Select language, opens an overlay

Comment

Pather panchali

Song of the little road
Jan 31, 2014lukasevansherman rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Satyajit Ray's debut film was both a milestone in Indian cinema and a milestone in world cinema. While Inida had often been depicted in film ("Gunga Din," "Lives of a Bengal Lancer") this was very likely the first Southeast Asian film that many Americans had seen that was actually made by Indian filmmakers. A lyrical, impressionistic and poignant tale about a poor family in rural, it has something in common with the Italian neorealists, but it has a style and power all its own. Ray, using mostly non-professionals, creates a whole world just using a house and a forest, covering the whole range of human experience (life, death, struggle, happiness, poverty, tragedy) in two hours. If you consider yourself a cinephile, you must see this film. The first part of the "Apu trilogy."