Reasons To Watch “The Least Of These: The Graham Staines Story”
March 29, 2019 is much-awaited Friday for the film “The Least Of These: The Graham Staines Story” releasing across India. However, I had the privilege to attend the guest premiere show of the film on March 22 in New Delhi. And the first thing that I wanted to do after watching the film was to write a review. So, let’s begin.
Why should you watch this film?
This film is one of a kind for multiple reasons. Firstly, you see two mainstream popular actors from two varied industries complementing each other, i.e., Stephen Baldwin and Sharman Joshi. Both the actors are impeccable in their roles in this tragic story. Moreover, an excellent subtly underplayed performance by both the actor echoes throughout the film, without distracting the audience.
Who should watch this film?
The film anticipates reaching out to less than 3% of the Christian population of India. However, the film cuts across all religious boundaries and focuses purely on humanistic value and ethical framework for life. It is a must watch for any Indian and global citizen who is self-reflective, compassionate, believing in the better for the society as a whole. Indian students must definitely give it a try. And most importantly, cinema students and cinema historians might be enthralled watching the film purely from the point of view of the craft of making a film with a streamlined plot and simple characterization.
Now let’s examine a few departments of the film –
Background Score and Music: The overall music of the film helps the subject sail through smoothly, especially when the film is dealing with the true story of the brutal killing of the Australian missionary working with people suffering from leprosy in the state of Orissa in 1999.
Cinematography and Editing: In these two departments, conventional cinematic editing fastens the film more than enough to keep it interesting to the end. However, in some portions, the cinematography excels all the other departments and the look is soothingly pleasant and pleasurable to watch, in the case when the subject of the film demands the reverse.
Production design and Drama: The production design is one thing that separates any film from the other. In this one, some portions actually make you travel through the experiences of those times. The drama is reliable with a pinch of sporadic laughter, and comic relief parallel to the gruesome killing of the missionary along with his two kids in the van while they were asleep.
Supporting Actors, Scripts and Screenplay: With a moderate screenplay, the film has a self-sufficiently powerful script. Albeit, the over-arching message of the film and screenplay is beautiful and gripping. Supporting actors like Prakash Belawadi playing the editor is believable and does justice to his role. Shari Rigby in the role of Staines’s wife is honest. The performance of the two actors enhances the pleasure of watching a mainstream cinema. At the same time, Sharman Joshi as an investigative journalist is authentic to the demand of the role. Aditi Chengappa who plays Sharman’s wife is beautifully flawless in her appearance of a semi-urban character.
What does this film preach?
Good cinema doesn’t preach and neither does this film. The film doesn’t preach anything other than human values of compassion to overcome hate. The film is a bold attempt by the makers in the times when religious sentiment among masses across the globe is at an all-time high compared to the last few decades. Hence, in today’s time for a story like this could not have better to reinstate hope, faith and peace among the audiences.
Feel free to comment on this post after watching the film this coming Friday, 29th March. To me the tickets looks available on WWW.BOOKMYSHOW.COM.
