Court

I heard of this movie through various critics and decided to catch it at nearby cinema hall. The experience was a total satisfaction.

The movie is a satire on Indian judicial system and has been dealt with so beautifully that it neither delivers the message on the face nor it becomes offensive at any point. It is an absolute gem. Though the movie is in Marathi language the subtitles attached to it help an average moviegoer.

The movie does not have too much of moving camera shots and in most of the scenes, director just places the camera at one location and the events unfold in a still frame. This is such a wonderful piece of art that despite no known faces and no fancy camera work the movie works. Not just works but its bang on target.

I would strongly recommend this movie to any sane and rational movie buff for quite a few days to come.

Watching Court is a unique experience. Its lazy elegance and life like sets. Definitely not for masses.

RATED 8/10 Language: Marathi Source: Netflix RECOMMENDED Well crafted drama about court room and the persons in court room. Too much of artistic and slow but its perfect.

The real life and court life of different characters and their views of personal and court life.... the climax is the big slap on citizen's face... the last 15 seconds tells the story with superb impact.... Must watch...

Chaitanya Tamhane's Court approaches many fascinating and bitingly topical subjects for a constantly changing India. When those to the west think of India, we often imagine the hustle and bustle depicted in Slumdog Millionaire coupled with the energy and glittery elegance of Bollywood movies. Court is a slower burn with incredible wide cinematography that captures a disquieting stillness. It's almost like a political thriller where no-one can be trusted, but it's not a film that relies on tension or conclusions. It studies the westernisation of Indian culture through its network of characters, darting between the folk singer Sharmila Pawar and his 'Americanised' defence lawyer Vinay Voya, but without peeling back their layers. It's not interested in the characters as people but what they represent in the situation, wherein Pawar is being tried for inciting a man to suicide through his songs.

Instead, it contrasts the old with the new, with Indian traditions and the updates of the youths, aesthetically and with their behaviour. The courtroom drama prods at this aspect with old laws being questioned for being outdated and how they should be reconsidered. It seems a lack of compromise is also part of tradition and is something that contemporary Indians wants to implement. The film also studies the effect of art, questioning whether folk music can really change a government and if it does influence bad things incidentally, can it be held accountable? The power of poetry is a strange thing in a world drenched in culture. What counts as a performance when art is so fluid? Where do we draw the line between coincidence and crime? Court is a very dry but very thought-provoking and highly intelligent film that raises important questions about the world we live in, albeit it could've been improved by a bit more character work and a concise ending.

8/10

Read more @ The Awards Circuit (http://www.awardscircuit.com/)

If you're expecting a mainstream courtroom drama which would focus upon one case and move forward dramatically then you're badly misled. Court in fact is a unique portrayal of how the legal system works in India. It has showed the miscarriage of justice by focusing upon lives of the 4 main characters which heavily determines the outcome of the case they are involved in. As a layman not knowing legal system inside-out you would believe that lawyers are perfect and Judges are God-sent, impartial beings who would deliver justice no matter what, and theoretically that is how it is supposed to be. But this movie focuses upon how these people are as much human beings as you are and how their personal lives usually have direct or indirect impact upon the case and its outcome. Media usually ignores these issues because such undercurrents are usually unnoticeable and difficult to be proved and delivered to lay man. Secondly the movie has hired an outstanding cast. Not one character you would believe is a fanciful picture perfect character as portrayed in other mainstream movies but rather they have tried really hard to keep the characters as natural as possible which helps substantiate the story more convincingly. That is what I believe makes the movie stand out from the rest. Thirdly as many of you must have noticed the movie does take a slower pace than we're generally used to but I guess that is because the Director didn't intend to reach somewhere at the end of the movie (like a Judgement, or a climax). His focus was on the lives of the people and hence the movie tend to have taken that pace. Overall its a brilliant movie not complimenting the mainstream movies and I believe a movie with a message which is the need of the hour.