Noah...the terrible flood

Why was this movie made...in this age of discovering the proof of Big Bang, who is the target audience. Such bad acting, story and pathetic execution. I am disappointed with myself being an audience to this rubbish. I live in a small town in Kazakhstan, where an English movie is screened once in two months. I am so desperate to watch a movie on the big screen. that I watch anything that they screen. But this one was beyond my patience.  Russel Crowe, Anthony Hopkins and we get a dumb movie. Who would have thought.

Dear girls ...be fruitful and multiply. May I ask how. Will they be inseminated with pollen from daisies. Barren women and women in distress becomes real women with the touch of the divine. Clean the world of all humanity. why??? Their are millions who live in the wild who live by the rule of nature, there are millions doing there bit to keep the environment clean in their own little way. Just because a handful of greedy power hungry people decided to exploit the world, the wrath of the creator came upon the majority of the innocent. Ridiculous. Stop this nonsensical interpretation of biblical tales and come with a sane message or atleast a fantasy story that can be thought-provoking or entertaining in some way.

I cant believe this guy made Black Swan. I want my Tenge back.

Loved this take : http://www.cinemablend.com/new/Jon-Stewart-Glenn-Beck-Argue-Over-Noah-42472.html

This one is a crazy one : http://time.com/55407/showing-of-noah-canceled-after-movie-theater-floods/


I came back home disgusted and watched " The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" to feel better and smile again.

Queen- The Hindi movie

Thank you Vikas Bahl (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vikas_Bahl)...Salute

Thank you for the movie. A pathbreaking movie in Bollywood. Finally, a movie on a woman protagonist, with zero lecture on morality, did not tell her what to do, did not scare her, did not give her a time to come back home. Did not tell her not to talk to strangers, not to have fun, not to dream, not to be awesome.

So real, so honest.

"The question isn't who is going to let me, its who is going to stop me... "(Ayn Rand) , borrowed from WOW (women in wanderlust : http://www.wowclub.in/)

Let the journey begin...

Go watch it ...everyone. Its 10/10 and *****

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3322420/

The Wolf of Wallstreet

Absolute De Caprio style, quirky, bizzare, lifesize melodrama packed in 3hrs on the life of the Stockbroker turned motivational speaker Jordan Belfort . Its another Micheal Scorsese trademark reality show...

I loved the movie.

It was a slow paced movie, but at the end I can vividly remember all the characters. You are left with the WTF expression. You know this is reality and wonder what the hell is wrong with the whole world and deeply  realise that you are part of this too, mostly as victims.

Although the characters were not walking on the main wall street , it showed the dark alleys and dark issues of the stock brokering drama. All this "Show me the money" fiasco leave you flabbergasted. You can just sip from your cup of Chai and bury your dark desires in them. Lust for everything in life takes you far far away from everything you love.

The dark humour is good, specially when De Caprio tries to talk to the audience very very briefly, like fine prints in contractual documents.

Its flesh, blood, money and drugs all the way...dont watch it if those are not your choice of visuals.

Read about the life of the real Jordan Belfort : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jordan_Belfort

Dhoom 3

Oh No....Aamir what have you done???????????????

My 5 year old cheered the action heroes, villains, cops on the screen and I watched with sadness how the Dhoom genre was mercilessly killed. 

My wishlist for Dhoom 3:

1. Ranveer not Aamir
2. Maybe Aamir but 10 yrs ago
3. Script, script, script ? where was the script. 
4. ACP champak and his stooge....come on Abhishek and Uday if you cant get a promotion in 10 years atleast try to look smart
5. Why Chicago , whats wrong with all the Indian metroes, with the posters of AAP, Rahul, Mamta, etc etc donning the backdrop
6. Katrina, although I know you lack acting talent but you make it up for it with your hard work and professionalism....given a chance thats is...atleast a screen presence
7. Music ..where is the awesome music. To tell the truth the music is actually awesome, the film kills it too
8. Keep the scene with motorbike transforming to speedboat and then into some underwater scooty..thats was Dhoom material


Please dear producer remake Dhoom 3. Since you made so much money (500 cr.....what!!!!)

I actually bought Dhoom2 the same day on itunes and watched it with my son again. He now knows Hritik is better than Aamir (though that was not the point I tried to make)

The Dirty Picture

Vidya Balan is an actress par excellence, Milan Luthria almost became a good director. I had no idea till I saw this film, that sex appeal could be enacted with such prowess. I salute her talent.

The fast paced story line was carried all along by Vidya, she was so powerful, the dialogues were dirty to the core, in line with story. When talents like Nasiruddin and Vidya captures the audience to give entertainment, entertainment and entertainment, some shortfalls like Hasmi and Tushar Kapoor stops the movie from attaining the pinnacle of glory.

Fell in love with Vidya balan, all over again

Goynar Baksho-3 Worlds in a Jewel Box

Goynar Baksho - the much awaited new Aparna Sen movie. The expectations ran way too high this time. I had to bring it down a few notches to actually like the movie and talk about it. A story woven around 3 women, a ghost, a lady, a rebel, on the canvas of dramatic borders conflicts, stretched through time and lives of people from opar Bangla to epar Bangla. The portrayal of the three women is so well done, it tugs on your heartstrings  long after the movie is over. The movie intricately mixes the power these women possess, their desire, their dreams to be free, their despair, their arty manipulations, a various shades of feminism all woven around the male characters in their life,  played with elan by Poran, Kanu, Piyush and Saswata. The minor women characters are also brought in with careful rendering of several womanly traits of motherly responsibility, jealousy, fashion consciousness through Somlata's mother in law, sister-in -law, neighbours and relatives. 

But although the mortals and the dead had a lot to say and act, the main character in the movie, is still the silent wooden Goynar Baksho holding 500 Bhori gold, changing hands from generation to generation, women to women. It was slowly losing its materialistic value and transforming to an asset, used for fulfilling each women who possessed it, a chance to fulfill their need, desire and dreams. 

The three women had a choice to use the box of gold for achieving their own  purpose in life. Pishima (Rashmoni, played by Moushumi Chatterjee),  living in a household that would have rather gotten rid of the young beautiful but spiteful widow, used the box to demand respect and generate fear in her kin. Her nephew's wife, Somlata, an ordinary girl from a poor family, non-Zamindari background, used it to become the breadwinner of the family. She almost fixed the egotistic men around her, who would rather die of poverty then work to earn a living. And her power comes through, when she does all the changes in her life and her families, without raising her voice or finger. She even wins the heart of Pishima after much trials and tribulations. She has her feet on the ground and she was truly fearless.

The first half of the movie was intense, funny and immensely likeable and I wish it ended at intermission and we could have left the theatre with a smile and a twinkle in our eyes. But the movie took rather abrupt dramatic change in the next half . Although fast paced , it lacked the former's sense of drama and the storytelling eventually fell apart. It become some other ordinary movie, with no Sen magic.

Somlata, shared the stage with Pishima in the first half, and matched her expletives with her subtleties,  but the director could have given her some time and space in the script, to share her story and her life. Her subtlety was very well done and it went along with the 50's woman she portrayed, but , her desires could have  had some on-screen recognition. Thus, the middle of the movie felt stifled and stopped short of greatness it was due for. The hint of romance was way too subtle. The roses and the poetry passed by like a whiff of smoke leaving no significant impression. The musical piece by Shubha Mudgal faded with the smoke too and the dates changed on the screen bringing to a better ending section. The hiatus in the transition could not lift up the tempo and it was flat in the overall context of the movie. It almost feels like a different directorial do.

During the 70's , as the youngest woman of the family Chaitali (Shrabonti) shares a smoke with the eldest, Pishi Thakuma's apparition (Moushumi Chatterjee) and discusses love, life and politics. In this scene, the movie almost comes back, with some effort though. Chaitali, who is dreamer of human freedom, a socialist, a rebel at heart, devoid of bourgeois sentiments, comes to posses the goynar baksho and she decides to passed it to for the greater cause of Muktijuddho,  the Bangladesh war of freedom. Her story and Somlata's story do not mingle on screen, half hearted effort all through. 

But Pishima' s and her portrayal, touches our heart, she moves through time and space effortlessly, (being a ghost did help), her pride in her zamindari blood, love of wealth, self and ego, slowly accepts the worldly ways. When with Somlata, she accepts her middle class life and with Chaitali, she learns to let go of all her earthly desires, finding final peace.

Nice movie ...but


Why the rush in the second half, why this substandard direction and script, why the lack of Aparna Sen's perfect touch. Why she went overboard with her idealistic "love of the moment" concept, which we see in all her movies. A love so pure that it has no ending , no beginning, no future, no physical fulfillment. Just an ache,( only can be said in bengali: bhishon bhalo laga ar kanna meshano bhalobasha). I love this concept and her way of portraying it. But it did not fit into this movie in a way that it would linger with you, like it did when Raja comes close to Meenakshi in the ending scene of Mr. and Mrs. Iyer. I want that magic again....maybe next time


  

Memories in March-Good old Rituporno

Simple story, sensitive acting, display of emotions, and a great background score. Good to get back Rituporno Ghosh, the filmaker I liked in Unishey April, Utsav and Dahan. Thank God we got rid of the famous actors  (??) Bipasha, Amitav, Aishwaria Rai. Welcome back Dipti Naval and long live Raima Sen.

Sometimes the producers give him a rare chance like this one to do his own stuff I guess.....I hope we see many more of his brilliant creation in days to come. Abstractness balanced with sensiblity.