Film
What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases
Bookmark this pageGenesis (1986)
Director: Mrinal Sen
Movie review
From Time Out Film Guide
In the past, Mrinal Sen's leftist films have eschewed mystical visions of an India outside history; here he focuses on the collapse of just such an escapist dream. Two men, the Farmer and the Weaver (Shah and Puri) have abandoned the poverty of contemporary India to start life anew in the sprawling ruins of a long lost village. Their only tie with the outside world is the Merchant (Raina), who provides the raw materials and markets for their product; their only connection with the 20th century is the roar of the odd plane jetting across the desert. Alone in their world, the pair build a new society, and their land begins to bloom...until harmony is shattered with the arrival of the Woman (Azmi), a refugee from recent floods. Though Sen's sexual politics may strike western eyes as dubious, the simplistic power of the film is unquestionable. The fifth character is the landscape which comes to bloom, beautifully complemented by a score from Ravi Shankar.Author: GA
Cast & crew
Director: Mrinal Sen
Cast: Shabana Azmi, Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri, MK Raina full cast
Duration: 109 mins
Most popular on this site
Top Stories
Review: Penélope Cruz more raunchy than ever in 'Nine'
Dave Calhoun reports on Rob Marshall's Oscar-touted musical with Daniel Day-Lewis playing a troubled director
Time Out's 101 Films of the Decade
Ten years, thousands of movies and millions of dollars in international box office, and it all boils down to this
Jim Jarmusch on 'The Limits of Control'
Jim Jarmusch has followed ‘Broken Flowers’ with an esoteric crime mystery. Dave Calhoun speaks to him from his New York office
Richard Linklater on 'Me and Orson Welles'
Dave Calhoun meets the 49-year-old, Houston-born filmmaker Richard Linklater to discuss his new comedy
Our verdict on Peter Jackson's The Lovely Bones
Peter Jackson ends a triumphant decade with a sentimental misfire with this lush Alice Sebold adaptation
On the set of Ken Loach's 'Route Irish'
Dave Calhoun meets Ken Loach on the set of his forthcoming Iraq war movie
Is 'Paranormal Activity' the new 'Blair Witch'?
How does a film go from DIY experiment to box-office smash? 'Paranormal Activity' director Oren Peli explains
A gateway to all things 'New Moon'
In anticipation of 'The Twilight Saga: New Moon', Time Out is offering the chance to pick up a limited edition pack with three exclusive magazines and a free poster.
The films that deserve a TV spin-off
With Roland Emmerich suggesting he'd like to make a '2012' TV spin-off, we propose some more movie-to-TV serialisations
Time Out's 50 greatest animated films with commentary by Terry Gilliam
In celebration of the release of Pixar's 'Up' and Wes Anderson's 'Fantastic Mr Fox', read our rundown of fifty classic feature length animations
What do you think?
Post your review now