SITA SINGS THE BLUES

From mediaartiststudio

Directed by: Nina Paley

Capitol Theater, Friday Nov. 14 at 7:15 PM

2008 / USA / 82 minutes / Digital Video

Sita Sings the Blues has been called the “greatest break-up story ever told.” It is also the most exhilarating animated film in years – a triumphant combination of drama and comedy with a thoroughly original visual style rooted in Asian puppetry techniques. The prologue explodes with a brilliant collage of Indian music, movement, and rapid-fire visuals before director Nina Paley introduces two parallel story lines. The first is the autobiographical story of Nina, an animator whose husband gets a job in India and then breaks up with her in an e-mail. Interwoven is the tale of Sita from the ancient Indian epic Ramayana. Sita is a goddess who, after being kidnapped by a multi-headed man, is inexplicably dumped by her beloved Lord and husband, Rama. Sita resembles Betty Boop, and her woeful dialogue consists of 1920s jazz vocals sung by Annette Hanshaw. Peppered throughout the film is a “Greek chorus” of three hilarious shadow puppets who argue the facts and interpretations of the ancient text. Come for the bevy of side-splitting laughs and creative visuals, but the film is also about the way art continues to imitate life. Despite being written 3,000 years ago, there is much that can be learned about ourselves through classic literature. Movie web site: http://www.sitasingstheblues.com/