Now in its 17th year, the Toronto Reel Asian film festival had up until now presented films only from Central and East Asian filmmakers. This year for the first time they have expanded their scope to include South Asian filmmakers and what better way to inaugurate this change than with the opening night film, Bombay Talkies, an anthology film celebrating 100 years of Bollywood. The four films, directed by four of Bollywood’s most interesting directors, have a lot to enjoy including performances by some favourite actors and a lot of humour. But what I enjoyed the most is that while the four films are ostensibly about the influence of Bollywood in the lives of Indians, in the realms of music, dance, acting ambition and star worship, the films can also be interpreted in other, arguably deeper, ways with two of the films addressing anxieties around sexuality and gender and two films exploring the importance of storytelling in our lives.
[Note: this post contains some spoilers]
Bombay Talkies
12 Tuesday Nov 2013