Slumdog Millionaire

I watched Slumdog Millionaire this weekend and I have to say I'm a little confused about how I feel about the film.

First of all, unless you're from another planet, it is impossible to walk into the cinema hall to watch this film without any expectations. It has been lauded with superlatives by critics across the globe and it has won 4 major awards at the Golden Globes this year. It is expected to repeat that performance at the Oscars next month.

With all these expectations, I walked in hoping to be 'wow'ed, I mean absolutely 'holy-smoke-that-was amazing' wowed. But to be honest, I was only just impressed.

Firstly, being an Indian, I felt the urge to dissect the film a lot more than others. There were plenty of moments in the film when I went "whoa! that was a little exaggerated". Would I have done the same if the same film was based in, lets say 'Mexico'? Probably Not.

Secondly, its the hype. This is a very good film, no doubt about it. But the hype surrounding it makes it look like a path-breaking must-see film, which it is not. It is a 100% filmi film, with all the right masala in it. The only difference is the way it is served.

Danny Boyle is one crafty filmmaker. He takes a good story (Vikas Swarup's Q&A) based in an exotic foreign land (Mumbai Slums), adds the right dose of shocking images, gets a great soundtrack by Rahman and infuses some symbolism at the right places, and voila!.. you have a potential Oscar winner.

Oscars and the like always seem a little weird for me. A little overrated, perhaps. Why should one lobby furiously for his film to win this award? Doesn't that kinda defeat the purpose of the best film winning? I've never really understood the intricacies involved there. But I digress.

Coming back to the film, there are bits which are clearly stretched from reality for the sake of the film's narrative. I am pretty sure nobody would ever jump into a pile of sh*t just to get AB's autograph. Would News Channels be sitting idle if they found out that the game show contestant who's become a national phenomenon has been arrested without a shred of evidence? Which TV channel would allow its game show host to treat a participant in the same insulting way Anil Kapoor treats Dev Patel?

Which brings me to the actors. I was actually disappointed with Anil Kapoor. I like his range as an actor and the fact that he's willing to take on unconventional roles. But he overdoes it here. Also, I felt that the Host-Participant chemistry could have been given a little more depth and intrigue.

On the other hand, the 2 young leads Dev Patel and Freida Pinto have acted very well indeed.

Dev Patel shows great restraint & control in some difficult scenes. Earnestness, that's what his performance projects. Freida Pinto is disarmingly beautiful. She has a very expressive face, especially those eyes. And a smile which matches Madhuri Dixit's in wattage.

Irrfan Khan is great as usual. Mahesh Manjrekar is his usual annoying self. The real stars of the film are the kids who play the younger versions of the 3 protagonists. Their performances are ashtonishingly real and it is they who give the film the much needed emotional connection with the audience.

Great cinematography and a superb background score elevate the film to something more than just good.

(I thought the song 'n dance at the end was a cute touch too!)

At the end of the day, it is a really good work of fiction, aimed and marketed perfectly to its target audience.

A chaiwalla who doesn't know about the Indian Flag goes on to win 2 Crores after answering all of 15 increasingly difficult questions based on just his life experiences, which were mostly horrific.

Sounds intriguing? You bet. But does it sound plausible? Hmmm.. not so much.

(P.S. : I apologize to everyone who checked my blog in these last 3 weeks only to be disappointed with no new posts. Yes, to all 3 of you :))

(P.S.2: I've gotten hooked to Masakali song from Dilli 6. God bless Rahman!)

Average Jodi

Yea.. it was just an average movie. More on that later. 

First, a few er.. 'interesting' events of last night.

Event 1: It was an 8:30 show. And we were late. For no apparent reason to be honest. We were home before 7 and just lazing around. Actually, me and my wife have an immaculate record of being late to almost every movie we go to. Its ingrained into our systems. Yep, we're the ones you curse for blocking your screen for 30 full seconds as we get to our seats.

Anyway, hoping to be the cursers instead of cursees this time, we skip our planned 'churmuri' and head to Inox Jayanagar, a full 15 mins before scheduled time.

Event 2: We're at the theater at 8:25 sharp. I'm standing in a line holding up my cellphone where I have the SMS confirmation of the booking. But the 2 guys at the counter are not noticing me. One Uncle ahead of me is leisurely enquiring for tickets for some crap movie, that too for a monday nite show. Valuable minutes are being lost... Ahh, finally, Uncle moves away disgruntled for not getting his favored back row middle seats. I swoop in and place my cellphone inside the little hole at the counter before the over-enthusiastic chap behind me could cut me off. Highly impressed with myself, I turn towards my wife with the 'Didya see what I did there baby' smirk. But she's looking elsewhere. Husbands never get their due I say.

Event 3: With great speed, we bypass popcorn counters and head directly to the hall. We could hear the 'Ghajini' trailer as we were about to enter. I let out a 'yess' and handed my tickets to the usher. "Seats K8 and K9", I said. He looked at them and said "Oh.. first row saar!" and handed the tickets back to me with a smile which I'm sure meant 'Loser'.

First Row.. damn. I am seriously pissed off with bookmyshow.com. You know what first row means right?

a) Neck Pain

b) Your neighbor can easily figure out which part of the heroine's anatomy you're looking at.

We're settling into our seats and I see a guy from my college sitting in the very next seat. He was with a girl too. We said our 'Hi's and exchanged a "we're on the first row" laughter.

Event 4: So the movie is running. Anushka (the film's heroine) is wearing tights and streching around. Gooood. Right at that moment my wife pokes me and says "Did you see that? She has flab too!" I'm like "whaa..?" without turning my head. 5 seconds later I find myself clutching my bicep due to the after effects of a 'onashunti' (sharp pinch). Yup, I wasn't looking at any flab. And she saw it.

5 mins later, she pokes me again and points me to that elusive flab in Anushka's body. (honestly, I had no idea what she was talking about. The babe looked 10/10 to me. But hey, that's just me).

I turn to her and give a smile. But alas, that innocent smile was mistaken for my 'look who's talking' smirk. 'onashunti' no 2.

(Honey, if you're reading this, I do not think you're fat. That's crazy talk. Who says you're fat? What are they smoking? Ummmwaaah.)

Event 5: Actually, it was an ongoing event throughout the film. There were these bunch of hindi speaking guys sitting behind us. One of them was an apparent target for the rest. So, for every emotional scene on screen, they harassed this guy with lines like "arrey yaar, tu please rona shuru mat kar de" or "control yaar". The best one was when the heroine appeared in tights "dekh, teri behen mast lag rahi he". It was juvenile, but hillarious. A throwback to the glorious days of yore for me atleast. And frankly, it was more entertaining than what was happening on screen at times.

Oh, the movie. Right. (spoilers ahead) (you see, this film's story was 'guarded' so secretly that I'm compelled to put a disclaimer)

Shahrukh is this nerd who marries this girl Anushka under trying circumstances. But she can't get herself to love him. So he transforms into a dude and feels her up. She falls for him, but is torn between her husband and her lover which leads to some seriously corny situations and a very predictable and tame ending.

It wasn't all bad though. The film started with a lot of promise. The opening credits were refreshingly realistic. The first 30 mins of the film were genuinely interesting.  And there are bits and pieces of magic, mainly conjured up by SRK. 

Actually, Its a mixed bag for Shahrukh. On one hand, he absolutely nails it as the nerd simpleton. Some fantastic acting there. You feel for him and root for him. But he overdoes it as the dude "Raj". The girl Anushka makes an impression too. She looks good in tights, better in salwars and has a great smile. Surprisingly for a debutante, she manages to hold her own in dramatic scenes. A brilliant actor like Vinay Pathak is wasted.

(By the way, did I just mention 'tights' like 5 times already? Believe me, I'm not 'tight' while writing this.)

Music is decent. 'Haule Haule' (and its wonderful harmonium prelude) is beautiful. 'Dance pe Chance' has a pretty ordinary tune, but Sunidhi and the dhols take it to another level.

(And Kajol makes a guest song appearance, for all of you who care. I definitely did. Its Kajol, man!!)

You know what the best part of the film is? The end credits.

No its not the age old sarcasm. The end credits are so simple and funny, they bring a smile on your face. So, if you do decide to watch 'Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi', cringe through the last hour and stick around till the end. 

(Image Courtesy: www.yashrajfilms.com)

Dostana

Geeez!

Look, I never went to this movie expecting a sensitive portrayal of homosexuality. Neither did I have any expectations of a comedy in the class of Judd Apatow movies. What I thought this would be was a decently funny urban film on the lines of Kal Ho Naa Ho.

Nope. Not even close.

This movie is just Lame.

It starts off with an interesting premise of 2 guys pretending to be gay to get a cool pad by the beach in Miami. But nothing really happens in the film! Just one gay joke after another. And God alone knows why Bobby Deol is in the movie. He looks badly out of place.

If it wasn't for Priyanka Chopra (who is so hot, she's almost worth the price of admission!) and the soundtrack (which is rocking, by the way), I'd have been thoroughly disappointed with the movie.

As it stands, I'm just disappointed.

Y'Know what... I don't even want to write a longer post for this film. It would mean giving too much importance to a non-existent story. 

The Dark Knight

(Warning: Lengthy Post)

What Hype!
But more than that.. What a movie!


"The Dark Knight" is, in my view, the movie of this generation.
Whoa!
Do I hear "premature", "exaggeration"??

I know it's quite a bold statement to make. But I have my reasons.
Now let's define some basic criteria for a movie to be called the movie of its generation:
* It has to be a commercial success.
* It has to redefine film-making, at least in its genre.
* It has to be critically acclaimed.
* It has to capture people's imagination and make them crave for more.
* It should have high replay value.
and a criterion which I think is important:
* It should stimulate an average adult's mind, in a thoughtful way.

I've seen the film twice. It meets all of the above.

The reason I added the last criteria is to eliminate films like Spiderman, Pirates of the Caribbean, Shrek, etc which might satisfy the rest. Not to mean disrespect to any of those films, but do you honestly think that Spiderman was the movie of this generation?

If you've seen the Dark Knight, you will understand when I say that the film is not only engrossing as hell, but extremely relevant in the present day world (more on that later).

Enough of build up. This is an absolute killer of a movie. It rocks.. in every department. I am not exaggerating when I say that most people had a "Whoa! What just happened" look on their faces when they came out of the cinema hall. (and this in Bangalore, where I hear the usual "pakau movie yaar" comment from some I-am-too-cool-with-my-hair-gel-to-appreciate-any-movie type character for almost any movie)

The film starts with a superb bank robbery sequence which ensures that you're hooked instantly and director Christopher Nolan just doesn't let go after that. The script is so taut that even at 2:30+hours of running time, there's no room for any just-for-kicks action/FX scenes.
The intensity doesn't dip for one minute. In fact, it shoots up every time Ledger's Joker appears on screen.

Speaking of which, Heath Ledger gives us a villian we won't soon forget. His Joker is seriously creepy, the kind that would give kids nightmares. (In fact, I honestly believe that kids under 12 should not even watch this movie). Even when he tries to make a joke, there are dark undertones to it, and you're invariably waiting for him to do something unexpected.
Two particular scenes stood out for me:
* His first appearance in front of the mob. The laughter and the subsequent pencil scene is just tremendous.
* The scene where he hangs his head out of a stolen police car after a pivotal moment in the film, is pure magic. So much is conveyed in that one fleeting scene.
It is a superlative performance, which will compete with Hannibal Lecter and Anton Chigurh for the most menacing villain seen in films.

That said, Batman ain't no slouch. Christian Bale looks super confident and comfortable in the Wayne/Batman dual act. Forget Keaton and Kilmer, this is the definitive Batman.
Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman are solid as ever (and they're required to be). Maggie Gyllenhaal doesn't have a huge role to play, but is adequate.
Aaron Eckhart plays Harvey Dent, the daring, honest D.A who briefly becomes Bruce Wayne's only hope for a normal life. He infuses enough energy and honesty into the character that we end up believing in him.
Gary Oldman, as Jim Gordon - the good cop, is to me, the third most important character here after Batman and Joker. He represents a lot of things, and I dont just mean the movie. He also plays a crucial role in the climax, which is just terrific.

The film reportedly cost $180 million to make. And you can see why. Top of the line production values, an elite technical crew and some awesome stunts make this THE summer blockbuster.
If the Hong Kong skyscraper scene makes you gasp, the extended truck chase sequence ending in that flip will leave you plain spellbound!

All these are only part of the reason why this movie is so good. The best thing is that it keeps coming back to you. On your way back home. When you lie down later that night.
It is because the movie is extremely relevant in the present day. One needn't look far to draw the anology between the joker and terrorists today.
What would you do if someone half as maniacal as the joker attacked your city?
Would you be able to think striaght if your city was plunged into chaos like gotham?

It also hits home the point that pure evil is so damn dangerous that it can contaminate the best of good (Harvey-Two Face).

These are the things that drove me into the cinema hall for the second time.

I have to admit, I'm a little bit of a sucker for big-budgeted, star powered summer blockbusters.
With age (and some disappointing films) though, I've become more skeptical of these.
That excitement, I'm happy to say, is back now.

Every generation needs, but seldom gets a Godfather.
The Dark Knight comes damn close.

King Kong

How many times have you come out of a movie feeling.. .. exhausted!? I bet not too many..
"King Kong" is likely to be one of those movies. Make no mistake, this is a movie of monumental proportions... it is a B-I-G movie... in every of the word. Yes, sometimes it does tend to border on the "too much" line... its a bit too long, too far-fetched at times, perhaps too ambitious(?). But the very fact that you're still trying to catch your breath when you come out of the movie speaks volumes of the intensity of the movie.

I really wanted to watch "King Kong". It had become one of those once-a-year movies that you just have to watch.. at any cost. The promos had blown me away.. and to top it all, almost every single review I read (about 25, I think!) went to the extent of labelling it as a modern day classic. I just had to watch it.

With these kind of expectations, I went into Vue cinemas on saturday night. I'm pretty sure that a few hundred others in the hall were carrying similar expectations. And this is why the initial portions of the movie gain so much importance. Almost an entire hour is spent building up the characters, and more importantly, setting up the stage for the big guy to arrive. It is done so masterfully, that you actually relish the first hour with eagerness rather than waiting with annoyance. The very first sequence, when the depression era is depicted with a classic song playing in the background, is pure class.
Jackson has done wonderfully well to keep an eerie feeling intact whilst he moves the story forward in its own pace into the skull island.

The hour that follows gives you some serious action. You've got dinasour stampedes(!!), flying dinasours, T-Rexes, human sized insects, and what not... (how did the natives survive in that island?). Kong does arrive with a bang, but its the scene when the first T-Rex is shown which really sends a shiver down the spine.


There is a 15 minute long sequence involving a fight between Kong and three T-Rexes(!) that is so incredible, that had it been a cinema in Bangalore, I'm sure the hoots and whistles at the end of it would've been deafening. ( I can still remember the 2 minute long whistle fest at Urvashi cinema at the end of the Neo-vs-100-Agent-Smiths fight in Matrix Reloaded!)
Special effects are flawless, breathtaking.. a perfect example of how Hollywood just keeps raising the bar every time. But the moments that actually make the movie are those little ones in between the action.. like the one where Ann realises that Kong actually enjoys her antics and performs some comedy in front of him for the first time... the one where they enjoy the sunset for the first time... the delightful little sequence on a frozen water pond in central park in NY, and of course the climax, which is tragically memorable.

Naomi Watts plays Ann Darrow, and the movie is essentially about Ann and the special bond that she shares with the mighty ape. And Naomi Watts is every bit of Ann Darrow that you want her to be. She somehow fits the "Beauty" as in "Beauty and the beast". She can not only scream with the best of'em... she can emote with the best too... as she has proved earlier in "The Ring" movies and "21 Grams". Jack Black and Adrian Brody also fit their roles quite well. Black, in particular, delivers superbly in a role that many thought he was miscast. Brody is typically unassuming and also manages to pull off a hero-isque shade of his character that was required for the middle part of the movie.
Andy Serkis must be the best CGI-actor in the world.. or is he the only one? His Kong is just terrific and shares a great non-erotic, sometimes-adorable-sometimes-possessive chemistry with Naomi Watts. This is what drives the movie.

Although the end is tragic, the last 15 minutes of the movie is pure magic.(I didn't intend that rhyme!) The world war fighter planes attacking the ape atop the Empire state building and a desperate Ann trying in vain to do something about it leaves a lasting impression. It takes some directorial skill to portray a sequence like this (which is mainly action) and yet show the different emotions that the ape goes through at those moments(confusion, anger, hurt, momentary bliss) successfully to the audience.

Peter Jackson has pulled out all stops to make this reportedly $220 Million movie... but most importantly he's given it the soul it required.. in the most subtle as well as in more obvious ways.

The Chronicles of Narnia - The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe

I had no clue what Narnia was all about. I had seen its name being mentioned a few times at hollywood.com, saying it was one of the eagerly awaited movies of the year,et al... but thats it. It was only after a collegue here (an Englishman) told me about it that I got excited to see the movie.
"The Chronicals of Narnia" is a series of seven books written by C.S Lewis, an English Author. These books are about an alternate world called "Narnia" and the adventures of a few children who manage to discover it in various ways. Although I cannot make comparisons because I haven't read the Narnia series.. I still got the feeling that, in some ways, it is similar to Harry Potter..

So I went to watch the first installment of Narnia - "The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe"...
had to endure 15 minutes of commercials at the beginning.. most of them aimed at children (which kinda made me feel not too good about the movie)... Then things brightened up with a terrific trailer of the next Pirates of the Carribean movie - "Dead Man's Chest".. Ahoy! Put that one on my list..

The movie starts off nice & slow... the build up to the actual intro to Narnia is concise yet effective. When they did show the alternate world.. I must say I was a tad dissappointed... maybe coz I had a mental picture of something spectacular & out of this world (in every sense).. But to be honest, it did get better as the winter dissappeared and we were treated to some stunning locales of New zealand... or was it Ireland?
It is basically the story of these 4 kids.. in post world war era, who discover Narnia behind a wardrobe. Narnia is full of mythical/magical creatures.. It is ruled by the evil "White Witch" from the past 100 years.. A prophecy says that 2 sons of Adam (boys) and 2 daughters of Eve (girls) will land up in Narnia and end her rule. So she wants to catch hold of every human who comes to Narnia and freeze him/her. The rest of the story is about how these kids join forces with the real king of Narnia - Aslan and defeat her. And guess what.. Aslan is a Lion.. and a phenomenal one at that. The girl who's played the youngest kid is absolutely adorable..The Witch is superbly menacing!

Comparisons with the "Lord of the Rings" are inevitable (especially when you see the final battle) and not without reason too. For those who aren't aware, C.S.Lewis was a contemporary of the equally legendary J.R.R Tolkein, the author of LOTR. Narnia also has some of the key elements of Christianity imbibed in it.. just like LOTR. And finally, it seems that the director of the movie is a friend and fellow New-Zealander of a certain Peter Jackson.

All said and done, its a pretty decent movie. Perhaps more enjoable if you've read the book.
I still didn't think it was worth 6.5 pounds... But then, of late, no movie other than King Kong looks to be worth that much to me..
Come on Naomi.. scream for your life!

Currently Listening to: Some Techno Instrumental

Flightplan

Flightplan rocks.
Actually, we went with the intention of watching "Harry Potter & GOF" (which also rocks!), but it was sold out & had to settle for this.. but it turned out alright !
Jodie Foster is so so good! She has to be one of the best around... Thinking about the movie afterwards makes you realize how superlatively convincing her performance was. I thought the role required varied levels of complexity, in terms of emotions.. and she pulled it off with amazing perfection. Wow!
The movie's plot is also very "different" *non-cliched please*... manages to grip you throughout...
Not a waste of 6.5 pounds I'd say!

...just kidding! 6.5 pounds is wayyy too expensive for any movie!!
But I'd definitely pay it to watch "King Kong", which by the way is now atop of the list of my must watch movies this season. The promos look jaw-dropping to say the least !!

Currently Listening to: Nothing...feeling sleepy!

Red Eye

Saw "Red Eye" on saturday... hmmmm.. watchable I'll say.

One must admit that the director Wes "Slasher" Craven (famous for his "Scream" movies) knows how to build up a movie... The initial portions which concentrate on the rapport building b/w the 2 lead characters, the casual flirting which masks the obvious apprehension is all quite good.... & u cant help but feel that something's going to screw up soon...
It sure does, & the jolt is also good... (watch out for Rachel's reaction when she finds out that the seemingly nice dude next to her is actually a hired assassin & he has the trigger on her father's skull)
But its after this that the movie really grips you... Its like a rollercoster, although it ends quite predictably...
Rachel McAdams is simply awesome... she looks great & acts even better... Her character goes through various emotions.. from shock & trauma to helplessness to desperation and finally to the determination & resolve to come through... She pulls it off well.... And boy.. she can kick some butt too !!
Cillian Murphy is equally good... be it oozing confidence & charm initially or showing desperation when he finds out that his plan is going for a toss... He gets it just right everywhere...

The movie is worth a look.... atleast till Jodie Foster's "Flightplan" hits the theatres...

Currently listening to: Pink Floyd - Learning to fly