Kill (5 Stars)

This is the sixth film in the Stuttgart Fantasy Film Festival.

It's an Indian film, made in Hindi, and it's unlike any Indian film I've ever seen before. It has a very simple plot, but the film is effective in what it sets out to do.

Two soldiers, army captains, are travelling on a long distance train. There's a gang on board which intends to rob all the travellers. There are supposedly 36 gang members, but without counting, it seemed like many more were being killed.

It's a narrow train, so all the fights are at close combat. There are only short breaks between one fight and the next. It's violence for the sake of violence, and I was cheering for the heroes throughout the film.

This is the best film in the festival so far, and one of the best films I've seen this year.

RRR (5 Stars)

Netflix Thursday #24

This is a film set in 1920 in India. It's about a fictional meeting between two real people who lived in India when the country was part of the British Empire.

The film starts when the local governor gives money to a woman whose daughter Malli sings for him. He gives the mother money, which she thinks is payment for the song, but he's actually buying the girl. The governor drives away with Malli, ignoring the protests of the villagers.

One of the villagers, Bheem, vows to fetch Malli back. He's a skilled fighter, and he's not afraid of facing hordes of British soldiers by himself. His arrival in Delhi is reported, but nobody knows who he is or what he looks like. An Indian policeman, Raju, offers to go undercover to find him. When they meet the two men become close friends, neither of them knowing who or what the other is.

"RRR" ("Rise, Roar, Revolt") is an overwhelming film. This is hardly surprising, because it's the most expensive film ever made in India. The cinematography is stunning, and the action sequences are gripping, even if they're over-the-top. Both Bheem and Raju are able to fight single-handedly against dozens of soldiers at a time. They don't have problems until they're forced to fight against one another.

It's a film that I need to watch again. It was released in the cinemas last year, but at present it's only available on Netflix, not on disc.

Success Rate:  + 0.4

The Warrior (2001) (4 Stars)

This is the fifth film that I've watched to remember Irrfan Khan, who died five days ago. I discovered earlier today that Netflix (Germany) contains 11 of his films. Yes, eleven! It's unusual for Netflix to be so good, especially outside of America. I've made a note of them, but for now I'll stick to the five films that I have in my personal film collection. I deliberately left "The Warrior" till last, because it's the only film I own in which he plays the lead role. It's a British film that was made in Hindi. It won the Bafta award for Best British Film in 2003.

Irrfan Khan plays an unnamed warrior who lives somewhere in northern India. It's difficult to say exactly when it takes place. Based on the primitive society and the lack of modern weapons I would say that it takes place before British rule of India, anywhere between the 12th and the 18th Century. The Warrior lives in a small house with his teenage son Katiba.

The story begins when representatives of the surrounding villages come to pay taxes to the Ruler (also unnamed). An old man from the village of Tanga gives only a handful of grain because there was a poor harvest. The Warrior is ordered to behead the man as a punishment, then lead a raiding party to destroy the village. The buildings are set on fire, and everyone is executed. The Warrior is about to kill a young girl, when he sees that she's wearing his son's amulet. It's Katiba's girlfriend. The Warrior throws his sword on the ground and swears he will never use a sword again.

The Ruler orders that the Warrior and his son should be executed. Katiba is killed, but the Warrior escapes. He begins a long journey on foot to his home village, Kulla. On the way he meets a young thief and an old blind woman with prophetic vision.

This is a very intense tale of redemption. Despite similarities with Chinese war epics, it could never have been made in China. A Chinese film would have involved revenge. "The Warrior" shows a man who's so disgusted with his past that he'll never pick up a sword again, not even to defend himself. The salvation of his soul in the next world is more important than revenge in this world. The religion followed by the Warrior is probably Hinduism, but it's left vague so that viewers of any religious faith can relate to it.

Needless to say, Irrfan Khan's acting ability carries the film. The slightest movements of his eyes allow us to look deep into the soul of the Warrior. Was there ever another Indian actor with such skill?

The Chess Players (4 Stars)

"Nothing but poetry and music should bring tears to a man's eyes".

I'm somewhat ashamed that I didn't watch this film until today. When I heard about Saeed Jaffrey's death on November 15th I decided to watch this film to remember him. It's one of only two films I own in which he appears. The other is "The Man who would be King". Somehow I forgot about it, and it wasn't until today that I saw the DVD lying in my bookcase waiting for me.

The film takes place in India in 1856 in the Moslem province of Oudh. Mirza and Meer, two rich noblemen, spend all day playing chess. They don't need to work, because their great-grandfathers served in the King of Oudh's army, and they were rewarded with so much wealth that they can still live on it three generations later. They both neglect their wives in order to play chess. Mirza's wife is angry and steals the chess pieces. Meer's wife is glad that her husband plays chess, because it means she can spend more time with her lover.

At the same time there is political upheaval. Oudh is the independent province left in India. Everything else has been conquered by Britain. King Wajid of Oudh is allowed to remain in power as an ally of Britain. He's a deeply religious man who prays five times a day, apart from which he has 29 wives and 400 concubines. He writes poems, songs and operas. This doesn't leave him any time to do his job as a ruler, so Britain is frustrated with the chaos in his province and decides to take it over.

Mirza and Meer hardly notice what's going on around them. All they want to do is play chess.

Saeed Jaffrey
8 January 1929 – 15 November 2015

Kaante (3½ Stars)

A difficult film to rate. Its main weakness is that it moves too slowly. It takes 45 minutes before anything begins to happen, and even after that it stops and starts. The film length of 160 minutes is unnecessary. It could have been improved by shortening it an hour. It seems rather absurd that in the strip club all the pole dancers are fully dressed.