Genre:
Drama
Release Date: 03/01/2005
SubTitles: English
Sound: DD1
Run Time: 99 Minutes
Flags: Suitable for Children
Distributor/Studio: Criterion
The River must be seen in its original Technicolor; it is difficult, if not impossible, to imagine anyone fully enjoying this wonderful film while watching a black-and-white TV print. Adapted by director
Jean Renoir and
Rumer Godden from
Godden's own novel, the film is set on the banks of West Bengal. The central character is teenaged British girl Harriet (
Patricia Walters), the offspring of a jute-mill owner (
Esmond Knight) and his wife (
Nora Swinburne). Harriet and her best friend Valerie (
Adrienne Corri) harbor a crush for a dashing visitor named Captain John (
Thomas E. Breen), who in turn is preoccupied with the hauntingly beautiful Indian girl Melanie (
Radha Shri Ram). This languid state of affairs is shaken up by unexpected tragedy involving Harriet's impulsive brother (
Richard Foster). The real star of the proceedings is the titular river, exquisitely color-photographed by
Claude Renoir (
Jean's nephew) and his Indian assistant
Ramanda Sen Gupta. The apotheosis of
Jean Renoir's lifelong fascination with India,
The River served as a launching pad for the directorial career of
Satyajit Ray, who met and befriended
Renoir during the shooting of this film.
~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
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