Love My Life

Not the kind of movie that I would have watched but somehow chanced upon it. This is such an easy, level headed, warm hearted confident movie which does not resort to histrionics and coincidental miscommunication etc etc.

Not that I am an expert in same sex relationships but I had the feeling this movie really hit the spot in depicting it in a warm way. The two lead actresses play perfect foil to each other, one a little dumb and impetuous and the other a brooding serious type. There are traces of its original manga source that creep through the movie but that was perfectly fine with me. All in all a really great find. In fact IF i ever attempt to make a movie I might end up making one like this in the first attempt.

I was however a little curious as to how I would have reacted if the same movie was made with two male leads. I do not know. Maybe I might have liked it too.

The Chaser - Korean Thriller Movie

Some of the better thriller movies that I have watched recently are definitely Asian. Maybe it is that I am missing all the American good ones but the packaged products of America and India stand no match to these.



The Chaser is an amazing movie where the whole plot is structured with such great fine detail that you absolutely do not have leeway to poke holes in the movie. Strong performances, very realistic brutal violence and unsympathetic character extermination (unlike most movies where the good guys are just injured to be resurrected at the end of the movie) make the Chaser an amazing movie.

Shankarabharanam

Please do not miss it. Watch it. I dont care if you dont understand telugu. I dont care if there are no subtitles. I don't care what excuse you give, just go watch it. It stands a clear shoulder above the random crap being served to us these days by spineless directors and packaged fare. And the music is divine even to a retard like me.

This is one movie which could easily have hit "the indian movie melodrama" target circle right in the bull's eye, but has been handled with so much finesse that it comes across as sensitive, passionate and great art. The lead actors Somayajulu and Manju Bhargavi are superlative in their depictions of the characters.

Ek Chalis Ki Last Local

Definitely watchable compared to the other stale stuff that our movie industry is churning out. Of course it grates to accept that this is all it takes to stand out in a mediocre industry, but you see, Karan Johar has successfully driven Indian movie standards to such extend that even this seems way too good.

Cons: Too many whacky characters.

Seher

A pretty good movie. I was bored and started watching it and it was pretty good. I thought i might as well list all watchable (according to me :-)) movies for posterity. Now that these are pretty rare occurances.

Arshad Warsi plays a straight serious role. Mahima Choudhury is sufficiently good looking and the characters not ridiculous. Go ahead. Watch it. You wont curse me.

4 Korean Must See Movies

For a long time, having been bombarded with the (B/H)ollywood light romances, I got to watch 4 Korean light hearted movies. I just loved them. If you are looking for good movies here they are. All are available in youtube I think.

Yeopgijeogin geunyeo (My Sassy Girlfriend):

A real light romantic comedy. And mind you, I am not one who generally watches mush. But this really blew me away.

Oldeumiseu Daieori geukjang-pan (Old Miss Diary):

A really delightful movie. Mills and Boon type.

Il Mare: This is one of the best shot mush movies. The original from which "The Lakehouse" was adapted. And I am quite delighted to say that Hollywood as usual screwed the original by steamrolling all the subtleties and depth of the movie. Well, with Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock in the american version you know what to expect.

The Apu Trilogy

Thanks to some cheap schemes in the UK to watch good movies,easy accessibility and other such due acknowledgements I consider myself lucky to have watched this trilogy.

I had always shied away from Satyajit Ray for some unknown reason.One of the most overt ones being that being an Indian director,I could lay my hands on his works anytime.That is not the reason I know.But once I watched Pather Panchali,I realized my mistake.The extra ordinary timing of the movies was that while also watching the Apu Trilogy,we were also watching the Colours Trilogy,by Krystof Keislowski.Both lyrical.Both masterpieces.

What one person did with Blue,White and Red,the other achieved with Black,White and Grey.
Some things that ought to be mentioned is his proficiency in working with child artists.Children generally spoil the movie.They are either too precocious or plain irritating.Who in Tamil or Malayalam is called an Athigaprasangi.But Ray absolutely makes little wonders of joy.Right from the little Apu,to Kajal,Apu's son in the third part,they are all so innocently mischievous and real that one has to acknowledge his directorial excellence.One reason why he thinks children react so well to his instructions is in his own words "I treat them as adults...I give them whispered instructions..and I never let anyone on the sets mollycoddle them".

Pandit(no wonder they call him that) and Subrata Mitra make no mean contribution to the movie too.Sharmila Tagore in Apur Sansar is a pure joy to watch.Also watch out for the trains,smokes and water bodies.The trademark motives that underline Rays these three works.

Pather Panchali

I am sure there are numerous reviews that you'll get if you look it up.Reviews by experts on the movie.So I am not willing to nor try and critique this master piece of a movie.

All I can say is,if you love movies this is a must see.A perfect movie(though in his interview Mr Ray describes it to have a modifiable first half),this is one movie that will affect you.The pace,the place and the people are all haunting.

All the directors and actors who are in the industry must watch this movie and if they have not,they are in the wrong profession.The work of a master who has complete control over his art.

Though,the movie throughout is a visual and cultural treat there are some sequences that haunt me.One is the monsoon season.Where Durga dances in the rain.This is a scene I will not forget for long.One more director who uses rain to intensify the screen.

Then there is the scene where Durga chases Apu for the latter's act of appropriating the formers treasure of Silver paper to make a crown.

The movie would have not been the same without Pandit Ravi Shankers music too.

Movies That Should Be Watched If You Can-R Rated

Since there seem to be quite a lot of movie buffs that I come across from time to time thought the easiest way to communicate would be to put up the stills from The movies.This small set of movies are those that I remember off the top of my head that are very impressive.

However these contain nudity,sex and mature themes.So unless you are into serious movies AND are above 18 (both are necessary conditions)please do not try to view these. Also you might have to put up with subtitles.
The movies featured are:

Odishon directed by Takashi Miike:
Language:Japanese Genre:Horror/Thriller/Extreme
More gore here:http://www.mandiapple.com/snowblood/odishon.htm

La Pianiste directed by Michael Haneke Language:French Genre:Not too sure More Classical Notes here:http://www.kino.com/pianoteacher/

De battre mon coeur s'est arrêté(The Beat That My Heart Skipped) directed by Jacques Audiard Language:French Genre:Neo Noir More Info here:http://www.wellspring.com/movies/text.html?page=synopsis&movie_id=63

Przypadek(Blind Chance) directed by Krystof Kiezlowski Language:Polish Genre:The master's own Take your chance here:http://www.aboutfilm.com/movies/b/blindchance.htm

Irreversible directed by Gaspar Noe Language:French Genre:Shock move.If never heard of Noe,better not watch it You could try:http://www.sensesofcinema.com/contents/04/31/irreversible.html

Ghost In The Shell:1 and Ghost in the Shell 2:Innocence Language:Japanese Genre:Science Fiction/Manga Portal URL:http://www.manga.com/ghost/