FilmCriticLalitRao
In "Nocturne Indien",Alain Corneau's handling of two senior Indian actors Iftekar and TP Jain is absolutely splendid.Watching them utter some serious lines written by Alain Corneau one gets a feeling that they have been working in serious films through their lives.We get to see 4 different layers of India as this film's primary vision is is based on an Italian novel "Notturno Indiano" written in 1984 by famous Italian writer Antonio Tabucchi.Alain Corneau's film is second vision of "Nocturne Indien" with its archetypal focus on a westerner's look at eastern mysteries.Third vision of this film is presented by India as a country without any embellishment.Lastly,fourth vision is the spectator's vision who is free to draw any conclusion after having read the book or see the film.While discussing his film "Nocturne Indien", famous French director Alain Corneau funnily remarked that like most of his other films,"Nocturne Indien" is also a "Polar".This might appear to be a funny thing to exclaim as those who are acquainted with French culture know that "Polar" refers to a thriller.In reality,Nocturne Indien is not at all a thriller in the real sense of the word.It is likely that many viewers might mistake it for a thriller as the search for a missing man is one of this film's major highlights.French actor Jean Hugues Anglade is a perfect reason to watch this allegorical film which shows a positive image of India.
Film_critic_Lalit_Rao
In "Nocturne Indien",Alain Corneau's handling of two senior Indian actors Iftekar and TP Jain is absolutely splendid.Watching them utter some serious lines written by Alain Corneau one gets a feeling that they have been working in serious films through their lives.We get to see 4 different layers of India as this film's primary vision is is based on an Italian novel "Notturno Indiano" written in 1984 by famous Italian writer Antonio Tabucchi.Alain Corneau's film is second vision of "Nocturne Indien" with its archetypal focus on a westerner's look at eastern mysteries.Third vision of this film is presented by India as a country without any embellishment.Lastly,fourth vision is the spectator's vision who is free to draw any conclusion after having read the book or see the film.While discussing his film "Nocturne Indien", famous French director Alain Corneau funnily remarked that like most of his other films,"Nocturne Indien" is also a "Polar".This might appear to be a funny thing to exclaim as those who are acquainted with French culture know that "Polar" refers to a thriller.In reality,Nocturne Indien is not at all a thriller in the real sense of the word.It is likely that many viewers might mistake it for a thriller as the search for a missing man is one of this film's major highlights.French actor Jean Hugues Anglade is a perfect reason to watch this allegorical film which shows a positive image of India.
dbdumonteil
Possible Spoilers...Launched in France in August 1989 and highly praised by French critics, "Nocturne Indien" is a peak in Alain Corneau's work. On a topic which has been used a lot in cinema or in literature, the disappearance of someone (here a man named Rossignol is searching for one of his friends called Xavier), Alain Corneau made a slow but fascinating movie where he constantly holds the spectator spellbound by increasing his curiosity during all the movie.The directing is of an impeccable quality: clear, rigorous and the director favors one device: the static shots. Due to this, you could expect to see a boring and listless movie. Well, not at all thanks to the richness of the dialogs that make the plot progress and especially thanks to a gorgeous photography that contributes in creating a weird and tightened atmosphere. "Nocturne indien" was (rightly) awarded by an Oscar in France in 1990 for the Best Photography.On the other hand, Alain Corneau isn't only interested by the plot. He's also interested by the country where the action takes place: India. He makes us share his craze for this mesmerizing and mysterious country.The movie also enjoys a performance of a high quality (beginning with Jean-Hugues Anglade, absolutely outstanding) that adds to the brilliant success of this movie. Moreover, you can consider it as an allegory of life. Finally, the end of the movie leaves the spectator in a state of uncertainty: what has become of Xavier? Is he dead? Is he alive? Is Rossignol Xavier? Or maybe did he appear in the movie....No matter, I can only recommend you this great movie that will haunt you for a long time after you saw it.
