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kaidabi
Reviews
Memento (2000)
complicated and intricate in the best way
Memento is a film directed by one of the most well know directors in the film world, Christopher Nolan, so I expected no less. The protagonist, Lenny had anterograde amnesia, in which he cannot make new memories. This and the fact that his wife was killed has led to a roller-coaster ride with him hunting down the killer with his condition. To be able to cope, he has to take Polaroid pictures and tattoo himself for reminders, since he can't trust anyone.
Delving into the film without any knowledge of the plot or structure, I was surprised and was greeted with a very complex narrative structure, known as the Fabula and Syuzhet or the 'hairpin', in which the movie flows backwards and interchanges with black and white flashbacks. Add this to the already complex plot and you get a very intriguing, captivating and slightly confusing film. You're always at the edge of your seat and your brain is constantly buzzing, trying to piece everything together to make sense of the events. Despite it being 17 years old, this movie remains as a classic.
Murdered by My Father (2016)
very moving and thought provoking
Honour killing is a very controversial and contemporary issue in society as of today and this drama explores that theme by focusing on a Muslim household, in which the father, Shahzad wants his daughter, Salma to be in an arranged marriage.
Murdered by my father (written by Vinay Patel & shown by BBC3), was a really good film; the starting scenes consisted of what happened at the end, which immediately hooked me in as I was curious as to how and why it happened. Salma's voice over added to the somber beginning, and again adds to the mystery of the plot. I think the representation of Salma reflects teenagers now to some extent – the whole thing about hiding things from your parents, rebelling against parents, etc. The director tried show the audience the Islam tradition, for example, the Muslim wedding at the beginning and personally I think it was captured really well.
Most of the film's mood was dark and miserable, which is understandable because honour killing is a very depressing topic and there is no way that it can be romanticized or be presented in a lighthearted way. Overall, Murdered By My Father is a very moving movie, it really had an effect on me and makes me think that people in the 21st Century still go through this.
Orange Is the New Black: I Wasn't Ready (2013)
A good start
Orange Is The New Black is an Emmy winning TV show directed by Jenji Kohan who surprisingly got the inspiration for the show due to her experience in women's prisons.
This is my first time watching the TV show so my opinion will be from an outsider, not a fan. The first thing I've noticed is that it's very explicit; the first scenes already consisted of naked women showering, which I think it's a good thing because lesbianism is a taboo subject in contemporary society. This is further seen in certain scenes where we witness women during intercourse. It's natural thing and we shouldn't censor such things. I like how it's very realistic and it doesn't sugarcoat any aspect of the women's prison (of what I've seen so far).
Moving on to the actual content and plot of the story, I really liked it. I especially enjoyed the flashbacks in scenes, which really established and structured an inmate's character. It gives us a sense of what they are as a person and it's interesting how different they were before and after being in prison. In that small space of time, it sort of shows a little bit of character development. The show is very funny, the jokes are witty and not corny, the acting (especially by Taylor Schilling) is amazing, she puts a lot of emotions in her lines and her crying scenes are very believable; this also goes to the rest of the inmates that's been introduced so far. It's as if we're actually really there with them, in that prison.
Obviously, I've only watched the first 2 episodes so it's explainable why it's still a bit dragged out and a little dull for me but I will most definitely continue with the TV series as the character's backstory as to why they end up in prison is something that fascinates me.