Brazil - Film Review

Let me tell you a few things before I start off with the asymmetrical ideas that constitute for a film review with a random precision.

         i)                    Till now Brazil – the soundtrack – by Vengaboys was the only version of that song that I had heard.

        ii)                  Terry Gilliam is the first name I see every morning – Thanks to the big “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas” poster shining on my wall- when I wake up.

Ok – So Brazil(1985) is the second of Terry’s Film that I have seen till date, first being Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas – which happens to top the list of my personal favourites (clearly visible by the fact that I have named it twice in some other film’s review). I would be wrong if I would say that it took me by surprise, as I did expect some wicked humor and a tasty blend of mind-drenching metaphors, that would put a joyful smile on my face. The movie delivered it in the best way possible. From the first frame of the movie where you find a TV advertisement of Designer Ducts, you knew that you were in for a mind-boggling treat. 

The movie is based “Somewhere in 20^th Century” about some totalitarian government buried deep and risen high with its bureaucratic mess which has penetrated every inch of even any life, ranging from Nature – to – even an insect's life.  In this dystopian world lives a man Sam Lowry, played by Jonathan Pryce, whose life is as numb as his department – Records – a name that clearly is a synonym for Dust and Bundles. Sam is stuck up in a job with a humorless and a clueless boss, who would call Sam to solve even 2 + 2, and then pay off his debt using a cup of tea, biscuits and flattering talks. But as they say – dystopia never comes alone and a good film is always made in layers - we have our very own Sam Lowry free from his Jacket and Record department, now flying over and above like a mechanical eagle, looking ten times smarter with long hair, and falling in love with an angel trapped in a cage(Kim Greist).

The movie is full of obvious satires and a hard Huxley-like hopeless approach to life, if it can be called one in a Society, if it can be called one. We have a bug in the system – a real bug – drawing first blood for the Team Satire against Team Technizized society ( a word originated on lines of Organizized, thanks to Mr. Scorcese) causing arrest of a Mr Buttle – instead of Mr Tuttle. In an Orwellian society, a mistake like that needs to be covered up, lest the bureaucrats may be blamed. But thanks to the Satire no. 2, which shows symbolical baboons running the society, it leads to another chaos. The tyrrincal guard who would welcome you with fists in restaurants and civil workers who treat you as there shit, have forms for everything and corresponding receipts too – yes, they make sure all the taxes are paid by the creatures living in that society. They are, therefore, eligible for Satire No. 3 that Terry plays. Lets move on, in the dream itself, Eagle Sam’s green world, is penetrated by skyscrapers, and his angel love is caught by Babombie ( a word I constructed – Babies + Zombie) well that’s how they looked, serving a Electrical Lord –full of circuits, which is a bang on hit on our lives – depicting how we have been enslaved by machines. Satire no. 4 shows how Big machines rule us, while Small, unkept ones do the task of the commander. Taking this forward comes Satire no. 5 – when Sam’s air conditioning breaks down – we have Robert De Niro, as Mr Tuttle, fighting as a free-lancer and “fixing people’s problems” while all government’s “Emergency Service” does is that it sends two dickbytes to “fix” the problem. They don’t even have any clue about even the rules. In another layer we have satire no.6 - Sam’s mother getting beauty treatment with razors and chemicals,  and “Already she is twice as beautiful as she was before” when she has her head wrapped in polyethene.

The list is long-

i)                    Sam’s mother wearing a sandal-shaped hat.

ii)                  “Terrorists” bombing a restaurant and people in high class section continue with their meal – while the dead bodies are covered with a satin curtain.

iii)                Cuisines with flashy names and delicious expectations – that look like Dog’s poo.

iv)                Children playing Interrogation games and burning up people’s car. People paying for their own interrogation.

v)                  Receipts being signed to commemorate a death.

vi)                Claustrophobic cabins – and shared desk space 

vii)              A time-lapsed version of E-mails with letters, notices and memo etc travelling through network of pipes

viii)            Interrogation- is just another for torture and inhumane “Information Retrieval”

ix)                 Lawyers, making their pitch like any corporate salesman

The end – can be easily predicted by anyone who understands the source of any inspiration for this movie. It had to be crazy, pessimistic and to certain extent fulfilling a dream of any narcissistic society. Though many suggest it became drag because of it’s length – I believe, that made it more interesting and stronger. At the same time I got a feel that the entire movie was a thought process of Sam Lowry – resting in that torture chair in the last scene. However, I have no other fact to support it, so I would refrain from pressing it.

Terry, in his psychedelic Sci- fi trilogy strikes beautifully with Brazil. The use of camera is brilliant, in terms of Lenses to give the desired effect wherever required – ranging again from Wide- Angle lenses to portray gigantic nature of the Ministry, to kinoptik lenses giving us Claustrophobic effect in Sam’s new office. The designing of the entire set structure was equally beautiful and composed to define required imaginative dystopia. Tilted shots when needed, jumps and cuts to weird angles with disturbed lightning and sounds – give it a cherry on the top.

The only drawback about the film, which is more of a personal opinion, is that for people already having this taste – it was a bit too predictable.

Rest all – An amazing film – and very rightly listed as a must watch. Go ahead – watch it and get screwed in Brazil.

Akshat “The Reflection” Sharma. 

-        

Latcho Drom - A Review.

Many a times, rather – always, we see a movie with a walking antagonist, struggling and conflicting in some or the other way. I have seen quite a few movies, portraying a different character always. Some of them are great fighters, some suffering from an OCD, some even in form of souls – dead and dreaming both, but today it was a different encounter.

Latcho Drom- took me into a new world, full of timed, rhythmic and progressive beats. Today, I encountered yet another differently styled protagonist, no, not gypsies, nor human civilizations. Yes, all the living beings in the movie play an amazing role of supporting the lead character- more of a “side-kick” – but the “hero”, the protagonist of this movie was, undoubtedly, Music. All the while I had heard about this film being about life of gypsies.

It is said, it’s about Gypsies travelling all around the world, from deserts of Rajasthan, to borders of Egypt, from fields of Istanbul to Romania, following it into Hungary, Slovakia, France and Spain. Agreed.

The film captures life of often-neglected gypsies, who travel, across land and water, living their life with new cultures, infusing same with their own, picking up some from there, and moving forward, whenever needed or desired. They have been more than often been hated and persecuted by almost every king and kingdom, masses and civilizations. Hitler went after them as industriously as he did with the Jews. Nicolae Ceausescu terrorized them in Romania. Christians castigated them as pagans. The “roshomon” of every country has always been prejudiced, suspicious about them.

Latcho Drom- portrays life of this breed, species – I would like to call them – Reason being they are higher to us. We all feel that they are ignorant about ways of the world, they don’t know rules, or culture, or how to behave in the society, very few would have encountered “worldly pleasures”. However, they have lived in open, breathed every morning fresh air, woken up to the first ray of sunlight, slept under the lullaby of stars, and lived their life – in the language of music and lyrics. They converse with their God, whenever they want, however they want, their beliefs have kept them strong against the entire community which they often come across. People welcome them with guns for a few minutes, only to tell them – to go away- in less respectable way than they would shoo away stray animals with. We see them dancing to the tunes of their own happiness, to the beats of their work, to the tunes of morning light- to the lament of holocaust –to the exiled life that they live. We find them singing the pain in their words, with claps, and pass on a beam to a crying face- via someone as innocent as a child.

That is the reason – why I find Music – to be the lead character of this movie.

I don’t know if it is only me who is reading too much between the lines, or maybe it is my love for music that’s speaking – but I noticed the film talk about life of civilizations woven with music. Film starts with – A child singing, in high scale, a song – greeting the morning time, it follows – with dance and prayer, moves on to another country where civilizations have atleast the shelter above their heads, to shack houses, and so on and so forth – till the time their shelter is snatched away by keepers of society. They are again, homeless- and a mourning lament follows that sings to everyone snuggled under their warm blankets, eating tasty bread and discussing gossip.

Isn’t it weird how we find three characters always, A girl waiting to dance – a lady already dancing to the tune of the learned musician – being looked at, in awe by some kid – who aspires to be like him, and above all – a crowd around them – some sharing their life with it, others ,just looking. Never do we see their faces - as a mass.

Another thing – that struck me about this creation was the way music was produced. Not only, were the music being created by sounds of their daily tools – signifying how their work-life is as similar as their homes, how they find solace and enjoyment in whatever they do,  but also, the beauty in which it was produced – Similar tempo – rising progressions – adding instruments  - joined by vocals – layering it with beautiful Lyrics and sung out to the steps of dancing souls.

All I will say in the end is that – If you weren’t tapping your feet to the rhythms and music in this movie – stop calling yourself a music lover- and, most probably, if you didn’t enjoy this piece of art – Well – Think again, about your future.

Cheers.