1930s
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MANOOS/ADMI aka Life is for the Living (Dir. V. Shantaram, 1939, India)
Manoos (1939) opens with a deftly staged pre-Bressonian like shot of the camera tracking a pair of naked feet as it enters a brothel/gambling den, surveying the men illicitly playing cards on the floor. But this is a shot that pre-dates Bresson and also the opening shot to Hitchock’s Strangers on a Train, and points Continue reading
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AN AMERICAN IN MADRAS Dir. Karan Bali, 2013, India
Karan Bali’s affectionate documentary An American in Madras, broadcast on Channel Four in October as part of a series of films about the Indian film industry, is an eye opener in many respects. It is a history that I had no knowledge of and makes one re-consider what we have been told and what has Continue reading
Movie Mahal 