Review of Court (2015) by Frederick V — 29 Aug 2015

Court was the winner of the Best Feature Film at the Indian National Awards and also Lion Of The Future at the Venice Film Festival. Therefore, it aroused my curiosity and I went to watch it today.

So, it is about Narayan Kamble, an aging folk singer and poet who gets embroiled in a legal issue regarding the death of a sewage cleaner. The movie explores the various scenarios of a Sessions Court and also explores the social life in Maharashtra and the various issues embroiled in the state through Narayan Kamble, his lawyer Vinay Vora and the public prosecutor Nutan.

Court is an awesome work of art. I may compare it to A.G.Inarritu's Birdman because just like Birdman it is an art film which can be acknowledged as a dark-comedy. Court doesn't linger at all and every scene is so important that it keeps our attention towards the flick and even if our attention wares off in some scene, the movie brings it back with its awesome one-liners. It is a brilliant dark-comedy and not one of the jokes went flat. It gives so much attention towards miniscule details such as the typist chatting on her cell phone during the legal proceedings, a lawyer following a woman for work, etc and that was one of the best aspect of the movie.

There were thought-provoking scenes such as the one in which Vora is attacked senselessly by two people for insulting their sect, a play against the immigrants of Maharashtra, etc. The best and the most funniest scene was that of the judge refusing to hear a case because the defendant has worn a dress without sleeves which is against the moral code of the Court.

Court has brilliant performances by Vira Sathidar, Vivek Gomber and Geetanjali Kulkarni. They shine in their roles. Their performances are visceral.

The film is built on conversations like se7en. A scene in which Nutan and a woman in the train converse about their family's food is so stark real. Chaitanya Tamhane infuses such scenes in the movie that anyone in Mumbai can relate to the movie.

The direction is spot on and doesn't miss a detail. The script is brilliant and boldly states that it is the people and not the law that is flawed and that the Victorian laws need to be modified. The script also shows the nonsensical claims made by the lawyers to push the dates in the Court.

The ending is an enigma in itself. That is also why I compared it to Birdman. The audience is left to guess what the ending meant. In my opinion, the ending showed that normal life goes on and that the case of Narayan Kamble will keep on dragging till his end.

Another of the thought-provoking scenes that I was awed was when Narayan delivers a staunch poem about what is art and how obscurity has been considered as art in the modern age and right after his poem finishes, the next performance is of teenage girls dancing to an item song.

In short, Court is flawless to most of its parts and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in watching a thought-provoking courtroom social satire. (Which will only be adults and eccentric teens like me.).