I re-saw Kaagaz ke Phool by Guru Dutt on TV yesterday. He is one of my favourite director/actors. But I could see some flaws from a viewer's perspective, which may have made it a failure at the box office.
The story is powerful, about the vagaries of the film world, and the impact of it on a director's personal life and love. The middle of the film is slow, and just when the story gets dramatic with the daughter forcing the director's lover to abandon him, the plot is hampered by a couple of songs. Maybe a faster denouement would have worked.
It is also not too clear why the director is not willing to go back when his lady love comes back to films. If he is so firm on it, why does he audition for an extra's role?
Despite its flaws, it's well worth watching, just for the angst of the last scene- that of the defeated director being found dead in his old director's chair. The lighting in that scene is also amazing. He was great at conveying pathos.
The story is powerful, about the vagaries of the film world, and the impact of it on a director's personal life and love. The middle of the film is slow, and just when the story gets dramatic with the daughter forcing the director's lover to abandon him, the plot is hampered by a couple of songs. Maybe a faster denouement would have worked.
It is also not too clear why the director is not willing to go back when his lady love comes back to films. If he is so firm on it, why does he audition for an extra's role?
Despite its flaws, it's well worth watching, just for the angst of the last scene- that of the defeated director being found dead in his old director's chair. The lighting in that scene is also amazing. He was great at conveying pathos.
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