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One Day (2024)
Casting messed this up
There is something very wierdly odd about the female lead. I dont know why but her expressions are too exaggerated , almost a caricature. The truth is the book is written about a different girl, cultural appropriation is a lofty ideal but it doesnt sit well with how different cultures emote. Honestly Ambika Mod doesnt do justice to the book. And its nothing to do with her acting; its just that Indians are just super expressive with their eyes and gestures, which doesnt go with the character the way it was written. Maybe Netflix ought to stop fixing what isnt broke. Just the way a British bloke in a Bollywood movie looks a misfit.
Other than this the series was well put together.
Suzhal - The Vortex (2022)
Top Notch filmography and Sound.
This was an elevated experience thanks to the cinematography and background sound. The weak point was the story which relied on some cliches at times. But full marks to Kathir for his wonderful acting.
Never Have I Ever (2020)
S2- Team Ben or Team Paxton-Both bad choices-- only Team Devi rules!
This season had surprising depths but was pretty shallow at times.
Devi isn't as awful as she was made out to be. What's with making her apologize all the time? Repetiitve situations ending up with Devi apologizing. That's lazy writing.
For seconds, why must visibly older people be cast as teengaers-- Paxton and the new girl Aneesa, and even Trent... seriously you expect us to believe they are teenagers?
The Ben-Devi-Paxton triangle lives-- honestly Ben and Devi were not over, even though Ben had moved on to Aneesa. And Paxton showed great growth, While Ben completed his descent back into his obnoxious all knowing patronizing self after all. The BIGGEST DIFFERENCE this season is that one cant choose either Team Ben or Team Paxton at the end of S2-- both are now almost equally bad choices. Last season it was hard not to be Team Ben. This season I think Team Devi is the only team one could choose because the young men both sucked and were good in parts.
Looking forward to the next Season.
Ban shi mi tang ban shi shang (2020)
Simply the best C-Drama romcom ever.
Unmissable... both Luo YUnxi and Bai lu hit this outta the park... and this from a viewer who has so far held the simplistic world of Cdrama as strictly avoidable. But have to give high praise to Love is sweet-- the dialogues, the situations and the characters are believable and very modern in approach, This is the first C-drama which does a great great job of providing universal content--characters and story which can be played out in New York, Madrid, New Delhi, Singapore or Seoul.
Love is sweet addresses the reason why C-dramas dont get the appeal of K-dramas -- because they don't speak a universal language. The characters played by the male lead and female lead bring that fresh air of being world citizens.
The story falters a tad in the second half-- could have done with some crisp editing, yet it stands miles above its contemporaries. The acting by Luo Yunxi is par excellence; he is simply the best actor I have watched so far in the Chinese entertainment industry. Bai Lu is a joy to watch. The stylization is apt though a bit repetitive for the world of investment banking, but it catches the spirit all right. The love story is unique as it has no evil parents, secretive past, vamps and misunderstandings. Whatever negativity is there gets resolved pretty quickly.
A sore point of reflection for the writer and director ( if they even read IMDB...they probably don't, but if they wish to get viewed across the world, reading IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes is the way to go), why do they have stories which have love affairs that start in school? Seems a little...umm.. creepy, iykwim...There is a reason why school time romances don't last into adulthood. And very frankly, I wouldn't want to be with the boys I saw playing booger handball-- some experiences cannot be lived down.
All in all, this show is a great watch.
Aspirants (2021)
If Bollywood is a virus, TVF is the vaccine
TVF delivers another great series-- storytelling with an Indian heart. Bravo to the writers for tapping into the great North Indian marathon games, giving the CSE. Great acting by newcomers Abhlash Thapliyal and Sunny Hinduja and ever-competent Shiv Parihar. Only drawback is the miscasting of Naveen Kasturia( ho hum, seen too many times in too many TVF productions), Namita( wooden and unexpressive).
TVF please dont fall into the nepotism trap of Bollywood and try out new actors not the old staple like Kasturia who frankly have been seen too many times on TVF, same role, different names.
Fazilet Hanim ve Kizlari (2017)
Watch it for Caglar Ertugul's Yagiz!
With a title like Fazilet Hanim ve Kizlari, you can bet an international viewer like me would not be enthusiastic about this series. Seriously the producers should look at how they name their work. But I am thankful I listened to my online watch party recommendation and watched it.
Is it good? Well the story is about the evil that resides in human hearts and how easily people give in to it. So its a difficult watch-- there is a lot of stress, characters undergo really horrible experiences and the viewer at times feels totally exhausted by the ugliness the characters show-- esp Fazilet Hanim, Selin and Sinan. But in the midst of the darkness, the character of Yagiz stands out like a brave little candle fighting the wind and with every episode grows brighter and brighter till the end it just suffuses your heart with light. The story is uplifting because Yagiz keeps our faith intact. As humans, we believe that good will prevail and evil will be vanquished; that love will be rewarded and hatred punished. Honestly, in this show , Yagiz is the character which sustains your faith in goodness.
The actors are all very good. Esp the actor playing Selin, comes across as a really despicable yet vulnerable girl. Hazan is played very nicely by Deniz and she brings a wholesomeness to her role. Her smile lights up the darkness in the story. The actor playing Fazilet is too loud and almost caricaturish -- she makes you hate her. Sinan is really the most weak actor. He doesnt manage to convincingly portray the character at all.
The best for the last-- Caglar Ertugul-- words fail at the sincerity with which Caglar has played the character of Yagiz. His intensity, his way of conveying hurt through his eyes, his meaningful silences-- its like poetry. I pray Caglar gets really good projects because he has the potential of being the hottest star on the Turkish entertainment world.
Also kudos to the beautiful intense love story between Yagiz and Hazan. How difficult it is to love someone who is your brother's beloved? How beautifully the moral struggle is captured. Out of all the dizis I have watched, really this story of Yagiz and Hazan stands at the top as the best most poignant love story, along with Cesur ve Guzel
My advice is that the story is too dark but watch it for the beauty of what one single good man can do to a sea of banal evil. I give it 10 stars only for Caglar and the character of Yagiz. Watch it for the love story of Hazan and Yagiz
What are the Odds? (2019)
Not worth your time. But Karan Malhotra is awesome and deserves better projects
The makers of this movie were on a self indulgent trip, I hope they had a good time making it, because a reasonably aware viewer like me couldn't make head or tale of it. Fantasy film making can be delightful if there is a thought threading through the randomness. Like Alice in Wonderland, seems a collections of random bizarre events till you grasp the central thought and then it becomes such a beautiful delight.
This movie really makes no effort tospin a yarn . Acting wise Karan Malhotra was great ; he managed to pull off an 18 yr old pretty well. But the female lead Yashaswini was just too old, visibly too too on the wrong side of twenties to sell a 17 year old convincingly. Her attempt to mimic a 16 year old's slightly uncoordinated walk and run was awful. Her face is just too old to capture the innocence and curiousity of a teen. Bad casting choice.
Worth a watch? Not at all. But Karan Malhotra deseves to do more content
Bulbbul (2020)
Creative use of folklore for a hard hitting story
Brilliant concept and imaginative use of the chudail/witch folklore puts together a n absorbing story. Is it a horror film? No. The plot lines are quite evident so there are no surprises in store. Does the film horrify? Yes it does. not because it is unknown...but because we all know some Bulbul in real life.
Young spirited eight year old Bulbbul married to an almost middle aged man comes to the thakurbari and all the inhabitants of that home exploit her at some point or the other. Yet she rises uo from the extreme violence with a resolve and an empathy for other women in similar situations. Yet her resurrection is not into an uber violent woman seeking justice. She is shown as a woman of great charm, laughing easily, speaking freely, compassionate yet with a capacity for violence in her quest for justice.
Though Tripti Dimri and Pauli Dam play their roles beautifully, Rahul Bose's performance as the twin brothers is pitch perfect. What range and complexity Bose is able to portray with his eyes and expressions. Take a bow Rahul Bose. I predict producers for digital content on OTT are going to make a beeline to his doors. He is simply superb. Parambrata along with Tripti lifts this dark, broody tale into a luminous hopeful and light moments. Avinash Tiwary is very competent but Rahul Bose simply overshadows every frame.
I understand some people are upset over the depiction of the Hindu culture. I would only want to tell those people, the story is set in 1890s so we as a civilization have gotten over these customs. Also you cannot celebrate the greatness of your culture unless you own the darker side of it. So folks go watch it. It is rare for the OTT platforms to get it right, except for Panchayat and Special Ops its been simply misses this year.
Gulabo Sitabo (2020)
Underwhelming story with great performances
The story had great potential, but was never developed properly. The cat and mouse game between Bankey and Mirza could have been written better. It felt heavy and dragged unlike the effervescent Piku or Vicky Donor. The landlord-tenant conflict is a familiar one in India and could have been written with more details and more heart, that would have audience empathizing with either party. The under-cooked story lost the audience midway, even thoguh the last 15 minutes rescued the story . However the film is a must-watch for the amazing performances-- Brijendra Kala, Shaukat Madam, Srishti Srivatsava, Vijay Raaz just shone in their roles. Amitabh Bachhan was amazing and should be declared a national treasure. Only problem was Ayushmann. No he acted very well but now all his roles in the past 3-4 years are so similar that at times you dont know which irritable, sarcastic, angry, UP man are you watching-- whether it is Prem from Dum Lagake , or Chirag Dubey from Bareilly ki Barfi orBankey from Gulabo Sitabo. Ayushmann needs to introspect why all his work seems to be a copy of each other.
Kaisi Yeh Yaariyan (2014)
A youth show for all age -groups!
An amazingly nuanced show on crucial issues that affect youth of any country all over the world. Bullying, drug abuse, disability, cultural stereotyping, teenage pregnancy, anorexia, body image issues, exploitation, and many such issues have been dealt with very sensitively. The story written by Richa Yamini based loosely on the Korean drama Boys over flowers, takes off on its own journey. Season 1 is special because of the story as well as the stunning performances by the leads, Parth Samthaan and Niti Taylor. Hard to remember these two actors were barely out of their teens and young adults when they acted so maturedly portraying complex emotions.
This is my rating for different aspects of the show
Direction-- 7/10 as director baton changed hands many times
Story- 9/10
Performances-- 10/10-- notable- Parth Samthaan, Niti Taylor, Kishwar Merchant
Music- 9/10- excellent choice of trendy music
Cinematography 7/10
The show is evergreen. And so amazingly nuanced that any age group can watch it and feel entranced.
I would recommend this show highly.