"Movie reviews"

Someone had said to me once that "Movie reviewing" was a good hobby to have. When i was told this i thought i could review movies because i watched so many of them! But i had one problem which my friends told(teased) me, i always appreciated movies! I never said that a particular movie was bad and that was because i always used to ignore the bad part and accept the good part of the movie.

But as my knowledge of movies increased( at least i think so) i started noticing the bad or low quality cinema. Bollywood also helped me a lot since a good movie was so rare!

One of the main reasons i started this blog was to write about movies and i have reviewed some of them but in a unorganized way. I din't know what to write in a review,I mean on what parameters will i judge a movie? Thats the reason why you can see that i have abruptly ended the previous review posts. So now i have decided that there has to be certain parameters on which i shall review a movie.

According to me " A Movie is not only a medium for entertainment but also a way of expressing the society" You can learn a lot from movies( I mean good quality movies) Hence for me it is of utmost importance that the Director has a clear purpose of making a movie and if he is successful in portraying his vision on the screen then thats the best award for a film.

Now i shall try to review a movie based on following factors

1. Story or Script which is the soul of the movie.
2. Cast. Is the cast assembled the best?
3. Direction.
4. Is the movie Logical and if it is illogical then does it have a proper reason to be so?( ai wonder can it still be justified?
5. Is it a film for masses or a particular sect of society?

Also technicalities of the movie which includes Cinematography,Art direction,Camera work etc

I do not have much expertise on these but if i find something interesting worth to note then i shall mention it. There are many other factors which can be considered but above 5 are the main parameters around which the review will be centered.

There can be movies which might not satisfy even one parameter mentioned above,i will try my best to ignore such movies. There are many Bollywood movies which are like that!

I would like to end this post with some beautiful quotes on movies

"The movies we love and admire are to some extent a function of who we are when we see them"- Mary schmich

"You know what your problem is,it's that you haven't seen enough movies-all of life's riddles are answered in the movies"-Steve Martin

"Movies are something people see all over the world because there is a certain need for it"-Wim Wenders

"My true inspiration for movies comes from my Grandfather who absolutely loved them"-Me!

"Reservation Road"{2007}

Firstly thanks to Shyam Govind for his tips which helped me to change the look of my blog. Must say Blogger has done some remarkable changes. You can check out his blog here

Now coming to the movie "Reservation Road" by Terry george who also directed the wonderful film "Hotel Rwanda". This movie is a drama which is high on emotional quotient. First thing which came to my mind after watching the movie was the brilliant acting by two fathers and very good direction. If you consider the plot it looks like any other 90's bollywood revenge theme movie but it is more than that! It is a very powerful film.

Ethan learner and Grace lose their child Josh in a fatal car accident which is caused by Dwight anro's (Attorney)SUV. Not knowing what to do,Dwight speeds away from the accident site but Ethan got a glimpse of the vehicle and heard Dwight shouting his son's name "Lucas". Both Ethan and Grace cannot accept the fact that their son has been killed and are in extreme trauma. Ethan tries all options to nab the culprit by going to Police,attorney and personal investigation but success is hard to come by.

Grace decides that she has to move on with her life but is perturbed because of her husband Ethan who is still traumatised. Here both the actors have acted brilliantly especially Ethan played by jaoquin phoenix. There is a beautiful scene here when Josh's sister Emma asks her mother whether music can be heard in heaven,since she wants to play the piano only if his dead brother can listen to it.

On the other hand Dwight is very nervous and does not know what to do hence he hides his car in the shed and tries to concentrate on his work but he is unable to. He tries to spend more time with his son Lucas so as to forget the incident but it keeps on haunting him. He is unable to sleep and tries to confront Ethan and the police for confessing but is unable to gather the courage.

What is interesting is Ethan goes to the same law firm where Dwight works and dwight has to handle the case which makes it more difficult for him. Here both the fathers have given captivating performances which make the movie very engrossing. Finally Ethan recognizes Dwight's voice and tries to shoot him but is unable to do it since Dwight had realized his mistake and is dying every day because of it.

Watch the movie for amazing performances and good direction. If you do not like too much emotional stuff then this might not be your type but the movie is worth a watch.

If you are wondering why the movie has been named "Reservation road" the accident takes place at Reservation road.

Armageddon(1998)

Category:Science fiction

I have watched this movie 3 times on Star movies. First time in 2005 during my mid term examinations of 12th! I had a Mathematics exam next day but i was more interested in the movie rather than practicing integration problems, because of which my mother was furious. I don't get bored of watching it again and again,Just now watched it again and felt i should write a review.

First thing which you will notice in the movie is the wonderful assemble of cast. Casting director has done a excellent job.Bruce willis is wonderful in his usual macho-hero role,Ben affleck in a romantic role,Billy bob thornton as head of NASA and steve buscemi as comic relief. Rest of the cast has done a equally good job.

Plot: An asteroid named dottie the size of texas is going to crush earth in 18 days and after consulting with world's top space agencies NASA decides that the asteroid has to be Nuked. But the problem is that the bomb must be put 800 feet deep into the asteroid so that it completely blows out and misses earth. For this NASA finds Harry(Bruce willis) and his team which is the best in oil drilling.The movie follows how Harry and his boys team up with NASA and finish the job.

For complete plot check out this Wiki

The movie is good on emotional quotient but when it comes to scientific facts it is dissapointing.

NASA could identify 168 impossible things shown in the movie! But if you can forgive those mistakes and watch it( As you do in the case of Bollywood movies!) then it is a good watch.

Some comedy scenes are really good and Steve buscemi has done a remarkable job.

The dialouges are amazing and one which is worth mentioning is at the end part of the movie, the Russian astronout says

"American components,Russion components all made in Taiwan"

Harry(Bruce willis) Sacrifices his life when he has to volunteer to stay back on the asteroid to detonate the bomb. The movie could have been lot better than what it turned out to be.

Even the critiques din't give a favorable response and the movie was nominated for Raspberry(Awards for worst movies) awards in various categories,eventually winning in one. On the other side the movie also received some nominations in oscars but the categories were technical.

If you are a person who tries finding logic in the movie then you should stay away from it but if you are a Pure Hindi movie fan then i am sure you will love the movie. I am surprised that no one tried to remake the movie in Hindi.Its not possible to do it, Bollywood still has a long way to go to be able to make science fiction.

"Housefull"

I am not sure whether review of this movie deserves the amount of online space it is going to eat up! After Sajid khan's "Hey baby" which was quite entertaining, lot was expected from Housefull but like many dud films which bollywood makes every year even this is going to bite the dust.

Though it is estimated that it has grossed 10crores in the first day itself but i wouldn't be surprised if its business goes down drastically in following weeks.

Like many comedy films of recent past even this movie does not have a story as such,but uses situations and confusion to make us laugh. Hence you can easily compare it with a movie like No entry. Akshay Kumar( Read pannauti!) is the lead who has no luck in his life and marries a rich girl only to get divorced later. Then he falls in love with Deepika who shares the same feeling,everyone is happy but Arjun rampal(Deepika's brother) a Police officer is hell bent on checking the genuinness of Akshay. Then story unfolds with lots of confusion where some scenes which make you laugh and others which are the same old "Dostana" type jokes.

Sajid khan couldn't think of a suitable ending hence came up with a stupid climax which brings home the point that "your money has been wasted". Akshay kumar has eased through the role with no difficulties,Riteish is good and about Arjun Rampal less said the better.Actresses have done what they are expected too! I wonder if anyone expects them to act nowadays!! Music of the movie is average with a few good numbers and a Emotional atyachar type song which is repeated throughout the movie.

Speaking of Arjun Rampal his controversial National award comes to mind which he won for "Rock on". His performance was good in the movie,he deserves accolades for that but National award?? Thats too much! Isn't it??

Before the Housefull movie started there was a interesting note by sajid khan which indicated names of Manmohan desai and Prakash mehra who are the great directors of bollywood. The note said that they taught that cinema is all about entertainment. True cannot agree more but Housefull does not entertain me. I wonder who the target audience is?

Review:Mr woodcock

What's the advantage of having lot's of free time?

You can watch movies like the one above on TV and also to add insult to injury you can review it on your blog!! Hail Laziness and insanity!!

While i was going through all the useless Television channels i came across HBO( Home Box office) and then checked out some movie was about to start. Using the technology advancement my Set top box provides( Tata sky:Jingalala!!) I read the gist of the movie, something like a Intro to your Project report or seminar report but the difference here is it is more interesting and original!( Consider the plagiarism involved in our creativity of coming up with new projects!)

The gist interested me and i utilised my precious time in watching the movie for 2 hrs! Was the movie worth watching? If you consider tha amount of money i earn on hourly basis( Nil!) it was more than worth! Story is about a Bestselling author John Farley who hates his school Gym teacher who is about to marry his mom! The book which he has written "Letting go of past" has changed many lifes,but incidently the author doesn't follow what he preaches. Sounds familiar right?? As we all do! We are perfect advisors but are we good Listeners to our own ideas??

John comes back to his hometown for receiving the prestigious Korn kobee award and in the process gets to know about the affair of his mom's and his monster teacher Mr.woodcock.

Not able to accept the fact he is traumatised and is hell bent on breaking the relationship.

Some real hillarious moments follow. The one with his friend Nedderman, then at the Treadmill and finally the award ceremony and the fair.

Our Hero realises that you do not just let go the past but you embrace it!!

Good lesson to be understood! If your time is as precious as mine then i advise you to watch it but if it isn't then you can afford to miss this one.

"Leader"

The feeling which you get after watching a Inspirational movie is wonderful. I feel like i can do anything which i dream of,though the feeling doesn't last long! There have been some movies in both Bollywood and hollywood that have inspired me a lot. A few examples would be

RDB,Swades,Front of the class,Pursuit of happyness. Today after watching "Leader" a Tollywood flick i can add that movie to the above list mentioned.

Directed by Shekhar Kamulla,Leader is a story of a "Idealistic" guy who is Chief minister's son and after untimely death of the his father(CM) has to become the CM since it was his father's last wish. The story revolves around how he gets into the politics with a Single point agenda to eradicate Corruption. Politics as we know it is,has been shown very well in the movie.

After getting a pulse of Politics and realising what he has to do,he sets out to become a leader who really wants the state to prosper.

All the actors have performed exceedingly well,and the main USP of the movie is a great Script.

Shekar kamulla's movies are very different from the normal movies,he gives it a very good feel which usually lacks in most of the movies especially the baseless telugu movies.There are some points in the movie which i loved a lot. Leader is shown smoking in most part of the first half. What i could interpret is the director wanted to show that he is a common youngster who has become a leader or just because it was looking cool on the screen.But knowing the attention to detail shekhar gives, i feel there is a valid reason for it.

Very good dialogues,story and performances make leader a must watch. At the end hero's mother which is played by Suhasini( Amazing actress) says "I din't want you to become a politician,i wanted you to become a Leader".

I have always believed that movies should make us learn and this is one movie which surely does.

" I want to be a Idiot"

3 Idiots was something which i was waiting desparately for. I am a movie addict,but due to all these management entrance examinations i couldn't watch a movie in theater for 4 months!! Thats huge time considering the fact that i had watched more than 65 movies in the only multiplex we had in city( Gulbarga) in a span of four years of Engineering.

Well I am a big fan of Raj kumar hirani,he is such a good director. The other day i was reading his interview in a paper and got to know that some people compare him with the great Hrishikesh Mukherjee who by the way is the best director bollywood has ever seen.

I don't see anything wrong in calling Raju the contemprary "Hrishida" since both of them share the same spirit of story telling and such subtle comedy. Raju in addition comes up with a concept in every film which is so easily accepted by the people,such as Jaadu ki jhappi in munnabhai and Gandhigiri in Lage raho munnabhai and "ALL IS WELL" in this movie.

Coming to the Movie 3 idiots,I had booked the tickets for first day first shows which shows my desparate nature to watch the movie but due to this frequent bandhs in our Pearl city of hyderabad for a separate state the show was cancelled and i could not watch it First day first show...

Anyway like a wounded warrior i did not lose hope and fought with ferocious will and did watch it second day matinee show along with family.

After I watched the movie i was happy because all the expectations and hype was justified in every sense.

The movie itself is so easily identifiable with our own characters and life experiences i am sure evey engineer will see himself in one of the three idiots. I saw my shades in Madhavan character who does not seem to be interested in engineering and has passion in a different field,the only difference i would say is atleast he knew in what field he wanted his future to be but I have no idea still. Just flowing with the tide always. Every time i see the tagline of DOCOMO it makes me think of my future," DO THE NEW" . Its amazing how taglines have such meaning.

The story is amazing, its a satire on our Education system which only encourages rote learning.

The wonderful aspect is that the story does not become preachy but is a very fun filled one with a serious message which i hope will be accepted.

It is based upon " Five point someone",I mean only the theme is the same but the entire story is original in its own way.

Well every time after i watch a movie i think of the best scenes of the movie but in this movie it was like all the scenes were great and it was hard to make a difference.

It had a great mix of emotion,comedy,melodrama..everything a entertainer should have.

The movie is a sure shot hit and is going to be on the same lines of munnabhai if not more in terms of success.

Aamir khan has portrayed the character brilliantly and has surprisingly looked very young in the movie..He is surely a perfectionist.

Madhavan is a superb actor but bollywood has not used his supreme talent.

Sharmaan joshi's talent has rightly been utilised in the movie,he has such gift of timing which is essential for comedy..In one scene he calls aamir kake thus taking us back to RDB in which their chemistry was very good.

I dont rate movies on a scale since i dont know many technical facts of the field but if such scale existed then surely 3 idots will be on peak.

I don't have to be a idiot,I am a idiot already!!!

"Smile Pinki"

Smile pinki an Oscar winning Documentary film( Running time 39 minutes) is truly a richly deserving tale to watch. It will surely make you look for a hanky to wipe those beautiful tears of joy!!

Its a story about a wonderful organisation "Smile train" which has been doing remarkable work by helping children with Cleft lip and cleft Plate. Frankly i dint have any idea what this defect was?? But thanks to the movie i have got to know about it, exact defination of this according to

the website www.smiletrain.org is:-

A cleft is a birth defect and often the #1 birth defect in most developing countries. A cleft lip is an opening in the upper lip between a newborn's mouth and nose. A cleft palate is created when the roof of the mouth has a hole in it. Babies can be born with a cleft lip or palate or both.

These defects are mostly found in children in poor countries i.e developing countries,the main reason why this abnormal condition arises is because of the malnutrition of pregnant women and poor families and sometimes because of genetic reasons!!

What's amazing is the cure for it, its a surgery of 45 minutes and which costs 250$ roughly Rs 15000 and this surgery is performed free by the organisation with the help of their trained doctors!!

For a poor family who are not sure from where their next meal would come!! 11k is a huge amount and one such family is pinki's. They had to walk 3hrs to get to a nearby village for a transport to Banaras where the hospital was organising the mega treatment.

This is the state of our country which is proud of itself for having many billionares in top 100 list, as rightly put by a american volunteer of smile train organisation " India is a very complicated country" Don't we know that??

But cant we do something to contribute??

If we cannot come forward and take the initiative then atleast we can be a small part of an organisation and help in whatever little way we can!!

There used to be a foreward in our NCERT textbooks by Mahatma Gandhi which said

" Before doing any work think in what way it will help the downtrodden people of our country" It dint made any sense in school days but those were the words of a person who had seen the plight of the poor india, Remember even he was a common man just like one of us but after realising what a mess our country was in, he became what we know him as "Bapu".

We might never achieve such heights but we should not live in ignorance, knowing the plight of millions of poor people of our country we should contribute in whatever way we can!!

We eat Junk food, spend on parties,Movies and what not!! If every individual contributes then we can a bring about a change!!

Firstly the important factor is we shouldn't live in ignorance, smile pinki was one example which made me realise my responsibility. As such there are many more examples and millions of people who are in ignorance, we should spread the awareness!!!

Bring a smile and see the difference!!

Aditya