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Saturday 28 December 2013

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)



Director: Peter Jackson 
Writers: Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens
Cast: Ian Mckellen, Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage, Orlando Bloom

The Desolation of Smaug, Peter Jackson’s 2nd instalment of the Hobbit series, takes us back into the ever familiar world of Middle Earth. Chronicling the journey of the dwarves, Gandalf (Ian McKellen) and Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman) the film portrays our protagonists making their way to the Lonely Mountain to retrieve the Arkenstone from the fiery dragon Smaug (Benedict Cumberbatch).

The Sequel:

Slightly shorter than last years’ An Unexpected Journey, this film is a lot more high-octane, foregoing much background story and picking up where the first film left off. We follow our protagonists journeying and making their way past skin-changers, giant spiders and mysterious hallucinogenic forests. 

Those familiar with the source material, may be slightly disappointed with seeming excesses and exaggerations, but they seem very forgivable as director Peter Jackson once again looks to create a spell binding universe and takes a few liberties that come with that. The dwarves march on, taking the help of Bard and eventually reach the Lonely Mountain.

Meanwhile, Gandalf is separated from the party and heads to the evil ruined city of Dol Guldur, where he encounters and is warned of rising evil powers, more of which we will see later (or earlier?). Bilbo and the dwarves eventually come face to face with the Smaug (surely an epitome of the possibilities of CGI) the fire breathing dragon.

The good stuff:

Sri: 

The strong points of the movie are the action sequences and stunning visuals.An intense encounter with elves and orcs at Mirkwood is truly one of the highlights of film, featuring some breath-taking choreography during the fight scenes. Made specifically with 3-D and iMax formats, it proves to be a visual delight, as are all of Jackson’s Middle Earth based films. All the locations are luscious and detailed, providing a vivid imagery and backdrop constantly during the course of the party’s journey. Some of the action sequences featuring Legolas (Orlando Bloom) are scintillating, and the rise of the evil Sauron in Dol Guldur is definitely a highlight.

Arora: 

The most enjoyable part of the film was undoubtedly the tense dialogue between Bilbo and Smaug within the Lonely Mountain, with Bilbo attempting to avoid getting eating by praising “his radiance”, Smaug, in a manner reminiscent of the messenger imp intercepted by Bartimaeus in Johnathan Stroud's “The Amulet of Samarkhand”, .while frantically searching for the Arkenstone in a sea of gold.

RS:

Peter Jackson brought back his characteristic wide tracking shots of the beautiful Middle Earth. Set in New Zealand, (the same place that gave us the stunning planet Pandora in Avatar) the landscape varies from breathtaking green canopies to the cavernous stone walls of Erebor. Not a single moment passes where the camera stays still as it pans, tracks and races through the scenes allowing for a beautiful perspective of each character. The flying and crashing barrels being thrown around everywhere were reminiscent of Gore Verbinski’s work in the second Pirates of the Caribbean movie. These flamboyant action sequences, while not Peter Jackson’s style, were very welcome although a few of them involved a little unrealistic CGI.

Wheee!


The not so good stuff:

Sri: 

One of the few let-downs of the film was probably the unwanted love triangle between the elves Legolas and Tauriel and the dwarf Kili. It felt out of place and rather forced, not really providing any real purpose or value to the overall narrative.

Arora: 

The most significant shortcoming is the unrivaled winner of retarded character numero uno, Tauriel the elf. Portrayed as a love-stricken, hasty and impulsive warrior, she'd probably fare better in a teenage apocalypse porno than as a daughter of Mirkwood. Of course, our beloved Legolas would disagree, seeking her approval for all the archery skill that they share.

The film was extremely conventional in its approach in comparison to Jackson's original trilogy, giving a lot of focus to action sequences, and less to dialogue and narrative, which is what one would expect from LoTR. Not to say that the adrenaline was a bad thing, but it really compromised the “epic” feel of the film. A lot of unnecessary, contemporary humour did serve to ruin the atmosphere, like the part where the dwarves enter Bard's home through the toilet.

RS: 

The one thing that really put me off even in the first movie was Kili and how he looks NOTHING like a dwarf as if it were an attempt to make a good looking Dwarf-Elf romance between him and Tauriel.

But dad! He's not like the other dwarves!


The cast:

Sri: 

While some people would concede that a beastly, intimidating dragon shouldn’t possess the ability to talk, Benedict Cumberbatch as Smaug manages to match up to the evil looks and snarls as he once again showcases his abilities as a superlative actor.

Arora: 

Martin Freeman has done a spectacular job in his portrayal of Bilbo Baggins. Although not the prime focus of the film, the ring's influence on him has not been entirely left out. Bilbo can be seen gradually accepting the ring as a means to power, and a solution to tricky situations, using it against spiders in the Mirkwood forest (where he begins to understand their speech which, according to LoTR lore, is a direct effect of using the ring), when escaping from the elves, and when confronting Smaug.
            
RS:  

Thorin was portrayed well by Richard Armitage and exudes the majestic Mountain king vibe. Legolas was again very well portrayed by Orlando Bloom and is probably the only non-pussy character he will ever play. The earlier Dwarf-hating character was very different compared to the Legolas-Gimli Bro-mance in the trilogy. 


Still a better role than Mycroft in Sherlock Holmes 2


The movie makes for a very entertaining roller coaster ride although it seems like it is aimed at a younger audience, compared to the much more mature LoTR trilogy. I think a good 3.5 on 5 does the sequel justice while we eagerly await the final part to come next christmas. 


Friday 27 December 2013

Logic waalo, Tumhari Aisi ki Taisi


Title - Dhoom: 3
Direction and Screenplay - Vijay Krishna Acharya
Producer and Story - Aditya Chopra
Starring - Abhishek Bachchan ("Dhoom is my film and I am the hero")Aamir Khan, Katrina Kaif, Uday Chopra, Katrina Kaif, Jackie Shroff, Siddharth Nigam
Music - Pritam
Released on - 20 December 2013

Note: Read this review only if you have contributed to the box office record smashing run that Dhoom 3 is on. Or if you do not care about the story.

The film begins in the year 1990 with Iqbal Khan (Jackie Shroff) welcoming you and the bankers whose loan he is defaulting on, to a special show of the Great Indian Circus - home to a never-before-seen magic trick. This magic trick has in fact had an entire movie dedicated to it previously.


An apathetic Mr. Andersen who helms the Western Bank of Chicago rejects Khan's plea to let his show continue and decides to shut the theatre down due to its insolvency. Crestfallen, Khan shoots himself leaving his son Sahir (debutant kiddo Siddharth Nigam) to fend for himself.

Years later, Sahir (now Aamir Khan) has made it his life's driving purpose to ruin the bank that drove his father to suicide by simply doing their job. Like several of his brothers in the hip-hop industry, Sahir makes money rain from the sky and runs down the bank in ultra slow motion with a strange horny expression on his face. He then proceeds to ride his impeccably engineered and well advertised BMW bike, and evades the cops with ease. Having reached the limits of their ability, the Chicago police authorities decide to ring in Supercop Jay (Abhishek Bachchan) and Sidekick Ali (Uday Chopra).

I'm on fire even if my acting career isn't
The first tinge of real emotion that the movie manages to evoke is courtesy Ali's typically comical entry. The feeling of joy however is evanescent as the movie wastes precious time on the improbable task of trying to make Abhishek Bachchan look cool. Ali's monologue to buy himself some time reeks of dialogues that were probably meant to elicit some applause from the director's contorted perception of the Aam Aadmi. When Jai does finally arrive, he does so in all his overacting splendour and performs comical, gravity defying stunts in full Rohit Shetty ishtyle. These scenes illustrate why some things are best left to Salman Khan, although I must admit that Bachchan Jr looks more at home in an auto rickshaw than on a superbike.

The duo are ushered into Chicago by Police Officer Victoria (Tabrett Bethell) who is completely inconsequential to the plot barring her leading role in Ali's erotic fantasies. Soon after, Aaliya (Katrina Kaif) treats us to a titillating 5 minutes of seductive striptease interspersed with some acrobatic dance moves that helps her land the role of Asian Goddess who can sing and dance like water and fire hot trapeze artist in Sahir's circus.


I'm sexy and I know it
The whole sequence involving Supercop Jai taunting Sahir into robbing again and Sahir posing as an informant who would help Jai find his 'Chupchap Charlie' makes both characters seem incredibly naive. Anyway, Sahir robs the bank successfully and gets shot in the ensuing pursuit but manages to escape with assistance from his BMW superbike/speedboat. The only reason I was able to suspend my disbelief through this scene was due to the fact that I had seen Dubai's wonderbus earlier in the day. The same night, Sahir opens The Great Indian Circus - now revamped and larger than ever before as his highlighted by this song that they spent Rs. 5 crore on.



Immediately after the show, Supercop Jai confronts Sahir backstage in an attempt to expose him as the thief but the lack of any sign of a bullet injury on Sahir lets him off the hook much to the chagrin of Jai who is once again in his overacting prime. It is here that the major plot twist of the film is revealed. The person shot was actually Sahir's identical twin Samar whose existence is a secret hidden from the rest of the world. Samar assists Sahir in his stage tricks and bank robberies, loves Aaliya and suffers from the same disease that plagues SRK in My Name is Khan and Hrithik Roshan in Koi Mil Gaya.

The second half of the film, although initially promising fails to deliver and epitomizes the feeling of anti-climax. Simply put, too much of the film is a buildup to nothing. Another song is superfluously introduced to drive home the point that Samar is besotted by Aaliya. Although the chemistry between Samar and Aaliya is anything but sizzling, the two do share a scene that qualifies as almost cute and ends in Aamir entering the elite list of men who get to kiss Katrina Kaif's luscious lips on screen.

The technical work is decent and apart from a few aerial shots of Chicago that seem grainy, the CGI ranks fair compared to foreign films (especially The Amazing SpiderMan 2). Nothing of note can be said about the acting. The ending leaves you feeling shortchanged, especially for an Aamir Khan movie. I was certainly disappointed by the platitudinous script and would rank it several notches below its relatively much classier and more exciting predecessor, especially considering the tremendous hype that the movie had generated prior to its release.

But even as I write this, Dhoom 3 continues to smash box office records and is clearly on its way to becoming the all time leading grosser. Moreover, the response it has received from critics and audiences is mostly positive. So this may still be a film that you would want to watch for yourself and decide.



The title song sung by Adita Sen Sharma (and its Arabic version by Lebanese singer Naya who has a striking resemblance to twerker extraordinaire Miley Cyrus) is as hummable as the previous ones and offers some much needed respite as Katrina Kaif gyrates to it at the end of the film.



Overall verdict on the film: Watch it, curse it, forget it.

Sunday 22 December 2013

The Great Game

Genre : Crime Drama
Created by : Mark Gatiss , Steven Moffat
Based on Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Written by : Mark Gatiss , Steven Moffat, Stephen Thompson
Directed by : Paul McGuigan, Euros Lyn, Toby Haynes
Composer : David Arnold, Michael Price
Starring : Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman, Andrew Scott, Mark Gatiss

Sherlock Holmes seems to have caved in to his drug addiction because of the lack of ‘interesting’ cases and his eccentric behavior causes Watson to move out of the apartment and spend the night with his girlfriend. The same night, there is an explosion at 221B baker Street and it is clear that someone is after Sherlock’s life. Sherlock soon gets a series of calls from various victims controlled by a third party asking to solve various puzzles and crimes within a time limit in order to save their lives.


All the shortcomings of the second episode are all forgiven after this episode. In James Jim Moriarty, the creators have managed to create the perfect anti-Holmes. While Holmes is restrained and unflashy, Moriarty is flamboyant and swanky. While Holmes boasts the title of the world’s only consulting detective, Moriarty is the polar opposite - he’s the world’s only consulting criminal. 

Again, the writers successfully capture the essence of the original and the final confrontation between Holmes and Moriarty, which is supposed to mirror the exchange that takes place in The Final Problem,
has been beautifully executed by both Andrew Scott and Benedict Cumberbatch. Credit again goes to the creators Moffat and Gatiss to present an antagonist unlike any other to have appeared on screen.

The plot keeps you gripped from the start to the finish and before you know it, you’ll be watching the second season of the series(trust me, you just won't be able to help yourself!)

The Blind Banker


Genre : Crime Drama
Created by : Mark Gatiss , Steven Moffat
Based on Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Written by : Mark Gatiss , Steven Moffat, Stephen Thompson
Directed by : Paul McGuigan, Euros Lyn, Toby Haynes
Composer : David Arnold, Michael Price
Starring : Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman, Andrew Scott, Mark Gatiss

Follow Sherlock (Benedict Cumberbatch) and John Watson (Martin Freeman) as they investigate a series of ciphers representing numbers in an ancient Chinese numeral system which have been left by a Chinese smuggling ring who seem intent on killing to retrieve an item that one of them stole.


After a brilliant start to the series, the second episode is somewhat disappointing and unmemorable. The story makes a few allusions to the ciphering techniques that Holmes applies in The Dancing Men and takes the concept of coded messages from The Valley of Fear (using book references), but apart from that the story is largely independent of any particular book. This fact clearly shows as the banal plot fails to keeps you engrossed and feels a bit dragged.

Although the episode comes nowhere close to the benchmark set by its predecessor it still makes a decent watch with Zoe Telford playing Dr Watson’s love interest and briefly bringing a strong female character into the mix.

A Study in Pink

Genre : Crime Drama
Created by : Mark Gatiss , Steven Moffat
Based on Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Written by : Mark Gatiss , Steven Moffat, Stephen Thompson
Directed by : Paul McGuigan, Euros Lyn, Toby Haynes
Composer : David Arnold, Michael Price
Starring : Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman, Andrew Scott, Mark Gatiss

“There's the scarlet thread of murder running through the colourless skin of life, and our duty is to unravel it, and isolate it, and expose every inch of it”
                                                              - Sherlock Holmes to Dr Watson, ‘A Study in Scarlet’

Across London, a number of ‘serial suicides’ are occurring which involves the victims killing themselves in the exact same manner, with the exact same poison pill. Sherlock forces Detective Inspector Lestrade to take his help by making a fool of him in front of the media while the Inspector is giving a press conference.

The rest of the episode follows Holmes and Watson as they try and solve this seemingly inscrutable case.


The main plot of the first episode is loosely based on A Study in Scarlet and it makes a few references to a few other stories from the original book series.

Doctor Who writers Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat really have done a remarkable job adapting this victorian epic in a modern day setting. The suitably retain elements from Conan Doyle’s stories at the same time giving them a refreshing twist.

What really amused me was how they have explored Sherlock and Watson’s relationship - Mrs. Hudson presumes them to be a couple when they move in together and throughout the series people often jump to the same conclusion. Whenever this happens on screen Watson is invariably offended while Sherlock remains indifferent. And if you think about it, Sherlock being gay would perfectly explain his somewhat misogynist attitude. Its the 21st century and anything is possible!

The episode is full of innovative ideas like the one mentioned before and looks at the characters from a different, more relevant, perspective. The plot keeps you gripped throughout and even those who have read the original story have something in store for them.

Overall, there is almost nothing that the episode gets wrong and its freshness and originality leaves you thoroughly entertained and wanting for more!

Sherlock : Season One Review

Genre : Crime Drama
Created by : Mark Gatiss , Steven Moffat
Based on : Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Written by : Mark Gatiss , Steven Moffat, Stephen Thompson
Directed by : Paul McGuigan, Euros Lyn, Toby Haynes
Composer : David Arnold, Michael Price
Starring : Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman, Andrew Scott, Mark Gatiss


123 years after the world first heard of him, BBC brings to you a modern day rendition of the world’s most famous detective - Sherlock Holmes (just born in a different century and not so famous yet).

This 21st century investigator combines modern day technology with the classic “Art of Deduction” to solve bewildering crimes and catch bad guys. Featuring alongside him are all your favourite characters from the original series. Dr Watson (Martin Freeman), Holmes’ right hand man and perhaps the only person in the world who can solve the inscrutable puzzle that is Sherlock Holmes. Mycroft Holmes(Mark Gatiss) , Holmes’ elder brother who possesses powers of observation and deduction that even exceed Sherlock’s. And last but not the least Professor James Moriarty, Sherlock Holmes’ mirror image - just as Sherlock is the world’s only consulting detective, Moriarty is the world’s only consulting criminal.

Ever since Nolan’s Batman series came out, audiences across the world are no longer convinced with the smokes and mirrors approach to super heroes. I use the term super hero because Sherlock Holmes is in his own way as much a superhero as any other. This show presents Holmes as a more human and relatable person, even more so than the original series (at least in season 1). Holmes no longer relies on his memory for trivial matters such as the weather neither does he maintain an impractically large index of every criminal in the country. He now simply pulls out his I-phone and google's the information he needs.

Just as the creators have depicted Sherlock in a modern day avatar, they have done so with all the other characters. Mrs. Hudson is no longer their caretaker but has just leased out her room to Watson and Holmes and takes care of the duo out of fondness. While in the original, Conan Doyle only alludes to Mycroft’s association with the government, the series openly shows him as being affiliated with MI6, Britain’s Secret Intelligence Service. But the depiction of James ‘Jim’ Moriarty is perhaps the most captivating of the lot.

The creators Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat, ventured out to present Moriarty as someone who is ‘absolutely psycho’ and need to be congratulated for their efforts. Easily the most interesting character in the series, Moriarty (no longer Professor) plays Holmes’ counterpart who has a criminal strain running through his blood which has been ‘increased and rendered infinitely more dangerous by his extraordinary mental powers‘; an evil so demented that you wish Sherlock had never crossed his path.

Benedict Cumberbatch plays the part of modern day Holmes to perfection and impresses with his impeccable dialog delivery (he does it without sounding like Tony Stark with a British accent). Another special mention goes to Andrew Scott for the portrayal of Moriarty in a never before seen avatar. From his dialogue delivery to his body language, everything about him seems nefarious.

The show’s principal virtue is that it preserves the original book’s integrity while at the same time presents it in a relatable and stylish manner. It possesses all the glitz and glam that viewers have come to expect from a prime-time show without reducing itself to a mere action series. That was one major complaint I had with the movies. Sherlock is someone who is skilled at martial arts but avoids physical exertion as much as possible. His boxing days were long over, he didn't go get into fights in underground joints for entertainment, he injected himself with a cocaine solution and sat in front of his fireplace. The series stays true to the original in this aspect and as a devout fan that is what I appreciate about it.

Apart from Sherlock’s fighting skills the series also eclipses some of his other talents. Several of the original stories involved Sherlock donning numerous disguises and spending nights just staking out, this is something that is rarely seen in the season. An anomaly in the show for me is Sherlock’s apparent cluelessness to his coworker Molly’s feelings for him. For the world’s smartest detective, this seems pretty stupid. However, these shortcomings are hardly notable and do not at all hinder the viewing experience.

A novel idea in the show was how text messages or emails appeared on the screen for the viewer to read instead of the actors having to read them out. This was the first time this was ever done on screen and has found its way to other shows and movies as well.

And last but certainly not the least, the music score. The theme song, when it came out, was perhaps the most widely hummed tune everywhere and due credit needs to be given to David Arnold for this musical masterpiece.

Overall, the conglomeration of brilliant screenplay, dialogues and solid acting performances along with a catchy background score make it one series you definitely should not miss!

Wednesday 4 December 2013

The Pink Panther(2006) : A Diamond in the Rough



Director : Shawn Levy
Screenplay : Len Blum, and Steve Martin
Cast :  Steve Martin, Jean Reno, Emily Mortimer Henry Czerny, BeyoncĂ© Knowles, Jason Statham (The Dead guy)
Run Time : 93 min

If you haven't watched this movie yet, I am not going to hurl obscenities at you.    I do request, however, that you close this tab, find the movie and watch it before you even consider going over the next few lines.

Classics are, by definition, fantastic, and you could hardly find a better example of this than Peter Seller's classic, "The Pink Panther". Don't panic if you haven't watched it. Most people haven't; they've seen only some snippets and that's okay. The humor is from a different period and you need to be in the right mindset to enjoy it. History tells us that remakes of classics are doomed to fail. Why? Is it because they are so good that you simply cannot compete? Or is it just that we have formed such an impeccable image of the movie in our mind that we are unable to accept that the remake can be anything but miserable. I am of the opinion that the truth is the latter. The "New" Pink Panther has fallen prey to this very idea. If it weren't to be the remake of such a fantastic movie, it would have been considered a comic masterpiece. But alas, such a movie ends up with a lowly rating of 5.3.


Stop browbeating her! Can't you see she is sexy?
The movie opens up with the high profile murder of a Football Coach Yves Gluant (Jason Statham) and the mysterious theft of one of the the world's largest pink diamonds, "The Pink Panther". Chief Inspector Charles Dreyfus (Kevin Kline) looks at this as an opportunity to make his mark as a great detective and assigns the case to the Village Dunce, Inspector Jacques Clouseau (Steve Martin), a man who has supreme confidence in his own abilities but lacks somewhat of a finesse in his execution. Dreyfus needed someone to distract the world press while he and his team pursued the "real" perpetrator. To keep an eye on Clouseau he assigns Detective Gilbert Ponton (Jean Reno) as his partner. Clouseau graciously takes him under his wing as "a simple farm boy who has come to Clouseau to learn". Xania (BeyoncĂ© Knowles) who was the victim's girlfriend is now a suspect but chivalrous that he is, Clouseau refuses to interrogate her in the conventional sense. He instead uses his legendary powers of seduction to poomp her for imformasion. 

He is not 'pushing up the daisies,' he is DEAD !
Armed with the miracle pill for middle aged men, their "date" still ends up as a hot mess. Clouseau continues training his partner with surprise attacks in order to keep his senses sharp. But as it turns out, the farmboy's senses are a little too sharp for him. Nevertheless, as time passes Ponton's respect for the heavily accented frenchman only grows. The investigation continues, failing miserably but with style. Clouseau pulls out every trick in the book, including his own variant of the "Good Cop - Bad Cop routine" where he plays both sides. His investigation leads them to the United States of America where he finds bliss in the disgusting american food, The Hambuuger, no wait.. aambaaga, I mean dambuger. While returning to France though, Clouseau's new found affliction gets him arrested as he tries to smuggle a few burgers through customs. When he returns, he is proclaimed a National Embarrassment and stripped off his rank. He returns to his home, to his old friend "Ze Inzernet" to download some ringtones, when he notices something in a picture of himself at the airport. He immediately calls his sidekick to infiltrate the Presidential Palace and solve the case! Chief Inspector Dreyfus makes his move and arrests the wrong person, while Clouseau arrives just in time to prevent the 3rd murder and apprehends the true murderer, instantly becoming a National Hero.
          
Steve Martin has outdone himself in this remake with his supreme comic timing and Jean Reno rarely fails to deliver. With such a splendid cast and sublime execution, it is hard to imagine why the movie received such bad reviews. Perhaps it is the curse of the remake or perhaps I am wrong. But one thing is for sure, the movie will leave you grinning be it the first time you watch it or the hundredth. And if Clouseau was right about the gentle healing power of laughter, then I believe we have found here the cure for cancer!

Because Justice is Justice and France is France !