I feel pity for film enthusiasts who paid to see this crap and I wonder what the rest of the Nepal Panorama has in store vis-à-vis the hyped ‘metaphor’. The film looks good in the synopsis but right from the start, the documentary fails to narrate and technical glitches are rampant. The story evolves non-linearly and in one or two scenes, Sanjog himself makes an appearance, which is irritating. There’s no plot and there’s nothing like a storyboard as ‘the broom seeking grandpa’, the poet in exile makes an abrupt entry. The film, however, will make a good footage in the future for filmmakers who might eventually dig out why the legendary Magar poet went into self-exile.
‘Dream…a mess of things’ by another Nepali director Raghuwar Nepal was nothing but a vox-pop of Nepali people sharing their dreams. “I don’t have any message to give,” says this amateur filmmaker and I didn’t have any questions for him either. However, the audience was entertained on hearing the different dreams people have in our part of the world. All and all, the film makes a nice ‘YouTube’ material and doesn’t fit in the Nepal Panorama metaphor. The synopsis didn’t fool me (thank you) and it was funny when Nepal refused to comment when somebody from the audience went curious about his dreams. Maybe make a film with a message!
‘Changa’ (Kite) is how Pooja Gurung makes her debut in filmmaking. Technical glitches have been blamed for shoe-string budget and besides some music video-like effects, the film lives up to its synopsis of a boy’s fascination with kites and how a father compensates his flight. Gurung also lends her voice in the track which complements the narration as the world is shown from a boy’s point of view. Slice of life, it is a job well done for a debut and as Gurung puts it, “Children know so much more than adults."
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