The Golden Fortress

Satyajt Ray has always been revered at home and abroad as a true maestro but (especially in the West) it has been his serious cinema that have been the focus of all adulation and admiration. It is little known outside of his native Bengali community his equal brilliance at writing short stories and novels for children, including the creation of two of Bengali modern literature's most loved characters - Feluda and Professor Shonku.It is in this first screen adaption of one of his popular Feluda stories - Sonar Kella, that we see how far the man's creative dexterity really extended. I remember seeing this film when very young and till date it remains evergreen in my memory, so much so that when I think back on the very many memorable moments from it, my subconscious extracts images from how it appeared on the cinema screen, rather than on TV - this in-spite of numerous repeat viewings on broadcast,video and now DVD. That is saying a lot for the indelible first impressions that this movie made on me.Like most great directors, Ray was blessed with a special empathy and "connect" that enabled him to extract remarkably natural performances from children, even very young ones - this is never more manifest in any of his other movies(with the notable exception of his first - The Song of the Road), especially in the scene when a child actor, playing a bit part, recounts his experiences while being mistakenly kidnapped and held captive instead of the main protagonist - completely mindblowingly natural. Apart from the great background score (composed by ray himself),technical polish,perfect casting,great performances,superb editing and cinematography, this film stands out for the outstanding,larger than life portrayal of the state of Rajasthan(almost like a character) and it's unique natural beauty and romanticism,characterized by deserts,camels,forts,peacocks,steam engines,mystery men and vibrant colours. This lent the movie a Hollywood summer blockbuster action/adventure sheen, which has never before or since been achieved in Bengali cinema. Brilliant!!!

A masterpiece for any Feluda fan out there like me. The legend Satyajit Ray's generosity is evident in each and every scene packed in each nutshell of directory. The characters are portrayed beautifully. Soumitra Chatterjee is superb as 'Feluda'. One of my favorites is Kamu Mukherji as Mandar Bose. The range of emotions shown and the comic touch in his actions and dialogue are excellent. The change in his facial expression when he is trying to match Mukul's face with his photograph in the train is amazing.

Of course, everyone's darling Santosh Dutta as "Jatayu" is very good too. He portrays the average Bengali babu's role to perfection. "Topshe's" role as a eager and jovial teenager is well suited too.

He has a strong knowledge of the rest of India, it's history and geography, which is how he's aware of the deserts of Rajasthan. He solves problems in an intelligent way as if it were a mathematical problem. The joy of arriving at a solution is just the same. Ray's strength was his brilliant craftsmanship. He made films, drew storyboards, scored music and most importantly, wrote stories. Proper stories, not autobiographical reminiscences. He also had remarkable interest in varied fields just like a quiz buff would have. It means that if anyone is open to this vast source of knowledge, some of his lesser-known films become joyous experiences.

Among all the movies of the "thriller" genre, I would alsways rate this movie as amongst the top in India. Having watched it many dozens of times, I have observed that the movie and Ray's treatment of his story is unique in many ways. Firstly, given the exotic locales in the story, any director would lap up the opportunity of using stunning angles for shots around the various forts (of Jaipur, Jodhpur, Bikaner and Jaisalmer in this case), let the camera hover around the desert horizon with the sun setting or the static ripples of sand on a dune. Never for a moment had Ray let the camera linger on any stunning backdrop outside the context of the film. Even in the sunset scene at Ramdeorah railway station, the camera does not lose the subject, that was 'jatayu' loosening up after an arduous camel ride. Even more interesting is Ray's ability to stay focused to the story line again given that the climax inside the Jaisalmer fort, a classic fort with a town inside. It would be easy for any one to yield to the temptation of extending the final moments of the film in the fort in its numerous small streets that wind around the beautiful houses of the town within the fort. However, Ray stuck to telling the story as it was in the book (with some changes of course) where the "Golden Fortress" itself occupies a few minutes of the 120 minute film. The result has been a crisp story where the suspense ramps up from the first scene and never ebbs in the entire course of the film.

I have watched this movie after 2 decades I guess. When I was a kid for obvious reasons I liked it. Didn't know that I will enjoy watching this even today when I'm all grown up and surrounded by picturesque movies and series.

There was nothing to complain about such as this composition. Truly timeless.

This is an Indian Road Trip Movie, from the 1960's. The story is solid, and the pace is appropriate.

If you do not understand Bengali, you will definitely miss a lot of the innuendos, and the subtitles will not help you out with their literal translation! The young child is an excellent actor, and I wasn't surprised to see that he is now a very successful actor in Tollywood movies (Bollywood is the Hindi movie industry based in Bombay/Mumbai, Tollywood is the Bengali movie industry, based out of Tollygunj in Kolkata).

The cinematography works well, and does present an evocative view of India 40-45 years ago.

The DVD print isn't great for the night scenes...that is the only drag on an otherwise excellent movie.