Patriotic touch in cinema
Kamalika Pieris
'Gamani', recently shown in cinemas around the country, is a well
made film which will appeal not only to patriotic Sri Lankans but to any
person who simply wishes to enjoy a good film. It is scripted and
directed by Rear Admiral Sarath Weerasekara, former Navy chief of staff
and Director General of the Civil Defense Force. In the past ten years
or so, we were treated to a spate of films on the Eelam war. These films
contained negative images of the armed forces, degrading the soldiers
and disgracing their wives. Rear Admiral Weerasekara openly criticized
these films .Weerasekara noted that these film makers had never set foot
into a battle zone and had no experience of warfare. They appeared to be
peddling treason.
 He thought a different sort of film was needed, which showed the army
in a positive light. He read three books on film making, and sat down to
script 'Gamani'. The first draft ran for seven and a half hours.
'Gamani' is not however, about the Eelam offensive. It is about a
village and its home guards. The film is based on a true story. In 1999,
the LTTE hacked to death 57 civilians in Gonagala, in their drive of
'ethnic cleansing.' Weerasekera had heard the news when at sea. 'I was
haunted by the fact that the home guards had not been able to protect
the village from the attack. Ironically, a couple of years after the
incident I was put in charge of the Civil Defense Force '
'Gamani' speaks of a border village in Ampara which is constantly
attacked by the terrorists. One night, when the villagers are returning
to their homes, after attending a pirith ceremony held for a dead
soldier, the LTTE falls on them and massacres them. A newly appointed
teacher arriving in the village, just after the massacre, suggests to
the chief monk of the temple that a vigilance unit be formed for the
protection of the village. This raw, untrained, unit is thereafter given
a basic training in attack and defense by the army. The rest of the
village is also lined up and shown how to use a rifle. When the next
LTTE attack comes, the village is able to defend itself.
'Gamani' is well scripted, well directed, magnificently acted and
expertly filmed. It is well paced with a good juxtaposition of events.
It contains all the elements that we expect in a successful action film.
Action there is in plenty. The LTTE attacks the village twice. The film
also has well choreographed martial arts sequences. The training given
to the home guards by the army provides much of the humor. This training
is presented in a very entertaining manner. There is an understated love
interest and there is music. The song the teacher sings to her class is
totally out of place and far too long, but with Rohana Weerasinghe's
music and Deepika Priyadarshani's voice, who is complaining? The song
will probably become a hit.
The film begins with a detailed enactment of LTTE brutality. The
aerial shot of the mass grave of the Gonagala dead, with the coffins
arriving in procession is unforgettable. The impact of this first
section was such that the audience took ages to unwind and respond to
the lighter section that followed. The laughter was slow in coming. The
film had made its most important point at the start itself.
The acting was uniformly superb. That is to be expected. The film is
chock full of seasoned actors and actresses like Sanath Gunatilake,
Suminda Sirisena, Mahendra Perera, Veena Jayakody, Damitha Abeyratne,
and a host of others. These performers are usually seen in meaty leading
roles. But in 'Gamani', we see them acting their hearts out in cameo
roles and minute bit parts.
There are three fine performances by children as well, a traumatized
little girl, who does not speak, a little boy who climbs back into his
house unaware that the LTTE is yet there, and a Tamil child enjoying
asylum in a Sinhala village. Dilhani Ekanayake, in the lead role as the
school teacher, is given considerable prominence and some very contrived
dialogue. Her skilled performance, together with that of the chief monk,
held the film together.
Various aspects of LTTE rule are packed into the film. We are shown
villagers hiding at night in the jungle, with a child doing her homework
under a tree. The plight of the Tamil villager caught in the grip of the
LTTE is shown through a delicately handled cameo. There is also a superb
sequence, where a 'Peace delegation' from a NGO, come to tell the chief
monk that it is peace not war that is needed, the only solution is a
political one and is it not against the tenets of Buddhism to train the
villagers to kill the LTTE .
There are other nice touches such as the teasing relationship between
young couples in Gonagala. An official with political clout makes two
appearances. He tries to throw his weight about by ordering and
threatening the home guards. The interaction between Sinhala and Tamil
villagers is shown without the standard clichés such as Sinhala-Tamil
marriages. Tamil speech alternates with Sinhala speech in one episode.
The most noticeable flaw in an otherwise good film is that the villagers
looked far too well fed and well dressed. The dresses and saris looked
brand new.
But this can be ignored. Go, see this film.
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