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‘Dahasak Sithuvili’ and the ‘subjective’ camera



DAHASAK SITHUVILI: Henry Jayasena and Joe Abeywickrema.

CINEMA: The movie camera is an objective instrument that photographs anything placed before it by the director who determines the position of the camera in relation to the subject he is photographing. A shot thus taken can be photographed from a virtual infinitude of camera positions to record an infinity of visual effects.

The director, however, selects the most appropriate camera position to convey the emotional reaction he hopes to create in the audience. Thus the camera position, the size of the image and the movement of the camera are actually the director’s concept of the emotional reactions he intends creating in the audience.

The objectivity of the camera is merely a mechanism for conveying the director’s concept, but the camera can be utilised not only objectively to photograph external details of an objective world but also ‘subjectively’ to record the emotions and the reactions of a central character.

The ‘subjective’ camera is one that records from a personal point of view. Here the audience participates in the action as a personal experience. It puts the observer within the scene in place of a character in the scene. With a ‘subjective’ camera the audience is no longer a spectator to the action but an integral part of it.

The players within the scene are aware of the presence of the camera and react to it as they would to another character. A classic example is the roller coaster-ride in Cinerama. Personal reactions result especially because the viewer experiences the event as if it was actually happening to him.

The first Sinhala film to use the ‘subjective’ camera was G. D. L. Perera’s ‘Dahasak Sithuvili’. It tells a story of a middle-aged chief clerk in a Government Department captivated by the grace and charm of a newly appointed stenographer.

She is a pretty young girl from the village who soon adapts herself to the fast and busy city life. With the passage of time her entire mannerism takes a complete metamorphosis and in this sudden transformation she has the unhesitating support of Sagara who is a good friend of Lalith.

In the course of time Lalith is attracted towards Nilanthi but finds it difficult to express his feelings towards her. He begins to suspect that she has fallen a victim to Sagara’s good looks.

That is just about the story that is in ‘Dahasak Sithuvili’. G. D. L. Perera’s imaginative use of the ‘subjective’ camera explores Lalith’s emotions and his suspicion of Sagara his best and trusted friend, very logically and sensitively to every nuance of Lalith’s disturbed state of mind.

The smoothness of Nihalsingha’s photography was hauntingly beautiful, functional, picturesque and very penetrating. Each shot is impeccably placed and perfectly photographed.


DAHASAK SITHUVILI: Henry Jayasena and Helen Wijesinghe as Nilanthi.

His penetrating camera work has no long shots, at least no long shots without a huge face as the script dictated. In ‘Dahasak Sithuvili’ the camera seemed everywhere, entering and externalising the consciousness of the three central characters and building up the atmosphere to the inevitable climax.

Accordingly to GDL’s concept the camera leaps incessantly from place to place exploring the ideal vantage position to reveal the drama that unfolds with closely observed details by the use of the ‘Kilfit’ lens used for the first time in Sri Lanka.

Nihalsingha’s camera work revealed his artistic growth and the complete grasp of the essentials of his art. ‘Dahasak Sithuvili’ was his first feature film that he photographed along with Dr. Siri Gunasinghe’s ‘Sath Samudura’ and came in the wake of his award winning short film ‘Bakthi’ which won the award for best short film at the Cardif Film Festival.

For G. D. L. Perera ‘Dahasak Sithuvili’ was a milestone in his film career following his praiseworthy maiden effort ‘Saama’. ‘Dahasak Sithuvili’ went on to win the best director’s award for GDL at the Sarasavi Film Festival, Nizar for its dynamic editing and a special award for best film whilst the best film award went to Lester Peries’ ‘Golu Hadwatha’.

Henry Jayasena’s brilliant performance as Lalith amidst a thousand thoughts will rank as one of the best in a Sinhala film. ‘Dahasak Sithuvili’ also had memorable performances by Joe Abeywickrema, Denawaka Hamine as Lalith’s mother frustrated at her son’s disinterest in finding a partner for his sister played very convincingly by Malini Fonseka in only her second film after ‘Punchi Baba’.

All the flashbacks were in sepiatone, another first for a Sinhala film and the technique of editing on movement in the beach sequence that consisted a hail of shots in revealing close-ups creating the mood and atmosphere of shimmering beauty as seen through the eyes of Lalith, the subjective camera at its best.

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