xvaasan Reviews

Syriana (2005)

Its an epic...

[10/10 · 14 October 2007]

Syriana portrays an ongoing silent form of terrorism in the world where a superpower economy feeds on the dreams of a small nation for its own selfishness.

I thank the following people for bringing out this movie for the general audience. Stephen Gaghan, Alexandre Desplat, Robert Elswit, Tim Squyres, George Clooney, Matt Damon, Jeffrey Wright, Chris Cooper, Alexander Siddig and other actors and technicians. I thank Rober Baer for being its inspiration. Without any of them, a 2 hour movie capturing everything expected out of an epic in a tiny time space would not have been possible.

I have nothing more to say. I'm speechless.

The Number 23 (2007)

Get Obsessed!

[8/10 · 5 August 2007]

The tale of obsession begins with a bored man-next-door getting his hands on a book gifted by his wife on his birthday. As the pages are turned one by one, he finds that the book begins to mystify his very being. It quotes events similar to the ones that he remembers to have had happened in his own life. With the book leading him through the mysterious maze of events, he deliberately enters an obsession. His battle in and out of that obsession is "The Number 23".

Its a surprise gift by Joel Schumacher. The director who is famous for glorifying Batman in Batman Forever and also responsible for the closure of the franchise with his infamous Batman and Robin. He has provided an intellectual treatment to the script which is expected of David Fincher, Tony Scott and the likes. Nevertheless, the touch is fresh. Immense amount of interesting research has gone into make this movie. Several interesting subjects like the Number Theory, Obsessive Psychological Behaviour and many have been discussed in a crowd-engaging style. Schumacher is at his smoothest with screenplay and direction.

The addition of matured scenes, though befitting the violent emotional web, are more than adequate. Probably they were left like that to draw in a large audience. The induction of the obsession from one person to another is portrayed like possession which could draw varied opinions from the audience. The fact that a mind that remembers a disturbed long past, will also remember the obsession and the recent past, is completely neglected, which causes a camouflaged flaw in the screenplay.

Cinematography and Art Direction has brightened the script vividly. This could easily be the most challenging role in Virginia Madsen's career. She has performed like a natural. Long way to go, Madsen. The real jewel of the movie is the performance by the man who has commanded our laughter for nearly 2 decades. Jim Carrey has intemperately rendered an exceptionally perplexed role with such fluidity that he has made us bow to all the emperors commanding the artistic prowess of the genre in which he was born on-screen. Comedy. An actor who masters comedy, masters it all. Isn't it so true?

The Number 23. Obsession at its best.

The Departed (2006)

A Pointless Police-Gangster Movie

[6/10 · 20 March 2007]

I haven't watched Infernal Affairs. I watched The Departed and The Departed alone. And I watched it twice to see whats there in this movie. It has all the hardcore elements of any gangster movie which could have only come from the master of gangster movies - Martin Scorsese, and no one else. What I don't understand is, why even the idea of a gangster extends to the Police Department. I don't expect to see a clean police but they don't seem much different from the gangsters portrayed in this film. Extremely shameful dialogues. The wits were cool and enjoyable though, throughout the movie.

Jack Nicholson has done one of the most irritating roles I have ever seen. He didn't act. He has lived his role. Thats the mark of a great actor like him. He has done it excellent. Even though, the role given to him is too irritating for a movie-goer. It made me wanna look elsewhere when he came on-screen.

Matt Damon has done really well. I have high respects for him since Ripley and Bourne. His expressions are natural but sometimes he seems to be quite confused of his role, which I believe any actor would feel if they are given such a script and such a character.

DiCaprio is wonderful. His role absolutely suits him. I think he is the only one in the movie who must felt comfortable with what was given to him and enjoyed doing it. He shines throughout the movie from an after-school trooper to a beaten-up statie on the roof top.

Mark Wahlberg should have turned down this offer. Swearing and too much swearing. Any guy could have done his role. He is a great actor but he is wasted in this movie.

As far as the movie is concerned, its well made. Top notch direction and cinematography. The script and screenplay are too shaky. Some of the dialogues are tried to sound like Pulp Fiction or Goodfellas. But none of them carry any interesting message. Most of them are, in two words, boring and pointless. Its really difficult to believe that someone who made a masterpiece like Casino could make The Departed and that too after so many years of experience.

I consider Casino and Goodfellas as two of the greatest and purest gangster movies of all time. Scorsese has excelled in both of them. I really wonder why should he have done this movie after all. I am glad to see that it has gone to IMDb #71. I am also glad to see a lot of people liking this movie. I only wish I could share their affection for it.

Watch it once. You may like it for the multi-mega-starrer aspect, Scorsese's masterful direction and for the suspense in the end. But you may not like it for the movie on the whole. The only question which I had at the end of the second screening was why this movie got the Best Picture Oscar. Some of you might feel the same, some of you might not. I'll leave it up to you.

The Departed should have never been started.

An American Haunting (2005)

A Predictable Semi-fiction

[5/10 · 27 May 2006]

Acting. Thats the most noticeable thing you will find in this movie. All the characters have performed well and acted according to the period of the story. I haven't watched Bell Witch Haunting (2004) but I have read a lot about the original legend. Instead of retelling the actual event, this movie revolves around it, giving us an entirely different interpretation of the haunting. Also, it tells nothing about General Andrew Jackson who visited Bell's family during that time and later became the American President. Its worthy to note that he was once quoted as saying - "I'd rather face the whole British Army, than face the Bell Witch again".

Around 1818, a farming family living in Tennessee is haunted by a spirit, the most affected ones being the daughter Betsy and the father John Bell. While the father's health deteriorates, the daughter gets all poltergeistic treatment. Slowly, they suspect the woman (also witch?) Kate Batts who previously has some legal issues with John and curses him that he and his daughter will suffer for his deeds. The haunting gets worse and the family members try to fight back the ghost in their own ways. By the end, when they seem to have abandoned their faith, the spirit itself reveals the reason for its existence.

The scary scenes are predictable but good. The notable ones are the first major attack on Betsy, the swing encounter, Richard's questions, John's visions, the cave and the best of all is the chariot ride. Excellent cinematography. A few good things in this movie keep us on the edge and makes us wait for the best part. But that best part never comes.

The fictional ending, though unexpected and slightly shocking, is not conceived properly. The movie begins with a Night-Shyamalan-like atmosphere. Most of it feels like as if you are watching The Village. Later it goes on to remind us of The Poltergeist, The Exorcist, Child's Play and several others, even The Omen. The ending is tried in a Lynchian manner - just tried. Sadly, it doesn't register in us at all.

Overall, this movie has good acting, good cinematography, few honestly scaring scenes and a different interpretation to the original Bell Witch Haunting. Nevertheless, it has a confused screenplay, half-baked script and an overhasty direction. The slow scenes are empty and the fast scenes are packed. So the balance is knocked out and what results is boredom. Watch it for the good aspects but make sure to take lots of popcorn inside the theatre. You'll need them to stay awake.

Darna Zaroori Hai (2006)

Dar Gaya Na...

[8/10 · 5 May 2006]

Wanna get scared? OK. Let me try. Now? Now? Now? Scary yet? No? Really? How about now? No? Oh! You are beginning to laugh! OK. Laugh. Laugh. Laugh. Laugh.

BAM!

Thats the formula Ram Gopal Varma has come up with, for his audience, in this mercilessly shocking movie.

0. Boo...

A never-scared, self-satisfied, endlessly-laughing man, watches Darna Mana Hai in an empty theatre, hates it to the core and takes a shortcut through a graveyard, against his mother's advice. There...

1. The Professor

A Biotech student visits his professor at his house to clear his doubts before examination. The meeting turns into an annoyance when the professor behaves troubled with something. The student prepares to leave. Then...

2. One Call Please

A man, whose car breaks down, knocks the door of an unusual couple for help. As he gets more comfortable with them and as they display their new unusual hobby, they discover that their meeting was not just a coincidence.

3. Life is Risky

An ambitious Insurance Policy man approaches a middle-class family to impress them with his "Life is Risky" tactics. While he is constantly shown only the door, he even goes a step further in completing his target.

4. The Director

A romantic-movie director wants to make a horror movie. On the way to his out-of-city bungalow, where he decides to write the climax, he gives lift to a stranded girl in his car. As she narrates her story, his job becomes easier than he had imagined.

5. Ma...

A young man who saves a girl from running over by his car on a rainy night, wakes up to find himself in a lock-up, accused for a crime which he has never committed. As a stranger visits him in the station, the truth that unfolds then, seems stranger than fiction.

6. Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

Six brave children, misusing their school picnic freedom, hike in a forest and arrive at a haunted house where they meet an old lady who lives alone without fear. As they get friendly with each other, she challenges to scare them by narrating six frightening stories. While she stops after the fifth, the bravest kid asks her, "Where is the sixth one, Dadi Ma?". He will be told.

It would take too long to review each story. Therefore, I'd like to put it in a brief way. Each story has its own theme and its own shock value, though, a few similarities can be felt between The Couple and The Director (in both one tries to fool another with a scare) and also between The Director and Ma (the car, dark road, rain). Nevertheless, the rest are unique among them.

"Life is Risky" devastates a common man's sense of self-security. It jolts but doesn't scare. Rajpal Yadav is greaaaatttt as the Insurance man. Sunil and Sonali just fit in the role. "The Director" is beautifully made. When Mallika narrates her story in dark, it somehow reminded me of the song "Ye Sard" from RGV's Bhoot. I expected more but unfortunately it ended too soon and made me feel "Is that all?". Anil Kapoor and Mallika have done whats necessary. Nothing more. "The Couple" is slow, sensuous, playful, scary and predictable. You just cant forget that smile! Makrand shines in his role. Arjun and Bipasha have done a good job. "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" is the movie's central story. Ava Mukherji is, in one word, scary! The children have dutifully performed as they have been instructed.

Now the three best episodes. "Ma..." is a brilliant tale. Randeep is wow! Zakir is unbelievably superb. Rasika excels in her role. Are you going to Poona? In car? In the night? In rain? Beware! "Boo..." is the Prologue. Manoj Pahwa. Man! What a carelessly cool actor! His mother is a good diversion. She has done well too. Sorry. I wont say anything more than this.

Of all the seven stories, "The Professor" steals the show. Amitabh! The icon of Bollywood gives one more earth shattering performance! How many more styles does he have! This episode stops you, shocks you and gives you shivers, cos you don't know whats in it and whats gonna come next. Ritesh has rendered a befitting performance. He seems more scared of Amitabh's acting skills than the scenario he is in. Cos the old man rules!

This movie on the whole has more fear and shock value than Darna Mana Hai, although I should accept that except for "The Professor", DMH had much better story plots. In my opinion, the most shocking of all the 14 stories in both DMH and DZH is "The Professor" and the scariest of all is "The Teacher" from Darna Mana Hai. Overall, DMH didn't scare as much as DZH, but it made us squirm and feel creepy cos of the reality which the stories reflected. It left a long lasting impression in us. On the other hand, the shocks that DZH has in store, will hit you hard and cruel with sudden force, only when you naively think that its time to relax. Thats merciless! It shocks you. It keeps you excited. It makes you giggle with fear. And its fun. Its a different experience on the whole. Feel sorry for yourself, if you miss this great movie. And feel more sorry while watching it...

Hey! Look who is behind you!

Ghajini (2005)

Disgrace to the original!

[3/10 · 2 March 2006]

What a waste of talent! One of my favourite actors, Surya stars as Sanjay Ramasamy, the rich businessman who, after an incident, suffers from an incurable short-term memory loss. He has done an excellent job right from the beginning till the end, as handsome, romantic Sanjay and the guy suffering from memory loss (is his name Ghajini? it was nowhere mentioned!). He is the spinal cord of the movie. Asin is graceful as his lively love and cute when she narrates the Bombay airport story. She has also shown maturity in the scenes when the inevitable occurs. Nayanthara. Sorry. Wrong number. The villain, Pradeep Rawat (he is better with his turban-clad look as in Lagaan) looks repulsive as well as acts immaturely and forcefully tries to prove us that he is the villain and we should fear him. Grrrr! Total Misfit. The worst is when you have to see too much of him (I don't want to spoil that horrible suspense). "Oru Maalai Ilaveyyil Neram" is composed, sung, picturised and acted out beautifully. Nevertheless, I squirmed during Asin's introductory song. It was indigestibly disgusting. Background music was alright and repetitive. The stunts were only noisy, dull and with no innovation at all. But one must watch Surya in it. And his "run" while chasing the car! Wow! He as always is superb.

Now I come to the most important person involved in this movie. The director A. R. Murugadoss. Many of us well know that apart from the romantic scenes, the long boring water fight in the climax, new form of titles (have you seen Brad Pitt's "Fight Club" titles? ringing a bell somewhere?) and a few other scenes, the rest of the movie right from trailer till story is a blind confused copy of Memento (2000 - IMDb RANK - 22). I sincerely appreciate the director for wanting to remake it with some adaptations and let our people have a feel of it. Its a noble desire. Agreed. But I really don't understand why he had to mutilate it, in the process of doing so!!! If any of you have a chance to watch Memento, please don't miss it. When such a brilliant tale exists, why one has to make a movie by cutting bits and pieces of it and making another with some masala and action tailor-made for the Tamil screen? Memento portrays a handsome looking smart and brilliant guy (even during memory loss) who meticulously plans his everyday with pictures and tattoos on his body after having incorporated the illness. He remembers "everything" before the brutal incident but is only unable to remember the "new incidents" for a long time. In Ghajini, the hero is a psychologically affected person who lives in a shabby manner and even forgets people whom he met before the tragedy.

Short-term memory loss doesn't have time limit. It has to do with senses and situations. But here, in exactly 15 minutes he forgets. God! Please save the Tamil movie-watchers! How many brilliant scenes are there in Memento to exhibit the loop holes and subtleties of his illness! All were wasted in this. And the main plot of the movie... The truth about what really happened! Where did that go???? Lost cos it wont be accepted by Tamil audience? Com'on guys! Stop making movies for heroes and their images! We Tamils can watch a great movie told in a great way. Please don't make such silly adaptations and blame us always with "They only like to watch this" dialogues. We are an excellent audience. Mind it.

Except for the beautifully made romantic scenes and a dedicated performance by Surya and Asin, Ghajini is an attempt to completely disgrace one of the best movies of the world. Either the director has considered all of us incapable of understanding the story in Memento or he himself couldn't understand the movie. Therefore, I recommend him to exercise the use of English subtitles or better hire an English-Tamil translator before going on to adapt another Hollywood masterpiece.

Please don't take this comment as an ill-mannered one. As a genuine fan of good movies, I put forth it with utmost honesty. None can appreciate my words unless and until one has watched Memento. Imagine remaking "Titanic" with fight scenes on the ship deck, duet songs with many dancers and some mother-sister sentiment and a long dialogue by Jack before he drowns in the sea. Its disgrace to the original. You'll know what I mean, when you watch Memento. I sincerely request you to watch it, just once.

Vaasan

Batman Begins (2005)

The Original Batman Legend

[10/10 · 20 June 2005]

What will you want to see when you go for a Batman movie which tells you of how Bruce Wayne becomes the Dark Knight of Gotham? An introduction to his childhood, his deepest fears which become the stimulus for what grows within him, his aimless wanderings around the world, his methodical training, his realization to where he should put himself in this world despite what his training demands him of, his preparations for his new life, the slow and very slow ways of introducing his secret self, teasing glimpses of his style and action, and a prodigious ending where all of what he is, is displayed full, as the colossal BATMAN.

This movie has it all.

Christian Bale is one of my favorite actors since Equilibrium (2002). He has given a very responsible and matured performance. I liked Michael Keaton. I liked Val Kilmer. And Bale? From his post-adolescent age, through the wanderer period and till the end as a superhero, he has shown significant differences in every stage of his acting. He is born for this role.

Bale has given a performance through which the subtleties of his character of a Batman growing from scratches are very carefully depicted. For an instance, even after wearing the hood, his manners and ways of delivering speech are full of emotions. He shouts, swears, worries. But as his personality builds on and on, he becomes more silent, more methodic, more dark and more a Batman.

Liam Neeson is as usual the screen stunner. He is as cool as he was as Qui Gon Jinn (Star Wars - Episode I) and as Godfrey (Kingdom of Heaven). I loved watching him train Bale exhibiting his arrogant confidence. Morgan Freeman comes only in a few scenes but makes his mark. His witty talks and the proud-but-humble way he displays his inventions to Bale are some on the lighter side of the movie. Hats off to Sir Michael Caine as Alfred. No one else would suite better, particularly when he has to say - "Never".

Every character and every scene has been chosen properly. The deliberate minor imperfections in clothing, weaponry and action scenes vividly reminds us that this is a prequel portraying a beginner and not an advanced superhero. The gripping score from Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard constitutes the power drive for those amazing 141 on-screen minutes. Ultimately, the movie has justified its title.

I have never seen Batman so dark and so powerful. This movie is a dream come true for a die-hard fan like me. Extending his black wings the Dark Knight vanishes in flight before we could even realize it. Nolan has teased us to the core but has made sure to leave those awing flashes behind our eyes which tells us of... what Batman means!

Racing Stripes (2005)

Watch Stripes run...

[10/10 · 7 June 2005]

Though I have been a dedicated visitor to IMDb since I have heard about it first in 2000, this... is my first user comment for a movie. And I am very proud to give it for Racing Stripes.

What shall I say about this movie? Talking animals, American humour, words, phrases and scenes which need to be in a racing movie. Is that all? No.

This is the story of a zebra who with the help of his animal friends and love of the daughter of his master, achieves the unthinkable - a race against the horses.

With a single zebra, these people have woven and created a celluloid which comes with ounces and ounces of passion, all for free. Right from the first scene when Stripes is introduced until the last flash of the race, passion is one word with which we are gripped. Stripes, the hero of the movie, steals our hearts with its innocent expressions, cute barking and an iron-fisted ambition.

A humble movie with a great animal team, good actors, visual effects, applaudable cinematography and editing,... wait. There is something which I am missing. Yes. Those unmistakable moments when the sounds and visuals speak to us. Flashes, slow motions, brilliant ups and downs of music and much much more which made all those animals' expressions visible and audible even when they don't speak. The shot by shot translation of the moods and motivation for the racing zebra build the whole movie.

Leave all to your imagination. Watch Stripes begin that run. Those minutes, I couldn't close my eyelids even for a routine blink.