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Machines is a documentary film from 2016 that takes an intimate look at the lives of workers in a textile factory in Gujarat, India. Written and directed by Rahul Jain, the film uses stunning visuals and a haunting score to showcase the grueling conditions of work and the human costs of globalization. From the opening shot, the viewer is transported into a world of noise, dust, and frenetic activity. The camera pans over the massive machinery, showing the intricate processes involved in turning raw cotton into finished fabrics. We see workers operating the machines, their faces grim with concentration as they feed cloth through rollers, adjust knobs and levers, and monitor gauges for signs of trouble. The soundtrack is filled with the clanking of metal, the hum of engines, and the incessant chatter of the workers, punctuated by occasional screams or shouts of warning.

As the film progresses, we meet some of these workers up close. There is a middle-aged man who has spent almost his entire life working in the factory, and who now suffers from a range of health problems, including deafness and chronic back pain. He talks about the pride he feels in his work and the camaraderie he shares with his colleagues, but also about the toll it has taken on his body and his family. We see a young woman who does embroidery work on designer fabrics, painstakingly stitching intricate floral patterns by hand. She talks about how she dreams of a better life, but also about the satisfaction she gets from doing her job well.

Throughout the film, there are glimpses of the wider world beyond the factory gates. We see trucks loaded with fabrics heading to markets in Europe and the US, and we hear news reports about the global recession and the political upheavals in Gujarat. The film doesn't offer any explicit commentary on these events, but it shows how they impact the workers on a daily basis. We see the anxiety and uncertainty in their faces as they wait for news of layoffs, and we see the desperation in their eyes as they plead with their bosses for better wages and working conditions.

One of the most striking aspects of Machines is its visual style. Director Rahul Jain uses long, static shots to capture the rhythms of the factory floor, and to create a sense of the oppressive sameness of the workers' lives. The film is filled with surreal images, like rows of machines apparently spinning cotton into thin air, or a worker standing on a ledge high above the factory floor, looking down at the chaos below. Jain also employs poetic interludes, like a dream sequence in which a young girl plays among piles of fabric, or a shot of a cow wandering through the factory, as if oblivious to the human activity around it.

Despite its bleak subject matter, Machines is not a despairing film. There are moments of humor and resilience, as when a worker sings a Bollywood song to lift the spirits of his colleagues, or when a group of workers stage a mock strike to vent their frustration. The film also has a strong visual sense of beauty, finding beauty in the colors and textures of the fabrics, and in the faces of the workers themselves. Ultimately, Machines is a film about the human cost of industrialization, and about the dignity and resilience of people who are often invisible to the wider world.

Machines is a 2017 documentary with a runtime of 1 hour and 8 minutes. It has received mostly positive reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 7.3 and a MetaScore of 76.