Pather Panchali
"As deeply beautiful and plainly poetic as any movie ever made. Rare and exquisite." - Hazel-Dawn Davenport, L.A. Weekly
One of the greatest directors of modern cinema, Satyajit Ray became an instant success with his debut film, Pather Panchali (Song of the Little Road).
The first Indian film to ever become a hit in the West, Pather Panchali is the moving story of a rural family cursed with bad luck. Father Hari is a dreamer and poet, while his hard-working wife struggles to feed the family. But Durga, a free-spirited and petty thief, brings tragedy to the family in a moment's carelessness. Awarded many prizes at film festivals all over the world, Pather Panchali catapulted Satyajit Ray to international acclaim and launched one of the cinema's most distinguished careers.
Member Reviews
Enough Road, But Not A Lot - Squish
'Pather Panchali' (Song of The Little Road) opens with a young girl, Durga, running through a neighbor's farm, stealing a few guavas, and taking them back to the old woman who lives with them. We quickly learn how impoverished this turn-of-the-century family is when their father, a poet and priest, is looking for work to feed the family and repair the run down house. Durga's mother soon gives birth to a second child, Apu, and from there, the majority of the film involves the relationship between Durga and her younger brother, Apu, played with incredible skill by Subir Bannerjee, as they experience life, pleasure and pain.
'Pather Panchali' is director Satyajit Ray's first feature film, and one that quickly landed him as the winner for "Best Human Document" at the 1956 Cannes Film festival. What it did for Indian cinema was to be the first independent film to receive international acclaim. but being pivotal at the time, doesn't make it great today.
Yes, there are plenty of wonderful and gripping scenes - the monsoon, father coming back from being away, moments between Durga and old Auntie - but when looking at film from the entertainment perspective, one should not have to consider what innovations or importance a film has had in the past. For this reason, I would only recommend 'Song of The Little Road' to fans of 'the study', be it Film study or Indian Culture, since most people want to be entertained. Talking about how important this film was in 1955 is in no way a selling point to the average moviegoer today, though it may be for those of us willing to suffer the honest hard work of an inexperienced film crew with a ridiculously small budget and main characters played by actors who have never made any film before or since.a beautiful and great film - Moir
Different pacing may require an adjustment in viewer's sense of timing but it is well worth it. When the film finished it gave a rare sense of wholeness. It stimulated many responses and thoughts none of which really reflect the film ... My feeling was it caught something of the wholeness of life that is beyond all naming.
The details of the story are transformed by the whole. It would be misleading, I think, to dwell on them. It may take time to get through a sense of slowness or details that seem not that important. But this is not simply some 'whatever the open shutter catches' bit of unedited documentary but builds to a work of genius.
Member Reviews
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Enough Road, But Not A Lot - Squish
'Pather Panchali' (Song of The Little Road) opens with a young girl, Durga, running through a neighbor's farm, stealing a few guavas, and taking them back to the old woman who lives with them. We quickly learn how impoverished this turn-of-the-century family ...a beautiful and great film - Moir
Different pacing may require an adjustment in viewer's sense of timing but it is well worth it. When the film finished it gave a rare sense of wholeness. It stimulated many responses and thoughts none of which really reflect the film ... My feeling was it ...