chand-suhas

This indeed was a random selection to watch and I was not familiar with any of Mikio Naruse's work. The film narrates the tragic tale of Reiko Morita who had dedicated her life to run the grocery store for her dead husband's family. The raise of supermarkets is threatening the very livelihood and her sister-in-laws want the grocery store to be sold so that a supermarket could be build. Reiko is forced to give up the one thing she held onto so dedicatedly and the only one to support is her brother in law Koji Morita. He is a drunk wayward who refuses to take any responsibility and yet he is the only one to acknowledge Reiko's sacrifices.

The film like it's title, is a slow burner as the life of Reiko unfolds. It is post war Japan after all and the changes were inevitable. For 18 years, Reiko holds onto the one thing which kept her going and it was about to get snatched away from her. The dramatic greedy sister-in-laws and the helpless mother-in-law characters get the usual character arc. While they are not enough to kill the spirit of Reiko, it's Koji's revelation about his feelings which eventually breaks her. This is very maturely handled and as the story progressed, it did get quite evident that an happy ending was not in store. The performances still kept the proceedings engaging and the short runtime contributed too.

Anbu is a lonely child who is spending his summer classes online while being locked at his home. This is because his parents are hardworking individuals, running their own business. Burdened with their financial constraints, Gokul and Glory want the best for their son Anbu while he yearns to make friends as well as the little joys in life which he misses in their busy city life. Anbu requests Gokul to take him out and when an EMI recovery agent spots them, the short trip turns into an unplanned road trip while Glory is in Coimbatore, selling her sarees at an expo. How the experiences they have, make them realize the value of real joy in life which can be achieved without a dinosaur hatching out of a duck egg, forms rest of the story.

Ram's story is exceptional as it gives an extremely personal touch by basing the story on these 3 main characters. While Anbu and Gokul go on a journey together, Glory gets to have her own moments alone in another city. The inter-faith couple have been living separately, raising their son all on their own and without any support from either of the families. Ram showcases the beautiful bond the 3 have with each other and how their life is impacted by their financial stress. The 8 year old Anbu and his honesty is a perfect plot tool where the beauty is how his tantrums result in the best moments. The segment involving Gokul's school crush, Glory and her employee, Anbu and his crush, are woven together so beautifully that they actually stood out in that order. As the voice over says in the end, it is important to spend time with your family no matter what. You may get a dinosaur or just a duck to hatch out of that egg, what you will always have are the moments you spend with your loved ones. Financial stability is important but so is building that emotional core and thanks to Ram for delivering such a sweet gem.

Michael Dorsey is an out of job actor, working as a waiter at a restaurant. He is also teaching acting classes to make ends meet. He learns about an opening on a soap opera through Sandy Lester and decides to audition himself by dressing up as a woman by creating an alter identity Dorothy Michaels and gets selected for the role of Emily Kimberly. His portrayal of the character, differing from the script actually makes him a national sensation and a female icon. He falls for his co-star Julie Nichols but the circumstances force him to stay to be her girl friend. What challenges does he go through due to this unexpected success and having multiple men fall for him, while he struggles to keep up with his charade, forms rest of the story.

Dustin Hoffman truly made this character his own and with an impeccable touch of sensibility in playing both the characters, drawing the line at the obvious jokes. He captures his struggle in his failed attempts to express his feelings to Julie and his surprise at her widowed father, actually falling for Dorothy. The fine actor that he is, gets a solid support from the supporting cast right from Jessica Lange as Julie to Bill Murray's rather short role as his friend Jeff. I felt the final confession had been bit more dramatic but the film tried to be subtle in it's approach and it was in sync with it. What I did like is how the film plays out it's male characters who are interested in Dorothy and the humor generated at their expense, doesn't turn slapstick even once. Overall, it was indeed a fun watch.