Diversity, the bedrock of Toronto International Film Festival, could not have reflected more acutely than in the reactions to Hotel Mumbai , a fictionalised account of the 2008 terrorist attacks on India’s financial capital, specifically the siege of Taj Mahal Palace and Tower Hotel. The American-Australian production, directed by Anthony Maras, starring Dev Patel, Anupam Kher, Armie Hammer ( The Social Network ) and Nazanin Boniadi ( Homeland ) in key roles, it had its world premiere at TIFF on Friday night.
From wide appreciation for its portrayal of both the beastly as well as the humane side of the terrorists to criticism for its refusal to point a finger at the nationality of the perpetrators of violence, from being overwhelmed by the moving recreation of the harrowing hours to expressing discomfort with its “entertainment value”, the film has had the audience talking on the sidelines of the Princess of Wales Theatre and the Scotiabank Cineplex.
Eye at Oscars
As of now the odds appear to be heavily in the film’s favour with the makers hoping for a shoo-in at the Oscars and a big worldwide release which is when the Indian press (not nominated for interviews at TIFF) will get access to the team behind Hotel Mumbai .
The well-crafted film starts off as a basic, clinical representation of the violent shoot-outs and the blood and gore to gradually build on its emotional heft by weaving in the individual narratives. The horror creeps up slowly. There is an interesting distance from which the psyche of a terrorist is presented and the State’s ineptness in handling the extraordinary situation. One wishes the film had engaged with the political and social aspects some more. However, it prefers to remain centred in the disaster drama zone, evoking its obvious cliches — the fight against the odds, unity in adversity. It keeps the audience on the edge of the seat, even interjecting a few moments of mirth in the overarching tension of the scene, but prefers not to go any deeper.
There are other quibbles — wasn’t that “before leaving for work” kiss between Dev Patel and his wife very “Western”; and the beef ban, sacred cow explanation a tad patronising? However, the film eventually rides well on a stellar cast — be it a wonderfully controlled Anupam Kher as chef Hemant Oberoi or the edgy Vipin Sharma as the well-meaning but weak-minded manager Dileep. The most remarkable is the bunch of young, unknown actors who play the illiterate, poor, misguided terrorists. It’s hard to shake Amandeep Singh, Suhail Nayyar, Yash Trivedi and Gaurav Paswala off your mind long after the film gets over.
The Sisters Brothers
Jacques Audiard’s The Sisters Brothers is important not just for being the celebrated French filmmaker’s first English film, but also for his hugely engaging and individualistic attempt at tackling a genre that is so all American — the Western. Set in the days of the Gold Rush, Mr. Audiard lends quirky wit and dark humour all his own to this world of guns and shootouts.
A heavy duty ensemble of Jake Gyllenhaal, Joaquin Phoenix, John C. Reilly and believe it or not the British-Pakistani Riz Ahmed lends some more weight. A Western couldn’t have got more globalised.
