Watch From Home is back after exactly one month and this weekend's recommendations are all about the 'K' content. No, not from the Kapoor or the Korean factories. This list is also a nod to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Europe visit and the raging language debate engulfing Indian cinema in the last few days. Additionally, a little bit of nostalgia is always good for soul.
Kurup (2021)
Kurup is a Malyalam film based on what can be said as India’s longest manhunts. This Dulquer Salmaan starrer follows the life of Sukumara Kurup, a fugitive who has acquired a Charles Sobhraj like cult-status in Kerala's world of crime. Kurup, a murderer, has been playing hide and seek with police for almost forty years.
Kurup was forced against his will to join the Indian Air Force in the 1980s. He is said to have faked his death in 1984 to get away from a life that he did not choose. Kurup not only murdered a man named Chacko but also used the corpse as his own in a bid to claim insurance money. While Kerala Police managed to arrest his allies, Kurup evaded their clutches.
Sukumara Kurup's life and infamy have inspired several other films in the past, including Hindi film Moh Maya Money (2016) and Malayalam films NH 47 (1984) and Pinneyum (2016).
Crime is one of the best-selling genres on the silver-screen and now OTT platforms. And an origins story of a legendary criminal hits all the spots if done right. Srinath Rajendran, the director, has tried to explore the man and the myth in Kurup, the murderer.
Where to Watch: Netflix
The Kreutzer Sonata (1956)
There is never a better time to watch any piece of cinema that is even remotely associated with Jean-Luc Godard. But what do you say to the film that Godard played a cameo in? And one that's an adaptation of a Tolstoy story? A dizzying experience of consuming an amalgamation of masterpieces defines the very act of watching The Kreutzer Sonata or La Sonata à Kreutzer.
The Kreutzer Sonata is a 16mm film written, directed, and acted in by Eric Rohmer—the master of 16mm—produced by Godard, based on a Tolstoy novella bearing the same title, which, in turn, has been borrowed from Beethoven's 'Kreutzer Sonata'. Published in 1889, Tolstoy's book was censored by the Russian authorities but soon became a cult classic and has been adapted into more than a dozen films in various languages.
In Rohmer's film in question, he plays the role of Pozdnychev whose unnamed wife (Francoise Martnielli) begins to fall in love with a super charming Jean-Claude Brialy. The 'adulterous' couple often perform Beethoven's 'Kreutzer Sonata' together. Pozdnychev is possessed by jealousy and ends up killing his wife after setting up a trap for them.
The film has dense narration, no dialogue, great music—thank you, Beethoven—and a eye-popping set of cameos by the stalwarts of Nouvelle Vague (French New Wave) like Godard, Claude Chabrol, Francois Truffaut, Andre Bazin, and even the office premises of Cahiers du Cinema!
Rohmer's direction is playful, and the film is a precursor to his later work that refined many of the themes and techniques in The Kreutzer Sonata.
Where to Watch: Mubi
Klaus (2019)
If you need a palate cleanser after all the murder and violence, watch Klaus. A masterfully crafted PG-rated animation offering the origins story of the most loved character (or is he real?) across the globe. Yes, Christmas is still far away but there is no rule against drowning in nostalgia and old school feel-good stories.
Sergio Pablos, a master storyteller of Disney, unleashes his digital craft and irreverent humour in this retelling of the Santa Claus myth.
A loose-canon postman Jesper (voiced by Jason Schwartzman) is exiled to Smeerensburg where he teams up with a toy maker called Klaus (JK Simmons). And the rest, as they say, is history.
Klaus was nominated for the Best Animated Featured Film in 2020 Oscars and won the BAFTA the same year in this category. The film was Netflix's first independent foray into animation films and what a great plank to debut from!
Where to Watch: Netflix
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)