Mehta wins with Water Fri, November 11, 2005 Her subtly layered film blends rich human drama with difficult social issues. By BRUCE KIRKLAND, Special to The Free Press
<a href='http://adfarm.mserve.ca/control/ck.php?maxparams=2__bannerid=4456__zoneid=125__cb=36d1e6953a' target='_blank'><img src='http://img.adfarm.mserve.ca/content/300x250d_promo1_9.gif' width='300' height='250' alt='Click Here!' title='Click Here!' border='0'></a> Deepa Mehta's Water is blessed. That might sound strange if you know the film's tumultuous history. As the final part in her elemental trilogy that started with Fire (1996) and Earth (1998), Water was to have been made in India five years ago. But Hindu extremists, who opposed the telling of this story, stormed the production, destroyed sets and threatened the Toronto filmmaker. Water, a Canadian production, was delayed and finally filmed in Sri Lanka as River Moon. Mehta was able to revive her project, recast it with a uniformly stellar ensemble and create it as an act of love and not of defiance. The blessing is that she was able to triumph. Water was the opening-night gala at the Toronto film festival. In art, it is results and not process that captivate audiences. Water is an exquisite drama brimming with life and laughter, great tenderness and wrenching tragedy. It is a story of lives lived. There is wit and personality here. There is lovely music by Mychael Danna, with the songs of A. R. Rahman. Giles Nuttgens' photography is gorgeous. The action takes place on the banks of the Ganges River in India in the late 1930s. A child bride (played with spirit by Sarala, a Sri Lankan village girl speaking lines phonetically) loses her aged husband after the wedding feast. She is shipped off to a widows' house, where her head is shaved and she is forced into a life of destitution and potential depravity. The ashram is financed through prostitution. Otherwise, there is no money for food. The star whore (Canadian Lisa Ray) is a spiritual creature who rises above her sexual duties. She is a lotus flower living in dirty water, a metaphor offered in the film. Sarala and Ray become friends and provide the film's joyous moments (the clapping scene). Together, they encounter an intriguing outsider (Bollywood star John Abraham), a wealthy liberal idealist. Embracing the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi, our naive hero wants his beloved India to change, including an end to the barbarism of shunning widows. And, of course, Abraham falls in love with Ray. There is another woman (played by the respected Indian star Seema Biswas) who figures prominently in the complex structure of this film. She is a mature, religiously devout widow who watches over both Ray and Sarala. Mehta, as writer and director, pulls off a small miracle with the layers of her story. In the first act, the focus is on Sarala; in the second act, it is on Ray; in the third act, the film belongs to Biswas. Yet this does not feel forced or artificial. There is a natural flow as the story evolves. Another small miracle -- and this is also true of Fire and Earth -- is how well the socio-political elements are woven in, without destroying the intimacy of the saga. We get crucial background in subtle ways, especially on Gandhi and the movement to free India from the British. So, when Gandhi appears on screen in a riveting scene at a local train station, it feels right. Not incidentally, the profound words Gandhi speaks are historically accurate, although the place setting is fictional. That is true of the whole story. Through fiction this powerful and humanistic, the truth can be told. WATER * * * * 1/2 What: Drama directed by Deepa Mehta Starring: Lisa Ray, John Abraham, Sarala, Seema Biswas Classification: 14A Where: Westmount 6 Cinemas, 785 Wonderland Rd. (474-2152) http://lfpress.ca/newsstand/Today/Entertainment/2005/11/11/1301897-sun.html "We neglect our cities at our peril. For, in neglecting them, we neglect the nation." -John F. Kennedy ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Get fast access to your favorite Yahoo! Groups. Make Yahoo! your home page http://us.click.yahoo.com/dpRU5A/wUILAA/yQLSAA/iyUplB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Explore, Experience, Enjoy A.R.Rahman - The Man, The Music, The Magic. Only at arrahmanfans.com - The definitive A.R.Rahman e-community. Homepage: http://www.arrahmanfans.com Admin: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/arrahmanfans/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/