The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (English)

Obviously by now, you would have already read the book. For those who haven’t, you have about 10 more days to do so coz this one is going to hit the screens in India on the 10th Feb 2012 (hopefully). PVR has started advance booking for the same. You can pre-book your tickets on the PVR Cinemas website. For those who are unaware, here is the link. http://www.pvrcinemas.com/movie/pre-book-form.aspx?pid=8N/SGuOj9j8=&movieid=rDJnnCx7F1KWUI4/ffc0hg==

This is the review for the English version. Just happened to catch up with it in Adelaide. Could not have waited till I got back to India because the damn teasing was getting too much to handle. It was to be released about 2 months back and I have no clue why the distributors were taking so long. Plus, how could I have missed an opportunity to post a review a full 10 days before my primary audience can watch it. Will post the link again a couple of days before the actual release in India if you would like me to that is.

David Fincher has been one of my favourite directors of all time. Starting from the spine chilling Se7en (not including Alien3) all the way to the exceptionally well directed Social Network that got him his second nomination (other than The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) at the Oscars. So you could have imagined my happiness when I realized that TGWTDT was to be directed by him in English. But my happiness has been for the first time ever so slightly belied by Mr. Fincher. Through the movie, there are small instances of deviating from the actual storyline that was written by Stieg Larsson. But it keeps building up to a point where you actually get a little peeved because he changes the ending which is supposed to take Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig) to Australia and closes it at London instead. Left me quite perplexed as to why he would make so many changes. And then there are consistency errors – can you believe that about Fincher. I couldn’t myself so I think I will watch the movie once again to reconfirm the same.

However, Fincher continues to score on all the other aspects. The Casting was impeccable. Rooney Mara well and truly deserves her nomination. A pity she will lose it to either Meryl Streep or Viola Davis. Craig as Blomkvist and Plummer as Henrik Vanger were brilliant. The Editing had Fincher’s direction all over it to say the least. Kirk Baxter & Angus Wall who won it for Social Network continue to give their best here as well. Great camera work especially in some scenes which are outstanding like after Lisbeth tattoos Nils Bjurman on his chest and camera moves right over her. Simply stunning.

I did however think that a lot was overdone. Like the emphasis on the physical relationship between Blomkvist and Salander. The siphoning of Wennerstorm’s funds. And the last few pages of the book which show Salander losing out on love yet again. To name a few, these were the sections which need not have been addressed at all. And therefore, important parts such as Salander’s father and the exciting build up to finding out the murderer of Harriet Vanger get compromised. To Fincher’s credit, he has given the right importance to aspects such as the relationship with Erika Berger which was downplayed in the Swedish version. Overall, not upto Fincher’s standards. But definitely well made. No surprise though that the Oscars have ignored this one. 7 on 10 is what I say.

Watch the trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi3830160409/

The Iron Lady

Two dialogues which completely personify the spirit of The Baroness Thatcher’s biopic would be, “It used to be about trying to DO SOMETHING but nowadays it is about trying to BE SOMEONE”. That is what the young baroness stated when she was contemplating running for Parliament way back in the 1950s. The basic desire to make a difference i.e. stop fussing and if you CAN do something about the issue then DO IT and not keep sitting on your backsides personifies the reason why The Baroness got the pseudonym of The Iron Lady. The other one being, "The sad part about today is the people are more concerned about "feelings" and not as much concerned about "thoughts"".
Shown as a flashback of her life, The Iron Lady, shows the Baroness as someone who is a really old and forgotten figure today striving to come to terms with her husband’s death. Dennis Thatcher (Jim Broadbent) who is vastly believed to be one of the few men “behind a successful woman” (understatement of the millennium) continues to hound The Baroness – she still believes that he is around her; hallucinations of sort. And as she is trying to get him out of her life for good, she reminisces about how it all started as Margaret Hilda Roberts in the 1940s where she drew inspiration from her father to join politics. Never been one to walk the beaten path, she fights her way through to being elected into parliament and then eventually goes on to become the first woman Prime Minister of The United Kingdom (Great Britain and Northern Ireland). The movie traverses, her life from being the MP of Finchley in 1959 to the Secretary of Education where she earned the name “Milk Snatcher”, Leader of the Conservative Party, the Prime Minister, The Falklands War, The IRA Attacks during her time as PM, sorting out the cold war, falling out of favour of her loyalists and eventually her resignation from office in late 1990 to make way for John Major.

While I haven’t seen Albert Nobbs, My Week with Marilyn & The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo and while I have a lot of respect for Glen Close, Michelle Williams and Rooney Mara respectively, I think the Oscars this time around are a 2 horse race only. Meryl Streep OR Viola Davis. Knowing the academy, they would give it to Viola Davis. But in my books, Meryl Streep has once again proved why she is probably the best actress after Katherine Hepburn and why she is probably best placed to beat Hepburn and go onto win 5 Oscars. Her ability to portray a variety of characters is quite unparalleled. Leo DiCaprio could learn a thing or 2 about getting into characters and more importantly selecting character roles from her. For my money’s worth, she should have got 5 by now. Regretably, she has only 2 out of the 16 nominations ( record in itself).

However, take nothing away from director Phyllida Lloyd and the support cast led Jim Broadbent who have do equally well in executing their respective roles. Lloyd in her 2nd movie leaves quite a solid impression and while she doesn’t get a nomination @ the Oscars, she has definitely done enough to give us a movie that is not only well made but is worth watching as well. I am going to go out on a limb as say this - A much better job than Eastwood did with J Edgar. A very watchable biopic – like a documentary in parts and could have lost a few minutes in between but still very good. A nomination in make up was just too logical. 7.5 on 10.

Watch the trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi1047305753/

Agneepath (2012)

The one thing that I have always believed in when I go to watch a remake is to cancel out everything in my head about the previous movie. Luckily the original to this one was made 22 years back and the memories aren’t that strong. Unlike quite a few that I am acquainted with who swear by the original. But how can I blame them for not being able to shut out the magic created by an aging Big B on his comeback along with a director who India was unlucky to have seen only a little bit of i.e. Mukul Anand. It would be difficult to find too many people from my time (aged between 10 and 20 in 1990) who wouldn’t have seen – “Vijay Dinanath Chavan…. Poora Naam (Full name)”. And who can possible forget, “Hawa tez chal raha hai Dinkar Rao. Topi Sambhalo” (Take care of your hat Dinkar Rao… there is a strong breeze blowing).
First time director Karan Malhotra and Hritik Roshan would have been extremely familiar with the challenges of filling the huge shoes that was left by the Mukul Anand – Big B. But to the credit of Karan Malhotra, he has managed to hold his own. At least for over 2 hours in this nearly 3 hour long attempt to come close to the original. He however, completely loses the plot in the last 30 to 45 minutes. The other thing that doesn’t come up to the original is the calm and composed nature of the original VDC (Big B) as against the VDC (Hritik Roshan) shown in this one who is more angry and out for revenge that he cannot but stop gritting his teeth every time he sees Kancha Cheena (Sanjay Dutt) or thinks about getting Mandwa back.

The story is also ever so slightly different with the introductions of Rauf Lala (Rishi Kapoor), the Dongri ka Don who VDC uses to climb up the mafia ladder and get to a position where he can challenge Kancha Cheena. And the entire aura of M A Krishnan Iyer Nariyal Paani Waala (Mithun Da) has been eliminated. Instead we find a bunch of eunuchs and prostitutes who swear by VDC and are part of the chawl that VDC comes to when Master Dinanath Chavan is killed by Kancha Cheena and the villagers to make way for the Cocaine Trade.

On paper it seems weird but the end result is not really that bad. The story flows smoothly scene by scene and doesn’t seem to get into a rut of sorts ever till much later. The music is average and I have no clue why there is one Ganapati Song in every damn movie which involves a chawl these days. Get over festivals for crying out loud!!!! There can be movies without them and songs which have an aarti. Chikni Chameli of course rocks and it is amusing when u see the “Cigarette Smoking is injurious to helath” warning in Australia. All in all, this one is entertaining enough. Nowhere close to the intensity of the 1990 version. But worth a dekko. 6 on 10.

Watch the trailer at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1FKVW3QHZY

The Descendants

It was definitely on my “must watch” list on my trip down under. With the Oscars and the Golden Globes hullabaloo I would have been rank stupid to miss an opportunity to watch it. Needless to say I am extremely glad that I took some time off early in the morning to catch up with a show of The Descendants. In an era where we are seriously challenged in terms of creativity and originality across the board (Hollywood & Bollywood), Alexander Payne (of Sideways & Abouth Schmidt fame) not only directs but has also written the screenplay for this really simple and yet different movie which will leave you with a bitter sweet feeling at the end of it all. More sweet than bitter is what I can assure you. Payne’s direction has always been refreshingly different in my experience. Although I thought About Schmidt was different, he does experiment a lot with a genre that is quite simple and straightforward cinema. When you experience Sideways, you are quite certain that there is a genre of movies that can be labeled Alexander Payne. The Descendants probably goes one more step in the direction of cementing this status. Simple, funny, straight forward cinema is so difficult to find.

And Payne’s casting is near impeccable in this case. Geroge Clooney – take a bow. People may argue that Clooney is the most good looking guy with a single expression, and they maybe right as well – believe me there has been many a time that I have wondered whether he is angry or plain indifferent. But in case of The Descendants, the role of Matt King demanded the ice cold nature that Clooney would typically be associated with. How else do you play the character of a Realtor in Hawaii? And one who owns 25000 acres of heaven on earth would make you ice cool I would imagine. But all that’s come crashing down (in a manner of speaking) because his wife, Elizabeth (Patricia Hastie), has an accident that puts her into a coma. Matt, now has to take care of a 10 year old daughter – Scottie (Amara Miller) & a 17 year old terror Alexandra (Shailene Woodley) to take care of. A concept that he has been extremely alien to. Because like most marriages, that was Elizabeth’s department. And to make things worse, Alexandra has a new male friend who seems to have the IQ of a chair – Sid (Nick Krause). I am not going to give away anything more coz that would kinda ruin the movie for you guys. Figure it out as the movie unravels itself layer by layer.

Stunning performances from most of the cast is the hallmark of The Descendants apart from the very interesting and different storyline. The only weak performance, if any, would have been from the 10 year old but I guess Payne got her to do what he could get out of her. We don’t have an Anna Paquin or an Abigail Breslin in the making here for sure. Add this movie to your must must must watch list. 8 on 10. I beg Indian houses to release Hollywood movies at the same time in India as it is abroad (if not earlier). We are a huge market and don’t need to be requesting for this anymore.

Watch the trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi1849990169/

Life As We Know It

This one is a cute RomCom. As cute as it can get I guess. But mind you the operative word is cute. Not good. Cute as defined in the OED and not as we define it these days. OED stands for the Oxford English Dictionary. And you can look up the definition of cute in the OED for further clarification. OK let me save you to pain and the torture of digging up the definition. Cute as defined in the OED is ugly but tolerable. You don’t believe me? Well now you are free to look it up. Google it. OED it. Do whatever pleases you. The definition is not going to change.
So Life As We Know It (LAWKI) is a cute RomCom. Boy and Girl are being set up by best friends. Boy lands up at girl’s place about an hour late and obviously scores a few 100 negative points. Next, he hasn’t shaved. Looks unkempt. And possibly even stinking. A few 1000 negative points. The graph isn’t looking very good at all. No. there seems to be no hope left. But the girl is magnanimous enough to walk out with him and realizes that he has got his bike and not a car – bad idea when the girl is dressed in a hot dress and cannot sit on a bike. Girl suggests that they should take her new smart car. Boy agrees. Boy gets phone call. Takes it coz girl insists. Turns out to be a booty call. Agrees to meet booty @ 2300 hrs…. wait 2230 hrs…. and the graphs goes negative. Girl suggests that the date was a mistake and that they should call it off. To girl’s surprise boy says she is right. Date ends. Mind you boy and girl are best friends with respective married boy and girl who set them up. A few years later, friends pass away in sudden road accident. All this while boy and girl have been bumping into each other and can barely tolerate each other. In their will, friends have left custody of their only daughter to boy and girl!!!! Aaaaaaaargh!!!!! Now what???? Watch to find out.

I will at the risk of sounding like a stuck record again say this. LAWKI is a cute movie. It is a sizzling movie thanks to Katherine Heigl who I am simply in love with and would probably keel over and die for if she were to ask. It falls back to being nearly ugly for the really bad looking and badly behaved Josh Duhamel. And some amount of sanity is restored by the civilized and well behaved Josh Lucas. There is not much left in terms of the support cast which is not quite there. The script is barely manageable. The story is different but then elements of the story are vastly predictable. Some of the scenes like baby diaper changing or eventually landing up in bed with each other despite girl seeing other guy who is much better settled than boy etc. etc. etc. all make up for a predictable but cute mixture. Enjoyable definitely. Worth a dekko for certain. 6 on 10 for this cute RomCom.

Watch the trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi2623997721/

Flypaper

Rob Minkoff directed the best animation movie of all time – The Lion King. I somehow find it hard to believe that. Primarily because in Flypaper he kind of forgets a few basic tenets of good story telling. Firstly, ensure that it doesn’t get too predictable. No matter how hard you try to confuse the you know what about every single person who is sitting in the auditorium, you have to give credit to the audience’s intelligence that they can and will put 2 and 2 together to come up with the answer before you tell them the answer. And if the audience’s answers match yours then you are out of business. Therefore it is best to build the intrigue slowly but surely and not go about at a frenetic pace in an attempt to really build the tempo up and keep the excitement levels and adrenaline levels as high as you possibly can through a 90 minute session.

Next, if you indeed want to keep the frenetic pace up through the 90 minutes then you need people who can be associated with the frenetic pace and can keep themselves calm, cool and composed during the time. Ashely Judd – fair enough. Patrick Dempsey – no way. Bad casting mate. What you get at the end of it is an effort which borders on the other side of overacting and not as much as an expression of someone who has a borderline case of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.

Thirdly, get your support cast to contribute and not look like a bunch of idiots. Give them roles which have some meaning at least. And roles which are not put into this mish mash because there is a requirement of a support staff. And once you have done that, please ensure that you get them to put in the effort that is expected of them to get the end result to meet the mark. Not just hang in there for the sake of hanging in there. Surprising that Minkoff got all of this and more right in the Lion King and then went about unlearning every single thing that he did right to give us a mish mash which is neither an action movie nor a robbery movie nor a drama and not even a comedy. It just has a little bit of everything. And the ground rule to be followed is that you cannot try to be everything to everyone. Just be great at one thing for some people.

Nevertheless, Minkoff’s effort cannot be dissed completely. It does have its good points with the likes of Ashley Judd as mentioned before and the fact that he does attempt to give us some excitement. You will not fall asleep during the movie for certain – mind you I was totally jet lagged and hadn’t slept in a while but still managed to sit through quite comfortably. Just that it seems a bit inane after a while. Still give it 6 on 10.

Watch the trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi4287863833/

Footloose (2011)

I must admit that the reason I saw Footloose (1984) for the nth time was that Footloose (2011) was also playing in-flight en route to Oz. I first noticed the 2011 version was playing and luckily the 1984 original also happened to be on the list. I am glad I saw the 2011 version in-flight and not in the theatre because it is really not a movie that will finish with a feeling of you having utilized your time well for nearly 2 hours.

Firstly let me dispel any doubts that anyone may have had about the 2011 being different from the 1984 hit. 27 years on, Craig Brewer has done nothing to add any value to the classic. In fact if anything, he has eroded the classic tag that the movie had and ruined any possibility of a fan following from the generation of today. Neither Kenny Wormald nor Julianne Hough can come close to the acting capabilities of Kevin Bacon or Lori Singer. Maybe I am begin harsh when I say that of Hough because Singer wasn’t anything much of an actress as such. So I could reconsider that opinion. But Wormald has a long way to go and if he harbours any hope of becoming as versatile as Bacon turned out to be, then I guess he has to put in many times more the effort that what Bacon had to. What disappointed me most was the severe cut in the role of Dennis Quaid and therefore I am probably not surprised with his lack luster effort. Surely Quaid is a better performer than what I saw. More or less the same analysis for Andie MacDowell.

The 2011 version of Footloose is so uncreative that Brewer has taken the concept of a “remake” to the level of a Xerox Machine. Even the dialogues are the same. And the famous scene where Ren reads out passages from the Bible just falls so flat on its face that it ceases to get funny after a while. Changes if any are exceptionally few in number and may get missed as well. The feet tapping in the titling is marginally different but nowhere close to being better.

Footloose (2011) hasn’t released yet in India and for once I would say that the people in the business have made a sensible decision. It really doesn’t have much to offer that is different, new, inspiring or fresh from the original. If you would really want to watch the movie, see the original. Even if I were to ignore the existence of an orginal, independently, Footloose (2011) would be an average movie at best. With the benefit of the doubt – 5 on 10. Sorry Craig Brewer. Got this one wrong I guess.

Watch the trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi1510841369/

Footloose (1984)

I have finally added another genre of movies to the list on my blog. Its called “Dance”. And the only movie that could have been better than Footloose (1984) to start this with would have been Dirty Dancing. That too will be added shortly I am certain. But occupying the #2 slot of all time in this genre would definitely be the 1984 version of a movie which starts with that exceptionally addictive Kenny Loggins number of the same name. I am quite certain about most of you playing the opening bars of the song in your head as you are reading this. I can tell you that the song’s playing in my head already as I am typing this…. Been working…. So hard…. I’m punching my card… eight hours…. for what?.... I’ve got this feeling… that times just holding me down…. I’ll hit the ceiling… or else i’ll tear up this town…. Now I gotta cut loose…… Footloose…. Kick off the Sunday shoes…. For more on this visit http://www.lyrics007.com/.

Footloose epitomized the spirt of the youth in the late 70s / early 80s in the US of A. With most of them wanting to get out and really be something and not get stuck in the backyards of the small towns or villages where they have been bought up. They did not want to get stuck in the rut that their parents have been for the past few decades. Now isn’t that what a lot of us have wanted from our lives? To do something different? Whether it is the characterization of Ren McCormick (Kevin Bacon) or that of his lady love Ariel (Lori Singer) who is the preacher’s (John Lithgow) daughter. The common thread that passes through the movie is that of breaking free. All portrayed through a small town where there has been a ban on any activities that could lead to loss of control over oneself. So no drinking under 18, no unsupervised partying and wait…. NO DANCING. Why? All perpetrated by an incident where the preacher loses his son in a road accident after a party. Not that the preacher has any ill intent. He does all of this only because he doesn’t want to see it repeated. The city council agrees. All till Ren comes in and starts questioning the norm.

Footloose can easily be classified under the genre – Drama. But the music and the few dance sequences just compel me to put it under – Dance. A very young Kevin Bacon is at his aggressive best. And one cannot help but wonder how skinny Lori Singer would be in real life if this is what she looks like on screen. The acting part comes later. The support cast includes an extremely young and much better looking Sarah Jessica Parker and also the motherly Diane Wiest who is somewhat the equivalent of Nirupa Roy in Bollywood (or maybe the other way round). Footloose is a great movie again for a Sunday afternoon. Just good fun with some lazing around. 6 on 10.

Watch the trailer at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAZvnPkFpHM

Sleuth

This has to definitely move to everyone’s watch list. I mean, how often would you get a movie that has exactly 4 actors. I am not kidding you. FOUR ACTORS. And now wait for more surprises. One of them doesn’t even have screen time. Carmel O’Sullivan’s role is just that of a voice on the phone. How cool is that? Just a voice on the phone. And Harold Pinter’s role of 33.285 seconds is a recorded version of some TV show. That’s it. In a little over 80 minutes the supremely talented Kenneth Branagh directs 2 of the finest actors of our time – Michael Caine and Jude Law – in a psychotic thriller of sorts.
Set in a completely dark background, Sleuth is about 2 men who have one thing in common and nothing else. Unfortunately, the one thing that they have in common is not the most pleasant thing that could probably be common between 2 men – and no you homophobics I am not talking about the same bed. I am talking about the same woman in their lives. To one – Andrew Wyke (Michael Caine) – she is the wife. To the other – Milo Tindle (Jude Law) – she is the mistress. Hows that for a lethal commonality to have. And hows that as a concept to take to the big screen?

And it took a Malaysian Airlines flight for me to figure out that something like this was not just thought of but actually executed. And the write up on the in flight card said nothing to excite me about the movie. The only reason I picked it up as a movie to watch was because it was a little over 80 minutes long and I have this fetish about finishing as many movies I can on a flight. I could well have missed it had it not been for the length of the movie.

The execution is almost like a 2 act play. Maybe that comes from Branagh’s known fetish for Shakespeare. Most of his directorial attempts have involved the Bard. So it is probably not surprising that Sleuth comes across the same way. Michael Caine’s performance as the gilted husband who is out to seek revenge personifies that old saying popularized by Quentin Tarantino – Revenge is a dish best served cold.

The detailed scheme that is put to action by Wyke is made even more eerie with the dark hue that is part of the movie all through. And then there are some superb camera angles such as shooting the first few minutes of Tindle’s entry from the top view. And the use of mirrors when Tindle and Wyke have their first drink together. Superb direction from Branagh who has adapted the play by Anthony Shaffer into a full length feature. And I should not take anything away from Jude Law’s performance either.

I am lucky to have caught up with Sleuth on an in-flight. I have promised myself to pick up a copy at the earliest. This one is a collectible. 7.5 on 10. Wonder why it didn’t make it to the Oscars for some category at least. I would have thought screenplay.

Watch the trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi4052222233/

I am Kalam

Missed out this one when it released a year and a half back. And that’s where in-flight helps significantly. Catching up with movies released a little while back and with those which have released internationally and not made it to the screen in little known and unimportant India. Therefore Flight MH134 (if I remember correctly) was inaugurated with a Hindi movie to keep my loyalty to my roots.

Chhotu (Harsh Mayar) is an extremely bright kid who is capable of picking up and understanding almost everything that he reads. He comes from a desolate part of Rajasthan to help his uncle Bhatti (Gulshan Grover) with his tea and small eats shop which supplies food to the palace of the local but erstwhile King or Raja (Suresh Acharya) who has converted the palace to a hotel so that he can continue to have his indulgences. His wife the Queen or Rani (Garima Bharadwaj) and son or Kunwar / Prince (Hussan Saad) make up the family. There are helpers all around like royalty should rightfully have. And like most royalty, there are rules to be followed. For e.g. Treat people lower than you in terms of status well but don’t get friendly with them. Make friends only with royalty. Etc. etc. etc.

But who is to prevent 2 kids of a similar age from getting to know each other and eventually become good friends. Chhotu, inspired by the President of the country rechristens himself as Kalam. Kalam and Kunwar Sa become great friends primarily because they have no one else to talk to or interact with. Kunwar helps Kalam with English and some good clothes and books to read. Kalam helps Kunwar with Hindi and through one of the guests of the hotel (Beatrice Ordeix) with French as well. A metaphorical representation of the India of new which is slowly but surely moving towards not caring much about the differences in class, caste or creed.

I am Kalam represents the aspiration of the average child in this country. The child’s desire to go to a school. To learn. To study. To have fun like any other of their own age. Of equality in treatment in terms of having access to the facilities that any rich kid would have. Of being given an equal opportunity as anyone else to make it big in the real world. To have a shot at stepping into the shoes of arguably the most loved President that India has ever had. To walk in his footsteps and make a difference like he did. In a sense it is a dedication to Hon. APJ Abdul Kalam and his vision for the children of India. Something which has left that office with him a couple of years back.

A good first attempt from Nila Madhab Panda. Average performances overall. Really bad finishing though.especially with the foreign support cast which was relaly bad. Several inconsistencies as well. However, solid message. One that should make you ponder. 5.5 on 10. Watch it if you stumble upon it by chance. Worth a dekko definitely.

Watch the trailer at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Hts1peF2gc