Neelathamara

Many a mallu boy has dreamed of a beautiful young woman showing up as the household help and falling to his wiles. Typically the situation ends badly with the woman getting screwed over and having to move on with a wad of cash and bad memories. One would think that such a story would be crass and without enough nuance to be made in to a film. That his where the genius of M. T. Vasudevan Nair rears its head as he weaves this simple tale in to a masterpiece. Well almost... he enters an avenue that could have been explored so much more but he decides it is a dead end without walking its entire length. And yet the film has a grace and poignancy to it that is not easily achievable.

Rating: * * +

Wu Xia

Liu Jinxi (Donnie Yen) leads a simple life as a paper maker in a tranquil village in the Chinese countryside as the country is going through a change from monarchy to republic. Married to the ethereally beautiful Ayu (Wei Tang), Liu’s life is jolted when he “accidently” kills two bandits who try to rob a local store. The detective (Takeshi Kaneshiro) who follows in the wake of the killings refuse to let Liu’s past be and slowly tries to uncover the martial artist behind the simpleton’s mask. Stylistically shot by Peter Chan, the film is a pleasure to view except that the script and screenplay leaves a lot to wish  for.

Rating: * +

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

The Potter series winds down and the gloves are off as Harry plus friends face off against the mighty Voldemort. Harry, Hermione and Ron are hot in the pursuit of the horcruxes in the hope that destroying them will give them a respite against the Dark Lord. Hot on their heels are the Death Eaters in their unleashed fury. The atmosphere is dark and gloomy as the directors strain to give the film and sense of doom and foreboding. But alas one can only take Voldemort so seriously after being exposed to the true Dark Lord and foes of Ged!

Rating: * *

Killer Elite

Jason Statham can keep making Transporter like films until kingdom come. This one is an addition to the list. Robert De Niro must be facing hard times to be playing Statham’s character Danny’s mentor Hunter in the film. When Hunter is taken captive, Danny is forced to hunt former British agents down in return for Hunter. This puts the mysterious Spike (Clive Owen) on his tail. Ensemble cast aside there is very little in the film as it winds down predictable roads in a boring terrain.

Rating: * +

Pudhupettai

Story of how a scrawny man, Kokki Kumar (Dhanush) becomes an underworld don and a pawn in the hands of politicians. Charting his rise from a young boy to a Scarface like figure, the film throws in dollops of violence and dappan koothu. The noise level rises to a crescendo and stays there and as body count goes up, all you want to do is escape to a quiet bar and meditate over a beer.

Rating: * +

Margin Call

A film that tries to capture the beginning of the end of the housing bubble, opens with a pink slip day at a major trading firm. One of the employees being laid off turns out to be sitting on something big and soon the unraveling starts. Not a word is mentioned about the reason for the collapse or what the collapse is all about. The films assumes the viewer has seen and heard enough to not bother detailing that aspect. Instead the focus is on the upper management of the firm and how they react to the situation. A calmness permeates the film that can throw the viewer off considering the fact that everyone is panicking but with actors like Kevin Spacey, Jeremy Irons and Demi Moore it is obvious that much lies below the surface. If you go in expecting Wall Street the film will disappoint. However what is portrayed here might be a more realistic view of the unraveling from an individual worker point of view.

Rating: * * +

Green Lantern

Earthling Hal Jordan is chosen to wear one of the Green Lantern rings and become part of the Green Lantern corps. Soon Earth is threatened and blah blah blah. DC in its vain attempt to keep up with Marvel film launches, brings yet another of its characters to the big screen. Picking Ryan Reynolds to play Green Lantern, undid the movie even before shooting began.

Rating: *

Take Shelter

Curtis (Michael Shannon) seems like a regular fella with a loving wife (Jessica Chastain) and a daughter who dotes on him. The only trouble the family faces is the little girl’s deafness. Curtis and his wife seem to be taking this in their stride when he starts getting plagued with apocalyptic dreams of a storm front. He soon turns introspective which externally manifests itself in sullenness and strange behavior like fencing away the pet dog. The guts is the family’s struggle to deal with the unraveling of Curtis. A film that moves at a constant eerie pace with the kind of stillness that most directors don’t get right.

Rating: * * +

The Skin I Live In

A man silently contemplates a larger than life picture on the wall of a stunning woman in a body suit. Suddenly the woman stirs and you realize you are looking at a close circuit camera feed on a giant LED TV. On the surface, the woman, Vera (Elena Anaya) seems to be Dr. Ledgard’s (Antonio Banderas) live in pet subject for his plastic surgery experiments. But contrary to the the title, most things in the movie are not skin deep as you find yourself immersed in a bizarre world that only Pedro Almodóvar can concoct. And even for him the film might have been a road less traveled on…

Rating: * * +

Inglourious Basterds

The time is World War II with the Nazi juggernaut running rampant across France. Dropped in to this zone is a group of specially chosen madmen whose charter is to put fear in to Nazis. The fact that title is misspelt is in itself a hint that Mr. Tarantino has something to do with its making. The fear inducing methodology in his indomitable style confirms it. In spite of a Kill Bill like structure, the film is no way one of his all time greats but yet an enjoyable trip.

Rating: * * +

The Vanished Empire

The film is set in 70s during the peak of communism in Russia. The budding adults in the movie however are in to all things hip i.e. from the west. They dabble in the black market harking behind Pink Floyd, The Rolling Stones and western fashion. The whole society seems very progressive on the whole in contrast to the dreary world Russia was painted to be. With this backdrop, the film follows the travails of a group of young adults as they come of age. Petty rivalry, skirt chasing and staying cool seems to be their focus like most people their age all over the world. If the aim of the movie was to show that kids in Russia were just like their western counterparts, then it sure hit the bull's-eye. Other than that it’s just another drab coming of age film.

Rating: *+

No Smoking

K (John Abraham) is a chain smoking business tycoon with a  penchant to be an asshole. However it is not the asshole bit that bothers his wife (Ayesha Takia) but his nicotine habit. So when she lays down the gauntlet for him to quit, he finds himself in the abode of Baba Bangali (Paresh Rawal). The Baba apparently has a foolproof method to make one quit and never go back. The plot so far seems engaging but Anurag Kashyap decides to get bit too clever for his own good and the film literally meanders down a hell hole!

Rating: * +

Four lions

 

Prompted by a colleague, I invited a few others to check out this film I knew very little about. An hour and a half later I walked out having watched a bloody funny film, a bloody good film. Cutting edge in its focus on staying away from the well trodden narrative (when it comes to suicide bombers and terrorists) and some excellent performances. Predictably, the others with me were not amused. Four lions is a dark look at a bunch of idiots in bumblefuck UK who happen to be aspiring suicide bombers. Initially I thought it was a spoof, like the Hotshots series or something. But instead it gradually develops and takes things to its logical, politically incorrect end. With some fantastic urdu swearing thrown in, this is one of the better films of 2011. 

Rating: * * *

Midnight in Paris

Circumstances and a dastardly Spaniard conspired against me, to make me do something that I swore to avoid… watch a bloody Woody Allen film. But with good faith and an open mind I tried my hand at it again.

Gil (Owen Wilson), a floundering author is wandering around Paris with his overbearing fiancé, Inez (Rachel McAdams). Her super rich parents are equally snooty and little needs to be said about her snobby friends. The situation leaves Gil to wander the streets and he stumbles in to mysterious avenues from the past. While the setup seems fine on paper, it translates on to the screen in typical Woody Allen fashion. Noisy dialogs that leaves the viewer with a buzzing in their ears and the lack of stillness that gives a feeling that Allen is rushing around with no end in sight. Never again will I put my self through this torture!

Rating: *

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest

Lisbeth Salander (Noomi Rapace) is recovering from the brutal assault from her father and step brother while awaiting trial for multiple murders and assault. Seeing her helpless and the vultures gathering, Mikael Blomkovist (Michael Nyqvist) mounts a private crusade to bring her justice as he goes about unveiling a conspiracy spanning decades. Like all the three films, this one too has been diluted. However, Daniel Alfredson has tried to maintain a balance that leaves the film very watchable.

Rating: * * *

Kamui

Terrible movie about a shinobi who absconds from his ninja clan. The hope might have been that the over the top CGI effects and wire works would make up for the lousy action sequences and jerky storyline. Alas it only left me wondering how this pile of krap made it on to my queue.

Rating: *

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Mankind’s constant tinkering to fix things forms the background plot of the film. Hot shot scientist Will Rodman (James Franco) discovers a wonder drug that can repair brain cells. The test subjects are of course apes! Predictably things get out of hand and soon you see the back story behind Planet of the Apes unfold. A tightly wound action flick shot with very little dialog. Given that film is dominated by Andy Serkis playing Caesar it is aptly not required. Which also leads to it being an ideal movie for Freida Pinto to showcase her “skills”.

Rating: * * +

Captain America: The First Avenger

Marvel’s main icon finally makes his way to the big screen and unfortunately they have to start at the beginning set in World War II. Steve Rogers goes from skinny kid to super soldier and proceeds to kick Nazi ass. The Red Skull is his main nemesis who is played by Hugo Weaving who still acts like he is Agent Smith. The American propaganda that surrounds the movie is cloying and puke worthy. Thankfully this will be the last we see of it, as we will soon see Avengers Assemble!

Rating: * +

Hanna

A young girl (Saoirse Ronan) is trained to be a killing machine in an icy wilderness by her father (Eric Bana). Then with nary an explanation they announce themselves to the people they are supposedly hiding from and split up. Soon they have an obviously evil Cate Blanchett hot on their heels. Inevitable splices of action and chases is soon followed by the obvious climax. Through out which the film is limply held together by a whispering storyline. Thankfully the Chemical Brother filled in the void.

Rating: * +

Airbag

The Spanish claimed that Delhi Belly had vestiges from an old 90’s flick from Spain. So the plan was made for the movie, chicken wings and other things.

Dumbo Konradin is engaged to a rich countess’s daughter and wears a multi-million dollar wedding ring. Weddings also mean bachelor parties with much debauchery. Konradin is dragged to a brothel by his friends who actually have more fun than him. Unfortunately for him, he ends up losing the ring up a prostitute’s ass. So like in Delhi Belly jewels are involved here too followed by insane number of underworld dons and their underlings. But like how a lot was lost in translation from Hindi much Spanish humor was missed. However thanks to this film many things in life will be “mui profesional” and sub-machine gun will always be somachigún.

Rating: * *

Delly Belly

Came into my radar after I had read about a song from the movie - on a chap called D K Bose. From the production room of Aamir Khan, Delhi Belly is yet another stylish Bollywood movie thats being churned out on a regular basis - capturing the escapdes of 3 urban young nothings. Not one of the pretentious self-discovery shit that films like these often are: like Rock On was or the new Abhay Deol/Hrithik Roshan movie. Lots of swearing, farting, shitting, passion, bullets flying around and comedy sequences that were, well, quite funny.

Rating: * * +

Ip Man 2

Take Ip Man, replace the Japanese with the Brits, remove all historical context and you will be left with the second film that supposedly peeks in to the life of Bruce Lee’s master. Throw in Sammo Hung for old time sake, but nothing can save this film from inducing coma in the viewers.

Rating: *

Let the bullets fly

Talking of highest grossing films, I finally watched China's all time box office hit. Highly recommended by Nek, it took bit of an effort to get hold of a copy with English subtitles. After all that, I was left disappointed as the action was limited & with Bollywood style editing. Couldnt see what the deal was. But there was a whole load of crisp, bullet sharp conversation which seemed rather tame as I read the subtitles - I suspect all the wit was lost in translaton. 

Rating: * *

El secreto de sus ojos

A murder-thriller made with great style. Benjamin Esposito, a retired lawyer, resurrects details of a murder that he had investigated 25 years ago as inspiration for a novel. It brings back memories of the brutal murder, his genius alcoholic partner, the chase for justice and his unconsumated love. For 120 mins, director Juan José Campanella captures your imagination as the intricate story is laid out (though the last scene was a copout) and outstanding camera work fills the screen - the sequence in the football stadium is one of the greatest I have seen in a long time. "The secret in their eyes", as of last year, was apparently the highest grossing movie in Argentina over 25 years.

Rating: * * *

X-Men: First Class

The prequel to the X-Men series unpeels the back stories of Professor X, Magneto and few of our other mutant friends with style and more than a dash of panache. Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) and Erik Lensherr (Michael Fassbender) start of as close friends and allies as they attract mutants from around the world to join them. The problem is getting the rest of mankind to accept them as a part of society and not as an external threat. The film gives you the background that causes the rift between the two and contrasting philospohies that form the backbone of the "later" films. And strangely the fourth film in the series turns out to be the most engaging and strongest of the lot.

Rating: * * *

Super 8

A throwback to early days of my film-watching: ET, Goonies, Stand By Me. Bunch of kids who have their adventure gene on turbo boost and deal with issues that adults struggle to - in this case an extra-terrestrial creature thats gone nuts. Super 8 starts promisingly, progresses steadily and then it dissolves into a rather sugary end. Wouldn't know if I would have enjoyed it any more if I had watched this in the 80s. Why should I care, I am not the producer.


Rating: * *

Kung Fu Panda 2

Sequel victim - below par humour & action. Mind numbing.

Rating: * +

Biutiful

Only an Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu and Javier Barden combination can use a beautiful city like Barcelona as the canvas to tell a story of abject poverty and dying hope. Nothing from the very outset prepares the viewer for anything but darkness and in an intense manner plots the story of Uxbal. His broken family, his African goons, the Chinese labour racket he is part of and his own mortality. Whilst the detail & reality in the story telling is well crafted and top notch, there is something amiss. And I still can't seem to put a finger on it. Its the spontaniety in the story telling possibly.


Rating: * * +

District 9

To think that this film was vying for the Best Picture award last year along with Avataar and didn't get a word in. What a tragedy - but appropriate that Avataar didn't get it eventually either, which would have been a greater tragedy. A far superior movie is District 9, a story of the rehabilitation of aliens in Jo'burg that goes totally wrong, but at another level, goes totally as per the usual human plan. Neill Blomkamp's first feature that's strong in its depth and accompanied by brilliant acting by Sharlto Copley & the various prawns. Backed up by fine action, effects and cinematography - and avoiding cheesy love stories & moralising of any kind - especially the nauseating "green" variety. Look forward to many more films from the duo.

Rating : * * * +

Thor

The premise of this film is simple. All conquering immortal warrior, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is cast down to Earth by the Allfather Odin (Anthony Hopkins). It is now up to the new Earth hero to pick up the pieces and restore himself to full light while putting up with nattering of a very hot ineffective Natalie Portman. Thankfully it doesn’t take much away from the film as this Marvel franchise is being handled with aplomb by Kenneth Branagh. If only they had borrowed more from the Ultimate side of Thor…

Rating: * * +
PS: It seems like Tadanobu Asano is really hard up on cash!

13 Assassins

The Meiji restoration is at hand but the principals in the story are of course not aware of the unfolding of the future. All they see is Lord Naritsugu (Gorô Inagaki), the shogun’s half brother threatening to cause large scale internal strife with his psychotic ways. Shimada Shinzaemon (Kôji Yakusho), samurai par excellence is summoned from his quiet retirement and tasked to unofficially pluck this thorn from the nation’s side. Soon twelve men are picked and the blood bath is unleashed spectacularly on the audience. Takashi Miike brings back the spaghetti samurai “western” in a style long forgotten, interspersed with his unique brand of cruelty and sudden humor. Let the Total Massacre never end…

Rating: * * * +

Outrage

When the bosses of the rival Yakuza syndicates are sworn blood brothers, it leaves the uber-boss a little squeamish especially when the rival is dealing drugs. The task of shaking things up falls upon Otomo (Takeshi Kitano), a lower level head honcho with a flair for violence. As this setup unfolds, you are almost lead to believe that Kitano is back to what he does best… blood soaked Yakuza films with a linear plot. Alas, the myriad of twists and turns, back stabbings and the insane number of characters only leave your head spinning and reaching for a glass of scotch…

Rating: * *

Walking Too Fast

The backdrop of the film is Cold War Czechoslovakia with furtive watchers spying on their citizens for dissent. Antonín (Ondrej Malý) nicknamed Tonga is one such agent. His target is Tomás(Martin Finger) a left wing author with a beautiful wife and even hotter mistress. It is the mistress Klára (Kristína Farkasová) who proves to be Tonga’s undoing. He slowly starts to obsess over Tomás’s lifestyle and lust for his woman throws him over the edge. The film chronicles the unraveling of the agent bored of the monotony of his job and life in general. The film will definitely remind you of The Lives of Others but it lacks the tautness and pathos of it. However, the film will keep you in your seat in spite of that and the length of its play.

Rating: * * +

Le Quattro Volte

An ailing shepherd is the focal point of the movie. Or maybe it is goats that he herds. Or the fact that he believes the dust of a church to be a magic elixir. The reality is that director Michelangelo Frammartino took his artistic license and turned it in to a license to kill by stepping over the fine line between stillness and boredom. Then there is also the possibility that he is the best friend of Abbas Kiarostami.

Rating: *

The Adjustment Bureau

The night David Norris (Matt Damon) loses a US Senate seat, he finds his true love in a restroom only to lose her soon after. However, he runs in to her randomly on a bus only to find mysterious forces keeping from the woman of his dreams. Soon you are faced with the question whether every life has a destiny or is there a “man” with a plan nudging things behind the scenes. Unlike Inception, which has a cool concept but uses recursion for a plot, this film has a storyline to back it up.

Rating: * * *

Opal

Opal Whiteley was a naturalist who rose to fame as a child prodigy but down the years infamy came her way due her dubious handling of the publishing of her diary with vague details of a royal past. The film tries to capture her rise and struggle to get work recognized whilst touching on the questions of her past. Given that it was a completely independent effort with very little funding, the film comes across as an excellent package. Except that once you get over the packaging, the contents i.e. the acting lets you down and leaves you with a “what if” taste in your mouth.

Rating: * +

Léon: The Professional

Léon (Jean Reno) is a profession hit man for the mafia with a simple life. He drinks milk, tends to a plant and kills people. All that changes when when his teenage neighbor Mathilda’s (Natalie Portman) family is killed by a group gun totting assassins led by snarly Gary Oldman. Mathilda becomes his responsibility and against his better judgment he starts to train her so that she can take revenge.

It is hard to feel fear with Oldman’s villainous incarnation after seeing the likes of Javier Bardem and  Heath Ledger. However, Natalie Portman has arguably played her best role to date. Unfortunately the role was her first. A cult classic that has not aged well in some parts but timeless in others.

Rating: * * +

The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec

Based on a graphic novel from the 60s, the film follows the adventures of an “investigative” journalist, Adele Blanc-Sec (Louise Bourgoin), during the early 20th century. While she is away excavating tombs of mummies in Egypt with the hope resuscitating them to help cure her sister, Paris is under attack from a pterodactyl. Soon it is up to beautiful journalist to bring order back without any help from the bumbling police. If a slightly classier version of Tombraider with French humor appeals to you, then this film will be hugely satisfying.

Rating: * *

Dance Town

The movie opens with a slice of life in North Korea. A husband and wife furtively watch porn with some fear and exaltation. It might have been cool to dwell a while longer in that mysterious country but director Kyu-hwan Jeon, races across the border to the south as the wife, Jung-nim Rhee (),  escapes on Chinese fishing boat soon after her husband is arrested. Rhee soon is soon faced with a land with “freedom” abound. But being “free” does not equate to contentment and happiness. She is soon confronted with demons called loneliness and despondence. Like it was said in Into the Wild, happiness is only real when shared.

Rating: * * *

Almost Perfect

Vanessa (Kelly Hu) is supposedly an overworked and badly dressed NGO professional with an insanely demanding family. Her life is so busy that she has no time for a relationship. All that changes when Mr. Right shows up in the guise of her kid brother’s best friend. Soon a tiresome romance ensues with myriad of forced problems that leaves you wanting to tear your hair out. The only hope is to focus on the stunning Ms. Hu who fails miserably in trying to look plain. Even more painful was the after film question and answer session with the director Bertha Pan, who obviously needs a crash course in South East Asia cinema. It is a wonder that this film was short listed for the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival 2011.

Rating: *

I Wish I Knew

Jia Zhang Ke’s documentary loosely follows the pulse of Shanghai from the 1850s to present day. He feels the pulse by interviewing a spectrum of Shanghainese . Some recognizable like Hsiao-hsien Hou, Rebecca Pan others obscure to a western audience. Their stories bring forth different emotions but none really test your emotional threshold. Plus the lack of interviews with the common man left a gaping hole in the film. Somehow it was the quiet presence of Zhang Ke’s muse, Tao Zhao, that left an impression. Her silent presence evokes the trademark stillness of Zhang Ke and showing that he might be better of sticking to fiction.

Rating: * *

Moon

A distant future and the moon has become the next frontier for energy. Sam Bell toils away in solitude at the moon station, ensuring all harvesting is in ship shape waiting for his three year contract to complete. Strangely, conversations with Earth are not in real time and everything is recorded and “mailed” over. The only day to day contact he has is with GERTY, the robot voiced eerily by Kevin Spacey. And slowly things start to go bump in the Moon and the expected unraveling occurs. A film with a solid premise but the plot is a little too transparent.

Rating: * *

The Milk of Sorrow

Fausta (Magaly Solier) is weighed down by a disease passed to her from her mother. The Milk of Sorrow seeped in to her while being breast fed by her mother during the fearful days in Peru of the reign of terror caused by the conflict between Sendero Luminosa and parliamentary troops . Now her mother’s sudden death has left Fausta like a boat with out a sail in the high seas. The situation forces her to fight the “disease” in her own unique way. A film and an actress that seem straight out of a Gabriel Garcia Marquez novel.

 

Update: Why to root against The Milk of Sorrow’s Oscar nomination.

 

Rating: * * +

Naan Kadavul

Abandoned by his father in Varanasi when in his teens on the sayings of astrologers, Rudra now roams the Earth as an Aghori. Fueled by guilt, the father brings his reticent and brutal son back to his town in Tamil Nadu. The same town has a “thriving” beggar community that haunt the foothills of a temple. Their suffering is shown in excruciating detail that leaves very little to the imagination. The film is sandwiched between the lives of beggars and the way of the Aghoras. The spread between the two is blood that gushes with brute force. Bala has played his usual hand, questioning God, justice, life and death. However the manner of posing the question does leave you worn out in spite of the “uplifting” ending.

Rating: * *

Passenger

What happens when a common man is presented with a complex situation. One fraught with peril, danger and of no personal gain. Most men would walk away without feeling a tiny prick to their conscience. Then there are those who like to sleep undisturbed at night. The situation here is a tad improbable but then again in today's world it is definitely a possibility.

Sathyanathan (Srinivasan) is one of those regular train travelers you would have seen if you have ever taken a train to Ernakulam. Riding the train every working day between the "suburbs" of Cochin to the city for work. His trips are usually filled with card games, gossip and gentle abuse. However, one fateful night he finds himself embroiled in a situation that involves the media, politics and the plight of the common people. A refreshing throwback to the days when mainstream Malayalam cinema ruled the roost.

Ranjith Sankar has definitely burst on to the scene with this venture. No doubt having Srinivasan and Dilip at the helm and Nedumudi Venu as support helped but the script and direction is what carried the film through.

Rating: * * *

Naalu Pennungal

Four shorts centered on women from the lower castes in rural Kerala that highlight their sorry plight. Each character fills a “traditional” role forced upon woman like that of house wife, prostitute and spinster. Sadly, little has changed today with what has been portrayed in film. Kerala is still rife with hypocrisy and double standards in all strata of society. But as a package the film does not meet the usual high standards of Adoor Gopalakrishna.

Rating: * *

Zombieland

The backdrop for the film is an oft repeated post zombie outbreak apocalyptic world. Two men are riding across this bleak landscape in search of the land untouched by the cannibals. They are soon joined by a hot girl and her younger sister. Funny at times especially the cameo by a certain comedian but for some reason there is not a single line or incident that takes you back to your humor place.

Rating: * +

The Night Buffalo

A tightly written thriller by the highly acclaimed Guillermo Arriaga who also gave us Amores Perros, Babel,  The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, centers around the aftermath of a suicide by a recovered schizophrenic, Gregorio. His main links to the outside world are his girl friend, Tania and best friend Manuel who unbeknown to him (or maybe not) have been carrying out an affair. Soon he starts speaking to Manuel from the grave through hand written notes and forgotten pictures. Some casual erotica and a hint of magic realism only continue to round the movie out. However, as we careen towards the climax you are left unsatisfied with many unanswered questions. But little can be blamed on the acting or directing which have been superb. Maybe Arriaga's novel will contain the answers...

Rating: * +

Dhobi Ghat

The film opens with a handy cam's jerky motions welcoming the viewer and Yasmin, a newlywed lass to the world of Mumbai. In retrospect it seems like an apt intro to the lives of four disparate individuals intertwined in the bustling city. There is Arun, a lonely painter who seeks more introspectiveness and shies from contact. Except that Shai the annoying ABCD investment banker on a sabbatical in India to "discover" herself, follows him around. Munna the dhobi and wannabe actor flits between them both.

You would think this is just another multiple plot line converging type films that have become uber popular in the past decade. For one there is a unique depth and stillness to it with a storyline that has no clear beginning end or middle. Just a chunk of time from a few people's life. Kiran Rao seems more like a conjurer than a director, smoothly transitioning the characters between ebb and flow of scenes that pull in the viewer in to the movie like a whirlpool. There are moments where you hope and pray that she does not allow her actors to tread the beaten path and she always brings them tantalizing close only to pull them away at the last instance. 

The acting is steady all around with not a hint of overacting which is the norm in many Hindi films. Aamir Khan is an almost silent brooding presence through the film but his mark is felt everywhere especially on the budding Prateik. Monica Dogra was about to be abused in this review but then again that is the kind of reaction her character was meant to evoke. Kirti Malhotra is some ways has the toughest role as she only interacts with the viewer and boy does she hold your attention. 

To sum it up, this is the answer to abomination that was Slumdog Millionaire!

Rating: * * * *

The Mechanic

Consider the following sequence of events:

• The Transporter series started getting stale.
• Simon West chanced to stay awake for 30 minutes of The American
• West saw the original Charles Bronson' Mechanic in its entirety. 

The result is Jason Statham being cast as  Arthur Bishop in the remake of the Bronson flick with the solitary nature of the lead character from The American thrown in. The film actually feels like the Transporter with its usual action sequences and Rajini like moves. Except that the Transporter is now an Assassin who has a protege. Need anything more needs be said about this film?

Rating: * +