“The Big City” (1963)
My personal favorite —by 1963, many films into his career at this point, Ray was at the height of his creative abilities and hits every note here perfectly. The story follows a struggling Calcutta family as the wife Arati (played by Ray regular Madhabi Mukherjee in a terrific performance) decides to break out of her role as a housewife and get a job to help support her family. From the opening following a train car line to the climactic shot that pulls back from the characters to focus on a street lamp, there’s not a single false move onscreen. It’s thrilling to watch Arati’s world open up as her obvious intelligence and talent are put to use while she breaks out of her once very confined world (a common theme in many Ray films). Ray is by no means heavy on style, or at least not in the way we’re used to seeing in modern film, but he uses new tricks (handheld cameras, zooms, etc.) to great effect, pushing the story further along as well as immersing the audience in the world of the characters. My favorite shot comes from a memorable scene where Arati’s husband is spying on her as she talks to a client in a restaurant. All in one shot, DP Subrata Mitra is able to capture all three characters in the frame, commenting on them while also being flat-out visually beautiful. This is a film that’s way ahead of its time (“Mad Men” fans who loved the Peggy Olson storyline should seek this film out), one that cares about all sides of its story, doesn’t cheat at the end and portrays a loving but realistic struggle between a married couple.
“Charulata” (1964)
According to Ray himself, this was his favorite film, or at least the one he admitted he wouldn’t change anything in hindsight. It’s easy to see why, as Madhabi Mukherjee returns (as does Soumitra Chatterjee, the eldest incarnation of Apu in the third film) to give yet another stunningly realized portrait of a woman trying to break out of narrow confines. Mukherjee plays the titular Charu in 1870s Calcutta, who is essentially a prisoner in her own home as the wife of a rich newspaper mogul. When her husband’s cousin comes to stay and work on his writing, she finds a kindred spirit and a budding, forbidden romance lurks just below the surface. He encourages her to write, and the nascent artist finally sees a way out of her dull existence. There are many memorable shots here as well, such as one that’s locked onto Charu’s face as she swings, the camera giving the sense of forward and backward motion. The ending comes with a series of freeze frames that feel radical as hell but are perfectly capture what Ray is trying to express. There are few directors as adept at letting the camera and subtle character gestures tell the story. Dialogue is often sparse, but the frame is packed with a lot of visual cues and information. And in “Charulata” as everywhere else, Ray never falls back onto easy devices (the love triangle here is extremely complex, mostly because her husband isn’t some huge jerk but a guy who just doesn’t get his wife).
Of course, this is only the peak of the Ray iceberg. He’s credited as director with 37 features, documentaries and shorts over his career, so there’s plenty more to discover. Beyond the near-unanimous praise for all six works above, this list skewed towards what are presently his most easily accessible works. If you’re willing to dig deep and explore, many of his other films can be found. We hope you’re inclined to do so! We’ll close out with this nifty little trailer on the Apu Trilogy Restoration, via Criterion:
