Sideways (2004)

Director: Alexander Payne
Writers:  Rex Pickett, Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor
Cast:      Paul Giamatti, Thomas Haden Church, Virginia Madsen
Two men reaching middle age with not much to show but disappointment, embark on a week long road trip through California's wine country, just as one is about to take a trip down the aisles.

Was watching it for the second time and found it as good as the first watch. Not as dark as Payne's other film 'About Schmidt', but a brilliant character played by Paul Giamatti. It is criminal that he didn't win an Oscar for his role, but who gives a fuck about the academy. Film was also remade in Japanese.

Rating: 5/5

The Impossible (Lo imposible) (2012)

Director:Juan Antonio Bayona
Writers:  Sergio G.Sanchez, Maria Belon
Cast:      Naomi Watts, Ewan McGregor, Tom Holland
An account of a family caught, with tens of thousands of strangers, in the mayhem of one of the worst natural catastrophes of our time.

The film is from the team that made the excellent Spanish film 'The Orphanage' http://pulpfictionfilms.blogspot.in/2011/06/el-orfanato-orphanage-2007.html . It is a very well made film and the Tsunami provide a backdrop in which the horror of separation of the family is shown. The criticism that it whitewashes the suffering of natives doesn't hold true. Some scenes especially in the second half are bit manipulative but credit should given for a very realistic portrayal of the events in their actual locations. The film is based on the true life incident of a Spanish family.

Rating: 3.5/5

Lost Highway (1997)

Director: David Lynch
Writers:  David Lynch, Barry Gilford
Cast:      Bill Pullman, Patricia Arquette, John Roselius
After a bizarre encounter at a party, a jazz saxophonist is framed for the murder of his wife and sent to prison, where he inexplicably morphs into a young mechanic and begins leading a new life.

Watched it for the third time and is my favorite David Lynch film. Film is non-linear with respect to time and space. It is also cyclical. Is it? You won't get a near neat explanation like Mulholland Drive, but is much more complex and greater.

Rating: 5/5

The School of Rock (2003)

Director:Richard Linklater
Writer:   Mike White
Cast:      Jack Black, Mike White, Joan Cusack
A wannabe rock star in need of cash poses as a substitute teacher at a prep school, and tries to turn his class  into a rock band.

It is an alright film but the weakest of the Linklater films I have seen so far. Normally he writes the screenplay for his films but he didn't for this film.

Rating: 2.5/5

Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008)

Director: Woody Allen
Writer:   Woody Allen
Cast:      Javier Bardem, Scarlett Johansson, Rebecca Hall, Penelope Cruz
Two girlfriends on a summer holiday in Spain become enamored with the same painter, unaware that his  ex-wife, with whom he has a tempestuous relationship, is about to reenter the picture.

Its another little gem of a film from Woody Allen who is now making films in Europe, where he finds money for it. Good performances from the excellent cast. The ending seemed a little too contrived though.

Rating: 3.5/5

A Scanner Darkly (2006)

Director: Richard Linklater
Writers:  Richard Linklater, Philip K. Dick
Cast:      Keanu Reeves, Robert Downey Jr., Winona Ryder
An undercover cop in a not-too-distant future becomes involved with a dangerous new drug and begins to lose his own identity as a result.

The film is supposedly a faithful adaptation of Dick's novel and the animation technology used is rotoscoping. Even though the story is  very dark there are some really witty scenes especially involving Robert Downey Jr. and Woody Harrelson. It is a thought provoking and wonderful film. Philip K.Dick wrote the novel inspired from his real life events wherein which his wife and his friend had addiction problems. He brings a totalitarian dimension into it and kind of predicts the state in which US is now, with regards to its war against drugs.

Rating: 4.5/5

Ôdishon (Audition) (1999)

Director: Takashi Miike
Writers:  Ryû Murakami, Daisuke Tengan
Cast:      Ryo Ishibashi, Eihi Shiina, Tetsu Sawaki
Language: Japanese
A widower takes an offer to screen girls at a special audition, arranged for him by a friend to find him a new wife. The one he fancies is not who she appears to be after all.

The film is not as gory as Miike's other films but is more disturbing than them nevertheless. Not for the fainthearted and you will get an idea from the trailer itself. Kiri,,Kiri,,Kiri...

Rating: 4/5