BOATMAN

Flowing from the hair of Shiva, the Ganges is the sacred river of the Hindu, and perhaps nowhere is the river more holy than at Benares, where it is very much the river of life and of the dead. Not only Indians, but pilgrims the world over come to immerse themselves in the Ganges, and every day hundreds of bodies are cremated by its banks or sunk into its depths. Gianfranco Rosi, the young film aritist, sketches an elegantly observed, riparian portrait of people, ceremonies, and businesses, both licit and illicit. The film, composed of small gestures and serendipitous encounters, is photographed in a contemplative black and white that constantly tempts the viewer's eye to give images color; it is an invitation that is both wise and exciting. BOATMAN is not a traditional documentary. The omnipresent narrator is absent (there is god aplenty in this film), but there is a special figure, Gopal the talkative boatman, who gives this very human film a loose coherence. BOATMAN is a most impressive debut feature, one that will linger and enrich our memory.-Sundance Film Festival. In Hindi with English subtitles.