573 The Music Room

[Michael Kerpan]

nitin -- you would not believe how hideous all previous versions of this looked.

[nitin]

Oh I believe you Michael, I have some DVDs of similar era Indian films and they are hideous. Being Indian, I am aware of how poorly we have preserved and continue to preserve our cinema.

[Michael Kerpan]

I love Music Room -- but Charulata pushed ahead of all other Ray films once I saw it (and I doubt it will ever get bumped).

[nitin]

It’s my first Ray and I hope to get to some of the rest in coming months

[Roger Ryan]

Of course, The Apu Trilogy is amazing as is Charulata, but I agree that The Music Room is wonderful. Ray thought he had worked out a way to have musical numbers (almost a prerequisite for a successful Indian film) incorporated into the story itself, but The Music Room didn't cross-over into big box office. I think he was a bit like Kurosawa in that his films tended to be more successful on the international festival circuit than in the filmmaker's homeland. Finally being able to see Ray's work in, more-or-less, high-quality home video releases from Criterion has made him one of my favorite filmmakers. His best work comes in his first ten-to-twelve years as a writer/director, but there is something to commend even the late, largely maligned efforts from the late 80s/early 90s.