short analysis + some observations on Bare Trees In The Mist (2021)

 

Rajan Kathet’s Bare Trees In The Mist (2021) tells a tale of desperation, poverty and fervent hope. The film begins with daylight and thick fog- as the protagonist Kaali emerges from the fog, there is a sense of expectancy. The first thing that one notices perhaps is the fact that there is no added background music at all, except for the noises of the hills. The dialogues are almost staccato-like, and lie in stark contrast with the sounds of the birds and the wind, creating a poetic effect, set against the backdrop of nature’s rhythmic sounds. This even goes to serve as its own musical score.
As Kaali is informed of the arrival of the neighbour’s husband and that he comes bearing gifts for herself and her son, the atmosphere transforms into one of gloom. The skies darken and appear swollen with impending rain, almost on the verge of a breakdown. There is a strong feeling of urgency and a fear of running out of time, that is infused throughout the film. The manner of the film’s frame is such that it demand’s the viewer’s full attention and focus on every aspect of the shots.

Despite her initial fear of hoping, Kaali sees the pain and longing in her son’s words and perhaps in her own heart, and sets out to walk to the neighbour’s house. The train whistles once on her way there, and the scene grows even darker, both factors contributing to a very eerie aura and a suspicion of impending doom. Once there, Kathet plays with symmetry, and shots of lone trees to create an ambience of a once-tranquil scene that now reflects desertion and desperate anticipation.
Kaali’s painful lack of knowledge of her husband’s whereabouts is made clear by the neighbour’s cruel conversation. Shots of Kaali fidgeting nervously reveal her inner urge to leave, but stronger urge to stay. Kaali waits an agonizingly long time and the viewer waits with her, as she finds herself unable to ask for the gift, but unable to leave without it. Meanwhile, the polarity between the neighbour’s colourful clothes and the soft earthy tones of Kaali’s own presents itself as a symbol of the variance in wealth, among the two households.

As Kaali waits, the neighbour’s child drums his feet on the wall, the husband pounds sugarcane and his wife crushes spiced paste, creating a musical tempo that builds the tension in the room with its steady beats, accompanying Kaali’s own yearning, painstaking suspense. As Kaali waits, her child sits in her house waiting for her to come back too. His hope is reflected immensely, in the soft yellow lighting of their house, set against the pitch black of the forest outside, as he sits awaiting his mother’s return.
Slowly, signifying his shrinking hope, the fire dies down and the candle burns out, leaving the scene to tragically fade to black. In the last shots, the frame changes aspect ratio, enveloping the whole screen, as their despair overwhelms both mother and son, until finally the entire screen reflects this darkness.