One of several remarkable films from Southern India, Ascent touches on village life, its rituals, occupations, and family relationships. The story follows the growth to maturity of a country bumpkin forced to take responsibility for his relationships. Sankarankutty is a young man given to aimless pursuits - playing with children, engaging in village spectacles, and eating like a glutton. Independently poor, he gets by on the good feeling his fellow villagers have for him and the pittance sent to him by his working sister. When the latter prevails on him to marry, he wanders into marriage as he has into everything in his life. His wife, disgusted with his neglect, leaves him, and Sankarankutty's growing up process begins.
Adoor Gopalakrishnan hails from the small town of Adoor in Kerala. The town is known for its performing arts, including Kathakali, the stylized dance drama in which Gopalakrishnan's family was involved. In Kathakali, details of individual dancers are brought out of total darkness by lamplight. In this, Gopalakrishnan saw the embryo of pure cinema.
“Ascent has no background music. It uses the natural sounds of Kerala's countryside, ranging from the majestic drums of Kathakali to the strident mooing of cows. Adoor Gopalakrishnan is scrupulous about the authenticity of his material.... People are observed with a fine sense of humor...” --Uma da Cunha, in Museum of Modern Art publication