Being Cyrus: very irritating. don't know why this film got on my nerves, but that's exactly what it did, much to my bewilderment. it was very good in phases, and so irritating in the rest, that it is all i remember of the film. irritation!! i think dimple really overacted, naseer, was wasted, saif did nothing noteworthy... the only ones who i liked were the guy who played the old father, boman, and simone singh who was understated and a relief. so what was all the brouhaha about? "path-breaking" and "indian cinema has arrived" were what i kept hearing about this thriller-in-patches. not in my books, it was not! you see countless such "dark" films on star/hbo between 2-4PM if you take a day off and stay glued to the tv screen. one saving grace: good soundtrack!
rang de basanti: oh-mi-god! another letdown. it didn't even come close to dil chahta hai. where was aamir the powerhouse? i searched for him everywhere, through the fields and the college campus, but i couldn't find him anywhere. what i did find was another gem, but then again, i couldn't find his name. he was anupam kher's son in the film and i think he did a fabulous job. soha too was endearing, and a complete natural. she looks like she was born to act. the film had some excellent moments, like the blokes jumping from a height into the pond below etc. but i found parts of the story unrealistic and difficult to believe. for one, would any political party in the heart of delhi have the guts to beat up a peaceful procession carrying candles, and put one old lady into a coma? i don't think so!! similarly, i don't think the last scene of the film made any sense. the cops just start killing the boys without finding out if they are ALL armed? wouldn't they enter into a dialogue with them first? ask them to surrender, or some such thing? given the fact that they are live on air!! i dunno, but this film on the whole was very unconvincing. the music was good! thank god.
history of violence: they say bad things come in threes:) hmm. brilliant first half. stupid second half. that's all i can say. viggo mortenson was terrible. he was like a flop porn star all throughout. no expression. just waiting for the next love scene to appear so he could start acting again. the story had an amazing start, in fact, it was fast-paced and snappy for the first hour, but then it disappeared into an abyss of mediocrity. a happy loving mcdonald-like family is shattered by a piece of unexpected violence. now you can do wonders with a plot like that. but no. the film has to go and get all entangled in its own web. the end leaves you amazed -- you can't imagine that something so right could end up so wrong!!
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
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3 comments:
i think rdb is one of the most fabulous movies in hindi in recent times.recent meaning in the last 10 years.
amir khan was as usual excellent, but you might not have felt it because the rest of the cast was as good. siddharth, the guy who played karan, was also too good i agree.
about political parties, ofcourse they do any sort of thing for their vested interests. i think we see enough examples of such instances every day in india.
as for the commandos killing the boys - thats the whole point sue was shouting "they are just boys". but the ministry/ government gives clear instructions on the radio to the commandos "i dont want any survivors" as that would bring out unwanted truths to the open.
your reaction to the killing of the boys were exactly what the whole indian youth said. "sending commandos is the death of democracy"" they were unarmed boys"..
yes i know, everyone tells me they loved the film. but i didn't. i also didn't like lakshya and swades. both were sure shot winners going by public opinion.
i look for a combination of factors in a movie, and if that combination falls through I end up not liking the overall package.
the combination is:
a. performances
b. storyline
c. technique
rdb for me was great on performances and technique (though i still maintain that aamir whom i am a big fan of ) did nothing out of the ordinary by his standards. but for me it failed in terms of a storyline.
the parallels being drawn between past and present were i think in some places "too forced"... also, the ending was not very dilli, don't you think?
only foreigners and women get attacked there and "killed" for no rhyme or reason.
most others get away with murder:) and in my opinion, the boys should have walked away scot free-- in true delhi spirit!!
kill someone, then go eat some butter chicken.
Film is actualy not about a story, but about storytelling. You can be poetical there, like a Padmarajan in Innale or be very crafty, like a Tarantino. Some people manage to make brilliance with just craft or just the power of story, but sometimes they fail to take the audience into their plots, like David Lynch in Mullholand Drive. But they are great movies, neverthless.
It is when you try to tread both the paths that you need to strike a good balance. I think DCH was brilliant in the story telling, and it got people to get into the plot -- that doesnt mean they identify with the characters.
The whole wave about RDB is because it got people to feel the plot in the first half. And though it had some brilliant moments - like the proposal scene, or when a frustruated Karan Kapoor walks out to the terrace to join his comrades from the freedom movement, or siddarth's casual look when Aamir and Atul fights, or Aamir's subtle reactions over the dinner after having realized that Sue knows Hindi, over all the story telling failed miserably.
Direction is not just about what to shoot, but what not to shoot. A good director sees the whole movie in his his mind - just like we visualize while we read a story, and then craft it the way it should be. Some great directors are known to have left the editor with nothing to do. That's brilliance. I think that's where Being Cyrus failed.
And the moment you say that some parts of the movie were great, like when you say that soundtrack was brilliant, or some scenes were great, or camera work was excellent, it is a sure sign that the movie didnt work. Movie work only as a whole, and that experience is all about storytelling. Period.
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