Shape of Water
Having watched the Oscar awards live for the first time this year, I thought it was only fair that I check out “Shape of Water” to get that feeling of completeness.
Prior to the Awards, I had not shown any interest in the movie, the reason being my aversion to slimy things. But post the Oscars, I wanted to see what was it about the movie that got it thirteen nominations and four awards, including Best Director and Best Feature Film.
“Shape of Water” is a juxtaposition of something so beautifully unbelievable against a harsh reality, a world seeped in discrimination of all kinds.
Right from gender inequality to language, race and colour, and the rich-poor divide to physical disabilities and abnormalities, the movie deals with various facets of unfairness. Each of its characters highlight a prejudice, the disturbing starkness and blatancy a contrast against the unperturbed fluidity at which the narrative is told.
The comparisons are so well brought out that we end up asking a lot of questions.
What exactly is beastly? Is it the creature that is deemed dangerous but is capable of love and healing or people like the Colonel or the Pie Guy who are insensitive even to fellow humans?
Who is a person of determination? The mute Elisa, introduced to us as a princess without a voice or Zelda’s husband who is supposed to be “silent as a grave” but when he speaks, shows his lack of compassion?
In spite of the monstrosity that is portrayed, there is something very calming about this movie, the background score and the visual effects intricately woven with the screenplay to bring out poetry on celluloid. So what are you waiting for? If you haven’t watched it yet, do so this weekend.
Vidya Shankar
Published in The Gulf Today / Short Take, dt Mar 24, 2018)
gulftoday.ae/portal/0c4257a7-193d-4892-9056-b41cf83ba5f7.aspx
Here's my first book! An ensemble of poetry and photographs.
Click the link below to watch a 30-second promo video.
https://youtu.be/5BhbjMaIwpk
You can buy it at this link:
https://notionpress.com/read/the-flautist-of-brindaranyam
www.facebook.com
Prior to the Awards, I had not shown any interest in the movie, the reason being my aversion to slimy things. But post the Oscars, I wanted to see what was it about the movie that got it thirteen nominations and four awards, including Best Director and Best Feature Film.
“Shape of Water” is a juxtaposition of something so beautifully unbelievable against a harsh reality, a world seeped in discrimination of all kinds.
Right from gender inequality to language, race and colour, and the rich-poor divide to physical disabilities and abnormalities, the movie deals with various facets of unfairness. Each of its characters highlight a prejudice, the disturbing starkness and blatancy a contrast against the unperturbed fluidity at which the narrative is told.
The comparisons are so well brought out that we end up asking a lot of questions.
What exactly is beastly? Is it the creature that is deemed dangerous but is capable of love and healing or people like the Colonel or the Pie Guy who are insensitive even to fellow humans?
Who is a person of determination? The mute Elisa, introduced to us as a princess without a voice or Zelda’s husband who is supposed to be “silent as a grave” but when he speaks, shows his lack of compassion?
In spite of the monstrosity that is portrayed, there is something very calming about this movie, the background score and the visual effects intricately woven with the screenplay to bring out poetry on celluloid. So what are you waiting for? If you haven’t watched it yet, do so this weekend.
Vidya Shankar
Published in The Gulf Today / Short Take, dt Mar 24, 2018)
gulftoday.ae/portal/0c4257a7-193d-4892-9056-b41cf83ba5f7.aspx
Here's my first book! An ensemble of poetry and photographs.
Click the link below to watch a 30-second promo video.
https://youtu.be/5BhbjMaIwpk
You can buy it at this link:
https://notionpress.com/read/the-flautist-of-brindaranyam
www.facebook.com
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