MASALA - DVD review

Masala [mah-SAH-lah]
"A word used throughout India for a spice blend with myriad variations."

Director Srinivas Krishna uses the metaphor of masala, "a spice blend with myriad variations," to structure virtually every aspect of his 1991 indie hit film.

The director adopts a narrational strategy typical of many North American independent films. Rather than a single goal-oriented plot with a classic three-act structure, he relies more on a series of vignettes and multiple character-based storylines, related by theme and proximity. They form a quirky, eccentric mix, a real "spicy blend."

The film relies heavily on the juxtaposition of disparate cultures, with the clash of East and West foregrounded. Krishna (played by the director) is a young Indian man living in Toronto. After losing his family in a plane crash, he struggles to find his identity in a mostly white culture. Krishna, a recovering drug user, is angry and bitter, and doesn't even try to fit in with his aunt and uncle in his new home.

The film highlights a mixture of distinct personalities, Indian characters who have all positioned themselves in different ways to Canadian culture - masala again. Lallu Bhai (Krishna's uncle, played by Saeed Jaffrey) and his wife Bibi (Madhuri Bhatia) have adapted eagerly to capitalist culture. Lallu Bhai runs a sari shop, while Bibi encourages him to pursue greater wealth at any cost. The timid Mr. Tikkoo (also played by Saeed Jaffrey) is happy to toil anonymously at the post office as long as he gets to enjoy his stamp collection. Rita (Sakina Jaffrey) wants to learn how to fly a plane. Teenage Anil (Heri Johal) just wants to get laid.

Oddest of all is Lord Krishna (Saeed Jaffrey again.) Don't confuse him with the main character Krishna or with director Srinivas Krishna - this is the god himself. He needs to learn to adapt to his new culture as well. Lord Krishna is first depicted as a television character and later as a hockey player (making him a Canadian deity.) Grandma (Zohra Segal) can talk to Lord Krishna whenever she wants to by popping in a video tape. She demands his help, and even hits the pause button on him when he won't cooperate. It's tough being an Indian God in Toronto. If this sounds all jumbled up, that's because it's supposed to be. Masala once more.

Another, far more interesting level on which masala works as a structuring metaphor is in the director's use of a brash, eclectic visual style. Unlike many low budget indie directors, Srinivas Krishna (not Krishna or Lord Krishna - aw, forget it) makes bold, often startling, and sometimes quite elegant choices.

The "real world" narrative is interrupted by both Bollywood numbers (in both English and Hindi - masala again) and Lord Krishna's ongoing TV show, which sometimes appears to be an actual TV show and other times, the god's real life. The director is unafraid to rupture the flow with wildly stylized shots such as a POV of a toy airplane which chases down the characters (a scene that would have made a young Sam Raimi proud.)

The film's eclecticism reminds me, in a small way, of John Water's wilder, early films such as "Multiple Maniacs" and "Pink Flamingos", though Srinivas Krishna's style is far more polished. While sometime uneven, the style is by no means arbitrary. The director clearly thinks visually first. Airplanes are a recurring motif, always reminding us of the tragedy which befell young Krishna's family. Though we never see any overt emotional reaction by any of the characters to their death, the constant presence of roaring, low-flying planes overhead sustains a sense of creeping menace. You can deny the past, but you never escape it.

One memorable scene features a long tracking shot of Rita and her sister talking. Suddenly, the tracking camera stops on one sister and pans up a wall to an empty sky. The roar of an airplane plays on the track though we see nothing. The camera pans back down to the other sister and the conversation continues. It's a lyrical moment and quite inventive. "Masala" is consistently fresh and daring, and many shots are genuinely surprising. You never know what you're going to see next. It's one spicy blend; masala all the way.

If the film has any major weakness, it's the director's own performance as Krishna. He seems stiff and awkward, almost uncomfortable in his own flesh. His angry outbursts are forced and mechanical, though he does a good job at looking menacing when he wants to. Some of the other supporting actors seem a little less than polished, but this generally works in a film which pays little heed to naturalism either in plot or characterization.

This is more than offset by the brilliant performances of Saeed Jaffrey and Zohra Segal. Jaffrey plays three major roles in the film, and makes them all completely different. As Lallu Bhai, he is the perfect greedy capitalist. As Mr. Tikkoo, he is quiet and charming, but his most touching performance is as Lord Krishna. The Indian deity is not just a gimmick, but a fully-fleshed character. Like all the other Indian characters, he's searching for his role in the new world. He fears his people no longer need or love them and his final scene is a genuinely touching moment.

Segal cheerfully skewers the stereotype view of the wise, aged Indian grandmother. She harbors no fondness for the old, traditional ways. Grandma is fascinated by kitchen gadgets of all kinds, and wants her own juicer and food processor so she doesn't have to grind her masala with a lowly mortar and pestle, like they do back in India. She can also curse up a blue streak in Hindi, and doesn't mind directing it at her own god.

The film doesn't reach a traditional resolution, nor does it attempt to. The various narrative threads all come together in a climactic scene involving a parade, a hostage situation, a knife fight, and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. I'm not even going to try to explain it. Just see it for yourself.

If you like character-based independent cinema, you should give "Masala" a chance. I think it might even be a minor masterpiece of a sort, but I need more time to think about the movie before I go quite that far. Still, I highly recommend the film with no reservations.

VIDEO:

The DVD is offered in a 1:78:1 Anamorphic presentation. The picture quality is clear, though the bright colors of the Bollywood sequences could be sharper. The transfer is clean, and I didn't notice any dirt or scratches.

AUDIO:

The DVD is presented with both Dolby Digital 2.0 and Dolby Digital 5.1 options. The dialogue is crisp, and the catchy music track and the Bollywood musical numbers are sharp, with no noticeable distortion.

Optional English and French language subtitles support the audio. You have the option to set the subtitles for only the Hindi language dialogue or for all the dialogue. The latter option is particularly useful for making out some of the background radio and TV newscasts.

EXTRAS:

The disc offers a 15-minute featurette recorded last year by the director and other cast members. It's standard fare, though it provides some useful background information about the film's production and somewhat troubled reception.

The disc also features a Director's Commentary track, which offers about what you'd expect. Krishna spends most of the time simply guiding the audience through the plot, though he also offers some interesting insights regarding his motivations for some of the more esoteric choices he made during filming.

The extras also include a trailer and a photo gallery.

CLOSING THOUGHTS:

"Masala" was named the best South Asian film in a 2002 worldwide poll conducted by the British Film Institute. It seems a rather odd way to categorize a film made by a Canadian filmmaker in Canada with a mostly Canadian cast, with dialogue almost entirely in English. The poll included films made outside of South Asia, but it's a reminder of the often thorny problem of nationality in contemporary films.

Take "Dancer in the Dark," for example. The film starred an Icelandic actress (Bjork), a French actress (Catherine Deneuve), an American actor (David Morse) and a Swede (Peter Stormare.) It's in English, was set in America, and was financed by a multinational consortium. Yet it's considered a Danish film, presumably because director Lars von Trier is from Copenhagen.

"Lord of the Rings" was nominated as an American film, but isn't it more accurate to call it a New Zealand film? And how do we categorize "Passion of the Christ?"

I've got no greater point to make here. I'm just offering the matter for discussion.