Sita Sings the Blues

A couple weeks ago Kim and I went to see Sita Sings the Blues, an animated feminist musical interpretation of the Ramayana, told from the perspective of Rama's wife, Sita. I've been looking forward to this wacky project ever since seeing some excerpts at an animation festival several years ago. The full-length version did not disappoint.

The cartoon was written, created, and animated entirely by Nina Paley, who teaches at Parsons School of Design and has created several other intriguing and funny animated shorts. It weaves together the story of the Ramayana, told and discussed by several hilarious shadow puppets in a more cerebral and less irritating Mystery Science manner, with the story of Paley's tragic trip to India and subsequent divorce from her husband. The incredible diversity of animation and storytelling style makes for a dynamic and engaging tale that never attempts to answer the fascinating questions it raises about feminism, love, sacrifice, devotion, and interpretation. Instead, the shadow puppet chorus bickers amongst themselves and comments on the action in a way that, to me, allows a humorous and emotional connection to the tale that also walks a fine line when it comes to respecting the tenets of classic Indian mythology.

While the movie sounds complicated enough already, Paley has taken the anachronistic mishmash of the plot a step further and inserted a slew of musical numbers in the most dramatic moments of the story of the Ramayana, sung by a singer of old standards, Annette Hanshaw. The numbers are funny and charming and full of visual irony as cartoonish violence punctuates bittersweet tunes like "Mean to Me" and "Can't Help Lovin' That Man," and underscores the absurdity that surrounds the poignant emotional dimensions of the tale.

Despite the carefully respectful irreverence of the comedic telling, Paley has received numerous death threats and countless hateful criticisms of her award-winning film. Ignore them. It's a fantastic movie and deserves to be seen by all. Much to my (and your future) delight, that will soon be possible: Paley is fighting to pay off all the copyrights in order to host her movie for free online so anyone can download it or stream it if they like. For Paley, Sita Sings the Blues was a labor of love that took over five years to realize, and she doesn't give a damn about making money off it. That's pretty fabulous.