Links in the same chain

No, I do not show that industry is dehumanising. I show that factories can be beautiful too; it is the humans who have to adapt, said Jacques Tati, director of the classic film, Traffic. Certainly several filmmakers, time and again have tried to capture rampant industrialisation and its effects - both good and bad.

Trying to present this link between industrialisation and cinema, the Lightcube Film Society is screening some of the most popular films from across the world. From Buster Keaton to Charlie Chaplin, a series is being shown by the society every Friday at Kiran Nadar Museum of Art.

The beginning of the month saw film screenings of Man with a Movie Camera (1929) and Enthusiasm (1931) by Dziga Vertov; Sherlock Jr. (1924) and The Cameraman (1928) by Buster Keaton; A Nous a’ Liberte (1931) by Rene Claire. But there is more in store.

The schedule includes Shoulder Arms (1918) and Modern Times (1936) by Charlie Chaplin. The former is one of the comic icons’ most popular films, where Charlie dreams of being a hero and goes on a daring mission behind enemy lines while the latter revolves around struggles of living in an industrial society. These films will be screened on August 23. 

Besides Charlie, a director whose work has been applauded worldwide is Michelangelo Antonioni. His first colour film Red Desert (1964) is also a part of the screening (September 13). The film is set in an industrial town of 1960s Ravenna with sprawling new post-World War factories, industrial machinery and a much polluted river valley.
The documentary Humain, Trop Humain (1973) by Louis Malle throws light on the automotive industry especially focusing on the manufacturing process at a Citroen factory (September 20). Paul Schrader’s Blue Collar (1978) is also in the list of films (September 6) to be screened.

The Indian selection includes Ritwik Ghatak’s Ajantrik (1958) which will be shown on August 30. The film shows an unusually intimate relationship between Bimal and his broken-down old taxi.

The more than-a-month-long event will end on September 27 with Jacques Tati’s Traffic (1971). The film is about Hulot, an automobile designer working for an auto plant in Paris. As he takes his designed car for an automobile show they encounter various obstacles on the road, like getting impounded by Dutch customs guards, a car accident and an inefficient mechanic!