…………………………………………………

Changes in the Village Movie Review

Changes in the Village (Gamperaliya) is a 1963 Sri Lankan drama film directed by Dr. Lester James Peries and starring Henry Jaysena and Punya Heendeniya. It’s a solid, but uneven drama.

Piyal is a handsome young teacher who is hired to teach English to Nanda, a member of an eminent family. They fall in love, but cannot marry because Piyal is of a lower class. Nanda’s parents instead push her into a marriage with Jinadasa, who is of the same class as them. With economic downturn in Sri Lanka, both families lose their status and Jinadasa leaves to try to make a better life for himself. He never achieves his goal and dies penniless. Piyal and Nanda can now finally come together. But the earlier idyllic nature of their relationship is not recaptured.

………………………………………………….

…………………………………………………..

This movie was highly important in the history of Sinhala cinema. It was the first one to be shot outside of the studio using real exterior shots and strong production design. And it was the first Sinhalese movie to achieve great success outside of the country. It remains a renowned classic to this day.

I personally wouldn’t call it great because I’ve never been a fan of book adaptations. This movie definitely felt too novel-like in a high number of characters and too many melodramatic points and turns. It deals with arranged marriage and forbidden love, both are themes done better in other films. They are solidly realized here, but not greatly I’m afraid.

With that being said, I did love the acting performances. Henry Jaysena is terrific as Piyal, but it is Punya Heendeniya as Nanda who steals the show with a moving, powerful performance. The relationship between the two is so well realized and the fact that the final act did not see them reunite with passion was actually the best, most unique and most grounded part of the entire movie.

Changes in the Village also deals with village versus city life and complex family dynamics very well, but again the denseness of its plot and too many characters was its main hurdle. The cinematography is fantastic as is the score, making the movie very cinematic and technically accomplished. The directing from the famous Sri Lankan director Dr. James Lester Peries is pretty good as well.

………………………………………………….

…………………………………………………..

Changes in the Village is burdened with too many plot points, characters and melodramatic turns, all issues that usually stem from adapting a book to film. Still, the acting is terrific from its two main stars, the third act is surprisingly grounded in its conclusion and the movie’s score and cinematography are technically quite accomplished for its time.

My Rating – 3.5