The Pool

Venkatesh (Venkatesh Chavan) sits on a tree branch and gazes forlornly at a pool bordering a deserted bungalow in Panjim, Goa. The tree is his intermediate resting spot during the laundry run for the hotel he works in. When the mansion sees new residents, Venky's life shines a tad brighter as he grows close to the father (Nana Patekar) and daughter (Ayesha Mohan) living there. A simple film with a simple screen play and story. But it is this very simplicity that allows it to show the complex layers of Indian society so succinctly.  For example the fact that Venkatesh is seen in only two outfits through the film while Ayesha changes her tops for every scene. That small nuance speaks volumes about the different strata of society the two occupy. The acting in the film is very understated and raw making the whole scenario more documentary like. Mr. Patekar shows that he can still be the man if he chooses to. Ms. Mohan is dusky and sexy while having more acting skill in her little pinky when compared to a certain Ms. Pinto. The movie should have been required viewing for Danny Boyle before he embarked on the disaster known as Slumdog Millionaire!

Rating: * * * +

Ip Man

The semi-autobiographical take on the legendary master of Bruce Lee, sees Donnie Yen don the role of Ip Man. The film attempts to show the Wing Chung master's life in China prior to his move to Hong Kong during / after WWII and his "resistance" against the invading Japanese culture. That portrayal seems a tad too melodramatic for it to have been real. However it calls for some very enjoyable ass kicking and if the popularity of Wing Chung was on the wane, this film should have brought it back on to the martial art radar.

Rating: * * +

The Hurt Locker

The camera follows an US army bomb squad through the treacherous streets of Iraq. You are given the eerie feeling that every object could be a bomb and anyone could be the detonator. But the feelings gets old very quickly and you want a few more layers to the film which is sadly lacking. With the hype surrounding the film, it seemed destined to be placed alongside Platoon and Apocalypse Now. That will not be the case in my book. 

Rating: * *

The American

Take a John Le Carre book add some violence to it, strip away the extensive background and storyline, make it in to a film and you will have The American floating across the screen. Jack (George Clooney) is taciturn assassin on the run from the Swedes. Who and why they are after him is deemed inconsequential by the director. However the lush cinematography and the voluptuous Violante Placido make for it. In spite of the all nagging questions that arise in your mind, you find yourself sucked in to Jack's solitary and fraught existence. A live in the moment film... 

Rating: * * +

O' Horton

Odd Horton (Baard Owe) is retiring from his life long job of an engine driver, I mean train engineer and he is an odd one at that. The film on the whole is odd in a boring kind of a way. A poor follow on to Factotum by Bent Hamer.

Rating: +

99

A gambler, the don, his gundas and supposed damsels in distress on the backdrop of match fixing makes up the key points of this film. With a cunning script and right treatment, this make up could conceptually turn in to a brilliant film. Alas just a concept it remains as we are dragged through 2 hours of drudgery which seemed like a life time. Boman Irani  the gambler, like Sachin Tendulkar in the 90s toils away in isolation trying to keep you hooked to the happenings. Kunal Khemu and Cyrus Broacha play the gundas and after a while Khemu trying to be a certain Amir Khan tires you out. Soha Ali Khan and Simone Singh roles are dubious and makes you wonder why they are in the movie till you remember the need for eye candy. Now to make things worse space has been wasted on the cloud for this piece of toilet paper used by the devil. Hopefully it will at least stand as a warning to others...

Rating: *

Karthik Calling Karthik

Take Fightclub, replace Tyler Durden with a telephone, Ed Norton and Helena Bonham Carter with a couple of whiny annoying wimps and you have this piece of trash that should never have graced celluloid.

Rating: *

The Girlfriend Experience

Steven Soderbergh has always been a hit or a miss in my book. This film about a high class Manhattan call girl is a magnificent curve ball with no batter in sight. He hopes to give the film a quasi documentary feel by casting a real honest to goodness porn star in the lead. But all Sasha Grey's non-existent acting skill and pallid screen presence does is to exposes the empty script and lifeless story.

Rating: *

Pi

The famous Darren Aronofsky thriller about mathematics and a man's obsession with numbers to unlock an universal code in nature. Shot in grainy black and white film maybe to lend some authenticity to the film, it left me feeling underwhelmed. Maybe the build up of the hype over the years lead to bloated expectations.

Rating: * +

Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Mikael Blomkovist (Michael Nyqvist) is a respected financial reporter whose name has been dragged in to the mud when he is convicted of slander. Facing time in prison, he takes up a 40 year old case of a missing girl to primarily keep him away from the spotlight. He is soon joined by Lisbeth Salander (Noomi Rapace), a socially awkward but brilliant researcher. The film takes advantage of the beautiful Swedish countryside as you are treated to some lush landscapes. However, that beauty won't save you from the grittiness and depths of human psychopathy embedded in the movies.

Based on Steig Larrson best selling novel, the two words that best describes this film is intrigue and violence. From the start to finish you are leaning forward as plot layers are revealed, while bracing yourself at the graphic violence splashed on the screen. Reading the book before the movie is a boon and a curse. It gives you the much needed background to the characters but takes away from the suspense. Either way, you will be left wanting to watch the next installment.

 

Rating: * * *

The Brothers Bloom

There are con men and then there are these brothers, Bloom (Adrien Brody) and Stephen (Mark Ruffalo). Honing their skill since early childhood, the two crooks have taken the art of the con to the next level. Add the silent Bang Bang (Rinko Kikuchi), mistress of all things boom, they are unstoppable. Bloom though has hit the end of his tether and wants some reality in his life. Like always there is that last con before retirement and they set their sites on an beautiful and eccentric millionairess (Rachel Weisz). By now I am sure you can guess what is to follow...

Rating: * *

Inception

It must have been the IPAs that I got through earlier in the evening that had me collapsing spontaneously into this latest Chris Nolan movie about dreams and dreams within dreams. It was a big struggle staying in the moment as I was being pulled deeper into the cold warmth of the theatre. With waves of the beery subconscious running through me, the plot helmed by the capable Di Caprio was taking form - the kind that a Chris Nolan can attempt to build and not many others. Dreams are as elusive a subject as any and here it was being manfully deconstructed & subsequently constructed by an A-Team with the sole focus of understanding and influencing life. Brilliant premise. However, through my brief phases of consciousness, I felt that the linkages, those that are critical to any strong plot, were destined to play second fiddle to the brilliance of the premise. It doesn't really matter, there are no alibis in dreams.

Rating: * *                                           

PS: Michael Caine is in the movie for all of 2 scenes. Ellen Page is irritating.

                                

The A-Team

Yawn! The fact that I could no longer enjoy this rehash of the infamous TV series of the same name must mean that I have grown up. Or maybe it was just a shit movie.

Rating: *

Predators

Robert Rodriguez's involvement and the presence of Alice Braga lured me to the latest offering from the Predator franchise. Couple of soldiers, a mercenary, a serial killer, a cartel enforcer, a yakuza and a doctor find themselves free falling on to a mysterious planet. There they are predictably stalked by... surprise, surprise, Predators! To make things worse the film has stolen large chunks from original. Definitely something Mr. Rodriguez should distance himself from.

Rating: * +

Still Walking

A family gathers to commemorate the death anniversary of the eldest son. The parents, a crabby couple, have lived in their family home for decades. Descending on them are their remaining son and daughter along with their family. As the day flows, the layers of family are slowly peeled away, revealing the complexities of an outwardly simple family. Hirokazu Koreeda has yet again expanded his range by attacking and conquering an Yasujiro Ozu like family drama.

Rating:  * * * +

California Dreamin'

Doiaru (Razvan Vasilescu) is a corrupt chief at a small Romania town's train station.  He refuses to let a NATO train, containing US soldiers and top secret cargo, through due to lack of "paper work". The villagers view the stranded soldiers as an opportunity and go all out to entertain them. The movie is based on true events that occurred during the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia. Director Cristian Nemescu died soon after he made this film and it is a fitting requiem for a talent whose loss will be lamented.

Rating: * * *
PS: It has one of the best sex scenes I have ever seen in a movie.

Backseat

Two buddies head out on a road trip to Montreal to meet Donald Sutherland. Ben (Robert Bogue) is pulling his hair out dealing with his nympho girl friend while Colton (Josh Alexander) is trying to kick start his acting career. The trip turns out to be an internal soul search for the two friends as they unwittingly end up facing their idiosyncrasies, fears and the loneliness that you sometimes encounter in your 30s. A movie that is a comedy at heart but has a streak of honesty and reality running through it.

Rating: * * 

Tokyo Sonata

A family that is slowly splintering is the epicenter of the film. With his job being outsourced to China, Ryuhei Sasaki (Teruyuki Kagawa) goes from being Director of Administration to a man stands in line at the free food stall. Furtively hiding his layoff from his wife, he wanders the streets in a Murakami-esqe daze. Megumi (Kyôko Koizumi) is gracefully stoic as she puts up with her distant husband. Her teenage children meander while she clutches at the seams that hold her family together. The film is almost like reading a Murakami novel until a point. There Kiyoshi Kurosawa loses his grip on the viewer and you wait placidly for the end.

Rating: * * +

Loins of Punjab Presents

A spoof on American Idol and other singing competitions, featuring five Indian immigrants and one "I have a desi girl friend" firang, all vying for the prize of being the Desi Idol and supposed fame in a seedy Edison, NJ venue. The loaded cast and slightly nifty script almost delivers but flounders at the finish line and in some places on the way. However it is good for a few snickers here and there.

Rating: * *

The Karate Kid

A remake of the 84' classic film of the same name that sees Jackie Chan reappraising the role played by Pat Morita. Being set in China, the land of kung-fu, only makes the film more plausible. Young Dre Parker (Jaden Smith) is forced in to unfamiliar China when his mother moves there along with her job. He promptly eyes the local teenage bombshell much to the chagrin of the local kung-fu prodigy. Much Dre Parker ass kicking follows which brings Mr. Chan in to the scene, who plays an uncommonly serious role with no histrionics. The age old king-fu master-disciple story is retold in a modern Chinese setting and strangely enough the film is enjoyable in spite of the expected melodrama.

Rating: * +

La France

Camille (Sylvie Testud) snaps out of her idyllic existence in the north east of France during World War I, when she receives a letter from her husband saying that he is leaving her. Do not look for me he states very clearly. Nevertheless she sets out to look for him. She masquerades as a young boy and and falls in with a band of French soldiers. They walk, meander and talk with some mysterious purpose. The ending could not have come sooner, expect I don't remember much of it nor do I want to.

Rating: *

Devils on the Doorstep

Jiang Wen writes, directs and stars in this satirical tragic comedy set during World War II at the time of the Japanese occupation of China. A couple's lustful romp is rudely interrupt by the arrival of two prisoners in gunny sacks led by a gun toting mystery man. The command under gunpoint is to safeguard and interrogate them before he returns. One is a macho Japanese soldier bent on dying and the other a Chinese working as a translator for the Japanese. Set in a small country village in China, the film centers around the plight of the villagers and their attempt to deal with this bizarre situation. Grave as the scenario is, Wen figures out a way to bring the pun out in the situations. However when there are Japanese involved during tricky times one always must brace for the dark side.

Rating: * * *

Next Day Air

Donald Faison from the Scrubs makes a rare movie appearance as a pot smoking delivery man. He sets off a string of events by delivering some angel dust to the wrong address. At this point director Benny Boom throws in some out of luck hustlers, Latino drug lords, a bootlicious babe, sprinkles a whole lot of corny jokes and prays he has the second coming of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels,!  All he really did was piss some brothers off!

Rating: *

The Window

An old man (Antonio Larreta) recovering from a heart attack, stares lustily out of his windows earning for the outdoors. The only thing he has to look forward to is a visit from his estranged son of twenty years. Not wanting to let his son see him bedridden, he steals out in to the open. As you find yourself mesmerized by the Patagonian countryside, you begin to wonder what the old man was hoping for; rejuvenation or one last stroll.

Rating: * * +

Adoration

Lying that his dead father is a terrorist is the thought exercise Sabine (Arsinée Khanjian) gives her student, Simon (Devon Bostick) as part of a drama course. A fabrication that is presented to the class slowly spins out of control as it seeps in to the internet. The situation seems absurd and completely unrealistic which seemed out of sync with Atom Egoyan's usual style. But as the film proceeds in its non linear fashion a more complete view of the situation is blasted at you.

Rating: * * +

Three Monkeys

A man hides as he observes from a distance the body of the woman he just ran over. Chillingly he pays his driver to take the rap and and go to prison. A move that splits him from his wife and son. A path unfold for them from which there is no turning back. Was the money worth it is the question that presses on your mind through the movie. A story that traverses social boundaries and one that could be set in any culture, this might be the most complete Nuri Bilge Ceylan film yet.

Rating: * * +

Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa

Pitbull of "I know you want me" fame is coming to town and strangely enough Gautham Menon's latest film seemed like a preview to the show. It starts with a tamil boy falling in love with his neighbour who happens to be a christian mallu girl - he knows he wants her and makes it clear that he knows she wants him. She knows she wants him, but cannot have him. The boy cannot understand such complications. Phew, used "4x" fwd button judiciously and got rid of Pitbull.

Rating: *

                              

Iron Man 2

Take Iron Man down a few notches... well lets make that a dozen notches... and you have its follow on. The gist of the film is Whiplash (a wasted Mickey Rourke) coming for Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) when the reactor in his chest is acting up. The plot is thin and the jokes are forced. To make up for that couple of star characters from the Marvel universe, Nick Fury and the Black Widow have been thrown in. Except that Scarlett Johansson looks out of place as the Widow even with her 6 inch heels. Technically Samuel L. Jackson is a perfect fit for the Ultimate version of Nick Fury but it feels like Jules from Pulp Fiction was transported here. Plus if you have read the Marvel Civil War saga, Iron Man can never be in your virtual good books.

Rating: *

Away we go

"Sometimes I wonder if we are fuckups"

Sparked by the impending birth of their child and sudden emigration of Burt's parents to Belgium, the mid-30s something couple decide that they need to get out of their student hut type existence in the wilderness and move to a larger city. And organise their adult lives. 

Burt and Veron embark on a road-trip visiting friends / relatives in different cities hoping to find the ideal model of adulthood to adopt. But they come across alternate philosophies & every day problems of everyday relationships that seem to intimidate them - which enables the couple to meander towards their eventual destination. 

The plot does appear unrealistic, a bit smug, a bit too sweet - but its what I would call a humorous fantasy movie. That said, it was funny, youthfully entertaining and with a lot that one could related to, fuckups that we are.

Rating: * * *

The Runaways

Movies made around rock music generally fall into 3 categories i.e. where : i) there is a real story to tell like the one on Johnny Cash (Walk the line) ii) its all about the music and everything else is swung around it (Almost Famous) and iii) its more like a tribute by a fan to a band and most films of this genre end up in this category. The Runaways definitely belongs to the final group but with the difference that its produced by Joan Jett herself. A few of the band's hits are prominently featured and the story follows the classic rock-band cycle of sex, drugs and rock n roll. And says very little of any note, unless you are a fan of Joan Jett / The Runaways.

Kristen Stewart plays Joan Jett with just one expression and lots of leather pants. It does seem that she is on her way to becoming one of those Hollywood icons; the kind that will always be wanted by producers/directors even though its all about just one expression. However, Dakota Fanning as Cherrie Currie (the lead singer) was a revelation and demonstrating enough substance to become the real deal.

Rating: * *

                          

Manorama Six Feet Under

When a sultry older woman (Sarika) approaches a man to spy on her husband, he can seldom say no. In spite of the husband being the Irrigation minister, Satyaveer Randhawa (Abhay Deol) being suspended from his dead end municipal job,  finds the decision to be a no brainer much to the chagrin of his a nagging wife Nimmi (Gul Panag). Overnight Satyaveer finds himself sucked in to the dirty world of politics filled with hot women and cut throat goondas. 

A modern day Indian film noir that grabs you and never lets go. Much of it is thanks to Mr. Deol who should change his last name ASAP.  I guess it also helped that Satyaveer felt like a character straight out of Murakami novel and direction was akin to his writing. Sarika is back though age is telling on her. Vinay Pathak is brilliant as always as the local cop and Satyaveer's brother-in-law. And of course little needs to be said about Ms. Panag who looks sexy even when being paraded as a boring house wife. Inspired by Chinatown, the film in my opinion holds it own and in many ways more satisfying that its inspiration.

Rating: * * * +

Rudo y Cursi

Toto (Gael García Bernal) dreams of making it big as a singer while picking bananas. His brother Beto (Diego Luna) struts around being the dead end supervisor of the banana ranch. The only thing they are half way good at is kicking a football around. Enter Batuta (Guillermo Francella) the scout master of football talent in Mexican countryside and the two soon find themselves under bright spotlights in Mexico City. Sex, lies and angel dust follows as you are treated to a taunt take on the microcosm of the poor becoming rich overnight.

Rating: * * *

Merry Gentleman

There is nothing merry about the gentleman (Michael Keaton), that Kate (Kelly Macdonald) runs in to on the door step of her apartment. Frank is a glum boring professional killer and she is on the run from an abusive husband. Then there is the overweight detective on the heels of Frank and who has a giant crush on Kate. Predictably the unlikeliest of people bond and unpredictably Keaton's directorial debut keeps you involved even though in the end you wonder if it all was the worth the effort.

Rating: * *

Revanche

Tamara (Irina Potapenko) wanders the screen scantily clothed for most of her part. Her nakedness is comforting for the viewer and her lover, Alex (Johannes Krisch) both of whom are connected to a seedy brothel in Vienna. So when she abruptly disappears from the script, it is a jolt to both. The movie slowly drifts to a beautiful Austrian countryside where Alex's dad lives in run down cabin. Life might be simpler there but Alex's existence gets complicated after interactions with a local cop and his wife. The tangential interactions between the characters is what fuels the movie forward in this stunning study of human nature.

Rating: * * * +

Frontier of Dawn

A film about love and passion between a photographer and two different women. Francios (Louis Garrel) is smitten by Carole (Laura Smet) during a photo shoot and they become fast lovers. As she fades away from his life Eve (Clémentine Poidatz) takes her place. As things progress between the two, the ghost of Carole's love returns to haunt Francios. A very watchable film but at the end of it you are left wondering if it was worth effort of staying in your couch to take it in.

Rating: * *

Ong Bak 2: The Beginning

Tony Jaa stars and directs in this martial flick that takes you to 15th century  Thailand and the beginning of only God know what. The story is built around Tien (Tony Jaa), a prince who is brought up by outlaws under dubious circumstances who then proceeds to kick a lot of ass after years of outlaw martial art tutelage. But unlike Ong Bak, Jaa goes out of the way to create a plot to fit his mind boggling stunts. The results is  a storyline that is shoe horned in that slides off like mud on a sweaty fighter. Jaa should focus on the ass kicking and leave the rest to someone else.

Rating: *

Perfect Blue

Mima, a prototypically cute pop idol throws her clean image away when she transforms herself in to an actress who shows more than a bit of leg. This leaves many of her fans unhappy. Apparently one is so sad that he or she turns to murder as Mima finds people around being brutally murdered. A taunt thriller that does what thrillers are supposed to do... keep you guessing until the end.

Rating: * * +

Delhi 6

Roshan (Abhishek Bachchan) comes to India accompanying his grandmother (Waheeda Rehman) who wants spend her last days in the Chandini Chowk district, where her life began. The magical Old Delhi area is show in its full pomp. Soon the very hot and bubbly Bittu (Sonam Kapoor) enters the scene and love is in the air. But what should have been a decent and immensely watchable commercial flick is turned in to garbage by the intrusion of the Kala Bandar. On its heels comes communal strife and the film starts to wander around without an anchor. Even the strong supporting cast led by Om Puri cannot save the day for this move that ends up in no mans land between a political drama and a love story.

Rating: * +

Departures

Daigo (Masahiro Motoki) moves back to his home town after a failed cello career in an orchestra. The job that jumps out and grabs him is one to be a tour guide for the dead. A profession that exists but one that we rarely think about; to prepare the dead for the final journey. He finds himself inexplicably drawn in to the bizarre job much to the chagrin of his wife and friends. There is a also the parallel drama of Daigo's his non existent relationship with his father who abandoned him as a child. A film about death that deals with the rediscovery of what life is all about.

Rating: * * *

24 City

A quasi-documentary about the closing down of Factory 420 in Chengdu, China to make way for 24 City, a multi rise apartment complex. The concept of the documentary is similar to Radiant City. Actors play the roles of the victims in  a series of interviews that are eerily lifelike. There is of course the argument that the "story" could have been told with "real" people. The bottom line is that the effect would have been the same. In my opinion going the route of a drama on a documentary road added to the film rather than negating any substance.

Rating: * * +

Che

The revolutionary life of Ernesto "Che" Guevara is brought to life on the screen by none other than Steven Soderbergh. A four hour epic that delves initially in to Che's role in the Cuban revolution and follows it up with his failed stint at inciting revolt in Bolivia. At the center of it all is Che with his steadfast vision of harmony for the common man. Soderbergh has done us all a favor by not glorifying the socialist icon but rather just showing him as he must have been. Kind and just in dealing with people and his troops albeit with a streak of ruthlessness that is required of a leader of his stature. The director's task has also been made a tad easier by the unnerving portrait of the character by Benicio Del Toro. Even scarier is the way Demián Bichir has brought Fidel Castro to the screen. A film that will give you a window of understanding as to why Che is revered in Cuba and the world over.

Rating: * * *

Extract

A potpourri of interesting characters are thrown together in the vain hope of making a comedy for the ages. Joel (Jason Bateman) runs an extract factory while dealing with a sexless marriage and employee suing for damages to his balls. His buddy Dean (Ben Affleck) convinces him over some horse tranquilizers that the best plan to relax is to hire a gigolo to have sex with his wife (Kristen Wiig) so that Joel can have a guilt free romp in the sack with a hot factory worker (Mila Kunis). A pathetic attempt by Mike Judge to recreate his glory days that ended with Office Space.

Rating: *

Dosar

Kaushik (Prasenjit Chatterjee) and Mita (Chandrayee Ghosh) dilly dally over breakfast before a ride back from a vacation. In spite of the frustration and irritation in their interaction there is a strong undercurrent of love. The sequence culminates in a horrific accident and setups the rest of the film. Kaushik's wife Kaberi (Konkona Sen Sharma) discovers his infidelity in the aftermath of the accident. Torn between anger over his actions and her husband's need for care, she soldiers on, anger being the only emotion she betrays. Rather than just focusing solely on the couple and their situation, the director introduces friends of Kaberi who are also in an extra-marital relationship. Shot entirely in black and white, centers around pain but with a subtlety that makes it immensely watchable. Only few directors like Rituparno Ghosh could make such a tragedy interesting instead of depressing.

Rating: * * * +

Mad Detective

Calling Detective Bun (Ching Wan Lau) mad is an understatement. He is borderline psychotic with a mysterious second sight and deadly intuition that finds him solving hard to crack cases. But his antics soon escorts him out of the force with an early retirement. Years later he is called back by a rookie detective, Ho (Andy On), to help with a disappearance of another detective. And then you are treated the complete spectrum of Bun's insanity. An enjoyable albeit violent crime thriller that begs to be made in to a TV series.

Rating: * * *

Thazhvaram

A lone man, Balan (Mohanlal) makes his way to a isolated hillside town. It is evident that he is out for revenge but his intent is a little hesitant and reason quite obvious. There is very little else to mention about the film. A very simple story but its in the telling that makes you want to forget the world and lose yourself in this movie. Having a very hot Sumalatha gracing every frame also helps. A film made during the heyday of Bharathan, M.T. Vasudevan Nair and Mohanlal.

Rating: * * *

Kodiyettam

Sankarankutty (Gopi) is a simpleton who takes great joy in the simple pleasures of life. He loves a home cooked meal, some toddy to wash it down with and then loaf around the temple festivals listening to the panjavadyam played there. But with this nature also comes a shirking of all responsibilities that a grown man is supposed to carry. Abandoning all relationships that seek to tie him down, he wanders the countryside until he starts working as a cleaner in a truck service. Thanks to the bus driver he starts to see things in a different light. Immersing himself in this role, the film also gave its lead his nick name which he was unable to shake to the day he passed on. The second venture from Adoor Gopalakrishnan, unfolds at a idyllic pace. In spite of its commercial success, it is in many ways just a precursor of the wonderful films to come from the maestro.

Rating: * *

Gomorrah

Italian mafioso brings to mind the magical world of Godfather where you were rooting for the gangsters and their twisted sense of honor. Matteo Garrone destroys that fantasy by focusing his lens on Camorra, the oldest crime syndicate running amok in Campania, Italy. 

To show their multi pronged reach, Garrone enlists a plethora of characters. Toto, a grocery delivery boy running errands for his mother in a crumbling housing project. Don Ciro, the money runner, delivering hard cash to the family of mob members in prison. A tailor who gives illegal classes to workers in a Chinese sweat shop. The college graduate who works for a corrupt business man involved in illegal waste disposal. And to top it off, a couple of cocky wannabe Scarfaces!

In every storyline Garrone slides the mafiosa in and by not making them the prime focus, the effect is quadruple. The haphazard editing forces the viewer to concentrate and it only increases the power of the film's delivery. But its most important feature is that of stripping the gangsters of all their glamor and glorification. They are shown in their basest form, paranoid, violent and sans any honor or humanity. Some might be annoyed that the storylines having no connection. But there in really lies the master class of Garrone as he shows us the infiltration depth of the mafia in daily life in Naples.

Rating: * * * +

Ballast

The film welcomes you with dual suicides. One successful and the other a failure. Unable to face life without his brother, Lawrence tries to take his own. The "failure" to do so leaves him the store he and his sibling ran plus the aggressive ex-family of his brother. The wife is openly hostile towards him and the teenage son bizarrely robs him at gun point. The bottom line is a family struggling to deal with the aftermath of a suicide while mired in borderline poverty. In many ways it is a brilliant film but it sucks in the viewer so strongly that you come out despondent and depressed.

Rating: * +

The Limits of Control

A shadowy man (Isaach De Bankolé) wanders around Europe drinking two cups of espresso (not a double) and exchanging match boxes for mysterious reasons. A myriad of interesting characters venture on to the screen in quirky settings, muttering profound dialogs. Unfortunately the purpose of this endeavor is elusive and you are left lamenting the misuse and wastage of the assembled talent.

Rating: *

Lemon Tree

Salma Zidane leads a simple albeit poor existence tending a lemon grove on the Israeli-Palestine border.  When the Israeli defense minister moves in as her neighbor, she receives an Israeli government order stating that the lemon grove has to be wiped out due to security concerns. Most Palestinians would say this is par for the course when living on the border. But for Salma the grove is much more than just her livelihood. The memory of her father and husband are buried in the soil. So she decides to take the might of Israel to court. 

The decision opens up the film to many dimensions. The juxtaposition of the Israeli-Palestinian struggle. The bullying nature of Israel. The treatment of women in Palestine. The rocky marriage of the minister aptly named, Israel Navon and Mira, his wife. The silent relationship between Salma and Mira (Rona Lipaz-Michael). But the most interesting dimension is the quiet romance between Salma and her young lawyer, Said (Ali Suliman). And through all this Salma, played beautifully by Hiam Abbass, carriers herself with quiet dignity. All in all, director Eran Riklis has crafted a masterpiece.

Rating: * * * *