Flickering Myth

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TIFF Movie Review – Midnight’s Children (2012)

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Midnight’s Children, 2012. 

Directed by Deepa Mehta. 

Starring Satya Bhabha, Shahana Goswami, Rajat Kapoor, Shabana Azmi, Ronit Roy. Siddharth, Seema Biswas, Shriya Saran and Kulbhushan Kharbanda.


SYNOPSIS:

A child born at the exact moment India gains its independence from Britain finds his life becoming as fractured as his homeland.  
Often there is a complaint that scenes depicting the rituals of human life are lacking in originality.  In this area Deepa Mehta has outdone herself when depicting the courtship of the maternal grandparents of the narrator; it involves a doctor, a sheet, a peephole, and various female body parts. The story carries on revealing that the narrator’s mother had lost the love of her life and married a substitute husband.  Unknown to the couple is that their baby has been switched in act of patriotism by a hospital nurse resulting in the narrator forsaking his poor family for a wealthy one.

When the protagonist lets out almighty sneeze he becomes endowed with a telekinetic ability to communicate with those who born at the same as him and as a result of display array of special gifts such as the ability to fly; this group of misfits are christened ‘Midnight’s Children’.  On the bigger political canvas India erupts in conflict giving birth to Pakistan which in turn gives way to the formation of Bangladesh. With all of the personal and external upheaval, the quest for an identity comes to ahead for the main character when the opportunity for fatherhood presents itself.

The fairy tale aspect is enhanced by the satirical wit of the narrator who is voiced appropriately by the author of the book and screenplay, Salman Rushdie.  The cinematic imagery is gorgeous and the production design is impeccable when it comes to creating authentic feeling environments.  And as mentioned before, there are moments where the routines of everyday life are viewed with a fresh set of eyes.  Mehta’s command of the cinematic craft and Rushdie’s mastery of wit are on full display and hard not to ignore and appreciate.                                    
                  

Though the scope and ambition of the story is impressive it never quite gels together.  Midnight’s Children are used more for prominent plot points rather than being explored; it is as if The Sixth Sense [1999] had been dropped in the middle of a historical and social satire.  Storylines are left rather untidy though perhaps this was intention so to better emulate life itself.  As for developing personal connections with the various characters it remains an elusive affair.  The end result is a visual feast that is stunning to look at but not emotionally fulfilling.

Flickering Myth Rating: Film ★ ★ ★ / Movie ★ ★

Trevor Hogg

Originally published September 8, 2012. Updated April 14, 2018.

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