“Three friends have decided to booze on the day of the Indian Independence. But they soon discover that it is a dry day as usual. Our three renegades decide to fetch spirit from the black market as it is quite natural in this part of the world. Calcutta, once a capital of the East India Company from Britain and is preferably coined as the cultural capital of India, has become an urban dilemma in terms of life, sensibility and economy in global terms. Our three protagonists look for booze especially in a closed down industrial belt where abandoned factories in ruins give the names to the local bus stops.”
“Mocchob” review is part of the Submit Your Film Initiative
Societal problems become reflected in three friends' journey to find alcohol during the holidays. Their observations range from the highly philosophical/political to playful banter. Consequently, the result is an experience which will be either endearing or isolating depending on the audience.
This largely boils down to familiarity with the themes explored and their focus on issues within its own culture. As a result, those removed or unfamiliar are more likely to be bored by the experience, with the comedy falling flat due to the larger focus on introspective reflections from its subjects. The fact that the production does not really guide the audience into the themes it tries to explore does not help with accessibility. Essentially, audiences outside of the loop and with similar sentiments are likely to be lost entirely.
Any disconnect will not be helped in the technical approach that not only lacks flair, but can become grating with soundtrack and inexperienced cinematography. The film does not look bad, but the flow can be awkward in the face of such an eccentric score cutting back to silence in moments of reflection. The performances expresses the same inconsistency, with the actors able to capture a good sense of comradery to push the narrative, but show inexperience as they fail to come across as charismatic or engaging outside of their friendships.
The observations within “Mocchob” are not without merit or profundity and the film does benefit from moments of humor through a contemplative script. However, as a cinematic experience, it is a pretty hollow experience, and the opinions of its subjects are most likely to isolate due to unfamiliarly or disinterest.
