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Umrao Jaan (2006)
well done
I saw the original movie when I was 10 back in 1982. Remakes of a successful film are always difficult because to many they will never live up to ones expectations. This one by JP Dutta was a great effort. Aishwariya looked and acted great and Abhishek had a haunting presence. And Shabana Azmi is her usual excellence. The music is wonderful - Anu Malik's stuff here is reminiscent of his "Refugee" soundtrack (which overall was better) but there are some real gems here especially "Tumhari mehfil mai aa gai hai" (gives me shivers). For many of us this movie will be nothing new - if you have seen the original or "Pakeezah" or even "Memoirs of a geisha". But it there are new and younger audiences out there who really should give it a try.
Cachorro (2004)
Charming
A friend recently lent me a DVD of "Bearcub" that he got in Europe and I must say that I enjoyed it. It starts out a startlingly with three "bears" having a threesome but then evolves into a moving realistic tale of Pedro who cares for his young nephew Bernardo while his hippie sister travels to India. It is well directed and acted. I expected some thing quite B-grade but this was quite charming. Note I believe that the actor who played Pedro is "Jose Luis Garcia Perez". David Castillo who plays young Bernardo is amazingly credible - and there are some mature conversations between him and his uncle about sexuality (Bernardo's mum believes that he is gay too). There are some good characterizations of Pedro's lovers and friends; the babysitter and other neighbors as well as Bernardo's paternal grandmother who tries to gain custody of him.
Henna (1991)
Mediocre movie
Have just seen Henna and it does not date very well. The story has been better told before and since (Refugee; Veer Zaara; Earth) and Henna is clichéd and predictable. Zeba seems clumsy in the dance scenes although she has some charm - too bad the direction, acting and choreography is so poor. I usually like RK Films but Randhir Kapoor could not match his father's hand in direction (Prem Granth was a little better because of Madhuri's performance). And poor Ashwini Bhave had to wear those awful clothes in those earlier scenes. And Chintu in those white pants (Yes I know it was the fashion at the time but it made his butt look even bigger). The village scenes were quite pretty although marred by a hackneyed script My 5 out of 10 is a sympathy vote considering that it is 15 years old.