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| THE RIVER (1951) | |
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The River offers a riveting cinematic experience presented in Technicolor, which projected the strong colors of the environment around the one of
many Indian rivers.
These strong colors reveal the symbolic contrast for the cultural differences between Western and Indian culture, which is an essential part of the film.
Selflessly, Jean Renoir directs this film, as he brings the audience on a cultural journey into the foreign traditions through the daily life of an English family and a young
teenager. Through the family, Renoir offers a visual presentation of the ethnic differences that stand out even more in relation to the British family who
have adapted to the culture in which they coexist.
This is elevated through camerawork that provides a feeling of non-fiction, and a depiction of the truth. In its presentation, the River does not seem like much, but it is here the magic rests. Renoir uses a simplistic approach to the story that reveals the mundane of everyday life and how it would be to live in India. Through this routine, the audience gets to see and hear how things are along the exotic and sacred river next to which they live. The audience will learn about the origin to the people’s beliefs, morals, and values that color the life for those who live along the river. Harriet (Patricia Walters), a young teenage girl, provides thorough illustrations of the Indian society and culture, as she writes poetry and is on the verge of becoming a woman. The story focuses on Harriet who also is the story's narrator, as she discloses this story from her youthful years growing up along a river in India. Besides Harriet, the audience gets to meet her confident friend Valerie (Adrienne Corri) who is the only daughter of a rich family. Together these two teens fall in love with Captain John (Thomas E. Breen), an American World War II veteran. Harriet and Valerie begin to secretively compete for Captain John and Valerie decides to take no prisoners, as her approach brings the notion of Western attitude that expresses that everything is allowed in love and war. Harriet on the other hand brings forth a mixed approach of both Western and Indian culture in her attempt to gain Captain John’s attention through providing a detailed description of herself through the Hindu society in which she lives. A third girl, Melanie (Radha) has recently finished school and returned home to find herself outside in a cultural and social predicament. Melanie is the daughter of the Western man, Mr. John (Arthur Shields), and her late Hindu mother. Her birth into two different cultures has left her in a social no man’s land, as the Indian society’s caste system leaves her without a caste and the Western society does not welcome her. Even her father, Mr. John, thinks that it was cruel to bring her into the world. Nonetheless, she also has feelings like the other girls, as it seems that she has feelings for Captain John. However, she does not overtly express her feelings, as she continues to yearn for him at a distance. Life and death are crucial portions of the culture where Harriet lives, as she narrates “Kali the goddess of eternal destruction and creation – creation impossible without destruction.” This suggests a cyclical existence where once something is created it will eventually be destroyed and once destroyed it will be created again. Harriet’s youngest sister Victoria even embraced this notion, as she pretends her rabbit Hoppity is a newborn--an idea that seems to go against Harriet’s logic to which she points out that Hoppity was a new born last week too. However, Victoria simply states, “Babies can be born again and again, can’t they?” The river becomes an analogy for fundamental existential ideas of cyclical existence, as it continues to flow as it has done for millennia. The river starts its flow in the Himalayas, as it is continuously replenished by new melted snow and it runs down to the Bay of Bengal. The water returns to the hills and mountains in the north through monsoons to once again flow down streams to the Bay of Bengal. Amidst the water of the river wildlife, fish and people coexist in life and death, which is brought to all by the water of the river. This image is provided in the opening of the film, which offers an honest depiction of the culture in which the story takes place. The River is a much smaller film compared to Renoir’s previous accomplishments, but it does not lack artistic skillfulness and thoughtful design. On the contrary, the River is much more personal as it slowly embeds itself in the cerebral cortex where it provides much contemplation for those who seek it. Renoir does not seem to care whether the film has an exciting story or pleases hordes of moviegoers. Instead he simply lets the characters seem to exist in an environment where the river destroys life and over again offers birth. This film brings the audience a brilliant cinematic experience, which displays that Renoir truly is elevating his personal visual storytelling through his own visions. |
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DIRECTED BY |
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| Jean Renoir | |
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France / India / USA |
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| REVIEWED | |
| 3/29/2005 | |
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The Internet Movie Database. |
