Did Manorama come from ChinaTown?

I watched Manorama – Six Feet Under a while back and instantly liked it. Detective stories are rare in Bollywood, which only made films on select trusted genres. There was a dearth of good crime investigation stories. In such a time, Manorama dared to weave a detective-mystery story. Not just that, the setup was laid in a remote village in Rajasthan as opposed to the glamorous foreign locales.

 

In every sense, the movie was off-beat. It had left out every element of success. Yet, it made a mark on the audience who loved serious cinema. I was proud to be amongst the few weird cineastes who liked the movie. In fact, I even did some research on the making of the film. Read articles on the writers and the director. The film lingered in my memory longer than any average hit usually does. There were occasions when I had included it in the list of my recent favorites and watched the eyebrows of the listeners growing suspicious.

 

To state it simply, I was too proud of the movie. So much that I refused to even consider that it could be “inspired” story and not an original work. However, that joy was short lived.

 

Recently, I happened to watch ChinaTown starring Jack Nicholson – an old Hollywood classic. As the movie progressed I realized few distinct similarities.

 

First of all, the beginning is the same. The protagonist is hired by an imposter who pretends to be someone’s wife and hires him to spy on her husband. So the Hero takes the case and collects enough material to nail his target. After delivering the photographs to his client the Hero thinks he has successfully completed the assignment only to realize that the case was not as simple as he had thought. He finds himself trapped in a maze that seemed to have no way out.

 

In his bid to defend himself from the deadly trap that he had led himself into, he is forced to continue the investigation. That is when the problem becomes worse. He’s beaten up by goons and threatened to stop the pursuit. Yet he continues with his mission and finds out that the target he was spying on was actually brewing a scam that would affect the whole of the city. The dam building project supported by the Antagonist only promises to benefit the people backing the project. The Antagonist is also buying lands from poor farmers either by force or by duping them. These lands are supposed to mint money once the dam is built and guaranteeing constant water supply to these lands.

 

That’s the basic story and it happens to be same in both the films.

 

Of course, there are few variations in the Indian version. Firstly, The Hero is a married man and is not a professional detective. There’s track involving the Antagonists inclination towards prostitutes. Lastly, in the end, it’s the protagonist who has the final laugh.

 

It’s always sad to see a film that’s “inspired” by another film. It makes me wonder is it that difficult to write original stories. Or is it the case that the filmmakers do not want to experiment with new ideas. They are happy using the existing ones with a hope that the remake would bring in just as much success as the original did. 

Rock On!

Passion! That’s what Rock On is all about!

On the story front there are no surprises. It’s predictable throughout. But inspite of that the film manages to strike the emotional chord of the audience.

Don’t go with an expectation of watching a crazy wild rock-based movie. It’s more of a drama that revolves around four friends who dream of forming a rock band.

The story is realistic and practical in every sense. There are no hyped emotions, no hard to believe incidents. Four people who gave up on their dream reunite to relive it one more time. That’s it. The movie doesn’t show them making a rock band at the age of 40 nor does it show them winning the contest in the end. It’s was definitely not talking about worldly success. Rather it talks about personal achievement.

On the acting front, I can’t imagine anyone else playing Farhan’s character. It seemed tailor-made for him. Arjun Rampal has yet again delivered his best. Purab, Luke, Prachi, Shahana were equally good. The characters manage to loop you into their lives such that you feel connected with their emotions.

For films like these, music is the most crucial element. It can make or break the film. Fortunately, the film doesn’t disappoint on this front either. Shankar, Ehsaan and Loy have delivered a true to the name rock composition.

Above all, worth appreciation is Abhishek Kapoor direction. He has proven his mettle with this movie.

To sum it up – it’s a simple story beautifully told.

Watch it! It’s worth every penny you’ll spend and more!

Phoonk

Good enough though not scary

Watched this last Saturday. Of the many things I remember about it, the most distinct memory is of the uncontrollable giggles and laugh from the audiences. If not anything the movie was entertaining. Though I still asking myself, what did they found that funny?

It’s not an out-n-out horror film; it’s more a drama-cum-horror. I am tempted to assume that Ramu clearly never intended to make a horror film. Otherwise, he might not have kept the scary part for post interval. Probably, he just wanted to challenge the thought process of both people standing on the either side of superstitious beliefs. If that was his intention, then he has succeeded par excellence.

As usual, the characters have done an excellent job. Ramu has an eye for talent. Right from the main protagonist, Sudip to the victim kid Ahsaas Channa and the house-maid, each have contributed their best to portray the characters convincingly. You feel as if you are inside the minds of these characters. You can sense their emotions. That’s the power of their acting.

The story is simple and offers nothing new. But it’s the treatment that makes all the difference. Ramu’s predictable style is worth admiring. Though this particular film is average and not one of his best offering, yet in some parts you get to see the glimpse of the Genius.

What I liked was the way he challenged and changed the beliefs of the two main protagonists. Also the fact that how he slowly lets the fear creep into you as he with all his intention is trying to drive you the other way. You feel that the next moment may be scary, but it is not. If one is just looking for frightening scenes, then one would miss the psychological arguments that the characters put forward. It’s these thought-provoking conversations that make the movie worthwhile.

Fairly stating, it’s a one-time watch movie.

Bigg Boss Returns

India’s most-awaited Reality Show has finally returned.  The show that engaged the nation for one full hour day-after-day till it got over started yesterday.  Shilpa Shetty, the now international celebrity will host the Season 2. Though she lacks Arshad’s natural charm she makes up for it by her overly positive enthusiasm. The curtain-raiser introduced all the 14 contestants who accepted Big Boss’s Invitation and agreed to remain caged for 84 in the Bigg Boss’s house while the nation watched them 24×7.

In the Adam’s corner, we have Zulfi Syed, Debojit Saha, Ashutosh Kaushik (non-celebrity), Sanjay Nirupam, Rahul Mahajan, Ehsaan Qureshi and Raja Chaudhry. And in the Eve’s corner, we have Payal Rohatgi, Monica Bedi, Ketki Dave, Rakhi Vijayan, Sambhavna Seth, Elina (non-celebrity) and Jade Goody. While these participants expressed their willingness to endure the psychologically challenging experience, the audience prepared itself for yet another round of kick-ass (pun intended) entertainment.

As usual, Bigg Boss as ensured that there is enough drama in the show by bringing together all the controversial personalities under one roof. And this time there is a Rule Book for the contestants, which lists out few Dos and lots of Don’ts. That is not the only new thing. The set is new, with more advanced gadgets and pleasant interiors. It seems like the producers have invested heavily on the show. And why should it not be? The last season had seen the TRPs rising to peaks that other shows would only dream off. Perhaps that is why other channels are gearing to sabotage the shows TRP this time. ZEE Channel has moved its Song based reality show to 10 pm slot. It does seem like a dumb move, but it shows how insecure other channels have become of Colors because of the Bigg Boss.

I like all of you, will now be rushing home to see what’s happening in the Bigg Boss’s house!

Exhibitionism

Every human is an Exbitionist wanting Attention!

Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag

Bad but not intolerable !

I wanted to watch this film just to see how bad it was. Every single comment I heard about it was oscillating from Bad to Worse. That made me wonder – I have seen the best he can be when he is good, why not see how good he is when he is bad.

So I watched it and in the initial 10 minutes I thought I might end up writing a positive review. But the euphoria didn’t last beyond that.

What I didn’t like:

1. The story, screenplay and the script. The biggest culprit of all. I had read the sequel the Sippy family was planning. Ramu’s version was definitely much better than the fiasco they were planning. Yet the story failed his vision. The insignificant tweakings made a significant damage to the script. Sachin’s character was an unwanted twist and should have been avoided.
2. Nisha Kothari as Gungroo was a misfit for the role. I would believe she was selected because no one else was ready to play the role. She was a total turn-off.
3. Prashant Raj as Raj was another mistake. Though he put in a decent effort as compared to Nisha, his inexperience worked against him. He wasn’t convincing enough.
4. Ajay Devgan as Heero was reduced to playing Prashant’s sidekick. This was another big mistake. In the original Sholay, there was a balance between the two protagonists. But this movie seemed to be biased towards Prashant. There was no meat in Heero’s character.
5. And the worst casting mistake was having Amitabh Bachchan as Babban. He is clearly not cut out to do “baddie” roles played by Amjad Khan and Pran. When the original Sholay script was written, the writer was focused on sketching out a villain, audience would love to hate. The characterization was so good that even today when someone mentions Sholay it is Gabbar who is remembered more often than Jai and Veeru. In Raamu’s Sholay, it was pre-decided that Amitabh would play the role. Amitabh’s legendary status impaired the creative imaginations of the writers, who ended up writing a role that would please the legend. As a result, Babban turned out to be a character, whom you would love to ignore.

What I did like:

1. Suchitra Krishnamurthy! In whatever small role she got, she charmed me. She was so impressed that I started wondering why she is not actively pursuing the acting career. At least I would love to see more of her.
2. Besides her, Sushmita’s character was well sketched out. Whatever small changes made to her role seemed good.
3. Mohanlal’s intense portrayal of an ill-defined character. This guy has the ability to make a mark even if he is given just a minute-long role in the film. Whether it is his weird dancing style or uncanny giggle, he keeps your eyeballs glued to the screen.

So, given that the script and the characters failed to do their job, the onus was on the direction to hold the fort and save the film from its destined disaster. And need I say there was no flaw on that front. Raamu’s signature style was clearly visible throughout the film. There were certain areas where he toyed with the script and failed miserably and then there were these few fine pieces of excellences that only he can offer.

If this is his worst movie, then I would be still glad about it, for I kinda liked his worst performance too.

Who is Sanjay Gupta?

I came to know about him during the pre-release promotion of Kaante in 2002. Till then I remained oblivious to his existence and his contribution to Indian Cinema. On researching, I found out that he started his career as Chief Assistant Director in 1989. Then on he has been Director of Photography (2^nd Unit), Post-Production In-charge, Writer and Director before finally becoming a Producer.

Today he has his own production house. He along with Sanjay Dutt started White Feather Films (WFF), which has many blockbusters to its credit. Kaante, Zinda, Dus Kahaniyaan and Shootout at Lokandwala were some of the most talked about films he had churned out as a Writer and Director with the only exception of Shootout at Lokandwala, where he’s a Producer.

The reason this article is sounding like an ode to Sanjay is because of his new venture launched this year. White Feather Art-House (WFAHF) Films is an initiative by WFF to promote content-rich cinema. WFAHF will be backing projects that have substance in it but are doomed due to lack of finance and other resources. Their very first offering, The Great Indian Butterfly, has already created quite a buzz in India as well as abroad. The film has even received invitations from couple of prestigious International Film Festivals.

Now, in my opinion it is unlikely of a person to be immersed in Wealth and still indulge in Charity. On one hand, WFF continues to make typical Bollywood “masala” films that guarantee to get cash registers ringing. It seems like they are just another production house interested only in minting money in the name of Entertainment. However, on their other hand, the WFAHF initiative tells us that here are some people, who are in the industry for the love of their professions and not for anything else.

To me Sanjay Gupta seems like a “bollywood-chap Robin-hood”. He robs the audience addicted to typical “bollywood masala films” and makes enough money, only to give it away as charity to the genuinely talented filmmakers, who have something worthwhile to offer to the discerning movie audience.

Contract

Raamu does it Best!

I simply loved the film. The story was gripping and Ramu’s direction was like always a treat.

What I like most about Ramu’s films are the Characters. They are absolutely unforgettable. Take for instance RD. Every time he came on screen, everybody else became immaterial and that goes for the hero, Amaan too. RD had certain suaveness in his demeanor.

Then there was Gunga and his wife – like two glasses of refreshing fresh lime soda. They added the fizz of raw, rural humor, which has become Ramu’s patented style.

The story, the characters and the direction all executed well. But obviously the movie had to be good.

Although at some point I did feel disappointed, for instances – Amaan’s frequent and incautious conversations with the cop – Ahmed Hussain, his open confession to Iya on the boat where every other person was a Sultan’s gang member, and the occasional tip given by Amaan to Ahmed Hussain.

If the mission was to destroy the Terrorists, then why should Ahmed Hussain risk it by using Amaan as an informant to capture smuggled consignments? What would have happened to the mission if Sultan’s gang member had overheard Amaan’s confession? Would it have been worth to risk a national cause over a girl’s love? Why doesn’t Sultan recollect Amaan even though he has seen and heard him before? It could be that he might have forgotten his face after such a long time, but that would still be an assumption on the part of the Ahmed Hussain.

But these are very minor flaws and can be comfortably ignored.

I won’t say this is one of Raamu’s very best offering. But by itself, itself it’s a good movie.

And if you like Raamu for what he is then this movie will be fun to watch. As usual you can see the glimpses of the filmmaker through out the film.

No Smoking

The very reason one reads reviews for, should be the reason that refrains one from doing it!

~ St. Goofy

Watch it and forget about it!

So, I just watched this movie and obviously I wish to talk about it. But strangely, I have this weird urge to talk about it without actually talking about it.

Why so? Interpret it the way you want!

When Matrix was released it became a cult movie overnight. Every single wannabe philosopher was talking about it. To have seen it and understand it was a “fad”. People used to ask each other if they had seen Matrix and if so, whether they understood it? So everyone got busy interpreting the film in their own way. The craze spread like epidemic. At one point of time, Google fished out over 10000 records for the term “matrix philosophy”.

Why did this happen? Simple! People are addicted to thinking! And it is the worst addiction one can have… worse than even sex and smoking. People like to think because it assures them of their intelligence.

Philosophy intrigues everyone though not everyone can philosophize.

Raam Gopal Varma is aware of this trait and often uses it to his advantage. You may have noticed that some of his characters do not speak throughout the movie. They just give an intimidating stare. Raamu himself has confessed that he does this because then the audience interprets the character in its own way and that makes the character more appealing to them.

So any story that is vague and leaves few questions unanswered will compel the audience to ponder over it. The more they ponder the more they get attached to the story. That is the trick.

The film scores pretty good on this front. The script was undoubtedly a good piece of work. I can say this because I read the script before I saw the movie. And perhaps that is the reason that I am so very disappointed with the movie. It is nowhere close to the script I read.

I won’t blame the filmmaker for this. Perhaps, the film got screwed on the editing table. But surely, the script was much better than the film.

So what is it that you may like about this film? That depends on how you interpret it.

For me, it was just another movie with an original theme, but then not necessarily all originals are extra-ordinary.

For those who like to munch some food for thought, here’s something…

“Vagueness doesn’t indicate Intelligence, rather it is Precision that does!”

Being Cyrus

Good effort but lacks momentum!

I was biased towards this movie right from the moment the initial credits splashed on the screen. Convinced that I would like it. The fact that it was different from the ‘typical’ Bollywood movies, had bought me in the favor of this movie already.

However, as the movie progressed I began to realize that nothing is happening. I waited… and waited… and finally when the thrill was introduced, it lacked the momentum a thriller should be having.

When a thriller feels like a drama there’s something seriously wrong with the film.

Saif Ali Khan is extra-ordinarily good. He gets a good opportunity to prove his mettle. But everything else is just ordinary. The story is not so great… the mystery is not entirely unpredictable.
Still, the director deserves a mention. He shows his talent at many places. I especially liked the dream sequence. It was the best part of the whole movie.

Overall, it’s good that it lacks the over-used ‘masala’, but at the same time it’s bad because it misses out on the most important ingredient, Salt (read Script).

Good to watch it on CD. Not worth the ticket.