The Paper Boy- Review

These days I have become a huge fan of Pocket Films or Terribly Tiny Talkies. Whenever I get time I watch them. Yesterday I came across this short film by Aniket Mitra called The Paper Boy. I have not seen such a poignant tale in a very long time. This dialogue-less black and white movie literally took my breath away. I usually never review movies in my blog but this short film moved me so much that I was compelled to write few words for this beautiful film.

The Paper Boy is a short film about a small orphan boy in the City of Joy. He distributes newspapers in houses. The boy who acted as the paper boy has the brightest and innocent eyes rare to this generation of kids. His eyes spoke volume in this film. I even asked my 8 year old son to watch and at the end of the film my son was crying, so was I.

We are living in post globalised world where our kids are raised in affluence and often they do not have any value for things. They have abundant toys that are expensive. They do not hesitate to lose or break toys; however here is a small boy almost the same age as my son to whom a pencil is also a precious thing. A pair of oversized shoes lying abandoned near the river bank can make him fly with happiness and here in my home expensive Lego lies scattered all over the floor.

The eyes of the small boy reminded me of the eyes of Apu from Pather panchali. The eyes are bright, innocent, inquisitive and melancholic. I almost fell in love with his eyes and the pathos he expressed through his eyes. The background music is also almost like a Satyajit Ray movie where natural noises were used. Brilliant cinematography captures the essence of Kolkata amazingly. This movie is definitely worth a watch.

18 thoughts on “The Paper Boy- Review”

  8. Amos Pressley says:
    Reply

    I found your review after watching the movie twice. I do agree it is moving and beautiful. But there is a part I do not understand.
    (SPOILER ALERT)
    I do not understand why he is surprised at the end to wake up and find the shoes on his feet. What am I missing?

    Liked by 1 person

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