Mandela (2021)

April 18, 2021 8:18 PM

A local barber's fate in a small Indian village turns overnight when he becomes the single deciding vote in the village elections. Trailer. Sneak Peek. (Turn on captions) On Netflix now.
posted by cendawanita (5 comments total)

I had this on my watchlist but i only just watched this last night. Knowing nothing of the production, it was delightful, especially if you're in the mood for some witty but fairly gentle political satire. It's really a modern parable of Modi's India, and while I personally didn't catch all the references, I imagine the text is loaded with it. I screamed, I laughed, I legitimately bawled. And I guess I was feeling tender last night, because I think it really got to me when the movie wasn't just using Nelson Mandela's name as a simple hook, but really calling back to early post-independence Afro-Asian coalitions.

Anyway, I was compelled to make a post because this is *seriously* a must-watch.
posted by cendawanita at 8:22 PM on April 18, 2021 [1 favorite]

I'm sorry to butt in - I have not seen this movie, but as I was scrolling FanFare I thought this said "A local barber's fart in a small Indian village" and eagerly read the rest preparing for some true slapstick.

Now that I read the description it looks really good!
posted by Emmy Rae at 6:16 AM on April 19, 2021 [1 favorite]

Lol it's not slapstick, but it IS comedic. You should watch it!
posted by cendawanita at 9:23 AM on April 19, 2021 [1 favorite]

To be sure, most of what people think of as slapstick is farce. Three Stooges: farce; slipping on a banana peel: slapstick. Essentially, if there's any kind of setup and punchline at all, it's not slapstick. /pedant!
posted by rhizome at 5:18 PM on April 19, 2021 [1 favorite]

So if he farts, and a flock of chickens all fall off their roost, it's slapstick, but if his coworkers make fart jokes at his expense, it's farce?

Gotta know my terms!
posted by Emmy Rae at 6:45 PM on April 19, 2021