Day 49, 31 Movies so far

Disclaimer: We've been travelling for the past 3 weeks, so my schedule has been thrown completely out of whack. In the interest of time and my fingers, I'm going to cover the next couple of films as briefly as possible. The blog will be back to steam post this entry.

The Proposal

Surprised the hell out of me. I didn't expect to enjoy this at all, but did - at least till the final act where it gets reduced to horrible cliches and a completely implausible finale. Still, the going is good till then, and it features great comedic timing from Bullock and Reynolds.

Das Experiment

I loved this film. It follows an experiment where everyday Joe's are put into a prison setting, with half of them playing the guards, and the other half, the prisoners. Needless to say, things go horribly wrong, when the players begin to take their roles a little too seriously. This film pulls no punches & is creepy in the max. Its greatest strength (I think) is that, it doesn't take the easy way out and use a dumb plot point to ratchet up the tension. Instead, the film slow boils at an even pace, with every escalation played out subtly, till the end when the drama becomes almost unbearable. A fantastic film, with fantastic performances.

Hearts of Darkness

I've wanted to watch this for years, and am thrilled, that I finally got the chance to do so. A docu, following the making of Apocalypse Now, the film is intimate and harrowing all at once. If you thought that film was filled with drama, wait till you watch his documentary. For the casual viewer, its filled with cool trivia, but on a much deeper level, it acts as a chronicle of Coppola's descent to madness while making the movie. Sample this: During the making of the film, Martin Sheen suffered a heart attack, and Coppola (in his own words), screamed "He ain't dead till I say he's dead". They didn't even have a finished script and Copolla drew nth minute inspiration from a local cattle sacrifice, to figure out the end to his film.

This is a must watch. For fans of the film, this documentary is a testament to the blood and sweat that went into creating the masterpiece. If you haven't seen Apocalypse Now (why!?!?), its the ultimate reality show.

Waltz with Bashir

Waltz with Bashir is pure poetry. Nothing I can say will justify how great, a film I think it is. So I won't. Please watch this. It will change the way you see documentaries, or animated films for that matter.

My Sassy Girl

I'm convinced that there was an interesting film in here somewhere. It just wasn't for me. The film is built a burgeoning love story, which in turn is built around more and more ridiculous plot turns. Unfortunately, he final 'twist', intended to explain the prior going ons is so vapid and weak, that the rest of the film just falls flat. Like I said, not for me, and not for most others, I'd think.

Hitman

Its ironic that a game that burdens its player with realism and thoughtful game play would turn out to be such an exaggerated, brainless piece of crap. In short - I loved the game, HATED the movie. Avoid this like the plague.

REC

REC's a good movie and it has enough scares to keep you on the edge of your seat. But for me, having seen a bunch of similar movies before (Blair Witch, Cloverfield etc.), I thought it didn't bring anything new. If you're going to tread familiar ground, you owe it to the viewer to show us something we haven't seen before. This film didn't do it. So, a good horror movie, but I've seen better. Manuela Velasco's performance is really good though.

3 Men and a Little Lady

In my defense, we were in Hong Kong, I couldn't sleep and there was nothing else on. This movie is just plain terrible. OTT performances, a pretentious script and corny cliches. I looked it up and the film was made by Emile Ardolino who also directed Dirty Dancing. Figures.

Evil

Evil is great! (Sorry couldn't resist) Seriously, I loved this film. It follows the lives of boys in a boarding school, and the politics of bullying and power play between the seniors & juniors there. Its really gripping stuff, and like the bullies featured in it, the movie rarely takes its foot off your throat. But beyond being a great thriller, the movie also has several themes in the undercurrent. The hero, Erik Ponti doesn't just fight off the bullies. He rebels against hateful politics, and a society that demands conformity without question. If only, we all had his strength and tenacity.

The Talented Mr. Ripley

This is amongst my top 10 of all time. It is the Hitchcockian film of our time. It gets everything right - a fantastic, nail biter of a plot, great performances (Matt Damon has never been better) , beautiful cinematography, elegant editing and an awesome soundtrack. This is a film whose beauty, is only contrasted by the complicated, layered and twisted Ripley. There's a little bit of him in all of us and that's what makes him so scary. Its too bad Anthony Minghella isn't around anymore. It would have been awesome to see his take on a possible sequel, rather than the follow up trash that's been making its way to a discount DVD bin near you.

Day 27, 21 movies so far

New York

Wow! Times of India actually gave this piece of crap 4 stars?!?!

Bollywood's always trying to be 'different'. by that they mean, they will make a film about a non existent love triangle, involving 3 friends, 2 of whom are married, and one of whom is a suspected terrorist who's master plan is to blow up a building, while he's standing on top of it. What a mess! Completely devoid of tension or coherence, the film rambles on - the story being an excuse to fill in the gap between songs that seem to go on forever. What makes this worse, is that all the actors seem convinced that they are contributing to the greater good, and living up to some higher artistic aspiration. Sadly, they couldn't be more wrong. Between John Abraham's screaming bouts, and Katreena Kaif's hilarious attempt at sustaining her American accent, you just can't find the emotional core of the film. Niel Nitin Mukesh, tries hard and I'd expect more from him. At least on the surface, his character's conflict seems interesting. Maybe he just stopped caring during the production, when he realized how the movie was destined to turn out. Irfaan as usual, is stellar - being the only one who brings any sense of irony to the proceedings.

Kabir Khan's previous effort was the equally bad 'Kabul Express'. At least that film didn't take itself so seriously. This movie is just plain terrible - it makes you wish that the producer's strike went on a little longer.

17 Again

I saw this on a plane, because there was nothing better to watch. I wish I hadn't.

American Gangster

American Gangster is an amazing film. That's a no brainer. I've seen it a couple of times, and it only gets better with each viewing. The plot is fantastic and Russell Crowe and Denzel Washington are on top form here. Like every Ridley Scott film, its strengths lie in pacing, editing and cinematography. I can't help but gush about this movie enough. Which brings me to my next point - Why am I always rooting for Frank Lewis?

Denzel's Washington's Frank Lewis is the consummate underdog. The driver to a mob boss, he rises through the ranks, with commitment, ingenuity and perseverance. Before long, he's got half the Italian mob working for him, owns a couple of clubs, and living in a lap of luxury. But make no mistake - he's a drug lord with serious psychotic undertones. In an amazing scene in the film, Frank seething with anger at his cousin's behaviour at a party, finally snaps, yanking him into a grand piano and bashes his head in. His brand of drug, 'Blue Magic', runs rampant all across New York, but the effects of this are barely skimmed upon, the focus staying primarily on his success. Its as if it doesn't matter how amoral his actions are, as long as he succeeds. Frank's redemption arrives with his act of snitching on his police contacts and serving jail time. But more importantly, Ridley Scott attempts to hold up a mirror to the character, in an amazing scene where his mom, played by Ruby Dee finally confronts him about his actions.

So, make what you will of the film. My minor quibble apart, the film is littered with brilliant scenes, and fantastic performances from all involved. (I particularly love Josh Brolin's smarmy detective)

Ice Age 3

I had zero expectations from this film, and was pleasantly surprised. The plot is wafer thin, and cliched, but the film more than makes up in the animation department. Seriously - most scenes were inventive, and the action set pieces were really well animated. Having said that, I think that the best thing about the film was Simon Pegg's Buck - a deranged weasel with a vendetta against a huge dinosaur called Rudy. Its now official - Pegg can do no wrong! The man's a genius! His Buck is a strange amalgamation of Steve Erwin and Mad Max, and is by far the most entertaining thing in the film. The rest of the film is pretty kid friendly, so if that raises alarm bells in your head, its probably not for you. Still, go in with an open mind and you might not be disappointed.

Day 14, 17 Movies so far

The Terminator

I first saw Terminator when I was 8 years old. I remember it blowing my mind – it was unlike anything I’d seen before. It’s been a while since I’ve watched this, and I only had one question in my mind – had it aged well?
The answer is yes and no. The franchise now seems infused with Schwarzenegger. His performance drives the myth surrounding the film. The good news is that, this still works. Lets face it – he’s no Brando, but who else could’ve played a robot with this much sincerity & fun? I can’t think of anyone else in this role. It’s really his quirkiness and unpredictability that gives the movie its legs. The other thing that still works is the plot – it’s still surprising, and I’m sure that had this story not been told already, it would make a great film today.
Other than that, the film is filled with cheesy dialogue, a labored love story and wooden performances. But the biggest revelation was the special effects. Ironically, the big ticket when the film first released, was the climactic reveal of the Terminator, for what he truly is. Unfortunately, this just seems clumsy now, with the stop motion T 800 chasing Sarah & Kyle through the factory. Similarly, a scene I remember vividly was where Arnold pulls out his eye to repair it. But on this viewing, I noticed that the close ups use an animatronics face. The result is jarring and takes you out of the experience.
So, watch it to relive the sense of awe you felt, when you first watched it. Just don’t expect it run the entire run time of the film.

Twilight

Maybe, I’m too old for this kind of film, but I don’t see what the big deal is all about. While it turned teenagers the world over, into raging lunatics, it did absolutely nothing for me. Truth be told, I couldn’t sit through the entire film, stopping it around the point, where Edward Cullen finally tells Bella what the rest of the world knew already – he’s a vampire! But isn’t he the ‘undead’? Kirsten Stewart’s pretty, but she wears 2 expressions throughout the film – sullen and depressed. Occasionally, she’ll throw a little ‘dour’ in there, just to give the scene more depth. Get over yourself! Robert Pattinson’s got charisma – I’ll give him that. But even that will only take the film so far. For teenagers, they seem pretty labored in their love for each other, and after an hour or so of watching the leads take themselves so seriously, you can’t bring yourself to do the same for the film.

A Good Year

Its taken me a while to get to this film. I dismissed it as fluff (without watching it), when it first came out, and never got around to watching it. Having finally seen it, I really regret my earlier decision.

The story is a bit of a cliche - a snobby trader who has no redeeming qualities about himself, returns to the idyllic setting of his childhood, to rediscover the joy of simpler things and eventually - love. But the film is more than just that. Russel Crowe has a penchant for taking flat characters and breathing life into them. This is no different. His Max Skinner is someone you can't help but hate and root for, in equal measure. The subtleties in this quite performance are wonderful. The same goes for Albert Finney. I wonder if it was really as it looked. Playing the mentor to Max, he feeds the role with enough warmth, humor and love to make him real - like someone you'd know (or wish you did) in your family. Similalry, the cast is rounded out with good turns from Marion Cotillard, Tom Hollander and Didier Bourdon.

The other heroes of this piece are Ridley Scott and his cinematographer, Philip Le sourd. Its rare to see a film that looks this beautiful. Everything about the vineyard is warm and brown, as apposed to the grey, depressing, London. Everything has a heightened sense of aesthetic - a used wine glass, a half smoked cigar, a dinner in an outdoor cafe, even an ink bottle is somehow removed from ordinary life. It works beautifully in making Max's transition not only believable, but aspirational.

Like the analogy in the title, the film is sweet, unhurried and calm. Its definitely a film I will be checking out again.

Good

I hate it when films like this don’t work. Well… to be fair, don’t work entirely.
The film follows John Halder, played by Viggo Mortensen. His character begins as a devout family man and idealist scholar. Set in the times of the Nazi rise to power in Germany, he staunchly apposes the party and everything it stands for. Overtime, he is gradually drawn into the party and rises through the ranks to become a senior party member, finally realizing the results of his action, but being too late to do anything about it.

Viggo Mortensen and Jason Issac offer stellar performances as John and his Jewish friend, Maurice. The dinner scene, where Issac’s character begs for an exit permit is fantastic. Likewise, the amazing finale where John finally realizes what his actions have led to. Scenes like this, prove Viggo’s skill. His performance is heart breaking and infuriating, all at the same time, and is one that will remain with you long after the film is over.

Unfortunately, the film seems satisfied in painting John Halder as an individual, who is happy to go with the flow. His transition from committed academician to adulterer to Nazi party member is rushed, and in to some degree, unfounded. Is the yearning for freedom from his family, so great that he is willing to submit to a new, wholly different life – one that goes against everything he believes in? Well, the film offers not reflection from his character on this subject – maybe this is the film’s undoing. It concentrates far more on his spiral to hell, than on what triggered this, in the first place. And one can’t help but believe that that would have made a far more interesting film.

A Chump at Oxford

When I was 10, I caught chicken pox. The only good thing about that was that I got to stay out of school for a couple of weeks and watch movies all day long. I did a whole Laurel & hardy marathon, and I loved it.

A Chump at Oxford is so much fun, it should be illegal. Like most comedies of the time, the story is episodic and more like brief vignettes strung together to make a film. It follows the familiar Stan & Ollie recipe which is always a good thing. The real departure is Stan Laurel playing a character other than Stanley. On being hit on the head, he recalls being Lord Paddington who is impeccably cultured, well read and impossibly strong – in short, nothing like anything he’s played before. It’s a hoot! If you’re in the mood for a few belly laughs and all round good times, this definitely worth a revisit.

Transformers – The Revenge of the Fallen

I wasn’t disappointed by this film, because I had limited expectation from it anyway.
I must be one of the few people who thought the first film was pretty average. Sure, ILM did a fantastic job with the special effects, but unfortunately there’s more to a film than just that. Transformers (I), was a really good ‘Giant Robot’ film, but it wasn’t the Transformers as I remembered them. I don’t remember Optimus being such a wuss, Megatron sounding like Agent Smith and the other Transformers shaped like things that come out of a metal compacter. Most importantly, I thought it was plain dull. In fact, I thought that Shia Le Boeuf was one of the better things in the film – he really held it together, and gave the story some context and more importantly – character and humanity.

Now, coming to the 2nd film, if your thing is watching cars, planes & bikes turn into robots and beat the living crap out of each other, boy! Are you in luck. The film delivers huge, jaw dropping action set pieces – and never lets up. Seriously, Michael bay has an explosion fetish – there’s no other way to put it. The action in this film (particularly the China and the forest scenes), are unbelievable. I was also pleased to see some of the more important Autobots and Decepticons show some more depth (?). Optimus is back to being the noble, fearless leader, Bumble Bee is the ever loyal friend, Soundwave sounds exactly like he did in the cartoon, Starscream is a sniveling, backstabbing goon & Jetfire, the cranky, geriatric Decepticon, turned good . If the film was left to just this, it might’ve succeeded in spades.

Unfortunately, Bay does several things to ruin this for us. Firstly, he dreams up a weird story that involves a beaten villain called, ‘The Fallen’ and a plot to destroy the Sun, using the Giza Pyramids which are half an hour away from the monastery at Petra – yes, its THAT lame. The 2nd thing he does is, seemingly lacking confidence in what is an otherwise efficient summer event film, he litters the film with enough toilet humor and sex jokes to make even 13 year olds, roll their eyes. Really – a robot that wants to get it with Megan Fox!? Really – a robot with testicles!? Really – a Decepticon that can disguise it self as a hot college student?! Really – gay dogs?!?! And finally, I’m not an African American, but I was offended by ‘The Twins’ – talk about racial stereotyping. Another thing that didn’t work for me, was the human character arcs. With the robots bashing each other in, and the world about to end, did I really care if Sam tells Mikaela that he loves her, or that Sam’s folks make it alive through the climactic battle or if Major Lenox gets his command back? Apparently not. But, who does? They’re just getting in the way of all the fun. In fact, if anything, these subplots serve no other purpose than to slow the pace of the film, and increase the run time by another 45 minutes. One notable human character is John Turturro’s Agent Simmons.

Transformers 2, is a very strange cocktail. While the action is super fun, it gets weighed down with unnecessary melodrama and humor. While it’s marginally better than its predecessor, it’s no where near as great as it has the potential to be. So entertaining, but impossibly dumb.

Day 8, 9 movies so far

“The Hangover”

On the surface, ‘The Hangover’, looks like a run of the mill, average, ‘guy-comedy’. We’ve seen this stuff a million

times before and there’s no way, anyone’s going to show us anything new…. Boy, was I wrong!

You HAVE to watch this movie. Todd Philips, whose career highlights include Road Trip and Old School, shows a return to form with this film. I haven’t laughed so loud, & so long, in a long time. The movie is outrageous, irreverent and most importantly – insanely fun

ny! Its one of those films where you think you know what’s going to happen next, but you never see what’s coming next. The cast, including Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms & Zack Galifianikis are great and play well off each other. Zack, particularly really reminded me of John Belushi. The film is also peppered throughout with cameos – Ken Joeng, specifically, is hilarious. All in all, the movie was a hoot – remember the first time you saw Animal House? Expect something close to that.

“Munnabhai MBBS”

I was switching channels the other day and caught this again. I love this film. Raju Hirani’s film belongs in the 50’s. It harks back to the simple emotions, values & tastes that we as Indians, seem nostalgic about, but have sadly lost. Sanjay Dutt, who I normally avoid, was born to play this role. Maybe it’s the regret in his life, coupled with his roguish exterior, but he is Munnabhai. He plays him as a lovable, mischievous and naïve hood & given his stature and build, that’s a stellar achievement. There’s sweetness at his core, and I’m still puzzled about that. He is

also fortunate, in that, he surrounded by other able actors. Particular stand outs include Arshad Warsi, Boman Irani and the late, Sunil Dutt. Sanjay Dutt’s scenes with his father are tinged with just enough irony, not to make it exploitative. Well directed, well written and well acted – you can’t go wrong with this movie.

“Thuruppu Gulan”

Listen – I’m no elitist but this movie was just the pits! I get it – there are those who like these kinds of movies. The over the top, crass, action filled, ‘masala’ films. I am, on occasion, one of those people. But this film fails on multiple levels. Mammootty’s performance borders on buffoonery – his single hook being the Kozhikode accent. Something has to be said for cinematography and styling in this film – its as if, someone ate a dozen bananas, a box of strawberries & drank buckets of Gelusil and threw up all over the set and actors! The plot too, is riddled with inconsistencies, and it doesn’t help that a major location in the film, meant to be a 5 star hotel, looks like any bungalow in Kerala.

To be fair, the film has a few good moments, but the film hardly rises to the standards of the kind of film it aspires to be. Say what you will about this particular brand of film, but when made well, they have an element of social commentary, are immensely entertaining and warrant repeat viewing. Ironically, ‘Thuruppu Gulan’, reminds you of a time when Malayalam films were great – they had something to say about the lives of average Malayaless, and did so, in a sophisticated and non-condescending manner. How the mighty have fallen.

“Vettam”

Priyadarshan, once made some of the best Malayalam films – I wonder what happened to him. Off late, he’s been reduced to a hack, remaking every mildly successful film he can get his hands on. His whole Hindi movie career is testament to this, and I can’t help but resent him for this.

Vettam is perhaps a step in the right direction. I don’t think it completely achieves what it set out to, but it’s a pretty good effort. Vaguely reminiscent of ‘French Kiss’ and Priyadarshan’s debut, ‘Poochakkoru Mookuthi’, the film follows a myriad of interconnected storylines, involving a jilted lover, a stolen necklace and a wedding in progress (amongst numerous others). While the plot can be a little confusing, the pay off is pretty cool. Priyadarshan’s eye for comedy framing too, is back in some sense & performances are consistent.

So, why am I not going to be watching this again any time soon? I’ve been thinking about that & I think it boils down to potential. With so many subplots running through the film, you’d think that at least one would have you rolling on the floor, breathless & hugging your sides. No such luck. The movie’s amusing in parts. But, you’d expect to be rewarded for following its break neck pacing, and this is where this film falters. Secondly, Malayalam comedies are becoming more and more ‘packaged’, with the same set of actors, servicing similar plots, time and again. There’s a certain sense of déjà vu that I couldn’t shake off. So, a good film no doubt, but no where as good as I wanted it to be.

Day 4, 5 Movies so far

"Dark City"

Dark City, released back in the 90's, heralded the arrival of Alex Proyas. It was widely acclaimed and has developed a cult following since its release. Well ... I didn't think it was that great. Sure, its visually unique, & features some really cool fx, but overall it was pretty average.

The biggest issue I had with the film is that its never equal to or greater than the sum of its parts. Individual scenes are great, but there's little holding the film together. The pace too, is rushed, jumping between scenes constantly, without really letting you get to know the characters. Speaking about characters, the performances are horribly marred by the editing. (wait till you watch Kiefer Sutherland in this - the guy is a ham factory!) The film also has a naivete about it, reminiscent of sci fi films form the 50's - when the Strangers (watch the film to find out more) 'tune' their reality, the director actually shows them doing it, as if you wouldn't believe it otherwise! The third act ends well though, with a spectacular conclusion - in some ways, this redeemed the film for me.

All in all, the film has a unique visual style and some interesting themes & ideas but little else that I could recommend.

"Best in Show"

Christopher Guest is a genius. No question. He makes a particular kind of film, but makes it extremely well.

This one's almost as good as his previous effort, 'Waiting for Guffman'. What, it lacks in the over the top quality of the latter, 'Best in Show' makes up in subtlety. This mocumentary, based on contestants at a dog show, in insightful, hilarious & touching all at the same time. Each of the key characters are memorable - stand outs being Micheal Hitchcock and Parker Posey's high strung and continuously squabbling couple. The film also has a free wheeling style, every scene seeming ad-libbed and improved. It's to the director's credit that he's able to keep context to the proceedings, while keeping it really entertaining. You have to watch this, and while you're at, why not get a Christopher Guest triple bill going, with 'This is Spinal Tap' and 'Waiting for Guffman'.

Day 2, 3 movies so far

"Sólo con tu pareja"

Few things are more exciting to me, than discovering a great movie by myself. Before you read about them, and before anyone else, said they were great - you discovered this for yourself!

"Sólo con tu pareja", is one such example. I'd never heard about it before, but it's directed by Alfonso Cuaron and that's never a bad thing. This is his directorial debut, and he then went on to make awesome films like Y tu mama tambien and Children of Men. Compared to his later work, this film's much more light hearted - its an out and out comedy (like Woody Allen's earlier films) and features a Lothario, who suddenly has the tables turned on him. The pace, like the dialogue is frenetic. The film never takes it self seriously, gives you little time to breathe & leaves you in stitches right through. Each frame is lovingly shot and displays Alfonso's eccentric sense of composition.

If you're in the mood for a fun (and racy) film of considerable quality, to unwind after a stressful day at work, this is a movie, I'd really recommend.

Day 1, 2 Movies so far

"The Devil's Backbone"

Ok, so I'm beginning with an awesome film. Guillermo Del Toro's probably one of the most imaginative directors out there - a real autre, who's films drip with the love of cinema. There aren't enough good things to say about this movie. The performances are fantastic - especially from Eduardo Noreiga, FedericoLuppi and Fernando Tielve. The cinematography reflects the mood swings in the film beautifully and the CGI is so subtle it only enhances the viewing experience. (Mr. Lucas - please take note).

All in all, I can't recommend this film strongly enough. Its rare to find a simple story, told with so much depth and sensitivity & that's saying a lot about a horror film.

"Heavy Metal"

For the uninitiated, Heavy Metal was a fantasy/sci fi comic book from the mid '70's. It featured outrageous stories, ultra violent action & nude, boxum women - in short, good times! The film based on the comic was produced by Ivan Rietman and has developed into a cult classic over the years. Its not surprising why - while this animated film barely manages to string together 4 or 5 stories, it is purely escapist fun, and feeds the geek fantasy in all of us. The animation too, isn't bad. In fact, each story features a different animation style, and is mildly entertaining in themselves. The voice acting is patchy, but features the talents of John Candy, Harold Ramis & Eugene Levy, amongst others. So, it isn't really up there with the greats, but its really fun. Just don't let the 'animated' tag fool you - this definitely, isn't for kids.