Pather Panchali (Satyajit Ray, 1955)
When I discovered Pather Panchali it was the first Satyajit Ray film I've ever seen, and it was also the first Indian film I watched. I knew it was the first part of the Apu Trilogy and that it was considered as a true masterpiece. But I didn't knew that it was gonna be one of the most recognized "foreign" film.
Its narration is very subtle and lets lots of space to the actors to actually live on the screen. I know there was a novel on which the trilogy is based but I also read somewhere that it is almost Satyajit Ray's autobiography.
Pather Panchali is the story of an Indian peasant family living with the grand mother, a son Apu and his sister. It depicts how Indians lived in the begininng of the 20th century. The discovery of modernity illustrated by the train and the fragility of life represented by the daughter's death.
The most important aspect of this filmmaking is how Satyajit Ray wants his film to be naturalistic and realistic. It possesses a documentary-like narration of objective camera and almost a non-existent plot. It depicts life itself and what is Cinema if it's not about life? Ray's films are hard to get and sometimes as Occidentals we are a little confused about what's going on the screen but for a glutton and curious cinephile like me Pather Panchali leads you in something completely different and very interesting.
Pather Panchali is the story of an Indian peasant family living with the grand mother, a son Apu and his sister. It depicts how Indians lived in the begininng of the 20th century. The discovery of modernity illustrated by the train and the fragility of life represented by the daughter's death.
The most important aspect of this filmmaking is how Satyajit Ray wants his film to be naturalistic and realistic. It possesses a documentary-like narration of objective camera and almost a non-existent plot. It depicts life itself and what is Cinema if it's not about life? Ray's films are hard to get and sometimes as Occidentals we are a little confused about what's going on the screen but for a glutton and curious cinephile like me Pather Panchali leads you in something completely different and very interesting.
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