MOVIE REVIEW: Court

A folk singer in India  arrested when it is thought that one of his songs inspired a sanitation worker to kill himself in the sewers of Mumbai.

Court room dramas can be some of the most entertaining and interesting pieces of drama that you can sit in a cinema or at home and just watch.  We all try to imagine ourselves badgering the witnesses, digging to get the truth, and giving a hugely passionate speech to win over the jury.  From A Few Good Men to A Time to Kill these are just amazing movies.  What we have in Court is the opposite end of the spectrum.

I hate bashing movies, but what I hate more than that is people spending cash on a film that is not going to deliver what it promises.  There are many promises of something interesting and entertaining in Court, huge promises, giant ones that have wings and that are made of gold.  What we get will leave you feeling cheated.

Narayan Kamble is a teacher, and folk singer, his themes point out the cultural and personal challenges that India faces.  When he is accused of singing a song that inspires a worker to go down into the sewers and kill himself it places him in jail under certain laws.  The court case is drawn out and Narayan is kept in jail without bail.  We get a view of the home life as well as the professional life of those in the court.  The Prosecutor, The Defence Lawyer, and finally the Judge, all get somewhat pointless moments, stretched out, that we could have done without.

The film shows the lack of talent that the script writer has and the lack of confidence that the Director has.  The set up of the story could have led us down a path that could have made for a magnificent film.  This feels like a film student presenting something that he hopes is going to be a stepping stone to the professional work that is to come.  The basis of the story, a folk singer accused of inspiring someone to kill themselves, that story, that line of a plot, it should have rocked us to the core.  As a writer of stories I know that what I write can inspire for good or bad, I have a few amazingly loyal readers, and I cherish EVERY single one.  To think that something I write inspires someone to good or bad is something that every writer takes on board.  This could have hit to the heart of every writer and performer, but the pointless moments that show someone shopping, someone cooking, and someone napping in the shade of a tree drains you of caring what is going to happen.

When the court sessions are in full swing you start to care again, only to have it broken again, by something that manages to damage your will to see this film through to the end.  I hate bashing movies, as I admire the makers who bring me entertainment, but I have to tell you that when it’s good or bad.  Reviewers are there to let those who read their ramblings if this piece of entertainment is worth your cash.  With cash in short supply for a lot of people I take this very seriously.  If you are reading this and want to know if Court is worth your cash I have to tell you no.  This gives me no pleasure.

[yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]