Photograph Movie Review - One of the Best Films to Come Out This Year
Two strangers are united through a picture and a lie in this Ritesh Batra's new film which is easily one of this year's best so far.
Cast - Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sanya Malhotra
Directed By - Ritesh Batra
Genre - Romance, Drama
Movies provide a window for escapism by taking you through a world of fiction. They put you in situations you would probably never encounter in your life. While most of this said "situations" use fantasy to provide an otherworldly experience, the question that arises is whether this experience could be achieved by portraying the reality.
Photograph is the answer to this question. This film made by Batra is a perfect blend of reality sprinkled with light doses of fantasy. If the language and the low lying streets of Mumbai add to realism then the idea of making two differently coloured people (he is black, and she is white) a couple is a fantasy. It's not a racist remark but is something almost every coloured man initially dreams of (until he finds his match) and there hopes are held high with a bright light in this film. Later in the movie, a ghost makes an appearance. This is suspension of disbelief used at its best. Everything is explained, and everything is there for a reason.
Rafi (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) is a photographer who roams around the Gateway of India in Mumbai. He uses a nostalgic line to lure his customers which goes something like this - "kuch saalon baad yeh photo dekhoge toh aapko yehi awaaz, yehi muskaan nazar aayegi" (Years later when you would look at this photo, it would bring you back to this current moment). On the other hand is Miloni (Sanya Malhotra), a CA topper of her institute wanting to catch a break and freedom from the surroundings. Her parents control her life by choosing a groom and even her career. She has no saying on the decisions made for her. A dining room scene reveals that she wanted to be an actress but her mother seeing no future in the field decided to pull her away from it. Now she is left with a shy smile and eyes seeing far away in the distance longing for happiness. So when she hears Rafi's lines, she agrees to pose for a picture in an attempt to keep some part of her cheerfulness alive. Life is not so easy for him too; his grandmother pressurises him to get married and even stops taking her medicine in an attempt to convince him. News travels fast in his locality, and soon everybody starts asking him to get married for his grandmother's sake. Fed up by this situation, he decides to send the photo of Miloni to her grandmother by telling that she is the one. He names her Noorie as he doesn't know her name and also because a song from the movie plays nearby. Miloni also agrees to be in a fake relationship with him for the sake of his grandmother.
I was surprised by the sheer control Batra had over this movie. Take for example the way he frames every scene by showing only the things that matter to the characters. A character may look out of a boat or simply walk down a street without giving importance to the surroundings. The background is blurred while the focus remains on the subject. Even the face of Miloni's maid is shown to us when she "enters" her life. A cab driver is put out of focus as he remarks the difference in status between Miloni and Rafi. Rafi is aware of his place but still starts dreaming of a life with her. Whether he ends up with her or not is an unnecessary question. What is important is the pure bond of love that is developed here which is now rarely seen in the movies. The movie uses similar cuts to establish a connection like a shot of a group of friends drinking, and a family eating dinner is placed after one another. In another instance, the scene cuts from a birthday party at a restaurant to another one at home. For a film which takes on images, Photograph does speak visually and relies scarcely on dialogues for the development with both Nawaz and Malhotra giving their career-best performance to date. This is acting in its purest form working subtly without over the top makeup or drama.
But again, Photograph is not for everyone. Those long, slow and meditative shots would surely test your patience, and if you like your films fast-paced, then you would come out disappointed or even with lots of hate. This is not your typical Bollywood boy-meets-girl affair so don't expect definite conclusions. I am telling this to make you aware of the film, so you know what you are buying tickets for. At my screening, there were only five people in the theatre, and before the movie started, one of them shouted that it would be a bore. I wanted to throw him out, and I am glad he didn't come after the interval. The experience of watching a movie in an empty theatre is like heaven. Perhaps, this may be another reason why I loved Photograph so much. It is not every day you come across something made with so much love and passion. But I warn again, if it's not your cup of tea then don't drink it.
Rating - 5/5
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Cast - Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sanya Malhotra
Directed By - Ritesh Batra
Genre - Romance, Drama
Movies provide a window for escapism by taking you through a world of fiction. They put you in situations you would probably never encounter in your life. While most of this said "situations" use fantasy to provide an otherworldly experience, the question that arises is whether this experience could be achieved by portraying the reality.
Photograph is the answer to this question. This film made by Batra is a perfect blend of reality sprinkled with light doses of fantasy. If the language and the low lying streets of Mumbai add to realism then the idea of making two differently coloured people (he is black, and she is white) a couple is a fantasy. It's not a racist remark but is something almost every coloured man initially dreams of (until he finds his match) and there hopes are held high with a bright light in this film. Later in the movie, a ghost makes an appearance. This is suspension of disbelief used at its best. Everything is explained, and everything is there for a reason.
Rafi (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) is a photographer who roams around the Gateway of India in Mumbai. He uses a nostalgic line to lure his customers which goes something like this - "kuch saalon baad yeh photo dekhoge toh aapko yehi awaaz, yehi muskaan nazar aayegi" (Years later when you would look at this photo, it would bring you back to this current moment). On the other hand is Miloni (Sanya Malhotra), a CA topper of her institute wanting to catch a break and freedom from the surroundings. Her parents control her life by choosing a groom and even her career. She has no saying on the decisions made for her. A dining room scene reveals that she wanted to be an actress but her mother seeing no future in the field decided to pull her away from it. Now she is left with a shy smile and eyes seeing far away in the distance longing for happiness. So when she hears Rafi's lines, she agrees to pose for a picture in an attempt to keep some part of her cheerfulness alive. Life is not so easy for him too; his grandmother pressurises him to get married and even stops taking her medicine in an attempt to convince him. News travels fast in his locality, and soon everybody starts asking him to get married for his grandmother's sake. Fed up by this situation, he decides to send the photo of Miloni to her grandmother by telling that she is the one. He names her Noorie as he doesn't know her name and also because a song from the movie plays nearby. Miloni also agrees to be in a fake relationship with him for the sake of his grandmother.
I was surprised by the sheer control Batra had over this movie. Take for example the way he frames every scene by showing only the things that matter to the characters. A character may look out of a boat or simply walk down a street without giving importance to the surroundings. The background is blurred while the focus remains on the subject. Even the face of Miloni's maid is shown to us when she "enters" her life. A cab driver is put out of focus as he remarks the difference in status between Miloni and Rafi. Rafi is aware of his place but still starts dreaming of a life with her. Whether he ends up with her or not is an unnecessary question. What is important is the pure bond of love that is developed here which is now rarely seen in the movies. The movie uses similar cuts to establish a connection like a shot of a group of friends drinking, and a family eating dinner is placed after one another. In another instance, the scene cuts from a birthday party at a restaurant to another one at home. For a film which takes on images, Photograph does speak visually and relies scarcely on dialogues for the development with both Nawaz and Malhotra giving their career-best performance to date. This is acting in its purest form working subtly without over the top makeup or drama.
But again, Photograph is not for everyone. Those long, slow and meditative shots would surely test your patience, and if you like your films fast-paced, then you would come out disappointed or even with lots of hate. This is not your typical Bollywood boy-meets-girl affair so don't expect definite conclusions. I am telling this to make you aware of the film, so you know what you are buying tickets for. At my screening, there were only five people in the theatre, and before the movie started, one of them shouted that it would be a bore. I wanted to throw him out, and I am glad he didn't come after the interval. The experience of watching a movie in an empty theatre is like heaven. Perhaps, this may be another reason why I loved Photograph so much. It is not every day you come across something made with so much love and passion. But I warn again, if it's not your cup of tea then don't drink it.
Rating - 5/5
Follow Me On:
Twitter - https://twitter.com/vikas_yadav98
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/vikasy199/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/vimovies123/
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