Drishyam (Malayalam) (2013)

It took me over a year to watch Drishyam (Malayalam) and I do hope that this review will prevent the rest of you from waiting so long.  Drishyam isn’t a brilliant movie by far in several aspects chief amongst them being its pace in the first half.  But make no mistake.  It is a very very good story and it has some superb performances that come together quite beautifully.

Georgekutty (Mohanlal) is a Cable TV Operator in a small village called Rajakkad in Idukki district.  Its up in the hills – the western ghats – of Kerala right in between infinite shades of green.  Georgekutty is married to Rani (Meena) and has 2 daughters Anjumol (Ansiba Hassan) and Anumol (Baby Ester).  Georgekutty is an orphan who studied only upto Grade 4 and has slowly but surely become reasonably successful.

Jeethu Joseph spends a whole amount of time – nearly an hour and 15 minutes – to build up the story about the middle class respectable life in Rajakkad. He builds the equation between Georgekutty and the local the corrupt cop Sahadevan (Kalabhavan Shajon). A little too much time before coming to the actual plot – one of blackmail, murder and a desperate Inspector General stacked up against a 4^th class pass whose only education comes from the world of cinema.

You will have to be extremely patient with Drishyam because for over an hour, you cannot quite figure out what is about to happen.  Even after you figure it out, Jeetu Joseph doesn’t pick up the pace dramatically till about 15-20 minutes from the end when it all comes together.  So be patient because you will not be disappointed at the end of it all.

The performances are simply superb – as usual from Mallu cinema.  A big part of the performances comes from the casting.  Mohanlal not only looks like your average ordinary middle class fellow from Rajakkad but carries it off with a conviction of your average ordinary middle class fellow from Rajakkad. 

The only minor error in casting – that is more than compensated by performance – was that of Asha Sarath as IG Geetha Prabhakar because she just looked too young to be a mother of a high school boy and the IG of Police.  But the woman can act I tell you!!!  But the pick of the lot had to be Kalabhavan Shajon as the despicable cop who will not shy away from hitting an 11 year old girl.  Class act this man!!!

You could watch Drishyam in one of many ways as under

1. Download at http://kat.cr/drishyam-2013-malayalam-brrip-1080p-x264-aac-5-1-e-subs-mbrhdrg-2gb-t10045310.html
2. Buy a BD version on amazon - http://www.amazon.in/Drishyam-Mohanlal/dp/B00KBN25FO/ref=sr_1_2?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1434780768&sr=1-2&keywords=drishyam
3. Watch on your mobile on hotstar - http://www.hotstar.com/#!/watch-drishyam-online-1000051783-m (but this doesn’t have subtitles)
4. Wait for the Hindi version that is scheduled to release on 31^st July 2015 – its an identical remake from the looks of it

Either ways – enzoy!!! 7.5 on 10.

Watch the trailer on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMASubc1y_k

Ugly (2014) (Hindi)

It takes a lot of courage to portray the darkest sides of human behavior.  People are capable of much worse than we could imagine – given the right circumstances.  Most of us are aware of that but live in denial.  To the film maker who doesn’t believe in the beaten path, this aspect of homo sapiens sapiens is nothing short of a delectable treat.

M3 - Midsummer Midnight Mumbai

I will begin by saying that I did not watch this movie upto the grand finale.  A personal emergency forced me to leave just as the climatic sequences of this awful piece of work was about to begin.  There were several indicators that should have kept me away from this movie that I refused to acknowledge and therefore suffered like I have on very few occasions in the past.

The Xpose

Words fail me when I try to express my sentiments on 2 supremely contrasting examples of cinema that will make their mark on the nation today. 16th May 2014 will definitely go down in the annals of Indian History as a red letter day - and I'm not referring to the more than obvious result in the General Elections 2014. It will be remembered forever as the day a man from Gujarat took on a monster from across the seven seas.

Woh Kaun Thi (1964)

A few days back during my stint in hospital for my back problems, I had an opportunity to wake up in the morning to a movie on cable that I have not seen in a really long time.  Raj Khosla’s alleged adaptation of that Alfred Hitchcock super hit called Vertigo is anything but an adaptation.  Other than a few scenes that may be called as “inspired” there is very little or nothing similar to Vertigo.

Ghanchakkar

Remember that guy from Khosla Ka Ghosla – Munjal? Khurana’s (Boman Irani) sidekick / Secretary.  The guy who does the dirty work for Khurana.  For those who aren’t aware of who played that character (and I am quite certain that most people in India wouldn’t know his name) it is a guy called Rajesh Sharma – one of the finest supporting actors in India currently.  This time around he plays Pandit.

Table No. 21

Vivaan (Rajeev Khandelwal) and Siya Agasthi (Tena Desae) are an apparently happily married couple who win a trip to the magical islands that Vijay Singh (the ace golfer) calls his home. For those who are unaware of where Vijay Singh comes from it would be the Polynesian island country of Fiji.

On their last day, they are invited for their anniversary lunch to a hotel owned by Abdul Razzaq Khan (Paresh Rawal) who seems to be a man of means to put it mildly. Now Vivaan and Siya are in trouble back home because Vivaan doesn’t have a job. Khan has come to the table with just the solution that they want. Something that will solve all their problems.

At stake is a nominal sum of Rs. 21 crores. That’s Rs. 210 million for the non Indians or $4 million. What would you be willing to do to get that amount into your bank account? Lets rephrase that question. What would be willing to do that is considered legal and have that amount in your bank account in about 3 to 4 weeks?

My guess would be – A LOT. Well Vivaan and Siya have to play a game which is Mr. Khan’s version of Sach Ka Saamna (Moment of Truth) & Who Dares Wins put together. Ironically Rajeev Khandelwal is the host of Sach Ka Saamna in real life. But in reel life as the poster calls out (very cornily of course) – IF YOU LIE – YOU DIE!!! (guttural laughter follows. Similar to the one from MJs Thriller video).

Khandelwal’s choice of movies has typically been good to date. Aamir, Shaitan & Soundtrack to name a few. And if you would look @ Tena Desae’s career, she has had a few bit parts in some good movies and has done a decent job in them. Some of them have been Hollywood hits as well. And as for Paresh Rawal – all of us are aware of his prowess as an actor.

So Table No. 21 should have been a good, safe bet right? If I consider the storyline then yes. It is a safe bet. In fact an interesting story. But that would not say much because, standing in your way of what could have been a really good movie is one Aditya Datt. Aditya’s direction can be best described to that of a cat that has been cornered by a few dogs and it doesn’t know where to go or how to escape.

A topic / story like this needed to be handled with far more intensity and attention to detail. The make up is all over the place. There is unnecessary use of songs / music in the wrong places. At least 20 minutes could have been chopped off. Just a few ways that Aditya could have made this really worth it.

Amongst the new crop of directors, someone like Bejoy Nambiar would have probably got these missing elements in. But then Bejoy is due to release David in 4 weeks. Lets hope that makes up for the weak start to 2013. 5 on 10.

Trailer on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsC1MI9NvSs

Rope

As per Brandon (John Dall), the universe can be divided into 2 kinds of people. Those who are the superior beings and obviously the other being the antonyms. And as per Brandon, the inferior beings do not have a right to exist and should be done away with as fast as possible.

In fact, Brandon takes this vicious thought one step further. He strongly believes that the superior kind should indulge in “ensuring” that the inferiors are done away with. In other simple words, ensure that the inferior beings are killed. And how will this be achieved? His proposal involves a certain quota of killings per superior being, various kinds of “killing days” etc.

Morbid? The only person who could have thought about this, a year after the Brits decided to leave India (I wouldn’t call it independence because I firmly believe that is the biggest farce that has been pulled off ever), would have been the great Alfred Hitchcock. How in the world do you handle a topic like this?

Rope deals with Brandon & his partner in crime – the paranoid Phillip (Farley Granger). They decide to commit the perfect murder. One that involves killing David Kentley (Dick Hogan) who comes in early for a party that Brandon has called for. The two strangle David with – a rope – and then stuff his body into a large wooden trunk. One they intend to dispose after the party.

Who are invited to the party? David’s fiancé Janet (Joan Chandler), his father Mr. Kentley (Sir Cedric Hardwicke), his aunt Mrs. Atwater (Constance Collier), Janet’s ex boyfriend Kenneth (Douglas Dick) and the group’s house master from school, the radical Rupert Cadell (James Stewart).

Hitchcock brews a heady mixture of a concept that can be described as offensive and you would be very kind to it. But the magician does so with such conviction and class that you are riveted to the screen – just because you want to find out what will happen next. Who will figure out that David has been murdered. How will they figure it out? Will they figure out at all?

There are zillions of questions that run through your head over the hour and twenty minutes. Honestly it feels like a one act play with some brilliant use of music and screenplay / dialogues that are mind blowing. 8 on 10 for this one. Hitchcock fever is hitting me harder than I imagined.

Trailer on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3ZZLKF0XR4

Vertigo

I do not know much about the lives of The Master (read Satyajit Ray) & Alfred Hitchcock. However, if I were to hazard a guess, I would stick my neck out and say they were very close friends. If not, they were at least huge fans of each other. What else would explain the stunning similarity between their styles of movie making.

No other movie would epitomize this theory more than Vertigo. Hitchcock’s capability to build suspense out of just images and music is taken to a level that very few can imagine even today. From the first few minutes – and don’t miss the titling that will give you a sense of Vertigo on the big screen – Hitchcock makes it amply clear that less than 25% of the movie has dialogues in it. But worry not because the music will hold you glued to the screen like there is no tomorrow.

When Pierre Boileau & Thomas Narcejac wrote their novel D'Entre Les Morts, they would not have expected in the least bit to be immortalized by Hitchcock. I am sure they would be pleased beyond expectations with the response to the movie.

John “Scottie” Ferguson (James Stewart) has been forced to move out of police work because of acrophobia – the fear of heights – more often than not described incorrectly as Vertigo. A pity, he learnt about it at the expense of a cop who dies trying to save Scottie.

As Scottie is trying to come to terms with his new life – or lack of it – a blast from the past comes in to kind of save him from unemployment. Gavin Elster (Tom Helmore) who had all but disappeared around the war returns to manage his wife’s ailing shipping business. Gavin and Scottie were together in school.

Gavin wants Scottie to trail his wife Madeline (Kim Novak) who has of late been behaving quite strangely. She loses attention in fits and starts and moves into a different world altogether. It is like she has been possessed with a ghost of sorts. And then there are times when she takes long drives and comes back with no recollection of them. Gavin is unable to understand why. He trusts her but wants to understand more.

Hitchcock takes the aspect of the unknown and twists and turns it around in a manner that only he can. If I were to hazard a guess as to how he manages to achieve this, it could be because there are just 2 leads and 2 supporting actors worth mentioning in the movie. It just makes it so much easier to manage. So even if Ellen Corby – the manager of the McKittrick hotel has to be on screen, she has about a minute or 2 of screen time.

James Stewart’s performance did not earn him an Academy nomination but he brings the element of suspicion, awe and disbelief to life extremely well. Kim Novak pretty much nails the fact that actresses of over 50 years back were a mix of great looks and talent. Some of our current crop to pick a cue or 2 from them.

Firmly entrenched in the Top 50 movies of all time from imdb and @ #9 on American Film Institute’s top 100 movies of all time, Vertigo is one movie that you just cannot miss. Definitely a 9 on 10.

Trailer on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5jvQwwHQNY

Wait Until Dark

Been reviewing most of the new ones lately. So about a couple of weeks back I decided to go back a bit in time. Actually almost 50 years back in time, in Technicolor however. Sometime back on a Facebook update I had mentioned that Katherine Hepburn is probably the best actress ever to be born. I still hold on to that opinion. Although it’s the other Hepburn, the Audrey variety, who would take the title of probably the most beautiful actress of both her time as well as the decades to come. Marrion Cotillard probably comes really close but just not up there. Now some of you may debate that Catherine Zeta is incomparable, but you will kinda figure out what I am talking about if you see Audrey in her element.


In Wait Until Dark, Audrey plays the central character of Susie Hendrix, the twenty something, blind protagonist. A role that would remain as probably one of the best that she has ever executed in her career (other than Roman Holiday and Breakfast at Tiffany’s)

Sam Hendrix (Efrem Zimbalist Jr.) is a reasonably successful photographer who bumps into the sexy looking Lisa (Samantha Jones) who uses him, without his knowledge, as a mule to transport a good quantity of coke across customs. The coke is slipped in neatly into a doll which Lisa leaves with Sam in an attempt to avoid her contact. She kinda wants to go out on her own in the drug business. But she does not realize that Roat (Alan Arkin – who looks much younger than the Arkin we know who won the academy award for Little Miss Sunshine) is not going to be pleased with the idea.

Mike Talman (The incredibly handsome Richard Crenna) and Carlino (Jack Weston) are 2 small time criminals who run suspicious odd jobs for a fee. They come over to the Hendrix residence thanks to a message assumed to have been sent by Lisa. A message on the door asks them to be comfortable but there is no sign of Lisa. Warily they make their way inside but quickly do as instructed – get comfortable. A few minutes later Roat walks in but without Lisa. As of now, both Mike and Carlino have no idea that this is the Hendrix residence.

Roat offers them a large sum of money to recover the doll which obviously get the 2 suspicious. They casually start searching the house only to find Lisa’s body stashed away in a cupboard. Their obvious immediate attempt to pull out of the deal comes to naught coz by then they have left fingerprints all over the place.

Around this time Susie returns home. Although she is blind, she does sense something amiss but is not sure. Once she leaves, the trio of Roat, Mike and Carlino decide to leave and work on a plan to figure out what needs to be done to recover the doll.

What follows is an extremely thrilling 60 minutes which show several layers of emotions. On one side there is Sam who is a caring husband to a blind wife but still pushes her to be independent in every way possible. He does not hand hold her for every small thing and does his best to ensure that Susie lives as normal a life as possible. Then there is an extremely soft corner that Mike develops towards Susie during his efforts to recover the doll posing as Sam’s close friend from Philadelphia. The tension between Roat, Mike and Carlino is way too obvious to be missed with Mike and Carlino on one side as the bad guys with heart and Roat on the other as the really mean drug dealer who will go to all extents possible. Last but not the least, there is the most pivotal character of the movie – a ten year old – Gloria (Julie Herrod) who is the next door neighbour of the Hendrix’s and helps Susie with odd jobs around the area. She shares an extremely bitter sweet relationship with Susie. But all she does is act her age.

Terence Young’s claim to fame is that he directed the first few Bond Movies Dr. No, From Russia with Love and Thunderball. He far exceeds these performances with Wait Until Dark. Fredrick Knott was the original playwright for the Broadway production. I get goose pimples by simply thinking about how powerful the play would have been. Rest assured, dear Mr. Knott would be extremely pleased at the conversion to celluloid.

Performances are brilliant. I really cannot say enough about each an every one of the 6 main members of the cast and the 2 supporting actors. Each person delivers exactly what is expected of him or her. Surprisingly Julie Herrod did not take up a career in acting. Her performance as a 10 year old should have given her enough encouragement to take a career in acting very seriously.

For those who love the classics, a simply MUST WATCH. A clean 8 on 10!!!!