Aan (1952) - *ing Dilip, Nadira, Nimmi, Premnath
Jun 22, 2015 15:24:15 GMT
odadune and dancelover like this
Post by emily on Jun 22, 2015 15:24:15 GMT
Shifting a conversation with carla in the Recently Seen Movies thread over to this thread...
Heh - you know how I feel about this movie. I am glad you enjoyed it. I think it's an utterly delicious spectacle - Mehboob Khan and Technicolor make for a POW!!!! combination, and Rajkumari is the tastiest Nadira character this side of Shree 420's Maya (who, really, uff).
I'm quite enamored with technicolor epics in general, even if they tend to be a bit overwrought. (I mean, I love Gone With the Wind.) Yes, the leads all looked good. I'm very taken with Dilip, especially in his earlier films (like Andaz...just, wow.) and yeah, Nadira looked great. She looked good in Shree 420 too, but my eternal love for Nargis kind of got in the way of me crushing on the evil gal in that movie, ha. Nimmi is also gorgeous; Premnath is handsome, in a rakish way.
The dream sequence is just...yeah, really no words to describe it. Sat there with my mouth open, my mind thinking "WTF is going on." It was quite the spectacle, but it was simply...weird.
Horrible story though. I wrote an entire column on how Dilip Kumar's and Premnath's characters behave in EXACTLY the same abusive way toward women, and yet by script and casting fiat Dilip Kumar's character is the hero while Premnath's is the villain. *eyeroll*
It was hard to root for Dilip in this movie because he basically was a total jerk basically the whole time. From pretty much screwing Nimmi over in every frame to trying to "tame" the princess (*barf*) he was just as bad as Premnath. I guess the only thing that sets them apart is that Dilip's character valued "honor and innocence," whereas Premnath was out to "soil them." (I use my quotation marks ironically. It was a time where there was this ever-pervasive notion that a woman's best assets were her "honor and innocence"...unfortunately, that is still very much alive and well today in some circles.)
I try very hard to watch these older films through the lenses of that time, not through the lenses of my own modern sensibilities, but I will say that my least favorite part of this movie is the main premise itself - Nadira's transformation from a totally badass princess to a "village girl with honor." She was totally awesome in the first half of the movie (puffy breeches and all!) and I loved her, but her transformation into the "status quo," if you will, really upset me.
Anyway emily, as I've said before I'm loving your passion for classic films. Premnath and his brother Rajendranath will become familiar faces. Premnath often plays villains but not always - I know you are watching and loving Barsaat, which I hated, but I actually do like Premnath's part in it quite a lot. Rajendranath is more of a comic actor - I adore him.
Yeah I really do like Premnath, have seen him in a few things now and been impressed. His character arc in Barsaat is in a dark place right now, but I'm thinking they're going to swing him around and make him a "loyal guy" at the end. (Still have about 40 mins to go on that one.) I haven't seen Rajendranath in anything yet so I'll have to get back to you on that one.
I'm quite enamored with technicolor epics in general, even if they tend to be a bit overwrought. (I mean, I love Gone With the Wind.) Yes, the leads all looked good. I'm very taken with Dilip, especially in his earlier films (like Andaz...just, wow.) and yeah, Nadira looked great. She looked good in Shree 420 too, but my eternal love for Nargis kind of got in the way of me crushing on the evil gal in that movie, ha. Nimmi is also gorgeous; Premnath is handsome, in a rakish way.
The dream sequence is just...yeah, really no words to describe it. Sat there with my mouth open, my mind thinking "WTF is going on." It was quite the spectacle, but it was simply...weird.
It was hard to root for Dilip in this movie because he basically was a total jerk basically the whole time. From pretty much screwing Nimmi over in every frame to trying to "tame" the princess (*barf*) he was just as bad as Premnath. I guess the only thing that sets them apart is that Dilip's character valued "honor and innocence," whereas Premnath was out to "soil them." (I use my quotation marks ironically. It was a time where there was this ever-pervasive notion that a woman's best assets were her "honor and innocence"...unfortunately, that is still very much alive and well today in some circles.)
I try very hard to watch these older films through the lenses of that time, not through the lenses of my own modern sensibilities, but I will say that my least favorite part of this movie is the main premise itself - Nadira's transformation from a totally badass princess to a "village girl with honor." She was totally awesome in the first half of the movie (puffy breeches and all!) and I loved her, but her transformation into the "status quo," if you will, really upset me.
{Click to view!}
Take for instance the last scene, where she's tied to a stake on fire while Dilip & Premnath are dueling their final battle. Nadira in the FIRST half would have busted out of those ropes Hulk style, grabbed a gun, and shot both those guys dead. As it is, she squirms and cries, is rescued by Dilip, and clings to him proclaiming her love. Gag.
Take for instance the last scene, where she's tied to a stake on fire while Dilip & Premnath are dueling their final battle. Nadira in the FIRST half would have busted out of those ropes Hulk style, grabbed a gun, and shot both those guys dead. As it is, she squirms and cries, is rescued by Dilip, and clings to him proclaiming her love. Gag.
Yeah I really do like Premnath, have seen him in a few things now and been impressed. His character arc in Barsaat is in a dark place right now, but I'm thinking they're going to swing him around and make him a "loyal guy" at the end. (Still have about 40 mins to go on that one.) I haven't seen Rajendranath in anything yet so I'll have to get back to you on that one.
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