“ Stately in style but with a fiery debate at its heart, An Enemy of the People gets at the tension between religion and science in everyday Indian life.”
Following on from the small-town tragedy and subsequent secrets and lies of The Sweet Hereafter, Wayne has chosen another film about provincial politics and shady cover-ups: Satyajit Ray’s 1989 adaptation of Henrik Ibsen’s An Enemy of the People. Ray-favourite Soumitra Chatterjee (who died last year due to complications from COVID-19) plays Dr. Gupta, a respected GP who believes the recent rise in fatal cases of jaundice is due to the contamination of the temple’s holy water. But Dr. Gupta’s brother is a powerful political figure and the temple an important source of income for the town. And so the scene is set for a battle of wills that seems strangely pertinent…
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Where can you watch An Enemy of the People?
The film is available to MUBI subscribers and to rent on Amazon Video.