Tabu: A Talent Less Known

I have been watching movies ever since I was a child, but over these years I have come across very few talented actresses. The main reason for this perhaps is that women hardly play the lead character in a movie or have ample coverage of their character that would require a good quality of acting. This is more so in Bollywood I believe, where the actress is there just to look pretty and be saved by the hero. But among all the actresses I have come across, I have found Tabu one of the best actresses in Bollywood. She is not only pretty, but her talented acting makes these movies come alive. But not many people talk about Tabu these days and she seems to have been pushed to the side.

Tabu, whose real name is Tabassum Hashmi, has won the National Film Award twice (Maachis and Chandni Bar) and holds the record for most wins of Filmfare's Critics Award for the Best Female Performer with four. The best film I love of her is Maachis (Matchstick). She does a stunning performance in that movie. Another movie I find very good is Cheeni Kum (Less Sugar). Most people I meet are not very familiar with her performance so I thought it would be a good idea to introduce such a talented actress to the world. There are more movies scheduled to come out in the near future starring Tabu and I look forward to watching Tabu perform again and keep me spellbound for the whole time.

[Photos: Internet Image search :) ]

Beyond The Hills / Dupa dealuri (2012)

Religious superstition is a part and parcel of everyday life in any and every society around the world. Despite economic growth, despite the wide use of technology, and despite the global enthusiasm to study ‘science’ and medicine, we still believe in religious superstition. This is especially strong in Indian societies. Even though Indian parents, who are engineers or doctors or IT professionals, want their children to pursue a career in science and medicine, they still put the odd flower petal from the foot of the gods and goddesses into their pockets before any exam. Religious superstition is still a part of our life even though we fail to notice them.

Beyond The Hills draws our attention to such religious superstitions. Narrating the story of two girls’ encounter with religion and religious superstition, which leads to the death of one, it makes us more sensitive to our society. Deaths caused due to religious superstition are not unique to Romanian society but is widely prevalent in almost every society – just that they are not that widely publicized. In India, people in the rural areas, and sometimes even in the urban areas, are often drawn to religion to provide solution to their problems and these solutions often lead to death or serious health hazards. Religious godmen are quite prevalent in Indian societies, who look upon any illness or misfortune as an act of a spirit! They perform various rituals, some barbaric, that often leads to death, maiming or serious health hazard. One of the very common methods of getting rid of illness, as used by these godmen, is to sprinkle the person with boiling oil and thrashing him/her with a stick!

When I saw this movie, I could easily associate myself with the narrative and the characters. It seemed that I was seeing my own society being depicted on the screen – just in a different language! This brilliant movie deals with a real social issue – a controversial issue as most societies suppress such deaths to protect their image, to show that they are developed. Christian Mungiu has cleverly portrayed this issue without directly attacking religion or religious belief, but has focused our attention solely on the issue of religious superstition. Without any sub-plots to distract our attention and with a simple and strong narrative, the movie touches our hearts, irrespective of geographical location. Cosmina Stratus and Christina Flutur, two fresh faces, deliver a powerful acting that brings the story to life and they deserve the Best Actress award they received at the Cannes Film Festival.

Though many call this movie disturbing, this movie has made me think. This movie makes me feel that my society is not the only one that suffers from the ill effects of religious superstition in this age of technology but there are others. This gives us courage to accept these social evils and address them at a public level instead of just shoving them beneath the carpet just to look modern. Beyond The Hills has a massive international appeal and is a movie that I would ask everyone to watch.

NEED HELP! NEED A GOOD SAMARITAN!

A visually-challenged friend of mine has been diagnosed with Leukemia. The treatment for Leukemia includes Chemotherapy and/or Bone Marrow transplant. Both these processes are extremely expensive for a person coming from a lower middle class background. The estimated cost of the treatment varies from hospital to hospital but is around the sum of Rs 20 Lakhs. He is at present undergoing preliminary treatment at CMCH Vellore.

Is there anyone out there who would be willing to sponsor the treatment of my friend? Is there anyone out there who knows of someone else who can sponsor the treatment? Does anyone know of any organization that sponsors such treatment? My friend needs help and I request you all, on his behalf, to come forward and help him. If there is anyone willing to help or knows people or organizations that can help, please get in touch with me as soon as possible.

Johnny English Reborn (2011)

This issue of Johnny English is not as hilarious as the last one but Rowan Atkinson rocks!!! There are a number of very funny scenes but the movie becomes a drag at a number of places. The women - Gillian Anderson and Rosamund Pike - do not have much role to play but they look pretty throughout. But this movie is surely not for people who do not like Mr Bean in any of his avatars. The plot is pretty straight forward and everyone is in place but the end result id not very engrossing. For people who really like Mr Bean, they will find many occasions to laugh and might even enjoy the movie. I for one liked it but not as much as I had liked the first part.

Shaolin (2011)

This is a wonderful movie to say the least. I have always liked Chinese movies as they have a wonderful way of narrating, but this is by far the best Chinese movie that I have seen. It has brilliantly combined a wonderful storyline with classic Kung Fu action. You will also have the privilege of seeing Jackie Chan in action.

The story is set during the Warlord era in China when the West has just started laying railway lines there and establishing their power using the fragmented state of the politics. Andy Lau puts in a brilliant performance in the lead role and the background score is wonderful. If you are looking just for an action flick, this is definitely not the movie for you because, even though there are some pretty awesome action sequences, it is the story that prevails. If you take my advice, read the history of China before watching this movie. That way you will enjoy it more.

Black Book (2006)

Black Book or Zwartboek, is a Dutch movie that narrates the tale of a Jewish girl who joins the Dutch resistance towards the end of the war. It is a tale of love, loss and betrayal.

The lead role of Rachel Stein, who takes up the name Ellis de Vries, is beautifully portrayed by Carice van Houten. She looks stunning in the movie. Sebastian Koch as Captain Ludwig Muntze of the German SD is okay. The story is well rounded with no trailing edges. All in all, it is a really good movie, worth a watch with English subtitles (the movie is in Dutch and German). The movie portrays vividly the nature of the people, who had been suppressed by the Germans, when they get freedom and have the people who oppressed them under their power. The viciousness of human nature is very well portrayed. The movie takes a very human look at the Second World War and its actors at a very local level.

This movie is worth a watch for its story and its execution, the brilliant acting of Carice van Houten, or simply because she looks so amazing in the movie. But do not watch this with your parents.

Post Grad

Alexis Bledel reminds almost every post grad like me about the dilemma we are in after our graduation. She is very pretty and is able to carry out her role well.

The movie is a very decent one with a simple story line which tells us to follow our heart. The family of the girl forms the centre of humour in the movie. The family members and their own problems is an entertainment to watch. Most of the characters are well sketched but I think the Brazillian advertising neighbour could have been done away with.

Post Grad is a light movie that you can watch just to feel good. It has a few scenes that will make you laugh and some scenes which will make sensitive people, like one of my friends, cry. Hope you like the movie. I liked it, especially Alexis. She is just so pretty with her deep blue eyes.

Fast Five

It was last weekend that I watched Fast and the Furious 5 or Fast Five. If you ask me how it is, I would say I liked the previous ones better. But if you ask me whether you should pay to watch the movie, I would say go ahead and pay. It is worth a watch at a theatre. The movie loses half of its charm without the sound effect.

The movie is not for people who watch serious or intellectually motivating movies. Fast Five is sheer entertainment and should be watched like one. The special effects are brilliant and the stunts are simply superhuman.

Vin Diesel with his deep voice grabs your attention as usual and Paul Walker does his bit to support him. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is all muscle and he plays his role well. The glamour aspect is fully loaded with Jordana Brewster, Elsa Pataky and Gal Gadot. All the three look stunningly beautiful.

I expected a lot of car chases but Fast Five has quite a bit of gun battle, chases through the city of Rio De Janeiro or should I say over the rooftops and a grand car chase at the end. But the best thing I liked about the movie was the view of the city of Rio De Janeiro.

At the end of it all, I would just like to say that you should watch this movie. It is pure entertainment and loads of action.

Phas Gaya Re Obama

It is not everyday that one comes across a movie, especially a Bollywood one, that makes you sit up and listen to each and every dialogue delivered. I, myself, am not very fond of the hackneyed plots and dances that characterizes the Bollywood film industry of today. So it was with a lot of cynicism, and actually out of boredom, that I sat down to watch the movie Phas Gaya Re Obama. It was initially the unique name that had attracted me to the movie, but there was much more to the movie that held my attention.

Directed by Subhash Kapoor, Phas Gaya Re Obama (2010) is not a mainstream production and does not boast of the page 3 touted Bollywood greats. The movie is about an NRI (Rajat Kapoor) from the USA, who returns to India to sell his ancestral house, as he has lost all his money in the recession. But his arrival raises the hopes of a failed crimal who kidnapps him thinking that he is rich enough to pay a hefty ransom. But other criminals also have plans for him.

The plot is not very complex and it is this simplicity that gives it a brilliant flavor. The story is humorous and the whole movie creates a brilliant ambience by the breathtaking performance of the actors. Neha Dhupia, who does not attract as much publicity as the other actresses, is at her best in this movie in the role of a lady mafia. Her dialogue delivery, her gestures and her stance helps her blend with the character perfectly. Supporting her in the leading role is Rajat Kapoor, another under-utilized actor in mainstream Bollywood productions. His acting is natural and he blends easily with the character of the NRI. Providing a classic comic relief is the gifted actor, Sanjay Mishra. He plays the role of the failed criminal who kidnaps the NRI. The accent, the costume and the simpleton nature of his character is sure to make the audience roll into fits of laughter. His is a memorable character.

I have watched a lot of movies and have a large collection of them. One thing I have noticed is that most of the movies that have been acclaimed as great follow a simple narrative, with a simple and straightforward plot, examples include Sholay, Sound of Music and Cinema Paradiso. Phas Gaya Re Obama, according to me, falls under the category of ‘great’. It is not just the simple narrative or the plot, but because of the fact that it enlivens the viewers and make them want more. After the movie, everyone is left with something to ponder and I am sure that if you understand Hindi, you would want to memorize a few of the dialogues. This is what makes the movie great.

The director has done a brilliant job in selecting the cast and in the way he has portrayed the mindset of the rural society and their conception of the USA. The scene where the English teacher in the rural village break out into a verbal bashing in English is memorable and a brilliant example of how English is spoken by many Indians all over the country.

That Bollywood directors and actors still have the talent to turn a simple tale into something immortal, has been proved by Phas Gaya Re Obama. Many critics may say that I am going overboard with my praises but I believe that I still have not done enough justice to the quality of the movie. If someone asks me which Hindi movies he or she should watch, Phas Gaya Re Obama will be only second to Sholay.

Flipped (2010)

Both Hollywood and Bollywood have bombarded us with love stories. Love stories have been made boring and we seriously get bugged by them. So when I came across Flipped, I was really not in the mood to watch the whole movie. I have fifteen minutes and then I had to go off to the market. With only Flipped on my desktop, I decided to give it a shot. What with another story about a boy and a girl falling in love.. I could withstand the torture for twenty minutes. But I did not end up watching for twenty minutes, I watched the whole movie!

This is just not another love story, a third person’s view. This movie narrates the story from both the girl’s and the boy’s perspective on the same events. It is kind of gripping. It is a wonderfully made movie and the idea is brilliant. It shows very clearly how a simple thing gets interpreted in different ways from different perspectives. Madeline Carroll, who plays the little girl, has done a very good job. She just fits into the character completely. I know many people frown on watching silly love stories, but to these people I would say that this time they may be wrong. If they like a good story, Flipped is the kind of movie they should watch. It is really a good movie.

The General's Daughter (1999)

A brilliant movie! This is a movie dealing with a very delicate subject - the rape of a woman and her psyche after that. The whole plot is set in the perspective of the US Army. John Travolta plays the role of a detective in the army trying to unravel a murder mystery. He plays his role admirably. This movie is worth a watch. Enjoy.

Four Christmases

This 2008 movie is not one that I would recommend to a serious movie watcher. It is kind of funny but the humor is forced. Vince Vaughn dons his usual over-loquacious character, which sometimes gets on the nerve Reese Witherspoon looks kind of pretty but it ends there.

This is the story of an unmarried couple who are both estranged from their respective families and tries everything to avoid meeting them. They lie to their families to be with each other and not with the family. On their third Christmas their lies are found out and they are forced to visit their parents who are divorced. They go to meet their four parents individually, thus Four Christmases. Here they end up learning the value of family. The only thing you get from the movie is that you get caught if you lie. Watch it if you have nothing better to watch.

Centurion

It looks Roman at least.
The setting is very apt and the music suits the ambience. The story line is smooth and compact and no mushy business. The attitude of the Roman generals and soldiers have been wonderfully portrayed and so have been the love for freedom of the Scots. Olga Kurylenko has done a pretty good job. I liked her. Michael Fassbender also has done a good job. The best thing I liked about the movie is the dialogue used both in the beginning and the end "This is neither the beginning nor the end of my story". I simply loved it. Watch it for the love of history, at least some bit is history.

Prince of Persia

The movie, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, reminds one of Aladin. The backdrop is the same and the running over bamboos and roofs kept reminding me of Aladin. The whole movie is made very attractive by the special effects and the fighting sequences. Jake Gyllenhaal and Gemma Arterton make a good pair. The movie is fast paced and keeps one interested. I would give the movie a 6 rating but for the way the story has been concluded. I simply loved it. I would give the movie a 7. It is worth a watch.

The Indian Movie Fiasco

In the past few days I have successfully managed to watch two Hindi movies – Kya Kool Hai Hum and Bombay to Goa. It is God’s grace that I am still sane and am able to write this piece. For the past few months I have not seen a single good Hindi movie being released. Gone are the golden ages of bollywood. Most of the Hindi movies are too pathetic to even sit through them. I really do not understand how bollywood comes up with these movies and who watches them!

Most of the plots of bollywood movies these days are borrowed from Hollywood movies. They are shameless enough not even to modify these plots. I shall not go into modern Hindi movie songs for this is an area of controversy. I hate them from the bottom of my heart while others really appreciate them. Where has the Indian moviegoer’s taste gone. Movies like Kya Kool Hai Hum and others have no message for society at large, instead they portray heroes running after the wealth of a girl, dumping her only when he realises that it is not a “she” but a “he”. Lets not go into messages to society but at least they should be enjoyable! They are not even that. The humour is on the face and sometimes the distinction between humour and vulgarity get dissolved, watch Kya Kool for an example.

If we just look at present English movies and past Hindi movies, we see a stark difference. English movies have a very subtle sense of humour. When the humour is on the face or tending towards vulgarity, the movie is completely so like the American Pie series but even there they know how to make people laugh and cry. A very close friend of mine ended up crying while watching American Pie 3: The Wedding! Another very good but irritating friend of mine alleges that English movies send even cows to space ( the actual Bengali words are “golper goru space e tola”). It is true that the plots sometimes become bizarre and even superhuman and supernatural but the way it is presented by means of tying them down with believable things that you go into a “willing suspension of disbelief”. People complain that the superiority of English movies is due to the profusion of capital. This is a Marxist argument and like all of them, this too has serious flaws. This years Oscar went to The Hurt Locker, which was made from a meagre budget as compared to the much hyped multi-million dollar Avatar. There is my point – it is the plot and the execution that makes a film and not the money. Why do we need to have plots that try to save the world and locate them at exotic places at exorbitant budgets? Why can we not make movies like The Bucket List or Life is Beautiful? These movies have a very strong plot base that makes them hits.

My appeal to Indian moviemakers is to come up with original plots. Indian literature and folk traditions are rich with enthralling plots. Why do we not tap into them? My request to the moviegoers is stop watching these low grade movies so that the moviemakers realise that there is no demand for such movies. But I cannot blame the moviegoers as such for most of them look at the ratings before going for a movie and these ratings end up giving 3 stars to movies like The Appartment! Also I realise that the teaming masses want such movies because nothing other than crass humour can appeal to their basic instincts, otherwise how can a movie like Sangharsh flop at the Box Office and Singh is King become a hit! The Indian masses need to improve their intellect to motivate our commerce maniac moviemakers to come up with better plots.

Igor - All Men are not Created Evil

Yesterday night I watched the movie Igor. An animated movie that is just too good. Maybe I am so excited because I love animation. The movie has subtle humour that will appeal to all if they listen to the movie carefully. The idea behind the movie is not very unique but well executed.
It is the story of evil scientists, I gors and a fight between good and evil. There is also an element of romance in the movie and I like it as they did not stretch it too much and make it girly. The characters are made brilliantly and one ends up loving all of them. They have a character, each one of them. I can watch this movie more than once but maybe others will beg to differ. But it surely is worth a watch. Hope you guys have fun.

The Blind Side 2009

With nothing better to do last night I decided to scroll through my movie collection on my laptop and came across an unnamed folder. In it were a few movies I had got from a friend a few days back. The Blind Side was one of them. So I started watching it. I like Sandra Bullock but her performance in this movie was breathtaking.

This movie may look like the ordinary Hollywood movie on the suffering of the African-Americans (I hope I am politically correct!) and how they are viewed by the upper class Americans. Even though based on a similar theme the movie can be compared to othger epic movies, like The Pursuit of Happyness, in both the execution of the plot and acting. The movie is the story of a homeless African-American boy who gets into a public school because of his superb athletic skills and is adopted by a rich American family. One has to watch the movie to enjoy its beauty. The movie will keep you glued to the screen and you will even start to associate yourself with the characters. Sandra Bullock deserves the nomination she received for the Oscars this year. Watch this movie. It is good.