An out of character choice for Virgin Media Shorts?
”Saloon” is a 2:20 minute poetic panorama of several moments in one of India’s many unique saloons.
I found the film to be a pleasantly unusual short list choice for such a commercially driven short film competition like Virgin media shorts. Usually “short short films” linger on the themes and techniques that accommodate the notion
”You have 2 minutes to say something that should stick with an audience, the way a longer film would”.
This usually results in the films relying on hooks, gimmicks and plot twists to produce a memorable impact within the highly limited duration.
“Saloon” on the other hand takes its time and chooses to use its short duration to capture brief environmental moments, rather than a sequence of events leading the audience from A to B. The filmmaker uses short film the way a poet uses short literature. Consisting of short shots of different characters getting haircuts, head massages and not forgetting staring in the mirror giving themselves their own final touches. It almost resembles how Humphrey Jennings used the everyday lives of people during WW2 and edited them together creating a natural rhythm, almost blending the people into their environment. That is exactly the effect “Saloon” produces, the men retreating almost socially in the saloon slowly merge into their surroundings.
Are we a product of our environment? Or is our environment a product of us?
To effectively expose an environment and culture in such a short duration, not only shows the filmmaker has a great understanding of cinema, but validates the power of the medium as an art form (with or without gimmickry).
“Saloon” is a great example of how cinema can so effectively capture the poetic value of everyday life.
