Dream Talkies

Downsizing

2018-05-09T18:00:00.000-07:00

A solution to poverty and pollution. The storyline is about a migrant worker stuck in the new world of lilliputs being a good Samaritan.

What begins as the lead's (Matt Daemon) adventure to overcome financial security spirals him into a confused state of mind and affairs. The plot eventually takes us through a journey of self-realization and funny encounters to reach a state of peace.

Lesson #1: Life is not too hard if you learn to care for your neighbor :]
Lesson #2: Avoid doublemindedness

Love the ending!
IMDB

InBox (Short Story)

2013-01-11T13:09:00.001-08:00

In this digital age, here's an interesting magical love story ...

The Prestige

2013-01-02T23:43:00.001-08:00

I've been tempted to write my 2 cents on the movie after reading a short review by J. Ramanand titled - Prestige I Suppose reviewing film. Its definitely a great watch having both Hugh Jackman & Christian Bale in a movie directed by Christopher Nolan (director of Batman Begins to Dark Knight Rises series).

The movie Prestige - which is also the term used to describe the successful end of a magic trick -

Opening line by Micheal Caine "Every great magic trick has a third act, the most difficult act, the prestige".

You make a subject disappear and you manage to successfully validate that the subject has indeed disappeared. The conclusion to illusion is to make the subject re-appear flawlessly establishing the prestige for the magic trick.

The movie has a thrilling revelation at the end which causes you to think - Is this a book turned into a movie script ? Well yes its a book by Christopher Priest of the same name - "The Prestige".

Need to check out The Illusionist ... yet another !

Reference :
1. Prestige I Suppose reviewing film
2. IMDB : The Prestige
3. Movie Review : The Prestige
4. Poem inspired by The Prestige

Credits : Image Courtesy earlyshen from Flickr.

Enग lish Vingliश

2013-01-02T22:12:00.001-08:00

Enग lish Vingliश as the title suggests is a हिं ग lish (hinglish) movie. The cast has Sridevi as the main protagonist in a sensitive yet humorous script by Gauri Shinde.

Watched the film about 2 times over a period of 3 days and have not found it least bit boring. The first time though, I missed the first 20-30 mins of introduction.

There is also a scene -"When Sridevi enters USA and is talking to the immigration", where Marianne Soares (one of our family friends) appears in the scene if you observe carefully.

Loved the last speech that Sri gives as a toast to the married couple. Well done Srideviji , you are amazing as always in any role. Great to see you back after a looong time. Appears your talent has not only matured with age, but has increased sensibility to choose a hatke theme !! Kudos ...

Yet Another southie fan !

Credits : Movie poster for English Vinglish taken from wikipedia.

Spy Game

2013-01-02T06:37:00.001-08:00

Seen the movie Spy Game for the first time about 10 years ago. The plot and the dialogues become more clear after watching a few times. Its a cat & mouse chase with a lot of linkages to the past and discussion about the present events.

If you enjoy a spy thriller, you would love to watch both Brad Pitt and Robert Redford playing CIA operatives in a brutal game of espionage. Loved watching it last night after about a year. The movie is directed by Tony Scott.

Its almost like listening to a piece of music at a particular time of the day when you can enjoy it the most. The movie came at time when I really needed to watch some clever dialogues and smooth style. Not the bond style mind you, but the ones which appear close to the real thing.

Ridley Scott's movie The Body of Lies is also another worthy watch, but has a different style to the direction & story.

Credits : The movie poster has been re-used from IMDB filmography for SpyGame.

IMDb Top 250

2012-12-28T10:45:00.004-08:00

IMDb Charts providing a list of top 250 movies as voted by IMDB users here.

Watched all except ...
6. 12 Angry Men &
9. LOTR : The Return of the King (can't remember the story).

Watched all except ...
17. Seven Samurai &
20. City of God

Not bad if the voting is by popularity and IMDb is a list that can be relied as a movie guide !

The Avengers

2012-12-28T10:20:00.002-08:00

Watched the movie with friends and enjoyed it to the hilt. I can't stop raving about Iron-man's sense of humor (Tony Stark). Now here's an inventor/crusader without any powers except his grit & wit.

The story has figments from "Thor" & "Captain America". The graphics and scene compositions are completely realistic. The story is about forming the team of supers who can fight against Loki (Thor's half brother).

Can't seem to remember the best parts of the movie except that the fight sequences with Captain America involved a lot of acrobatics. Its a complete kids movie and some one who enjoys watching a bunch of supers with great animation.

The story is about saving the destruction of the planet ! There goes the suspense :)

Credits : Seen the movie at Inox Pune

Barfi

2012-12-28T09:58:00.002-08:00

A small joke on the movie "Barfi" ~ courtesy Roopinder:

Why did "Barfi" go to oscars bcoz it is the real life story of every couple
A mute husband,
A mad wife,
And a beautiful ex-girlfriend.

Watched the film at the movies and it was just fun---tastic !!

Its got all the elements of a great Chaplin movie. A tribute to some of the antics. Ranbir at his best. Loved the triangle and the final twist.

A Chaplin fan may love the irony, that the comic relief is a mute and almost compliments a black & white comedy by Charles.

Both of us (Jenny & myself) were mute spectators to a spell-binding performance by the cast. Take it to the Oscars :)

Credits : Joke from Roopinder's Facebook Wall.

Super Heros

2012-12-28T05:06:00.003-08:00

Spiderman, Batman, Hulk, Xmen, Ironman, Captain America Thor, Avengers, Green Lantern ... etc
The list may never end since all super heroes are waiting to explode on the Big screen soon.

Superman : Man of Steel and Ironman 3 are the next 2 movies thats waiting to happen.

Starwars has been a visual delight for Sci-fi fan's for a long time.
Getting the same experience for a Super-hero movie has not happened since Spidey.

Remember watching Spiderman I (with Jenny) in Chennai some 10 years ago.

Credits : Image Courtesy Super Hero Squad ® Marvel Comics

Dec 2012 : Must Watch List

2012-12-28T05:04:00.001-08:00

Short compilation of movies that are a must watch ....

2012

Life of Pi - directed by James Woo (best at the Theatres)
Jaan hai to Jahan hai - SRK (Hindi)
Table 21 - Anupam Kher (Hindi)
Talash - Amir Khan (Hindi)
Argo
The Vow
Men In Black 3
Ice Age : The Continental Drift (animation)
The Descendents - George Cloony
The Dark Knight Rises - Seen at the Theatre
The Avengers - Seen at the Theatre
Hotel Transylvania (animation)
Taken 2
Skyfall
Brave (animation)
The Grey
Cloud Atlas
The Guilt Trip
Anna Karenina
Les Miserables (remake)
Lincoln
Get the Gringo
The Amazing Spiderman
The Bourne Legacy

2013

Man of Steel - Superman
Ironman 3
Startrek II
Oblivion - Tom cruise

Not sure if there should be a single list for all years or multiple compilations over time.

Reference : Movies to Watch in 2012

Tinker Tailer Soldier Spy

2012-12-19T23:20:00.002-08:00

An Anglo-French Spy saga with each person playing a role in an elaborate game of cloak and dagger set in Europa.

Spy Talk : "Each of us have spent our entire lives trying to find each other's weaknesses only to realize that life on the other side is no better."

It almost seems like the script is based on a book and after a quick search indeed found "Tinker Tailer Soldier Spy" an espionage novel by John le Carré.

Side Note :
Could not follow the movie that well since I was working on something while going through it. Need to watch again !

There use to be a time when I could get the movies that I wanted to watch without any ads in between and actually enjoy the movie.

These days watching the movie seems to involve constant channel surfing until you see want to see and then swiching again during the ad-breaks.

Video Wars

2012-12-19T11:24:00.000-08:00

Video Wars Reality Show on YouTube !

Image Credits : Copyright © Bindass 2011. All Rights Reserved

$5 a day

2012-12-19T10:53:00.001-08:00

A story about a Father who is trying to patch up a broken relationship with his son. He gets his son fired and causes a breakup with his girlfriend only to realize that his father may actually be dying.

The father plans a fun road trip throughout the United States bluffing along the way in the hope of bonding with his son. The son keeps calling his girlfriend and slowly un-raveling the story of his life to her answering machine.

The trip culminates at the door step of an old friend. The person who snatched his beloved wife and destroyed his family. The one he needs to get even with and pull his last hiest.

Here is something the father has been keeping a secret from the son in order to avoid any resentment towards her. The father managed to get enough cash from him his hated friend in the hope of keeping the peace between them.

An endearing end to what began as an estranged start.

IMDB link

Arakshan

2012-12-18T10:58:00.002-08:00

Its a Hindi movie dealing with the topic of Reservations in education and jobs in India.

The entire screenplay has neatly been woven together to help you understand both sides of the coin :
1. Those who resist reservation quota to ensure the deserving are not cheated
2. Those who want reservation quota to ensure the deserving are not cheated

Both feel justified in about their points of view. Sadly the story shows Dr. Prabhakar / Big B's character standing for his principles related to running a pioneering educational (engineering / business) institute.

The final outcome shows how the corrupt want their way and the people of integrity have to suffer.
But all's well that ends well ! A good ending inspires reality ...

YouTube Movie

Gran Torino

2012-12-04T02:08:00.000-08:00

The movie is named after the Ford model - Gran Torino, produced by Clint Eastwood.
Amazing dialogue , really Snappy ! Its a total mentoring type of movie.

Its about a troubled young teenager in a Hmong/Vietnemese neighbourhood trying to come to terms with his identity in an alien American culture.

You literally feel for the characters. This beauty belongs to the genre of a mystical mentor/student pair seen in Karate kid. You almost feel that Clint Eastwood'd character is just about to show how to kick box or shoot like an ace.

The ending gives the movie the twisted and compassionate ending.

Colombiano

2012-12-04T02:04:00.002-08:00

Fast-paced revenge action thriller. Female version of Jason Bourne. Uses Parkour martial arts.

Was thrilled watching the chase on foot and jumping across the building sequences similar to Daniel Craig's Quantum of Solace action shots.

There is something different about parkour martial arts and its continuous use of jumps & stretches.
The movie does have a lot of spy thriller style execution.

Top Gun

2012-12-03T09:27:00.002-08:00

Iconic movie ! Nothing short of an adrenalin rush. It can never replace the real feeling of flying 4G inverted over a MiG-28.

Tom Cruise at his best as Maverik. Supersonic fun !

Inception

2012-12-03T05:45:00.001-08:00

Dream within a dream within a dream ... Is that possible. Yes , you need a powerful sedative !

They come for more, the dream becomes their reality. They go to sleep to wake up !!
Need to watch it atleast 2 times to realize that you may be dreaming at the end.

Prince of Perisa (English)

2010-11-14T07:57:00.000-08:00

The movie keeps you engaged. The magical dagger which takes you through time to change events is a fantasy movie. A game lover of Prince of Persia, would get stung by the similarities to the background. Could have had some more imagination, but its still meets my approval.

The female lead is pretty and very explosive in her role. The Prince Dastan is ahem charming !!

Watch it if you want to see how a game story becomes a movie. You see mystical characters with american accent thats the only drawback. Watch Lawrence of Arabia and you see some real casting for a regional-period movie !

Clue (English)

2010-11-14T07:52:00.000-08:00

A movie with 3 endings. A movie full of twist and turns. A sudden revelation now and then. There is a bunch of characters who are blackmailed. During the course of the movie a few people get murdered. The story seems to be taken from a book. The writer was full of surprise endings.

How did the murder of each person happen ? Is the plot that consumes the first and second half of the script. There are subsequently 3 possible endings that engages the viewer. Fascinating !! Creative !!

Star Trek (English)

2010-11-14T07:41:00.000-08:00

Watched Star Trek of 2009 in the theatres. I recently picked up the DVD to relive the experience. It was worth it. I really liked the rock-n-roll music in the movie. Kirk as a maverick cadet at the Starfleet acadamy , neat script writing !!

JJ Abrams (director) has used an exceptional team to deliver Star Trek for a new generation. I come from the old generation of Star Trek fans. In fact I was a Star Trek fan before I'd seen Star wars, although Star wars was released long before the latter.

Every sundays, watching Star Trek episodes with William Shatner (Kirk) and Leonard Nimoy (Spock) used to be the highlight of the weekend. This is of course before Sherlock Homes came up. The new one, has sharp uniforms and the cast is top order. Loved Zachery as Spock the most.

Watch it if you are a science fiction fan or not !! you wont regret it.

The Kid (English)

2010-11-03T00:46:00.000-07:00

Chaplin movie. Its a very simple story about an orphan kid. Chaplin acts as the surrogate father for most part of the movie. Its woven into a very emotional story about finding then loosing and then finding the kid.

Chaplin at his best. The story itself is very simple. Its a silent drama with a few comic moments. The Silent Era of Strong script based movies.

The Usual Suspects (English)

2010-11-01T08:12:00.000-07:00

film description
Neatly constructed Screenplay. Loved the ensemble cast.
The story line is about an imaginary Gangster Kaiser Soze.

The flashback begins from a Police Line up consisting of a bunch of misfits. This is where you see some humour in the movie. El Benecio and Baldwin are too good here. Keep you laughing for a few minutes. El Benecio is supposed to be a Black-Chinese-Jew or something.

Kevin Spacy who is the narrator and the mastermind, turns out is ?? ... should see the movie. Its a movie about good criminals versus bad cops. The usual suspects is an unusual paradox !

Green Zone (English)

2010-10-31T23:19:00.000-07:00

film description
Had to recommend this movie after discussing Syriana. Green Zone is a similar movie of control. The US have urged the world to attack Iraq and eliminate WMD (Weapons of Mass Destruction) which is but an illusion.

There is no WMD in Iraq. Parallely the US are restoring democracy by introducing a puppet as the President. Matt Daemon is the Chief Warrant Officer who is tasked with finding the locations of the WMDs. Every site that he is ordered to investigate turns out to be a dead-end. why is he given the wrong intel on every mission ?

The truth is slowly revealed of how there are no WMDs in Iraq. The real reason has been to setup a puppet government for Iraq using WMDs as camouflage.

The truth well told !

Syriana (English)

2010-10-31T22:52:00.000-07:00

film description
You get to learn how the CIA is the puppet master of the middle east. In the words of one of the characters, Prince Nasir "The US does not want Iran to become democratic. They want to control the oil." The Prince can potentially become the Emir of Iran and then sell oil to China instead of US. He is a target to be killed.

The plot of the movie is to show the cause and effect of the Merger of 2 big Oil companies. The merger itself is not the issue. The main problem is once this US merged company gets oil from Iran, does the economy of Iran benefit. Not until the puppet master controls them. Iran is not allowed to prosper as long as they milked for Oil.

The CIA gets cheap Oil for US by controlling the Emir. The next Emir is neatly positioned by the agency using the strife between the princes and royalty of Iran.

The story is the star here. The heavy casting are a neatly woven ensemble that makes great story telling. Had to see it with subtitles to understand the big picture.