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Satya (1998)
Know the truth...
The most beautiful thing about Satya is that almost every person associated with the film was a newcomer. It was his first or second project. And their ambitions, dreams and sweat paid very well for the movie and the result is that this is considered the best crime movie ever made in India.
The movie starts with Satya (J D Chakravarthy) coming to Mumbai seeking employment. Things don't go right for him in Mumbai and he ends up in a fight with Jagga (Jeeva) who works for don Guru Narayan (Raju Mavani). To revenge his insult, Jagga gets Satya arrested in false charges. Satya is very brave man and his bravery is seen in the fight with Bhiku Mhatre (Manoj Bajpai) who is another don of Mumbai mafia. Bhiku is very much impressed by his bravado and offers him work in his gang. Satya accepts it. They give Satya a place to live, free of any charges.
With his intelligence, Satya becomes a special man for Bhiku very soon and helps him in looting and murdering and planning murders of politicians and members from other gangs. Along with all this work, Satya soon gets involved with a girl Vidya (Urmila Matondkar) who is his neighbour. He doesn't tell her about his job and his partners. She gets to know about Bhiku but as a co-worker in the company where Satya works. The scene when they meet Bhiku and his wife in a restaurant is beautifully performed and brilliantly directed.
The most promising character and portrayal in the film is of Bhiku Mhatre. Bhiku represents a common man who loves his family and has been in mafia world for a long time, first unwillingly and then with reasons which, in fact, are made with much ease in this industry. You know his way of working is not subtle at all and he is robbing people and killing many others but you can't hate this character. There is a suitable humor added to this character by the director and by the actor. Bhiku lives a simple life except when he is playing a gangster. Manoj Bajpai brings the much wanted shades and characteristics to Bhiku Mhatre. Manoj Bajpai is a great actor and definitely one of India's best. He has probably not given the roles which he deserved. But he has played every role with an enthusiasm of a newcomer and excellence of an experienced actor.
The leading man, J D Chakravarthy, seemed to me the greatest problem with the film. He has acted well but he is not familiar with the language and that is a big problem here. Sometimes he seems so much irritating that you just don't want to see him anymore. He is a South Indian actor and has worked in many Telugu movies before Satya. I definitely wanted some person who was well aware of the language and the setting of the film.
Urmila Matondkar as Vidya is OK. She hasn't got many scenes in which she's got to act. Vidya is pretty, funny, sensitive and caring. She has got problems at her home. She dreams of a sound future with Satya, of course unknown of his gang work. She is a singer and is in search for a job but when a composer tries to harass her, she tells Satya about it and you know what happens next! The composer is threatened by the gang and is forced to give Vidya a very nice position. Saurabh Shukla as Kallu Mama is brilliant. He is the guy who orders Bhiku and his gang. He is also a very good human being. He knows much about the mafia and is giving Bhiku lessons from time to time. There are many good actors in very small roles as Sanjay Mishra, playing a goon, and then there is Shefali Shetty, playing Bhiku's wife. I fell in love with her acting after the critically acclaimed Monsoon Wedding (2001). That was the era when Ram Gopal Verma was considered the best director in India. I don't know what happened but he lost the tune after 2004 and never got it back. It is good that he is still trying and whenever there is a RGV movie getting released, people wish it to be like Satya or Company (2002). These movies are the best ones made on the subject of crime and mafia. There are many directors who criticize RGV and want him to stop making films. I only have one question to all those directors: RGV made terrible films like Aag, Satya 2 and so did you. But he also made Satya and Company and have you done anything even close to that?
The story and screenplay is penned by Saurabh Shukla, who plays Kallu Mama, and the brilliant director-writer Anurag Kashyap. Anurag Kashyap was a struggler just like many others in the film when he was offered this film. The songs in the movie are average with average music by Vishal Bhardwaj. Actually, there was no need for songs at all. A couple of them are good but rest are unnecessary and break the pace of the movie. Background score is given by Sandeep Chowta and he does a swell job here.
Overall, this film is the best take on the world of crime and gangsters. Not just it showcases the crime, it also tells about the personal lives of the gangsters which really makes the audience not to hate the characters. Satya means "Truth" in English. And here it means the truth of the mafia and the mafia members. This one is really special film for me. There are mistakes in this film too but they are completely overshadowed by the brilliance of the film and the excellent filmmaking.
Highway (2014)
It gains momentum and sense in the second half...
Highway tells the story of a gang member Mahabir Bhati (Randeep Hooda) and Veera (Alia Bhatt), as they travel through cities in Mahabir's truck. For some of them at first, Veera is all tied up in the back of the truck when Mahabir is driving, and for the rest, she is enjoying the ride with Mahabir in the front seat. A lot happens in between. At first, Veera is trying everything to run away but after spending some days with the gang, she comes to like their freedom,their stories and their life, and she doesn't want to leave them even when they ask her to go back to their parents.
At the starting of the film, Veera is a stupid girl who is also a amateur in many things but towards the end of the film, she is completely changed. She is fearless, she is grown, she understands the world more efficiently, and she is free. Mahabir is a rude person who is also strongly built up and that is enough to fear the guy. When he was kidnapping Veera, all he thought was that she is just a girl who has seen them killing other people. But she is not. Veera is daughter of perhaps the most rich person in the city and that scares Mahabir. He is scolded by his own gang leaders for making this mistake but he fears no one and runs off with two of his partners and the girl. He is on a double run, one from his gang and one from Veera's family.
Then there is Veera who is crying like a baby at the beginning but when she realises that this is not going to help her, she tries to run away but she chooses the wrong time and the wrong place. At that time, they are in a desert and there is not a soul in miles range. She runs away and comes back the same night. She surrenders in her attempts and tries to befriend Mahabir's partners, she knows they will be easier than Mahabir. But as time passes, Mahabir becomes more than a friend to her. She even tells him a dreadful truth she hasn't told anyone.
It is Alia Bhatt's second film after Student of the Year. Being Mahesh Bhatt's daughter, she didn't have to face any difficulties to get a break. In SOTY, she doesn't have to "act" in serious scenes, thanks to the complete lack of seriousness in the film. But here she is out of her comfort zone and has to act and that too in challenging scenes. But as they say that you just have to react when a good actor is performing. That helps Alia a lot.
Randeep is undoubtedly very good actor. Here also he performs brilliantly. He is not given a very playful character. Randeep Hooda said that it was a depressing character and that depression didn't leave him long after the shooting ended. He even said that he can not play this character again.
I hope Alia Bhatt does this kind of films more often.
The first half of the movie is much elongated which makes it boring also and for sure, it could've been 15-20 minutes shorter. At that time, amazing music by A. R. Rahman comes to your rescue. All the songs were already a hit before the film was released and in the movie too, they are placed at the perfect places. Background score is very subtle and not very much is tried by Rahman and that works very well. In the last 30-minutes, the score is brilliant and you'll get goosebumps when it meets the climax scenes and some very good acting.
Cinematography by Anil Mehta is mesmerizing and India is shown in a very different way. But it seems the director was very much lost into the beauty of the highways of India. There were unnecessary long shots taken.
As I said many times before, there is a definite lack of sense and pace in the first half and that makes even good written scenes boring. Imtiaz Ali, the director-writer of the film, said that he had this film written 15-years in past. And perhaps this was the perfect time to make the film. Had he made the film a couple of years ago, it would've been a flop. Indian audiences have got a taste for serious drama with no dance numbers just a few years back. Also, he couldn't have had Alia Bhatt then. There is no doubting his directorial skills. He has made brilliant films like Rockstar and Jab We Met. Here also he does a swell job. But again, the first half! I'm not saying that this a bad movie or just a one-time-watch movie, it is very good and has a place in my heart but there are mistakes made in this film. If it would have been two films of one hour each, I would've given 1.5 stars to the first movie and 4.5 to second. In India, people say that second half of the movie must be better than the first half. Here audience get exactly that. But the first half was way more sluggish than could've been allowed and I was yawning which I hate most during a film. The movie is very good, the acting is very good, the music is very good, but the first half is very very bad. Sometimes I think how could a director like Imtiaz Ali make a mistake like that. But he is also a human and making mistakes is the right of humankind. I will finish this review with these four words: I loved this movie.
City Lights (1931)
A classic love story. Chaplin wins big here...
City Lights, made back in 1930, is a love story featuring our favorite funny character, the Tramp. First time,I watched this movie two years back with my friends. That time we laughed very much. But as I was watching the movie, I felt that I have to watch this movie alone sometime to get the feel and the message of the movie. Unfortunately, I was very busy those days and couldn't watch it back then but I watched it again yesterday. And this time there was much more than just laughs I got. I loved this film. And I can challenge everyone who says A Walk to Remember or The Notebook are the best love stories! The Tramp (Charlie Chaplin) is introduced to us sleeping in the lap of a large statue. People, who have come to watch the giant statue, shoo him away. He is just wandering when he sees a girl selling flowers. He stops and buys a flower. But the girl drops the flower by mistake. He sees that she is looking for the flower in the wrong place and he realises that she is blind. He feels bad for her. He is also very poor and he can well understand her situation. He wants to say something but instead he leaves.
At night, he sees a guy trying to kill himself. He convinces him in giving up this idea. The guy takes the Tramp back to his home. He is a millionaire and the Tramp can't figure out why he was trying to kill himself when he is having every pleasure. They become very good friends and the Tramp asks him for some money. The next day, the Tramp buys all the flowers from the blind girl. She is happy, and he is happier than her. The blind girl reaches her home and tells her mother about the millionaire customer she has had today. She thinks him as a millionaire as well as a very big hearted person. She is also having many problems at her home. The rest of the film is pretty much about the Tramp trying to help the girl and sometimes asking the millionaire for some help. Will he be able to help the girl? How will things end up with the millionaire and the Tramp? All the answers are lying in the movie further with a heart-touching ending of the film. Along will all these, there will be many scenes where there will be tears in your eyes just because of laughing.
Charlie Chaplin, as most of the times, is the director-writer-producer- composer-editor-actor of the film. And he wins, again as most of the times, in everything. First talking about Chaplin the director-writer, he is brilliant. Needless to say, the story of the film is amazing. Comedy scenes are superbly written and directed and also there are few fighting scenes but Chaplin knows very well how to make them funny. And when I say funny here, I mean hilarious. Though I loved every scene in the film, but still I would like to mention a couple here: Of course the last scene in the film, then the scene where the millionaire invites the tramp for dinner and the fight scene between the Tramp and the boxer who was changed when the original had to flee and with the original one, the Tramp had a pact of 50-50 if he lets the Tramp win. Both the scenes are insanely funny. And I think I won't be able to stop my laughter even if I'm watching them for 10th time. I don't have to say much about Chaplin the actor. I will definitely fall short even if I write a page in his praise. According to me, there have been only one actor who has delivered every performance with no more scope of improvisation: Charlie Chaplin. He has played the Tramp for about forty years. To tell you the truth, I can't imagine him otherwise. I have watched many of his movies and I have loved his performance in all of them. In this movie, he is excellent. In emotional scenes also, he is brilliant. He has had a great impact on the film industry and it won't be an oversaying that he actually revolutionized the genre and the industry.
Chaplin the composer does a swell job. Music changes accordingly with the requirements of the film. This is a silent movie and so music becomes a very important part. It supports the funny scenes brilliantly. The movie is black and white so there is not a question of brilliant visuals. The cinematography is good overall. About the other actors in the film, the blind girl is played by Virginia Cherrill and she is very convincing in the role. Her later films didn't see much success and she dropped her film career. The millionaire Harry Myres and he is good. As required, he is very funny. He trusts our Tramp and helps him very much, with his money of course. All other actors are fine.
City Lights is definitely one of the best Chaplin movies, if not the best. I loved this movie and while writing this review, going back to every point and remembering everything is making me watch this movie again. You know what? I will watch the movie again after I finish this review. There has been a lot of discussion about the movie title "City Lights". Many believe that "city lights" are allegorical for the types of shallow luxuries and excess that can be found under the lights of the city, e.g., the rich man's drinking, cars, and clothing, when compared to the life of the Tramp and the blind flowergirl. I am kinda satisfied with this theory. City Lights is a very special film for me and I will remember this film for a long long time. And I will definitely watch it many times.
El secreto de sus ojos (2009)
One of the best foreign language movies I've seen...
I'm not a big fan of Argentinian cinema but there are quite a few of their films which I enjoyed and this is on the top.
Through the first one-and-half hour into the movie, it seems like a direction-less journey with too many sub-stories and neither seems to end. But the next half hour clarifies all the doubts stupendously and you are left with a life-long memory of a great climax and a feeling of great satisfaction.
A retired federal agent, Benjamín Esposito, is deeply haunted by memory of a case he has worked on in past. It is 1999 and he wants to write a novel, his first, on that case, named Coloto case. But he is having troubles getting started. He decides to visit his friend Irene Menendez- Hastings who also worked on the same case with him. She tells him to start at the starting. He does so. It is June, 1974 when he gets information of a girl raped and murdered. Liliana Coloto was attacked when she was alone at her home. Esposito assures her widower that the murdered will get a life-sentence for this crime. Esposito starts working on the case with Hastings and one more of their friend. When they are searching Coloto's house in her hometown, they find some photos and a suspicious young man, Isidoro Gomez, is in almost every picture, eyes always on Coloto. Esposito believes that Gomez is the real murderer. But Hastings denies his claims and tells him that it is impossible to identify a murderer just by his eyes.
Anyways, they keep searching for more clues about Mr. Gomez but find disappointment only.
They give up the case after sometime. A year after that, Esposito runs into Ricardo Morales, the widower of Liliana Coloto, and sees that he sits at the railway station on daily surveillance hoping that someday Gomez will pass from there. Banjamin Esposito is deeply impressed and inspired. He asks Hastings to reopen the case. And after that, the story takes turns, from mindless to mind-blowing. Who is the real murderer? Will Esposito finish his novel? Will Morales ever will be able to live a 'life'? Watch the movie to know. And again, watch out for the climax!
There was probably something between Esposito and Hastings during those old days but that something got buried as the case was ceased. The romance is unearthed when Esposito pays regular visits to Hastings for his novel. She seems to understand him more as a person. There is a twisting touch to this romance towards the end. I'm sure Ricardo Darin, who plays Benjamin Esposito, must have had gone through a tough process preparing for this role, especially mentally. The character he plays in this film is haunted by the memory of that case and wants to get rid of them and thus has decided to write his experiences and memories of the case in his novel. Also, through the case, Esposito had to face some difficulties especially when he wanted to reopen the case but everyone refused him. Towards the end, Esposito seems more of a concerning parent than a federal agent. Getting into mind of such a complex character is definitely not an easy task. But Ricardo performs exceedingly well here. Not for a single time you can complain about the characterization and some credit goes to the writer also who provided so much history and sense to the character.
Soledad Villamil as Judge Hastings provides much needed depth to the character. Hastings is beautiful and smart. She knows what is to be done and how. When Esposito comes troubled to her, she can well understand his concerns and helps him in every way possible. She has a working process of her own and helps in the case a lot with her brains and her beauty. As Ricardo Morales, Pablo Rago shines all the way. This is the character who will bring tears in your eyes in the climax. Juan Jose Campanella is writer-director of the film. To be honest, I love this 'writer-director' thing. I feel when the writer of the film becomes the director, he can do a lot more than he has imagined while writing. Juan does a brilliant job here. He knows the characters and provides them enough time to develop. Also, there is some back-story to every character which helps the audience understand them better. The story of this film is very engaging but sometimes we might feel that this is going in no direction and I think that is the beauty of the story. I'm not going to put much light on the brilliance of the story as it will lessen the fun.
In most of the scenes, there is no requirement of a background music and neither there is. But towards the end, a melodious and a dark music helps rising the mood of the film. An emotional touch in the climax brought tears in my eyes. Felix Monti's music is a treat and you ought not miss it. The music is placed at perfect places with perfect melodies. Superb job! This film won the Academy Award in 2010 beating the favorite, The White Ribbon. I haven't watched that one yet so can't compare the two. All I can say is that The Secret In Their Eyes was well deserving for the Oscar nod and I'm very happy that it got it. Also, this film bagged almost every award at Argentina Film Awards.
The Secret in Their Eyes is full of emotions and thrills. The first one- and-half hour of the film takes its time to develop and is a bit slow but the beauty of these 90 minutes resides in the next 30 minutes. This one is one of my favorite foreign movies. And definitely my favorite Argentinian movie. I will end this review with this question: How does one live a life full of nothing?
Game of Thrones: Mockingbird (2014)
Shocking!! GRRM is the most ruthless person ever.
No Spoilers ahead!!
After his great speech in the last episode, and on his demand of trial by combat, Tyrion is rescued to his cell. Jaime comes to meet him there and tells him how he's lost this golden opportunity to live out of the trial. But Tyrion says that he'll not join the castle for a crime he's not committed. Then they discuss about who's going to fight for the crown and who for Tyrion. I'll stop here about it.
In Meereen, things are going to change a little bit. The Hound is having some tough time along with Arya. Brienne and Podrik are wondering where Sansa might be and they meet an old companion of Arya in their way. And "the mockingbird" is a special treat for you to watch! Not gonna spoil that!
Once again, Peter Dinklage succeeds in sending chills down your spines with his brilliant acting along with an extremely brilliant background score. This episode is directed by Alik Sakharov, who won an emmy for his brilliant cinematography in the TV series 'Rome'. Here again, some shots will leave you mesmerized.
This is the one episode of this season, where many "important" things happen. And I mean really really important. Watch out.
Miss Lovely (2012)
Miss Lovely is a unique experiment and it succeeds rather too well.
Miss Lovely is very different. It takes you to the world never seen before. It engages you, moves you and makes you think. Like Niharika said, you can't forget this film if you've seen with an open mind.
Miss lovely is located in mid 80's. It's about two brothers, Vicky Duggal and Sonu duggal who make sex-horror films. They have very different personalities though. There comes a struggling actress, Pinky in their lives. The movie is all about ehat happens next. The C-grade world is captured just perfectly in this film. The scenes, parties and all other things look very real.
Performances are raw. And very realistic. You can feel the same as character on the screen is feeling. Nawazuddin is just brilliant. Anil, Niharika, Zeena, Menaka and other actors have done a splendid work too.
The direction, the cinematography and the narrative style is very experimental.
Must watch for cinema lovers. A movie of this uniqueness is not very often made.
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)
Better than the first one.
Review #3.
I was not very much happy with the first movie. So I didn't go to see it in a theatre. I saw it on my laptop. And I have to say, it is much better than the previous one.
The second installment of the Hunger Games Trilogy, The Hunger Games - Catching Fire is very sharply adapted from the book. The conversations, the scenarios and all other things just work perfectly for the film. The film starts with the victor tour of Katniss and Peeta. They see that things are changed in the districts. Due to these events, somehow, the third Quarter-Quell is designed in a way so that Katniss is in the games again. What happens next is the main plot.
Talking about the performances, Jennifer Lawrence is in top form. Others provide good support.
The direction is superb. The music is good too. The visual effects bring beauty to the film.
At last, I will say that it is a pleasant watch with good suspense, fine visuals and superlative performances.
Yôjinbô (1961)
Beautiful. You will feel everything that goes on.
Review #4.
Yojimbo, bodyguard in Japanese, is another beauty from Akira Kurosawa. When I watched Seven Samurai, I was very much taken aback by Kurosawa's talent as a director and as a writer. From then on, I always wanted to watch more of his creations.
Yojimbo is a samurai based film. A samurai comes to an unpleasant, miserable village, where there is a war going on between two groups of gamblers. Both of them want him as their bodyguard. But something very different is going on in his mind. What is it? Well, you'll have to see the film.
The performances are top notch. The direction is superb. Some scenes are so good that you eventually remember Seven Samurai. The writing is very tight. Music goes on with the pace and demand of the film.
The final verdict : Kurosawa's one of the finest films. Must not be missed.
Ship of Theseus (2012)
Very deep. Watch it with an open mind.
Review #2.
Ship of Theseus is a very different cinematic experience. It moves you, it makes you think about life in a different way. The characters, the narrative don't ever leave you. Anand Gandhi is definitely a talent to look out for.
There are three different stories. Each with a different plot but same destination. The first one brings you in life of a girl who had lost her eyesight due to cornea and does photography. The second one is about a monk who should have an organ transplant. And the third one is about a stockbroker who just had a kidney transplant.
The stories instantaneously connect with you. It's hard to decide which one of the three is the best. I would say the three altogether make one of the finest movies ever made in India. And it would not be wrong to say that it is the best Indian movie of the year.
The performances are very real. Specially Neeraj Sir. The direction and cinematography are exceptional.
At last, I would like to say that It is not a usual Indian movie. Go with your brains and you'll experience something you've never experienced before.