FROZEN
STRIKES THE EYES WITH BRILLIANT B&W LENSING BUT LEAVES THE AUDIENCE DRY IN EMOTIONS
by Vishal Verma

An Enlighten Film Co. Release (in India) Through Shringar Films. Powered By Seagull Media production in association with Phat Phish Motion Pictures. Produced by Shivajee Chandrabhushan. Executive producer, Shanker Raman. Directed by Shivajee Chandrabhushan. Screenplay, Shanker Raman, from a story by Chandrabhushan. Genre: Social – Drama. Target Audience: Art house, festival followers & students.       

Starring
Danny Denzongpa……. Karma
Gauri……….. Lasya
Angchuk…….. Chomo
With
Yashpal Sharma, Raj Zutshi, Aamir Bashir & Shakeel Khan.

Hindi, Ladakhi dialogue with English subtitles.

Technical Analysis
First-time filmmaker Shivajee Chandrabhushan’s 107-minute, black and white film, Frozen (Hindi/Ladakhi), set in remote snow-lined Ladakh won the Special Jury Prize at Delhi’s Osian’s-CineFan.
This led to the film being selected for the Toronto and London Film Festivals.

 The movie went to Toronto Film Festival 2007 in the Discovery Section, the festival’s only competition section, tailored for emerging filmmakers from around the world. ‘Frozen’ was the only Indian film short listed by the CANNES. But the makers didn,t have the money to complete it. But thanks to Anand Surapur and Syed of deluxe labs the film got completed and now the movie is seeing theatres courtesy – Enlighten Film Co. & Shringar Films.

Yours truly saw it in 2007, the striking images where still fresh while entering the theatre today but alas the story wasn,t. I saw it again & when I came out of the mini theatre which I was missing for the last one month due to the stand off between UPDF & Plex owners, I was not at all surprised by Anaurag Kashyap’s reaction to this film which says that it’s a visual delight.

Shot in Black and white, brilliantly by Shankar Raman (who also wrote the film), reminds one of the Srilankan masterpiece , camera’d'ore winner “The Forsaken Land”. In ‘Frozen’ Shivajee Chandrabhushan's B&W lensing is very much striking, the camera captures the remote Himalayan Ladakh region which rule the flick, the guitar-based score, gives a Western arthouse feel which will have takers strictly in the festive circuit.

The bemused & baffling narration of the aging widower Karma (Danny Denzongpa) struggle for existence lacks in its emotional quotient. The striking images further increase the distance of any emotional connection to the mainstream audience.

The movie is outstanding in cinematography & fantastic in performance. Danny deserves special mention for his almost flawless portrayal of a poor ageing widower. Gauri also impresses. Yashpal Sharma leaves a mark.

The movie gets 2 out of five. 1 for the superb cinematography & one for the acting & music score. The movie looses heavily in writing & narration.

The Story
Shanker Raman screenplay results in a baffling experience to the viewer who are though quiet impressed by the excellent cinematography but are unable to connect to the story & the proceedings. Aging widower Karma (Danny Denzongpa) scrapes out an existence for himself, daughter Lasya (Gauri) and her little brother Chomo (Angchuk), mostly by making apricot jam. But the thing he's named for takes a bleak turn: Automated production steals away buyers in the nearest town; an unscrupulous lender wants all debts paid up now; and an army regiment suddenly requisitions his ancestral lands for an outpost. It becomes clear he must marry off Lasya to secure her future. But while she's mature physically, in mind she's childish, willful and destructive.  

Promotion
‘Frozen’ has made its journey to the Toronto Film Festival 2007 in the Discovery Section – a section tailored for emerging filmmakers from around the world.

‘Frozen’ was also the winner of the Special Jury Prize at Delhi’s Osian’s-CineFan.
Many festive followers have seen it but still it may invite some interested wannabe technos in bollywood.

Business Analysis
With no popular elements for the ‘aam’ audience, this brilliantly shot ‘Frozen’ will attract legs of only festive goers & students of cinema.

Other Credits

D.O.P. Shanker Rahman. Editor: Shan Mohammed; Music: John P. Production Designers: Siddharth Sirohi, Sonali Singh. Publicity Design: Studio Link. Media Relations: Universal Communications. Reviewed at Famous Preview Theatre, Mumbai on May 7, 2009. Running time: 110 MIN.

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