tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-89523423417781442362024-02-02T12:32:36.510+05:30Films I WatchA place to read about the films I watch, directors & actors I like etc...
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.comBlogger1171125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-60629690928610198472019-06-09T18:05:00.000+05:302019-06-09T18:05:05.081+05:30Virus (2019)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Aashiq Abu<br />
Writers: Muhsin Parari, Sharfu, Suhas<br />
DOP: Rajeev Ravi, Shyju Khalid<br />
Cast: Revathy, Tovino Thomas, Parvathy, Indrajith, Soubin Shahir<br />
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Film recounts the details of the deadly 2018 Nipah Virus outbreak in Kerala which claimed lives of around two dozen people. The Nipah virus is very contagious with a very high death rate and it was happening in Kerala for the first time. There was every chance that it could turn into an epidemic considering Kerala's high population density but the medical community here along with the administrators were successful in containing it. The film basically recounts that story and is not focused on any particular protagonist. That is quite apt for the huge ensemble cast that was assembled for the film.<br />
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I am a huge fan of Steven Soderbergh's Contagion which also dealt with a virus outbreak like Nipah but on a global scale. I had seen some similarities to it in Ashiq Abu's previous film Maayanadhi (Kodaikanal scenes) in terms of shot visualisation and background music and was wondering whether he would use a similar approach here as well. That is not the case here because it wouldn't be realistic to take that approach when the central location for much of the film is Calicut Medical College. Contagion dealt with largely a what if scenario of such a global epidemic happening and how the society's functioning will get affected. We got a mini version of it in Kerala as Calicut city became a ghost town. Social exclusion of families affected happened and there was considerable fear in the two affected districts, Kozhikode and Malappuram.<br />
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Virus begins showing the everyday life of a medical college casualty in a riveting fashion and the busy nature sets the tone for the film. First half of the film depicts how it was diagnosed, it was an incredible feat that it was identified as Nipah from the second patient itself, and steps taken to monitor around 3000 people who came into contact with the initial patients. The bodies of those who died were not given back to the relatives and the challenges that the administration faced for cremation of it is also shown. Second half of the film deals with identifying how each of the patients were linked to establish how the virus got transmitted. Film takes a largely political tone in second half as you have the centre suggesting the possibility of a bio attack due to the religion of the index patient. I can see this aspect generating controversies in the coming days from the right wing dickheads for targeting them as well as from others for the logic of dedicating so much time for what then seemed like an internet phenomenon. It will be interesting to see if such a push did came from the centre and won't be too surprising. Anyway the makers have the licence to take creative liberties.<br />
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The original cut of the film was three hours long and they shaved 30 minutes off it for the theatrical release. You do see where it got the cuts as the Asif Ali storyline seemed quite half-baked. Overall the film works very well as a procedural without going into a semi documentary format. There are enough traits given for many of the characters from medical community to make it interesting and the administration characters are played largely in a matter of fact manner. A Nipah case was identified in Ernakulam last week but people seems to be dealing with it in a confident manner.<br />
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Rating: 4.25/5</div>
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-37477189666023451932019-04-28T19:49:00.000+05:302019-04-28T19:49:33.127+05:30ഉയരെ (Uyare) (2019)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Manu Ashokan<br />
Writers: Bobby-Sanjay<br />
DOP: Mukesh Muraleedharan<br />
Cast: Parvathy, Asif Ali, Tovino Thomas, Siddique<br />
Language: Malayalam<br />
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Uyare follows the story of a girl who wanted to be a pilot but ends up as an acid attack survivor when relationship with her boyfriend goes south. Asif Ali plays the role of overly possessive asshole boyfriend and Tovino is the bubbly CEO of an airline company in conflict with his businessman father.<br />
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It is ultimately a feel good film done very well. I am not really a big fan of films or roles that Parvathy does as they are generally about very unique situations and unique characters that require 'hard-work' acting. This role or film is no different but the trailer was sufficiently interesting and reviews very favorable for me to check it out on the smallest screen in my town (100 seater). She is not that convincing in the college graduate phase of the story but for the rest of it she carries it easily. The makeups are really convincing and changes through time post the acid attack and subsequent years are also dealt with. The plane scenes and the outside atmosphere have been captured in sufficiently convincing manner without us feeling the cheapness that a normal Malayalam film budget would afford.<br />
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It also has the usual problems associated with Bobby-Sanjay films like middle class righteousness. Friend-father of female protagonists have become a cliche in these films with Siddique playing it here. Despite its minor flaws and convenient plot situations it is a pretty great watch overall. It generates enough teary eyed moments which is a sign that it worked.<br />
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Rating: 4/5</div>
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-86429120260272830552019-03-30T22:57:00.000+05:302019-03-30T22:57:36.610+05:30Lucifer (2019)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Prithviraj Sukumaran<br />
Writer: Murali Gopi<br />
DOP: Sujith Vasudev<br />
Cast: Mohanlal, Vivek Oberoi, Manju Warrier, Tovino Thomas, Sai Kumar<br />
Language: Malayalam<br />
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Film follows the events after the death of a chief minister and the succession drama that is precipitated by it.<br />
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Trailer of the film pretty much reveals what it is about. It is a mashup of several films from the past like Irupatham Noottandu and Ustad, but in a good way. It is not really about the plot but the quality of making on a technical level, narrative sureity and the performances from the huge ensemble cast whom all have got memorable roles and have been carefully cast. Expositions are cleverly done using the Facebook live from the Indrajith character. Prithviraj is usually one who talks the talk when it comes to his passion for making risky films but that is generally only seen in films he produces. He has been quite upfront about the nature of his feature film debut, stressing the fact that he is a Mohanl fanboy and the film will have things that will please his fans and that is pretty much what we get.<br />
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It is a mass commercial film that will please his fans and is a neatly made watchable film for the rest. Prithviraj is said to have ghost directed some of the films he has starred in the past and their shortcomings are also present here- primarily the length of it and a general lack of humour. It is only Baiju and Sai Kumar who provides some humour in it and that is just not enough for a movie of this genre with a running time close to three hours. Ustad, Aaram Thamburan and Big B, only ones that I like among films of these nature from recent times, had ample elements of humour to them. The first two action set pieces are done very well but the final one is bit of a letdown. BGMs work very well in some places and disappointing in the rest. Camerawork is uniformly excellent and specially loved the scale of the crowd scenes and that zoom out scene from that Mumbai slum, Danny Boyle like. It is a pretty good watch and has more nuances than the impression I got from the initial watch. The Russian scene, spectacularly done, adds a lot for the film.<br />
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PS: Kids will get the Irupatham Noottandu reference. Adults will get the Pulp Fiction reference. Legends will get the Wire reference.<br />
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Rating: 3/5</div>
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-69001490575094134612019-03-18T07:43:00.000+05:302019-03-18T07:43:32.583+05:30Triple Frontier (2019)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: J.C. Chandor<br />
Writers: J.C. Chandor, Mark Boal<br />
DOP: Roman Vasyanov<br />
Cast: Oscar Isaac, Ben Affleck, Charlie Hunnam, Garrett Hedlund, Pedro Pascal<br />
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Five former special forces operatives reunite to plan a heist in a sparsely populated multi-border zone of South America.<br />
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The film was originally supposed to be directed by Kathryn Bigelow with the likes of Johnny Depp attached. Then it got dropped and various actors like Mahershala Ali, Will Smith got attached with Paramount supposed to produce it. It again got shelved and finally Netflix acquired it with J.C. Chandor directing it. I am a fan of the director with films like Margin Call and A Most Violent Year working extremely well for me. Oscar Isaac is the main protagonist of the film and not Ben Affleck. It is basically a project with A-List actors working on B Grade sensibility material. That is not to disparage it as it is quite self aware about what they are aiming for and it is a lot of fun to watch. The action set pieces works extremely well and the pace changes are handled nicely.<br />
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The locations it is shot at are quite gorgeous and it could have been a nice theatre experience. I guess we should be glad that it got made at least. Moral dilemmas that some of the characters go through seems quite tacked on surface level bullshit but that is alright if you are watching it as a fun action film. People tend to rate non-arty biggish budget Netflix films with prejudice as if they were not good enough to get a big theatrical release anyway. I do think they got a hit on their hands with this.<br />
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Rating: 3.5/5<br />
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Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-50320516350520093492019-03-10T23:05:00.000+05:302019-03-10T23:05:08.121+05:30Un beau soleil intérieur (Let the Sunshine in) (2017)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Claire Denis<br />
Writers: Claire Denis, Christine Agnot<br />
DOP: Agnès Godard<br />
Cast: Juliette Binoche, Xavier Beauvois, Philippe Katerine<br />
Language: French<br />
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Isabelle, a Parisian artist, divorced mother, is looking for love, true love at last.<br />
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It is the least Claire Denis film that I have watched of hers. She has never worked with Juliette Binoche before and you get the feeling that she is having fun with what you can call Binoche kind of films with this. It is an adaptation of Roland Barthes' 1977 text 'A lover's discourse: Fragments'. The takes are super long and camera dances between characters who are conversing, especially in that first one at the bar. Isabelle is middle aged and quite desperate to find the true love after divorcing the father of her daughter. She also come off as quite naive. Gerard Depardieu makes a cameo at the end as a heartbroken psychic who Isabelle consults instead of a therapist. It is probably Claire Denis making a point that there is no point at all.<br />
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It is a pretty good watch without being all that great. Claire Denis' next release is an English language science fiction film set in space. Can't wait!<br />
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Rating: 3.5/5</div>
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-22052998956640478082019-03-05T14:44:00.000+05:302019-03-05T14:44:36.562+05:30Green Book (2018)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Peter Farrelly<br />
Writers: Nick Vallelonga, Bryan Hayes Currie, Peter Farrelly<br />
DOP: Sean Porter<br />
Cast: Viggo Mortensen, Mahershala Ali, Linda Cardellini<br />
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A working-class Italian-American bouncer becomes the driver of an African-American classical pianist on a tour of venues through the 1960s American South. It is based on the real life relationship between Tony 'Lip' Vallelonga and Dr. Don Shirley and is part written by Tony's son Nick. The Green Book in the title refers to a hand book for blacks listing down the motels and hotels where they can stay while traveling down the South.<br />
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It is basically a feel good story done right without showing the Italian as a full blown bigot near the beginning of the film. His behaviour is realistic for the era it is set in. The performances from both the lead characters are excellent with Viggo Mortensen having more to chew on. Mahershala Ali is so eloquent and polished in real life that he is kind of playing a version of himself in the role. Film attracted considerable controversy in the run up to the academy awards which I guess is part of the mud slinging that goes on during that time of the year. I am glad it won the best picture award ahead of Roma, which was literally dog-shit. I really don't get the white saviour criticism that is levelled at it since both characters in it undergo some transformation. Film worked for me because the musician is not portrayed as a binary character without flaws.<br />
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I guess some of the hate it attracts is because the director is known for films like Dumb and Dumber. This is kind of his first 'serious' movie but it also has considerable humour mainly because of the chemistry between its leads. It is filmed quite traditionally and is elevated by good old acting performances. Mahershala Ali won his second academy award, for best actor in supporting role, the same night as True Detective season three aired its finale episode. He is surely gonna win an Emmy for that more challenging role as well.<br />
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Rating: 4/5<br />
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Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-28762747099692963382019-03-03T19:25:00.001+05:302019-03-03T19:25:13.792+05:30The Favourite (2018)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Yorgos Lanthimos<br />
Writers: Deborah Davis, Tony McNamara<br />
DOP: Robbie Ryan<br />
Cast: Olivia Coleman, Rachel Weisz, Emma Stone<br />
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In early 18th century England, a frail Queen Anne (Olivia Coleman) occupies the throne and her close friend, Lady Sarah (Rachel Weiz), governing the country in her stead. When a new servant, Abigail (Emma Stone), arrives, her charm endears her to Sarah initially and then the Queen. This eventually makes Sarah and Abigail rivals competing to be the favourite of the Queen.<br />
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The film works like a love triangle where the love in it is questionable. You broadly know where it is going after the initial set up itself and that in no way comes in the way of your enjoyment of it. The three main characters are based on historical figures. Even though it is set in period, the dialogues and accents used are quite contemporary, like in The Death of Stalin, and the camera is used in a very peculiar manner with fishbowl lenses. It is very funny but the central character in it is quite a tragic figure. The decisions made on matters of state are quite arbitrary very much depending on the mood of person. The European monarchies became genetically so weak due to the incestuous nature of marriages between them and you can see that when you look at their representatives from the contemporary times.<br />
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All the recent Lanthimos films did have an animal species name as part of their title while this film ends with a scene which dissolves into a bunch of rabbits. It is the most straight forward of the films that I have watched of his. That tend to happen usually for the directors you are a big fan of, their least interesting work becomes the one they are most famous for as they are much more accessible for a general audience. Olivia Coleman deservingly won the academy award for her role in this and gave the best acceptance speech from this year's ceremony. So glad to see the Peep Show girl winning an Oscar.<br />
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Rating: 4.25/5</div>
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-12169629863955456302019-02-24T13:11:00.000+05:302019-02-24T13:11:47.466+05:30Hereditary (2018)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Ari Aster<br />
Writer: Ari Aster<br />
DOP: Pawel Pogorzelski<br />
Cast: Toni Collette, Alex Wolffe, Milly Shapiro, Gabriel Byrne<br />
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After the family matriarch passes away, a grieving family is haunted by tragic and disturbing occurrences, and begin to unravel dark secrets.<br />
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Hereditary manages to creep you out by defying your expectations consistently. It combines the best elements of Exorcist, Rosemary's Baby and Babadook. Some critics like Mark Kermode have objected to it not sticking with one thing but I didn't have any problem with that. Giving everything a psychological explanation can be quite boring as would if everything was made supernatural as well. Hereditary has both of these in the right amounts to make it a very enjoyable watch. Underneath all that, it is ultimately a comedy as I laughed out loud in many places. You know the horror is very effective if you have the remote always in your hand while watching the film.<br />
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It works effectively by the actors not giving the expected reactions and staying in the scenes longer. There are some extra details in corners of many of the frames in it and so watch carefully. Paimon is even shown in the beginning during that funeral scene. The characters in it are all flawed and I was kind of glad when that pivotal scene in the car happened because the kid was totally creeping me out. It is the kind of film which big fans of horror might not be really into because it is not pure to the genre and those who like to look for subtext and stuff might also pan it because of the inconsistency. Sometimes it is just nice to see a film which is all about craft and the tease.<br />
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Rating: 5/5</div>
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-13851709829337159442019-02-24T03:15:00.000+05:302019-02-24T03:15:37.447+05:30അകത്തോ പുറത്തോ (In or Out) (2018)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: P.P. Sudevan<br />
Language: Malayalam<br />
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Akatho Puratho is the follow-up from director Sudevan to his state award winning feature film debut- Crime No 89. The latter was produced on a meagre budget of 7 lacs while his newest film cost a still meagre 15 lacs. His films are what you call as proper award films in Malayalam and is generally targeted for festival audience only. Some of them can really test your patience but in this film Sudevan pretty much hooks your from the beginning.<br />
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It is a two hour long film comprising of four short films with the last two considerably longer. Common theme running through them is death. First short is titled fish and is basically a depiction of food chain in our society through the lifecycle of a fish captured beautifully. The next one is titled the doll and does a similar feat over the lifecycle of a doll. The last two titled 'Old Man' and 'Her' respectively are human condition stories which can test your patience. The length, on reflection, is quite warranted for the first one as it is about the painfully slow process of death of a bedridden old man who is never shown on screen. It can really make you think about your own mortality and reaffirms the cause for assisted suicide, which I fully endorse. The last segment of the film is its weakest which involves a crime of passion and the protagonist role is played by a theatre artist. All others in the film are non-professionals.<br />
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Crime No: 89 was more cinematic in the traditional sense since it involved a plot. Akatho Puratho is more of an art movie and is available on Amazon Prime Video Service. Such streaming services can really provide a platform for these kind of niche films which can never get a theatrical release here in Kerala. The likes of Munroe Island and Ozhivudivasathe Kali, both of which got a very limited theatrical release here, are available on Netflix and comes highly recommended.<br />
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Rating: 3.5/5</div>
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-91997402509608253722019-02-21T15:00:00.000+05:302019-02-21T15:00:53.971+05:30万引き家族 (Shoplifters) (2018)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Hirokazu Kore-eda<br />
Writer: Hirokazu Kore-eda<br />
DOP: Kondo Ryutu<br />
Cast: Lily Franky, Sakura Ando, Mayu Matsuoka<br />
Language: Japanese<br />
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A family of small time crooks take in a child they find outside in the cold. While they intend to return her home next day, the evidence of abuses on her body changes their mind.<br />
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It is the most un-Japanese Japanese films I have seen from recent times. Ozu made movies with ordinary characters and normal storylines but in general Japanese films that I tend to watch are normally out there. Over the course of the film we learn the nature of actual relationships between the members of this family and it is done in such a non-judgemental manner that we are left in a moral quandary. Which family we are born into is not something that we can choose and the film works on that theme. This film is begging to be remade in Malayalam because worries about child snatching is very real on Malayalee WhatsApp universe and it has even led to instances of harassments on suspicion. The film would be a subversion of that since characters from this social strata are often portrayed in such a binary fashion in films here.<br />
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It won Palme d'Or at Cannes last year and collected around $72 million worldwide, much of it from Japan itself and China. I haven't seen other films from the director and am intending to catch up on those. The two child actors in it are excellent. We are often given a portrait of Japan with all its kinkiness without going much into how those people actually feel and this film is an exception.<br />
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Rating: 4.25/5</div>
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-75652578541111377142019-02-19T13:42:00.001+05:302019-02-19T13:42:39.624+05:30Bad Times at the El Royale (2018)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Drew Goddard<br />
Writer: Drew Goddard<br />
DOP: Seamus McGarvey<br />
Cast: Jeff Bridges, Cynthia Erivo, Jon Hamm, Dakota Johnson, Chris Hemsworth<br />
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Circa 1969, several strangers, most with a secret to bury, meet by chance at Lake Tahoe's El Royale, a rundown hotel with a dark past. Over the course of one night, everyone will show their true colours- before everything goes to hell.<br />
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The film is very Tarantinosque and, as can be seen from the synopsis, an obvious comparison can be made with Hateful Eight. The time it is set in and the historic touchpoints is also interesting in the sense that Tarantino's next is titled 'Once Upon a Time in Hollywood' and is supposed to have a peripheral reference to Manson. Tarantino has been quite disappointing in his last two outings and I enjoyed El Royale much more than Hateful Eight, both of which have a pretty generous running time. El Royale. Film follows the chapter format each of which gets a flash back and same events in the film are seen from different perspectives. This or the writing are not as snappy as Tarantino's work from the 90s but is much better than his recent fare.<br />
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The film plays with audience expectations and is very twisty with violent escalations. It is the hotel which provides you with surprises initially and then it becomes about the characters. How it holds up on rewatch remains to be seen. Chris Hemsworth's Mansonesque character makes an entry only in the final act of the film. Characters played by Jeff Bridges and Cynthia Erivo mostly carries the film but performances from all are quite good. I didn't have any problem with its length and actually quite enjoyed it taking its time. It does have a poor man's Tarantino vibe to it but the man himself has been quite poor lately.<br />
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Rating: 3.5/5<br />
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Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-7512946238649879882019-02-18T09:27:00.000+05:302019-02-18T09:27:58.145+05:30Ich seh, Ich seh (Goodnight Mommy) (2014)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Directors: Veronika Franz, Severin Fiala<br />
Writers: Veronika Franz, Severin Fiala<br />
DOP: Martin Gschlacht<br />
Cast: Susanne Wuest, Elias Schwarz, Lukas Schwarz<br />
Language: German<br />
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Twin boys move into a new home with their mother after she has a face changing cosmetic surgery, but under her bandages is someone whom they don't recognise.<br />
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The German title of the film translates as 'I see, I see' but they went with Goodnight Mommy for its overseas release. An obvious comparison to be made is with Michael Haneke's 'Funny Games', with it being an Austrian film and the nature of its genre. The trailer of the film, which I didn't watch prior and was proclaimed as quite scary, would leave you with an impression as to who is going to be the dangerous character in it but the film subverts that expectation by the midway point. There is something that could come across as a twist if you don't pay much attention to it but the filmmakers thankfully does not make any effort to hide it and it was obvious from the get go for me. It doesn't even qualify as a twist because you have to be pretty dim if you miss it.<br />
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It ends up as a quite straight forward film about grief and related struggles. Another subtext that could be read is regarding celebrity cosmetic surgeries and the reaction to it from the fandom if it doesn't quite work out. We had a recent experience of it in Kerala when Mohanlal decided to go plastic. The film really worked for me even though some had problems with the sudden turn it took around the hour mark. I really had to hide my eyes during some of the scenes.<br />
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PS: The director duo has an interesting backstory on how they met and eventually ended up working together. Severin used to babysit Veronika's kid as a 14 year old while she was working as a film journalist. Their English language film, The Lodge, will get released this year.<br />
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Rating: 4.5/5</div>
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-91395590977869394592019-02-10T23:09:00.000+05:302019-02-10T23:09:27.406+05:30버닝 (Burning) (2018)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Director: Lee Chang-dong</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Writers: Oh Jung-mi, Lee Chang-dong</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">DOP: Hong Kyung-pyo</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Cast: Yoo Ah-in, Steven Yeun, Jeon Jong-seo </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Language: Korean </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Jong-su bumps into a girl who used to live in the same neighborhood as him in his village, who ask him to look after her Schrodinger's cat while on a trip to Africa. Both of them are still quite poor and he has fallen in love with her even though she is quite a tease. When back from Africa, she introduces a mysterious Gangnam guy Jen whom she met there, who eventually confesses a secret hobby to him which involves burning of greenhouses. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The film is an adaptation of Haruki Murakami's short story titled 'Barn Burning'. The 'Gangnam style' song is actually quite helpful in understanding the film because most people who had followed the viral video and discussion surrounding it would know the meaning of Gangnam in Korea. It is actually a posh/bourgeoisie district in Seoul and the mysterious worldly guy is played quite aptly by Steven Yeun who hasn't spend his adult life in his home country. He had to improve his Korean for the role. Jong, an aspiring writer with a difficult childhood, comes across as quite naive in the film as the audience is ahead of him throughout the film in deciphering what Jen is implying. Not that we for certain can conclude those things actually happened in the story. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">It is comfortably the best film from last year that I have watched so far and don't think any will actually beat it. It can be seen as a metaphor for inequality and how it is playing out in global politics, or as a metaphor for global warming or just as a straight up mysterious film without a clear cut resolution. It has been nominated for Academy awards in the foreign film category, a first for Korean cinema, and it will be a fucking joke if Roma ends up beating it.</span><br />
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Rating: 5/5</div>
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-76243327892443067652019-02-10T14:03:00.000+05:302019-02-10T14:03:36.232+05:30കുമ്പളങ്ങി നൈറ്റ്സ് (Kumbalangi Nights) (2019)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Madhu C. Narayanan<br />
Writer: Syam Pushkaran<br />
DOP: Shyju Khalid<br />
Cast: Soubin Shahir, Fahadh Faasil, Shane Nigam, Anna Ben<br />
Language: Malayalam<br />
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Kumbalangi Nights is centred on the lives of four Christian brothers who are parent-less and lives in a dysfunctional household, which is apparently the worst in the panchayat as per the youngest of the lot. Relationships between the brothers are also strained and the reasons for it are gradually revealed over the course of the film. They need to get their house in order as the third one falls in love with a Hindu girl whose brother-in-law (Fahadh Faasil) doesn't approve the relationship for quite obvious reasons.<br />
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Eldest of the brother is played by Soubin Shahir and he is the no-good out of the lot who is leaching on a Tamil guy. Second one is a mute played by Sreenath Bhasi and he is a dancer and visits the house only occassionally. Shane Nigam plays the third youngest as a jobless 'freakan', and the role is against his usual type. Youngest out of the lot has sort of escaped from the house with a sports scholarship but is back home on his vacation. Fahadh Faasil stars as Shammy who is newly married into a women only household where he is passive aggressively establishing himself as the Patriarchal head. He is a barber in the city and runs a saloon in partnership with his equally creepy brother. All of these are revealed very slowly as the film meanders it way through with plenty of comedic moments as well as scenes which will tug your heartstrings.<br />
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Ultimately it is a feel good film which becomes conclusive as such only by the end. In another universe the Shammy character would have been played more subtyly and would have been equally as effective. Girl's father role in Thondimuthal for example. Portrayal of Shammy as a semi-psycho helps in keeping the audience on its toes. His role can be seen as a representation of the angry Hindu in Modi's India with the aggression basically stemming out of inferiority complex/small-dick syndrome. He is primed to lash out at all and sundry.<br />
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The film is a great watch overall even though I was irked by some of its forced political correctness. Performances are top notch with Shane Nigam being the stand out IMO, even though it is Soubin who is getting all the accolades. Shyju Khalid once again brings out the beauty of Kumbalangi, which is a tourism village. I do wish these people also tell stories set in normal Kerala towns where everywhere you look is not picture perfect.<br />
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Rating: 4.25/5</div>
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-90904976018881619592019-02-09T19:10:00.000+05:302019-02-09T19:10:00.971+05:309 (2019)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Jenuse Mohamed<br />
Writer: Jenuse Mohamed<br />
DOP: Abhinandan Ramanujam<br />
Cast: Prithviraj, Wamiqa Gabbi, Master Alok<br />
Language: Malayalam<br />
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A comet is going to pass very close to the Earth, an event which is going to affect life on Earth for 9 days. Electricity, combustion engine vehicles with spark plugs, battery run things etc will all be out for 9 days. Albert (Prithviraj) is an astrophysicist of great repute and is assigned a task by his mentor which involves going to Himalayas to document the event and how it affects the tribes over there, whom have predicted this happening much earlier than the scientific community. He also takes his motherless son, Adam, with whom he have a difficult relationship. There they meet an outsider, Eva (Wamiqa Gabbi), which sets in motion certain chain of events for the film to jump from one genre to the next.<br />
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Genre jumping within a film can be quite risky because you can lose your audience with each jump. Prithviraj in his promotion interviews had been stressing on sci-fi aspects of the film while director Jenuse was more or less pitching it as a fantasy film with some cosmic sci-fi background. They have been keen to manage audience expectations to make sure that the right ones turn up during the initial days of the release. Trailer was also pretty detailed and stunning. Prithviraj himself produced the film with Sony Pictures International also partnering, a first for Malayalam cinema, and they haven't made any compromises. Film is top notch on a technical level and you're doing well when the audience is immersed enough to not notice the VFX while watching the film.<br />
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The first half an hour of the film is its weakest with lengthy expositions some of which could have been trimmed or made in a little more cleverer manner. You cannot fault them too much for it because there is quite a lot of information that they have to pass to the audience. The one flashback song in it also looked totally unnecessary but the reaction of Albert to the pregnancy news is also kind of key. Film gets going once they reach the Himalayas as they get the pacing spot on from there. It is difficult to talk much about the film from then on because everything becomes spoiler territory. Steer clear of them and pay close attention while watching. The ending is deliberately ambiguous and you have a science Vs supernatural explanations competingat the end. Such ambiguous endings are not familiar for Malayalam cinema and a section of audience will certainly fail to appreciate it. There is an explicit explanation sequence at the end for such people but many will find problem with the similarity to another Prithviraj film from recent times. Many have missed the alternate possibility suggested by the final line of the film and the brief closing credits scene.<br />
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Performance wise, Prithviraj is his usual self and it is Wamiqa Gabbi who steals the show. The kid actor in it is also very good as is the creepy caretaker. I'll be certainly watching it once again and very glad that I picked the best screen possible during my first outing. This is a film that has to be seen at the cinemas and I really hope it does well. Ambiguous films are hard to pull off and they've managed it.<br />
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Rating: 4.25/5</div>
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-88819639124175877672018-11-04T21:07:00.000+05:302018-11-04T21:25:30.640+05:30Dark (Season One) (2017)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Creators: Baran bo Odar, Jantje Friese<br />
Cast: Too many in different versions<br />
Language: German<br />
<br />
I stumbled upon this Netflix original show after seeing it being described as 'Stranger Things' for adults. I haven't seen Stranger Things and not really planning to. Dark is so fucking good that I binged it twice within eight days. If you're planning to watch it, I can't recommend it highly enough, go ahead and do it. Plenty of spoilers ahead.<br />
<br />
****************SPOILERS****************<br />
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I can best describe the show as 'Twin Peaks+Predestination', on steroids. Twin Peaks because of its small town industrial setting, family affairs, haunting atmosphere and music. Predestination reference is quite obvious due to the time travel factor. The way time travel works in the series so far is in the "Harry Potter: Prisoner of Azkaban" mode (the best Harry Potter book by the way). What has happened can't really be changed. Whenever someone from future tries to influence things, they only help in aiding what has already happened inadvertently. So it doesn't take anything goes approach which can be quite disengenous if time travel is your main theme.<br />
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Story begins in 2019, the present for all intends and purpose, with shots of Jonas' father committing suicide. It ends with a boy disappearing in the woods near the caves which is again near the nuclear power plant which dominates over the small town of Winden. Boy's father is the cop Uhlrich, who's having an affair with Jonas' mother, Hannah. Jonas, suffering from post traumatic stress, discovers cave maps drawn by his father in the attic. Different characters in the story discovers the time travel possibility over the course of first season.<br />
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The time travel jumps in it is 33 years, a span over which solar-lunar cycle sync happens. So the time periods the series jumps to are 1986, 1953 and for a brief final seconds to 2052. It also has plenty of philosophic references including Nietzsche's musings about eternal recurrence which has a big overhang over its plotline. There is a love triangle in each of the time period: Helge-Claudia-Tronte in 1953, Hannah-Uhlrich-Katharina in 1986 and Jonas-Martha-Bartosz in 2019. It doesn't make a big deal about the twists that come along the way, all of which are pretty much guessable before they are revealed mainly because of the good job they have done with the casting of same characters from different time periods.<br />
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Based on the missing pages in Claudia's diary, I have a theory that many of the characters in 2019 are different versions of same people from past and future. Noah is Bartosz grown up and there is some mystery left around from where/when Alexander turned up. His real name Boris suggests some Russian connection, probably Chernobyl, and his surname Niechwald could be a reference to his parents from Nielsen and Kahnwald families- Jonas & Martha? On first watch I ended up with the obvious conclusion that Noah is the villain/dark and Claudia is the light. But on re-watch, I am not that sure especially because of the reference to our propensity to think in terms of duallism. The re-watch is so rewarding and you can see how well the show is edited, with recurrences offering it ample scope to place scenes together. It is masterful storytelling and I can't wait for the second season, which is currently in production.<br />
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"You are free with regards to what you can do but you are not free with regards to what you can will"...<br />
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PS: I am now more familiar with the family trees in Winden than my own.<br />
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Rating: 5/5</div>
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-86856713811044876562018-09-30T04:53:00.000+05:302018-09-30T04:53:42.155+05:30Hold the Dark (2018)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Jeremy Saulnier<br />
Writers: Macon Blair, William Giraldi (Novel)<br />
DOP: Magnus Nordenhof Jønck<br />
Cast: Jeffry Wright, Alexander Skarsgård, James Badge Dale, Riley Keough<br />
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After the death of three children in an Alaskan village, suspected to be killed by wolves, writer Russell Core is hired by the mother of a missing six year old boy to track down and kill the wolf.<br />
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It is the latest from independent filmmaker Jeremy Saulnier which dropped on Netflix this weekend. It was the revenge thriller Blue Ruin which got him noticed and he followed up that with the excellent 'Green Room'. Both are violent genre films and the latter was an attempt to subvert some of the genre tropes. This is the first time he is working with a significant budget and he gets to mix several genres (western, noir, revenge thriller) here on an epic scale. Like 'Wind River' from last year, it is set in cold conditions and with native Americans and cops involved around a murder case. But the treatment couldn't be any different. Saulnier subverts the expectations by having racial groups play against type while it was the total opposite in Wind River, which was exactly my problem with the latter.<br />
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The makers have chosen to leave many things mysterious for the audience by choosing to not explain things. But is is not a deliberate effort to leave things open-enbed with they themselves not having a theory to explain it all. Sufficient clues are given and you get a tremendous pay-off when you figure it out. But the downside to that is that plenty won't do and will end up getting disappointed with it. I'll put my theory below with a spoiler alert. Overall the film is a great watch if you are a fan of ambiguous films and it will eventually go down as a cult classic. Performances are excellent and the violence is relentless. I'm really glad that films like this and Annihilation are getting made due to Netflix since we're never gonna get theatre releases here anyway for them as they are not shitty DC/Marvel films.<br />
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Rating: 4.25/5<br />
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****SPOILER ALERT****<br />
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The kid being sickly, her eyes being supposedly same as her husband's and him being with her ever since she could remember: they all mean that there is incest involved and they are siblings. Russell describes how the wolves he sighted in the wild was eating one of their own and referred to it as savaging. That is what they are gonna do with the body after retrieving it at the end. It still doesn't explain the actions taken by the mother after the killing and it could be that she was having second thoughts. All the killings are people who got in the way. Them being Nordic in origin I think is a reference to the American discovery as Vikings are supposed to have reached America before Columbus did.<br />
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Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-37379450061240820312018-09-22T15:41:00.001+05:302018-09-22T15:44:23.300+05:30വരത്തൻ (Varathan) (2018)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Amal Neerad<br />
Writers: Suhas-Sharfu<br />
DOP: Little Swayamp<br />
Cast: Fahadh Faasil, Aishwarya Lekskmi, Sharafudeen<br />
Language: Malayalam<br />
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NRI couple, Abin and Priya, moves back to latter's ancestral home in a high range village while they are facing some difficulties on personal and career fronts. The village is not an idyllic one as is portrayed quite often in cinemas and as the title suggests (outsider), they are not that fond of Abin for no other particular reason.<br />
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Film's teaser reminded me of Enter the Void's opening credits and the trailer gave me the vibes of Sam Peckinpah's 1971 movie 'Straw Dogs'. It turned out to be almost like a remake of Straw Dogs, with all the major plot elements being there except for its infamous half-consent during the rape scene. Some of the camera angles surrounding Priya also reminded me of Aronofsky's mother! as well. These are what you expect from an Amal Neerad film and its success depends on how well it is placed in the domestic setting. I don't have a problem with it being a remake in terms of the plot structure as his films are never really about plot but solely on the making.<br />
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It is the village's moral policing, executed chiefly by its perverts, that welcomes the couple initially. Abin, boarding schooled and city-bred, is oblivious to the pervy nature of the village as he is predisposed to see the good in others initially by default. Priya, who has history in the village, is at pains to point this out to Abin but he doesn't realise until it's too late. As in Straw Dogs, the story arc around the husband's masculinity is also explored in the film in a convincing manner. The whole cast is excellent but the one who steals the show is Sharafudeen playing the villain character. It should be a turning point in his career. Little Swayamp and Sushin Shyam provides ample support with camera and music respectively, which are like always the chief highlights in an Amal Neerad film. It is his best work till date and should be watched on the best screen possible with Dolby fucking Atmos.<br />
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Rating: 4.25/5</div>
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-34455833538443689722018-09-08T18:58:00.000+05:302018-09-08T18:58:13.457+05:30Ranam (2018)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Nirmal Sahadev<br />
Writer: Nirmal Sahadev<br />
DOP: Jigme Tenzing<br />
Cast: Prithviraj, Rahman, Isha Talwar<br />
Language: Malayalam<br />
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Aadhi (Prithviraj) is a transporter for a Srilankan Tamil drug boss, Damodar (Rahman), in Detroit. He is trying to get out but, like in all these mob films, his boss drags him back in.<br />
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Film had some very good buzz around it ahead of the release due to a very interesting teaser and a very well cut trailer, both of which gave it an atmospheric action thriller vibe. But the atmosphere around it is that of an emotional drama and the action scenes, which are done very well, happens very intermittently. So if you are buying tickets based on the trailer, adamant that it has to adhere to what they projected, then chances are you will be disappointed. If you are willing to enjoy it for what it is, then it is a satisfying film overall.<br />
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A guy doing one last crime job before getting out of it for good is a genre that I very much enjoy. Examples for those would be Driver, Thief, The American, Drive and Carancho. In most of the those films, the protagonists are usually loner sort of characters who don't talk much. Even though the protagonist of this film does have that vibe, there is too much voice over narration explaining things and also conveying what he is thinking. Director must be thinking that it is necessary for the general Malayalee audience, who are not aware of this space in USA or this genre of films, to have some of the things explained to them. But that choice makes the film lose some edginess it could have had by having the protagonist be really mysterious, in terms of being unpredictable about his thinking and the choices he makes. They could have also given more time for the villains to sort out the pacing issues during the middle part of the film.<br />
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It is a pretty good watch overall, treading the middle path for the genre fans and the general Malayalee audience who might be interested in seeing an emotional drama set in USA. The dangerous thing with the misleading trailer is that both might get turned off by it, the former for being misled and the latter by reaction to it from the former who turned up on the first weekend. Misleading trailers have invariably proved disastrous, in terms of box office numbers, for Malayalam films and often end up being reassessed post DVD/torrent release and TV run. It deserves to be seen on a big screen with great sound system because it is so fucking well made.<br />
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Rating: 3.5/5<br />
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Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-88095937708819930092018-09-02T13:51:00.000+05:302018-09-02T13:51:44.416+05:30Mindhunter- Season One (2017)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Created By: Joe Penhall<br />
Directors: David Fincher, Asif Kapadia, Tobias Lindholm, Andrew Douglas<br />
Cast: Jonathan Groff, Holt McCallany, Hannah Gross, Cotter Smith<br />
<br />
Mindhunter is a Netflix original crime drama series based on the book 'Mindhunter: Inside the FBI's Elite Serial Crime Unit' by John E. Douglas and Mark Olshaker. The lead character played by Jonathan Groff is based on John Douglas and the first season is set in the late 70s. As they put it in one of the scenes, FBI is still under the influence of Hoover era good-bad binary thinking while the nascent behavioural science unit is trying to bring some grey perspective into it. What we now take for granted from the point of view of nature-nurture debate, psychological interrogation techniques etc were quite niche back then. I didn't know that the coining of the term serial killer was this recent and they dabble with sequence killer instead through much of the season one.<br />
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Charlize Theron serves as an executive producer for the series and David Fincher directed four episodes in total, a couple each at the beginning and end. A usual season for American TV drama series proceeds like a 50 over ODI innings, with fast paced beginning and end, and the middle can be a phase of consolidation. They have you hooked with the big hitters Fincher and Asif Kapadia directing the first four episodes. TV is kind of seen as a writer's medium but you do see the difference in style when it is Fincher and Kapadia directing it as opposed to Lindholm and Andrew Douglas.<br />
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Se7en is seen as the first big break for David Fincher as a director and had, *Spoiler Alert*, Kevin Spacey playing God as the serial killer in it. He again had a go at this genre with 'Zodiac', which I reckon is the high watermark for it. Many of these films have super intelligent evil genius characters, like Hannibal Lecter, as serial killers and with Mindhunter, Fincher supposedly wanted a more realistic portrayal. Ed Kemper, the coed killer, features heavily in season one. Fincher has supposedly cast for season two the same actor Quentin Tarantino has cast as Manson for Once Upon A Time in Hollywood. I truly binged it by basically watching all episodes back to back over a nine hour period. Really looking forward to season two.<br />
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Rating: 4/5</div>
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-19003649855486548922018-07-29T22:22:00.000+05:302018-07-29T22:22:39.093+05:30Maradona (2018)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Vishnu Narayan<br />
Writer: Krishna Moorthy<br />
DOP: Deepak D. Menon<br />
Cast: Tovino Thomas, Chemban Vinod, Saranya, Tito Wilson<br />
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After Mayaanadhi, Tovino Thomas is again on the run as Maradona. He finds refuge in a flat in Bangalore where he stays with a distant relative's family who are unaware of his criminal background. Circumstances conspire to him being locked in the apartment for a week with just a dog for company initially. Over the course of the week he developes some balcony relationships even as antagonists are on the lookout for him.<br />
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Maradona's past and the nature of the crime he committed is revealed to us in a piecemeal manner. The narrative style is very interesting and we get a full picture of it only after the interval. First half of the film progresses like a neat crime thriller and second half follows a redemptive arc. I have seen some people complaining about its two and half hour length but it is necessary to do justice to the redemptive arc in the film. It is a very good watch overall with the slightly iffy ending preventing it from being great. They could've done a bit more justice to Chemban Vinod's character's ending arc. He just oozes coolness in the 'one last job' for once retired ruffian role.<br />
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Performances wise it is great going from all concerned, especially the leading lady who is a newcomer. Nisthar Ahmad, who got his break in 'Ozhivudivasathe Kali', only needs that intense stare to convey the menace. The director and the writer have been associated with the likes of Aashiq Abu and Lijo Jose Pellissery and they do live up to the expectation that it entails. The film has enough in it to please different kinds of audience but could very well get washed out due to the inconsistency in release pattern of Malayalam films. It is the first Malayalam film that I have watched since 'Ee.Ma.Yau' and that was like theth months ago. Now we will have a deluge of promising films coming out together ahead of Onam with every chance that some of them will underperform at Box Office due to the release rush.<br />
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Rating: 3.75/5<br />
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Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-33852814228636327672018-05-06T15:27:00.000+05:302018-05-06T15:27:54.161+05:30ഈ.മ.യൗ (Ee.Ma.Yau) (2018)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Lijo Jose Pellissery<br />
Writer: P.F. Matthews<br />
DOP: Shyju Khaled<br />
Cast: Chemban Vinod Jose, Vinayakan, Pauly Valsan, Dileesh Pothan<br />
Language: Malayalam<br />
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A day and a night in a fishing village following the death of an old guy, to whom his son promised a funeral worthy of a King's.<br />
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The first half of the film moves in a sedate manner and I was kind of underwhelmed by it at halfway point. The pace picks up considerably in the second half and by the end you understand why the former half had to be that way. The entire premise of thet film can be told in about three sentencess but the trick is to it do it in an engaging manner in a different setting. After the film got released, the maker of an indie-film called Shavam accused LJP of plagiarism. Even without watching that film, I can safely say that the accusation is without merit because LJP films are never about storylines but always about their treatment. It is possibly career best performance from Chemban and Vinayakan and Dileesh are cast against type.<br />
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Technical excellence is a given in Lijo Jose Pellissery films and let me get it out of the way by reiterating it. Be it the night sequences which has a neon feel in some places or the rainy sequences during the day with the noise from sea being a constant background throughout. Music is used sparingly but very effectively, especially during the closing credits which had an incredible effect on me. The idea is to place the viewer in the same atmosphere as its characters and they manage to do it quite effectively. It is basically a dark comedy but the ending just pulls the rug out from underneath you all of a sudden in a way that cannot be explained. Not sure if all will have the same experience.<br />
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I can see quite a lot of people hating it if they go with the expectation that you are going to watch a typical LJP film. The reaction could be similar to what a few people had for Thondimuthalum Driksakshiyum after watching it with a Maheshinte Prathikaram hangover. P.F. Matthews is the writer of Doordarshan's 'Mikhaelinte Santhathikal' and the award winning film 'Kuttisranku', which I couldn't watch past thirty minutes of it. In my opinion it is LJP's second best film with Angamaly Diaries of course being the top. There are throwbacks to it as well as Amen in this film. He is getting better and better with each film and Double Barrel clusterfuck seems to have taught him the importance of having correct length for a film with both the films after that clocking just two hours.<br />
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Rating: 4.5/5<br />
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Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-38329076512983606152018-04-29T22:01:00.000+05:302018-04-29T22:01:03.481+05:30Uncle (2018)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Girish Damodar<br />
Writer: Joy Mathew<br />
DOP: Azhagappan<br />
Cast: Mammooty, Karthika Muralidharan, Joy Mathew, Muthumani<br />
Language: Malayalam<br />
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A college girl is stranded in Ooty following a strike in her college. By chance, a friend of her father in a Mercedes spots her and offers her a ride to Calicut as he is also going that way. When her father learns about this he is uneasy because his friend is bit of a flirt. Film switches between the car drive and the worried father at home.<br />
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In contrast with the reaction of the father, the mother is pretty cool about the situation. This is because women usually see these men under domestic settings and don't hear what all things are being said in an all-male environment. There is sufficient grey in Mammooty's head and in his portrayal of the character for us to suspect his intentions. Some of the reviews have criticized this aspect of the film accusing it of playing the audience for cheap suspense. I don't agree with that since I do think he was playing it straight and that was how he felt towards the girl, not really paternal or platonic. Trailer reminded me of Kuttetan, which is kind of a landmark film in Malayalam for the brave treatment of its protagonist who has a thing for teenage girls. To be honest, it would've been genius if it was Mammooty back as Kuttetan in this film because the ending then would've been totally ambiguous, like the ending in Kuttetan. Missed opportunity there.<br />
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Overall the film is a very good watch with some lag in some places. They could've easily shaved off some twenty minutes from it. Karthika Muralidharan is playing a role which could've easily derailed the film if she didn't get it right but she does. There is some unnecessary ass-licking of the present ruling regime of Kerala which could've been avoided. When it comes to moral policing in Kerala, the communists are no different.<br />
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Rating: 3.5/5</div>
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-70962017655232736072018-04-29T10:17:00.000+05:302018-04-29T10:17:11.561+05:30You Were Never Really Here (2017)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Lynne Ramsay<br />
Writer: Lynne Ramsay, Jonathan Ames<br />
DOP: Thomas Townend<br />
Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Ekaterina Samsonov, Judith Roberts, John Doman<br />
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A traumatized veteran, unafraid of violence, tracks down missing girls for a living. When a job spins out of control, Joe's nightmares overtake him as a conspiracy is uncovered.<br />
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It is Lynne Ramsay's take on the hit man genre and it is a genre-bender. It is brutal at times and the body-count is high but the focus is not much on the violence. We piece together through several flashes that happen over the course of the film that he had an abusive father, suffers from PTSD due to his involvement in gulf war and the FBI job that he took after also only added to his nightmares. He's on the edge and quite suicidal. Choices that he makes as an adult is because of the abuse he suffered as a kid but they don't really help him to overcome it.<br />
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Lynne Ramsay confirmed that the use of Psycho and Shawshank Redemption on the film was totally off-the-cuff but they do perfectly suit the film. Then again, it doesn't really matter whether the director intended or not, it is what you make of it that counts. Kevin Spacey is supposed to have been sexually abused as a child by his father and he kind of repeated the same, if the allegations are true. I do think something like that is going on in this as well. The first time rescue of the girl gave that vibe and he seems to be fighting against it.<br />
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Music for the film was done by Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood and it is an integral part of the film. It gives such a cool vibe to the film in some places. I've only seen one other film in Lynne Ramsay's short but long-spanning filmography and that was 'We need to talk about Kevin', which was quite excellent and fucked up. This is much more of a fun watch, relatively.<br />
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Rating: 4.25/5</div>
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8952342341778144236.post-53244630770192576982018-04-14T19:11:00.000+05:302018-04-14T19:11:27.262+05:30Phantom Thread (2017)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Director: Paul Thomas Anderson<br />
Writer: Paul Thomas Anderson<br />
DOP: Paul Thomas Anderson?<br />
Cast: Daniel Day-Lewis, Vicky Krieps, Lesley Manville<br />
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Set in 1950s London, Reynolds Woodcock is a renowned dressmaker whose fastidious life is disrupted by a young, strong-willed woman, Alma, who becomes her muse and lover. <br />
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After his latest two outings, The Master and Inherent Vice, which were not that straight forward narrative wise this one from Paul Thomas Anderson is much more of a simpler one. Inherent Vice with a drugged up private investigator as protagonist was an attempt to get us the audience to feel the same amount of confusion as he must have been feeling. It is a film that I enjoyed, but like most of his recent films, it demands multiple viewings which I haven't quite managed yet. Daniel Day-Lewis, in what he declared to be his final role, is the perfectionist dressmaker who likes quiet and fulsome breakfasts which can make or break his day. He lives with his work partner and sister Cyril (Lesley Manville) and we see in the initial sequence, her advising him to dump his muse after a tension filled breakfast. He goes to the country for a break and meets Alma (Vicky Krieps), who becomes his new muse and lover. What we see over the course of the film is whether or not Alma can break the cycle. She has her own ways and the ending of the film can make or break it for most of the audience. It worked for me and reminded me of 'Blood Simple' in an odd sort of a way. It certainly left me feeling high.<br />
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One gripe I have with the likes of Paul Thomas Anderson and Quentin Tarantino is that they have resorted to the safety of period with their latest films. This is a film which could have been very well set in the contemporary times, even with the same profession of fashion at its center. It could have even more of an impact. If you also look at Daniel Day-Lewis' filmography in terms of films that he is famous for, most have been set in period as well. It is just an easy way out in my opinion. Despite these misgivings in a general sense, Phantom Thread is a pretty great watch. There is no credited DOP for the film as the usual ones who work with PTA were busy with other projects and he himself is said to have managed the camera persons.<br />
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Rating: 4.25/5</div>
Tom Babuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13909195045957158446noreply@blogger.com0