tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135357462024-03-12T20:55:50.996-07:00Krishna-TalkiesLet's talk about Books, Music, Movies & just about anything under and above the sun!Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.comBlogger32125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-21847498003735894072007-09-26T05:56:00.000-07:002007-09-26T06:30:25.772-07:00The Bourne Ultimatum: Movie Review<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgytFKcGXD6dUfobygj3xviNHhkGud0D6maZVFtkjqYniernCOv04N_YfabU41DOcz9XDX8tcgIxkpyO-JrbEox9BjglV6VsAjSzft-lERBwXOsVII1JpbpCqgxpgZR6htqsb4qQA/s1600-h/bourne4.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgytFKcGXD6dUfobygj3xviNHhkGud0D6maZVFtkjqYniernCOv04N_YfabU41DOcz9XDX8tcgIxkpyO-JrbEox9BjglV6VsAjSzft-lERBwXOsVII1JpbpCqgxpgZR6htqsb4qQA/s320/bourne4.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5114497652760325314" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Premise:</span><br /><br />Jason Bourne, an ex-undercover-agent for CIA, somehow lost his memory. The CIA is hunting for him, considered a </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">potential threat for the agency. Why? No idea. He wants to know. He is the hunted and the hunter as well. In the previous </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">installment, CIA guys aimed for him, missed and struck his girlfriend instead. Bourne is determined to unearth his past and </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">find out....<span style="font-weight: bold;">Who IS Jason Bourne?</span> ( Sounds like 'Antony kaun hai?', which is a great movie, though I didn't understand anything. Errr.....I digress).</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Bourne's enquiries and the things that he accidentally finds out definitely have a high impact on the CIA. There are secrets </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">that shouldn't come out. He is on the run.....and what a run! It takes us across nations. Guns fire, bombs go off, people </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">fall dead around him. At least one thing is sure, he is on the right path.<br /></span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:verdana;" >FOR:</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />1) Matt Damon IS Bourne. I love this actor.....underrated may be, but definitely not underachieved. He doesn't falter </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">anywhere. The looks, the moves, the reflexes....If this isn't a perfect act, I don't know what is.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">2) It is a solid movie on its own right. You don't have to watch the other Bourne movies to enjoy this one. Just know the </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">premise and you are all set to be taken for </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">a rollercoaster ride. Oh yes, it is a rollercoaster ride. I mean, the action sequences.</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;">(But, I prefer the other kind of rollercoaster - The one they subjected me to in The Departed... Playing the guessing game </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">with the movie-makers and losing it with pleasure....Pure bliss. Err....I digress again)<br /><br />Coming back to Bourne, the camera work </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">enhances the realistic action sequences. A car chase, a chase across the roof-tops of Morocco (?); everything just makes u </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">hold your breath. Well, may be not up to the mark that Casino Royale has set. But, still worth your money, and some more.</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />3) Have to salute the director and the editor. START-ACTION-FINISH. No excess fat in this one.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHDk254EU1Y-1FchIjYqzVf9NTSq3ZckBpblpSM7uVPx3LhHv6EAUh0En6WABYEvGNf5i9OZPoxHlOiYDRgbb73Jry_9myPWAsN_gKA1kcMEZvFJpTl8N3z2VyfRqXmyJpiH0DGg/s1600-h/Bourne3.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHDk254EU1Y-1FchIjYqzVf9NTSq3ZckBpblpSM7uVPx3LhHv6EAUh0En6WABYEvGNf5i9OZPoxHlOiYDRgbb73Jry_9myPWAsN_gKA1kcMEZvFJpTl8N3z2VyfRqXmyJpiH0DGg/s320/Bourne3.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5114497979177839826" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:verdana;" >AGAINST:</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />1) The camera work, that made action-sequences so brilliant, gave cringes in some other scenes. I felt that the trick was a </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">bit over done.</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />2) My partner said that the best thing about Bourne series is that it's a believable story...compared to other spy-thrillers. </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">I </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">wouldn't know about CIA and their work-culture (?!). And I don't care if a movie is pro-CIA or ant-CIA. But, hey, give them </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">some credit man! They are THE Agency, after all. The movie is like...the whole CIA is a bunch of dim-wits. Getting into </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">CIA deputy director's office, taking some top secret documents and getting out of there without any harm??? hmm...we are </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">talking about Bourne...Like Pamela says "This is Jason Bourne, the toughest target that you have ever tracked",right? Right.</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />3) The dialogues and even some sequences were very predictable. There is even a very-bollywood-style dialogue.....</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />Bad guy (in car, on cell phone): Perhaps we can arrange a meet. </span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br />Bourne (On phone, from Bad guy's office): Where are you now?</span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Bad guy: I'm sitting in my office.</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br />Bourne: I doubt that.</span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Bad guy: Why would you doubt that?</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br />Bourne: If you were in your office right now we'd be having this conversation face-to-face.</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />The sucker for dramatic lines that I am, with glee I cheered along with the whole theatre.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">4) For all the shrewdness he displays, Bourne does some extremely stupid things. Like, walking beside a person whom the CIA </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">is following. Well, those CIA agents doesn't recognize him? Well, we know that. The CIA know that. But, how does Bourne know </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">that?</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />5) The climax: I mean the part where Bourne finds out his past....it felt hastily put together. This is what for all this </span> <span style="font-family:verdana;">time he has been running around?! The feeling: Dud!</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">MY ADVICE (how I love doing this!):</span></span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />Drop your work, get the ticket and watch this action packed entertainer.....only in a theatre please.<br /><br /></span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1150724110278412922006-06-19T06:11:00.000-07:002007-01-28T22:54:15.594-08:00The Da Vinci Code: Movie Review<span style="font-family:verdana;">By the time I got to read Dan brown's The Da Vinci Code, it was already in controversies. But, I didn't know what this hullabaloo was about and just bought it from a road </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">side vendor. It started with a murder and I was hooked. I'm not a huge fan of religious believes in any forms. But I do love to read stories. So, I knew a lil' bit about Christianity </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">and a controversy always thrills me. Telling that Christ was a saint or that Christ was an ordinary human being doesn't hold much difference to me. (Same for any other </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">religious figure)<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/DaVinci1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/DaVinci1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">But, when you bring in a hugely popular belief and thrash it with seemingly solid evidence..my oh my! How I love it! If a story is presented as a conspiracy theorem, you love </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">it or hate it. But, you sure see it to the end.Yup....Da Vinci Code was a racy read. But, if you can read it without a break, you must be Dan Brown. Because any other </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">mortals would have some doubts and with google just a click away you can always clear it. So, yes. I did some Googling like any other reader. And found that there are a lot </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">of facts, bended facts and lies in this delicious creation. What is fiction with out lies! As long as you aren't thrashing Amitabh Bachchan, anything goes for me.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/davinci5.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/davinci5.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">Should I explain more? The Da Vinci Code holds a special position in my altar of select thrillers. Naturally, I should be waiting with baited breath when the book is made into </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">a movie as everyone knew would be done, right? But, no! From the moment Tom Hanks was announced as the hero of Ron Howard's movie, I lost interest. Don't get me </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">wrong, Tom Hanks is one my favorite actors and ranks very high in my listing. But, as Robert</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/davinci4.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/200/davinci4.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;"> Langdon? Err.....well, doesn't seem right.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">So, what's this much talked about story? In entry level the curator of the Paris Museum Louvre is murdered inside the museum. While he was slowly dying he arranges his </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">body like Leonardo Da Vinci's famous work Vitruvian Man. He also manages to leave a coded message with a note that tells to find the famous symbologist Robert Langdon.</span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /></span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Unfortunately the appearance of Mr. Langdon's name in the death note lands him in the wrong list of French police. But, the curator's granddaughter Sophie Navue, who also </span> <span style="font-family:verdana;">happens to be an official cryptologist, doesn't think he has anything to do with the murder. In fact, she knows that her grand father had left all these clues so as to reach her </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">and get Robert Langdon's assistance to solve the riddles. What awaits them is a series of tough riddles. What was the curator trying to tell her? Who killed him? What </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">historic/religious secrets did her grand father know?</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/code03.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/code03.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">Now, the story within the story. Heard about Jesus H Christ? World's most popular religion at this point of time, Christianity, happens to have its origins in Christ. Jesus </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Christ is popularly believed to have lived with out any spouse till his end. The Da Vinci Code makes controversy by playing with the idea that he had a spouse and his </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">successors still exists under camouflage. What's more, his spouse is touted to be Mary Magdalene, who is popularly known as a prostitute who finds peace in Christ. If you </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">don't think this is enough trouble, you are blissfully unaware of how maniacal people can be about religion!</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />Honestly, if I don't compare the movie with the book (which, no one should in any of such cases) it was an above average Hollywood fare. It is hard to put all those code </span> <span style="font-family:verdana;">breaking, religious symbolisms, crash course in history and a dash of mathematics into a movie. So yes, a lot of editing had to be done.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/code02.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/code02.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:verdana;" >Negatives:</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />1. No film maker can adapt a book surpassing human imagination.</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br />2. Tom Hanks doesn't seem much interested in the proceedings. At best, he looks confused.</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br />3. Silas, the serial killer, was one of the best characters in the novel. In the movie his characterization is half-baked.</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br />4. An exciting riddle solving sequence in the book becomes confusing in the movie.</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br />5. Dialogues like "That means you’re related to Jesus" sounds laughable on screen.</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br />6. An average movie-goer will find it difficult to follow the proceedings (Even after reading the book so many times I had a tough time)<br /><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:verdana;" >Positives:</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />1. Ian McKellen as Sir Leigh Teabing gives the much needed sprint to the movie.</span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">2. Jean Reno as Captain Bezu Fache gives a well measured, restrained performance.</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br />3. French actress Audrey Tautou as Sophie Neveu looks noble if not divine.</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br />4. The way historical flashbacks are picturized.....blending past and present....</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />So, have you seen it yet?<br /><br /><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories: </span><a href="http://technorati.com/tag/The+Da+Vinci+Code" rel="tag">The Da Vinci Code</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie" rel="tag">Movie</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie+Review" rel="tag">Movie Review</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Hollywood" rel="tag">Hollywood</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Thriller" rel="tag">Thriller</a></span><br /></span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"> </span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1147265187183984852006-05-10T05:27:00.000-07:002006-05-10T05:52:09.483-07:00Gangster: Movie Review<span style="font-family:verdana;">It is easy to review a movie, which I liked or hated. (It’ll be tough if I liked it too much). The real tough </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">thing is when I don’t feel either way! Don’t get me wrong. Gangster is a nice movie. I’ll recommend it only for </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">the sake of Shiney Ahuja and some great music. Of course you must have heard a lot about Gangster from the </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">fabulous reviews it is getting.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/GangsterMedium.1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/400/GangsterMedium.0.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">Aakash (Emraan) loves the georgeous booze-addict Simraan (Kangana). Behind her emotional wreckage is the story </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">of a gangster Daya (Shiney). The Don whom the whole</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> Indian Police is hunting. He meets the bar-dancer Simraan </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">and falls hopelessly in love. The</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/GangsterRightside.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/GangsterRightside.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;"> tough criminal starts to love life, an unwanted complication for a gangster. </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">As is the fate, he is always fleeing from the</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> encounter specialists of India. While he is ‘taking care of’</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">someone in Dubai Simraan is kept safe in Korea where she meets Aakash. The caring Aakash slowly gets into her </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">lonely heart. Thus begins the deception……<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:verdana;">It has the Bhatt formula alright – crime, love, deception…….Lust is suspiciously absent, unless you count the </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">song Tu Hi Meri Shab Hai…… Though it’s a love making situation, it is soft and romantic….Open space…..picture </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">perfect landscapes…..maple leaves falling all around the couple….You get the drift.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:verdana;">One reason that Gangster didn’t move me much is the dialogues. Most of them are from</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/gangster_rightside.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/gangster_rightside.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;"> Emraan. Then some from </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Ahuja. Dialogues like I’ll die without you doesn’t hold much</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> appeal to me, though there may not be any better </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">words to describe the feelings. But, for Ahuja’s character, words betray the deep emotions. He could have </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">stayed sans any dialogues and have, may be, a stronger impact on us.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Anurag Basu’s direction is fine. Story and screenplay from the Bhatt-duo is all right.</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> Gangster has a rather </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">soft look than the slick and polished effect I expect from underworld-movies. But this is a love story after </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">all.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Emraan Hashmi’s acting is strictly average. Wearing spectacles doesn’t make him look any less stupid (should </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">have asked me!). Kangana Ranaut is gorgeous, graceful and non-plasticy (what a fresh change!). She has got promising acting skills and </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">played the part of Simraan with élan. But I feel that her character was badly etched. We are supposed feel </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">sorry for her, right?<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Now, this space is inadequate to praise Shiney Ahuja. He doesn’t have any dialogues. But he says it all with </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">his eyes and body. I’ve always thought that good actors are those who</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/Gangsterright.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/Gangsterright.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;"> can cry without being awkward. But, when </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Ahuja cries it’s awkward and out of character.</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> Yet by that exact awkwardness it is soul-wrenching. One man – </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Mr. Ahuja. One word – Fantabulous!<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:verdana;">The other delicious part of this movie – songs.</span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /></span><span style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Yaa Aaliii…Raham aali……</span>You haven’t heard this song yet? Where the hell are you living yaar? When I first heard </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">this song, I thought it had that Emraan Hashmi style. (Don’t know how to describe it). But once I’ve been </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">through it in the theatre, there is no stopping Shiney Ahuja's intense look coming to my mind whenever I hear </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">it. This man has got some real charisma!<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/GangsterLeft1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/GangsterLeft1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;"><br />Then there is the ultimate song of my choice, which starts <span style="font-style: italic;">Bheegi Bheegi………</span><br /><br />Is it the </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">words or the tune! Or is </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">it the emotionally charged singing from the Bangladeshi singer James! Or is it just the Ahuja effect!</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;font-family:verdana;" ><br />'Na jaane koi…… kaisi hai ye zindagaani……</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Hamari adhoori kahani……’<br /><br /></span></span></div><span style="font-family:verdana;">If you have ever loved, at some point of time you have felt like this. A love that was never meant to be….<br /><br /><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Gangster" rel="tag">Gangster</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Bollywood" rel="tag">Bollywood</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie" rel="tag">Movie</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Kangana" rel="tag">Kangana</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Shiney+Ahuja" rel="tag">Shiney Ahuja</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie+Review" rel="tag">Movie Review</a></span><br /></span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> </span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1146828831286656742006-05-05T03:49:00.000-07:002006-05-05T04:49:55.660-07:00Mistress of Spices: Movie Review<span style="font-family:verdana;">I went to watch Mistress of spices because, will you believe this, Bangalore has become too hot and we needed to be somewhere cool. What better place than <a href="http://www.pvrcinemas.com/">PVR</a> ! Aishwarya Rai is an actress (really?!!) I love to hate. (Okay….I loved her in the ad for Nakshatra jewellery). So there were no expectations…but, I still hoped that it would be tolerable.<br /><br /></span> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/still1.0.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/still1.0.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">Here goes the story…..Tilo, as a child, had some magical abilities due to which she was abducted by some bandits. But she somehow escapes and is found in a beach by an old lady and her disciples who take care of her. The old lady teaches her disciples the magical powers of spices and how to use them to help people. After they have learned everything</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/Still3.1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/Still3.1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;"> they are sent to far away lands where they will run spice shops and help the local people.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Tilo ends up running Spice Bazaar in San Francisco. She runs the shop and lives by the rules that her teacher had told her to abide by. She should not step out her shop. She</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> should not use spices for her own personal use. She should not touch the skin of anyone else.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Thus goes her life….through which passes a few people with their problems. All this while</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> she is adamant on teaching us the qualities of spices. For example,</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> did you know that blue peppers taken with black jeera would cure you of the obsession of making miserable movies?<br /><br /></span> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/still2.0.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/still2.0.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">Then the ultimate problem comes in the form of an attractive architect Doug. Tilo falls in love and breaks all the divine rules one by one.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Oh! Okay! Even I don’t want to recount this miserably tedious movie.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Plus points: Santhosh Sivan’s cinematography and an instrumental rendition of one of my fav songs aap ke nazron ne samjha pyaar ke kaabil…..<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/still4.0.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/still4.0.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Negatives: Aishwarya Rai and, if you need something more, Dylan McDermott. His acting was as wooden as Aishwarya’s. And ooh yeah…what a chemistry! When they appear together the temperature dropped below zero. You wouldn’t believe that this man is the same one as in The Tenants (I didn’t). May be Aishwarya has that effect on her co-actors.<br /></span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /></span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Don’t even ask me about the director (Paul Berges)….And whoever wrote those dialogues….strangling would be too good for them.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/dharmendra.1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/dharmendra.1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />Final warning to the person who decided to make this movie:</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Kutte....Kameene.....Mein there khooon pee jaungaaaaa!</span><br /><br /><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Categories:</span> <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Mistress+of+spices" rel="tag">Mistress of Spices</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie" rel="tag">Movie</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Aishwarya+Rai" rel="tag">Aishwarya Rai</a></span><br /></span><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1145518139759291762006-04-20T00:02:00.000-07:002006-04-20T00:28:59.776-07:00V For Vendetta: Movie Review<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:verdana;" >People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their</span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:verdana;" > people.</span><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/v2.1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/v2.1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">I couldn't help a feeling of déjà vu as we watched the socio-political-thriller V For Vendetta. After all it isn't long back that Rang De Basanti weaved it's magic over me. Why do we applaud revolutionaries? Is it because they are our alter egos? Is it because they react true to their hearts, in a way we won't dare in real life? I don't know about you guys, but I would rather stay with Bhagat Singh than with Gandhi. Whatever be the majority feelings, bloody revolutions are what works for a movie.<br /><br /></span> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/v8.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/v8.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">V for Vendetta tells you what is wrong with the world and what the solution might be. No symbolism for this one. The story is set in a dystopian London. It is that time of future</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> when England Prevails and the former super power USA is reduced to a leper colony. More importantly, it is that time of future when England come to resemble the present government of USA, with a few more hard measures added for a better effect. The government keeps the people under control by the stories of impending terrors. It freely snoops around their people.... even the private conversations are not spared. People don't care or they don't dare, as the media keep on feeding them the sensationalized terror stories.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/v1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/v1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">Need I say more? Welcome to London when England is ruled by Chancellor Adam Stutler - A unidimensional, bad character. Minorities are treated without any sympathy. Homosexuals, Muslims, people who dare to voice their opinion.... you are different? You are gone!</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />When Evey Hammond, employee at a premier telecasting company, walks out during a curfew she is assaulted by two policemen. From the shadows emerges our hero - man in the mask - V. After an impressive and easy-looking fight the policemen are reduced to a bundle and the heroine is rescued. V further impresses her and the viewers with his chivalry and Shakespearean dialogues.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/v5.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/v5.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">V invites Evey to a music concert at the end of which the London court explodes in a fabulous firework. Confused and horrified, Evey parts way with V. But the person who is</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> going to alter your views and life can never be kept out. Her resistance not withstanding, Evey's life takes a non-returning journey forced by V as he finds a Protégée in her.</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />We come to learn in bits and pieces that V is a victim of some experiment that the government secretly carried out which distorted him beyond recognition, along with thousands of other people, on a 5th of November. Ah, vengeance! That bittersweet fuel for the act of undoing the wrong. Come to think of it, with out a personal tragedy would anyone care for a revenge?!</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/v4.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/v4.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">V has got a simple and daring plan. On November 5th he will blow Westminster Abbey as wakeup call for the sleeping citizens of England. An act that will pull at least a few roots of</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/v7.0.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/v7.0.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;"> the dictatorship. In his journey to this finale, he eliminates a few high ranking, official personnel and is called a terrorist by the government and popular media. Even in the</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> present world, isn't our definition of a terrorist a horribly one-sided one? Think about it and in the mean time watch this movie.<br /><br /></span> <span style="font-family:verdana;">Wachowski brothers (makers of Matrix) did a wonderful job with screenplay. It is fast enough, without making you gasp for air. I heard that it made by a first-time director James McTeigue. If true, I don't have any words to praise him. As for the performances, Hugo Weaving prevails! It might be tough to do any acting when you are always wearing a mask. But, he does! Watch his slightly exaggerated body language. It's amazing what you can convey using only your body. Natalie Portman as Evey becomes dear to you with her always-slightly-confused expression. John Hurt as the hate-mongering Chancellor Adam Stutler is looks bad enough.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/V3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/V3.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">V for Vendetta is an elegant movie without any gory scenes. It has enough action, but it doesn't slip into an action-movie-mode. It rather asks a lot of questions. It states a lot of facts. It forces you to view the world as it is with out any rosy glasses. I give it an A+ rating.</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />PS: To know about the inspiration for V: <a href="http://www.answers.com/guy+fawkes&r=67">Read about Guy Fawkes >></a></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">"The people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders...tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the peacemakers for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger."</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;">: <span style="font-weight: bold;">Herman Goering</span><br /><br /><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie" rel="tag">Movie</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie+Review" rel="tag">Movie Review</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/V+For+Vendetta" rel="tag">V For Vendetta</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Hugo+Weaving" rel="tag">Hugo Weaving</a></span><br /></span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1143811857134456962006-03-31T05:19:00.000-08:002006-04-19T23:53:15.216-07:00Being Cyrus: Movie Review<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:verdana;" ><br />Who you let in can change your life!<br /><br /></span><o:p></o:p> </div><p face="verdana" class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p> <p face="verdana" class="MsoNormal">Being Cyrus is the story of a somewhat crazy guy called Cyrus. Oops! Wait a minute. The movie is full of crazy people. Crazy....like you and me. We 'appear' normal as long as we don't express all our thoughts, right? Well, that is my opinion for the moment.</p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal">Important declaration: The readers are requested to think about the characters mentioned here as 'whacko' unless mentioned otherwise.</p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/cyrus.0.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/cyrus.0.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><o:p></o:p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal">On an otherwise usual morning in Panchgani, Mr and Mrs Sethna find Cyrus Mistry at their doorsteps. He has come to be an apprentice of Dinshaw Sethna who is told to be a great sculptor, who has become obscure now. Dinshaw lives in his own world and doesn't care a damn about what the world says about him. His voluptuous wife and highly depressed Katy lives in a world of what-if's. Panchgani is an not at all an happening place and her life is restricted the mundane works of home. She deserves better, and she has no doubts about that.<br /></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/being03.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/being03.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: verdana; text-align: justify;" class="MsoNormal">Cyrus merges with this normally crazy family with ease and plays along with Katy's flirting<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/23cyrus1.0.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/23cyrus1.0.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a> ways. As we move along the other members of the Sethna family, who are living in Mumbai, come into picture. Dinshaw brother Farokh is married to Tina. Think about a marriage between Amjad Khan and Jaya Bhaduri from Sholay, and you got the idea. Farokh is supposed to be looking after their father Fardounjee Sethna, who is said to be a rich man. But under the beast called Farokh the aged Sr. Sethna is living in a hell. On Katy's insisting, Cyrus befriends this old man and the plot thickens, throws some twists, gives you shivers and makes you crazy.<o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal">I stop here guys. Watch the movie for the story. Better, watch it for the performances. Watch it to see a beautiful debut from director Homi Adajania.</p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/being10.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/being10.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal">Really! Do you expect me to rate Naseeruddin Shah?! When he is in a movie no one else is expected to shine. But, they do...We knew that there is more to Saif Ali Khan than Dil Chahta Hai and Hum Tum. What about Ek Haseena Dhi? So, yes. He did it again. Boman Irani is a wonderful actor. And he excells as the darkly humorous Farokh Sethna. Dimple Kapadia did it right. But, I felt that sometimes she overacted. May be its due to the restrained performances from others. Simone Singh was fine. Honey Chhaya as the Sr. Sethna stole my heart. He just made me shudder thinking about getting old and living like a beggar in one's own home.</p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/being06.0.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/being06.0.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal">Being Cyrus is a part psycho, part thriller movie. People looking for an exclusive genre will be disappointed. The background music complemented the feel of the movie. It doesn't look glossy and cozy. So, Karan Johar fans stay away! Go and watch this movie guys. And have a crazy time!</p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie" rel="tag">Movie</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Being+Cyrus" rel="tag">Being Cyrus</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie+Review" rel="tag">Movie Review</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Bollywood" rel="tag">Bollywood</a></span><br /></p><span style="font-family:verdana;"> </span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1141887424607886782006-03-08T22:48:00.000-08:002006-03-08T23:05:44.876-08:00One Night @ The Call Centre - A novel by Chetan Bhagat: Book Review<span style="font-family:verdana;">I've been impatiently waiting for Chetan Bhagat's second novel One Night @ The Call Centre. Chetan's first attempt <a href="http://krishnatalkies.blogspot.com/2005/09/5-point-someone-novel-by-chetan-bhagat.html">Five Point Someone</a> was a highly enjoyable light-read. So, I had high expectations.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">At last the day came and I returned from our neighborhood bookstore carrying a copy of One Night @ The Call Centre. I promptly dumped the Anton Chekov short story collection and started my journey with Chetan (the story starts with a train journey).</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">I guess, most of you guys have read the teaser published before the launching of the book. So had I. Hence skipped a few pages to where our narrator starts his.....well, narration. For the kind information of all the blockheads and papads out there, One Night @ The Call Centre tells us what happened to a bunch of call center employees during the span of a night!</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/ON%40CC.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/ON%40CC.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">So, we have a call centre called Connexions where the employees are facing a layoff...all due to a stupid Boss. Then we have a group of agents who have a particular section of the call centre all to themselves: Shyam, Priyanka, Esha, Varun aka Vroom, Radhika and Military Uncle. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">This particular 'One Night' our agents don't have much work due to some technical problems in their network. So, they have a lot of time to talk, think, bitch about their stupid boss Bakshi and in general let us know what was happening in their lives till then. All have their own problems and with the layoff looming in the near future, everything looks bleak to our friends.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">I'll stop here and let you be 'surprised' if you are really going to read ON@CC. You won't get any insights to what the real call centre agents are facing daily. Its better to ask those night-birds in your friends circle. The book is aimed at the young generation. Supposedly the so-called 'youth' don't have any clear vision, are chicken-hearted and do everything their friends do so as to appear 'cool'. They just want some bucks, don't think about what they really want in life and simply follow the metropolitan culture (whatever it might be!). Geez....so many arrows!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">The message: listen to your heart! Filmy....veryyy filmy. ON@CC has a lot of flaws, which really dampened my reading. I didn't like it as much as <a href="http://krishnatalkies.blogspot.com/2005/09/5-point-someone-novel-by-chetan-bhagat.html">Five Point Someone</a>. May be it is the high expectation level. Or may be because I can predict most of the things as everything sticks to the Chetan-style. But, may be you will like it. So, try it. After all its a light-read and costs only Rs.95!<br /><br /><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Chetan+Bhagat" rel="tag">Chetan Bhagat</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Book" rel="tag">Book</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Book+Review" rel="tag">Book Review</a></span><br /></span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1141282882560486132006-03-01T22:57:00.000-08:002006-03-07T03:02:05.786-08:00Holiday: Movie Review<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">"This holiday, come fall in love....with yourself"<br /><br /></span></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/holiday5.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/holiday5.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /></div><span style="font-family:verdana;">Pooja Bhatt directed Holiday is widely believed to be a copy of "Dirty Dancing". Though,</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> Pooja claims it to be inspired by "Strictly Ballroom". He he he.... Usually they argue whether</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> the movie is a copy or not. Bollywood has really progressed. Now the topic is copy of "which" movie'. Whatever!<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/holiday16.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/holiday16.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">You can sum up Holiday by reading the ugly duckling's story or watching 'Jasse jaisi koyi</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> nahin' in Soni TV. But, here is a difference. It is not about an ugly/ordinary girl turning into a beauty. It is about defying the world and living by your own standards. An ordinary girl (Onjolee Nair) who believes herself to be a failure, accidentally finds out the passion of her life! Well, 'passions' of her life, to be exact - Dancing & Dino Morea.</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/holiday4.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/holiday4.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /></span><span style="font-family:verdana;">The story unfolds in Goa, which gives Holiday a cool feel. I really liked the song</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> 'aashiyaan...'. Oh, may the dancing did it for me. The dialogues are simply too boring. You can even lip-synch with the actors! </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">The 'bestest' part of the movie is some real cool dancing, simply great. I presume that</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> Onjolee is a trained dancer. Her moves are so graceful. Her</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> acting? Nothing to mention. That is not a problem for Bollywood. The problem is she is not the typical bollywood beauty. Know what I mean? At least, do we get to watch her as a model?</span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /></span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Now, let us talk about Dino. I didn't know that he could dance so nicely, man! Dino, I forgive you for all those acting mishaps. Attention all those directors and producers out there. Why don't you give this man a movie 'inspired' by 'Dance like a man'?</span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories: </span><a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie" rel="tag">Movie</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie+Review" rel="tag">Movie Review</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Bollywood" rel="tag">Bollywood</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Holiday" rel="tag">Holiday</a></span><br /><br /></span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1139917554684799922006-02-14T03:36:00.000-08:002006-04-20T01:14:34.306-07:00Zinda: Movie Review<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/zinda1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/zinda1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:Verdana;" >"One good act of vengeance...deserves another"<br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:Verdana;" ></span><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><o:p></o:p></span> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Zinda means alive! So, who is alive? Sanjay Dutt (Bala). Any reason he shouldn’t be? If you were locked up for 14 years and released with an ominous statement that you have just 4 more days……well, its understood that your state of being ‘Zinda’ isn’t going to last. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">1990’s. Bangkok.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Bala is a software engineer happily married to Celina Jaitley (forgot her screen-name). One fine day………… well, he simply disappears. Yeah! Just like that…voosh!!! His pretty wife watches him standing on a deck…the next scene……… he is nowhere to see! <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">What happened to Bala? He is kept in a cell without any explanations. Totally isolated except for a T.V. through which he comes to know that his wife had been murdered. At the end of 14 years he is blindfolded and dropped on a helipad. He finds some money and a cell-phone in his coat-pocket. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Understandably, this is not the end for him or the story. He is still ‘Zinda’. But why? Why wasn’t he killed if the whole episode was to punish him for some unknown crime? Who is the monster behind this drama? Just like us, Bala wants to solve this puzzle. He wants justice for the 14 precious years of his life.<br /></span><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">So guys……such is the story! Sounds good? Yes. Copy? Right again! Hollywood? No, from a Korean movie called OldBoy. Anything wrong? How about the basic flaw?<br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">It’s all about the passion of revenge, right? Then I completely missed the point in Zinda. Let me reveal something here. John Abraham plays the part of the person who locked up Sanjay Dutt for 14 years; obviously for some valid reasons. John is supposed to live on the hatred for his enemy. Forgive me John for this, but you just didn’t look the part. (I’m a big fan of John Abraham – The Model.)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Sanjay Dutt was good as a desperate man. Should I say this again….Celina can’t act. Lara Dutta and Mahesh Manjrekar (yeah, they are there): Bad characterization (not their fault). Zinda is directed by Sanjay Gupta, whose ‘Kaante’ hit the mark with some attitude and ‘Musafir’ was avoidable. I guess he misses the story while trying to stylize the look. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">On the whole Zinda is a ‘different’ movie with some loopholes. It’s highly depressing with some gruesome scenes here and there (I liked this). One big plus? The song ‘Yeh hai meri kahaani’ by Strings.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie" rel="tag">Movie</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Film" rel="tag">Film</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie+Review" rel="tag">Movie Review</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Bollywood" rel="tag">Bollywood</a></span></span></p>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1136811201323940442006-01-09T04:49:00.000-08:002006-04-20T01:21:56.443-07:00Kalyug: Movie Review<a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/Kalyug01.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/Kalyug01.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a> <p face="verdana" class="MsoNormal">To tell the truth....I hated Kalyug from the word GO! <o:p></o:p></p> <p face="verdana" class="MsoNormal">Oh my God! The world is gonna hang me after the above statement. Just about everyone says defends Kalyug. Something in the line of "Return of good old days of Bhatt.....Bhatt returns to the Zakhm standards". Really? Kalyug was that good? Sorry, I didn't notice! May be I should watch it once more? Man! please excuse me. I would rather watch a well-made movie with the stupidest theme than a shabbily executed movie with a noble intention.</p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal">You want the plot? The hero (Kunal) and his wife (Renuka) went to some kind of tourist spot for their honeymoon. Bad luck that their intimate moments were secretly filmed and hosted in a desi porn website. With an international porn-mafia behind these deeds Police promptly arrests the couple for making blue films. Renuka couldn't stand the humiliation and deceit. And she commits suicide.</p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal">From there on Kunal takes it as his destiny to destroy the people behind the porn website. No easy task by any means. On the way along he gets to meet some interesting characters and gets to see the ugly face of porn business. As a character says 'this is kalyug'. What else do you expect?!</p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal">So, it does sound like a great plot, right? Yeah....probably path-breaking in Bollywood (don't know about the other Wood's). I feel sad that such a fresh plot was destroyed by a careless script and crass execution. Why didn’t they just concentrate on the story at hand? I mean, why digress and talk about Kashmiri Pundits and Gujarat earthquake victims? Surely, they are worth making different movies, without cramming all these into Kalyug as side-plots.</p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal">Only today did I recognize that the actor who did the lead role is Kunal Khemu. Remember young Ajay Devgan in Zakhm? I really liked him as a child artist. Well, he was not that bad in Kalyug. Just looked like a boy whom you might meet in your neighborhood. May be if he kept his hair short, I would get a glimpse of his face!<br /></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal">The girl who acted as Renuka (Smiley!) looked like she did the film sans any makeup. That’s fine. But her acting was horrible. Or, am I so irritated by innocent sweet girlie-girls?! Amrita Singh performing as the woman who controls a very profitable porn-mafia...I liked that. At least she didn't use kohl and complicated bindis to look like a bad girl. She was just right.<br /></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal">Emraan Hashmi - I wouldn't care to say anything about him or his role. Deepal Shaw - the music album girl was highly irritating. Ashutosh Rana - would you please stay away from stereotypes and do some justice to your acting skills? <o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal">Let me end with some positive comments. THE song of the season, Jiya dhadak dhadak Jaye.... rocks!!! To the credit of the moviemakers, they could have easily added some steamy scenes given the theme. But, they didn't. In fact there is no unnecessary hot scenes. If only they had a better script!</p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie" rel="tag">Movie</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Kalyug" rel="tag">Kalyug</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Bollywood" rel="tag">Bollywood</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie+Review" rel="tag">Movie Review</a></span><br /></p>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1135601521789511822005-12-26T04:43:00.000-08:002006-03-07T03:42:55.256-08:00Bluffmaster: Movie Review<span style="font-family:verdana;">I have to confess first, I'm a blue-blooded fan of Abhishek Bachchan. So there is no way that I can rate </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Bluffmaster anything below 10. Objectivity be damned! If there is anyone who can make me watch a movie for the </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">sole purpose of seeing him.....Thats Him! Thats Him! Thats Him!</span><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-family:verdana;">OK. Let me start reveiwing the movie. There is no price for guessing to which genre Bluffmaster falls to. You </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">must be a total pudding-head not to guess it from the title. Its a con-movie yaar! </span> <span style="font-family:verdana;">Note: Con-movie may mean a movie about con-men or a movie that cons the audience.<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/bm04.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/bm04.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /></div><span style="font-family:verdana;">Don't you feel Bluffing is the season's theme that has possessed hindi film makers?! Chocolate, Ek Khiladi Ek </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Hasina.....now Bluffmaster. I really loved Chocolate, hated EKEH and was in love with Bluffmaster even before </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">seeing it.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Let me share some rumors with you. It is said that Bluffmaster is highly 'inspired' by an Argentinean film </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">named 'Nine Queens'. Some other folks argue its a copy of Hollywood flick 'Matchstick Men'. I really don't </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">care, because I haven't seen either of them. In case its a copy (most probably it is) I would say 'copy ho to </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">aisa!'<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/bluffmaster2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/bluffmaster2.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">Abhishek is a small time con man who is highly successful in his profession. He regards himself as the 'baap' </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">of all conmen! Priyanka Chopra is his love interest. And he almost succeeds in getting engaged with her. </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">'Almost' because on the day of the engagement, for the first time she comes to know that he is a conman. Now, </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">she is a lady of high principles and can't think about spending her life with such a crook. She gives back her </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">engagement ring thus breaking our hero's heart.</span> <br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Enter Riteish Deshmukh (with an apt name Dittu!) who is an aspiring conman (or boy). He wants to be an </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">apprentice under Abhishek, who is highly irritated by this loudmouth. Who can ward off an eager student for </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">ever! And Dittu (I feel it suits him better than Riteish) becomes a not-so-humble 'chela' of Abhishek Guruji.</span> <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/bluffmaster4.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/bluffmaster4.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">Then comes a hard blow for the hero. A new found doctor-friend,Boman Irani, tells him the cruel truth....he is </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">diagnosed with having........yes! u guessed it!.....brain tumor! Life is so unjust. He has only three more </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">months to live. Can he make each one of these days a memorable one? Well he is sure gonna try.</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />First thing first...he breaks the news to the queen of his heart, who naturally wouldn't believe him. But, </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">later she comes back to him...true love or sympathy? Don't worry much. Its not that interesting.</span> <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/bluffmaster3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/bluffmaster3.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">Now, second thing....Dittu wants to avenge the cruel deceit done to his now-in-sanatorium father by a large </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">shark (or whale, I don't remember) Chandru. Our con-guru knows that its not an easy task, but he agrees to </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">do it for his dear student.</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />The rest of the story is about how he tries to con chandru and......well does he succeed? Watch the movie!</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />Abhishek's character is understated, charming and very stylish, and he performs very well. Riteish Deshmukh is </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">a real comedy-man, no question about that. No comments about Priyanka Chopra. Boman Irani's role is too short </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">and will disappoint his fans. Do I have to comment about Nana Patekar? watch this movie if only for a different </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">performance from Patekar. I would really love to see him take the center stage in a con-movie. This man amazes </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">with his ease of switching between characters. A really hilarious character, Chandru.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/bluffmaster5.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/bluffmaster5.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">The music suits the movie, but nothing to comment about. The best part of Bluffmaster is 'dialogues'. You will </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">agree with Chandru when he says that he wants to note this line for future use. I really wanted to note down </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">many of them. This movie could have been a lot better with a tighter editing.</span> <span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br />But, I'm not complaining. The more I get to see Abhishek the better!<br /><br /><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie" rel="tag">Movie</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Film" rel="tag">Film</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie+Review" rel="tag">Movie Review</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Bollywood" rel="tag">Bollywood</a></span><br /></span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1132925488701974952005-11-25T05:19:00.002-08:002006-03-07T03:23:21.446-08:00An Unfinished Life: Movie Review<span style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Characters:</span> <o:p></o:p></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">Einar Gilkyson (Robert Redford)<br />Mitch (Morgan Freeman)<br />Jean (Jennifer Lopez)<br />Griff (Becca Gardner)<br />Gary (Damian Lewis)<br />Local Deputy sheriff (Josh Lucas)<br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">Forgiveness and moving on in life - this is the theme of An Unfinished Life.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:verdana;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/life3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/life3.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">Jean, who was beaten up by her boyfriend Gary, is running away along with her daughter Griff. Apparently she has nowhere to go other than the ranch where her former father-in-law Einar stays. Einar is a tough cowboy with a golden heart. He cares for his friend Mitch who was seriously pawed by a bear.</span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">Both Jean and Einar are not happy with the meeting. We later on finds out that Jean was driving the car in the accident that killed Einar's son. He blames Jean for that incident. Mitch tries to put Einar out of his bitterness. Anyway, Einar grudgingly allows Jean and Griff to stay with him.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:verdana;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/life9.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/life9.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">As the movie progresses Einar and Griff slowly get attached with each other. But Einar is still not forgiving Jean who has found a new boyfriend in the local deputy sheriff.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" face="verdana"><span style="font-family:verdana;">Well, I'm not going to say the whole story. Well, there aren't much surprises because it is every inch a sweet-emotional-drama where everything is fine in the end.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" face="verdana"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/jlo.jpg"><span style="font-family:verdana;"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; cursor: pointer; text-align: center;" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/jlo.jpg" border="0" /></span></a><span style="font-family:verdana;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">The main problem I have with this movie is that J Lo never look like a woman who will stand there and take the beating from her boyfriend. Oh! There is bear that is an important character in this movie - the bear that attacked Mitch. He always asks about that animal. The bear surely has some symbolic role, but I'm not sure what it is. The problem is I can explain it in a dozen ways – that’s the ay with symbolism!</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: verdana;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/life14.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/life14.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" face="verdana"><span style="font-family:verdana;">Ultimately, An Unfinished Life talks about forgiving yourself and others and bonding with your fellow beings. I'll say it has a nice and valid point. But the movie failed to touch my heart.<o:p></o:p></span></p><span style="font-family:verdana;">If you don't like sentimental dramas and lessons about life this movie is not for you.<br />If you are in a mood for lightweight philosophies and the open countryside give it a try...may be you will like it.<br /><br /><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie" rel="tag">Movie</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Hollywood" rel="tag">Hollywood</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/Movie+Review" rel="tag">Movie Review</a></span><br /></span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1132232628813768892005-11-17T04:59:00.000-08:002006-03-07T01:50:10.000-08:00FlightPlan: Movie Review<span style="font-family:verdana;">Flight Plan is a thriller, which starts as an interesting ride but goes aground in the middle.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:verdana;">I have seen only a few movies of Jodie Foster. Still, if I know that she is part of a movie I'm bound to have high expectations. So, when FlightPlan began I thought 'its going to be something special!'<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/flightplan2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/flightplan2.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Kyle Pratt (Foster) is distraught with grief as her husband died in an accident while in Berlin. She arranges </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">to transport his casket in a jumbo jet to New York for the funeral. She boards the plane along with her </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">6-year-old daughter Julia. It is shown that she is an over-protective mother who doesn't want her daughter to b</span><span style="font-family:verdana;">e out of her sight. By the way Kyle Pratt helped design the jet that they are boarding!<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/Flightplan6.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/Flightplan6.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">Once inside the plane Kyle takes a nap and when she wakes up her daughter is missing. She goes searching and </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">panics when the kid was not found. She seeks the help of flight attendants. They are not really concerned </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">because the plane is large enough for a girl to lose her way. But, after the first round of search Julia is s</span><span style="font-family:verdana;">till missing. The pilot asks other passengers to not to leave their seats for an intense search. And instead </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">of all these troubles and some unfortunate incidents her daughter is not found!</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/Flightplan6.jpg"><br /></a><div style="text-align: right;"><br /></div><span style="font-family:verdana;">As the movie advances we get to know that no one in the plane has ever seen Julia! And there is no record of </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">her boarding! And the pilot gets information from Berlin that the girl was killed along with her father! Every </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">one suspects that Kyle is having a psychological problem. Now, Kyle is having doubts about her own stability. </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Was Julia just an illusion of her bereaved mind?! She is not sure and she can't trust anyone.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/flightplan02.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/flightplan02.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">If I explain the rest it won't be a thriller, right? So lets leave it here.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Now, you might think it’s really worth your money. I would say NO! Of course Jodie Foster is unquestionable. </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">She makes us feel or the character. Whatever she does appear natural.….very convincing. FlightPlan got solid </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">backing from Jodie and an intriguing plot. Then what went awry? I mean 'about the film'...not 'in the film'!<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/flightplan5.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/flightplan5.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">For one thing, the best part of a thriller is missing here - a logical explanation for each and every incident </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">and every word spoken. I don't mean that everything should be explained in the end forcefully. Just that, with </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">the given information an average movie-goer should be able to solve all the mystery in the end. This is exactly </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">where the FlightPlan fails. The scriptwriter didn't really apply any commonsense. There are so many loopholes </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">that you can't beleive it had a script! You wanna see Jodie Foster perform? Fine....go ahead! You wanna see a </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">thriller? <span style="font-weight: bold;">STOP!!!!</span><br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:verdana;">The conclusion: Too many unanswered WHYs and HOWs don't do any good to a thriller.<br /><br /><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Movie" rel="tag">Movie</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Hollywood" rel="tag">Hollywood</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Thriller" rel="tag">Thriller</a></span><br /></span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1130926463071633782005-11-02T02:10:00.000-08:002006-03-07T02:27:42.996-08:00Main Meri Patni Aur Woh: Movie Review<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);font-family:Verdana;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">“Love comes in all Sizes”</span><o:p></o:p></span></div> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);font-family:Verdana;" ><!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);font-family:Verdana;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Main:</span> </span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Mithilesh Shukla aka Chote Babu - Played by Rajpal Yadav</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);font-family:Verdana;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Meri Patni:</span> </span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Veena - Played by Rituparna Sengupta</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);font-family:Verdana;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Woh:</span> </span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Akash – Played by Kay Kay Menon<br /><br /></span> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Mithilesh:</span><!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> The university library is my temple and I’m the Pujari there! I adore books and love literature. I was a bachelor at well past my prime. Well, I had my own reasons for not tying the knot. Then one fine day my mother took out her usual ronaa-dhonaa…and my uncle started to push like anything….the pressure became too much and I had to relent. I went along with my uncle to meet a girl named Veena. Even before seeing her I was convinced that she would reject me. I mean…..I’m not handsome….not tall enough….not very smart. Not a guy in whom a girl would see her Prince.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/mmpaw11.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/mmpaw11.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><code></code></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="fullpost"><span class="fullpost"><span class="fullpost"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Then I met Veena. And I was very sure that she would reject me. She was so beautiful that I couldn’t stop looking at her. Then we talked and I found her simple and open. She is well read and intelligent. It was a pleasure talking with her. God! I couldn’t stop smiling. I badly wanted to marry her. But, then I know my limits. She deserved a better man.</span></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/mmpaw3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/mmpaw3.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span class="fullpost"><span class="fullpost"><span class="fullpost"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Veena:</span> I’m a practical girl who has gone through the ladki-dekhna-ceremony for a few times. They will come and see me and say that they liked me. Nobody cared to ask how I felt! Then, this guy with a disarming smile came to see me - Mithilesh. He was such a simple person. He really listened to all that I had to say. Then he said that he really liked me and asked…..you know what?! He asked me to be his friend! Well, I think that’s what had me bowled over. I was in love with this bhola-bhala librarian!</span></p><p style="text-align: center;" class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/MMPAW.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/MMPAW.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></p> <br /><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">At last Mithilesh and Veena get married and the problems start pouring in on Mithilesh. <!--[if !supportEmptyParas]-->His wife is very beautiful and it was only natural that every guy – be it his best friend or the milkman – pays a compliment or two. This coupled with his inferiority complex makes life a hell for Mithilesh. But, he somehow manages his “competitors”. But the ultimate bad luck strikes in the form of Akash – Veena’s childhood friend….her chummy-buddy. Akash is everything that Mithilesh aspires to be. Every occasion proves to him that Akash is better suited to Veena than himself. In the end he brakes down utterly.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/mmpaw4.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/mmpaw4.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><!--[if !supportEmptyParas]-->Well guys….the story of Main Meri Patni Aur Woh is very simple and it doesn’t require much imagination to guess the plot. But, it is the treatment that steals show. The good old, small town of Lucknow is in the background. The city is captured in its day-to-day life mode. The characters are sketched as realistic as possible. The casting is wonderful. It will be ridiculous if I start commenting on Rajpal Yaadav and Kay Kay. Let me just say that they are among my awesome-actors-list. This is the first time I’m watching Rituparna Sengupta. An actress of mettle with a haunting beauty!</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/MMPAW.0.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/MMPAW.0.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><!--[if !supportEmptyParas]-->I have seen this story before in a great Malayalam movie – Vadakkunokkiyantram. But I won’t say that the story is stolen, because the concept has a universal appeal. Mithilesh can be anyone among us. If you like a slow pace and are not particularly looking for larger-than-life heroes, see this movie. For a change, this will have you walking with a human being and sharing his emotional ups and downs. You will smile and cry with Mithilesh. You may want to yell at him at some point but still think that he was only human.<br /><!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">This movie is like its protagonist – unassuming. Watch it and get struck with the charm of simplicity!<br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><br /><code></code></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Film" rel="tag">Film</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Movie" rel="tag">Movie</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Bollywood" rel="tag">Bollywood</a></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1129716176907196272005-10-19T02:44:00.000-07:002005-11-16T02:26:06.996-08:00Greetings to the Shehenshah of Bollywood<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/amitabh.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/amitabh.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">This October 11th, Amitabh Bachchan-the superstar of hindi films-turned 64. </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Here is my belated birthday wishes for him.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">In a show of respect for the victims of the erathquake that shook South Asia he abstained from celebrating the occasion.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">So, I'll follow his lead and make this post short. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">After all, what can I say, but that he may live long and be the undisputed Shehnshah of the hearts of his fans!<br /><br /><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Amitabh" rel="tag">Amitabh</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Bachchan" rel="tag">Bachchan</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Bollywood" rel="tag">Bollywood</a></span><br /></span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1127994523262216572005-09-29T04:48:00.000-07:002006-03-07T01:27:04.780-08:00Crash: Movie Review<span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:Verdana;" >"Moving at the speed of life, we are bound to collide with each other"</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">It is hard to say anything negative about Crash. Having said that, I can’t pretend that I have any idea about how the people, as a community, feel at L.A. America. Does racial discrimination exist there? Do they have prejudiced ideas about people based on their skin color? Does there exist a nauseating aura of fear in a commoner’s mind? Honestly, I wouldn’t know!<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://img65.imageshack.us/img65/5782/crash46rl.jpg" /><br /></div><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">But then, after the infamous 9/11 tragedy I have heard enough stories to get a rough picture. I have lived long enough in this world, which is far from perfect. And I most certainly know how an average person will behave when fear and distrust become an unavoidable part of his day-to-day existence. </span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Coming to the movie, it is hard to talk about the ‘story’ here. I feel that Crash is not for you if you are gonna watch it with a ‘then what happens?’ mindset. Crash tells us about racism and racial stereotypes. Meet the characters. Listen to them talking. Observe how and why they are responding to different situations.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/crash5.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/crash5.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Crash is a collage of so many characters and so many sub-plots. There are white characters who have prejudiced ideas about people with dark skin. There are black guys who are fed up of racism and the pre-conceived notions of white people; but they act just like how the racists suppose them to…threatening people with a gun and car-jacking.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/crash4.0.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/crash4.0.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Here is a white lady who is afraid of black people. She wakes up angry everyday and she doesn’t know why. In a city where everyone is behind the metal and glass, it is only natural that she can’t find anyone to turn to. Afraid and alone! How does that feel?<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Meet a Hispanic locksmith changing the front-door lock for white lady. He overhears her saying that after he changes the lock he might go out and sell the keys to one of his gang members. Being distrusted for no fault of your own! How does that feel?<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">A racist cop pulls over an interracial couple. The husband, of African origin, is forced to stand by while the cop feels up his wife. Being harassed and humiliated just because of your skin color! How does that feel?<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/crash1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/crash1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:Verdana;">If I go on like this, I won’t complete this review today! Interestingly, there are no completely bad or complete good characters in Crash. At one point you may feel sorry for a victim only to find out later that he is also guilty of making snap judgments. Then, may be you will hate someone for being a racist and later find out what helplessness and frustration can do to a basically good human being.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/crash2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/crash2.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:Verdana;">With so many characters and sub-plots Crash could have been a half-baked movie. But, the screenplay and actors are first rate and it turns out into a beautiful piece of work. The haunting background score suits the feeling of the movie. If you are watching Crash, you have no choice but do an introspection. “People, man….people!” Yes, including you and me!</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">There aren’t many movies made brave at the same time do not harbor any negative feelings. Crash is one of them. This is rare opportunity not to be missed for anything. Watch Crash.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Movie" rel="tag">Movie</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Film" rel="tag">Film</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Hollywood" rel="tag">Hollywood</a></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1127738317547836012005-09-26T05:38:00.000-07:002005-11-16T02:07:00.253-08:00Deception Point - A novel by Dan Brown: Book Review<p align="center"><br /><img src="http://img278.imageshack.us/img278/6276/deceptionpoint0jd.jpg" /><br /></p><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">United States of America is facing another Presidential election.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Senator Sedgewick Sexton Vs the current President Zach Herney.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">President Zach Herney: A man of strong principles. A strong supporter of NASA.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Senator Sedgewick Sexton: A master of the political game. Has powerful friends. </span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Rachel Sexton: The beautiful and intelligent daughter of Senator Sexton. Working for the National Reconnaissance Office despite her father’s opposes.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Senator Sexton raises the funding of NASA as the main issue in his campaigning, as all of the recent NASA missions had been failures.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">PODS, a NASA satellite, locates a meteorite buried deep under the Milne Ice Shelf, situated in an Arctic island. NASA scientists find out that this meteorite contains fossils of well-developed life forms – bugs.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">As this proves beyond doubt that life exists elsewhere in the universe, it is going to be a turning point in the history of science.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">The President invites four civilian scientists and the intelligence analyst Rachel Sexton to validate this NASA claim to give it high authenticity in front of the cynics. All of them hail the discovery as genuine and revolutionary. A festive atmosphere sets among the scientists gathered in the arctic island. The President is preparing to announce this startling discovery to the world in live media telecast.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><strong><span style="font-family:Verdana;">But Then……….</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Someone spots a small discrepancy in the excavation site. Two of the scientists get murdered and Rachel Sexton is fleeing for her life along with two scientists. Who is behind the killer-squad chasing them? What is wrong with the meteorite? Will Rachel ever find out the truth? The plot thickens…</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Deception Point is a fast-paced thriller from Dan Brown, the man behind The Da Vinci Code. Well, no! There is no reference to the Vatican or secret brotherhoods.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">This is a science fiction with a helluva mixture of facts and fiction. An action packed story, which gives you no option but to visualize every sequence. As with all other Dan Brown books, the reader will come away learning so many amazing facts. Just take care to further research so that you will know what is fiction and what is fact. Dan Brown surely takes his research seriously!</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">If you are interested this website may help you in finding the facts in Deception Point </span><a href="http://www.spacedaily.com/news/arctic-04i.html">http://www.spacedaily.com/news/arctic-04i.html</a><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">All this is not to say that there are no hitches with the Deception Point. For one, if you have read at least one of his other works, you are bound to know who is the villain after a few chapters. So, there are no surprises. The narration is highly mechanical and stresses your brain to work very hard to visualize every scene. And after a while you may give up and start to concentrate only on how the characters are finding out the truth.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">So, do I recommend the Deception Point?</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Of course! It is much better than Digital Fortress and is a good page-turner. No, don’t compare it with Dan Brown’s religious thrillers. You will be disappointed. The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons remain in their own class. And I personally believe that Dan Brown shines the best when he takes us to the world of mysterious brotherhoods and historic treacheries.<br /><br /><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></span></span><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Book" rel="tag">Book</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Fiction" rel="tag">Fiction</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Dan" rel="tag">Dan</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Brown" rel="tag">Brown</a></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1127469819251757522005-09-23T02:44:00.000-07:002005-11-16T02:10:49.840-08:00James: Movie Review<span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><br /><br /></span><p align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/James_081.jpg"><span style="font-family:verdana;"><img style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; float: left;" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/James_081.jpg" border="0" /></span></a></p><p align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/James_051.jpg"><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span></a> </p><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/James_051.jpg"><span style="font-family:verdana;"><img style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; float: left; width: 320px; height: 322px;" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/James_051.jpg" border="0" height="306" width="320" /></span></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">No No No....I'm not turning this into a porn-blog.These are just pictures of the lead characters of the movie James, which I intend to review here. Okay?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">James is produced by Ram Gopal Verma. he claims that it is his first full-fledged commercial film. Oh! whatever category did his other films fall into!!!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">You wouldn't mind if I reveal the 'plot' here. Believe me, you'll never mind!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">The movie starts with an item number by Riya Sen.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Then.......it starts. What starts? mmm......It starts.....What it? Oh ok...what the hell....the story yaar, if u insist in calling it so.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Mohit Ahlawat (James), boy from Goa with a great body, comes to Mumbai. Falls in love with Nisha Kothari, an upcoming model. So?Well.....the thing is....there is a big bad guy who loves (or lusts for) Nisha. And he has a big bad politician brother who will do anything for his younger bro.The villain in the story is so bad, so bad that he will murder a guy just to rape his girl friend. horrible no? well, not as horrible as this movie.Now that the hero and the lady are in love, and villain has found out this....its run time baby. Yup! the lead pair start to run from the villain and in between James do some fighting to show off his biceps.Again, this is the time you start looking at ur watch, i case u had the misfortune to watch this flick.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">I would like to tell u about James' philosophy, if u please."A person who does injustice is a criminal,a person tolerating it is a greater criminal and the person who sits on the fence watching all this is the greatest criminal." It is a long time since the movie-goer has appreciated this kinda hero unless he is a police officer.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">The dialogues are so good...so good....that u won't stop groaning.Thankfully, there aren't much words spoken. And whenever Nisha opens her pretty mouth, she irritates u to no end.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Ah well....about the skin show. Well, there is a lot they are showing us.Mohit and Nisha are indeed good to look at below their respective necks.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">I have this gut feeling that Mohit can really act. May be he needs a lot of polishing of this skill. And of course he will have to land himself on some really good film makers. John Abraham has got stiff competition here. But hey! you can't beat Johny's smile.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">About Nisha......Oh Nisha baby, u just can't be anywhere near Urmila, however hard u try! You gotta understand that u can't fake sex-appeal even on screen. Don't worry, may be u can do some music vidoes.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">James is really a short movie. The wonderful thing is that u will never realize this fact. It feels like years and years and years........and the torture seems to have no end.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Hey u! yes U....The Reader. Why the hell r u reading this damn review about this damn movie? </span><br /><br /><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Movie" rel="tag">Movie</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Bollywood" rel="tag">Bollywood</a></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1126944174938760772005-09-17T00:56:00.000-07:002005-11-16T02:13:05.760-08:00Salaam Namaste: Movie Review<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/salaamnamaste.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/salaamnamaste.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Statutory Warning: The Plot of the movie is revealed in detail. But then, nothing happens that u can’t guess well in advance. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Salaam Namaste was touted as a popcorn-entertainer. The popcorn bit is there alright. The entertainer part is suspicious by its absence. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Another feel-good movie from Yash raj Films and you know what to expect. One of my good friends says that Salaam Namaste is a complete rip-off of the movie Nine Months. Well, I haven’t seen Nine Months. So, I won’t be comparing the two. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Okay, here is a novel concept in the world of commercial hindi movies – Living in relation. Nikhil a.k.a. Nick (Siaf) and Ambar (Preity) accidentally meets and finds each other attractive. They decide to explore this feeling by living together. They don’t want to get married. At least not first. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Hey by the way, have u seen Hum Tum? Salaama Namaste deals with almost the same kind of issues. U know, how guys and girls have different kind of minds (really?!) and how they come to clash and y it is such a big issue. Hum Tum was much better for its entertainment value in the first half. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">No, I’m not saying all is bad here. Just that, u won’t see anything special. Not many jokes. The sentimental scenes towards the end are much predictable. Girl gets pregnant. She wants more attention and love. Boy is confused by her new attitude. By the end he miraculously finds out that after all marriage and babies is not such a bad idea. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Saif is said to be a successful cook who has hit it big time in Australia. But I didn’t see him cooking much in the movie. (Is there a chef-trend going on in Bollywood? First Madhavan in Ramji Londonwalley....now Saif) </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Preity is a part-time Radio Jockey and obviously whole of Melbourne listens to her program. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Hey, Salaam Namste is the radio station she is working for. She has done a good job of being an RJ. I don’t know about the work culture of RJs. But this is exactly how I imagine them to work. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">This could have been better, if only the treatment of the concept offered something new. But no! The director knows what the public is looking for. So, he delivers the moneymaking formula. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Y to see Salaam Namaste? </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">U get to see Australia. Nicely shot also. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">U love Saif, Preity, Arshad Warsi and Abhishek. (Yes! Let me break this surprise also. Abhishek has done a special role towards the end of the movie. If u love him, here is something new and funny for u.) </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">And finally, u have nothing else to do and have money and time to burn. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Y not to see Salaam Namste? </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">U are fed up of nice-looking, feel-good dramas like K3G, Kal Ho Na Ho, Mein Hoon Na, Hum Tum etc. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">U can’t tolerate one more performance by Saif playing the fun-loving, commitment-phobic, endearing and attractive bachelor. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">That’s it guys. Thanx for tolerating my blah-blah. <br /><br /><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Movie" rel="tag">Movie</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Bollywood" rel="tag">Bollywood</a></span><br /></span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1126683406432494912005-09-14T00:33:00.000-07:002005-11-16T02:16:01.196-08:005 Point Someone - A novel by Chetan Bhagat: Book Review<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/5point2.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/5point2.jpg" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/Chetan2.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/Chetan2.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: verdana;">In our college days most of us might have formed a group of friends who have almost the same kind of tastes and/or backgrounds. Well, we would have also christened our group something bizarre as Mighty8 (Groan!!!)<br /><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: verdana;"><o:p></o:p> </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: verdana;">But, what happens when a little group is formed by three guys as different as they could be? And let’s put them in a college…make it an IIT for better measures. That’s what Chetan Bhagat did in Five Point Someone.<br /><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: verdana;"><o:p></o:p> </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: verdana;">It’s the story of three friends from the moment they join IIT till they come out. It’s about how they become under-performers and then how they land into trouble after troubles. It’s not all funny. Chetan has put some insights into the high level of pressure in professional colleges and how it affects the students. There is some romance and the usual boy Vs girl observations.<br /><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: verdana;"><o:p></o:p> </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: verdana;">5 Point Someone is a book that you can read in a single stretch. Better don’t read it twice, because it might loose the charm. Hey! Are you expecting some valuable insights to the life inside an IIT? Or something about how to excel at IIT? Well you can ask any graduate from any professional college and you will get more info. </p><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: verdana;">This is just a simple story yaar! Enjoy it. Forget it.<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: verdana;"><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Book" rel="tag">Book</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Fiction" rel="tag">Fiction</a></span><br /> </p>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1123153645857223672005-08-04T04:03:00.000-07:002005-11-16T02:21:09.403-08:00Sarkar: Movie Review<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">Agreed, this has become somewhat cold.<span style="font-size:0;"> </span>But, I promised to write. So here we are.<br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">First thing first. There is no comparison between <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The GodFather</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Sarkar</span>.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">I<span style="font-size:0;"> </span>had watched <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">GodFather</span> a long time back. And that too bit by bit. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">Here I’m talking about<span style="color: rgb(102, 204, 204);"> </span></span><a style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" href="http://krishnatalkies.blogspot.com/2005/06/godfather-by-mario-puzo.html"><span style="font-family:verdana;">the book by Mario Puzo</span></a><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">.</span><br /><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">There are so many situations and characters that are taken straight from <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The GodFather</span>.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">At the same time, in <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Sarkar</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Ram Gopal Varma</span> has given a twist to everything.<br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span> </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">The most striking difference is the ideologies (if I may say so) of the center characters.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">For <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">GodFather</span>, “it’s not personal, it’s strictly business!”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">But, for <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Sarkar</span>, it’s all personal.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Sarkar</span>, played by <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Amitabh Bachan</span>, gives justice to the people who come to him for help.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">And everything he does is based on principles.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">I think this shift from business to principles was necessary for the majority of the Indian audience.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">But, for someone who is a diehard <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Godfather </span>fan, this can be a put off.<br /><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">The jarring ‘Govinda Govinda…..’ background singing, which was intended to create tension and apprehension, gave me a head ache. Instead, they could have gone all instrumental. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Amitabh’s </span>performance is very restrained. And <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Abhishek </span>brings back memories of the <span style="font-style: italic;">angry-young-man</span>. This boy is a real package. With that killer smile……..well, don’t let me start!</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">The real plus points of Sarkar:</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">You love <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Amitabh</span>. You love <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Abhishek</span>. Here you get a double bonanza. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">What’s more, you get a surprise gift called <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">KayKay</span>. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">Man Oh Man! He IS awesome!!!!<br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Movie" rel="tag">Movie</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Bollywood" rel="tag">Bollywood</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Amitabh" rel="tag">Amitabh</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Bachchan" rel="tag">Bachchan</a></span><br /></span></p>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1121257433917791672005-07-13T05:19:00.000-07:002005-11-16T02:28:10.043-08:00War Of The Worlds<span style="font-family:lucida grande;">It is one of the most awaited movies of the season. And I was going to watch the film in one of the best cinema halls – <em>Europa hall</em> of <em>PVR Cinemas, Bangalore</em>. Naturally, I was excited.<br /><br />If not for the great movie-watching experience offered by <em>PVR</em>, I would have been terribly disappointed! You might have already read/heard about everything that is to be known about <strong>War of the Worlds.<br /></strong><br />For me the only plus point was the child actress <strong>Dakota Fanning</strong>.<br />While watching, I actually accepted the movie as a real good one. Especially loved the special effects shown in the first half. My alter ego was telling me “Hey something is really wrong about this movie dear!” But I brushed aside this comment as the habit of an overly criticizing cynic.<br /><br />Then we came out of the hall and my companion exclaimed, it didn't look like a <strong>Spielberg</strong> movie. And there I was…facing my triumphant alter ego… who, true to her womanly habit, was shrieking “I did tell you, didn’t I?” Yeah Right!!!<br /><br />What <strong>War of the Worlds</strong> lacked is the Spielbergian-touch!<br />If only we didn’t know in advance that it is from the great filmmaker….<br />If only we didn’t have so much of expectations…<br /><br />My alter ego promptly reproaches me “Stop taking the if-only-path! Its over.”<br /><br /><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Movie" rel="tag">Movie</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Hollywood" rel="tag">Hollywood</a></span><br /></span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1120819592298478912005-07-08T03:43:00.000-07:002005-07-08T03:47:18.313-07:00Tale of two movies<span style="font-family:lucida grande;">At last we are going to watch <strong>War of the Worlds</strong> & <strong>Sarkar.</strong><br /><br />I have been waiting impatiently for these two films.<br /><br />Hope too much expectation doesn’t spoil our experience!<br /><br />Sure, I’ll like Sarkar anyway. Just watching <strong>Amitabh</strong> is enough for me.<br /><br />As for the other movie….well, let us wait and see.<br /><br />So guys, watch this place for the tale of these two movies!!!</span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1120570497275038182005-07-05T06:33:00.000-07:002005-11-16T02:31:05.383-08:00Taj Mahal : An Eternal Love Story<div align="left"><span style="font-family:lucida grande;">Imagine a full-moon night…and an Arabian Prince roaming in the desert…<br />His heart yearning for his beautiful Princess…<br /><br />That’s exactly what came to my mind while listening to this wonderful album.<br /><br />Just listen to two of the tracks:<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:lucida grande;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><strong>~Apni Zulfein~<br />~Mumtaz tujhe dekha</strong>~<br /></span><br />Well, I feel it is better if u don’t bother about the other tracks<br /><br /><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories: </span><a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Music" rel="tag">Music</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Bollywood" rel="tag">Bollywood</a></span><br /></span></div>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13535746.post-1120136796346529272005-06-30T06:04:00.000-07:002005-11-16T02:34:07.246-08:00Parineetha - The Married Woman: Movie Review<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/1600/parineeta.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7234/1193/320/parineeta.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br />At last we got tickets and blissfully went to watch <em>Parineetha</em>.<br />If you saw us coming out of the cinema-hall….and saw our grinning faces…and thought that it was <em>Munnabhai Part II</em> that we watched…….<br />Well….what can I say! I was as much confused as u.<br /><br />Because the last half an hour of the film made us laugh so hard.<br />Hm….I’m not sure if those laughable moments were provided intentionally or not.<br /><br />It is undoubtedly a visual treat. Everything looks so beautiful. And u get too hear some melodious tunes which goes well with the mood of Parineetha. In fact, I'm still humming <span style="font-style: italic;">"Piyaa Bole...".</span> Saif is really good in his arrogant-but-hopelessly in love-role. Sanjay Dutt looked old...but nobody is doubting his acting skills. Divya Baalan has done a great job. She is well cast as the woman who can evoke in men such respect as well as possessiveness. Ah! those eyes.........they do speak volumes!<br /><br />If u are in a romantic mood....and loves the slow pace....Parineetha is well worth till the climax. No I won't tell the climax and stop u from having a few laughs.<br /><br />As for me, till interval it was bearable. In case u didn’t know, I’m such a romantic idiot sometimes. And I do love music videos very much.<br />Don’t get what I’m talking about??? Go and watch Parineetha.<br />Since you are going for it, keep your brain somewhere safe.<br /><br />Now, why are you staring at me like that?! Oops! forget that I said something about your brains, silly things.<br /><br /><span class="technoratitag"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Categories:</span> <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Movie" rel="tag">Movie</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Review" rel="tag">Review</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/blogger234/Bollywood" rel="tag">Bollywood</a></span>Krishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14502993448648703065noreply@blogger.com0