In a previous blog where I reviewed Breathless, I mentioned that I originally was more interested in Sweetie, a Jane Campion movie. Since I couldn't find it, I rented Holy Smoke, another of hers. This is a film about a woman who has a religious experience and stays in India in the ashram, (it is labeled a cult, though I can't figure out why) and her family hires a man to deprogram her.
I would call it a somewhat dark comedy, it definitely had me laughing, but also had some very disturbing elements. The mother character was very memorable. I felt really sad for her in some instances, even related her to my own mother at times. Other times I just thought she was adorable.
The characters were all very well developed, and odd. The sister-in-law who is trying desperately to have an affair is somewhat psychotic. There is a moment when one of her children falls down and she just stares at her and screams bloody murder!
I paid close attention to the cuts, in an effort to start understanding better how to make my own more smooth. This is something I have been doing with everything I watch lately, it is starting to become a habit.
I enjoyed the movie mostly for its hilarity and absurdity, but I also recognized the underlying themes about women, relationships, and society. I can't understand why this religion was labeled a cult, maybe that is part of the point Campion was trying to make. The dichotomy of the world Ruth has come from and is drawn back into, and that of the Indian ashram are notable. The Indian world is looked at as Other, they are seen as behaving "exotically" and uncivilized, while the Westerners are the civilized people even as they have affairs, lie to each other, and behave outrageously. I certainly recommend this movie, and am looking forward to getting a hold of Sweetie, and any other Campion movies.
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