★★★★★ 5
One of The Undeniable Masterworks of Cinema
This extraordinary trilogy earns it's place among cinema's greatest masterworks. The saga a young Bengali boy's journey into adulthood, feeling his way through the mysterious world, as he experiences living in rural poverty, trains to be a priest like his father, attends university in Calcutta, the unusual circumstances that he meets the love of his life, and becoming a wandering writer. Filmed in an unpretentious neorealist style, simply told but complex in nature, life, loss, love, family, religion, and one's place in the world are all confronted with uniquely gentle and artistic charm and heart breaking tragedy. These films are so pure, so genuine, and so thoughtful, they reach the heights of humanity in cinema. This towering landmark in Indian cinema was a shot heard around the world when first released in the 1950's , winning awards, establishing Satyajit Ray as a world class director, popularizing the music of Ravi Shankar, and has enchanted film-lovers ever since. This Criterion Collection set is superb. Extra content includes plenty of interviews, documentaries, and essays. The restoration is excellent -nothing short of a miracle, considering the original prints were damaged in a fire (this is documented in one of the many extras). These are must-see entries in world cinema and highly recommended to fans of foreign film (especially Kurosawa and Italian neorealists) and those that appreciate great storytelling.
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Reviewed in the United States on August 11, 2018
