Analysing films

PK takes off from where Raju Hirani (the director of PK) finished 3 Idiots and Aamir Khan wrapped up the last season of Satyamev Jayate. In effect, both these protagonists carried forward the baggage of their past and rehashed it into PK. And boy it does work; at least for the masses or so it seemed sitting in the cinema hall and watching the audience lap up every bit of the satire and gags strewn in and everything in between. This is where Hirani seems to have got the pulse of his audience. Starting with the Munnabhai series, 3 Idiots and now with PK he has been able to kind of get the science of box office chemistry, effectively. In the long term, critics (me included) will sneer at these thoughts of creating templated success. But who cares? Least of all, does it matter? Yet one does tend to feel, somewhere, good cinema is about breaking norms, the fixed ideas and established traditions (See Boyhood, the sleeper Hollywood hit of 2014). But for now, Hirani rules the roost and he d

Well! The film loses its plot even before it started, or perhaps. It looks really like an extension of one those numerous TVF virals floating on youtube. What could have been a good and immersing film, seems to be lost in a moment of interlude, prelude or perhaps a idea gone wrong through someone trying to be a cool dude (did not sound very TVF!). Jokes apart there is nothing home to write about the movie, except for some occasional good acting from the very talented Aditi Vasudev (Do Dooni Chaar fame) and the two leads, Naveen Kasturia and Mayank Vasudev. It looks like an experimentative film and takes it's moment to build. Yet the length of the movie being about 90 minutes, does not seem to have given the space to have built it. The background score and the songs do kind of stay on for some time. The leads try and justify but the dialogues do not justify, unfortunately! There also seems to be attempt on creating starkness in the visuals and at times even trying to create m

Srijit's Chotuskone was seen by me purely for the hype it created and my co-brother's blatant praise for the same. Alas, it never really takes off, from where other of his work was. Too pseudo, too overtly intellectual (read forced) and too abstract. Sorry to digress, I have read somewhere the foundation of anything abstract (read music, painting or any form of culture) has strong grounding in realism. Good evidences of such are found in the works of the fabled Pablo Picasso, who had initial grounding in realistic art and gradually experimented with abstract. The problem with Srijit and his work, perhaps there is a grounding issue in his style of cinema as foundation of his work seems questionable. All of his work, to me have been on the lines of being surreal, abstract (maybe I can express this better by using a Bengali word like durboddho) and nihilist in it's form. Autograph or Baishe Sharabon or Hemlock, all fall in the same trap. His Mishor Rohosho was experime

After a series of capers, Vishal Bhardwaj seems to have got back into his familiar zone and with this film, his trilogy on Shakespeare now seems complete. Maqbool(Macbeth), Omkara(Othello) and now Haider(Hamlet). It brings in a set of films, uniquely set in different time zones, backdrop and perspective. Yet, they all connect and brings in the dark, edgy and the uncertain side of this species called Humans. Maqbool was very Mumbai and the seedy underbelly of the crime capital, with a brilliant star cast to boot. The who's who of Indian cinema. A very young Irrfan, the magnificent Tabu and the fabulous duo, Om Puri and Naseer. Omkara was experimentative with a complete new set of star cast, which I think (purely personal) was unable to do justice in the same league as would have been expected. Yet, Saif stood out in the film and so did the sublime Deepak Dobriyal. The rustic UP backdrop was a stark contrast to the seedy underbelly of Mumbai in Maqbool, and did so well to the l

After a series of "disasters" that I saw back to back, finally could get to catch up on a nice little sweet movie. The Hundred Foot Journey. Set in the beautiful French village (south of France) Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val and extensively photographed in Midi Pyrenees, the film is a delight for culinary lovers and especially fusion food. It brings together the classical (Helen Mirren's character Madame Mallory at one point mentions classical comes from the word, Class) French cuisine in clash with the more louder and rustic Indian cuisine, steeped in spices and color. Madame Mallory, metaphorically at one point feels the loudness of the music and the cuisine (read Indian) needs to be toned to suit the French palette better. And this is where the film scores, it does not get prejudiced at any point with the cultural stigmas of either cultures. Director, Lasse Hallstrom prefers to leave it to the viewers discretion. The pace is delightfully timed and one though wished the

The hype and the hoopla associated with Finding Fanny was perhaps the reason for a quick rush to the theatre for a first day first show. And the delay in the review is perhaps being so put-off with the movie that one dragged self to write. However, this is pure philanthropy for all who are yet to watch this utter deluge of a mish mash. First things, the script is pathetic, the plot is trifle slow, the characters therefore lose purpose and somewhere during the course of the movie, I think these characters must be questioning themselves. With a brilliant casting, the likes of Naseer, Pankaj Kapur, and Dimple Kapadia, nothing could have gone wrong. Add to that, riding on a hugely successful 2014 are Deepika and Arjun. The film falls flat on the pace. Moving at a very labourious pace, with directive, the plot is so weak that the brilliance of Goa also fails to do the trick. At some point, even the quirky-ness is questionable and perhaps the gags are forced upon us. The dialogues lack

Mardaani, as my title of the blog suggests is a definitive and honest attempt, from Pradeep Sarkar, especially after his two forgettable ventures, Lafangey Parinde and Laga Chunari Mein Daag. It is perhaps a coming off age for both Sarkar and YRF, who I presume decided to move beyond their comfort zone and to look at a topic completely different, relevant and dealt well. There are loose ends in the film, in abundance perhaps, however the honesty of the pperformances the central theme and the stylised approach makes up for the gaffes. I think, script could have been tighter, more encompassing, and perhaps a tad less predictable, moreso at the end. Yet, there are moments in the film, which makes you fall for the characters and leads. Rani's character, as  Shivani Shivaji Roy stands out, but it is the newcomer Tahir Raj Bhasin that really cuts through and his nuanced performance is indeed chilling, and breaks free from the clutter of negative characters. One of the factors, I f

Like I said in the title, if you have the read the original, which I think came out in the last or last to last year, Sharodiya Shonkha, do not watch the film as it is a complete let down. But if you have not read the original by Samaresh Majumdar, the movie is worth a dekko. The way different characters starting from the protagonist Amal to the characters, Shohag, Rijula and even all sundry characters develop are no where close to the original. What further adds to the agony, the climax scene which has been altered keeping Dev's image into account, which is unfortunate. The film to put it simply lacks the desired drama and the suspense, which if one has read the book will understand. It looks like a narration currently and there are moments where the film falls in a trap of trying to do justice to the book and the creative license it wants to use. Perhaps, this trap always remain when one tries to adapt a story or a classic novel into a cinema format. Some of the classic n

Saturday evening was Kick time. One line, before I proceed further, how I wished Nawazuddin had more screen time. Everytime he came our Sallu Bhai paled. But I think the producers would have got an hunch of that and in the rushes and the edit board, they would have all gagged up and mercilessly chopped his portions. It was evident throughout the movie. What a pity! Rest of the movie ordinary, banal, bland, mundane...A classic Sallu mindless poitboiler, in which there is nothing much to be written about. The script is by Saman Khan, for Salman Khan and of(f) Salman Khan. Templated stuff like the ppt templates which come with every MS office. His last couple of releases are on the same line. The only change, the lead lady changes, the periphery changes, the context pretty much remains the same and that is about it. The best part, when you watch pre release interviews or promo shows, where everybody is try is rationalise every mindless caper going on through out the film. Am sure t

We are half way into 2014 and the kind of stuff that hindi film industry is producing, we have to go through the trials and tribulations of one trash can after another. Generating mindless, senseless and utterly tasteless cinema, which least of all fails to even entertain. Take for instance a guy like Sajid Khan, I thought his Housefull franchise was a mindless caper, but at least it entertained. Even, he seems to have run into a creative menopause. Production houses, big directors and producers have all for long been suffering from a dilemma or a trap perhaps, which I call "Hash-Mash and Market" (HMM) syndrome. The HMM format is simple, take any contextual setting (do not go far, pick up any Dharma Productions or YRF or Sajid Nadiadwala Grandsons or Eros or ...) and set your protagonist in the context and let the three things do the rest, an item number (with or without the Canadian import), a glitzy setting (classic backdrops, great designer, great looks and great props)

Filmistaan is a small little film, with a bunch of new comers, who are all in their right earnest have been able to provide for a beautiful and meaningful cinema. Cinema that entertains, that has a message and most of all a nuanced performance from the newbies. A set of fresh faces, starting with the two leads, Sharib Hashmi and Inaamulhaq and the a stellar performance by Kumud Mishra and Gopal Dutt. The films is a classic homage to the partition and the fallouts of the same that seems to be a scar which does not seem to get healed with time. Each scene in the movie goes on to reconnect to with the pangs of partition and what a historic blunder that seems to have been committed. There are no preachy lessons or lectures, but the knock out dialogues and the screenplay seems to be telling in it's subtlety the ill effects of the partition. The scene of the local doctor (Hakim) coming in to treat Sunny (the lead character's name) for a bullet injury and the pain that one sees i

On a sudden visit to the ticket booking site, Book my show to catch up on the latest movies, theater, events doing the round of the NCR circuit, was pleasantly surprised to see a Bengali movie, Apur Panchali, playing in a limited edition version. Trying to claim of myself as a movie aficionado, I should really be ashamed of myself. Reason; this was the first time, I had heard of the movie and boy, it had already won the national awards and very active on the festival circuit. And here I was, and my ignorance. The movie is a take on the numerous child stars who make it big with their one big movie as a child star and then they get lost. They somehow are unable to wipe off the adage they get associated with, through their first film. So, it could be the child from Home Alone or ET or The Kid or Bicycle Thieves or in our case Apu from Pather Paachali. Hence, the movie is a take on the child star Apu (read Subir Banerjee, his real name) and his reel to real life. The movie works on t

I have been very very late in coming up with the review of 2 States, infact I had kind of planned to not even review the movie after probably watching the day after the movie was released. But in the last two weeks I have been reading about the film doing brisk business and talks of the 100 crores mark and all that makes one evenly surprised. To put the movie in a nutshell, it is long, tad boring and many a times one starts to feel how can a sub plot or a sub sub plot in a cinema become the mainstream topic. This makes for the plot drab and rubbery, to the point of even becoming tasteless. The original Chetan Bhagat book (frankly haven't read this one though) from where the plot is inspired, may have been more crisp (as Chetan is known for his sharp and crisp writing style) as it is a 268 page book only. Replete with the Karan Johar signature stuff like punjabi weddings, mindless and needless songs and what else a mindless Arjun Kapoor. Alia as usual is charming in her sel

   First things first, if you are going for Highway be prepared for a larger and meaningful subject being covered within the realms of the original plot. The sub plot holds a broader and bolder spectrum towards the end of movie (forced it seemed) but relevant indeed. Now to get back to the movie. Well made, well conceptualised and defined in it's natural shape, the movie is a definite coming off age for Imitiaz Ali after his last outing, the forgettable Rockstar. Fresh pairing of Alia and Randeep brings in the contrast and the odd chemistry of the two, which builds up. The relationship they share and at the fag end when they seem to be getting in their comfort zone, the Director delivers the master stroke (watch it for the details). The film builds itself up quite nicely and the locales add to the mood. Not the Yash Chopra stuff but stark, raw, unexplored the very Western part of HP (Kinnaur, Kaza...) in it's most dangerous and delectable stage. The mood is captured o

 It was worth the wait...Wait for my son's board exams to get over. There were quite a few in the pipeline to watch and decided to give Queen the priority over Highway, the other movie on the card to see. First things first, people have been talking of Kangana  and her role. Yes she is right there on the top for a role cut out for her. But there are few things I thought that stood right up there, making this movie the first must see of 2014. Surprise Surprise! It is Lisa Haydon! In a role truly cut out for her, this dusky lass showed spunk, attitude and everything else in between to essay this wonderful character, Vijaylakshmi. She was in her elements all through the first half and what made the character stood out, Lisa seemed to be enjoying in the shoes of the character she played. For the first few minutes of her appearance, it was simply hard to realise, it was she. Authentic French accent, perfect costumes and body language. Sorry Kangana! We have to give it to Lisa, ev

The promise of Vidya and Farhan and the potent combination of the two, calls for any film afficinado to rush to the nearest hall, but pity, it fails to deliver and Saket does capture some of the core essence of the shaadi factor, alas loses the plot post interval. The first half is good, breezy, with great comic timing from Farhaan. Yet the second half, seems to have the typical writer's block dilemma. Both Farhaan and Vidya are superb and they perhaps carry the burden of second half all by themselves. So much so, we fail to understand the presence of two very badly written characters of Veer Das and Illa Arun (god! what were they doing in a complete misfit of a role). Ram Kapur is spot on and does full justice to his role. But the rest as they say, too much expectation and too little to deliver. The prequel to this, Pyaar ke side effects had the oddball chemistry running between a oh so! suave and delectable Rahul Bose and the quirky, mad, rustic Mallika Sehrawat going, t

I am back after a gap of more than one and half months. The last one being a review of Dhoom 3, and I had promised to myself that I shall do a review of 2013 as the year comes to an end. But as usual one gets caught in the stupid things of life. Let me take a short detour and quickly in a few words summarise 2013. Well, it was the year of Ranjhaana, Kai Po Che, Lootera, Jolly LLB, Fukrey, Ghanchakkar and briefly, Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani. I have not seen three movies, which I am told are gems as well, BA Pass, Lunchbox and Ship of Thesues. I promise to see them this year. But these 6 films made up for all the trash that got made in Bollywood in 2013. What a gem was Lootera! A rusty and angry Kai Po Che and the sublime Ranjhaana. Fukrey had it's moments barring Richa Chadha (grouse), Jolly LLB for the effortless Saurabh Shukla and Ghanchakkar for the great plot it had (the movie was somehow misunderstood and misinterpreted). I hope to see some better films in 2014 for now. Mana