Cast: Ivan Chakrabarty, Pulastya Pramanik, Ashish Chakraborty, Priyanka Kar, Piyasi Singha Ray & Abhishek Ganguli. Director: Abhishek...
Cast: Ivan Chakrabarty, Pulastya Pramanik, Ashish Chakraborty, Priyanka Kar, Piyasi Singha Ray & Abhishek Ganguli.
Director: Abhishek Ganguli.
Child sexual abuse is a topic which is pretty close
to my heart due to personal reasons. I deeply empathise with its victims and
more so if it's a male child ,not because I am also a male but because I very
well know men are actually the "weaker" sex when it comes to mental
strength and such horrific incidents make them emotionally weaker and less
expressive. So ,when I got to hear that a short film has been made by the
talented Abhishek Ganguli, it piqued my interest. I got hold of the link and
started watching it. So, did it meet my expectations?? Were the issues
addressed in an arresting and cohesive manner??
Monster is the story of Ishaan a lonely,
introverted pre teen ( Ivan Chakraborty) who leads an isolated life due to a
dark past , he was continuously physically and mentally abused by a
"monster" in his childhood (played by Pulastya Pramanik). His aunt
played by Priyanka Kar is extremely concerned about him and takes him to a
leading psychiatrist (played by the director himself). The rest of the film
deals with the psychiatrist trying to bring Ishaan out of his shell and helping
him fight his inherent fear and mental agony.
The film surely tries to deal with a pertinent and
poignant issue which has been kept under the wraps by many parents and looked
down upon by the society at large. Such subjects need extremely sensitive
handling by the director as well as the scriptwriter, but sadly, despite the
director's best intentions the film loses its steam halfway through the
film.
We, as an audience can't connect with the issue at all due to its disjointed narrative, some pedestrian acting, robotic dialogue delivery especially by the female protagonists, and jarry background music especially in the dramatic scenes which sound straight out of 80's Mohan Bhakri films. However, earnest performances by Abhishek Ganguli and Ivan, and Ashish Chakraborty who looks ghoulish and truly menacing somehow saves the film from becoming a total disaster. The biggest drawback of the film is the way the director failed to establish the issue in the audiences mind. Also, the 'monster' is hardly there in the film. The film's script is a 'monstrous' let down.
For its budget, the cinematography, especially the
lighting is praiseworthy. The editing, however, has scope for improvement. The
drone shots look visually appealing, so technically the film is definitely
above average. The song sung by Ahir Bhowmic is soothingly rendered.
All in all, Monster is a novel and bold attempt which goes haywire after a point. A tighter narrative, a bolder approach by the director and some better performers would have illuminated the empathetic audiences mind instead of just creating a mere spark.
-By Ayushmaan Mitra
No comments