldwide and journalist. Reach her at meenakshishedde@gmail.com.
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