Agantuk

This remarkable film is in many ways a self portrait of Satyajit Ray because he was none other than an anthropologist and philosopher in the true sense of playful, childlike wonder. This is the the story of how how a life of curiousity and wonder have to survive in this cruel and foolish world which judges everything in materialistic terms. The philosopher is always and everywhere a stranger,though full of joy, simplicity and wonder at Being which is fervently demonstrated in the 'cosmic magician' sequence. Only those with the child in them alive will understand!

What a beautiful film, full of subtleties and ironies. It requires one to contemplate the nature of identity and what one really wants in life. How well do we know our relatives; and, more importantly, how well do we know ourselves? The film beautifully portrays a wide range of emotions with sensitivity as well as hummer. It also includes a mesmerizing indigenous dance performance which contrasts the middle-class world of the protagonists, awakening them to another world. The "stranger" or the long-lost uncle is a marvel, evoking laughter and tears. All in all, delightful throughout. For some reason foreign cinema continues to go unrecognized, while American studios continue to invest inaction movies that only insult intelligence to an already overly ridiculed nation. Watch it you will enjoy it immensely.

A well-off family is paid an unexpected, and rather unwanted, visit by a man claiming to be the woman's long-lost uncle. The initial suspicion with which they greet the man slowly dissolves as he regales them with stories of his travels, tales that are at odds with their conventional middle-class perspective on the world.

This film is notable for being Satyajit Ray's final project. He may be best known for the s-called "Apu Trilogy" much earlier in his career. But, to be honest, I enjoyed "Stranger" far more. It was more polished, had a more intelligent script and dialogue. It is something of a masterful movie.

As I often say in reviews, I am not typically a fan of Indian / Bengali films. I rarely see one -- even those considered the best -- that I enjoy. But I would wholeheartedly endorse "The Stranger".

One of the greatest films I have ever seen, it is directly comparable with his second movie (pather Panchali) as his finest till date. The movie is all about family relationships and the idea of money. He knows how to direct the regular 'life', pitched in reality and his movies give enough reason for us to understand his brilliance. Utpal Duttas performance is mesmerizing and together , with Ray's sublime direction and Utpal's sensitive,sensational acting this movie is a masterpiece for 'teachers' and 'students'. Just Brilliant. Stop watching mindless movies of Spielberg and direct your valuable time towards Ray, Kurosawa, Chang wook park, Truffaut, Eisenstein, Ritwik Ghatak, Pudovkin, Kieslowski, Almadovar, Antonino, Godard, Wong kar Wai, Fellini, Bertolucci, Makmalbaf, Kiarostami, Bergman, Wajda, Jeunet, Szabo etc

Enchanting film that carefully builds on its music and bakground and mysticism. The characters all are "agantuk" (outsiders) in their own way, and none so much as the man who prides himself on being most conventional until his world is turned upside down. On the surface, this is a marvelous essay on trust and identity and spirituality. Dig further, it is this and much more.