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Holy Motors (2012)
Scream.....surrealism unleashed
This was my first Leos Carax experience and turned out to be one of the best surreal films I have seen. If you are watching this movie just for the sake of entertainment then please don't. It is a movie which is larger than itself, a part of our daily lives mingled with the weird situations we face as they bend and go out of our control. Some people have argued that this film depicts how cinema making has changed over the years, but that is partly true as this movie shows us what we actually are: a complex sum of different masks that we wear to face different people and different situations. Examiner.com has argued that what Carax has created is much different from David Lynch and Luis Buñuel who are highly regarded as the emperors of surrealism but I would disagree as the elements of surrealism in the Lynchian cinema are more dreamlike and complex and the same in this movie are life-like and uncertain so they are just different faces of the same coin. The film has a single man playing different characters each one very different from the other and Denis Lavant has outdone himself in playing them very well scene by scene. It has every element of human emotions and shows how they overshadow each other, at times. This is a kind of movie which deserves to be seen in a single sitting; no popcorn breaks and no intervals because if you miss a scene you miss the whole point of the movie. The cinematography is well done and make-up is mind-blowing but the fake penis may freak out some people. The movie changes its pace very frequently and changes our mood with it. This movie could not be reviewed in a single viewing and probably not in repeated viewings but that won't stop you from watching it again and again if you are a surreal-cinema aficionado.
Gangs of Wasseypur (2012)
The most standout Hindi movies of 2012
GOW is one of the most standout Hindi movies of 2012 directed by Anurag Kashyup. The five hour long movie was released in two parts and every moment of the movie is worth watching. Pepped up with experimental music and quirky dialogues the movie is jam-packed with brilliant but not so mainstream actors. The movie is set in the Dhanbad's Wasseypur, a place rich of black diamond and plagued with rivalry between two Muslim operated gangs stretched across generations. The move beautifully captures the mafia-politician-police nexus in then Bihar, the Bollywood loving junta of Wasseypur and is loaded with songs that you will keep on humming for days. While Manoj Vajpayee's awe will keep you glued to the screen it is Nawazuddin Siddiqui who leapt across the heaven for me. The characters in the film are complex and well-developed and have nothing in common except narcissism and disregard for law. Cinematography is absolutely brilliant and the shot where the coal dust is all that is in the air you will feel as if you are sniffing it under your nostrils. When Jean-Luc Godard said that all you need to make a movie is a girl and a gun, he was probably not wrong; the movie is full of desi guns and village belles where shootouts take place at every nook and corner of the town. The screenplay is steady and doesn't break the environment it creates from the starting. This is a tale of revenge, blood-money and insanity which will leave a spot on your brain for the years to come.
Seven Psychopaths (2012)
Martin's Punch: Witty one-liners and awesome acting
While Martin McDonagh shocked us all with his directorial debut In Bruges, he takes us a few steps further with a dark comedy: Seven Psychopaths. The movie has several story lines sewn together by death, fear and guilt and boasts of a number of well played characters. The storyline is clever and builds up subtly as characters get to know each other closely. The Hollywood dream and its effects on the people who end up being mere puppets of life is a part of the theme and its witty one- liners will make you go Ho-Ho-Ho. Friendships are tested and relationships are ruined, a drunkard and a dog live while dog-kidnappers and psychopaths die; it makes for a near-perfect dark comedy. Some of the scenes are very engaging and are eccentrically comical. Psychopaths in this movie are not your usual demons, they have emotions and in some way you can connect to them. The script and the characters are original and delightfully entertaining. Screenplay is well-paced and crisp which will engage you continuously. In Bruges was definitely a better crowd puller but this movie will end up being a cult and was probably made for the same.
Hemlock Society (2012)
A delightful dark comedy
Hemlock Society is a black comedy directed by Srijit Mukherji and is based on an institution teaching people how to commit suicide successfully. The plot opens up with a melodious song being performed in a typical Kolkata pub and captures the essence of the nightlife of city of joy. Plot development is slow but magnetic till the first half of the movie and after that it becomes somewhat predictable. Parambrata Chaterjee has played his part pretty well as the male lead and for some reasons I think Koyel Mullick was not a great choice for the female lead but given the budget constraints it is an acceptable choice and ultimately worked for the movie. Roopali Ganguly and Dipanker Dey have acted well and the well-balanced chemistry between them as a couple is one of the best points of the movie. Background score was well synchronized with the scenes and the integrated emotional elements. The plot became thinner in the second half and it would have been better if the movie was cut short 20 minutes. I would have loved it if they have shown more of Kolkata, its food and the vibrant culture. Some of the scenes in the background are witty (such as a suicide note: Thank you for the fish) and shows the director's attention to detail. It is good to see that Indian directors are attempting seriously to make dark comedies and this film takes us closer to that dream.
House of Sand and Fog (2003)
this movie will leave you speechless
Before watching this movie I was thinking that it will be a good movie because of the presence of sir ben kingsley & jennifer connelly and it came out as one of the most powerful & thought provoking movies I've ever see.I wasn't expecting such a good work from a rather new director.It gives you a ride through deep emotions & won't let you decide whats wrong & whats right.It makes you believe that not everything in this world can be either right or wrong.Not only the performances of sir ben kingsley & jennifer connelly were absolutely stunning but others also played their part pretty well.This movie is a must watch if you are into serious cinema.
Race (2008)
A good starcast+ a bad storyline + a bad direction = a bad movie
I went to watch this flick with great expectations because of a good star cast but this damn movie left me hollow.It is Indian cinema at its worst.It completely lacks a storyline and anyone can predict what's going to happen in the next scene.Its just a foolish comedy.Director simply couldn't tackle a serious issue like envy between stepbrothers and came up with a pathetic movie.All three actresses are just Barbie dolls in the movie.It seems that actors just made fools out of themselves.The only good thing in the movie is johnny lever. Only go for this movie if you want to waste your time and money or wanna show your girl around.