2016 Sep 2
by Azraa Killru
Sri Lankan Cinema blossomed since 1947 and have won plenty of Awards and International Accolades. Despite being a relatively small industry, the masterpieces created are plentiful. Hang on – That’s not what this is all about. Yes, some of the movies have appealed to the critics, the art lovers and of course a handful of our locals, who would enjoy nothing better than watching a Sinhala movie even if they were given numerous other choices. But otherwise, the impression the Sri Lankan Cinema has left on us is pretty bleak. Box Office Hits are hard to come by.
Did the industry take a delirious vow when the first movie was shot to clutch on to Indian patterns? Now the patterns are not the only thing that’s devotedly followed. Remakes appear to be the lifeline of our movie industry to the point that we can’t defend it but have to accept defeat pathetically.
The only type of movies that are shot here worthy of watching are the historical ones. The simple reason is the appeal to its target audience. School children, as a part of the visual knowledge acquisition of their history lessons are usually taken for these movies, portraying the legacy of our Kings. No harm there and they are pretty nice to watch compared to the terrible other flicks that are screened.
Whether we like it or not, movies are a source of entertainment and only a few people can look at it in artistic or knowledge awakening terms. Whether a movie can attract citizens boil down to the popularity of the stars acting in it, the quality of the direction and how engaging the story line is. There is no doubt that popularity wise it’s a dead market. Every paduru party TV show to the most prestigious events held in the country display the same faces over and over again not forgetting the fact that these faces are ageing. Yet the repetition of the same stars in every movie made tend to frustrate the audience. Bluntly revealing the truth, most of them can’t act to earn their bread and butter therefore a few side businesses, involvement in *olitics, modeling and of course endorsements in TV Commercials tend to cover their fluctuating movie earnings. When it’s the question about their popularity, unlike the Hollywood, Bollywood or any other wood stars, our actors and actresses rarely make it to a poster (unless it’s on their “olitical agenda) or even on something as simple as the pocket calendars. Clearly the message said is: We couldn’t care less for our stars!
It would be unfair to say there is no talent or potential because it certainly exists. Some of the music videos are so aesthetic and of high quality. So why is the same concept not applied to movies? Is it resource or budget constraint? Seems to be not. It’s mostly the lack of originality and the formation of a strong team. Some movies with a desperate attempt to inject glamour were made with young new faces. These came with a good music album and of course better dress designers (with a bye bye to the old rethai hattai and loincloths dress styles favoured in many of our Lankan movies). With mediocre successes, these movies also left the radar and we were once again subjected to the same old faces making the same old ridiculous movies, which are either tragic comedies or a film on a kid loving his pet.
Remakes are the worst in the basket of these ridiculous films because the viewers had already watched the original Indian version. They can only sit back, aghast and watch the unraveling of a wonderful movie plot acted in a lame manner, with shoddy scenes, budget props,boring dialogues with a lot of sighs and half-heartedly attempted facial reactions by the actors. Not even the best popcorn served in town can justify the few hours of undergoing this torture.
Statistically, the number of movie goers have dropped from 74.4 million in 1979 to 51 million 1892 when the Television took the country by storm. By 2010 it had dropped to 5.5 million. People prefer to watch movies at home, online, in their own space, at their own pace. If you want to drag these citizens out on to the theatres, the movies have to be spellbinding. Or at least something they would prefer to spend a few bucks for to spend time with friends or family.
Mediocre won’t do anymore. Copying plots and remakes can’t give life to a declining industry. Actors like drop outs from film school, slow moving scenes and monotony has to be completely eliminated if the movie industry wants to engage the population in their films. Patriotism or Lankan blood is not enough to demand loyalty for local films. When it comes to entertainment, people are ruthless and demanding. Nothing less than the best can be expected to survive.
A hype is created before the launch of a Hollywood or Bollywood movie, a frenzy that keeps the fans on tenterhooks until the movie is released. They sigh in relief only when the first day first show tickets are in their hands. Maybe our flimsy film industry don’t have the power to drive fans into depression just because they couldn’t get the tickets, but it doesn’t even have the ability to bring in a crowd to keep the movies afloat. Things have to change and changes should come fast. Nothing less than a complete makeover can save what’s already dying. There is a diverse market here, people with various tastes, peculiar interests and an unsatisfied craving for novelty. Repaint the whole industry, and satisfy the viewers. It can do more than stop the laughter erupting at cinemas when a local movie trailer is played before a Hollywood film.
