Word: pather
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...Pather Panchali, director Satyijit Ray has recorded certain portions of the life of an Indian family over a ten year period, describing the interaction of the five important characters: the mother and father, a daughter, a young son, and an old sick aunt. Shortly after the beginning of the film, Apu, the son, becomes a central figure, the viewer of the action, the mute commentator. The first we see of him is an eye, which his sister opens with her fingers; and his eye follows the action for the rest of the film, peering over stone walls, looking out from...
There is no doubt that Pather Panchali is a remarkable film; there are some spots which have amazing impact, and the photography throughout is magnificent. Certain of the photographic effects tend toward the abstract, such as he delicate designs made of waterlily stalks and water bugs. There are certain very powerful moments, moments when one seems to move closer to the picture than he is at other times. Perhaps the finest scene in Pather Panchali shows the sickness of the daughter during a storm. Windows fly open and the rain blows in; the mother labors at fastening them again. Finally...
...many others have little to add to the general effect. The disconnection itself has its purpose, and gives an all-inclusive quality to the film; yet it is also distracting and contributes to the film's great weakness: its general diffuseness, its inability to command sustained attention. For Pather Panchali, remarkable as it may be, is something of a chore to sit through. The viewer receives the impression that he is watching a document, an amazing document to be sure, but not an entirely absorbing one--and thus his eyes keep drifting over to the blue rimmed clock...
Aparajito (Indian). The brilliant second part (the first was Pather Panchali) of a trilogy, made by Director Satyajit Ray, telling the story of India's social revolution in terms of one family's sorrows and beatitudes...
Starting with a modest budget, little equipment, and no experience, Satyajit Ray has proceduced an imaginative and technically impressive film. Encouraged by the success of Pather Panchali, he is expanding his theme into a trilogy. If the others are as good, the project will become a classic...