Wekande Walauwa

Can this really be the director who made REKAVA a half century ago? It does have the measured authoritative quality of the films that Carl Dreyer or G.W. Pabst made in their seventies - should we add Clint Eastwood? Peries is not overshadowed in this company.

However MANSION BY THE LAKE is warmer and more involving than the work of these other seasoned directors. The Chekov plot is visible but the people seem so firmly located in their own setting that it is hard to think of it as an adaptation. Sharp, high key color picks out the lush foliage, fabrics, skin textures and the central image of the still imposing family house, as we get into the machinations that take away it and the way of life the family knew, as part of a salvage effort and revenge by the one time servant.

Perhaps it would not be so surprising if we could see the other films made by the people involved. The novelty certainly adds to the film's appeal. It is odd to write about a film's dignity as it's major asset.