Midnight’s Children

This screening took place on Wednesday, February 6, 2013 at 8:00 pmYukon Arts Centre

This sweeping historic epic from Oscar-nominated director Deepa Mehta, is based on the Booker Prize winning novel by Salman Rushdie, who also wrote the screenplay for the film and narrates it. At the stroke of midnight on August 15, 1947, as India proclaims independence from Great Britain, two newborn babies are switched by a nurse in a Bombay hospital. Saleem Sinai, the illegitimate son of a poor woman, and Shiva, the offspring of a wealthy couple, are fated to live the destiny meant for each other. Their lives become mysteriously intertwined and are inextricably linked to India's whirlwind journey of triumphs and disasters. Mehta, the Indian-born-and-raised director and longtime Canadian citizen best known for her lyrical and controversial “Elements” trilogy—Fire (1996), Earth (1998) and Water (2005)—is a natural collaborator for Rushdie. They are similar in age. Both have bodies of work that study the post-colonial landscape with passion and intelligence, revealing the complex and surprising ways in which our imperial heritage has liberated and cursed us. Mehta’s lyrical style has been taking on increasing elements of magical realism in recent years and she has brought Rushdie’s sprawling, hypnagogic tale to the screen in all its pomp and finery. In English, Hindu and Urdu with English subtitles. This film contains mature or disturbing content that may not be appropriate for children under 16.