Contrasts between new and old films.
The film field was born all a sudden and have developed from its toddler stage into a grown up genre within very few years of birth. The film history of Kerala wouldn't go farther than the 1930's from the first film Vigathakumaran to the latest hits of 2012. Thinking about the world cinema it might hook our attention to the fact that when the rest of the world were to witness the era of silent films the only two silent films made in Malayalam was Vigathakumaran and Marthandavrma and then within 8 years of the release of the first Malayalam film the first sound film Balan have already come into the market.The following years saw many a veterans and titans of the field and the world rose to put their hands together for our metiers of the industry.Comparing with the old and new Malayalam films we see that it have catapulted from the barely developed technology to the high tech age of digitalised and animated films. Films were till an era just means of entertainment and now look at the importance it have gained in advocating the good as well as educating the society. Films have come as close to life and people in picturisation that it is hardly distinguishable between a character in a film and someone we know.
Earlier when films were for entertainment exaggeration was a chief element of acting that allowed us easily to differentiate between the fictional world and our real life. The recent eras have seen such close depictions of life and unparalleled talents who does not act out a character but literally live the character onscreen. A very talented approach to entertainment but now it have critically deviated from the point of making an entertainer to the harsh reality of its co-relation to real life. The new generation movies with its updated techniques have become too real to be differentiated as fiction and hence too influential as to provoke and directly spur the viewer into the depth of every emotion.
Old films enabled us to view the faults of the society and people in a detached angle that we never fail to notice what is meant to be noticed. But now the viewer identifies too closely with the characters and the story that they hardly get a chance to analyse the defects in the society. Plainly, the old cinema were the typical visual representation of a satire or a comedy of the drama genre that meant to point at the faults and foibles of the society in order to make them aware of how one ought to be and ought not to be by exaggerating the characteristic features that needed to be corrected. The plots and spectacles were simple enough for us to notice what should be notices which is the exact opposite of the complex and detailed spectacle the new era films have on screen to offer. We are too busied with what not to be noticed to concentrate on what should be noticed.
On my opinion the new film era even though much realistic and focuses deeply on a message to be delivered have forgotten to draw out the ideal hero or heroine we have to be molded into and replaced the idealistic with a wayward arrogant protagonist who even though being a person of no traces of goodness hail out to be a hero which is a very negative influence to the society. Reminds me of Macbeth who apart from being the protagonist was a villain in disguise.
I gladly encourage any further discussion on the topic and request the members of SPK to forward in more points on the topic . Whatever has been stated above are solely my interpretations where I find many faults with both the new and old sections of Malayalam films and kindly excuse my points if I have offended your views.
