I couldn’t believe I was laughing to tears sitting in a cinema hall while watching a Hindi film. But there I was. My laughter went on when I realised that nobody else in the hall was laughing with me. There was Sumant Mastkar playing an old man whose last name was the same as the producer and co-screenwriter of the film, sitting in a wheelchair and offering some wisdom to the film’s protagonist. But the words he spoke were written... 

How many times do you get to sympathize with a suicide bomber in movies? Before you can say Manisha Koirala from Dil Se, let me shoosh you by saying that this is intelligent cinema we are talking about here. Intelligence in comedy, or wit, as we call it, is the primary ingredient in a movie that tackles an issue like Jihad or Martyrdom. As a fan of satire and an adversary of shoddy, one-sided American war movies, I kneel before Chris Morris’... 

Fresh from awakening an entire generation, tugging with all his might at our heartstrings with a moving, if simplistic portrayal of dyslexia, and then packing the biggest wallop by patronizingly urging us all to follow our dreams, Bollywood’s greatest purveyor of high-concept trash (“socially conscious, par masala maar ke!”), and arguably it’s most cunning con artist, Aamir Khan fires another shot in that worthy(!) direction,... 

Pandiraj's vamsam Village movies, once a thriving genre in Thamizh films, kinda went out of vogue in 2000s till Ameer’s Paruthi Veeran happened in 2007. Ever since there has been a spate of village ruffian movies making its way to the box office every month. While most of them chased away the movie goers owing to excessive violence, quite a few of them have managed to hold the attention of the film lovers and entertain general public... 

KICK-ASS DIRECTED BY MATTHEW VAUGHN What a kick ass movie. Concept wise this is a bit similar to Defendor. A nerdy looser without any superpowers tries to become a super hero. But it’s miles ahead of Defendor and most other superhero films. A real gem. From the plotting, to the characters to the fights, the violence and the superbad villains. There are just too many cool things here. …  Read More →

Down to the Bone Directed by Debra Granik (2005) Written by Debra Granik, Jean-Michel Dissard, Anne Kugler, Rich Lieske, Melissa Lohman, Alex MacInnis, Joyce Romano I’ll start off by saying that this is a pretty hard film to get your hands on. It released in 2005 and won awards at Sundance and LA Film Critics Association, before scoring a super crap distribution deal…  Read More →

For almost a couple of years now, movies that i’ve watched have included a certain sense of seriousness – of reality, of the world, of injustice, of stupid governments, of everything that we think is wrong with the world…these movies and documentaries manage to tell you stuff which your parents don’t, teachers didn’t and the media never will…naturally, they excited me. But the problem of enjoying something... 

Janmon ke saathi… Overheard a ‘One Shot’ Review: “Dekhne mein cute hai re, chhapri log ko acting karne nai aata hai” Rating: 2 Stars. Strictly for the Lyrics & Music. One for ‘ Dhatar Dhatar ‘ & another for ‘ Mann Lafanga ‘ May be I would have been better off & a happier flake, had I written just a music review for Pradeep Sar’s Lafangey Parindey . Why did I watch the... 

And not just because it’s about a family about two Lesbian middle aged mothers raising teens. Though there is enough in the premise to pique your interest, if the subject hadn’t been handled with the sensitivity and maturity that it deserved, it could have fallen flat. Which is not to say that the movie doesn’t have its moments when it surprises you. Like how Julianne Moore who plays one of the mothers reacts when her son, “Laser”... 

“What did I do to deserve this?” Exactly, what did Jared Leto do to deserve this, to be digitally mauled into a frighteningly realistic depiction of himself, eighty years older? I’m unsure of who or what is the culprit here, actual makeup or CG or both, but the desired effect is a success. In fact, it’s rare to see Jared Leto onscreen in his real-life image. His name appears now and then…  Read More →

With the distasteful political farce being played out in the name of to-be-held Commonwealth Games, Peepli [Live] can be a cathartic experience. More so for those who prefer an artist’s rendition of reality to a spiced up [mis]representation of facts that often goes for news these days. As Nattha (Omkar Das) stares at the Lal Bahadur (a bright green hand pump) standing shallow (unfitted) but proud in the middle of the only room in the hut,... 

Tempuuuuu The image on the poster above is that of a public transport that I used to use for some time till I could afford any better. In Indore, for some reason, it was called (trying hard to get the pronunciation right in English: TAEMPUU ). The sight & the sound of that modest means of transport helps me in getting back to ground, when I occasionally take flight into my fancy world of glitz & glamour loaded world of Hindi cinema.... 

Jane Austen had feared that her character Emma would not be very popular although she herself liked the heroine of her novel. Perhaps around the year 1814 (when a woman-author like Austen had to publish her works anonymously) there were reasons why a good-looking, clever, independent, rich and a little spoilt 21-year old would be disliked, but today these would not seem to be unpleasant qualities in a woman. Especially when Emma is otherwise... 

I thought I was done with my share of animated movies. I never found them interesting for some reason. I am yet to decipher the reason for not finding them enchanting. As I kept whiling my Saturday evening chatting with a friend, he recommended I should see “Sita Sings the Blues”. The name sounded exciting but then I was told that it is an animated movie about the Ramayana with Jazz vocals…  Read More →

dilli billi For some inexplicable reason immediately after I came out of watching Aaisha, memories of an old friend Kartik Krishnan and his post on Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na came gushing by. Totally uncalled for… but there it was like loose motions or some such… Now before I am blamed once again for comparing two films, let me just clarify, what I am trying to say is that just as Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na was about elite Bombay, Aaisha is... 

It will soon be a week since Enthiran had its audio launch in Malaysia with much fanfare, but no one is talking about the music of the movie. I have been waiting for someone to post a review of the songs, but now I am tired of waiting. So here I am, bursting on all seams, to give my first reaction. Yes, its not a music review per se but just my reaction. Like all Rahman albums, I had been waititng for this one too. And finally its out and its... 

The Darjeeling Limited Directed by Wes Anderson, 2007 Written by Wes Anderson, Roman Coppola and Jason Schwartzman. Three brothers take a trip across India to bond, find enlightenment, and meet their mother. Each of them has had a recent brush with grief/pain. Francis (Owen Wilson) crashed his motorbike, possibly deliberately, and spends most of the film with his face bandaged. Jack (Jason Schwartzman) had a terrible breakup and obsessively... 

Let me start with a confession, this isn’t a regular movie review that I’m attempting. By now I think quite a few people have already done that (including on PFC) and what I’m trying now is to share my feelings about the movie. So here I go on this personal account of how I look at Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai (OUATIM from hereon). Let me …  Read More →

Though, there is hardly any plot to reveal, the road ahead is marked by spoilers, kindly tread with caution. I am a 19 year old in the last year of his college and it’s been a very intriguing and educating experience. I am studying Bachelors of Mass Media, an almost brilliant and part ad hoc course started by Mumbai University to train students pursuing alternative career choices in advertising and journalism. Many students from my class are... 

The life and times of Haji Mastaan, the origins of Dawood Ibrahim , the role of establishment in creating criminals are enough to create good drama, failing which curiosity is certainly guaranteed. Once Upon a Time… is presented with high Bollywood drama, replete with cliché, full of high octane dialogues and complete with song-and-dance sequences. The film fails to engage as in provide any dramatic insight in the character or the context;...