All We Imagine as Light

Three women of different generations living in Mumbai struggle with life, love, the future, each with her own perspective, experiences, choices and fears. Love is hard in India.

It aims to be a moody, atmospheric movie for the most part and it succeeds I think, but I wish it had been better shot. There is so much opportunity here to do amazing cinematography and it just wasn't that. Thing WKW. This could have been that level of beauty. It had all the right sights and vibes.

I don't know if I am fully satisfied by what I saw because I kept imagining how much better it could have looked at times. Maybe that is unfair to the writer/director. Maybe associating it with other iconic mood pieces is not fair either. For the topics and the dialogues and the actresses it deserves its place in modern Indian cinema I think. I haven't seen many Indian movies, some of them where better in the looks department, others much worse in the story and character development department. So I think it's fair to place it with the better ones.

A little too long and unfocused at times. That's why I'm saying top notch cinematography would've gotten us to forgive its flaws.

This film was fine, but I'm struggling to understand what sets it apart. While it's artistic, the film lacks a compelling narrative. It seems to tick the right boxes-a woman of color from Europe directing-but beyond that, what makes it stand out? I'm baffled by the critical acclaim. The acting was solid, the score was minimal, and the direction was decent. It feels like the inclusion of nudity and explicit scenes is what ultimately sold the film. Is this really what filmmakers must resort to in order to cater to Western audiences? The pacing is incredibly slow, which likely appealed to the French audience and contributed to its selection at Cannes.

Cannes loves films like these!

Quiet and fragile, 'All We Imagine as Light' delicately unfolds life in Mumbai, capturing the solitude of its protagonists in a city full of movement. The film beautifully juxtaposes the stillness of personal struggles against the relentless pace of urban life, creating an intimate yet universal portrait of longing and resilience. However, while the storytelling is subtle and poetic, it lacks a true climax, leaving certain narrative threads unresolved. Despite this, the film's delicate atmosphere, compelling performances, and evocative cinematography make it a poignant, meditative experience that lingers beyond the screen.

I really wanted to like this film after hearing so many positive reviews however it falls short of a masterpiece for me and is just another forgettable film that does nothing spectacular.

The film is about a Malayali nurse working in Bombay who lives away from her husband, she shares a room with another nurse who has a lover and they both find it hard to find a place. Third story is about an old woman being driven out of the house she lives in.

To my dismay the film gives in too much to the cliched tropes to the point of being downright predictable and boring. The protagonist is longing for a connection albeit she guards herself against it, at many points she is the super ego of the film shutting down the despairing cries of others with dictums yet by the end trying to imagine light in the darkness of her loneliness.

In that sense, her roommate is her antithesis, she has no inhibitions, she is in love with a Muslim boy and they are looking for a place to make love.

Recognize the beaten path of a storyline of a subdued woman, she is shown to be too righteous, almost like a nun, as a matter of fact the background score of the film is taken from a piece composed by an Ethiopian nun. In many ways it reminded me of Ishiguro's "Remains of the day". The story of the roommate and her lover really didn't add that much to the story other than working as a filler for sex, I'm personally not a big fan of misplaced nudity and sex in films, it's exploitative in nature and does little to carry the story.

The story about the old lady started off as a social commentary on class, and the hidden rules of society, at one point she questions whether she should confront the reality of her existence or get indulged in the illusion like everyone else. She ends up leaving the city for her hometown. This story goes nowhere and thus it felt underwhelming.

All in all, the film doesn't say anything new, it does not punch you in the gut like Salaam Bombay, it doesn't make you somber like The Lunchbox however one cannot help but admire Payal Kapadia's craft, I have seen numerous films on Bombay but nothing captures it like the film does but it felt like - specially in the second half of the film - that she was trying very hard to make each story reconcile and come to closure.

By no means I'm calling this a bad film, it's crafty and well made but fails to say anything that has not been said before through film.

She made peace with the young love and embraced it -something she missed on herself- only after she gave herself a closure, a form of confrontation through projection, her own emotional catharsis.

I loved the relationship all three women had with each other, real, quite and safe, yet not too dramatic and unrealistic as you can still sense the distance and emotional complexities between them -as in any human relationship-.

The slow pace of the movie, while I definitely understand that it's not for everyone's liking, made the emotions seen throughout the movie, more felt, amplified..

Note: The track at the final scene was also beautiful and deserves a thank you -from me-.