Went for a movie festival thingie by the British Council Library yesterday. Digital movies with the supposed theme of people from different countries settling in Britain and grappling with the British culture, coming to terms with it. Armed with the passes for the jig and also good company, I went for it with pretty high expectations from the show.
It was scheduled to start at 7 and I reached there pretty late after going around Mount road thrice missing this turn every time. The first movie was about a Indian family in Britain. Was like a series of home videos and stills with voice overs. As I only came in time to witness a death in the family and the general depression after that, I dint really enjoy that flick. Then came the best one in the show titled A Portrait of MrPink (was led on to remember Reservoir Dogs) This revolved around a Jamaican who lived alone in Britain in this huge classic house n kept painting it in weird(loud Jamaican) colours. The main points of focus were his painting skill(which was amateurish at its best ) and his garden hat(with a lotta leaves and flowers and dew drops on it), a truly Jamaican thing of beauty. The guy kept guffawing through the video and so, I missed most of his words. On the whole was a truly insightful portrait of his life in Britain with only one minor flaw.. that not a single British person appeared throughout it.
The next one.. a superb effort by three Chinese ladies who owned a bakery and throughout the video were stuffing pigs fat into samosa like thingies.. n bitching about how they shd’ve never married.. but their conversations were all delightfully pointless and there was this really natural bit where an old woman and her husband were having dinner..
Woman: “Im gonna do the fish”.. close up of her cutting some fish into 3 slices.. then she says “come , dinner is ready”
Man: (grumpily) this is all we have for dinner? There is nothing to eat(he had a point .. I cud only see tiny bowls with some weird concoctions in it. N of course the three bits of fish.. ) Roast pork would be good
Woman : we have green leaves(that was the translation.. im sure she meant some delicacy that would make up for roast pork amply)
Man : this is nothing.. I get nothing to eat
Woman : Film or No Film.. this is all were having for dinner
I wonder if the committee that chooses these films for screening actually knows the theme. Coz one of these films had any interaction with the British community, let alone any struggle with their culture. They were all happily in islands of their own. Still did make for some laughs.
8 months ago
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