The Song of Scorpions

Filmed in the undulating sands of the Thar desert of Rajasthan, The Song of Scorpions offers an amazing cinematographic experience. The vast sand dunes and the stars-lit nights with the shadows hovering in a glow of a campfire. They create the unforgettable aesthetics in the movie.

It is a story of Nooran and her struggle to defend and uphold her dignity. The story could have easily promulgated elements of melodrama but Anup Singh's uncompromising and unembellished direction style keeps the movie lucid and a slow burn. The understated way of story telling keeps audience engaged and rather notice the other elements such as fantastic performances by international actors and dazzling work of Pietro Zuercher and Carlotta Holy-Steinemann. There are few gaps though in story such as somewhat incomplete characterizations of Waheeda Rehman and Proteginist Nooran's characters. But let me tell you the music that is woven through out the film will steal your heart and what a treat it is! It totally justifies the title of the movie. A Rajasthani singing; no ensemble, no instruments, a Capella.

I watched Golshifteh Farahani in Girls of the Sun few years ago and was impressed by her vehement performance. She is an Iranian actress who has done many Hollywood films as well as French theater. She pairs with Irfan Khan, a very high caliber fine actor and both deliver commanding performances. Kudos to Farahani esp for embracing a completely new language - Rajasthani and recording all the dialogues in her own voice without a dubbing artist. Waheedaji is an accomplished actress and her short brief appearance leaves a long lasting impression. The entire cast delivers convincing performances.

A great film.

The Song Of Scorpion (2023) : Movie Review -

Irrfan Khan's final release, "The Songs Of Scorpion," is a Swiss-French-Singaporean Rajasthani drama, written and directed by Anup Singh. We have come through the ages of Ingemar Bergman and Satyajit Ray, who redefined artistic and realistic cinema in their times. If you are of the same opinion as me that we are missing that kind of cinema nowadays, then The Songs of Scorpion might come as a nice break for you. This artistic film works like a slow poison that won't kill you but will definitely kill the dead cinema lover in you since we are all living in the era of mindless commercial entertainers (that's why it's called "Dead"). It's a bit complicated and lengthy, but it's up to you to judge whether it's worth it or not. As I believe, you'll have your own theories and explanations for this mic-drop burn. I would have preferred a better ending with instant effects, but otherwise, there are no complaints. The Song Of Scorpion has enough poison to sting you.

The film is set in a mythological period when Scorpion's sting could kill a man within 24 hours in the desert of Jaisalmer. Nooran (Golshifteh Farahani), a tribal woman, is taking lessons from her grandmother, Zubaida (Waheeda Rehman), to become a scorpion singer like her, who can cure people stung by scorpions. After a tragic event and the disappearance of her grandmother, the happy-go-lucky Nooran is lost. She moves out with Aadam (Irrfan Khan) to start a new life. However, the hidden past comes back to haunt her and reveals many shocking facts that lead her down a new path of revenge. What's in that past and how Nooran fixes her revenge and redemption are all that form the crux of the story.

Written by Anup Singh, The Song Of Scorpion is an intense affair with a narrow appeal. The audience for this kind of intellectual and realistic film is pretty small. But the film is a bit more complex for that audience too. Also, the language is a bit intricate to understand without the subtitles. One of the most important scenes isn't audible enough. That's irresponsible. Talking of the positives, it's a well-written script with an intensive screenplay that doesn't bore you despite leisurely storytelling. You can enjoy the pauses and slow walks as the cinematographer gives enough attention to the location and takes your eyes at work. The folklore and mythological references will take you into a culturally rich and significant zone that you hardly see in today's social media era.

The legendary Irrfan Khan sir is pure magic. The first human frame in the film has Irrfan sir's close-up shot, and you are like, "That's it. I have seen everything now". That seemed like an additional frame, but the impact is harder since the legendary artist is no longer with us. The nostalgia reaches its peak there. Watch him in those long cuts, close-ups, widened frames, and that accent; everything is so perfect about him. This film is more about Golshifteh Farahani than Irrfan Sir. The sooner you digest this fact, the better for you. I am not sure what's more difficult. Her name is Golshifteh, or her character. I guess it's the character. I haven't seen any actress playing such a village woman with so much accuracy since Radhika Apte in "Parched" (2016). What a remarkable performance Farahani has delivered, and that too in front of Irrfan Khan Sir. A big salute to her. The legendary Waheeda Rehman disappears sooner than expected but sells enough goods before closing the shop. The latest sensation, Shashank Arora, is fine yet again, and that's no surprise. He gets into the skin of the character, and it's not the first time I'm saying this. The supporting cast has also done well.

The Song Of Scorpion is about setting the right environment from the first frame itself. Who would be interested in seeing panoramas of the desert and listening to folk songs in 2023? But what if I tell you that you'll like both things in this film without even recognising that you are in their world for two hours? I generally get bored of slow films if they don't spill enough material, and also because I watch so many movies on mobile, where fast forwarding is more useful. I didn't have the FF key in the cinema hall, but I didn't need any. The film has a certain pace and certain momentum that keep you interested for two hours with its spellbound world of songs, deserts, scorpions, and humanly believable myths. The cinematography is top-notch, as is the background score. Watch out for those extreme close-up shots when Irrfan and Golshifteh share the one and only intimate scene in the film. Anup Singh is neither Satyajit Ray nor Bergman, but he borrowed enough from their cinema and their styles to set up a whole new style of his own. If it hadn't been for a stretched climax, The Song Of Scorpion would have been a classic for me. But for now, it's a brave attempt at discovering old, well-known new-wave cinema for modern moviegoers.

RATING - 6/10*

I think it is one of the last movies of Irfan Khan if not the last. His acting as always has been par excellence. The story itself is all heart-touching and confusing at time. If you are not a Rajhistani then don't watch it without the sub-titles or you'll get lost.

The love the passion the quest and above all the emotions portrayed are beyond words. It is well directed and very well acted by all the actors.

The life of rural desert people is indeed very hard yet very simple. People living in the city will be astonished by the simple ways and day-to-day life portrayed in this movie. Surely we live in a world which has so many places yet to be explored.

I feel like I might appreciate this film more on subsequent watches but for now, I think I'll go with the 7 stars rating. This isn't a bad film persay, but my viewing experience was a bit convoluted. To sum it up, make sure there are subtitles because you will miss out on important bits (one being a huge plot point which is essentially what drives the third act forward) and make sure to keep the brightness on max and no lights are lit because there are many, many night shots which are barely visible even if a little light is present.

The story of Nooran finding her lost song could've been quite a character-study but it transcends to something much more niche and something which may or may not connect with you. It almost connected with me until it didn't. I can't really explain what went wrong because it feels too convoluted and self-indulgent and I'll just leave that to you to decide. I was very confused as to where the third act goes as the payoff that was setup at the end of first act doesn't really seem like one. The end to this story (judging it for what it is and not for what I was expecting it to be) should feel very powerful and moving rather, it feels unearned and somewhat on the ambiguous side with much left for the viewer to decode. I love ambiguity, I really do but a filmmaker should atleast be competent enough to understand what a viewer might and might not understand. I feel like a dumbass who didn't understand the end but what I'm trying to say is, the ending could've felt a bit more earned and satisfying than it actually is.

The film very heavily utilizes the marwadi accent with it's characters and while Irrfan quite smoothly slides into his character, Golshifteh Farahani's dialect was more of that of an actor trying their best. This doesn't mean that Golshifteh's performance is awful, on the contrary, I connected with her the most since this is her story and Director Anup Singh does manage that quite firmly. The performances are all excellent. Irrfan as always is great, Golshifteh as the lead is quite the empathatic presence and you develop a significant amount of care for her throughout the film but, it was Waheeda Rehman who in particular stood out to me. She plays the role of Nooran's mother and although her presence is brief, she never feels out of place and works quite well in service for the story.

The songs and cinematography are also great. The folk marwadi songs were a somber tune for the ears and the cinematography is just beautiful. This film is absolutely ravishing to look at. DOP Pietro Zuercher takes Anup's vision a step ahead. It's almost on the same level as Greig Fraser marinated the dark and broody tones of Gotham with hints of shades of black in The Batman, The Song Of Scorpions follows the same visuals but the setup now moves to a desert. Costume design by Divya and Nidhi Gambhir, art direction by Mayur Mulam and Production design by Rajesh Yadav are authentic and near to perfection.

Good movie to watch for especially the locations of rajasthan and also great acting from irrfan the movie is good.