Classic - The Aviator (2004)

Whats it about:
It's a bio-pic about Howard Hughes, the aviation mogul cum ambitious film maker. Howard is a dreamer, cleanliness freak, partially deaf, sort of a playboy and is uncomfortable with crowds. He makes a film called 'Hell's Angels' spread across 3 yrs. He manufactures great aircrafts for the US AF, through Howard Aircrafts funded by Howard Tools and co. He has his loyal team lead by Noah and Odie. He has flings with many ladies but isn't committed to a single woman. A real go getter.
        The boss of Pan Am, Juan Trippe is close with Senator Brewster. They are jealous of Howard Aircrafts' acquisition of TWA. They don't want TWA to expand across Europe and the Atlantic. They basically want Pan Am to be the monopoly in flying international aircrafts from the US. They file a law suit against Howard saying that he had parted with 56 million $ of the US money during war times, in the name of making planes. Unfortunately those planes never did fly.
        Howard also meets with a great personal disaster during one of his test flights. He is ambushed physically. But, he still keeps the fire burning and asks his team to continue building Hercules, the biggest ever plane in the world.
        Howard faces the law suit boldly, comes out clean with some very valid arguments against Senator Brewster and convinces the law that this suit was just a setup to stop his progress. In the end, Howard flies his Hercules successfully, and is even more determined to rule the future by investing in jets.
        An inspiring GEM indeed.

                                                                          
Hits

• LEONARDO DICAPRIO. As usual. What a screen presence. What a talent. I am an unabashed fanatic. Proud to be in the same era as him. This is one of his best shows. As the slightly psychic and driven young man, he is A class. Many scenes give goose bumps, particularly the scenes where he slightly looses his composure and is overcome by his inner thoughts.
• Nice jazzy classic BGM by Howard Shore,reminiscent of the old times. 
• Great effort by Martin Scorsese and co., to show a great legend's true life on-screen. 
• All the ladies have a decent part and they play it well. 

Misses

• Even after meeting with such a nasty accident, Howard isn't shown to be suffering that much. Just a little difficulty while walking is shown, while the doctors actually explain some real complications post the accident. 

VERDICT

Another killer punch from the Martin Scorsese - Leo combo. DON'T MISS IT ...

Classic Revisited - Into the Wild (2007)

Chris McCandless is a very bright college graduate with a great love for books and their quotes. Just when his parents are expecting him to follow their path in leading a life of materialistic pleasures, Chris leaves everything behind. He donates his savings to charity and sets out on a road trip to Alaska for what he calls ‘a great adventure’ and a spiritual revolution.

Chris is an extremist and an aesthetic voyager who is driven by more than just anger and his sense of rebellion against the mundane and abstract society. Mr and Mrs McCandless’ constant quarrels and troubles with each other really impact their 2 children in a dramatic way. Chris’ sister Carine is the only person who understands her brother. As the days pass, the entire McCandless family is concerned and all their searches for Chris prove in vain and they resign to their huge imminent loss.

During his great Alaskan adventure, Chris meets many nice people who help him with shelter, food, good life advice, some small jobs and Chris also makes some great relationships particularly with Rainey, Jan (the 2 mature lovers who are also on the move), Tracy (a beautiful 16 yr old singer), Wayne (the man who helps Chris with some money for his work at the wheat processing plant) and Ron Franz (the lonely old widower).

The entire movie moves in a non linear manner and Chris’ journey is divided into different chapters like ‘My Own Birth’, ‘Adolescence’, ‘Man Hood’ and ‘Getting of Wisdom’. When Chris finally reaches Alaska, he literally leads a wild man’s life. He stays in what he calls the ‘Magic Bus’. But as the days pass, Chris isn’t able to beat the forces and he finally succumbs after realizing that Happiness is real only when shared. A sad true life story.                                                                          

Hits

• Emile Hirsch has literally lived the role of Chris. The body changes are astounding. Great emoting too.
• A very moving BGM score. Nice songs too. They are perfectly in sync with the movie’s theme
• All the characters that Chris meets in his journey make a great impact. Great casting. Great acting by them all.
• The narration given by Chris’s sister is very poignant and touching. Such meaningful dialogs that strike an emotional chord
• The way the wild life has been captured is breath-taking. Nature in all its glory. Rivers, mountains, wild animals, wild plants, fields etc etc. Dreamy visuals. 

VERDICT

The movie on the whole makes a deep impact. Every young graduate does go through the same emotions that Chris goes through. But the guts that Chris had aren’t something that one finds in everyone. Salutations to Sean Penn and team for bringing this great young man’s life onscreen. 

Thoonga Nagaram (2011)

What’s it about

The tale of 4 friends, Kannan, Maari, Aiyyavu and Rajamani, who come from different backgrounds and meet and develop their friendship in Madurai, the Thoonganagaram. They have their fun and also the small misunderstandings and are thick friends. Kannan is in love with his childhood neighbor Radha and is ready to marry her after some opposition from his family due to an old conflict.

        The 4 friends get into trouble with one of Madurai’s bigwigs when they expose the bigwig’s son who is into voyeuristic pleasures at his clothing outlet. In a drunken state, Kannan and his friends come to know of this atrocity from one of the affected parties and they go and attack the bigwig’s son, ultimately blinding him. The bigwig is obviously pissed off and orders his men to nab the 4 and kill Kannan in particular.

        The 4 friends leave Madurai and go back to their home towns to save their lives. The bad men slowly come to know of these 4 through Maari, the mute guy. Kannan’s 3 friends are threatened and are forced to kill Kannan to save their families. Everyone assembles for Kannan’s marriage with Radha and there the 4 friends plan to clear the mess and execute it to perfection. All is well in the end.

                                                                     

Hits

• Very good songs by Sundar C Babu
• The initial half an hour or so is really lively.
• Fairly interesting though it could have been crisper
• All the lead actors have done a fair job of what is expected from them.

Misses

• The climax is quite implausible and the 4 friends have their way so easily.
• The main villain is very bland. A better choice was needed.

VERDICT

Fairly good show by the debut director cum actor Gaurav. An average movie that starts promisingly but could have been more crisp and taut. 

Classic: Braveheart (1995)

Whats it about:

           It traces Scotland’s war for freedom from the English, inspired by Sir William Wallace, a true warrior. William looses his father and brother to the English, at a very young age. He grows away from Scotland under his uncle’s eyes. He returns to Scotland to lead a trouble free life but as a well trained warrior. He courts his lady love, marries her secretly and makes love to her. But the English destroy his peace by killing Murron, his wife.

          William is instigated by this mindless violence by the English, lead by the greedy Edward the Longshanks. William inspires his fellow Scots & leads them to victories over the English at Stirling and at York. William is knighted by the Scots. 

          But, the Scottish king and the nobles don’t want to rub the English on the wrong side. The English have bribed all the Scottish nobles and the king with lands, gold and money. William isn’t convinced by the Scottish royalty. Only Robert the Bruce, the Scottish king in waiting, is behind William’s passion for freedom. The wife of the gay English prince, Princess Isabelle also has great respect for Sir William’s noble intentions.

          After a betrayal at the battle of Falkirk by the Scottish royalty, Sir William goes berserk and kills many people and his passion for freedom grows stronger. Then the nobles try to put an end to him and Sir William is betrayed one last time by the Scottish nobles in the name of freedom and this time he is brutally murdered by the English. Till the end, Sir William refuses to beg for mercy and maintains his passion for freedom.

         Inspired by Sir William, the Scots lead by Robert the Bruce, do take on the English at the battle of Bannockburn and win their freedom finally.

                                                                          

Hits

• Mel Gibson. Such passionate film making. The scenes ooze emotion. Particularly the battle scenes where Sir William’s face is all painted up in blue. He inspires us to tears with his war time speech. Goose bumps were all over me after the victory cries at the battle of Stirling.
• James Horner. Such a moving BGM score. Divine. Mesmerizing. Wordless.
• Breathtakingly real battle scenes. Such raw energy aided by some great cinematography.
• Two beautiful leading ladies with very striking characterization. Catherine McCormack as Murron moves us with her innocent beauty. Sophie Marceau as Princess Isabelle also comes across a beautiful strong minded woman.
• Angus McFadyen as Robert the Bruce impresses with his helplessness at the same time passion for Scottish freedom.
• Sir William’s trusted aides also make a mark with their loyalty and devotion to their leader. Particularly Hamish and the Irish guy.

VERDICT

A great tribute to Sir William Wallace, with one of the best war movies that man can ever make. Salutations to Mel Gibson. 

Dhoom 2 (2006)

What’s it about

2^nd installment of the Dhoom series. This time Jai and Ali are after Aryan, a high profile high tech thief who steals only rare artifacts. Aryan leaves behind the A sign at all his crime scenes. He uses many disguises and getups to commit his thefts and heists. Shonali, a female bomb cop and Jai’s batch mate is also in Jai’s team in his pursuit of A.

        Jai also uses Shoneri as a rat to infiltrate A’s plans. But Shoneri and Aryan fall in love and Shoneri is more loyal to her love than the police. Finally, Jai lets the lovers loose after they decide to put an end to their shady activities and lead a normal life as restaurateurs.

       Loads of glamour, skin show, style, classy stunts, bike chases and MASALA.

                                                                      

Hits

• Aishwarya Rai. OMG. What a woman. As Shoneri, she is super duper hot and her figure and body belie her age.
• Bipasha Basu also oozes sex appeal in her dual role as Shonali and Monali, the sisters. While Shonali is a strong policewoman, Monali is a dumb bombshell.
• Hrithik is as usual stylish. Abhishek, with his stubble suits the part of the serious policeman. Uday Chopra’s wise cracks and antics are as usual laughable.
• Great production values. Rich sets, Brazilian locations. A rich glamour feast for the eyes
• Nice songs and BGM by Pritam and co.

Misses

• Hrithik’s many disguises are not always distinct. Easily identifiable.
• Jai lets go of many chances to nab Aryan while committing the heists. It’s as if Jai wants Aryan to escape.
• An unconvincing climax
• Stunts go overboard be it Hrithik’s intro stunts or the climax stunt at the waterfalls.

VERDICT

Not as impressive and crisp as Dhoom 1. Still watch-able for the super hot lead ladies and the great production values. 

Dhoom (2004)

Whats it about:
The film traces how Jai, a super cop nabs a biker gang which specializes in hi-tech robberies and heists. The biker gang is lead by Kabir. Jai takes the help of Ali, a local racer to eliminate the biking robbers after a few failed attempts
      Side by side, we are also shown the romance between Jai and his wife Sweety in a very sexy manner, Ali's misfortune at getting his lady love, Ali's racing exploits and also some hardcore masala elements in the name of sexy songs.

                                                                          

Hits

• Terrific stunt sequences in bikes, boats and what not. Thrilling stuff helped in no small measure by Nirav Shah
• Foot tapping songs and BGM by Pritam and co. 
• Style all the way, be it Abhishek or John or a bikini clad Esha or the super sexy Rimi Sen or the super bikes
• A celebration of Indian masala

Misses

• Logic has been ignored. The genre is such, But, some stunts are definitely gravity defying, beautifully shot nevertheless. 

VERDICT

Thrilling time-pass. Fun filled action extravaganza. 

Pathinaaru (2011)

Whats it about:
2 lovers in their college life Shiva and Indu, face the usual parental opposition from the girl's side. The girl's mother invites the boy to their house and makes the lovers read a book called "16". The book tells a story of obsessive love from childhood between Gopi and Ilavarasi. Their love ends in failure. This love is also a typical village love story that faces opposition from the girl's family in the form  of a 'mora maaman', preganancy before marriage etc etc.
        Later, it is revealed that the story of "16" is the story of Indu's father. Then there is a small separation between the lovers and they find Ilavarasi in Kodaikanal in an orphanage home named after Gopi. Indu's father Gopalakrishnan aka Gopi also happens to come to the orphanage and melts down in tears seeing Ilavarasi's undiminished love and respect for him.
       A good message that marriage should happen only after settling in life is ingrained in the lovers' minds and they separate to settle properly in life and then marry later.

                                                                        
Hits

• Yuvan's songs are a major highlight. They are already huge hits. 
• The message given in the end is quite sensible
• Madhu Shalini as Indu looks sparkling and is above average in acting too. 

Misses

• Shiva is a total misfit. There is no continuity in his looks and he is not at all serious. 
• The village love track is melodramatic mostly and is not in sync with times and is already seen in many movies before this. 

VERDICT

A better hero and some more seriousness could have done the trick. Also the village flashback could have been bereft of the melodramatic clichés. 

Kites (2010)

Whats it about

J, a superb dancer is looking to make it big in Las Vegas. He does all sorts of things to earn a quick buck including fake marriages. A rich & powerful casino owner’s daughter Gina is madly in love with J. J acts as if he is in love, just for the money. Gina’s brother Tony is in love with Natasha, an illegal Mexican immigrant. Natasha is also after the money. J and Natasha had in fact a fake marriage

        When J and Natasha meet again, sparks fly, they fall madly in love, they elope, ditch their respective fiancées, start robbing for money and really irk Tony. They keep evading the police, the bounty hunters and of course Tony. Finally when they marry, Tony and his gang catch up with them and their union is abruptly and violently cut short. J comes to know that his lady love is no more and he also eliminates the baddies and ends his life at the very same spot as Natasha had. The screenplay is non-linear. 

                                                                           

Hits

• Greek God Hrithik. Dances like a dream and looks a billion bucks. STYLE. His first dance sequence in particular is awe-inspiring.
• Barbara Mori. What a sexy, divine looking beauty. Emotes ok too. A great Monica Bellucci look-alike.
• The making is truly international. Cinematography is a major plus.
• The action sequences are no way short of Hollywood standards
• Nice songs and BGM.

Misses

• For a movie with such a classy making, the story could have been deeper than just being a love story with familiar opposition.
• The action sequences though spectacular stand out sorely in an otherwise romantic movie. The effort to make it look grand, I guess.
• A bomb like Kangana Ranaut is wasted. She looks absolutely sexy but appears just in the start and towards the end in a couple of scenes.

VERDICT

A nice attempt at going international. A better story could have made this a classic given that it has the best on screen pair in recent times. 

Groundhog Day (1993)

Whats it about:
Weatherman Phil Connors goes to Punxsutawney with his producer Rita and cameraman Larry to cover the annual Groundhog Day, the day when the onset of spring is announced. To his amazement he finds out that he is starting to live the same day Feb 2 all over again, day after day. He meets the same people, involves in the same conversations, encounters the same incidents etc etc. He is initially psyched out.
             Then he starts accepting his fate and starts enjoying it. He helps people in anyway possible. He even finds out that he cannot die after a series of suicides all to no avail. He learns newer skills. He gets closer to Rita and after a major phase of dating spanning over multiple Feb 2s, they finally become a pair. Rita sleeps along with Phil and bang, the day changes. Things become different for Phil, and Rita and Phil decide to live together in the same town forever.

                                                                            

Hits

• A truly out of the box, unique concept.
• Bill Murray as Phil, is classy, funny, expressive and spontaneous.
• Andie MacDowell as Rita is petite, cute and divine. 
• Feel good to the core and sort of a dreamy fairytale too. 

VERDICT

One of those truly different concepts that must be seen for its novelty. 

Glengarry Glen Ross (1992)

Whats it about:
A bunch of salesmen who keep complaining about weak leads are taken for a real ride by the representative from the corporate office, Blake. He motivates them at the same time really puts them on the firing line saying that they only have 1 week left to save their jobs. Only the top 2 out of the 4 would save their jobs
         The film is about how Ricky Roma  (the most high profile of the 4), Shelley Levene (experienced and talented but old), Moss, Aaronow ( 2 guys who look for the easy way out of this mess by stealing some promising leads out of the office) and Williamson (the manager of the office who isn't very popular with the salesmen for his uninspiring ways) deal with the aftermath of Blake's fiery motivational speech and the stolen leads

                                                                      

Hits

• An authentic depiction of an actual real estate sales firm
• A different plot
• Alec Baldwin plays one of the best cameos as Blake, the no-nonsense, foul mouthing, high profile representative. 
• Al Pacino is his usual rocking self, complete with his yo yo dialog delivery but in a more suave avatar. 
• Jack Lemmon is cracking and spontaneous as Shelley
• Ed Harris and Alan Arkin do the part of the frustrated salesmen very well during their drunken sojourns
• The scenes where the salesmen are so desperate to close their leads are very amusing and give us a good idea about how competitive and complex the real world is.
• Enjoyable dialogs. 

Misses

• Makes us wonder whether there can be so much foul mouthing in an actual professional office. It all sounds very amusing nevertheless :)
• Kevin Spacey is his usual nerdy self but not very impressive as the other actors in the movie. 

VERDICT

A different business movie but it is slow moving and entirely conversational. Not for everyone. 

Identity (2003)

Whats it about:
A criminal who has committed multiple homicides, Malcolm Rivers is about to be executed when his doctor and lawyer reopen his case for insanity. Then, a motel is shown on a rainy night. Many personalities are caught up in the motel by circumstance. Among them, a hooker, a young couple, a cop and his convict, an ex cop, an actress and a family of 3.
                    One by one, they are eliminated in strange circumstances. We come to know later that all the characters that are shown at the motel are actually Malcolm Rivers' multiple personalities. Slowly he is in the process of killing the personalities that are within himself. He is assigned to the state hospital. Just when we think that he is slowly getting to terms with himself, the violent side of his personality again takes over and the credits roll.

                                                                          

Hits

• Intriguing concept
• The rainy visuals at the motel are surreal and spooky  
• The actor who plays the troubled psycho Malcolm Rivers is A rate with his expressions of anguish and girth. 

Misses

• Once we come to know that the events at the motel are actually Malcolm's mind plays, the further scenes where the remaining personalities are killed aren't as intriguing as the initial murders when we suspect that there are actually multiple crime scenes taking place

VERDICT

Another intriguing psycho movie with Multiple Personality Syndrome as the theme. 

Classic Revisited - The Departed (2006)

Whats it about:
Frank Costello is a big hotshot gangster and sergeant Sullivan is his informant in the SIU (Special Investigations Unit) ... Trooper William Costigan is assigned to work undercover by officers Queenan and Dignam. Costigan joins Costello's gang. The whole operation is all wound up in secrecy.
     Soon doubts start cropping up. Costigan informs his superiors in the undercover unit that there is a rat in the SIU while Sullivan also informs Costello that there is a police rat in Costello's gang. It all ends in a bloody classy fashion. Check it out ...                                                                  

Hits

• Leo's dashing screen presence. His intense, frustrated portrayal is pure class. 
• Matt Damon is sort of overshadowed by Leo's dashing style. But still a great portrayal as the corrupt complicated cop.
• Jack Nicholson, as always, is majestic as the RocknRolla gangster with a taste for adult jokes.
• Mark Wahlberg is a riot as the foul mouthing no nonsense cop. Such fluency of dialog delivery, particularly in Leo's interview scene :). The actor who plays Queenan is earnest. 
• Vera Farmiga as the psychiatrist is dignified and an understanding partner to both Sullivan and Costigan. That love making scene between her and Leo on a rainy night oozes with heat and passion
• The making style is awesome. Scorsese Sir, take a bow.
• The title BGM track is kick ass. It comes later too at an appropriate time
• All the scenes on top 344 Washington are terrific. Gripping and violent cinema 
• The scenes where Matt and Leo try to expose each other are extremely thrilling.

VERDICT

One of the most stylish cop dramas with the best star cast in recent years. 

Classic Revisited - Blood Diamond (2006)

Whats it about:
Sierra Leone is the scene of action. A plethora of characters and issues. Danny Archer is a smuggler who is looking to get out of the African continent by exporting one last diamond, which happens to be a big pink one uncovered by a fisherman named Solomon Vandy who is forced to work at a mine by the RUF, a rebel unit fighting against the Govt.

The RUF employs many slaves at the diamond mines, creates numerous child soldiers, brainwashes them and makes them commit heinous acts. Dia Vandy, son of Solomon is one such child soldier. Solomon is also separated from his family.

Maddy Bowen is a journalist who is looking to expose the atrocious activities that take place behind the export of these conflict diamonds. She needs authentic facts, figures and someone who would go on record.

Does Danny manage to find the diamond in an increasingly frantic environment, does Solomon get back his son, family and does Maddy muster enough evidence to expose the dark diamond underbelly? Watch this intense flick to find out.
                                                                     
Hits

• LEONARDO. With his dashing looks and supreme screen presence, he is a treat to watch. His performance, during his final moments on his last phone call with Maddy, is truly emotional. The tan in his skin, the colored hair and the accent are all in sync with his Zimbabwean origin. 
• Djimon Hounsou as Solomon Vandy is composed and desperate at the apt moments. A solid show. 
• Jennifer Connelly as Maddy Bowen is absolutely charming and is glorious with her expressions. Her romance with Leonardo, though not the conventional one, shines through thanks to Jennifer's longing and passionate eyes. The scene when she leaves Leo and walks towards the aircraft is unforgettable. 
• Kagiso Kuypers as Dia makes a mark in the scene where he emotionally reunites with his father. 
• The bonding between Danny and Solomon. Though initially strictly on a task basis, their final moments on top of the hill are touching
• A novel attempt to touch upon conflict diamonds and their impact on Africa. Child soldiers, the refugee crisis, the black - white conundrum etc etc. TIA as they say. "This is Africa"
• Marvelous African touch be it the locations or the BGM. 
• Frenetic action sequences with guns, bombs, explosions et all. 
• Touching BGM particularly in the climax. 
• Awe-inspiring top angle shots. Class camera work. There are in fact so many nature shots peppered across the movie. 

VERDICT

One of a kind. MUST WATCH. Leonardo leads a long list of highlights. 

The King's Speech (2010)

Whats it about:
King George the Vth is about to die. His 2 sons are in line to the throne. The elder son David is a womanizer and he has an affair going on with a twice divorced woman. The king dies, David takes over but he is not able to continue his duties as the king, due to his flirty nature. He steps down. Younger brother Bertie takes over ...
       Bertie is a very bold person but he has a severe stammering problem. Even during his addresses as the Duke of York, he stammers and lets himself down. Many speech therapists try to help but to no avail. Then Lionel Logue enters the scene. He has much experience but no credentials. But still, with his out of the box approach and enthusiasm, Lionel helps Bertie. They bond and collaborate to deliver a beautiful King's Speech in the climax to a war torn nation.

                                                                            

Hits

• A beautiful concept about repairing speech defects
• Colin Firth as Bertie and then King George the VIth, is awesomely natural as the stammerer
• Geoffrey Rush as Lionel Logue, the speech therapist cum failed actor is lovable to the core.
• Helena Bonham Carter as the proud Duchess of York and the ever supportive wife makes a mark too
• Sweet haunting BGM

VERDICT

A film that moves you with its sheer novelty in concept that, when the king delivers his final speech, we feel happy ...