Nirvana 4 Me!

The King is Dead, Long Live the King as The Force Awakens

2016-01-02T18:52:00.002-08:00

I have never been a great fan of the Star Wars Fanchisee. However, I must admit that I have seen all the six episodes either on DVD or on Theatres, sometimes accompanying my friends, or at other times, watching these movies when I had nothing better to do. I must also admit that the First three Star Wars trilogies (surprisingly, they are numbered as Episode 4, 5, 6), as the following editions were prequels. If I think I am confusing anyone here, then here is the chronological list of full six episodes of Star Wars which were released prior to this 2015 edition.

(a) Star Wars

(b) Star Wars – The Empire Strikes Back

(d) Star Wars – The Phantom Menace (Episode I)

(e) Star Wars – Attack of the Clones (Episode II)

(f) Star Wars – The Revenge of the Sith (Episode III).

Anyways, I must admit that the initial three versions of the movie were a real fun, with George Lucas directing them and which featured Alec Guinness, Harrison Ford etc. However, may things changed after the trilogy as Alec Guinness died and Harrison Ford moved on to feature in Spielberg’s Indiana Jones Series and more earthy characters. The franchise was dead!

However Lucas tried to revive it by directing the prequels, but they were not comparable to the originals and was such a bore. Sometime in between, I read that Lucas had sold the rights of his movie to Disney, which has then engaged JJ Abrams, who is an expert in reviving franchises. He has tried to bring in elements of the original trilogy by bringing in Harrison Ford, bringing in a lot of references to the Episodes 4 to 6 and has now called his new movie – The Force Awakens – as the Episode VII.

Coming back to the instant, let me tell you, the movie is invigorating with 3D Effects and is comparable to the effects seen in The Avatar. Harrison Ford continues to mesmerize and he is the soul of the film as he returns as Han Solo. The surprise entry of Han Solo when you least expect it and references to the father-son duel of the Episode 4 and the treachery has been brought back adding to the spice of the movie. Daisy Ridley as Rey, the Scavenger is a pleasure to watch and Adam Driver as Kylo Ren, the Dark Warrior heading the Storm-troopers, is also exhilarating. The light saber duels are captivating and so are some of the locales, while the Droid BB-8 will make you giggle here and there. In all, a must watch movie for this generation and for the old one alike, who may like some nostalgia. The King is Dead, Long live the King.

Life of Pi : An Adventure and some great lessons in Life!

2012-11-30T19:43:00.003-08:00

After the creative extravaganza of ‘The Avtar’ and the ‘Three Musketeers’, here comes another Hollywood movie, that promises a lot on the unlimited possibilities the 3D Technology and the CGI Technology offer the viewers. Having seen, the movie, I must say, the movie has impressed me, almost as much as ‘The Avtar’ did!

The Plot

Based on the best selling novel by Yan Martel (not just best selling, but Man-Booker Prize Winner too), the initial part of the story is set in India, Pondicherry.

To go further, Pi (played by Irrfan Khan) is having a conversation with his french Author-friend and tells him how he survived 227 days on a life boat with only a Bengal Tiger (Richard Parker, the tiger is named) for company. He is also picked up by two Japanese Maritime Officials so as to investigate how the ship sank. The Officials don’t believe his outlandish story and dismisses him. But what exactly is Pi’ story, and that’s what the movie is all about.

Son of a Zoo-Keeper, Santosh Patel, Pi of Piscene Patel is born to an affluent family. The boy is, pretty aware of the need to co-exist in a world with animals and also is quite understanding of their needs. Raised as a Hindu, he is also introduced to Islam and Christianity and is a believer of the ‘Vasudeva Kudumbakom’, in true Indian Psychology! The family, one fine day, decide to relocate to

Canada

due to political turmoil in their native place and sells some of their animals, and also carrying some with them on their journey in the high seas. Their ship encounters a heavy storm and is wrecked and his family along with the ship and the crew sinks. Pi soon finds himself stranded on a life boat in the high seas with four animals, a Hyena, a Zebra, an Orangutan and a Bengal Tiger.

The rest of the Pi’s tale is how he survives 227 days on the sea with the Tiger (He names the tiger as Richard Parker). All the while, Pi assigns in each animal, a distinctive personality based upon his observations and the people in his own life. The other animals die as the Hyena kills the Zebra and the Orangutan out of hunger. The Hyena inturn gets killed by Richard Parker. Pi now realises the need to keep Richard Parker in good humour in order to save himself, and feeds him fish. He eventually develops a bond of friendship with Parker and they both realise and appreciate the need of each other for their own survival.

They ultimately reach the coast of

mexico

soon, Richard Parker escapes into a jungle without looking back at Pi leaving him in distress and even making him question their friendship itself.

The Cast

Irrfan Khan plays the role of the grown-up Pi, who is being quizzed by the Japanese Officials about the ship wreck and his tale of survival. The officials don’t believe his story of survival along with the Bengal Tiger, so Irrfan then substitutes his tale with another one with people in his real life and asks whether the story is more believable now. He is absolutely fantastic with his accent and does a fantastic job. After ‘The Namesake’, an excellent performance from him.

Tabu, plays the role of Pi’s mother, Gita Patel, with aplomb and is impressive. Adil Hussain is Santosh Patel, Pi’s father.

In spite of this luminous star-cast, Suraj Sharma as the teen-aged Pi is the back-bone of the movie and is fantastic. French and Hollywood actor, Gerard Dipardieu appears in a Cameo as the Cook of the Ship and no word is required to describe how this wonderful actor has performed.

Underlying layers in the story

Just as the boy finds that his class-mates in Pondicherry is quite amused as to how someone could be named ‘Pissing Patel’, he shortens his name to Pi, the mathematical constant, having ‘no end’. The story, too, has lots of inner-layers to it, and each animal represents a different character or a person in Pi’s life. The tale of surviving 227 days with a tiger is as much a tale of how to see with-in and to survive in adversities and believing in one-self. The number of days that Pi spends in the life-boat itself is quite significant. Have a look at the digits.. they are 2, 2 and 7, which represents Pi itself (22/7 = 3.14, which is the value of Pi). It is a wonderful story of growing-up and survival and is a must watch! If you have not read the book already that is.

Many have asked me, as to what is so grand, about a boy being castaway with a Bengal Tiger for company, and I would say, this is not just a fantasy story. The life-boat represents our life itself, the calm seas and the storms, its ups and downs. The floating island represents a 'false sense of security', and how the luxuries of life can lull you into that. Pi doesn't succumb to the temptation of finding life in the 'floating island', and he decides to go in search for a better future. The Tiger, Richard Parker is Pi’s often Self-Destructive and often Animalistic Alter Ego, which helps him survive the adversities The movie is all about how one should spend his life, fighting and taming the destructive self. It is a story about courage, and self-belief as much as it is a story of spiritual and philosophical overtures.

Directed by Ang Lee, who won Oscars for his ‘CrouchingTiger, Hidden Dragon’ and has directed ‘Sense and Sensibility’ and ‘Brokeback Mountain’, The Life of Pi, overall, is a wonderful movie, can be enjoyed by everyone alike and IS A MUST WATCH.

The only thing that i was miffed with was because, for some unknown reason, Gerard Depardieu has been given such an insignificant role. He appears in just one scene, and it cannot even be called a Guest Appearance. Such a great actor, and he has nothing to do here!

Buy still, Embark on this adventure and discover yourself along with Pi, on a journey that knows no end! Miss it, and you have missed one of the best movies that has come out in recent times!

Shanghai (2012)

2012-07-01T09:16:00.000-07:00

Directed by :- Dibakar Banerjee
*ing : Emraan Hashmi, Abhay Deol, Kalki Koechelin, Prosenajit Chatterjee

At a time when movies like Ferrari Ki Sawari and Rowdy Rathore were pulling in the crowds to the theaters, with mindless fare, Director Dibakar Banerjee tries to evoke the audiences’ grey matter with his slick and classy Shanghai. The movie at best, can be termed as a reflection of the current state of our country. The fictional town of ‘BharatNagar’ could be anywhere in India, drawing parallels with places in Orissa, Jharkhand, Chattisgargh or even Bengal. Dibakar Banerjee sees through the state of affairs and indeed dares to speak up about the corporates-politician nexus.

The movie follows Dr Ahmadi, a social activist who is leading a people’s protest against an SEZ (Special Economic Zone) which is about to displace a huge population in a fictional town called Bharatnagar. The SEZ is, but, projected as a for-development by the ruling party. This is evident from the very start, but not from the story line, but rather through the billboards that we see on the roads when the camera pans ‘Bharatnagar’. The movie is full of such minute details and symbolisms that we audience tend to know about only on closer introspection. See for example the very first scene of the movie where the character played by Pitobash Tripathy, ransacks a book-shop and blackens the face of the owner of the shop. All we see is a book on the background with the title ‘Kiski Pragati Kiska Desh’ with the picture of the author, Dr Ahmadi (Played brilliantly by Prosenajit Chatterjee) on the cover. We immediately know that the rioting and the ‘bandh’ is against his anti-SEZ protest and we instantly know who Dr Ahmadi is without even showing him on the screen. Or sample this scene where Kalki calls Emraan on his cellphone. Nowhere in the movie we are told or shown anything about Emraan’s interest for Kalki, but we come to know when the caller-id of his phone flases Kalki’s name as DREEEMGIRL, with extra E’s.

Soon, Dr Ahmadi lands in Bharatnagar to address a public gathering and he is killed in full public gathering by a truck driven by a drunkard. The Government constitute a committee, headed by the IAS Officer TA Krishnan (Abhey Deol in a sedate performance) with a brief to wind up the investigation into his murder in double quick time by terming it as an rogue accident. But Krishnan dwells deeper and finds out the truth. Kalki Koechelin who plays Dr Ahmadi’s student and his love interest and a porn-videographer, Jogi Parmar (Emraan Hashmi) assists the bureaucrat in unraveling the knots of the conspiracy of Dr Ahmadi’s murder.

The beauty of the movie is in the details as mentioned earlier and also because no character is either Black or White. Even Dr Ahmadi has his own failings and is shown having a weakness for attractive students. He married one of his students (played by Tilotama Shome) and is simultaneously tagging along Kalki.

Emraan Hashmi’s performance as Jogi Parmar is absolutely stupendous. Here is the serial kisser, the way we know him, playing a character with a low self-esteem and quite surprisingly, sports a Pot-Belly and ugly teeth. I have always liked his ambitious chracters played in various movies who always laid women earning the tag of serial kisser, but here he left me absolutely speechless with his performance. He surely deserves a Best Actor Award.

Apart from the above, Abhay Deol as TA Krishnan, the IAS Officer, and the two cameos by Supriya Pathak as the woman Chief Minister and Farookh Sheikh as her Political Secretary is worth a hundred mentions and makes the movie that much more delectable. Pitobash Tripathy as a street-smart party man dazzles. Prosenajit Chatterjee is a veteran and he plays his part as is expected from an actor of his statute.

The movie, is dark, stark and it is a classic stuff and is simply the best movie of the year. Don’t miss it at any cost. It will entertain you, and at the same time, open your eyes as well as to what is happening around you.

Good Night, Good Morning - A Movie to remember

2012-02-23T18:00:00.000-08:00

Director : Sudhish Kamath

Starring : Manu Narayan, Seema Rehmani

In between my transit and my stay at various places in Kerala, I happened to see the movie 'GOOD NIGHT, GOOD MORNING'. It was one of those Indian English movies or rather what we simply call as NRI movies. A noted film-critic with ‘The Hindu’, ‘GOOD NIGHT, GOOD MORNING’ is Sudhish Kamath’s second movie, and as a regular reader of his movie reviews in 'The Hindu', I was naturally attracted to this second venture of his.

The title as well as the poster caught my attention and so did the synopsis, as I delved into this movie which is entirely shot in black and white. The Black and White narration seemed to be an anachronism at first, but it essentially turns out to be the movie's USP. It adds to the romanticism of the plot as only the dreamy sequences and the flashbacks are in color. The film employs the ‘Split-Screen’ narrative, where the entire story is shown happening side by side. Plot wise, the movie is original, engrossing and entertaining.

The movie is based in US, New York and the main protagonists are NRI's which help strike an instant chord with the urbane multiplex hopping young Indians. The story revolves around the female character Moira (played brilliantly by Seema Rehman), who stops by in New York while on her transit. There she meets Turiya (played by Manu Narayanan), who along with two of his friends is on a wild night celebration spree. The guys manage to get her hotel room number and there by her phone number.

While on their drive back, in an intoxicated state, the guys decide to call her. Turiya calls her and after an initial hesitation, the Moira engages in conversation with him. The rest of the movie is about their phone conversation which is gripping, self reflective as also romantic. The topics of their conversation range from their mutual attraction, to discussion about 'The Matrix', spiritual stuff as also their individual problems. In the course, they both discover themselves and each other as a subtle romance takes over.

'GOOD NIGHT, GOOD MORNING' is a very subtle movie, depicting the nuances of relationships that happen just out of the blue - with people whom we never meet or never thought about meeting, but still happens - and then leaves a lasting impression in our lives making us wonder, how life can be so strange. Sudhish Kamath's narrative is fresh, romantic and engrossing while, performances of both the lead actors, Seema Rehmani and Manu Narayan are compelling and original.

It is one of those movies that have to be relished like a crunchy and creamy ice-cream sandwich. A must see movie.

The Avatar

2011-12-15T17:35:00.000-08:00

Dir : James Cameron
Starring : Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Signourney Weaver, Giovani Ribisi

Though it may just be a quite coincidence that the world-wide release of the Movie was synchronized with the World Earth Summit of Copenhagen, 2009, the movie still made news for its technical brilliance and its 3D rendering. Avatar is an epic movie that borrows scenes and even the story-line from various other movies and incidents that happened around the world, upgraded them with brilliant 3D projection systems and delivered it on the silver screen like never before. Perhaps this is the reason for such a grand success of the movie, and the world that has been created for the movie - The Pandora - makes us to explore more of it. I would agree with the person who sat next to me at the movie hall that he felt as if he was back on earth once the movie was over.

There is nothing much to mention about the story though as it is just a re-hash of so many other Hollywood movies that came and went, showing us jaw-dropping technologies that we saw in other Hollywood movies. Avatar the movie creates beautiful world or rather a moon called Pandora, which is inhabited by the Na’vis, a Paleolithic species. Na'vis are 12 feet tall, tailed, blue skinned humanoids who live in harmony with Nature and worships their goddess called Eywa. These aspects of the Na'vi's give them an Indian touch with the Na'vi themselves resembling our monkey-gods as also the culture of worshipping female goddess.

The Avtar's story is about a handicapped US Marine, Jake Sully (played by Sam Worthington) who has been genetically engineered to control his Avatar. His Avatar has been transported to the Moon Pandora as a spy, infiltrating the clan Omaticaya to be specific. His main objective is to induce the native Na'vi's to migrate from Pandora so that Earthly humans (or rather US) can get their hold on the mineral unobtanium, a valuable mineral which costs up to a million dollars for a kilo. Once inside the clan, Jake falls in love with World, its customs and of course the beautiful Princess Neytiri (played brilliantly by Zoe Saldana). It is this love that ultimately inspires Jake to fight against his own people and save Pandora from humans who are ultimately driven away.

Avatar has been immensely inspired from other Hollywood flicks. The theme of controlling one's virtual-self through minds have been shown to us through the Matrix Trilogies and the battle scenes remind us of Lord of the Rings and the Star Wars. Perhaps the biggest inspiration for this movie has been the Kevin Costner classic 'Dances With Wolves' where an injured US Marine trapped within a tribal clan gets drawn to the culture he was initially fighting against. Along the way, I found that the movie is an implicit criticism of America's lost cause in the Vietnam War as also its War on Terror.

All this apart, Avatar is a movie that one should watch and one should let their children watch, for the simple reason that the movie carries a message - A message that we as part of the nature should respect and love it, and we destroy it and our fellow creatures at our own peril. So watch this classic, enjoy it, and applaud its brilliance in the end, because that is why we all go to see the movie in the theatre. It just won’t disappoint a wee bit.

Tags & Links :- Avtar the Movie, James Cameron, Dances With Wolves, Vietnam Colony

Heavenly Creatures

2011-12-11T04:56:00.001-08:00

Dir : Peter Jackson
Starring : Kate Winslet, Melanie Lynskie

Perhaps you might be wondering why I am writing a review of a movie which was released way back in 1994. Today morning, with nothing else to do, I decided watch this movie on youtube and felt I should be writing about this (one of the most) under-rated movies ever.

"Heavenly Creatures" is made by the man who directed Lord of the Rings trilogy - Peter Jackson. The movie is about the famous 'Parker-Hulme Murder Case' where in Parker and Hulme, together murders Parker's mother, Peirse.

Pauline Parker and Juliet Hulme are two 14 year old girls played by Kate Winslet and Melanie Lynskey respectively. They meet in school and become fast friends immediately. They create a secret fantasy world and become obsessive about it and each other. As their friendship grow, even bordering on homosexuality, and their fantasy land Borovnia seems real to them just as the real world outside, their parents grow concerned and try to seperate the pair. Resenting this, they plan revenge on one of the mothers. Their form of revenge...ultimate...Murder!

What sets the film apart is the fantasy world the girls create - the world named Borovnia. Kate quotes "I'm going to the fourth world. it's a sort of a heaven, only better, coz there aren't any christians!"

The fantasies get darker and darker as the girls get seperated and the movie gets more and more difficult to watch...but you can't tear ur eyes away from the scenes coz Peter Jackson creates a 'what will happen next' with delicious frissions created by the girls restlessness underneath.

The film deserves to be seen not just once but more than that, if not for all the above reasons, for Kate winslet's performance. As the smarter of the two girls, she dominates every frame and lights up each one of them. Pity about TITANIC, as she got the maximum adulation for the worst role that she did in her career. Her performance in Heavenly Creatures,being her debut too, deserved an Oscar.

Picture Courtesy : imdb.com

The Dirty Picture

2011-12-04T08:00:00.001-08:00

It is commonly believed that heroine (read women) oriented films are never a guarantee for success, especially in Bollywood. But here is one movie that is out there to prove us all wrong. 'Dirty Picture' is a look back at the 1980's when plus-sized heroines as well as dance-girls posed as sex-sirens on the screen ensured a movies success. The southern Starlet Silk Smitha was an undisputed queen of this crowd and this movie was a good attempt at focusing on her life and times .

Pic Courtesy : Chitramala.in

Dirty Picture is a semi-biography of sorts about this actress who used her oomph and sexuality to good measure, leaving men panting, and marking her presence in tamil movies as an instant guarantee for cash registers ringing. Vidya Balan, who is otherwise known for her non-conformist and clean image, plays the role of Reshma or just 'Silk' to good effect in this thought provoking film. At these times, when her peers are running after size-zero, Vidya Balan is gutsy enough to add 12 Kilos to and flaunt it too.

The Story

The story follows Reshma (Vidya Balan), a run-away bride, landing herself in a Movie set asking for a role . She is turned off from the sets for being ugly and un-glamorous. She is resolute to make it big and continues her struggle until she gets a role as a female dancer complete with pouting lips and revealing attire. The raunchy song becomes an instant success, and thus was born 'Silk'. Through out her life, many men fill in her days only to cause distress and those include her childhood idol Suryakant (Nasiruddin Shah), RamaKant (Tussar Kapoor) who is the brother of Suryakant. Ramakant genuinely loves Silk and wants to marry her, but his parents are embarrassed by her wild ways. Abraham(Emraan Hashmi), is another person who enters Silk's later life and it is Abraham who stays till her end helping her mother to cremate her dead body in the finale.

The story basically is about Reshma(Silk), from being a make-up girl to her rise to stardom, and ultimately to her tragic death by swallowing sleeping pills. It is the story of a woman, who had a care-free attitude, and lived her life without thinking twice (sample this dialogue where Silk says : "ज़िन्दगी एक बार मिलती हे, तो दो बार क्यूँ सोचना ?). Dirty Picture is also about the portrayal of women as objects of 'Entertainment' and how women start accepting this as a way of life. Silk ultimately had to succumb to the society's bad-mouthing and exploitative nature.

Dirty Picture is basically a tight rope-walk between the sensual silk and her life as an exploited woman. The movie Shows her short-lived rise to fame as also the contradiction of her as the object of male fantasy and her quest for love, only to find infidelity and unfaithfulness from the men she love. This catalysis her fall from 'grace' and leads her towards loneliness and ultimately to suicide. The film reeks of the apparent hypocrisy that exist in the society as a whole. She is crestfallen by this duplicity of being revered by the people whom she feeds with her sexuality, but the very same people, wearing a mask of bogusness, is ever ready to put a question mark on her character.

My Take

All in all, the movie is pure entertainment, intertwined with humour (not at all crass) and mimicry of the old times. Vidya Balan literally lives the character and does full justice to the role of Silk and carries the film from start to finish. Having given the job of playing a sex-siren, Vidya Balan carries it wonderfully, and never makes her character look vulgar on screen. Instead she oozes sensuality. Nasiruddhin Shah is wonderful as the ageing superstar and having given the brief to mimic a certain style of acting which was prevelant at that time, he does it with aplomb. Emraan Hashmi and Tussar Kapoor play their part well and this is just another instance where Emraan shows us that he can act and very well indeed. Anju Mahendroo's cameo as the Fashion Journalist is worth mentioning. Just like the 'lady-in-the-lead', Dialogues are hard-hitting and is another attraction. The music is over-hyped and is an average fare. The good thing about the movie is that it is never judgmental anywhere about the life of Silk.

The movie is surely worth a watch, just for Vidya Balan's performance and will be a trend-setter of sorts, hoping that, this will inspire more movie-makers to try and experiment with women-oriented subjects. That would indeed be a real turn-around for Bollywood.

...Prasanth Menon

Tags & Links : Vidya Balan, Nasiruddhin Shah, Emraan Hashmi, Dirty Picture at Imdb, Milan Luthria

Damn the Dam-999

2011-11-21T17:14:00.001-08:00

Director : Roy Sohan
Starring : Joshua Fredrick Smith,
Linda Arsenio,
Vimla Raman,
Rajat Kapoor,
Thampy Antony & others

Dam-999 was called as a concept movie, showing a dam burst, in fact, an earthquake causing a dam disaster and flooding. The setting was supposed to be Mulla-periyar, a 100 year old dam that was awaiting its death in southern Kerala. This movie directed by Roy Sohan, a native of the same place where the dam exists had won accolades for his documentary ‘Dams – The lethal water bombs’. Perhaps, that was what inspired him to go further to direct a full-length feature film, taking up the cause of his people. But when you have to enter into a realm of commercial movies, one needs to have a lot of other ingredients in it, unlike the documentary. And that's how Dam-999 was apparently born, with the pre-release videos claiming an overflow of a gamut of human emotions. Mulla-periyar dam has a lot of significance with the number 9. It refers to the 999-year lease agreement that the Maharaja of Travancore entered with the Government of Madras (the English) for using the waters of this particular dam. Perhaps, thats what prompted Roy Sohan to title his film as Dam-999. It is another matter that the dam burst in the movie happens on 9-Sep-2009 (9-9-9). Roy Sohan tries to bring in the significance of the number 9 to his nine characters as well, with each portraying a different ‘nava-rasa’.

Background of the Movie

Built by the British in 1895, across the river Periyar, it was supposed to last a 50 years, according to its engineer, it has today, far lived its life span. Man's greed has made the dam to last beyond 100 years. After India's Independence, all those pre-independence pacts have been made defunct, this one, somehow still continues to hold forth causing dispute between two states...(As a matter of fact, the pact was renewed in 1970, between Tamilnadu and Kerala whereby operation of the dam was bestowed on Tamilnadu). As of now, Kerala wants a cancellation of the instant pact.

The agreement was entered into with the sole objective of catering for the irrigation needs of Tamilnadu. But overtime, Tamilnadu uses its water for agriculture, and now its electricity needs as well. Kerala believes that, any form of earthquake or a simple Dam disaster would sweep away four thickly populated districts under it and would cause a collateral damage of 5 million people.

As for Tamilnadu, it is reluctant to let go the financial benefits that it accrues from the dam by way of Agriculture, Irrigation as also power generation. Tamilnadu generates a whooping 30,000 crore per year by way of Power generation alone. Interestingly, Kerala is one of the state which buys power from Tamilnadu. Now that the dam has started to leak, and after a 1500 (started in 2006) day protest on by the local, it's time, the people of kerala are heard...

The Movie

The film follows Captain Fredrick Browne (Fredrick Smith), Captain of an oil tanker that gets anchored in Kochi. An anglo-Indian, and son to the ex-Mayor of Kochi, he is married to a Pakistani Muslim girl, Razia, played by Megha Burman. His trusted friend Vinay (Vinay Rai), a marine engineer, had a love interest (Meera, Played by Vimla Raman) but had to forgo her because of the incompatibility of his stars with hers' and left Kochi to marry a foreigner (Linda Arsenio), but she leaves him and his child to become a successful TV Jounalist. Rajat Kapoor plays Shankaran, father of Vinay and is an astrologist-ayurvedic vaid, martial arts teacher and ask what not. Vimla Raman's Meera, Vinay's childhood love interest represents the unconsummated love that Vinay is ever pining for. .

Vinay and Meera's incompatibility is so much so that, as per Shankaran, if they ever unite, it would have invited great mis-happenings and with the trust that Meera has in Shankaran's predictions, she decides to leave Vinay and live a lonely life. IN Meera's own words, whenever she tries to get close to Vinay, something or other happens, and that the cause of the death of Vinay's Mother (Urmila Unni) was attributed to Meera getting close to Vinay during a martial arts practice.

This the point where the film fails as in the end, when Meera and Vinay, did unite, all hell break loose, and the held back pressures are released (by the dam, i mean!). This simply makes the horoscope-astrology-position of stars as the villian of the piece and is the single character which determines the destiny of all the other characters in the movie.

Quite opposite to the director's claim of representing a grand story of human emotions with the nine characters portraying the nine 'rasas' or the nava-rasa's, I as a viewer, could never understand who portrayed what. The director attempts at including too many things onto the movie, right from the pristine landscapes of Kerala (it did seems like a Kerala Tourism Commercial in the first half), the ayurveda, Vedic Mathematics, Astrology, Science and even Love (both requited and unrequited) and as it happens, makes a mess of everything.

The only worthy performances to note was that of Vimla Raman, who exudes her compassionate character (perhaps the Karuna Rasa) and to an extent, Linda Arsenio who tries to match Vimla Raman, scene after scene. Ashish Vidyarthi as the negative character tries his best and does justice to his role, but is sent to oblivion in the end. We are never told as to what happened to him after the dam burst and the floods. Since all the other main characters are alive, we may presume that he, too, would be alive. Aashish Vidyarthi has acted well, but he has done much better performances in many other films. The less said about Rajit Kapoor's character, the better. As an actor who showed us what acting has to be all about in that one single sequence in 'Ghulam' and movie like 'Making of Mahatma' or 'Suraj Ka saatwan Ghoda', he was given a character that has nothing much to do except for his accented and stereotyped dialogues. He was made out to be caricature.

The Director's idea of creating an analogy between the dam holding back its waters and people holding back their emotions, only to create destruction, when it is released is commendable and looks perfectly grand on paper. But he failed completely while translating that idea on to the screen effectively perhaps, due to the weak characterization or the weak script.

The movie is an average fare, with the 3D effects ineffective and is best Avoidable. What they basically did was to convert a 2D movie onto the stereoscopic 3D and they have done that conversion only in parts. So viewers were made to put on and take off their glasses every now and then.

But if you still insist, you must go and see the movie, then, you can enjoy the scenic beauty of Kerala. The lady in the lead (Vimla Raman) oozes a winsome charm, but my goodness, the movie hardly doesn't. The movie doesn't even give out the main message of safety concerns of big dams, effectively. The fact that such big Dams are lethal 'Water Bombs' got lost somewhere. Instead, blaming everything on stars and horoscopes of two individuals was just absurd to say the least.

P.S Having, said that, this make should have be a wake-up call for us all, for we have almost 4000 colonial dams that have outlived their life-time. We indeed need to have a contingency plan and build newer structures and smaller ones around them before they break. We call them the temples of modern india...and we lambasted the lady who called them the disasters of modern india... At least, now, let us hear what she wants to tell...

Tags and Links :- Mullaperiyar Dam, Dam999 the Movie, The Lethal Water Bombs, Vimla Raman, Rajat Kapoor, Linda Arsenio, Ashish Vidyarthi,

The Three Musketeers - One for All and All for one

2011-10-15T19:57:00.000-07:00

Quite like what I wrote in my earlier post, I was waiting to see “TheThree Musketeers” in 3D, and indeed I did yesterday, a day after its release in

India

. Ours is the fourth country in the world, after its release in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and is set to release world-wide on 21^st Oct. This means, I can now proudly claim that I had seen the movie much before folks in US did.

The Three Musketeers is an action movie and is loosely based on Alexander Dumas' novel of the same name. The story has been changed a lot from the original and except for the title and the names of the characters, there is little in common between the book and the movie.

The plot follows the young D'Artagnan (Logan Lerman) who leaves his country home to go to Paris and join the valorious Three Musketeers, Athos (Mathew Macfadyen), Porthos (Ray Stevenson) and Aramis (Luke Evans). In the meanwhile, the Three Musketeers have been duped by Milady De Winter (Milla Jovovich, looks femme fatale in this role), while retrieving the Leonardo DaVinci's drawings of the Airship, which she does and then gives it to the Lord Buckingham (played brilliantly by Orlando Bloom). Milady De Winter plays a double agent between her employer the King of France Louis XIII (Freddie Fox), the Cardinal Richelieu (again, beautifully enacted by Christoph Waltz), and the Lord Buckingham. Cardinal Richelieu is scheming to start a war between France and England and is trying to capture power and be a dictator. D'Artagnan, upon reaching Paris, come across various misadventures and challenges the musketeers onto a duel and finally, the musketeers take him under their wings. In the meanwhile, he meets Constance (Gabriella Wilde), the queen's lady and becomes his romantic interest.

Cardinal's scheming ways follows in a plot to steal the diamond necklace that Louis XIII had gifted to Queen Ann (Juno Temple) and then take it to

England

. Now, D'Artagnan have to go to England, ably assisted by the Three Musketeers, to retreive the necklace and bring it back to France, thus saving the honor of the queen and as also to prevent France from going into war with England. In the end, the four-some do succeed in bringing the diamond necklace back, thereby nullifying the Cardinal's nefarioius designs and restors the honor of their King and the country.

The movie, as such, is pure entertainment but there are some big turn offs too. Mainly, i feel, the movie should not have diverted too much from the book. As I said, except for the names of the characters, there is nothing common. Lord Buckingam has been turned into a villain and Milady De Winter to be a double agent. Another big let off is the way in which the charcters are etched. Though the movie is titled Three Musketeers, D'Artagnan is not one of those, and he and his love interest Constance takes a lot of screen space. So does Lord Buckingham and Milady De Winter. So inspite of being titled 'Three Musketeers' the movie is not at all about them.

But to those who are looking for some grandoise spectacle in the form of Sword fights and Fencing, as also the battle of the air-ships, the movie come across as simply breathtaking. Particularly, watch out for the unbelievable fencing duel between D'Artagnan and Rochefort (Mads Mickelsen, resembling a pirate, another big turn-off), on the roof-top of the Notre Dame Cathedral, and is just awesome. Also, a big thumbs up for the Leonardo Da Vinci's Secret Vaults and the battle of the Air ships,that too, above Paris.

To sum up, I would suggest one should watch Three Musketeers, for its entertainment value, and when you have decided to watch it, don't miss the 3D experience, because, I thought, the 3D version has been shot pretty well, when compared to some of the earlier 3D movies that were released in India, like for example, the Harry Potter and the Alice in Wonderland. It may just be a case of the 3D projection system getting better this time, but still, it was enjoyable to watch. So switch off your brain, don't go about searching for logics, and just put on your 3D glasses. As the motto of the ‘Three Musketeers’ goes, “Unus pro omnibus,omnes pro uno” ("One for all, and all for One..."), the movie, too, does justice to the latter, and can be enjoyed by Kids, teens and adults alike. The adventure will just engulf you...

Directed by : Paul S Anderson

Starring : Logan Lerman, Milla Jovovich, Christoph Waltz, Mathew Macfadyen, Ray Stevenson, Luke Evans and above all, Orlando Bloom

My Ratings : 7.5/10

Title Credits and Pictures : Courtesy The Three Musketeers Official Website

Amélie - Le fabuleux destin d'Amelie Poulain [French Movie]

2011-08-06T21:24:00.000-07:00

It was quite by chance that yesterday, while browsing TV Channels, I stopped at UTV World Movies to watch the Frech movie 'Amélie' . I found the movie to be a classic. Very subtle depiction and a flowing story line makes this movie indeed special.

'Amélie' is the story of simple and innocent young girl (played by Audrey Toutou of the Da Vinci Code Fame). Amélie lives alone in Paris and works as a waitress for living. She is a young woman who lives a solitary life after her mother's death and subsequently, her father leaving the child for another woman. Following a couple of failed romances, she now contemplates living life in the simplest way, often deriving pleasures from an imaginative and a fantasy life.

The story takes a turn on the evening of 31st August 1997, when she hears the death of Princess Diana, and shocked she is, accidently drops a bottle on to the floor and accidently loosens a wall tile. The tile, opens a small chest to her, and she finds an old metal box with lots of childhood stuff hidden in it. Thinking probably, that the stuff belonged to some child who lived in her apartment before, she now decide to track down the child (now a grown up man) and make him happy. She then take a resolve to devote her life to help bring change and happiness in other people, if she succeeds in tracking this guy out and helping him with childhood stuff.

With the help of another reclusive neighbour of her - a painter, Raymond Dufayel - she manages to track the guy down and hands him the metal box. Upon opening the box, the the guy (now a grown up man) cries as his childhood memories comes flooding back to him. In a flashback, we are told how the man has been estranged from his parents and family and is gives her the word that he will soon unite himself with his estranged family.

This positive effect in the man changes Amélie and she now starts doing good for others, changing the lives of people around her all the while, struggling with her own isolation. And one final time, Amelie decides someone has to step into the life of Nino another lonely character, to change his life for good. In the climax, painter Dufayel, with his insightful advice and friendship towards Amelie, discuss their lives and she is forced to look within, with regard to her own life. She discovers she is smitten by NIno, and the film ends with Amélie shedding her shyness deciding to unite with Nino.

It is indeed a heart-warming movie, original and hillarious at times, Amelie is a movie worth repeated watch. The conflict within Amelie is the highpoint of the movie. A delight to watch, Audrey Toutou carries the movie all alone, She is magnificent and winsome to the core and so is the Movie. Not to miss the next time UTV World movies telecasts it. Watch it, and you will end up smiling a lot.

Pic Courtesy :- metaphilm.com

Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara

2011-07-21T19:04:00.000-07:00

Seize the Moment, My Dear Friend,

yeah Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara

Director : Zoya Akhtar

*ing : Hrithik Roshan, Abhay Deol, Farhan Akhtar, Kalki Kochelin, Katrina Kaif and the Surprise Ingredient

The long wait for the fourth of the ‘Farhan Akhtar’ Series was over. I call it a ‘series’, simply because they speak the same theme, without boring ourselves, and they follow a patter, without looking mundane. The ‘Coming-of-age’ theme, which was so central in his earlier movies like ‘Dil Chahta Hei’, ‘Lakshya’ and ‘Rock-on’ is employed here too, and so is his ‘ gang of three friends’. There is no central character or a protagonist, and all share the same screen space, never letting the other to hog the limelight.

Zindagy Na Milegi Dobara (ZNMD), too, speaks the same script. A Coming-of-age story of three men, Kabir (played with nuance by Abhay Deol), Arjun (Hrithik, a treat for the eyes) and Imran (impressive and versatile, yet again). Kalki’s Natasha is engaged to Kabir and Laila (Katrina Kaif) is a diving instructor who joins them during their journey in Spain. ZMND tell you to “seize the moment” and live life, for life won’t present you with a second chance. The Movie pretty looked like DCH, but the boys have become more mature, now that it’s almost a decade since the latter released.

The three guys, crack jokes, rock and roll, and do everything that normal youngsters indulge in, except that they don’t abuse. These guys believe, in order to look “cool”, or rather “uber cool”, they don’t need to use the “Fxxx” word every now or they need to fill up their minds with booze and babes (I am not making any comparison with the movie Delhi Belly here).

I am not attempting the story line here, for it will be better if everyone watch the movie at the hall, but yet, I think I can introduce you to the characters here. Kabir is somehow unwillingly engaged to Natasha and now wants to live life his own way. Arjun is a hotshot financial broker whose only aim is to earn a lot of money before he turns 40 and then retire, Imran is a closet poet but works as an advertising copywriter who is in search of his father. Laila is quite a practical girl shelling out pearls of wisdom and is looking out for his ideal guy. All the characters (including that of Katrina), carry in their heart, which they must exorcise ultimately.

The movie is all about how they manage to do this in during their trip to Spain. Like when Arjun tells Imran ‘just let go’, he is infact telling to let go things. If the one-liners of ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ and ‘Rock-On’ were the prime reason for these movie’s cult status, then ZNMD goes one up. The dialogues are crisp, to the point, hilarious – without being indecent – and effective. Watch out for the La Tomatina Scene, which adds spunk and effervescence to an otherwise winsome movie (though I thought the same was a bit stretched).

Talking about performances, Abhay Deol’s Kabir scores over Hrithik with his subtle portrayal of the character. He plays the bridge between Imran and Arjun. Hrithik as Arjun is a treat for the eyes and does justice to his role. Imran equally, hogs screen presence with his versatility, and considering that he himself wrote the script, one needs to take one’s hats off to this talent. Having said that, the real Star of the movie is its surprise ingredient - its dialogues and Javed Saab’s poetry. Rendered through the haunting voice of Farhan Akhtar, the latter simply rides the movie home and made it indeed special. Sample this :

I feel, these are the kind of movies, that youngsters should watch, for one, they make you think once you come out of the hall, about the way they live life; they tell you that just because one has a family and a life to look forward to, there is no reason why one should not give up things that they were passionate about in their early days. These movies are a mirror to ourselves, who squander our best time of our lives by not living for a purpose. The characters in these movies are very much you and me and that’s probably the reason why drops of tears well up in our eyes when we watch these movies. Perhaps this was also the reason why we jumped up in joy when the ‘Magic Band’ of Rock on performed again, or the threesome in Dil Chahta Hai cuddled again at the climax. We seldom live our lives the way we should live…but has goose-bumps when we see these characters get their calling in life.

This movie, is a must watch, but don’t see it on a pirated DVD or a downloaded version on the TV and rather, mark my words, the movie is best enjoyed munching caramel popcorns with friends on a multiplex! Don’t let go this chance.

Stand out Scenes :-

(i) the climax, the bull-run scene, all three realise their calling in life and discover and makes a pact about what they want to do if they manage to be alive. An absolutely fantastic scene and I would call it as one of the best climax scenes in Bollywood we have so far watched perhaps.

(ii) The love-making scene involving Farhan and a Spanish Girl. Both communicate in their languages unfathomable to the other. Intense!

Rating :- 10 Stars out of 5

To play songs from this movie, you may click the Streampad toolbar at the bottom of this window

2011-07-16T22:36:00.000-07:00

HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS - 2

*ing : Daniel Radcliff, Ralph Fiennes, Alan Rickman, Elena Bonham Carter, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint.

At the very start, let me confess : I am not a big fan of the ‘Harry Potter’ Franchise. Neither have I seen the previous editions of the movie so earnestly, nor I have read any of those books. But when the Posters said, ”It all Ends on 7.15", the suspense of the 'End' just pulled me towards the movie. Yes, here I was, going to watch the 8th of the franchise - and the Second of the series - the Deathly Hallows - 2 (to confess again, just to make me familiar with the script, I had downloaded and watched the first part of Deathly Hallows on Friday). The action scenes, as promised were spectacular and the special effects impressive. The 3D version may not look so colorful, but yet, if you may choose to watch it, you got to watch it on 3D.

The story begins as the Three-some, Harry Potter (always handsome Daniel Radcliff), Ron Weasly (Rupert Grint) and Hermione Granger (Emma Watson was gorgeous in this one too) continue their quest - from the earlier story - of finding the Horcruxes which are supposed to give the Dark Lord or the Lord Voldemort his immortality (played brilliantly by Ralph Fiennes). The Horcruxes are small objects or living beings which Harry must destroy one by one (three in this story) to stop Lord Voldemort from gaining access to the Elder Wand and thus immortality.

The final episode in this franchise reveals many unknown facts as also surprises. Here, we learn that Severus Snape (again an wonderful performance by this British Actor, Alan Rickman) - who had killed Albus Dumbledore (the headmaster of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft) - has not been bad after all, but rather is on the good side; ever since Voldemort killed Harry's mother, Lily Potter. There was an apparent love angle between Lily Potter and Snape, or so we are made to understand. It is then that we realise that Harry himself is a Horcrux, created by Voldemort himself, after he kills Lily Potter. Harry himself realises all this, when he attempts to review his memories by using the Pensieve.

This and all that, puts Harry in a spot, that he now realises, in order to stop Voldemort, he must sacrifice himself. The suspense was there all along, as to what happens to Harry Potter in this last episode... Whether he dies? or whether he will continue to live..? Well, now that the movie is released and half of the world has already seen it, I think, I can reveal the plot here. Harry doesn't die, though he decide to sacrifice himself, but manages to destroy Lord Voldemort, and finally gets possession of the Elder Wand. With the magic wand in hand, and having mastered death, he decides to do something else. What he does with the magic wand, is where the whole lesson is… that power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Harry breaks the Elder Wand, and throws it off. The scene is a take back on what Harry’s Grandmother had told him in the very first episode of the movie: “Far more than our abilities Harry, it is our Choices that make us what we truly are…”. Harry had chosen wisely.

The movie ends 19 years later, as a grown-up and Harry and Ron (Harry having married Ron's younger sis, Ginny Weasly and Ron marrying Hermione) see off their children at the station having enrolled them in the Hogwarts.

As with the earlier franchises, this movie, too, has got some nice lines : Sample this, when Albus Dumbledore tells Harry that "It is the quality of your convictions that determine your success...Harry...and not your number of followers..." or "Help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who deserve it...". These surely mean a lot more than what they seem to.

Lastly, the 3D projection system was a disappointment. I had ditched my favorite 3D Screen at the PVR Gold Class in Select City Walk , Saket to try out this new screen at the CineMax, near to a place where I live, but the projection turned out to be pathetic. The visuals were dark and often hazy, and the glasses given were not friendly either. My ears ached, wearing them. Now, as I came back from the movie, I now decide to go all the way to Select City Walk itself, to watch my next 3D movie in the agenda, the '3 Musketeers'.

2011-07-03T18:21:00.000-07:00

THE NEW MEN'S CHAMPION - NOVAK DJOKOVIC

It was not without any reason that I wrote in my previous post, as to whether the Men's game at Wimbledon will see a new Champion or not. Yes, I wanted Novak Djokovic to win the Wimbledon, at Nadal's cost. The reasons were many. Firstly, my favorite Federer is no longer there in contention, and this man, Novak is in his prime form of his life, playing the best tennis. Secondly, Novak would make the first person from his country to win Wimbledon, and last but not the least, by winning, Novak was only trying to live his childhood dream.

The Wimbledon finals had all the drama of an intense tennis match, with both players playing fantastically, and I think at the end, it was Djokovic's fitness and staying power that made the difference between the two. While Nadal attacked all along, Djokovic was contented to restrict himself mostly on the base-line, and waited for his opponent to make mistakes. And Nadal did make mistakes.

In was fitting, in the end, of Djokovic to pluck some grass from the Centre Court and put it in his mouth and chew it. The Centre-Court at Wimbledon surely belongs to him now. At least till the next championships.

2011-07-02T18:51:00.000-07:00

THE 'PETRA'IFICATION OF MARIA SHARAPOVA

Probably, if ever there was a Wimbledon Champion who went on to win the final with the least limelight on her, it was to be Petra Kvitova. This year the Championship was special..and indeed it saw a special champion... someone who was tipped to win...by none other than the great Martina Navaratilova (She was the first Czech woman to win the title).. yeah.. we never believed Martina, when she said about Petra being the dark horse... apart from being the dark horse, she also proved to be the Beautiful Swan of the Tournament. Yes, at the start of the tournament, we heard very little of the name of Petra Kvitova. Now it seems, we will hear this name more often...!!!

All the while, we saw a resurgent Maria Sharapova (at 24 and in her 8th year, she is quite old in ladies tennis), progressing into the final with all the finesse, without losing a set, exhibiting some power tennis (very unlike her)...and here it was on the final, the ever smiling Petra emerged defeat her in straight sets 6-3, 6-4. The scores does not reveal the extent of the game though as there was not much of the difference between the player who refused to age and the player who has now come of age.

On this special year, wee now have a new Wimbledon Ladies Champion, and will we see a new Men's Champion too...? Watch this space... and in the meanwhile, let's cross our fingers in anticipation for a very well fought match between Rafal Nadal and Novak Djokovic.

2010-12-30T23:40:00.000-08:00

Aamir Describing College Life...

2010-09-26T08:04:00.000-07:00

Rajneeti...
the Politics and Beyond

It is often said there exists a story and a movie, from which, one can derive all possible stories ever conceived or all other movie dialogues ever spoken. The story goes by the name of the epic, the Mahabharata and the movie happens to be the 'Godfather' series. Rajneeti is one such attempt where Godfather met the Mahabharatha. Coming from the director of movies like Mrityudand, Gangaajal and Apaharan, Prakash Jha's latest, the Rajneeti is just a political revengre drama set in the backdrop of UP politics.

Seeing the movie, one may believe that Prakash Jha has indeed made the journey from mainstream movies to commercial ones with a list of who's who of acting. Here he tries to mix too many things like revenge, politics and even 'love your family' kind of drama, and ends up highlighting nothing.

The story is about two warring political scions Prithviraj Pratap (played by Arjun Rampal), a character resembling Sonny Corleone in the Godfather and Veerendra Pratap (Manoj Bjpai) fighting for a bloody political legacy. Besides them are a rank outsider Suraj (Ajay Devgan), the cunning mamaji Brij Mohan (Nana Patekar), the character of Tommy Hagen and the reluctant yet manipulating would-be king Samar Pratap (Ranbir Kapoor). There were talks about the movie being based on the First family, the Gandhis but the resemblence lies only in way Prithviraj is assasinated by a suicide bomber and his wife, who constumes resemble that of Sonia Gandhi, succeeds him by winning the election on a sympathetic wave.

Prakash Jha is fully aware that he is remaking an epic and because of this he consciously fills the movie with murder, sex, etc. So Ranbir transforms himself from a romantic victorian poet who recites wordsworth, to the Micheal Corleone in a swift turnaround. Still, while playing the character resembling either Arjun or Micheal Corleone gives quite a restrained preformance but he doesnt have to do much acting as the camera focuses on his face very little, and the very few times it does, he is shown smoking apparently showing teh tension behind the face.

Arju Rampal, the Bheema continues in his method acting techniques and gives a good performance. Both Nana Patekar as Krishna and Manoj Bajpai (in a Duryodha Avtar) does justice to the character they perform, but according to me, the standout was of course Ajay Devgan the Karna, the eternal hero,who always have to live with injustice.

The women characters on the other hand, are pretty loosely tied, as they are either portrayed to look pretty or made a mere pawns in the battle. this way, the performance of Katrina Kaif is pretty ordinary with her only job is to look pretty and add some glamor quotient.

In all, I would say, Rajneeti was a pretty good film, but not the best to warrant a 'must-see'.

2010-09-01T02:02:00.000-07:00

Lamha : The True Story of Kashmir

*ing : Sanjay Dutt, Bipasha Basu, Kunal Kapoor, Anupam Kher
Director : Rahul Dholakia

As Kashmir was burning (and it still does, unfortunately), Rahul Dholakia brings us a movie that promises to reveal the real truth behind the politics of Kashmir but instead only end up widening the gulf between the audience and the filmmaker. The filmmaker though fail to take a definite position here regarding the political overtures which happen in Kashmir and implicates everyone, right from the politicians, to the police, the army, the intelligence agencies in keeping the unrest alive, leaving the audience a confused lot.

Lamha thus, neither does emphasize on Kashmir’s past nor does it spotlight on its present but in fact gives a harsh picture wicked human side. The man on the mission, Sanjay Dutt (an Army Officer from the Intelligence Wing) is sent to the dodgy valley to explore the nitty-gritties of politics in the region and he eventually unearths a plot to create disorder in an already chaotic state. The story told nothing new and emerging to the known Kashmir, there were no real twists or any facts that led to the present day chaos either. Neither there were any hard-hitting statements nor any hinting evidence to the present social corruption.

In the very first viewing, one gets the impression that the film is based on real persons, though the disclaimer at the start implied otherwise. Anupam Kher's character, in the same way is modelled on Syed Ali Shah Geelani, and is the villain of the plot. Rahul Dholakia makes him side with Pakistan and reveals that he had a hand in the murder of the Bipasha's father. Bipasha Basu plays the character resembling Asiya Andrabi, who is a separatist leader who shot to fame with her burqa agitations and acid attacks. Asiya, a hard-line Islamist, has a very marginal voice in the moderate Islam that is practiced in Kashmir. Even then, her character is the centre of the whole drama. Also, by portraying her as self righteous and a woman who is victimised, the director’s objective was pretty confusing. To add further, a woman who propagated the use of burqua in the society, and went about throwing acid on lovers is ironically shown as an object of love in the movie. Kunal Kapoor's character Atif, modeled after Yasin Malik is a reformed militant and believes in elections and democracy. Character of Atif also is unconvincing and the stand he takes in the whole drama is vague.

Despite showing all the rot in the police and the army, Sanjay Dutt after unearthing the sinister designs of the separatists, shoots down a kashmiri kid in the end, saves hundreds of people and upholds the Kashmiriyat. The portrayal of the kids as human bombs has been quite gory to say the least.

If one lesson that could be learnt after watching the ‘untold story of Kashmir’, Lamha is that ‘Never go by the Trailers’ as the promos certainly made huge impact in pulling people like me to watch and witness the current problem of Kashmir. Sorry to say but Lamha was nowhere close to the attention-grabbing thriller I was expecting. It is highly predictable and lacks any suspense element. From the man who gave us the much acclaimed ‘Parzaania’, this movie has been a disappointing offer and an avoidable fare.

2009-08-21T23:49:00.000-07:00

Rock On!

Dir : Abshiek Kapoor, Prod : Farhan Akhtar

*ing : Farhan Akhtar, Arjun Rampal, Prachi Desai, Shahana Goswami, Koel Puri, Luke Kenny

When one has grown up listening to Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd or Eric Clapton, a movie based on the lives and times of rock stars, automatically draws you onto the theatre. If one adds one's own middle life retrospect of one's own career, the theme of idealism verus realitic survival or rather.. a battle of 'what i could have become' and 'what i became', begins to resonate.

This was what exactly happened last weekend or rather when I had that extended weekend - thanks to Independence Day - I could see three classic movies of recent times. The first one was 'A Wednesday', and then on the next day, that truly amazing trendsetting 'Dil Chahta Hei (DCH)' and on the third day, to round off that weekend, the amazingly made 'Rock-On!'. Seeing Rock-on was my second attempt at that movie, and when i finished it, i couldn't help myself from refurbishing my diary note on that movie to this post.

But as I said, its not a movie about rock music. but its about that too.. but its mostly about dreams. the ones that you put away in some long forgotten recesses of your heart hoping you will never find them again simply because of the things that you've lost along the way to make them come true. it tells you its never late to live your dream, and all you need is the courage to pick up where you left off.

The Movie is familiar and not original.. half an hour into the movie, one can see shades of Dil Chahta Hai, Jhankaar Beats or some 70's Hollywood musicals...but it does what it intends to do.. to get ur sympathy for the protagonists...you end up enjoying the music and feel you shud do a session of jamming urself...and as said earlier.. the movie is familiar.. it touches our chords too...! and at another level.. it is a movie which inspires you to live life again...as the motiff of movie suggest 'Live your dream'...! when i said the characters are etched on the same canvas as DCH, there is a difference too.. they are more mature this time and reality of life has occured to them. But still somewhere along the line, it fails to match DCH which rather became a cult classic. a movie which gen y can claim as their own.

.. it is a movie all 30 somethings will identify with coz it is only when in you a certain age that you sometimes realise that you hae given up things you were passionate about, just because they werent meant to be for reasons only youth and its vagaries can explain.

Performances are the strongest point in this movie.. if u take the new crop of actors that have come up in teh recent times... one name leads the pack.. Arju Rampal..a find of Designer Rohit Bal, He is really come of age..from his model days... and in this movie..Tall, and elan, he brings shades of the old 'Method School of Acting'.. He has the body, the face, the maturity and the grace to carry the role... of the quiet understated and effortless...in the sense that he literally lives the life of the fallen rock star turned struggler... his moves in the rock sessions are just way too perfect.. he literally is a lead guitarits.. both in his body language and his looks..

Whatever farhan does.. or rather did till now.. has always caught out attention.. from his very first movie.. Dil Chahta Hai, thru lakshya to this one.. he literally carries this film on.. he practically does everything here with ease and elan...making every role his own...! he has sung all the songs himself (to cent percent perfection) and defenittely is a better actor than a director...! the particular scene where his hands shiver as he stares himself on teh mirror stands out... if it was the perfections of Arjun Rampal's face and his body language that makes us drool over him, then it is teh imperfections of Farhan's face that make him lovable... He manages to bring his young urbane personality into every role that he plays...!

In a film set on four friends, two female characters keep their feet firmly on.. both Prachi Desai and Shahana Goswami impress and brings themselves across very well... the movie comes a thumbs up due to the performances of its lead actors, subtlety of the theme, and the involvememt of some very talented people around. The movie is defenetly a thumbs up..!

In all.. the movie tells u that life though more adept at dealing you an unfair deal of cards, sometimes gives you a second chance too... and it is a movie that asks whether you will take that second chance or not...

2009-04-12T18:30:00.000-07:00

Delhi-6

It so often goes that once you raise your standards in things you do, you tend to cater to higher expectations in all future endeavors. This is one plain fact, that Rakyesh Om Prakash Mehra should have kept in mind while he made Delhi-6. After creating a trend-setting, movie like Rang De Basanti, his new movie fails to hold the viewers' interest.

But this doesn't take away from the fact that just like Rang De Basanti, this one movie too is socially relevant and carries a message. As the title suggests, Delhi-6 is the pincode of Chandni Chowk, its most crowded, but the most beautiful and varied of places and the film gives a fabulous glimpse of this eternal old delhi market place. The Jelebis, the pigeons, the kite flying, festivals, and monuments are all there both traditionally and modern and we feel, little has changed from the old times. Into this hot-spot comes Abhishek Bachchan who is an NRI with his ailing grandmother who wishes to die in her own place. It doesnt take much time for Abishek to loose his heart to this gorgeous place that he has come into. It is the characters and the harmony of the place that attracts him.

The movies depicts the myriad citizens the Delhi-6 has particularly Hindus and Muslims, living in perfect harmony in an otherwise locality which is pre-dominantly Muslim due to its Mughal Heritage. both the communities co-exist inspite of many differences and the movie is quite contemporary in showing that it doesnt take a large issue to divide people. Mehra uses the 'Kaala Bandar' incident, which happend in Delhi a few years ago. The movie is about how the presence of a 'Kaala bandar' divides the people and how such a trivial issue go on to become a bigger one of 'mandir-masjid'. The film shows us how easy it is to divide people, and when we see it, compare it with the happenings around us of vote bank politics and hate speeches, we feel, the movie is quite relevant and contemporary.

Mehra uses the 'Kaala Bandar' as a metaphor to the 'darker side' that we all have in ourselves. The Kaala bandar is our shadow side which we never identify whith, and which only we can get rid of. Mehra's idea of placing the incidents and characters here, side by side with those of a 'Ramleela' staged in the area (which actually is neof the most famous Ramleela that happens in Delhi in the Ramleela maidan) is spot on and is refreshing.

But again, on the other side, such a presence of some of the best people in business and you crave for more and here the movie disappoints a little. You sit expecting a kind of 'viewer-hijack' that one could feel in Rang De Basanti. It's onlywhen you are well into halfway of the movie that you realise that the moment is not going to come, and one is left hoping for a nice scene or a song. This is where he fails to capture the attention of the viewer for much of the time.

I would here applaud the casting director (so important these days, with 'Slumdog Millionaire', where in Loveleen Tandon was elavated to the status of Co-director from Casting Director by Danny Boyle), whose character selection of Om Puri and Pawan Malhotra (the warring brothers in the neighborhood), Aditi Rao (the elder sister of Sonam), Divya Dutta (The untouchable for all, but still the boys in the area wants her to teach them Driving), Atul Kulkarni (the dumbo, who gets his moment of realisation in the end) and last by not the least, Waheeda Rehman (as the ailing grandmother) is spot on. It would be true to say that after films like Dil Chahta Hei, or Rang De Basanti or Rock On, Bollywood has discovered the nuances of 'Method-Acting' these days and this movie is ample proof of the same. Also, one has to applaud the efforts of AR Rehman in creating two of the most hummable songs in recent times ... the 'Masaakali matarkali... " and "...Sasural Ghenda Phool..." Both the songs are national anthems nowadays and the popularity can be seen from the statistics which say that both the songs are somehow the most favoured songs for 'Caller Tunes' and 'Ring Tones'. AR Rehman truly lives up to his image of an Oscar Winner in this, which sadly, he never did with his 'Slumdog Millionaire'. 'Jai Ho' AR Rehman!

All in all, Delhi-6 is a good movie, it is a must watch clean movie with a message rather a social message, but still, having carried the weight and expectations of Rang De Basanti, Rakesh Omprakash Mehra disappoints here inspite of the touching poetic flow and the characters.

Stand-out Scene : The scene where the young girl Sonam Kapoor who is clad in Salwar Kameez all through the movie, change into western dress in a public toilet and aspire to become an 'Indian Idol'. May be the director wanted to show women's emancipation or how we indians inspite of all the 21st century train ride, are still orthodox when it comes to family and social settings.

Avoidable Scenes : The scene where a 'would-be-dead' Abhishek Bachchan converses with his late great gradfather (in the movie) in heavan, Amitabh Bachchan. This was purely nonsense, as it just felt like an attempt to bring Amitabh into the credit rolls.

Director : Rakyesh Omprakash Mehra

Starring : Abishek Bachchan, Sonam Kapoor, Om Puri, Pawan Malhotra, Deepak Dobriyal, Aditi Rao, Waheeda Rehman, Atul Kulkarni and Divya Dutta

Music and Lyrics : AR Rehman and Prasoon Joshi

2009-03-02T07:02:00.000-08:00

Throbbing Contest!

Yesterday, after a very long time, i was spending my time with my first girlfriend...(Ya.. my first girlfriend is not a girl, its the game of cricket)...ya i was watching South Africa playing Aussies in the back-to-back test series... and its the first test of the series that the rainbow country is hosting after defeating the aussies in their home turf. The last three in which the first two were won by africans and the last oen by aussies, and this one.. has been a contest between two superbly matched teams. In these last four tests, the change of momentum has been extraordinary, in the way the match was see-sawing... One nevery knew what to expect in teh next delivery or the next over....!!!! the match was hanging both ways every session after session...

In all, one man towers among the game..and the players who were involved.. and it is Jacques Kallis... be it bowling, Batting, or slip catching... yesterday as i was watching the match, Kallis being the stock bowler he is, came to bowl, as always to give a break thru...but he came up wiht three wkts in five balls... and lo, the match had swung their way...!!! will this trigger an australian collapse and a possible win for SA? a la harbhjan...???

when matched against the stat, kallis' talent has always been wasted or ratherthe man never did justice to hsi talent with the numbers he has agaisnt his name... But he stil plays..and continues playing in the way he wants.. a great cricketer perhaps has his eye on the world-cup and also perhaps to take the tag of being teh greatest all rounder the world has ever seen...may be.. even better than gary sobers...!!!!

2008-11-06T06:53:00.000-08:00

TRIBUTE TO MICHEAL CRICHTON

Today, around noon, Micheal Crichton was no more...! he was one of those writers who enthralled me with his books and movies. Now that story has ended. Cancer has taken his life.

We all die a little when we loose our dear ones. today, when i heard this piece of news, i too died a little. May his soul rest in peace!

2008-04-06T19:10:00.001-07:00

Tribute to Charlton Heston!

...I was 12 when I first saw Ten Commandments. Since then - for the last 18 years, one character has refused to die from the memories! It was Heston's Moses...the imagery of he walking through the ocean, splitting it into two, with both his hands thrown up has likewise enchanted millions of cinema lovers.

Yesterday, April 5, Charlton Heston became immortal, and and though he will live on through the roles he played, it will be a true loss to all movie lovers who enjoyed watching him playing cameo and heroic roles all through his career!

Heston's characteristic was in playing epic heroes like the Moses, his title role in Ben-Hur (for this role he won an Oscar), or Mark Antony in 'Julius Ceasar' and 'Antony and Cleopatra'!

He continued to enthrall movie lovers like me with his roles in Omega Man, The Agony and the Ecstasy (where he played Michaelangelo), and Earthquake. The last I got a chance to see him in action was in 'True Lies' where he played big boss in the Super Spy agency Sector' and the remade 'Planet of the Apes ', where he played the dying aged chimpanzee....! Both of them were indeed cameo roles which brought out the exuberance in him even at this age.

From today onwards, we, all movie buffs, will be one actor poorer on whom we were proud of! Charlton Heston will be missed, at the same time, he continues to live through this immortal roles!

2008-01-19T20:14:00.000-08:00

The Perth Win...and Kumble....

...The word historic has been "brandied" a thousand times, but i have absolutely no qualms in calling this victory exactly that, for its just HISTORIC!

...after the sydney happenings, some of the people, if they were the captain, would have cracked. Kumble stood firm, with steely nerves and rock solid bone. For him, to lift the team from the dumps was a lot more easier than others who would have cracked. His quote after the sydney test 'There was only one team playing in the true spirit of the game' was a great line. He said many things in that one line. When someone of the stature of Kumble says such, everybody sits up and notice. Its not often that Kumble speaks everyday. So when he said it, it needs to be noticed. Even the aussie media and people felt though their team may be unassailable, they play their game in the most aggressive and nastiest way which was beyond their 'developed culture'. Anyhow... hats off to the team which played its mind-games, board games, and finally the field game itself in the most appropriate way.

...A shortened version of this post is published on http://www.hindu.com/2008/01/22/stories/2008012254921003.htm

2007-11-27T09:09:00.000-08:00

Ira Levin (27.08.1929 - 12.11.2007)

We all die a little when we loose our dear ones... On Nov 12, 2007, I too died a little. Ira Levin is no more.... he was one of the most exciting horror novelists of our times... be it his first novel 'A Kiss before Dying', or 'Rosemary's Baby' or 'The Boys from Brazil' or 'Stepford wives' or his latest one 'Son of Rosemary'... he continued to thrill and make us shudder with its emotional horror... may he live till eternity through his books....

2007-11-26T07:59:00.000-08:00

Om Shanti Om!

*ing : Shah Rukh, Deepika Padukone, Arjun Rampal, Shreyas Thalpade, Kirron Kher and Bindu
Director : Farah Khan

someone famously remarked once... "if you can laugh at yourself, then who else can laugh at you?"...The chutzpah called 'Om Shanti Om', with all those lavish sets and canvas could be termed as Farah Khan's honest attempt towards jusitifying the above quote.

..and quite truly too...the film spares no one...and the film spares no bollywood genre and theme as well...so we have a whole spectre of actors...whether original or spoofs...including the amazingly looking bindu and the manoj kumar spoof walkign in front of us...the movie has in it every theme bollywood has ever attempted... love, mother-son relationship, item numbers, dreams and ambitions, revenge, re-incarnation all cock-tailed together to reach a happy ending....

shah rukh fills the frame from the start to finish...even if that means he should die half-way through...so that he be born again to take revenge on his killers...and of course he is re-born to fulfill his dream of becoming a star, winnin a film-fare award...and inorder to achieve this dream...he keeps echoing the urniversal truth every now and then...that "if u wish for something so strong enough, then the whole world conspires to give if to you...."

the role fits him to a tee...probably because..the character demands a lot of overacting... and he is the master of over-acting... kiron kher too overacts, but with her, one always know where she crosses the line..adn where she is within....but with SRK, one never knows... and his acting is all in his facial pranks....not even his eyes move..!!!!

...so actors like shreyas thalpade and arjun rampal as teh villain steals the limelight from him. a little about deepika too...ths doe-eyed beauty is having an awesome debut...she is winsome and makes a genuine attempt at making the movie quiet winsome too....she is quite retro-sexy and can give priyanka chopra a run for her money on any day...keepign that aside... anachronically, i personally thought she was too skinny a girl for a 70's heroine (her character in the film is that of a 70's heroine, shantipriya)

with this theme, spoofing actors and likes... bollywood laughs at itself... even the title credits at the end of the movie leaves out no one...from farah khan to the last spot boy...everyone features in this skit and all are given their due... the film is a thumbs up...and as said...when the whole bollywood laughs at itself.. no one else can laugh at it... and we all, men and women alike... are tempted to "put our hands up and say...Om Shanti Om"