Slumdog Millionaire(SM)

DIRECTED BY DANNY BOYLE

4 globe awards...10 nominations for the oscars...super hype...extensive over the top publicity... but at the bottom of it all...a 2 and a half hours film...

As with the passage of each day the hype surrounding SM mounted i made a deliberate attempt to stay immune to it. I wanted to see and judge the film the way i would judge any other film i watched. However I will admit that i was not completely untouched by the craze that the film was garnering for if ever i had managed to duck it everywhere else i could not escape the excitement amongst the queue at the ticket counter and the buzz before the movie began!

But thats what MEDIA PERCEPTION does...the idea behind it is to make people believe what they are told to believe and hence the media publicist had done a fine job with SM.

The first thing that struck me about the film was its concept and the screenplay. As i believe these are the two primary elements that determine the films quality i liked the film.

As your backdrop you have the most popular show in recent time on Indian television- "Kaun banega Krorepati" or "Who Wants to be a Millioanire"- hosted by a superstar Prem (Anil Kapoor) add to that the dirt-drama-tension of the slums along with the journey of the protogonists- Jamal(Dev Patel), his love Latika (Frieda Pinto) and Jamal's bro- Salim(Madhur Mital) from the innocense of childhood to the wisdom, fire and corruption of youth.

Jamal is being interrogated throughout the film by the police Inspector(Irfan Khan) for he has been accused of cheating on the show 'Who wants to be a Millionaire' since it is not possible for a slumboy to with so much money on the show. Through the interrogation Jamal reveals his life story so far...the story of a boy who gets his wisdom from the filth and trauma of life all around...his school has been the world he lives in and his playground is this world itself. He has learnt through circumstances wierd and wild and most importantly is putting all of that to use to get to his goal...of finding Latika!

I enjoyed the film.

However, one of the very prominent glitches i felt was that the makers have not been able to decide on the language of the film. Ideally if all the characters had spoken english uniformly than that would have been the language of the film and would have been alright seeing the slum kids speaking the same...however what has happened is even the grown up characters converse at times in hindi and at times in english makiing one seem as if they know english so fluently which is not actually the case! I can uderstand the kids could not have been taught english but care should have been taken with the grown up characters.

Dev Patel in his portrayal of Jamal mallick has done a fine job but why did he have to be cast with such a heavy accented english and hindi for such a vital role of a character whose born and bread in the slums and your story's credibility revolves around his ruralised character?

Apart from these two ponts mentioned above...the film has a whole is nice...I'll definately recommend it.

KABHI ALVIDA NA KEHNA

DIRECTOR BY KARAN JOHAR

AMITABH BACHCHAN, SHAHRUKH KHAN, ABHISHEKH BACHCHAN, RANI MUKHERJEE, PRIETY ZINTA, KIRON KHER.

Dev(SRK) and Ria(Zinta) are married for the past 5 years and have a son. However its not the smoothest of relationships and the reason being Dev, who has become cynical after he had to forego his career as a football coach due to an accident in which he permanently damaged his leg. He is hence often frustrated, edgy and irritable. On the contrary Ria is ambitious, bright and flamboyant modern.

It is precisely her positivity and exuberance that nauseates Dev leading to constant fights and unrest.
Maya(Rani) has married Rishi(Abhishekh) recently, although they have known each other since many years and Rishi has been in love with Maya, Maya isn’t very sure but has all the same taking the plunge and got married. Soon into the marriage she finds herself forced to comply to the duties and responsibilities of a wife…of a soul mate and she realizes that this marriage has been a compromise for her…suffoctating her everyday.(Although this is a realistic feeling; cinematically it does not come out that well making people wonder why is she so sad!!)

Under such circumstances Dev and Maya meet.

The common circumstances and their individual nature brings them closer and they fall in love but later realize the damage this love would be causing a lot of people. They know their love cannot be accepted but they know they cannot leave each other.

However their truth is soon found out by Rishi’s father (Amitabh Bachchan) and its from here that the climax begins wherein they confess their attraction to their partners-get separated from them but still do not tell this to each other, only after three years do they come to know as to how they are no more bound by relations and with consent from Rishi and Ria, they come together.
Good because…
The music gives it a lovely feel, an atmosphere, a mood and that helps.
Direction is good as the emotional moments are well capitalized with music and close-ups.
Visually, it’s a treat.

Problem areas:
The major flaw is that the sympathy that needs to be largely with Dev and Maya is infact diverted onto Rishi and Maya, especially Rishi who is sketched out as a completely white character but still gets the wrong side of the bargain.
Similarly with Dev who is the hero doing the not-so-right thing but yet is to be loved, his character comes out grey and hence the sympathy or goodwill shifts away from him.
Shahrukh Khan’s acting is nothing new, infact it’s a little over board.
Dev’s character too is this MCP who is self sympathetic and lost, if it would have been the messiah like from Mohabbatein or Kal Ho Na Ho, it might have done well for the situation.

Final Take-
Of course it’s a must watch…if not for anything then for Karan Johar who does give you the larger than life-complete cinematic experience.

CASINO ROYALE

DIRECTED BY MARTIN CAMPBELL

RELEASE DATE- 15TH DEC'06

Every film needs some particular mood, temperament or perception to watch so that it can be enjoyed better. Likewise to me Bond films signify- style, thrills and women, rest all is secondary.

With Casino Royale I was also curious to get acquainted with the new bond- “Daniel Craig”…I was trying my best to keep Brosnan out of my mind and make no comparisons.

The film started well- the action was amazing and it did not take me great effort to accept Daniel Craig- however Brosnan till scores above- as the suave British agent.

In Craig, with his grey eyes i could not help but get a hint of villainy rather than the boyish naughtiness and charm that Brosnan brought to Bond.

As the film moved ahead I started feeling short changed- there were no bond girls, you had to force yourself to find one!!! The action did not take an ascending graph! The thrill at the casino was good, but the plot was such that it required better specifics. The villains and bond’s conflict was underplayed. At one point Craig looked a romantic hero than a sleek- action spy.
Where was the entire gadget introductory sequence?- A very important staple of Bond films.

Finally the climax was very hurried and wrapped up.

At the end of it, it was not a rubbish film- I don’t think any bond film can be bad but this one definitely felt less spicy and less salty!

The correct word as used above is- “SHORTCHANGED”

The Untouchables

DIRECTED BY BRIAN DE PALMA

RELEASE DATE: 3RD JUNE 1987

ROBERT DE'NERO.........SEAN CONNERY.......KEVIN KOSTNER

The movie is a true story set in 1930 about the gangster Al Capone(De Nero) who was invoved in illegal trafficking of liquor during the days of the prohibition. Officer Ness(Kostner) of the revenue department takes it upon himself to arrest Capone and make sure that he is proven guilty. However with almost all of Chicago on Capone’s payroll Ness has a hard time going about his mission until he puts together a team of four such people including himself(Kostner, Charles Smith, Sean Connery, Andy garcia) who do not take bribes and remain undeterred by threats thereby gaining for themselves the title of ‘The Untouchables’.

The movie is about how they go about their mission, the obstacles that they face and the victories that they achieve.

I often believe that a movie is good not because of what they show but mostly because of what they do not show. As such, keeping the screenplay and narration to the point and free flowing.

Certain scenes like the one on the railway station where Ness is waiting for Capone’s Book-keeper as he is the only link that will prove Capone guilty is very well choreographed with suitable background score doing the rest.

Also the long sequence of Malone (Sean Connery) getting killed is reminiscent of the Hitchcock style of suspense and thriller.

The characters too seem very real and not cardboard like.

Good film, must watch.

AAG

PRODUCED AND DIRECTED BY RAJ KAPOOR
RAJ KAPOOR........NARGIS.......KAMINI KAUSHAL
“Keval Khanna is a man obsessed with theater. However he comes from a family that looks down upon theatre and hence he has to rebel against his parents for the sake of his passion.
Along with the passion for theater Keval has nurtured a deep longing for his childhood friend Nimmi. Nimmi and Keval got separated when they were in school and since then Keval has looked for Nimmi in every girl he has met.

Aag thus is Keval’s journey for his passions-Theatre and Nimmi. The film also covers the current affairs of its time like unemployment, the frustration amidst the youth to make their own destinies, etc.”

Although the film is a flashback, it starts off well when Kevals burnt face is exposed, also after the story returns to the present there is still a little story that enfolds.

The film extensively drives the point that the beauty of the soul is to be valued more than the beauty of appearance.

Aag marked the debut of Raj Kapoor as the director and was the first film produced by the illustrious R.K. banner.
I would definately recommend the film to any lover of sincere and soft cinema.