June 22, 2006

NYAFF Report: Company Review

(Posted In Asia Drama Random Festival News Reviews )

company.jpgHaving braved the New York traffic and lived to tell the tale I am now safely ensconced in an East Village apartment to catch a few days of the 2006 New York Asian Film Festival. It looks as though this will be Bollywood heavy trip, with today's screening being Bollywood superhero flick Krrish and yesterday's given over to Ram Gopal Varma's sweeping crime saga Company.

Let me begin by saying this: when it comes to Indian film I am as dumb as a sack of hammers. If not completely ignorant I am very, very close with exposure thus far being limited at best. That said Company is not at all what I would have expected from a Bollywood film. Gritty, violent, ultra-realistic and with only one musical number to be found in the body of the film - and that one being a totally appropriate piece set while the film's central characters are meeting potential allies in a night club - Varma's film is worlds away from the sugary confections we tend to associate with Indian film.

An organized crime story that invites comparion to The Godfather films or Johnnie To's Election, Company tells the story of the rise and fall of two men, Malik and Chandu. A top lieutenant in a major Mumbai gang, Malik has the ear of his devoted boss and thus the enmity of his peers who fear his growing influence. And they are right to do so for Malik has his eyes on a much higher prize. Cold and ruthless, Malik is the ultimate tactician, a man slowly building his connections and positioning himself to strike at the opportune moment. All that Malik lacks is a weapon, a weapon he finds in Chandu. The polar opposite of the calculating Malik, Chandu is a proud, violent man determined to rise from his humble origins by whatever means necessary. He wears his heart on his sleeve and in his fists and will lash out with angry fury against anyone who insults him. In Malik Chandu sees an opportunity to rise and advance, in Chandu Malik sees the vicious animal who will carry out his will and so the two become allies and fight their bloody way to the top.

With a story that spans both continents and years Company is epic in every sense of the word. Varma tackles everything from the factions within the gang to widespread government corruption and underoworld influence in the Bollywood movie industry. With a huge cast of gifted actors Varma captures the politics and infighting of the gang itself, the lust for power that turns 'brothers' against one another and, just as To does with Election shatters the myth of honor among thieves. This is about power, it is about profit and personal gain and anyone who gets in the way will be disposed of.

Varma is clearly a master behind the camera, shooting beautiful film, every shot framed flawlessly as the director builds the tension towards the inevitable bloody conclusion. He strikes that difficult balance between realism and style with ease, never letting you forget that these are real people but still making them look mighty damn fine. But as skilled as Varma is behind the camera it is what he does in front of the camera that makes this film go. A director who has long been known for finding new talent as well as discovering unexpected layers and depth to established stars Varma draws career defining performances out of Ajay Devgan as Malik and Vivek Oberoi as Chandu. Devgan plays Malik as a cold eyed monster, a man totally given over to his goal of ultimate power and thus willing to do absolutely anything to acheive that goal. He is completely amoral and chilling. Oberoi is likewise exceptional as Chandu, a character who at first appears as a simple minded thug but gradually builds into a full blooded character, revealing a surprisingly tender side that is ultimately shattered and left in ruins. More knowledgable people tell me that Oberoi has never been as good as he is here since, but in Company he is truly remarkable.

Festival co-founder Grady Hendrix has been raving about Varma's films via his Kaiju Shakedown blog for quite some time and it is easy to see why. The man has a clarity of vision couple with rare technical skills that make him a legitimate force in the film world. It is truly a shame that he is so little known outside his native country.

» Posted by Todd at June 22, 2006 11:23 AM
Digg This / Add To del.icio.us

Reader Comments

The guys at my local Indian-grocery/video/discount store have been raving about this for weeks. I've been meaning to pick itup for quite some time now...

» Posted by Kurt at June 22, 2006 12:38 PM

Yeah, definitely worth it. I'll be picking up some Varma films when I get home ... and check your Twitch mail, Kurt ... forwarded you some stuff ...

» Posted by Todd at June 22, 2006 01:23 PM

Hey Todd --

Welcome to NYC! I do hope you have plans to catch Funky Forest on Saturday night. It's positively brilliant -- I might even go back to see it a second time.

» Posted by Filmbrain at June 22, 2006 01:35 PM

I caught this at the Edinburgh festival back in '03 and was very pleased. The epic nature of the plot was really what hooked me. The progression of the characters over the years in both business and personal aspects was perfectly nature, and that made my investment in the film complete. Good stuff.

» Posted by Daniel J. Winclechter at June 22, 2006 02:42 PM

His whole crime trilogy is cool.I dig Sarkar the most.

» Posted by nitty at June 22, 2006 05:07 PM

This film is allright, Maqbool by Vishal Vardwaz is a much better film. The director has made another film OMKARA PLS OH PLS GIVE THAT MOVIE SOME LIME LIGHT SO HIS FILM DOESN'T go unnoticed..

» Posted by Baid at June 22, 2006 06:38 PM

Yeah, terrific film; good write-up, Todd. I got to see this at the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles a couple of years ago. I'm even more ignorant about films from India, but this kinda stuff is right up my alley.

» Posted by Peter Martin at June 22, 2006 07:58 PM

Company is loosely based on the split of two of Bombay's most feared mafia dons, Dawood Ibrahim (Malik) and Chhota Rajan (Chandu).
Also watch a 1987 tamil language film called Nayakan. Another good gangster flick from India.

» Posted by loonatik at June 22, 2006 10:11 PM

It's an amatuerish film. It's a glorified movie because it's a mafia movie and it was one of the first Bollywood movies with no musical numbers. Why are mafia movies so popular - I don't get it.

» Posted by toddly6666 at June 22, 2006 10:18 PM

Amateurish? There's not an amateurish frame in this thing ... camera work is great, script is strong, characters are good, central performances are excellent. Aint no amateurs involved with this ...

» Posted by Todd at June 22, 2006 11:04 PM

Like you Todd, I knew or cared absolutely nothing about Bollywood until I saw this film - I caught it in Puchon festival in Korea in 2003. I was completely bowled over by its vitality and its sense of scale, and I thought the two leads were really impressive. Subsequently I have been a casual Bollywood viewer, but most of the stuff I've seen, though great fun, as been more in the vein of Rom Com or historical epic.
If you loved Company, there was another great one that screened on Channel 4 as part of a Bollywood season last year, called Ab Tak Chhappan - produced but not directed by Varma. Another really gritty powerful one.
Check out: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0402014/

» Posted by Jasper at June 23, 2006 03:04 AM

Ab Tak Chappan is actually part of the festival here as well, I'm hoping to catch it while I'm here, though there's a conflict or two with some other stuff ...

» Posted by Todd at June 23, 2006 09:38 AM

Oh go see it definitely! It's a very similar style to Company, and just as gripping...

» Posted by Jasper at June 23, 2006 12:32 PM

Or perhaps, if you were impressed by the stylistic and no-songs type style to this movie, you MUST watch "Black" by director Sanjay Leela Bhansali.

There are about only two or three genuinly orignal directors working in bollywood:
Ram Gopal Varma, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, and Mani Ratnam.

If you get to see any of their movies, do it! Although Bhansali's previous films are laden with musical numbers, Black is his masterpiece, and its in its silence where it shines.

» Posted by d tank at June 23, 2006 02:56 PM

I am so glad that Twitch Reviewed Company. This site reviews awsome movies from all around the globe, so it was just a matter of time iguess. Company is a really good movie gritty and realistic. If u guys enjoyed Company you should definately check out Satya ( it is Verma's first movie, this is movie is ruthless.) Also check out Vaastav, another amazing mafia movie. Vaastav is hands down one of my favourite movies of all time. This will really blow your mind away. Nayakan is also a good movie its in Tamil though. Another good Tamil movie is Mani Ratnam's Aayitha Ezhuthu, it feels like a Quentin Tarintino movie.

» Posted by Sush at June 23, 2006 04:38 PM

If you like [i]Ab Tak Chappan[/i] then go check out [i]Ek Hasina Thi[/i] too. I'm not revealing any plot points, but there's a scene with Saif Ali Khan towards the end which is both badass and hilarious at the same time.

And Urmila "The Body" Matondkar is pretty fine too.

» Posted by vinod at June 26, 2006 03:53 AM

I LOVED Ab Tak and was really hoping to catch Ek Hasina as well, but I had to head back home today and it didn't screen while I was in New York. I'm just de=spamming the site and then I'm going to wander down to the local Indian neighborhood and see what Varma films they've got available down there. The guy just totally blew me away ...

» Posted by Todd at June 26, 2006 07:23 PM

Nice review Todd. Though if you liked Company, you should check out its prequel D. The guys at Cinema Strikes Back did a review for it a while back

http://www.cinemastrikesback.com/index.php?p=562

Interestingly enough, if you add the D to Company you get D-Company which is the actual name of Daud Ibrahims criminal organization.

» Posted by Eric at June 26, 2006 11:04 PM

Post Your Comments

Remember Me?   

(You may use HTML tags for style.)

  

Buy DVDs At The Twitch Store

Our Latest Reviews

Archives

Our Latest Interviews

Archives

Our Latest Entries

Stuff We Like

Shop at our affiliated sites and support Twitch while feeding your pop-culture addiction.

Find your favorites


eThaiCD