WATCH THE TRAILER HERE
First, the Recap:
A decline in cognizance. There is an unfortunate truth that tends to arrive with the process we call growing old. As our bodies slowly head towards the inevitability of passing, aspects of it begin to show their fading ability, sometimes the mind being one of the most apparent in losing its faculties. Many of us can attest what it means to be around someone whose capacity to think clearly has greatly diminished, and it turns into an exercise in empathy paired with frustration which can also create anger or resentment towards something we, or they, have NO control over. When this stormy moment comes around, do we get a sobering reminder about what could be coming for US next? In a derelict home, a grandfather (Dibyendu Chakraborty) wheezes his way through daily existence, mentally deteriorating even as his ungrateful grandson (Kunal Chakraborty) and doting but harried daughter-in-law (Swadhina Chakraborty) put undue expectations on him. But, will one evening reveal a wake-up call about the fragility of life, the relentlessness of time, and a future glimpse into what’s to come? Or, will it simply be forgotten to apathy and ignorance?
Next, my Mind:
Enigmatic, surrealistic, yet filled with a completely grounded overall venture into the realities of aging, being misunderstood, mentally taxed, and achingly unaware of precisely what reality IS, this thirteen and a half minute short film project from writer/director/producer/editor Seemonta Halder places the context and associated perspective of senility into a dramatic portrait of not just the loss of awareness, but the potent reminder to those younger about what it is to be IN such a state of being both in the present and, more emphatically, potentially in their own future. It is a case study in the human condition that has both a jarring and contemplative air to it as you watch, for it most likely will be the relatability of the story being told that will initially reverberate within you, since as stated above, so many of us CAN relate to knowing someone suffering from the crippling impact of any form of getting older that involves losing one’s sense of alertness, perception, and even wakefulness.
Told in a manner that can be construed as an intermixing of the real and the fantastical, the narrative which follows an elderly grandfather only trying to remain aware enough to live within the confines of a run-down home, a completely apathetic/uncaring grandson, and his daughter-in-law who tends to him but also remains in an overtly harried attitude in providing for them all, what makes the events become so engaging is when the mental daze the grandfather is already residing within becomes more like a nightmarish dream where things go decidedly frantic and volatile between him and his grandson, leading to the revelatory moments the young man then encounters and with equal suddenness must contemplate while his grandfather’s world also turns upside down in a possible twist on actuality that really firms up the film’s messages and purpose quite adeptly and, even to a degree, shockingly upon the possible realizations portrayed in the film’s finale.
I simply relish the deft combination here of filmmaking and storytelling that is both eccentrically, freshly, and definitively unique in its execution and perspective yet remains totally accessible and firmly rooted in the real world thanks TO the foundational intent it aims to have when it comes to the subject of facets in life we often DON’T really like or want to be reminded of. But it IS the very pertinence of what this film is depicting that, frankly, we SHOULD be reminded of, only in that it might actually aid in raising far better awareness and ongoing action in the fight against mental breakdown of this nature, even IF it is so many instances seen as “just an unfortunate part of getting old”. Additionally, I also applaud the way the character of the grandson (in this case meaning his NATURE) is brought into a FAR more respectful and conscious state of mind himself when the circumstances that could have lead to true disaster end up shaking him to the core and the subsequent discipline he receives for this actions.
I say this because these moments of his own awakening carry a lot of necessary weight in the scope of the story and how it relates to his grandfather’s condition that I feel younger people SHOULD be aware of here. Life moves quickly, and to ridicule that which you cannot do from a place of having EXPERIENCED it but then understand it COULD also happen to you is a fantastic means to drive the entire film’s point home with even more persuasive impact. Also, as hinted above, the film’s finale conveys one last series of moments that will cause you to go “WAIT a minute!! What REALLY just happened here??”. It’s one of those simple yet profound moments of filmmaking brilliance I always laud indie cinema and the artists behind it for being so astute in manifesting. I am finding myself hoping here that this mix of detail AND intentional vagueness in describing the film is tolerated, for it’s a piece of work you really need to SEE to fully take in what’s transpiring, and I never wish to venture too close, or much less into, spoiler territory.
Dibyendu Chakraborty is fully believable and heartbreakingly fragile in both emotional and physical stature through his role as the grandfather, a man desperately attempting to hang ONTO his very being, but thanks to his advancing age and mental decline, the daze he seems to find himself battling while under the pressures of living in the conditions he is are taking a toll. Then, in a deeply fantastical manner, he then faces an incident that causes even more confusion and abject helplessness to rise up and soon the fabric of reality itself could be in question. It’s a heavy role to play here, but the actor utilizes his skills to sell us on the character’s plight with total commitment throughout, making us as the viewer very much FEEL his agony in any and all respects. Secondly, there is Swadhina Chakraborty as his daughter-in-law, an obviously compassionate and sensitive soul who’s just under massively overwhelming pressure to provide for the three of them within a home that is crumbling around them.
Even as she holds dear her beloved father-in-law, her evident frustrations occurring periodically with his attitude, much less that of her son who is a completely lackadaisical, UNappreciative child in his actions and lack of response to her, are also causing her weariness to build. But, when the event occurs (we believe, anyway) that pushes things to the edge, her justifiable anger towards her son and unconditional love for her father-in-law in his state of existence all come through, and the actress very energetically portrays this woman’s dilemmas and shifting moods with poise and credibility. Finally, Kunal Chakraborty is the grandson, a total cad of a boy who doesn’t have even an inkling of sincere respect or regard for his mother who constantly implores him to find work to aid in supporting the family or his aging grandfather whom truly loves him but gets none of it returned or acknowledged. However, when the moments come around that will redefine the young man’s opinion about everything, it’s a REAL emergence of acute awareness he’s needed, and his transformation from there is grounded, plausible, and heartfelt, well enacted by the young thespian.
So, in total, and as its title very appropriately implies, “Chimera” smartly, creatively, and with a perfect degree of necessary candidness draws then showcases a particularly thin line between reality vs. hallucination, vision vs. fact, and skepticism vs. certainty all in the framework of mental faltering, the verities of aging, and the accompanying pertinency of its foundational theme that we should ALL take heed of and be willing to consider.
STAR RATING (out of 5):
As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!
