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Across the Ocean (2019)
A genial coming of age indie with an impressive Apoorva Bose.
Across The Ocean (2019) by Uma Kumarapuram and Nicole Donadio. An intercutting dual-narrative dramedy about two dreamers, made by two seeming dreamers making their directorial debut -sitting around nine thousand odd miles apart across two continents in their respective home countries- in India and the USA.
A genial coming of age indie with a dual storyline centered on two women, from India and the USA respectively, told in a mutually exclusive approach. From Kerala, we have Nila, who's obsessed with her fascination for relocating herself to the USA. And from America, we have Holly, who's constantly intrigued about India. Both of them works in the IT sector and both of them have their own kind of cultural and personal odds to fight before realizing their respective destinations.
It may have not broken any new grounds in terms of storytelling and yet it makes for a pleasant laid-back watch, especially for how the two protagonists are fleshed out with moments that you can identify from the lives around us. And it hardly meanders in its proceedings with an aptly clocked eighty minutes running time as well, while juxtaposing the contrasting scuffles of Nila and Holly. In the acting department, after her noteworthy presence in 'Hey Jude' (Malayalam), it's Apoorva Bose who impresses you the most here and shows yet again that she's a true natural -- while making the happy go lucky Nila so relatable.
Waiting (2015)
A Heartfelt Masterpiece with exceptional performances from Naseeruddin Shah and Kalki Koechlin
What is true love? Is it refusing to allow his better half's ventilator to be shut in hopes of a hopeless miracle despite knowing there's no chance of recovery from her coma -- just to keep her alive and be around her -- or is it accepting the inevitable in letting her go without making her suffer anymore? Is it refusing to give consent to a surgery that might keep him alive post an accident that caused a severe brain injury -- but as a completely dependent person who would never return to his true physical self -- or giving him a chance to live again and be there for him unconditionally irrespective of what the spouse would have wanted her to decide? Sure, there's no definite answer and it's impossible to extrapolate or generalize about what exactly is love when your loved ones are going through a traumatic experience fighting to get back past all the insurmountable odds to live their life again and the one waiting for you to get better is left helpless with nothing much to do other than clinging on to their hopes.
This beautiful tragicomedy directly skillfully by Anu Menon with hard hitting exchanges mirrors that uncertainty so effectively through the eyes of an unlikely friendship formed between two people -- Shiv (Naseeruddin Shah) and Tara (Kalki Koechlin) – who meets at a hospital waiting for their respective spouses to get better. Happening mostly inside a hospital in Kochi, Shiv has been waiting eight long months for his wife to get out of her coma and Tara has just flown down into Kochi with unimaginable shock from Mumbai knowing that her husband was in a terrible accident that caused him a critical brain injury. How Tara learns to cope up with the unexpected turn of events in her life from Shiv, while he himself is trying his best to not give up on his undying hope, forms most part of the movie. The premise might sound too depressing on paper, but it's unsentimental screenplay never lets itself degrade to a melodramatic soap opera, by bringing in dark humour and tremendously conceived poignant moments that looks straight out of life.
In a pivotal sequence when Tara is clueless on how to handle her helplessness and grief as her spouse is in the ICU, Shiv insights her on the five stages of long-term grief, which are as follows, i] denial (thinking yourself about why this is happening only to you without even bothering about the rest of the world), ii] anger (towards the whole world that's being nice to you for the sake of it), iii] hope (the unintimidated trust for a miracle even when things seem bleak and starts having faith in things which you've never believed in your entire life) iv] depression (when all hopes are lost and you're left with nothing but blank) v] acceptance (the moment you finally do the rightful thing when you have realized there's nothing better you could do but to let go and hope for the best or move on)
The above sequence reflects the whole idea of the movie so well and having gone through the same, I was able to relate and empathize with the protagonists completely. Combined with the powerhouse of recherché talents like Naseeruddin Shah and Kalki Koechlin as the protagonists, it all becomes more compelling. The way the narrative constantly brings out the generation gap between the two protagonists too was outstanding. Watch out for the hilarious sequence when Tara explains to the clueless Shiv about what exactly is the purpose of using Twitter, which illustrates how today's -- our -- generation is way too dependent on social media.
While Naseeruddin Shah portrays the restrained senior citizen with all its dignity like a cakewalk, Kalki Koechlin portrays the free spirited, reckless young person who is addicted to social media with all the much needed vigour to perfection. The supporting cast too was convincing, especially Rajat Kapoor as the pragmatic doctor of the spouses of the protagonists who delivers a knockout performance.
Overall, this hopeful tour de force directed dexterously by Anu Menon with all the sensitivity that the premise demands -- after a forgettable debut (London Paris New York) -- is a must watch for the lovers of those unapologetic slice-of-life movies laced with humour and filled with poignant upliftedness -- which reminds us yet again that we're not alone in our tragedies -- with exceptional performances and exchanges. Being a sucker for such thought-provoking experiences myself, I loved it and was more than satisfied with its unfeigned conclusion which should reverberate in your minds even after the movie is over.
Don 2 (2011)
The King Is Back!!
On looking at Farhan Akhtar's multi-talented track record, obviously the expectations are sky high! And as expected he raises the bar, by redeeming the franchise to a whole new level by making it as Hollywoodesque as possible!
Plot : Don is back after five years, with a nearly impossible mission. He wants to steal the Euro currency plates from a vault with state-of- the-art security systems in Berlin, and thereby disappear as a free bird after getting complete immunity, for which he frees Vardhan from a Malaysian jail & teams up with a goon Jabbar! Does this master plan succeed with the help of an expert hacker's talent, when Roma continues to chase him forms the crux of the story!
The plot has nothing strikingly innovative with a heist plan which we have seen in umpteen number of Hollywood flicks! The movie also reminds you of the 'Mission Impossible' & 'James Bond' franchises at some points! But the film works mainly owing to Farhan Akhtar's slick narrative providing edge-of-seat entertainment with kickass stunt sequences, explosions, break-ins, escapes which are on par with the Hollywood touchstones in the same genre!
Be it the way he smokes or his wicked envisions, Shahrukh Khan works his magical charisma yet again as Don, with smashing persona and getups! He looks badass and more energetic here, unlike RA.One where his age was shown explicably! Watchout for the post-climax portions where he comes in his one of the most stylish getups ever! Priyanka Chopra puts up yet another strong performance as Roma, in the limited space! Om Puri does excel as usual.. Boman Irani, continues his good show being a badass villain.. Lara Dutta had nothing much to do except for looking glamorous.. Kunal Kapoor puts up a decent performance as the hacker who cracks the security system..
Among the negatives, by getting exposed lots of Hollywood flicks in the same genre, you might feel a sense of deja-vu at few instances with the characterization of Don feeling similar to 'Ethan Hunt' at times and some really predictable twists, but Farhan was careful enough to weave out the principal twist of the movie at the very end, in such a way that it was unpredictable by teasing the viewers intelligently! The space for emotional quotient in such a movie is too confined! Songs were strictly mediocre, with 'Zara Dil Ko' being the pick with impressive visuals, but the background score was a high point of the movie which makes it more engaging! Editing was pitch perfect which helped its slick narration a lot! Cinematography of the movie was another beguiling aspect which meets international standards.. Watchout for the chase sequences, destructions & most of the action sequences in the movie to experience the technical perfection of the movie!
All in all, a slick edge-of-the-seat thriller with rich production values from Farhan Akhtar & SRK, which carries forward the legacy of Don, and has an interesting cameo from Hrithik Roshan which reminds of Mission Impossible! Action movie lovers, go for it!
Peepli [Live] (2010)
Take a bow Anusha and Aamir!
Peepli (Live) is a movie which had enormous expectancy levels from the trailers and the very fact that it was produced by THE "Aamir Khan Productions" which had gave birth to many enchanting & consummate cinematic experiences on celluloid... It has absolutely educed even more than the hype it produced, with Anusha Rizvi, a débutante, furnishing an outstanding satire on the backdrop of Indian farmer's suicides...
Not getting into the plot, as most of them know it already... What makes this movie into an astounding cinematic experience, is its utmost natural narration and simplicity.. Whether it be the characters, situations, dialogs... all were just near to utmost realistic...! Humour element used throughout the movie was smart as a whip... Loved the movie for another factor, that it was not preachy at all... Ending which was terrifically weaved out, in some ways, reminds me of one of the greatest satires in Malayalam "Panchavadi Paalam"
Anusha Rizvi, being a débutante, doesn't feel like one as the handling of the subject was just awe inspiring... Music and BG were top class... Camera work was good...The screenplay and dialogs were just tight and perfect... Among the performances, the whole cast were literally living their characters in this movie which makes it even more special!
One the whole, one should give a whole hearted standing ovation to Anusha Rizvi and Aamir Khan for making this film a reality,which has an amazing potential to be India's iconic movie in the International circuit!
Raajneeti (2010)
Mahabharatha meets Godfather !!!
Came after watching Prakash Jha's latest offering "Raajneeti" starring Ranbir Kapoor, Katrina Kaif, Arjun Rampal and Ajay Devgan in the lead... While watching this movie you will get a feeling that the whole plot and characters are heavily inspired from the epic story Mahabharatham and the classic "The Godfather"...
"Raajneeti" is basically a complex game of politics where human relationships are challenged to achieve the ultimate power...
Story rolls on with a flashback where, Bhaskar played by Naseruddin Shah, an old leftist, challenging the most powerful leaders together with the support of a young lady who considers him as God.. But destiny changes their fortunes when she gets impregnated due to Bhaskar and gives birth to the child, but even before see her child's face, Brij Gopal played by Nana Patekar abandons the child...
Rolling to present era. Sooraj Kumar (played by Ajay Devgan) is the guy whom the people of Azad Nagar considers as the leader of Dalits... In parallel, story of a family with huge political background develops with the clashes between Prithviraj (played by Arjun Rampal) and Veerendra (played by Manoj Bajpayee) for the political throne, after Prithviraj's father is shot dead... Samar (played by Ranbir Kapoor) comes in as a help for his brother and Sooraj joins with Veerendra... Rest of the story deals with who gets to the throne finally, where Indu (played by Katrina Kaif) also gets trapped in this war...
One can clearly say that, the characterization of Sooraj was definitely etched out from one of the greatest epic character "Karna" from Mahabharatha and that of Katrina Kaif was from the life of Sonia Gandhi.. The makers have deliberately tried to create a replica of personality of Sonia Gandhi in Katrina Kaif !! Manoj Bajpayee can be seen as Duryaodhana... And many incident/situations resembles both Mahabharatha and Godfather....
Even though the whole proceedings were looking predictable, Prakash Jha has done a commendable job in keeping us engaged most of the time... And hats off to him for the effort he has put in to make this film... Coming to performances, everybody justice to their parts...
Ranbir Kapoor is maturing with each film.. He was utmost convincing as Samar... No incertitudes on him becoming the next superstar of Bollywood !! Arjun Rampal pitches in yet another power-packed performance... Ajay Devgan was good... Katrina Kaif takes a break from her glam-doll image here and it pays off.. Her transformations were very well enacted.... Another actor who steals the show is Nana Patekar with his impeccable timing and dialogue delivery... Manoj Bajpayee as the antagonist was superb.... And the support cast also does a fine job...
Cinematography was pretty good... BG score was just OK...
On the downside, the pacing of the second half gets slowed down, at times.... BG score could have been better... Duration of the film should have been taken care of by some trimming...
On the whole, watch Raajneeti for the sincerity with which Prakash Jha has made this film and also for the excellent performances put up from Ranbir, Arjun, Ajay, Katrina and Nana Patekar...
Verdict : Contemporary Mahabharatha.. Good..
Rating : 7.5/10
3 Idiots (2009)
Aamir has yet again chased excellence & success follows him !
Plot Two idiots Farhan (Madhavan) and Raju (Sharman) sets outs on a journey to find their lost friend and the 3rd idiot Rancho (Aamir).. As the journey starts off, their college life and old memories of their friendship, with a unique free-thinker Rancho who inspired them and changed their lives, are unfolded through flashbacks and followed with some twists and turns...
My Views 3 Idiots looks at our educational system which pressurizes the students and does not allow to chose his destination by his own wish, in a satirical way and brings out some of the flaws in it... On parallel there is a love angle between Rancho and Pia (Kareena)... Many of the situations/characters have resemblance or inspiration to "Five Point Someone", blockbuster novel penned by Chetan Bhagat...
Both humour and emotional quotients are amalgamated in the right proportion, full credits to Raju for that... Film offers lots of quality rib-tickling moments throughout.. The intermission point offers a twist that is totally out of the blue and keeps you hooked to the movie ! Just when you think this feel-good comic caper is leading to its culmination, there is another surprising element at the climax which is brilliantly weaved out by Hirani...
Technically, it rocks with astounding and visually arresting cinematography, the aerial shots of Shimla and Ladakh are a pleasant treat for our eyes... Editing was good... Song visualizations were cool... Music was good and well placed with the flow of the narration...
Coming to performances, all of them comes out with convincing portrayals, but it is Aamir Khan, the real showman of Bollywood, steals the shows with yet another stellar portrayal and will go down as one of his best performances. His looks and mannerisms as a college student was genuine and consummate.. Madhavan and Sharman adds up with commendable performances... Kareena does her part well... Among the supporting, Boman Irani as the eccentric head of the institution was too good...
On the downside, there are some unbelievable filmy situations which can be excused as writer's liberty and the episode of Mona's delivery was a bit far stretched.. Still these minor negatives does not affect this wholesome entertainer ! In short the basic theme of the movie is that "chase excellence and success will follow".. Just like that Aamir and Raju has chased excellence and success is following them...
So to sum up, Aamir and Hirani has delivered the best movie of 2009... Do yourself a favour by seeing this highly emotional and feel good comic entertainer...
Verdict : THE BEST of 2009 ! Rating : 9/10
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Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009)
Harry Potter & The Half Blood Prince - Spine-Chilling Fantasy Thriller
Just back after the FDFS of one of the most awaited movies of this year, the sixth installment of the Harry Potter series where Harry starts his sixth year at the Hogwarts school, in IMAX format, my first experience in this format...
First of all, I haven't read any of the books in this series, so for me it was a very satisfying follow-up to the mediocre fifth installment with lots of surprises n shocks ! And to watch it in IMAX is an absolute privilege and it turned out to be a fascinating experience which provided many breath taking scary moments.The quality of picture n sound are also a revelation in this format....
Now coming to the plot of the movie, as the death eaters and Voldemort are creating havocs in the muggle n wizard worlds, professor Snape joins in the mission of the Dark Lord while Draco Malfoy gets orders from Voldemort for a job... Later in the sixth year of Harry's schooling he discovers an advanced potion book which belonged to the "Half Blood Prince" which had more improved techniques in creating potions, scribbled by the owner of the book..At the same time Dumbledore lets Harry know about the dark childhood of Voldemort through memories, to find out how they can defeat the dark lord... Can Dumbledore n Harry stop Voldemort's job designated for Draco Malfoy, And who is really the "Half Blood Prince" forms the rest of the story...
For me this is the second best installment in the series preceded by the fourth installment "Goblet of Fire".. Those who haven't read the book, you are in for some shocking n surprising elements during the penultimate moments which is more of an anti-climax... The twist at the end elevated the movie to another level IMO... The light moments in the former half really tickles your ribs...
Acting : Almost everyone excels in the part.. Daniel Radcliffe came with a matured performance.. Rupert Grint's comic timing was commendable.. Emma Watson did a decent job with portraying Hermoine's emotional vulnerability... Tom Felton as Draco Malfoy n Bonnie Wright as Ginny did their parts well.. Actors who did the part of Snape and Dumbledore as usual came up with a masterful act...
Script : Pretty good one, still had many potholes n confusing elements for those who haven't read the book...
Direction : Good.. David Yates did entertain and maintained the pace throughout the movie but the love tracks in the former half was portrayed confusingly... Executed the penultimate seq with gr8 elan...
Graphics/Visual Effects : Excellent... The first sequence of the movie where the death eaters attack a city contains some brilliantly executed CGI works... To experience the maximum beauty of this dept. you need to watch it in IMAX 3D atmosphere...
Cinematography : Beautiful.. The first sequence, quidditch matches n some outdoor seq are really well taken...
BG score & Sound Editing : Two thumbs up for this one like all others installments in this series... In IMAX atmosphere, its really a spine-chilling experience..
To sum it up, a matured n tragic character driven installment to the Harry Potter series, that is what "Half Blood Prince" offers to you unlike previous happy ending fantasy rides, but stands a bit below "Goblet of Fire" in presentation...
Verdict : Good..A definite summer blockbuster.
WOM : As I said b4 those who have read the book doesn't seem to be satisfied with this.. Others like me are seeing it as good effort generally...
Rating - 7.5/10
Delhi-6 (2009)
A sarcastic view at today's Indian society, executed brilliantly by Mehra, Parsoon n Rahman.....
Rakesh Mehra again impresses with his third outing Delhi 6 after the masterpiece Rang De Basanti.....
The basic plot is about the communal riots between Hindus n Muslims created due to the panic created by a Kaalabander (black monkey) in Delhi 6...How these events changes Roshan's (an American with Indian origin who comes to drop his dying grandma into her roots in Delhi6) life is the rest...
Like Rang De Basanthi, here also Mehra has a great social message to all Indians almost similar to RDB.......
Abhishek's characterization and some situations looks a bit inspired from Swades... Performance wise Abhishek has done a good job within his limitations.. Sonam Kapoor doesn't have much to do, but looks cute and bubbly required for this character and did a good job in her limited role... Rishi Kapoor again proves his mettle in character roles... Atul Kulkari does a good job again like RDB.. Waheeda Rahman as Abhishek's grandma was natural...
Now if you ask me what is the biggest plus point of this movie, I have no second thoughts on this !! Rahman Rahman Rahman...... Sad that most of the tracks are not shown complete and its used as an extended background score... Masakali was the only song shown fully ! Visualization of 'Dil Gira Dafathan' was superb...
Camera work is another thing that needs to be specially mentioned ! First half is more like a humorous satire about the Indian society and the second half turns emotional with a bit filmy climax... Humorous situations esp in the 1st half evokes great laughter all round... Dialogues were really good and at times hard hitting too.. The love track between lead pair was the only weak link I felt in the movie... Intermission was placed abruptly, heard somewhere that Mehra wanted no intervals in between, may be due to that !
Rakesh deserves a huge appreciation for his brilliant execution of Kaalabander track {not the soundtrack} (would have been a disaster with an ordinary director) and the care with which he deals the sensitive issues between Hindus n Muslims....
Rating - 9/10
Vedict : Don't miss this gem !
A Wednesday (2008)
A Wednesday !!! Brilliantly executed 95 mins suspense thriller...
Another brilliant cinematic experience yet again from Bollywood in 2008.. Plot : a stranger (played by Nasarudeen Shah) threatening to Prakash Rathod, commissioner of police (played by Anupam Kher) about the bomb he has planted to blast at 6 pm at five different places, it can be avoided if they can release 4 terrorists... All happening on a Wednesday between 2 pm and 6 pm !!!
Great plot well executed with adequate thrills, twists and suspense... No unnecessary sub-plots or item numbers to disturb the narration.. Climax was too good....Yet again a debutant Neeraj Pandey a creative writer and director delivers a great product, superb direction with good treatment, narration and no boring stuffs!!Tight screenplay, powerful and thought provoking dialougues.. Coming to performances Indian cinema's two legendary actors Anupam Kher n Nasarudeen Shah, both just rocked to the core with perfect portrayals, supporting cast was also gud... Good BGM and thank god there is no songs... Cinematography was also top class...
Verdict : Must watch !!! Just spare 90-95 min to watch this amazingly thought provoking suspense thriller...
Wanted (2008)
Entertaining........
Wanted, a film which has to be seen with a very open mind and has to shut your logic part of the brain, coz the plot and execution was way too over the top.... But it served its purpose and entertained me thoroughly for 105 minutes with great unrealistic thrills and spectacular visuals... Story is about Wesley, an account manager, when realizing that his father who died just a day ago, was an assassin and a part of The Fraternity of Assassins, is being recruited to join his dad's organization by Sloan (Morgan Freeman) to kill his father's assassin.... Movie has many moments inspired from other highly successful action thrillers like Matrix, Fight Club etc... Good performances from James McAvoy, Angelina Jolie n Morgan Freeman....Script was just avg/below avg n direction was racy.... And you get to see Angelina's cute bum also..