KIFF to screen film on young Karl Marx

KOLKATA: The KIFF decision to screen a film exploring Karl Marx’s bromance with Friedrich Engels has aroused a lot of curiosity among cinegoers. Titled ‘The Young Karl Marx’, this Raoul Peck film was screened at this year’s Berlin Film Festival.
According to Rhitobrata Bhattacharya, KIFF executive council member and convenor of the film selection committee, Marx shouldn’t be limited to a political figure. “He was a philosopher. I’m glad we are showing this film. Watching the film is like travelling through world history,” Bhattacharya said.

This period drama, co-written with Pascal Bonitzer, dramatizes a short five-year period in Marx’s life, between 1842 and 1847. Most reviews of the film have appreciated lead actor August Diehl’s performance. The reviews have maintained that the film’s greatest strength lies in exploring the complexities of Marx, the man.
For director Sekhar Das, this is one must-watch movie at KIFF. “I have studied the life of young Karl Marx. The intellectuals in Bengal have always been Left-minded and believed in Marxian aesthetics. Naturally, I want to see how the life of young Marx has been depicted on screen. Kudos to the selectors for bringing this film,” Das said.
Director Kamaleswar Mukherjee, who is known for his Left leanings, wants to watch it too. “One can’t deny the legacy of Karl Marx. So the selection of the film doesn’t surprise me. However, I can only comment on the film per se once I watch the content and its treatment,” Mukherjee said.