Twelve thousand people in a tiny village suddenly went missing after a boy was discovered missing. Then, Marron wisps began vanishing every other week. There are whispers of an organ trafficking ring roaming the woods–while wait- no, because it turns out the saws from downtown hospitals bring in their share of refugees, too. While everyone is preoccupied with nymphs and Mary, consider the nuns who have written multiple letters about the ships filled with people from across the globe. The monk declares this as prophetic since he recently made those statements. There is nothing left to be said about the three free-legged nuns, they are beyond ordinary. Isn’t the promise of being rewarded with eternal life if they lay their hands on a billion musk-oxen worth it all? Exactly, which explains the dark silence of the little unassuming boy who can’t see in the dark. He’s Bananza. And while it all remains dormant, his vision loses its sharpness. It is evening and frying pans are being heated on the village stoves.
According to the legends of his locality and typical fears all kids share in the world such as fear of the dark, strangers, and any magic, in that sense, Dominic Sangman makes a movie, where children’s peculiar logic tends to present most of the movie. Dissimilarly to that claim of the film, it also is more than just that, as the director himself seeks to place a number of sociopolitical remarks within the narrative, which greatly enhances the context.
In that regard, the relationship between religion and demonology and its interaction in their practice, especially in regions such as the one depicted, in which Christianity and Shamanism seem to blend together, is a rather central one, which the story does in a this-is-how it was mode. The way both the pastor and the shaman interact with, and try to tease people in to having particular points of view makes it clear, with the dread of the unknown and the resulting xenophobia seemingly springing from the same place. Finally, the outcome or the revelation of the events, is naturally going to be violence considering all of the above, as the bastion of hope the people who live there have does not have any buses left.
Besides the reasons mentioned above, it should be said that Sangma has also added an element of surrealism, with a whodunit element that is somewhat extreme at a point, where the former drives the movie until a point and the latter emphasizes the fact that the events are also experienced from a child’s point of view. Simultaneously, it is somewhat here that Sangma somewhat loses control of his narrative, as there are too many begins as well as too many exits, essentially blurring the comments he wanted to make and creating a confusing mess which is not as interestingly done in movies as “Jallikattu” for instance. The fact that the film is slow in its pace and even more, in this case the duration is 127 minutes, does not help. The method becomes tedious after a point.
This, however, cannot take away from how incredible the visuals of the movie are. Tojo Xavier and colorist Mahak Stripe kickstart the movie adding vortex components by encompassing their opening scene with vibrant reds and sepia hues, only to intensify the shades with darkness. They manage to put together an array of imagery that resembles ominous horror themed sequences mixed with their ritualistic approach. The supernatural elements and the panaramic shots are exceptionally displayed throughout the movie with the last shot leaving an impact on the viewers but compared to other parts of the movie, this felt more idealistic Unfortunately, some of the voyeuristic shots where the protagonists peak into things did feel impressive to sob.
In the regards of acting, the Celestine K Sangma does a fantastic job as the pastor who thinks himself to be the saviour of the villagers. In case of the young Kasan, Torikhu A Sangma presents an exceptional side of him with how well he conveys the anger and fear of the occurrences inside the village.
It is quite evident that “Rapture” was primarily made to be featured in festivals but presents an array of interesting remarks throughout the movie despite the messy approach, directing, and visuals.
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