IFFI 54, 5: IFFILMS, In Retrospect, Part III

I continue my views and mini reviews, about films I saw at IFFI 54, held in Goa, during November 20-28, 2023.

Toxic

An odd love story, Toxic is based on a public swimming pool as its centre-piece. Coming from the Czech Republic, and directed by Stefan Vorzacek, it is the story of a lonely executive, Tomas, who visits the pool as a form of workout, and falls in love with its enticing attendant, Esther. But the affair goes awry with the intervention of the owner of the pool, a mysterious woman who warns Tomas that his affair will lead to disaster. Sure enough, Maty, a man from Esther’s past, enters the scene and things queer-up. Voracek has co-produced five films and this marks his debut as director. It is not much of a debut, though. Rod Grover (Last Knights, 2015, Hitler: The Rise of Evil, 2003) is fit and handsome, but not much of histrionics are needed from the cast. You could give this one the miss.

Rating: **

Knit’s Island

French futuristic fantasy film, Knit’s Island, was screened in the intergrade category at IFFI. To sustain such a plot, one that involves a video game and a land where communities pretend to live out a survivalist fiction, for 95 minutes, is itself commendable. Shot entirely in a virtual environment, Knit’s Island is a contemplative documentary. What is still “real” in this virtual existence, which will probably play an important role in the lives of more and more people in the future? With this question, the film-makers, Ekiem Barbier, Guilhem Causse and Quentin L’helgoualc'h, set out to explore the sparsely populated 250 sq. km. of the game.

They encounter zombies, dodge shootings, and speak to a disconcerting group, who set out simply to kill as many other participants as possible. A geek’s paradise, this film will make little sense to the layman.

Rating: **

Lumberjack The Monster

Welcome to Japanese horror. A bizarre, but bloody serial murder case. The murders seem to be influenced by the picture book, Kaibutsu no Kikor. The serial killer wears the mask of the Lumberjack Monster and attacks his victims' with an axe, and takes away their brains. The serial killer's next target is Lawyer Akira Ninomiya. The lawyer is a cold-blooded and heartless person, shows the traits of a psychopath. The case needs to be solved like a puzzle, including finding out why the serial killer takes away the victim's brain, and why and how the next target is chosen. Based on the novel Kaibutsu no Kikori, by Mayusuke Kurai, published in 2019, and directed by Takashi Mike. An unpredictable end is a must for such films, and Lumberjack provides one, which redeems the film.

Rating: ** ½

Haqeeqat

Restored by National Film Archive of India (NFAI), this film can best be remembered for its performances and its songs. Made in 1964, after the Sino-Indian war, Haqeeqat was not a patriotic war-cry, rather, it was the story of the plight of Indian soldiers trapped in the snow-clad posts of Ladakh, in the Himalayas. Although the film is a full 178 minutes long, several of the tracks seem incomplete. One wonders how much of this shortfall is due to censorship, but all said and done, it came as a bit of a disappointment, in 2023. But it must be seen, for its daredevil cinematography and natural performances of the likes of Balraj Sahni, Dharmendra, Vijay Anand, Priya Rajvansh, Indrani Mukherjee and Jayant. On the other hand, if want to know who the real heroes of this Chetan Anand showpiece are, here are their names: Mohammed Rafi, Madan Mohan and Kaifi Azmi.

Rating: ** ½

Farrey

High curiosity value, very high expectations, and some of them fulfilled. The only known names in the cast of Farrey were Ronit Roy, Arbaaz Khan and, well, to be fair, Shilpa Shukla and Juhi Babbar. Hardly anybody would have heard of Alizeh Agnihotri, Sahil Mehta, Arsh Wahi, Sahil Ahuja, Renuka Singh, Prasanna Bisht, Saxon Cook (the name says it all), Lavishka Gupta, Pooja Rawat, Shailesh Singh, Himanshu Sharma, Zeyn Shaw or Sabrina Chowdhury Tithi. Director Soumendra Padhi had made one film, way back in 2016, Budhia Singh: Born to Run. Writer Abhishek Yadav had three shorts to his credit. The only entry I could find on co-writer Jitendra Singh Jeetu was as an editor. There’s a third writer too: Padhi himself. A heady concoction of fast-paced scenes, Farrey has its share of grey characters, students who will resort to anything to clear highly rated entrance exams, through ingenious ways of copying/cheating, from the answers of the Brainiac in the pack, debutante Alizeh Agnihotri. She is no stunner, but she does stun us occasionally, with her confidence. Being Atul Agnihotri’s daughter makes her Salman Khan’s niece. And he has produced the film, along with Atul Agnihotri, Alvira Khan, Sunir Kheterpal, Nikhil Namit, Y. Ravi Shankar and Naveen Yerneni. Farrey is adapted from the 2017 Thai film, Bad Genius, directed by Nattawut Poonpiriya, and is of almost exactly the same length. What lengths will students go to get through…find it in Farrey!

Rating: ***

Concluded