My Week In Rewind: 1st to 6th June
A middle school dance, an assassination attempt and the fourth estate. Also, constipation.
So, yeah. I know I missed the last couple of weeks. Studying for the SAT became a full-time gig, and writing this takes an entire day, which I didn’t have. But, the SATs have been aced, and I’m back! Onto the good stuff.
Film
Piku (2015)
Dir. Shoojit Sircar
Starring: Deepika Padukone, Irrfan, Amitabh Bachchan, Moushumi Chatterjee
Rated: 9.7/10
Country: India
Language: Hindi
(SonyLiv)
(This is a re-watch.)
I love everything about Piku. It’s everything to me. It’s the kind of stories I hope to be telling one day. If you’ve even spent one day on Film Twitter or Film Instagram, you’d know about the importance of ‘men written/directed by women’, ‘women written/directed by women’, and so on. And it’s true. More often than not, female characters in films written/directed by women are more fleshed out and human than written/directed by men. I think Kiran Rao’s showcased that pretty well with Laapataa Ladies. Here, in the Indian film industry, it wouldn’t take more than a shot in the dark to find a mainstream commercial film where its female characters are treated like toys and devices for the men to either ogle, play with or to avenge. But not Piku.
Before you say it, yes, Piku is written by Juhi Chaturvedi, a woman. But, it’s Sircar’s camera that allows Chaturvedi’s masterful screenplay to shine in its purest form, and his style complements it as well. Every single quirk in the crafting of the film, from its chaotic first act to its wild editing fits its characters and their world like a glove.
Piku doesn’t succumb to the same ailment most female-led films in India do: its protagonist isn’t perfect. She’s deeply flawed, angry, volatile, uncooperative and messy. She’s human. Piku Chatterjee is one of the most authentic Indian women written for the screen. She takes care of her ailing father dutifully, but she doesn’t take all his s#!t. She gives back, and is a lot like him, which is the root for most of the commotion in the film. It’s also incredible to see a film’s plot be centered around a character’s constipation (in this case, Piku’s father Bhaskor’s [played by Bachchan]) and yet feel so emotionally cohesive.
Okay, I feel like I’m going on too much. I should probably write about this as a separate article. Check back again soon?
While We Watched (2022)
Dir. Vinay Shukla
Starring: Ravish Kumar
Rated: 7.8/10
Country: India
Language: Hindi/English
(Mubi)
While We Watched is one of the most important documentaries I’ve watched. It also feels quite like a horror movie. But that might be because I’m living in the same country, and the same environment, as the documentary’s subject.
The 90-minute long documentary chronicles former NDTV stalwart Ravish Kumar’s last couple of years with the news channel, amidst the 2019 General Elections and the Pulwama attack. Kumar, long considered to be a host who covers problems and stories that are not covered by the mainstream media, finds himself at a crossroads: continue pursuing the ideals of good journalism and die trying, or switch over, like most journalists have.
The documentary might not be moving at a breakneck pace, nor does it have changes in the environment around Kumar, but it’s a tale that throws light onto what happens in today’s India to people who question her leaders. One thing’s for sure, though: good journalism never goes out of style.
The Godfather Part II (1974)
Dir. Francis Ford Coppola
Starring: Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Diane Keaton, James Caan
Rated: 9.7/10
Country: USA
Language: English/Italian
No notes. Perfect film.
TV
Under The Bridge (2024)
S1E6: “In Water They Sink the Same”
Dir. Quinn Shephard
Starring: Lily Gladstone, Riley Keough, Vritika Gupta, Javon ‘Wanna’ Walton
Rated: 8.5/10
Country: USA
Language: English
This show is so slept on. Under The Bridge proves itself, week by week, to be one of the strongest and most well-written mystery series out there. But in a sea of television, it unfortunately can’t get its voice heard. As we delve deep into both Rebecca (Keough) and Warren’s (Walton) backstories this week, there are tons of tiny references that tie back to the main plotline. It doesn’t add up much structurally, but it’s the icing on the cake.
I can’t wait for next week’s episode. Even though all episodes are already out on Hulu in the United States, I’m making sure I stick to Hotstar’s episode drops. The longer the mystery simmers, the better the show gets, IMO.
MasterChef Australia (2009-)
S16E25-E27
Starring: Andy Allen, Poh Ling Yeow, Jean-Christophe Novelli, Sofia Loven
Country: Australia
Language: English
I feel like I can’t judge reality shows, so I won’t be rating MasterChef from now on. The elimination episode with Curtis Stone was really underwhelming, though. You immediately knew who’s going to go home. This was not up to the mark at all.
Severance (2022 -)
S1E5-E9
Starring: Adam Scott, Britt Lower, Patricia Arquette, Zack Cherry, John Turturro, Christopher Walken
Rated: 8.1/10
Country: USA
Language: English
It took me forever (and I mean FOREVER) to get through the first four episodes of Severance. Roughly 4 months since I began watching, Severance shifts gears in its fifth episode, and gets really interesting. It’s ridiculous though, that even though the finale aired in April 2022, season two won’t air until 2025 at the earliest. With that cliffhanger, I couldn’t possibly wait that long for a resolution.