The Dirty Picture : by Milan Luthria

The Dirty Picture .. ever since the trailer hit the marquee .. eyeballs started rolling!

       Vidya of all the actresses has pushed the envelope , removing the veil.

       

Unabashed , Luscious , Dauntless , 'Silk'

Words , Sharp , Wit , Ungenerous , 'Emraan'

Lewd , Cocky , Narcissistic , Superstar , 'Naseer'

Loser , Writer , Timid , Weak-Kneed , 'Tushhar'

 Titilating , Hooking screenplay

Parody of the 80's

Saucy dialogues par excellence

'Filmein sirf teen cheezon ke wajah se chalti hain, entertainment, entertainment, entertainment..aur main entertainment hoon' 

Balan , buxom (hero)ine is back and how!  With gusto!

Ooh la la ..  Surrender to her talent!

Rating : 3.5/5.0

Rockstar : by Imtiaz Ali

Rockstar is the latest offering from the very talented young turk by the name of Imtiaz Ali who is just 3 films old.

Ranbir plays Janardhan Jhakar, a wag who transforms into a forbidden and splenetic Rockstar, rechristened as Jordan.

Nargis plays Jhakhar's love interest who makes her debut with this film is half Pakistani , half Czech model.

Jakhar is in love with music and needs to feel the pain for becoming a superlative musician as advised by his confidante , Khatana played impressively by Kumud Mishra.

The initial film moments bring a smile to your face as JJ tries woo Heer(Nargis) and stalks her to get attention.

Imtiaz Ali , the director has showed great sense of maturity and depth in dealing with a complex relationship paradigm between JJ and Heer. There are no simple answers to the  passion and love for each other inspite of Heer getting married and moving to Prague.

The second half  meanders though with the affair in European heartland and makes way for an open ended yet poignant finale.

Nargis is ordinary and her diction and performance left a lot to be desired. A special tribute to the original rockstar in Shammi ji portraying a shehnai virtuoso.

The abutment of Ranbir's portrayal of Jordan in the post interval reels with his goofiness in the first half proves what mettle this actor is made of !!

He has left his contemporaries far behind in the race . It’s a gripping performance – from Janardan’s edginess and non confidence to Jordan’s volatile self! – Ranbir has absolutely nailed it! 

Sadda Haq , an anthem as we speak , would not be the same without Ranbir making the track his own on stage. He literally wraps in Mohit Chauhan's crackerjack renditions all along, convincing me of Jordan's pain!

A.R. Rahman is now a nifty musician , an untouchable force who is the backbone of this cinematic experience. The way his notes showcase the unpredictability yet innocence of Jordan , the brash Rockstar deserves an ovation -  Sadda Haq , Jo Bhi Main , Nadaan Parinde are my picks.

Morrison & Cobain make way for an Indian version to root for , a true blue hysteria inducing Rocker!

Rating : 4.0/5.0

Rabbit Hole : by John Cameron Mitchell

Rabbit Hole is a heart trending story of a couple who are struggling to heal after the sudden accidental death of their son , Danny.

Story begins with Becca and Howie played by Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart respectively are in deep mourning after their 4 year old son dies in an accident crash when he ran out to chase their pet dog.

Becca wants to get rid all the memories of her son by giving away his clothes , toys & other belongings , move out of the house and other distressing objects.

Howie is angry on Becca for trying to eradicate Danny's fond memories and things which may remind of the kid.

Th couple also join a self-help group , where in people come together in grief and share their sorrows.

Becca is upset by the talk in the group and is not willing to attend it any further.

On fine day , Becca follows the Jason , the teenage driver to ran over Danny and starts conversing with him.

The conversations between the two makes Becca realize that Jason is truly feeling the guilt and she makes him know that it was not his fault.

The bickering between Howie and Becca over her meetings with the teenage boy takes the film to another level.

Nicole Kidman play role her character with dignity yet her downcastness & anguish is palpable.
Aaron Eckhart is just about ok.

Rabbit Hole is a cinematic experience with a positivity surrounding it.

An emotional & tragic journey of parents overcoming the loss of a child !

Rating: 3.0/5.0

Downfall (Der Untergang) : by Oliver Hirschbiegel

 The Downfall is a 2004 German Film based on the last 10 days of Adolf Hitler in his Berlin Bunker during WWII.

It is a cumulation of memoirs from one of the Hitler's secretary named  'Junge' and 'Speer' , German Minister of Armaments in Hitler's reign.

Bruno Ganz plays Adolf Hitler , the tyrant Nazi leader who has been humanized in this film despite protest from German public when the film came out in 2004.

The movie transports us to a bunker in the heart of the city of Berlin which is under siege of the Russians. It has been cornered and there is no way for the Germans to escape the inevitable.

Hitler loses his sense of reality that the war is all but lost! . His ego is burnt when his esteemed and loyal soldiers flee the country deserting him in the trenches.

The autocrat appoints new successor and makes him in charge to stop the Russian attack ,which is far from achievable.

He marries Eva Braun and orders all his officers not to surrender in front of the Red Army. When the realization dawns upon him , he is left with no choice and decides to commit suicide with his wife Eva.

Hitler in his farewell to the bunker staff - 'Tomorrow, millions of people will curse me, but fate has taken its course.'

Hitler to his officers on German civilians , his own people - 'The German people chose their fate and now their little throats are being cut.' - No Pity , No Remorse!

The film is true to the events of 1945 and depicts the downfall of the Nazi rule with command.

Hitler played by Ganz is a remarkable performance , be it from his anger to his mannerism to his walk to his Austrian dialect , simply reverent!

I saw it with subtitles since the film is shot in German language and it made me sit up & transport myself to the era of genocide by the Nazi's and its ruination!

Deserving of the Oscar nomination , 'Der Untergang' is an epic war story diving into the psyche of the dictatorial Nazi ruler ..

Rating : 4.0/5.0

Ra.One : by Anubhav Sinha

Random Access version One  - Ra.One is an ambitious venture from the creative den of Superstar SRK.

Directed by Anubhav Sinha ( a la' Dus, Cash and Tum Bin fame) , it is the most expensive film made in Indian film history (Rs 175 Crore)

All said and done , Ra.One is a mixed bag with its share of moments , appealing the most to the hardcore gamers of the world & kids.

Shekhar (SRK) is a gaming employee for Barron industries. His son Prateek (played by Armaan) finds his father uncool and chicken hearted.

Prateek is embarrassed by Shekar's attempts to woo him and his antics fall flat. Kareena plays Shekhar's wife Sonia who is writing a thesis on swear words ( what crudeness!? ) and is a housewife.

Shekhar sets out to develop a unique game where the villain is near unconquerable! - christened Ra.One (played by Arjun Rampal)

The good guy is named G.One (SRK). The trials of the game go well , with subsequent uncomforming behaviour with the motion sensor body suits. Ra.One starts to control the game and in a bid to destroy Lucifer (Prateek's gaming handle) , comes out of the box !!

The film boasts of state of art VFX and there is no doubt on the technical achievement here. Some noteworthy sequences include :

1. London Car Chase
2. CST Terminal Wreckage
3. Ra.One & G.One showdown at the car parking lot
4. Re-construction of the G-One and Ra-One from the lego like blocks!

Kareena lends the ooomph factor and she has never looked as gorgeous as Sonia in this flick. The corny-cheesy chemistry between SRK and herself is in a bad taste and falsifies all claims for this to be a kiddo genre.

Rampal plays the title role with menace and also gets the best lines in the movie.

Chammak Challo lights up the celluloid , one heck of a catchy song!  ALAS , the choreography by Hegde is insipid.

Screenplay of the film should have been more taut with the showdown between the good-evil halted by tacky dialogues , non humorous anecdotes , cheap thrills (Sanjay , PC & 3 Lee Girls).

SRK's insecurities as the King Khan comes to the fore with an attempt to pack in everything possible. A superhero flick should be true to the genre instead of being a masala potpourri.

We wish for a Romantic Avatar next time than an Blue Eyed Cyborg ..

Rehash of T2 , Iron Man & Jackie Chan flicks ..
Saving grace Kareena & VFX ..
High Reaching and Power Loving pursuit .. G.One with the Wind!

Rating : 3.0/5.0

Blue Valentine : by Derek Cianfrance

Hollywood traditionally makes slapstick romantic flicks which are high on crudeness and college humour.

Blue Valentine is truly a remarkable performance driven film about two individuals. An unknown director Derek has come up with simple storytelling experience and has extracted the best out of his limited resources.

Dean (Ryan Gosling) & Cindy (Michelle Williams) play a married couple at rural Pennsylvania with a daughter named Frankie. Cindy is a nurse and Dean works as a painter.

The film inter cuts between their young romance courtship days and the troubled marriage of the present. The juxtaposition of the scenes depicting their happy days of love and bitter arguments of today is done with tact.

The relationship goes downhill day by day as Cindy is totally engrossed in family chores with Dean not contributing at all.

One fine day , to resurrect their lost fascination , Dean takes her to a motel where they end up in an argument.

Dean is drunk big time & it results in a violent fracas at Cindy's clinic. The conclusion of the film is really despondent & despairing.

The performances of the couple are extremely natural and uninhibited.Michelle Williams is one of the talents to watch out for and truly deserved the Oscar nod.

Ryan Gosling is indeed a good actor and can be seen as a bright star in the making.

“How can you trust your feelings if they disappear?” Cindy asks.

A Tragic Side of  LOVE!

Rating : 3.5/5.0

Good Will Hunting : by Gus Van Sant

I so wanted to see Good Will Hunting which came out in 1997 ,the same year as Titanic.

Finally caught this flick last week , and I must admit it was worth the wait!

Good Will Hunting is a drama film written by the actors Matt Damon and Ben Affleck who also act in this venture.

Matt Damon plays the title role of Will Hunting who is a young laborer going through an emotional turmoil and needs therapy sessions.

Will is a mathematics genius and exceptional with numbers. Professor Gerald from MIT is amazed by this prodigy , and gives him an option to study advance math.

On the condition of saving Will from being convicted of the assault crime & sessions with a therapist , Math learning starts.

The professor tries many a therapists but Hunting treats them with disdain. The film takes off to a new level  , with the advent of psychology professor Sean played by Robin Williams.

Robin Williams plays Sean brilliantly here ; showing utmost patience with the disturbed yet highly talented boy. He is able to overcome Hunting's non responsiveness and after a few sessions , he starts bonding with Sean.

The romance between Will and Skylar is one his emotional struggles in life. He shares everything with Sean resulting in a  strong trust between the two.

Sean motivates him to tap his full potential and reach greater heights in life. Will rejects his plea and does not give an honest answer to his future goals.

Matt Damon plays Will's best friend , Chuckie who pushes Will to accept a neat job offer arranged by the Math professor.

The film culminates at high point where Sean and Hunting have their last therapy session which is absolutely heart warming and heart trending!

The performances here are extraordinaire with Robin Williams taking the honours in "a never seen before taskmaster role" , a well deserved Oscar!

Both Matt Damon and Ben Affleck did a brilliant job to write an original screenplay bagging them the Oscar too.

Alas! , Titanic called the shots in 1997 ....  but 'Good Will Hunting' will remain one of the more deserving films to be seen & revered.

"Relationships enhance your self-worth"  ; "Go find your true potential"

Rating : 3.5/5.0