Bhool Bhulaiyaa

It took 14 years for Priyadarshan to probably gather to courage – because that’s what it would have taken a lot of – to remake a movie that he was a Second Unit Director.  To his credit, he is the only one out of the 3 in the movie who managed to make a move into Bollywood. 

 

But needless to say, he doesn’t emulate the magic that Fazil created on screen in 1993 with the national award winning Manichitratazhu (read as Mani Chitr tayu).  A movie that coincidentally has been fodder for remakes galore – Apthamitra in Kannada, Chandramukhi in Tamil and Telugu (dubbed), Rajmohol in Bengali, and of course the topic of this write up in Hindi.

 

The only reason I can think of as to why these movies fell short was the incapability to handle the topic with the seriousness that it required.  Of course the character played by Akshay Kumar – Aditya Srivastava – does have a humourous streak in him and enjoys playing the fool.  But I guess AK did a bit too much in his attempt to tell the audience that his comic timing is still alive.

 

Siddharth Chaturvedi (Shiney Ahuja) & Avni (Vidya Balan) are a newly married couple.  Sidhharth comes from a royal family and is actually the incumbent king of the village.  He has, however just returned from the states where he got married to Avni.  He had been there for his studies.  Upon Avni’s insistence and a little bit of his own desire, he decides to stay in his ancestral palace.

 

However, the resident spirit of the home doesn’t take too kindly to their stay.  A danseuse – Madhulika – who used to perform at the palace many moons ago is in love with Shashidhar (Vineeth) – the royal poet.  The fact doesn’t go too lightly with the Maharajah who in a fit of jealousy, executes the poet. 

 

Madhulika in turn commits suicide but before that puts a curse on the palace – no Maharajah will ever reside in the palace or else I will be the cause of his death.  To date, the curse stands.  And when Siddharth moves in, some funny events start occurring  that point a finger towards his cousin Radha (Ameesha Patel). Siddharth of course doesn’t believe in ghost stories and calls for his friend Aditya Srivastav – a psychiatrist to help.

 

This movie has a Priyadarshan touch to it – loud – REALLY LOUD.  Of course, several unnecessary attempts at comedy are also in order because it comes from his table.  But, to be fair, the movie is a frame to frame copy so there is very little value addition other than the above 2 points.

 

Most of the performances are also ordinary.  Shiney Ahuja in fact looks as constipated as he can possibly get.  I guess his moment of truth passed with Hazaaron Khwaishein – like with most of the people associated with that movie.  Even Vidya Balan is a tad above average but it was early days for her.  The support cast also – ordinary. 

 

It is only the story that makes the movie really worth watching.  I have seen it on a couple of occasions without too much of an effort.  So I guess a 6 on 10 is in order.  However, I encourage you to take a look at the original (unfortunately without subtitles) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdp4xudz958 and make your mind up on which one is better.

 

Trailer on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adQ3aNpEFXg

Honeymoon in Vegas

Most of you are aware of my sentiments as regards a certain relative of Francis Ford Coppola.  This is one of his earlier movies. A Romantic Comedy where he plays a role that he is actually cut out for.  Or should I say comes naturally to him.  That of a loser detective who doesn’t know to choose between poker and his wife to be.

Greater Elephant

I actually didn’t know where to start writing with this review – call it Blogger’s Block for all I care.  But I guess that’s what happens when you have decided to invest a little under 2 hours for a movie @ 2315 hours on a Saturday @ a cinema hall that’s 30 kms away from home because that is the only place that is screening it.

BP / Balak Palak

BP / Balak Palak released on the 4^th January 2013.  I have been meaning to see it since then but thanks to some bad schedules, haven’t been able to.  I was quite close to opting for BP over Mumbai Mirror when in Kolhapur but had to pick a current movie.  While Mumbai Mirror was good fodder for reviews, BP would have been undoubtedly the better choice to make.

Les Misérables

5 volumes.  48 books. 325 chapters. 1500 pages (English unabridged), 1900 pages (French Unabridged). A novel that is 150 years old.  A story that is set in a period that is between 190 to 175 years in the past.  All the elements that add to a simple word that most of us associate with near perfection – CLASSIC.

 

Akaash Vani

Now here is an example of a movie where the trailer says very little of the entire movie and actually just enough for you to look forward to it.  However, it will have a supremely negative effect by the end of the first half itself.  Because you would tend to notice that what has been called out in the trailer is only about half of the first half. 

Race 2

All of you would know what to expect when you walk into a movie that has the tag of the Burmawalas associated with it.  One can expect a lot of colour.  By colour I mean every perceivable shade of every perceivable colour would be splashed all across the screen in primarily in the form of the outfits that some gorgeous specimens of humanity would be seen wearing.  In Race 2, the colour extends itself to the houses, the parties, the aircrafts, the scenery, the ruins and of course – the parachutes.

Broken City

I like Allen Hughes.  And his brother Albert Hughes.  They used to direct movies as a pair.  A pair they were.  Twins you see.  Their last movie was The Book of Eli.  They started off with a movie called Menace II Society.  I thought Eli was an OK movie.  And I haven’t seen M II S as of now but I have heard that is also just about OK.

So why do you think I like him?

The Last Stand (2013)

Jee-Woon Kim could not have asked for a bigger platform to make his Hollywood debut.  One of the biggest action stars that Hollywood has ever known – or for that matter will ever know - in his comeback movie has a Korean director to lead him through the motions of what turns out to be a very decent watch at the end of the day.

Bandook

There was a time when the anti-hero was king in Bollywood.  A trend that was started by Khalnayak with Sanju Baba essaying a role that very few can probably come close to.  And over the years there have been movies which have tried to capitalizing the concept without understanding the finer nuances of playing an anti-hero.  Bandook adds to this long list of movies where you say, “Forgive them lord for they know not what they do”.

 

In essence, the confusion or should I say flawed execution of the movie comes from the confusion of who was directing it in the first place.  IMDB gives credit to 3 people Aditya Om, Kamal Malhotra & Nikhil Verma.  But a lot of other sites call out only Aditya Om – who by the way also plays the lead role of Bhola Kevat – our attempted anti hero.  Yet another saying comes to mind – “Too many cooks spoil the broth”.

 

So we have Bhola – who begins his movement to being a contract killer when he gets picked up by a nasty cop – Puttu Tiwari (Gauri Shankar).  Tiwari actually saves Bhola from a bunch of villagers who have crucified (literally) Bhola and are pelting him with stones.  But Puttu actually wants Bhola to be a solution for his lust. 

 

Bhola is saved in the nick of time by one Lochan Singh Yadav (Arshad Khan) who eventually teaches Bhola the importance of a gun (bandook) in the territory of Eastern UP. Lochan also eventually gets into the gang that matters – Hari Om Tripathi (Ashish Kotwal).  And slowly but surely Bhola learns the ropes and of course becomes a little too big for the “Powers that be”.

 

Aditya Om or whoever it is that directed the movie needs to be told in no unclear words that hurling crude local profanities does not a movie make.  There are other aspects such as editing, cinematography and of course acting that go into making a movie.  I guess the gang forgot to attend Cinema 101 when they were in film school (if at all they went to film school that is).

 

Unnecessary long shots and oddly placed songs litter the nearly 3 hours that you have to tolerate Bandook.  And as if that wasn’t enough, the character of Tripathi moves from being a murdering politician to one who has pearls of wisdom dropping out of him every now and then.  Leaves you utterly confused as to what or who exactly is this animal called Tripathi.  In all, a waste of time this movie.  But – and I will say this all through the year – better than Rajdhani Express & Dehradun Diary.  3 on 10.

 

And yes, how does a deaf mute girl understand that she is being called a mistress when she is oblivious to everything else.  Disastrous debut for Manisha Kelkar (the only woman in the story).  Pretty much destroys any hope she had in Bollywood.  Will take a lot to come back from this one.

 

Trailer on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjLpwcsndz0

Mumbai Mirror

 OK it is time for honesty.  I was pissing in my pants before I walked into the hall that was screening Mumbai Mirror.  I mean, have you seen Sachiin Joshi and the way he is looking at you on the poster???? I dare you to look at him once again.  For the benefit of those who haven’t seen the poster, I have added it to the blog.  Take a look.  Go on.  It is scarier than Gabbar Singh.  Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Inkaar (2013)

Lets rant out a few facts which most people will believe in provided they are sensible enough to believe in them.  Now I may be ruffling quite a few feathers when I say these things but those who know me well enough have heard me say these things in person.  So I have little to lose.  And more importantly, Sudhir Mishra seems to believe in these facts for sure.  Because he has used these facts (or clichés as I could say) very generously in Inkaar.

The Bourne Supremacy

Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) wakes up yet another day from what can only be described as a nightmare for him – flashes from the past. While this is not new to Jason, he does find some comfort in the fact that he is not alone. He has Marie (Franka Potente) who he caught up with towards the end of Identity.

The Bourne Identity

A great Espionage novel can be best described by the word “unputdownable”. Yeah I know it is a made up word and doesn’t exist. But how else would you explain the feeling of wanting to continue reading non-stop. How else would you explain the feeling of desperately wanting to turn the pages over, faster than you would normally do because you are that desperate to find out what happens in the end.

The Bone Collector

Amongst the genre of Serial Killer movies, probably one of the top ranking movies would undeniable be The Bone Collector. And it could also rank at director Phillip Noyce’s best work over the 60 odd years that he has walked the earth and over the 40 odd years that he has been in the world of direction (Can you believe that? The man directed his first when he was 19???)

Gangster Squad

Do you like Gangster Movies? Of the likes of say The Untouchables, Bonnie & Clyde a True Story etc.? You get my drift right? One that has a lead villain who you want to get into screen and kill yourself or at least put behind bars if you could. One that has one or a few good cops who are more intent in putting the gangster behind bars.

Matru Ki Bijli Ka Mandola

Dear Mr. Vishal Bharadwaj

I write this note to you in immense pain. When this year started 10 days back, I was hoping that MKBKM was the first movie to be released. It may have given the year a much needed kick start for good measure. But after leaving the hall around an hour back, I was actually thinking to myself that it was a good decision to move your release by a week. Actually you could have done by deferring the release for good.

Dehraadun Diary

How many more movies will Adhyayan Suman continue to torture us with before producers actually pull the stops on him? Adhyayan is a live case study of someone who has consistently gotten away with murder – this time in the literal sense of the word, he is involved with a movie that has murder as the topic. Unfortunately, it is the audience that gets killed in the bargain.

Veer Zaara

Now this is the kind of movie that reeks of Yash Chopra all the way from start to finish. And it also reeks of being written by Aditya Chopra. Because it is a larger than life and unbelievable kind of romance. The one that transcends all sorts of boundaries – in the literal sense of the word. One that can be described using the word – unrequited. Very few instances where this ten letter word can be used.

Meri Shaadi Karao

Gurdeep Mehndi (GM) : Pappa Pappa mera 21st janam din aane wala hai. (my 21st birthday is coming up) Mere liye kya gift de rahe ho? (What will you gift me?)

Rajdhani Express

There is nothing much that director Ashok Kohli can look forward to after his debut in Bollywood. Maybe he needs to destroy all evidence of being associated with a movie titled Rajdhani Express (RE) and the cast and crew associated with it. But the cast and crew will be less of a worry. They would have died of shame anyways after watching themselves.

Hence my hypothesis that the people associated with this disaster of a start for 2013 for Bollywood have not seen their own handiwork. There should be a rule in Bollywood or some contact with the censor board that prevents such jokes on cinema from being released at the beginning of a calendar year or any auspicious day. There should in fact be a censor board arm that prevents release of such disasters.

The movie begins with our ace tennis star who has done his image and future no good by being part of this venture. He starts with a guttural laughter that is intended to create fear. I assume that because he is shown with his hands and legs tied up to a chair. But what he doesn’t know that the audience is laughing at him at the end of the day. In the same guttural way that he attempted to laugh.

Turns out he is Keshav (Paes) works for a local small time Don in the capital city called Bhaijee (Kiran Kumar). Now Bhaijee’s daughter Reena (Sayali Bhagat) and our man have a love hate relationship. They grew up together. He was the domestic under age help. She was the rich man’s daughter. And from then on the divide has been obvious. So when Bhaijee finds out about the hanky panky under his nose, he ostracizes Keshav and sets him up to be caught in the Rajdhani Express carrying ammo.

If by now, you are not tearing your hair apart, then you definitely will, when u see Keshav’s Ist AC Co-Passengers. Banerjee (Priyanshu Chatterjee) who is a Bollywood screen writer. Munish (Sudanshu Pandey) who is a fashion designer. Sunita (Pooja Bose) who is a Bollywood Item girl.

Attempting to add spice to this lousy curry is Deputy Commissioner Yadav (Jimmy Shergill) who must be regretting the day he signed this deal. And there is Shilpa Shukla who plays a Sub Inspector with her right hand in her pocket at all times looking grumpy as ever – I am sure because Kohli asked her to put her hand in her pocket and she didn’t.

She also had reason enough because Kohli asked her to mouth what will be the dialogue of the year, "Loyalty se behter sincerity hai. Loyalty is for dogs. Sincerity is for human beings". Please Please Please tell me you have pulled all your hair out by now. If not, please get a medical mental check-up lined up ASAP.

RE is the kind of movie that will actually make you tear your hair apart in agony. It may even send you on a witch hunt for Kohli because the cast has otherwise given reasonable performances to date. The only difference this time is a Kohli (maybe bad times for the entire clan). There is an absence of everything that goes into a movie. So adding to the list that has 2 movies to date on my blog, we have a 0 on 10 to begin 2013 with.

Trailer on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-rXXW7fBtM

The Impossible

I think I now know why I did not write this review late last night and saved it for early this morning instead. I can speak for both Prarthana and I when I say that we were quite overwhelmed from memories of over 8 years back flooding back into our heads. We were left quite muddled and somber.

I can clearly remember the morning of 26th December 2004. It was a lazy Sunday morning to begin with. I was @ my parent’s place for some reason. I woke up around 730 am if I am not mistaken and customarily switched on my television. My mum used to get quite irritated with that (she still does).

But for around an hour after that most of us barely spoke a word because of the shocking visuals all over international television. Every channel from the less astute Aaj Tak to the most composed BBC was airing visual after visual that shocked the living daylights out of us. All of this on the laid back morning after Christmas.

Maria (Naomi Watts) and Henry Belon (Ewan McGregor) were a Spanish couple who decided the spend the Christmas and New Years Eve of 2004 @ The Orchid Resort in Thailand – a gorgeous beach facing property. They were based out of Japan because of Henry’s assignment there.

Accompanying them were their three children – Lucas (Tom Holland), Thomas (Samuel Joslin) and Simon (Oaklee Pendergast), aged 12, 7 and 5 respectively. One big happy family as most would have guessed. With their normal problems and their normal issues. But happy nevertheless.

While their nationalities have been changed in the movie (to address a larger audience I would guess – they were Spanish), the story is true. The family was around the hotel swimming pool when the wall of water washed them away splitting them into two groups. Maria and Lucas managed to find themselves in the raging waters. Henry, Thomas and Simon come up closer to the hotel.

The story, like many others who were devasted in the Tsunami, is about how they managed to not only hang on to dear life but eventually find each other in the chaos and carnage that reigned supreme. All through the movie, I could only think to myself that they family must have been very close to the creator to have found each other. Most of the others were not so lucky.

If you do walk into the cinema hall then brace yourself for a not so pleasant blast from the past. One that has been shot extremely well and directed in a manner that is probably best possible by a 38 year old Spanish talent called Juan Antonio Bayona (The Orphanage). There is a lot of attention to detail. And obviously the effects are fantastic.

I was wondering why it took 8 years for someone to make a movie on probably the biggest natural disaster that most of us have ever seen. My guess – 90 out of 100 dropped out because they could not handle the devastation and the gut wrenching stories associated with it. Of the remaining, very few could have handled the balance between sensitivity and reality. 8 on 10 for the movie and Bayona.

Trailer on http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi118006809/

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

Rise of the Guardians

Most of you would have seen The Da Vinci Code. I would like you to cut back to the final scene wherein Robert Langdon is asked of by Sophie whether she should announce to the world that Jesus was only a human being. Langdon replies, “Would you rather add to the belief of a millions or break it”? A simple statement that leaves a lot of us thinking – at least I was.

Rise of the Guardians is based on this very simple concept of belief. Aptly summarized by a simple line again – Do you stop believing in the moon when the sun comes out? Or another one – Do you stop believing in the sun on a cloudy day? These are the very sentiments that keep The Guardians alive. Who are the Guardians? The answer would include Santa Claus aka North (Alec Baldwin), The Tooth Fairy or just Tooth (Isla Fisher) and The Easter Bunny or just Bunny (Hugh Jackman).

But that doesn’t apply to Jack Frost or just Frost (Chris Pine) who doesn’t really know who he is other than the fact that he has been sent down to earth by the moon. He has no recollection of what happens before he becomes Jack Frost. But he is fun to be with and wants most of the kids to have fun as well. But he would be known as anything but a guardian.

So when their arch rival – Pitch Black or just Pitch (Jude Law) decides to take over earth, the Guardians are quite surprised that The Man on The Moon didn’t ask them to take care of the problem at hand. Instead he asks the Guardian to recruit a new one into the fold. No points for guessing that the latest member is Jack Frost.

Director Peter Ramsey is better known for his involvement in the Art Department of movies like Batman Forever, AI and Shark Tale. The Rise of The Guardians would be his first feature film. An animation movie would have been a risky choice to get into mainstream cinema but Ramsey comes on tops thanks to a heart touching story. The quality of work could definitely have done with some improvement but one would tend to ignore it in light of the sweet story.

The voices are outstanding. Although Alec Baldwin seems just a bit over the top in his Scandinavian or Russian accent for Father Christmas. Jude Law in probably his first negative role is outstanding. But the pick of the voices is Hugh Jackman as the Bunny from down under – very distinctively Jackman.

This is the kind of movie that you need to take your kids to over a weekend. Just to re-emphasize their belief in those wonderful creations of mankind. After all isn’t it what we believe in that makes us who we are. 7 on 10 and definitely in the top 5 animation releases in India this year. Have a wonderful time watching.

Watch the trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi2628363545/

Chinese Zodiac (CZ12)

Jackie Chan is back!!! But what you would see is a marginally slow version of a person who has, over the years given us some of the best martial arts displays on screen ever. But I would challenge any of you to find me a 58 year old gentleman (in the truest sense of the word) who can come remotely close.

Somewhere in the 19th century, a French ship captained by the great great grandfather of a famous French socialite – Katherine (Laura Weissbecker) – makes its trip to the orient. The ship is called The Indestructible. When they reach their destination, they ensure that the Old Summer Palace of the then monarch is pillaged to the hilt.

They obviously make away with all the gold that they can muster and artifacts that are rated worth millions of euros today. One such artifact are the twelve Bronze statues of the Chinese Zodiac. The French went off with just the heads of the statues which have now started surfacing in bits and pieces. Katherine herself is in possession of one statue but is unaware of its worth.

The MP corporation led by Lawrence (Oliver Platt) has through the years built its might in this business. They, however, do not deal with the originals as much as they do in fakes. The fakes itself are worth millions but much lesser millions as compared to the originals. But to make a fake you need the authentic piece and helping him source that is JC (Jackie Chan) aka The Asian Hawk.

Most Chan movies do not have a semblance of production values other than the aspect of the action sequences. The action is usually top notch and the primary contributor is Chan himself. Although, as compared to previous movies, you may not find the end titling gaffes as elaborate. But you will definitely enjoy most of the stunts that this absolute artist has come up with this time.

The opening sequence starts with some high speed luging down a hill somewhere in Europe. There is a treasure hunt on a desolate island and a fight with some pirates and sliding down the island on a humongous log. That pretty much peppers the space upto the final climax that has Chan free falling towards an active volcano. Totally brilliant stuff if you are a Chan fan. As a movie just about 6 on 10 I would guess.

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

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

Lalbaug Parel

Not too many movies have been made on a topic that should have actually been very near and dear to a certain segment of Mumbaikars. In fact, you could count the number of movies on one hand. Rather surprising considering that the subject is something that many a person from this city owes their current existence to.

One that would not have seen the light of the day had a certain Dr. Datta Samant succeeded in getting what he wanted for the textile mill workers around 30 years back. A time when most mills in the city started shutting shop in favour of getting into the real estate business.

One such mill forms the backdrop of Lalbaug Parel. Khaitan Mills is owned by the namesake and run by his son-in-law, Mahendra (Sameer Dharmadhikari) who can put most slime balls to shame. While the logic behind the closure could not be questioned, methods and the treatment meted out to most of the mill workers was far from being in line with Human Rights to say the least.

One such family is the Dhuri family where the father (Shashank Shende) is your atypical mill worker who works in the day and has a peg or 2 in the night. A bulk of the work at home, in fact all of it, is done by the wife (Seema Biswas). 4 grown up children @ home – Anand (Ankush Choudhary), Mohan (Vineet Kumar), Naru (Karan Patel) and Manju (Veena Jamkar) are also struggling.

The story tracks the lives of each of the characters as the mill workers go on strike. Manju’s relationship with the local shop owner’s son; Anand’s struggle to write a play in the loud circumstances of the Laxmi Chawl; Naru’s rise from being a local thug to a contract killer for the underworld; Mohan’s relationship with Mrs. Sawardekar (Kashmera Shah).

In the attempt to show truth behind Mumbai’s most unfair story, Mahesh Manjrekar has given us a very depressing story. In addition, I firmly believe he has gone over the top in many sequences. There are also unnecessary aspects to the movie like Kashmera Shah’s wardrobe which seems most out of place.

The use of Bollywood actors over probably more talented Maharashtrian actors is also a gap that I saw. Add to this the excess number of characters. Nearly 15 of them. Just too many to do justice to each one. Very few directors could have

While the story is sensitive and touches upon a topic that I would like to see more of, I personally felt it was a tad overdone. With the right cuts and fine tuning on the unnecessary aspect, we could have had a winner on our hands. Instead we have a movie that is watchable. Good. Not great. 7 on 10.

Trailer on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TrJU9SJ6hM

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

Jekhane Bhooter Bhoy

One of the reasons that regional cinema will never do well in India would be the absolute apathy of movie houses towards the sensibilities of the audience. Even a movie house is in the league of a PVR Cinemas shamelessly promotes a Bengali movie only to a Bengali audience. What else would explain the lack of subtitles? It is impossible to get the finer nuances of any language through subtitles but at least a larger audience can understand the movie far better. Common sense, as I am told, is indeed uncommon.

For those who weren’t aware of who Sandip Ray is (like this writer), I am told by reliable sources that he is the great man’s son. And as you watch Jekhane Bhooter Bhoy, you cannot but help draw parallels between the style of cinema of Ray Sr. and Ray Jr. There is the characteristic use of long periods of silence and scenes where little or nothing is said but the music speaks volumes. There are just a couple of ways in which the master continues to be immortalized.

The literal translation of the movie title would be “Where Ghosts are feared”. However, turns out, it is part of an idiom – Jekhane Bhooter Bhoy, Shekhane Sandhya Hoy. What it would mean – Whenever you have the maximum chance of encountering a ghost is when it actually gets dark. The nuances of the language. I was about to call out the former but thought I should check with my aforementioned reliable source for clarification 

JBB is a compilation of 3 short stories. The first one - Bhut Bhabishyat (The past and the future) – is the story of a cocky ghost hunter who wants to have one more experience with a ghost. The second one, and the scariest of all 3 is written by the great man himself and is titled Brown Saheber Bari (Brown Saheb’s house). The story of a Brown Saheb who kept a diary in 1886 and lived in Kalimpong.

The last one and the longest of the three stories is Anath Babur Bhoy (Anath Babu’s fear). A very nicely written story of a very old ghost who makes his appearance in front of a struggling writer (Saswata Chatterjee – remember Bob Biswas?) with an intent of returning back to his currently struggling family what is rightfully theirs.

While all 3 are ghost stories in the truest sense of the word, they aren’t your typical horror movie fare. There is a spine chilling nature to 2 of them. But the last one is more funny than fearsome. Very simple and very well directed indeed by Ray Jr. Make this a part of your first weekend of 2013 for sure. 7 on 10.

Trailer on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7DNbwuS8VU