The Movies I Liked

[venkatcr]

Another movie that bombed at the box office but I liked a lot is Rann.

Literally everyone including Amitabh have acted very well. I liked the acting of two people very much.

One was that of a new actor Sudeep, who plays the role of Jai Malik son of Harvardhan Malik, played by Amitabh Bachan. When he sees the empire built by his father crumbling and clutches at straws to protect it, one can clearly see the emotional conflict going on in his mind. On one side is the deep belief in truth and morality instilled by his father. On the other side is the large amounts of money being offered to save the empire. He clearly portrays the anguish and turmoil in his mind at the end very well. Sudeep will make an excellent character actor. He is not glamorous enough to be a hero.

Another was that of Purab Shastri played by Riteish Deshmukh. The boy has acted brilliantly. As a fresh college graduate, he is absolutely in awe of Harshvardhan Malik, and tries to emulate him every way. When he sees the seedy side of the news empire run by Harshvardhan, he, instead of losing hope, sticks to his principles and, at the end, throws everything at the feet of Harshvardhan literally challenging him to act on the evidence he has collected.

Kudos to Ram Gopal Verma for taking such a movie in Hindi. No songs, no romance, no heroics, no sex. Just simple and straight story telling.

I want to see 'Striker'. What little I have heard about it, seems to be a good story.

And I am going to see Zinda again, thanks to our great Vinay.

Cheers

 

[srinisundar]

I want to see 'Striker'. What little I have heard about it, seems to be a good story.

Cheers

Next time when i meet you , i will give "striker".

 

[idlebrain]

Sundeep will make an excellent character actor. He is not glamorous enough to be a hero.
Cheers

Sudeep is a Big Star in Kannada industry.For the character he was given that look otherwise he is handsome.RGV introduced him to bollywood with Phoonk which got another tremendous performance from him.

 

[venkatcr]

Thanks Idlebrain. Removed the incorrect 'n' from Sundeep.

I have heard of Phoonk. Now I must see it.

Thanks Srini. You are a great guy.

Cheers

 

[venkatcr]

Law abiding Citizen

This is a fantastic thriller.I liked this movie a lot.Actually I want him to win in this Cat and mouse game even though ending is different.

Just finished seeing the movie. I agree with Idlebrain. The end should have been different.

On the whole I think the whole plot is a bit unbelievable. Though they don't show the actual effort, this movie reminded me of the 1963 movie - The Great Escape at the end. But one has to appreciate the commitment, focus, and planning of Clyde Shelton.

Cheers.

 

[subhash]

Thanks Idlebrain. Removed the incorrect 'n' from Sundeep.

I have heard of Phoonk. Now I must see it.

Thanks Srini. You are a great guy.

Cheers

if you have not seen phoonk -------------stay away from it , its very badly made .

 

[sud98]

And before I forget, I read somebody reviewing Ishqiya in this thread and giving it a 5/10. I thought that was blasphemous . (No offense meant)

A very mature movie! It almost looks out of place with all the Khan movies and Akshay Kumar and Shahid Kapur movies. Arshad Warsi and Vidya Balan shock the viewers with their acting abilities while Nasseruddin Shah could have done this role in his sleep. Still, a poignant performance from him.

Overall I tend to think this is a movie ahead of its age as far as Bollywood is concerned. But this is a step in the right direction. Just my view.

Vortex, Ishqiya is a pretty good movie which could have done better with some slick editing. A lot of places the movie drags its feet. But the overall storyline and acting is pretty decent.

 

[subhash]

Case 39 (2009)

case 39 /blu ray/ big home/ multi region / dts hd ma/ 1299/-

if you liked orphan you will love this movie too

A social worker rescues a child from her parents who have been illtreating her and adopts the kid , but things take a deadly turn as people who are close to the social worker get killed in mysterious circumstances and the adopted child is not as innocent as she appears

rene zellweger is the social worker as Emilly jenkins puts in a very fine performance and the movie keeps you on the edge through out ,and there are some terrific spine chilling moments

The PQ/SQ of the BD is fantastic and captures Rene zellweger perfectly in each and every frame

A very well made thriller/horror , definetly recomended if you are into this genre of movies

 

[thevortex]

Vortex, Ishqiya is a pretty good movie which could have done better with some slick editing. A lot of places the movie drags its feet. But the overall storyline and acting is pretty decent.

Well, I actually felt that the editing was also good. No artificial excitement, no sugarcoating, no masala. All pretty new to mainstream Bollywood.

 

[idlebrain]

Case 39 (2009)

case 39 /blu ray/ big home/ multi region / dts hd ma/ 1299/-

if you liked orphan you will love this movie too

A social worker rescues a child from her parents who have been illtreating her and adopts the kid , but things take a deadly turn as people who are close to the social worker get killed in mysterious circumstances and the adopted child is not as innocent as she appears

rene zellweger is the social worker as Emilly jenkins puts in a very fine performance and the movie keeps you on the edge through out ,and there are some terrific spine chilling moments

The PQ/SQ of the BD is fantastic and captures Rene zellweger perfectly in each and every frame

A very well made thriller/horror , definetly recomended if you are into this genre of movies

Yeah its a well made movie if particularly fan of this genre. What I liked is the conclusion of the movie without open ending.Now a days Hollywood and bollywood makers forcebily keep an open ending which became a boredom.

 

[alcy]

Love Sex Dhoka 10/10

Dibakar Bannerjee has got to be the best director film-maker in the contemporary Indian cinema for me. First, Khosla ka Ghosla, then Oye Lucky...and now this ! LSD is a completely different trip altogether. Very much recommended for the serious cinema watcher.

 

[goyal.sanchit]

And before I forget, I read somebody reviewing Ishqiya in this thread and giving it a 5/10. I thought that was blasphemous . (No offense meant)

A very mature movie! It almost looks out of place with all the Khan movies and Akshay Kumar and Shahid Kapur movies. Arshad Warsi and Vidya Balan shock the viewers with their acting abilities while Nasseruddin Shah could have done this role in his sleep. Still, a poignant performance from him.

Overall I tend to think this is a movie ahead of its age as far as Bollywood is concerned. But this is a step in the right direction. Just my view.

I guess I am the one who gave it a 5/10 !!

And seriously when I think about it I still believe that I have been generous!

Though I would still like to clear 1 thing- I am not an appreciator of Akshay Kumar's, or Khans' brand of non sense movies.

I didnt like Ishqiya not becoz it didnt have glamourous sets or nonsense stuff like what was in OSO or is in Karan johar's movies. The basic flaw to me was that the movie never picked up pace or intrigued the viewer as to what would happen next and even the narration was a bit broken.


Having said that its just my opinion!

 

[goyal.sanchit]

A movie I saw recently on TV and liked was-

Aao Wish Karein

The movie is inspired or maybe even copied from hollywood movie "Big" starring Tom Hanks.


Anyways starcast of this movie consist of Aftab Shivdasani and Aamna sharif. (who is looking very pretty)




I found it a good light hearted romantic comedy. Dont go too much into the technical flaws or finer aspects. Just enjoy the emotions at display and innocense of children even when 1 grows big!


8/10

 

[subhash]

I guess I am the one who gave it a 5/10 !!

And seriously when I think about it I still believe that I have been generous!

Though I would still like to clear 1 thing- I am not an appreciator of Akshay Kumar's, or Khans' brand of non sense movies.

I didnt like Ishqiya not becoz it didnt have glamourous sets or nonsense stuff like what was in OSO or is in Karan johar's movies. The basic flaw to me was that the movie never picked up pace or intrigued the viewer as to what would happen next and even the narration was a bit broken.


Having said that its just my opinion!

definetly agree with you , tried hard to complete watching this movie twice but cudnt , my opinion is , it was more like a stage drama

 

[venkatcr]

How Do You Murder A Man Who Has Just Committed Suicide?

Jaisingh Adenwala is an ex-Director/Producer who has become a drunkard. He lives in a large mansion and has a young and beautiful wife, Mallika, who is just waiting for him to die. Enter a petty thief, Subash Sharma, who gets involved by unwittingly saving Adenwala's life.

Adenwala has an insurance in his name that will give Mallika 24 Crores if he dies. In an attempt to go out dramatically, Adenwala writes a note to his lawyer, Mr. Merchant, that the insurance money is to be given to his wife ONLY if he is murdered. Then he shoots himself. Now how do you prove Adenwala has been murdered by a third person and claim the insurance?

Intrigued? Then rush out for a copy of Maharathi. An excellent movie starring Naseerudin Shah, Om Puri, Paresh Rawal, Bomman Irani, Neha Dhupia, and Tara Sharma.

As the story progresses, there are twists and turns in the tale. In addition to all the usual twists and turns, there is one twist that is never explained, excepting by a particular look of one of the players. Can you find out what this twist is?

Cheers

 

[Sidharth Trehan]

"On The Golden Pond"

One of the all time favorites for the delicate pick on life's moments & emotions they hold.
What it means to be together with your partner, the compromises of old age, the need for love ..the touch during those years, the joys of having grand children.

Its a life that i foresee to live encapsulated into a few hours of true to life screenplay & direction .

 

[esanthosh]

The past weekend, I was back to my "Directors" theme. I watched 4 movies of David Lynch.

These are not for those who watch with family due to the well, um...rating (except "Elephant Man"). People who hate violence / bizarreness / dark themes should stay away

Blue Velvet (1986)

The movie begins with images of a calm town. A man watering his lawn suddenly has a stroke and falls down. The camera then moves into the lawn, through the grass and gives us a face-to-face with the bugs. From that moment on, the film rips open the calm exterior of the town to show violent and bizarre characters.

Jeff (Kyle Maclachlan), son of the man who had stroke, visits him in the hospital and while returning back to his home notices a severed human ear on the field. His curiosity leads him to spying on mysterious people and puts him in danger. We are introduced to the psychotic Frank Booth (Dennis Hopper), mentally disturbed singer Dorothy (Isabella Rossellini) whose husband and child are held captive by Frank and the only help Jeff has - the local detective's daughter, Sandy (Laura Dern).

If you were expecting a normal, cliche'd hollywood treatment at this point, be ready to be disappointed big time. Lynch has a way with visuals and dark characters.

Dennis Hopper has a talent for pulling off psychotic characters and does not disappoint. This is one of his best performances as the Nitrous Oxide inhaling, violent sociopath.

Lost Highway (1997)

Catching a glimpse of this movie on World Movies channel was what got me hooked into checking out David Lynch. Film is a medium of art and visuals are one of the best tools used by talented directors. The images are gorgeous to look at (and I do not mean Patricia Arquette here ), use of colors is appealing - but with a Lynchian twist.

I generally like films which are open-ended and make me think about what I just saw. When I wake up in the morning still thinking about the movie, connecting dots and reading up on IMDB to see how people interpret the film - it's a bit fulfilling. Though this is not one of the best I have watched, it certainly among the few that fit the above description.

It's a time wrap or just a psycho analytical movie or may be just a dream -- or it could be none of these.

Bill Pullman plays a Saxophonist named Fred who gets a bizarre message - "Dick Laurent is dead" - on his intercom. He also receives several videos filming his house with the last one showing him and his wife while they are asleep. Cops are called to investigate. Before any loose ends could be tied, Fred meets a "mystery man" at a party and then all hell breaks loose. Another video arrives with the footage of him near his wife's dead body. He gets arrested for murdering his wife and sent to prison with no recollection of the events that led to her murder. He gets transformed into a young car mechanic named Pete inside the cell... and the movie goes on. For spoiling everything, you can read the Wikipedia entry

The Elephant Man (1980)

This is based on a true story. It's a story of John Merrik with certain cinematic freedom to re-arrange incidents. Good performances from John Hurt and a younger Anthony Hopkins. It does show human kindness as well as apathy. But, contrary to what I thought, the film did not get too sentimental for me to shun watching it again.

Wild At Heart (1990)

Though I did not like this movie as much as others, it's still got a stylish treatment with Lynchian elements. It's a simple love story underneath - Sailor Ripley (Nicholas Cage) and Lula (Laura Dern) are lovers. Her mother Mariette tries to split them up because she thinks Sailor knows her "secret". It has all elements to make it a complete disaster, but then Lynch has made it into something watchable.

 

[idlebrain]

@esanthosh: I appreciate your patience(Let me say taste) in watching David Lynch's movies on a row.Normally It takes days to digest and understand his work. I watched all the movies you mentioned and in a way I salute him for creating such a genre.
If you already didn't, watch Mulholland Dr..Its an excellent movie, one needs repeated screenings to understand the content. I shamelessly agree after multiple viewings still couldn't unlock the mystery.

Mulholland Dr. (2001)

Mulholland Drive (film) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[unleash_me]

 

[esanthosh]

@esanthosh: I appreciate your patience(Let me say taste) in watching David Lynch's movies on a row.Normally It takes days to digest and understand his work. I watched all the movies you mentioned and in a way I salute him for creating such a genre.
If you already didn't, watch Mulholland Dr..Its an excellent movie, one needs repeated screenings to understand the content. I shamelessly agree after multiple viewings still couldn't unlock the mystery.

Mulholland Dr. (2001)

Mulholland Drive (film) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Thanks! that was already next on the list

At first, I wanted to cover everything at one go. But I figured it would be too much for one weekend. So, this week (if possible on a week day or this weekend), it will be "Eraserhead" (one of the weirdest movies, so I hear) and "Mulholland Dr" (they say it's one of his best).

And yes! I agree that his films will become much clearer and better with each viewing. Complex films like these are better watched once, allowed time for them to sink in, use that time to read other points of view from critics etc., and watch them out of the blue after a few weeks / months. With that gap, mind will observe new clues, reject some notions, form some new opinions and sometimes enjoy the film from a whole new perspective.

IMHO, there's no shame in agreeing multiple viewings do not unlock the mystery. That's why these films continue to intrigue and are indeed fascinating