Doubt

The acting was exceptional. Across the board, every actor excelled. These are the roles that Meryl Streep was born to do. And Philip Seymour Hoffman – wow. He was so cleanly-creepy that I cringed every time his long nails were displayed.

And there were a few moments where I felt like I was a lucky fly on the wall, listening in on conversations, watching the drama in the Catholic school unfold. But overall, the movie fell below expectations, mostly due to decisions made by the director.

In a movie where the acting is exceptional and emotions run high, I feel it is best to let the camera be as unobtrusive as possible, but director John Patrick Shanley in his first real directorial effort, does the opposite. There are scenes where the camera suddenly drops down and frames the character from below, immediately snapping the viewers attention away from the conversation and onto where the camera is instead. Ugh. The one-on-one scenes between Meryl Streep and Amy Adams and between Hoffman and Adams are scenes where there is a lot being said between the lines and the actors carry the scenes – instead of cocooning the audience and making them feel unobtrusive, they are suddenly thrust into the conversation – breaking the spell the actors have cast. Unfortunate.

The strange and forced camera angles to emphasize mood and tone is repeated at various points in the movie – in a shot where Streep walks in out of a storm and through a corridor in the school, Shanley chooses an off kilter camera angle to emphasize the emotional state of the characters. Why, why, why?? Please don’t beat us over the head with it.

I had similar issues with the screenplay too (written by Shanley) – when there is a tense scene, the setting is a storm. High winds are constantly blowing branches to the ground. It’s all a bit much. A lighter touch would have given the solid story and intense acting the space they needed to make the movie truly top-notch.

Here’s my initial reaction to the movie on twitter:

Just saw Doubt. Great acting. Don’t love some of the directing, cinematography choices. *Movies 7.5*.

Six weeks later, the only change I would make is downgrade the 7.5 rating to a 6.5.

Today…

My interview on Eteraz, link on Sepia Mutiny

Ali, the blogger behind Eteraz, pinged me with a few questions about my new direction in life. The interview is up on his site. Here one snapshot…

AE: Your website name is a Sanskrit word/idea. Care to explain that?

SM: I was looking for a name for my website that really meant something to me. My Grandmother (a Sanskrit scholar) came up with Tatvam and I instantly fell in love with it. Tatvam means the truth, the inner meaning, or ‘that which is’–obviously at a fundamental level the subject of most serious films. I guess I chose that name because I want to make that kind of movie. Maybe this will come back to bite me if what I do looks more like Dude Where’s My Car than Trois Couleur, but it’s sort of a declaration of intent. Also, of course, it’s Sanskrit, which I guess means that something about my projects will be rooted in India and Indian culture, even though I hope to avoid the narrow limitations that can create.

Sepia Mutiny then covered SAIFF and linked to Ali’s interview.

UNTITLED premiers at SAIFF

The South Asian International Film Festival (SAIFF) is one of two South Asian film festivals in New York. They pride themselves on focusing on emerging directors who are not yet famous.

I certainly fall squarely into that demographic. I’d like to think I am “emerging” and I am definitely “not yet famous”. And so, it was with excitement that I learned a few weeks ago that my film got into SAIFF 2006.

UNTITLED was made as my final project of the 12-week Intensive Filmmaking program at NYU. It was shot in 3 days, with a crew of just 4, on 16mm film. It was a complete blast. My experience with the course and that film is what got me to quit my day job and to do this full time (my experience with the course is fodder for another post).

But I digress. When I finished the film, I put it away thinking that I’d got what I wanted from it — the learning of how to write, direct, produce and edit a film under severe constraints. [Well, that is not quite true, I did submit it to Ms Films in North Carolina where it got accepted and one other festival where it got dinged, but I did not spray it around to every festival in sight]. But when one of my cast sent me the SAIFF request for submissions, I tossed it in the mail on a lark.

Lo and behold, it got selected! This will be the first time I see my work in a real theater. That is exciting and scary all at the same time. Exciting because this is what filmmakers live for – to see their film released (or screened). And I am nervous as all heck because it was a class project – an experiment, a learning exercise, an amazing experience. And now it will be shown to friends and strangers. I feel the desperate need to yell out — “Don’t expect it to be amazing, it is just my first little short”. But I am doing my best not to. I want it to be judged. That’s the only way I’ll get better.

So, here we go!

SAIFF got underway today for filmmakers with the press conference. The key feature-length films were highlighted and it was fun to mingle and meet other aspiring filmmakers. It is great to see the energy and passion for film in the South Asian community.

Since I am now self-employed (ahem, no, no, not unemployed!), I am looking forward to seeing as many of the films as possible, starting with tomorrow’s opening night premier.

– To see UNTITLED on the SAIFF site, click here and scroll towards the end of the page.

– Synopsis: Sanjay and his wife lead a cookie cutter existence in Manhattan. One day, as he returns home, he is handed a flyer to a gallery opening and on a whim, decides to attend. Siddharth, the gallery owner, educates Sanjay on art and introduces him to a captivating painting. With Siddharth, as his bodhisattva, leading the way, Sanjay is more ensnared with each successive visit. Has Sanjay found what he has always been looking for?

– Note: UNTITLED will be uploaded to this site shortly

TATVAM is born

Tatvam means reality or inner truth in Sanskrit. Tatvam Productions tells stories that reach for the truth, share the reality and communicate the inner meaning.

Please join the ride! May Tatvam be with you!