For
Sri Lankan movie fans it takes a while for a true artistic movie to dawn. In a
country where art has many limitations creativity comes with a cost, where as
in other regions of the world its limits are far wider and fruitful. And most
of the instances the creators were neglected or banished than being commended
for their work. Making a movie that
people speaks about in an atmosphere like this is indeed a tricky task and I believe
Nilendra Deshapriya has managed to jump through the hoops and squeeze in
between the slippery slopes to bring this beautiful movie to light. And movies
like Thanha Rathi Ranga is seldom seeing here therefore can be called as a rare
gem.
The
movie speaks of a rather commonly experienced theme in recent years, the post
war Sri Lanka yet manages to pull off a unique plot based on a solid start. 3
friends from the Colombo low income urban community area sets off on a trip of
sight seeing to North and East of the country after the end of war. The plot
thickens from a fun filled road trip to a suspense ride when they discover
something unexpectedly that creates turmoil and showing signs in scattering
walls of friendship. And the turn of events after their return to home sets
them on a dark and uncertain path of misery.
What
catches the viewer at the beginning is the brilliance in cinematography. The
movie swiftly shifts from narrative news footage and live street action more
than once bringing in perfect harmony between the turn of events on the victory
day. And the director skillfully create base for certain events quickly yet
effectively within the first 15 minutes of the movie and then gradually moves
down a road which is more entertaining than dramatic for a while. But the
viewers having the situation in Colombo and the events in back of their minds
eagerly waits till the show returns home and it takes a while to do that. But
the fluctuation between these layers is smoothly made and the movie flawlessly
moves from phase to phase. And each of these phases has a mood of their own and
by the time the movie reaches it’s peak the moment of enlightenment is reached
with a strike of pain. The concerned viewer will lament in the things that
unfolds yet realizes that the damages were caused by things which could have
being easily avoided.
Thanha
Rathi Ranga has a strong script. It speaks few words yet convey deeper messages
along the way. And certain scenes are made excessively powerful with small
details and careful attention was given creating them. Scenes such as the
handicapped solder crossing the road while the people rejoice in the name of
victory is merely a true justification to the bitter truth of war and it
horrific claims. Use of signs is prominent throughout the movie and these signs
can be seeing in the forms of lifeless statues or living animals but they
equally makes enough sense and ads depth to the story. And the last five
minutes of the movie is kind of a psychological tease that solely dependent on
the viewers comprehension towards the whole story and it can be interpreted in
many different ways based on the individual perception. These small yet
beautiful mix of little elements pumps life to Thana Rathi Ranga so well that
there is lot for the viewer to ponder upon after the ending titles roll.
Finally
it is a must to commend the brilliance in performances or else this write up
will be somewhat flawed. Thanha Rathi Ranga has some of the most powerful yet
natural of performances that recent local cinema has seeing. These characters
instantly manage to grab the viewer and transform them selves in to prominent
places of viewers’ minds and even the minor rolls were given equal attention to
details. The beauty of these performances mixed with the script unravels a
fresh experience on the screen and Sinhala cinema is nourished with one more wholesome
movie to its credit.
Genre
: Drama
Director
:Nilendra Deshapriya
Country
: Sri Lanka
Language
: Sinhala
-
Priyantha Bandara
