Cinema... And Stars | Editor's Pen

Lately we have seen some good actors doing really 'bad' cinema. By 'bad' cinema I don't mean mindless comedies but movies which try to dwell between cinema and soft porn. Making a sex comedy is a different thing and using sex as an object is different. Without being hypocrite, I admit that in real we do crack non-veg jokes. Watching them on screen is also fine to some extent. But there is an undefined boundary which is being taken for granted nowadays. Ajay Devgan, Kangana and Sanjay Dutt's Rascal is a disturbing example.

Its beyong my imagination to figure out what these three gem of actors doing in a movie which had no sense, relied on stupid jokes and silly boy show? Sanjay and Ajay are well established. They can always fall back on good makers and improve their filmography but what is Kangana doing? She has some really good performances to her credit. She did Gangster, she did Life In A Metro, she did Woh Lamhe... she excelled in Tanu Weds Manu and now? Is this all for money?

I wish I can see her in better movies... else she will end up becoming something we don't want.

Wishes,
Sujoy

Amar Prem | Love Beyond Prejudices | The Critique

"Pushpa... I Hate Tears" is one dialogue from good old days which still make butterflies fly. This four words dialogue became a punch dialogue for every guy having a cry-baby girlfriend. Rajesh Khanna owe a lot to this epic love story by Shakti Samanta.

Pushpa (Sharmila Tagore) is a classic case of Chandramukhi after effect. She is sold to a brothel by a 'well' wisher from village. In brothel, she meets a businessman Anand Babu (Rajesh Khanna) whose marriage is flowing on the rocks. Apart from Anand Babu, there is a kid in her life- Nandu. Nandu is child of a widower of her village who remarried. Nandu's step-mother treats him badly. Both Anand Babu and Nandu turns to Pushpa for love and affection and she welcomes them both with open arms. But the world is too harsh to accomodate her.

Both Sharmila Tagore and Rajesh Khanna gave outstanding performances. This is definitely one of the most memorable performances by the legendary duo. The music of this movie especially a mesmerizing 'Chingari Koi Bhadke' and a numbing 'Raina Beete Jaye' slowly engulfs you. S.D. at his best. It sets the mood for a story that was a little rebellious. The story shows very strong human emotions painted in lighter hues. It judges love without any prejudices. If I have to compare it with anything... it would be Raja Ravi Varma's paintings.

Shakti Samanta gave us so many good films. Amar Prem is definitely one of his best standing with Aradhana which catapulted Rajesh Khanna to Super Stardom. Even after 40 years, the songs, the dialogues and the moments still remain with us.

Written By: Sujoy Ghosh

Thirakkatha | Simply Amazing | The Critique

This is a movie you can fall in love with. Ranjith is arguably the best story teller among all active movie makers in this country. Thirakkatha reinstates this argument. Dedicated to actress of yesteryears Srividya, this movie take cues from her life and also from lives of numerous actresses of different eras. The narrative style used in this movie is almost Ranjith's signature.

Akbar (Prithviraj) is a successful name in Malayalam cinema after success of his debut. The first part of the movie talks about his new subject Malvika (Priyamani), an actress of yesteryears who saw a steep downfall and is now missing. He tells the story of Malvika and her love/estranged husband Ajay who is now a superstar. But in the middle of the movie, story halts at the question... where is Malvika?

Priyamani as Malvika is simply awesome. She simply takes your heart away in an emotionally draining role. Prithviraj does a fair job. Anoop Menon and Samvruta were apt. While performances are good enough, the script and direction is the real star here. The way scenes toggle between past and present and the way they hold the flow, the usage of drama and cliches is worth-watching. Thirakkatha means Script/Screenplay. So, true to name.

Written By: Sujoy Ghosh

Smita Patil | The Real Talent | Statesmen

Ardha Satya, Shakti, Mandi, Manthan, Bhumika, Aakrosh, Bazaar, Chakra, Chidambaram and Mirch Masala... Most of the actresses in current crop would be proud of herself if she gets even 1 second presence in any of these movies, Smita Patil did all of them... mostly as lead and heavy duty roles. Her filmography boasts of movies like these and a few other acclaimed ones, experience of working with actors like Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri, Amitabh Bachchan, Raj Babbar and Girish Karnad and  directors like Shyam Benegal, Govind Nihalani, Mrinal Sen and B.R. Chopra. Uff... quite a list.

Smita was known as an intense actress. She had the power to hold a scene with great élan. Something Meena Kumari was capable of doing in a more romantic way. Smita carved her niche in a male dominated cinema and portrayed many strong female characters like Sonbai in Mirch Masala. Even in smaller roles, like the one in Shakti, she used to put in so much energy. She was not exactly a fit for commercial cinema but still made a mark in commercial hits like Shakti and Namak Halaal in which she was paired opposite to Amitabh Bachchan.

Her dedication for parallel cinema has no parallel. She was face of parallel cinema in 70s. She was a favorite of directors who spearheaded the parallel cinema movement. However, at a point, she was 'unceremoniously' removed from projects just to accommodate more commercial faces to make movies more commercially viable. What a shame it was? At that time, Smita decided to move to commercial cinema. Though the decision didn't work out much in her favor, she earned respect of likes of Ramesh Sippy and B.R. Chopra. Talent can earn respect anywhere, she proved.

Written By: Sujoy Ghosh

Corpse Bride | The Critique

If you are finding the name strange, then let me tell you this movie is often included in to list of highly recommended animation movies, even tomato-meter gives it 84%. May be this was the reason that I watched it with too many expectations and hence landed up unsatisfied. The thing that I appreciated most is that this is a stop-motion animation and yet stands in competition with digital animations.

The film begins with a marriage being arranged by Victor (Johnny Depp) and Victoria’s parents. Victor is so nervous about the prospect of marriage that he fumbles with the ring, forgets his vows, during the wedding rehearsal. Dejected, he goes to the woods and practices his vows. He places the ring on a twig, but it turns out to be a female skeletal hand.  The “corpse bride” named Emily is now introduced who considers herself to be married to Victor and takes him along with her to the land of dead. The drama follows with whom Victor chooses to be and the world he wishes to live in. To let you know, this originally is a folktale that has been around for centuries.

The thing to appreciate is the director’s imagination that has even made the horrific corpse bride look beautiful, in a tattered wedding dress with bones reflecting behind the makeup. The gleeful dancing skeletons make you feel like having a tour through a haunted house. You will rarely feel that its stop-motion and not digital. The puppets themselves were fitted with intricate mechanics to create subtle nuances. Further, the contrast between the dark & gray real word and colorful & joyful underworld is also a big surprise as vice versa makes most common story.

The major setback for this flick is that its rated PG and story baseline about dead & corpses is not in adherence with the kids, which are the major targeted audience for animation movies. The jokes are identical, infact, boring & out fashioned will be the correct words, making it not a good watch for adults too. The story is dragging often & plot simply doesn't make sense, Victor is caught between two women with no reason for wanting to be with either !! The music score is also a mess, and though I tried very hard but yet couldn’t appreciate it.

As a movie buff, I realize how much labor and hard work is put into producing a flick, hence I will not call it a ’bad’ film. I would only say that the movie is not the worth as per the hype created for it. You may give it a try, if you are falling short of movies to watch.

Verdict : 2.5/5

Written By: Neha Jain

Use Of Symphony In A Clockwork Orange | My Take | Under Lens

Beethoven's Ninth Symphony has a spirit of its own. It never ceases to bring peace to you. It’s something very kind very pure and very classic in nature... Like a running stream of fresh water. However, Stanley Kubrick used it in outrageously beautiful manner in A Clockwork Orange.

The phrase 'A Clockwork Orange' refers to mechanical conditioning of something natural like brain. The lead character Alex is a sort of devil. His ways are anti-social and is a perfect case of a misfit in a society. His violence and sexual-perverse can be a case study for many. He is conditioned to feel nausea whenever his violent nature comes to forth. However, in kind of collateral damage, along with violent nature of his, his affection for Beethoven's Ninth Symphony becomes a traumatic experience.

The use of Symphony in ACO is an exemplar one. In 2001: A Space Odyssey, the usage was far more simplistic. In ACO, the usage was not only metaphorical, it brought an intensity to scenes. Beyond a point, it tends to drain energy out of you and you can feel your nerves going numb. It brings in an interesting effect to the visuals on scene. A mix of paranoia and violence.

Written By: Sujoy Ghosh

Soundtrack | Rajeev Just Rocks | The Critique

How unfortunate it is that this movie might die an untimely death. It is one of the better movies of this year standing tall with likes of Shaitan and That Girl In Yellow Boots. Rajeev Khandelwal has pulled off a difficult movie almost single handedly. Anybody in industry couldn’t have done a better job; even the perfectionist we know.

Rounak is a composer who carves a niche for himself in a club as DJ. His sense of music is appreciated and he gets an opportunity to work with Anurag Kashyap. However, everything is on a high of heavy doses of booze and drugs. As he is working on music for Anurag's movie, he realizes that something is wrong with him. He is losing his sense of hearing, his biggest asset. His inner demons are taking toll on him and one day, accidentally he loses it all. A deaf DJ makes no sense in normal world. Rounak doesn't go... he remains t'hear'.

Remake of Its All Gone Pete Tong, Soundtrack has a fine script and smart dialogues. Performances are good. Rajeev is exceptional. Soha surprises you with a really good performance. Her accent is a little irritating but makes perfect sense. I really liked that touch. Work with camera and BG is good. Editing is crisp, really crisp. Direction is awesome. Really appreciated. Watch this movie if you value good cinema.

Written By: Sujoy Ghosh 

Learning The Craft | Gaurav Karmakar | Golden Podium

I, as a budding actor and as far my knowledge goes in this field, feel that acting is more about being in that situation & feeling each and every bit of the surrounding that the director wants to create. Just forgetting everything about your own personal & professional life for that moment and living the life of that character is what I try to achieve as of now. And as far I feel I need a lot of meditation & concentration to achieve that.

I was unaware of these demands and the techniques involved in achieving them while shooting for our short film Zakhm. But after that I read some books, interviews of some good actors, watched some good movies, tried to feel the characters portrayed by some  good actors and tried to portray a different emotion of that character. Now after watching our another short film Itaanu Uttaram I myself felt that I have learnt at least something out of this hard work. I tried to be more concentrated & feel the character while shooting for Itaanu Uttaram and I feel I have succeeded at least 10% in that.

For portraying a character by feeling it, an actor needs to know each & every detail about the character. From where has he come, what he wants to do, what is his confidence level, how is he feeling at that moment, what he wants from that moment, is he an optimist or a pessimist and everything else possible. After knowing all this and preparing with full diligence when an actor comes up with a performance, the beauty that hard work creates on stage or on screen surpasses everything else around. The dream of being able to perform various characters and with this level of beauty is what gives me a kick and each step taken by me in this direction is what satisfies me for that moment.

I don’t have any particular role model, rather I try to appreciate and learn from every good performance. Some being – Ronit Roy’s performance in Udaan, Farhan Akhtar’s performance in Zindagi Milegi Na Dobara, Paresh Rawal’s performance in Hera Pheri, Irrfan’s performance in Life In A Metro and the list goes on...

Written By: Gaurav Karmakar

S.P.O.R.T.S. E.D.I.T.I.O.N.

Here We Go | Sports Movies Edition | Editor's Pen

Hi Dears...
The last two 'Genre' specials proved only one thing, how less we know about cinema. When we decided to zero upon 'Sports Movies Edition', Ali was a little doubtful. Even I had reservations. This genre is so difficult to pull off. So many movies and so many emotions. But we decided to stick to our choice and here we go...

Presenting the Sports Movies Edition.

We tried to write about some regular/mainstream/typical sports movies and some not so ones. We intentionally left out some major names because a lot has been written and sung about them. We tried to cover many different kind of sub-genres. We really hope that you will like this edition.

Greetings
Sujoy

PS: Its Ali's Birthday. Wishes from the entire team. :)

The Pride Of The Yankees | Critique

"People all say that I've had a bad break. But today...today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth. " These two concluding lines say a lot about the speaker. A gentle and honorable person who gave his life to game and is very satisfied to the core. So was Lou Gehrig, the iconic first baseman of New York Yankees. TPOTY is a movie dedicated to the baseball legend whose career was curtailed premature due to a nerve disorder, which later claimed his life.

Unlike most of the sports-movies, this movie is more drama than game itself. Lou (played by a brilliant Gary Cooper) wants to be a baseball player but her mother presses him to follow path of an uncle who had a successful career. While he is pursuing engineering, his mother gets sick and he joins Yankees for a contract. In his first game he is mocked by a beautiful Eleanor (Teresa Wright). Later both fall in love with each other (another cliché) and marry. His career is blooming and along with Babe Ruth (another legend who did a cameo) is rated as the best in the game. But later his performance starts dipping and doctors reveal that he is suffering from a fatal amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. In the last scene, he says adieu to the game he loved the most.

TPOTY is perhaps one of the most lively biopics I have ever seen. The character of Gehrig, Eleanor and Gehrig's writer friend Sam Blake are beautifully crafted and adds only smiles. The movie hardly puts in any phase of depression and even in the moments where Gehrig's end is being shown, the tone is very hopeful. Direction is adorable. The movie, however, is known more for editing than any other technical aspect. Editing won the Oscar. The use of montages to show Lou's growth as a player is iconic. It takes out the monotony as the game is actually about the player and not about the game. The crisp editing makes the movie a memorable affair.

Written By: Sujoy Ghosh

Invictus | The Game That Changed A Nation | The Critique

After the apartheid era, bringing South Africa as a nation was perhaps the biggest challenge President Nelson Mandela had. Bringing whites and blacks close as South African was anything but easy. The idea that once racism is condemned every difference would cease to exist was an immature thought. Mandela knew that very well. However, to make the nation, this was the first step.

Springboks, dominated by whites, represented SA in Rugby. However, Sports Committee dominated by blacks decides to oppose them as Springboks reminds them of the racism-inflicted past. Mandela sees this as a step backwards. He makes it a point that in South Africa, whites and blacks should behave like one. He convinces Sports Committee. Some people still oppose the idea but with their actions and behavior, Springboks manage to steal the hearts. How do they do that? Here lies the idea of the story. In the end one team wins, one loses, one nation rises, two races unites and one idea works for the betterment of common cause.

Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela and Matt Damon as Skipper Pienaar gave stellar performances in a rather difficult movie. The trick in this type of movies lie in moments but Clint Eastwood, the director, relied more on the understated emotions. This might not give you goose bumps but you might feel a heavy lump in your throat.

Written By: Sujoy Ghosh

The Greatest Game Ever Played | Critique

Everybody ruled him out as a golfer. His father hated his passion for game. He had no background to claim a spot. And... In the most important game of his life, he was pitted against his childhood idol. The game that was destined to change Golf forever, it was the greatest game ever played. Based book with the same title on early days of legendary golfer Francis Ouimet, the movie was directed by famed actor-director Bill Paxton.

Francis, a young boy from an under privileged immigrant family, grew as a caddy in a nearby golf course.  When he gets his first chance, his nerves ditches him and leaves him to lead a below par life. One fine day, luck decides to embrace him with a new lease of life in from of US Open. His father is not supportive but mother and friend-cum-caddy Eddie sticks with him. In the game which mattered the most, he ties for the grand finale against Ted Ray and Harry Vardon, two seasoned players from Britain. Will he make the most out of it? Another underdog tale that would hold your breath, even though you know that the climax would be.

Shia LaBeouf as Francis and Josh Flitter as Eddie steals the show. Their chemistry as Golfer-caddy is simply amazing. Though a kid, Josh leaves a deep long-lasting impact on viewers. Bill Paxton played with fire. This was a difficult movie to pull off. Most successful underdog-sports movies are loud and Dolby friendly. Golf is  game from the other planet. Bill did a brilliant job. The script and direction, both are extremely crisp and makes the movie a pleasant affair.

Written By: Sujoy Ghosh

Love And Basketball | The Critique

The title of the movie might sound weird, but its nothing like the typical chick-flick love story or sports movie. Unlike other sports movie, it isn’t focused on a specific game, or a team overcoming odds. It considers the game in terms of career and passion. The best part being, its straightforward treatment of women's sports, a subject that is rarely covered without a special angle.

The movie is about Quincy, son of a NBA star who is determined to follow in his dad's footsteps, and his tomboy neighbor Monica who wants to be the first female player in the NBA, and their passion for the game and also for each other. The director has effectively broken down the movie into four quarters.

The two meet as 11-year-olds in the first quarter, and after some typical boy-girl hostility, they grow to become friends and fellow basketball players. The second quarter sees them as a couple during senior year in high school. The third quarter traces their turbulent freshman year at USC, when simultaneous turns in the big leagues sours their off-court relationship, setting the stage for the fourth quarter, which catches up with the two after college. The story is dealt quite maturely with no drama involved to manufacture excitement in the game or complications to pull apart the relationship.

Omar Epps is charismatic, likable, and more than up to the role's athletic requirements. . Sanaa Lathan is extremely convincing and carries the greatest emotional weight in the film, with tomboy stubbornness and womanly pride. Some extra shots : Lathan had no experience with the game, when she was initially cast.

Love & Basketball isn’t the kind of most exciting sports flicks with a Big Game having audience-pleasing jump shots at the buzzer, instead its about the athlete’s journey to that big game. This is for those who like something beyond the formula.

Verdict –It does not feel like watching a Game highlight. 3/5
 
Written By: Neha Jain

The Loneliness Of The Long Distance Runner | The Critique

TLOTLDR is very much like Shawshank Redemption and The Longest Yard. Its very unlike any usual we-gotta-win kind of sports movies and might not be labelled as a sports movie as well. It subtly highlights the mind of a runner and portrays how your past can influence your will to win. The movie is about an unusual candidate of long distance running and his life.

Colin Smith is arrested for a petty crime and is sent to reform school where the governor discovers the long distance runner in him. Governor looks upon this opportunity as his chance to prove his capabilities as a reform school head. Colin is given better facilities. His fellows look at him with contempt because he is being treated differently. Meanwhile, in flashback, his previous life is shown. His ailing father who dies, his mother and her lover and his girlfriend. In the climax, he runs for his reform school against a team from an established British School.

This movie is considered as one of the finest British Films and there are reasons why? The movie softly plays with the idea of long distance running because while running for long, runner has many things to ponder on (though his focus should be on race only) and these things can influence his pace andthe result of the race. He might even face a mental block and decide to quit or speed up himself to beat even the best in the trade. A lot is between your ears.

Written By: Sujoy Ghosh

Ten Must Watch Sports Movies | Under Lens

1) Ali : Impressive biopic of Mohd. Ali played by Will Smith. It speaks more about the person Ali was rather than the player he appeared in ring.

2) Caddyshack: Interesting story of a caddie, golfers and a gopher. Considered to be one of the best sports comedy ever made.

3) Coach Carter : Inspiring tale of Ken Carter who wants his players to score in academics as many of them who never make it big in game, fail in life due to lack of formal education.

4) Invictus : After suffering apartheid for long, will people of SA support their team having Whites. Will they ever forgive? Can Mandela make it possible?

5) Jerry Maguire :  Amazing story of a sport agent who is trying to balance his career after being fired and having only one client with an average career.

6) Miracle : True story of an American Ice Hockey team which beats a very strong Soviet team in Winter Olympics of 1980.

7) Raging Bull : Boxer Jake La Motta's biographical movie made by Martin Scorsese based on a namesake book by the boxer himself. Movie shows how the rage in a man can ruin his personal life.

8) Remember The Titans : One of the most captivating story where a coach with his assistant fight with racism to make a team no one can forget.

9) Rocky : Sylvester Stallone in the memorable role of Rocky Balboa who has every quality to be successful in ring and faces big hurdles in face.

10) The World's Fastest Indian : Anthony Hopkins. Indian. Period.

Sportsperson Turned Actors | Under Lens

Many professional sportspersons like Kapil Dev, Babe Ruth, Vijay Amritraj etc have played cameos in movies however, only a few took acting seriously and took it professionally as well.

Alex Karras: A football player and pro wrestler, Karras is also known for the role of Mango in film Blazing Saddles. At a point he was under consideration for role of Carlo Rizzi in The Godfather. He also worked in few other films and TV series and also tried his hands on Commentary.

Vinnie Jones: He played for Chelsea and Leeds United. He played for Welsh team. He acted in Guy Ritchie's Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch. He also acted in Gone In 60 Seconds, Swordfish, X-Men: The Last Stand and a few others. Quite a filmography.

Carl Weathers: People might not remember Chubbs from Happy Gilmore but definitely can't forget Apollo Creed from Rocky. However, professional football was part of his accomplishments before he made Rocky's nemesis turned friend immortal.

Jim Brown: His acting exploits were perhaps not comparable to his skills in football. He is perhaps one of the greatest American athletes and definitely the greatest Athlete turned Actor. The Dirty Dozen was perhaps his best work on screen.

Leander Paes: Known for his across the court skills, he is considered to be one of the finest players of doubles in tennis is going to silver screen as well. Details... aah, we will be back.

Force | Making An Impact | The Critique

Force is a remake of Kakka Kakka. If we forget that and consider it to be a fresh sapling, its awesome. Truly awesome. Nishikant Kamat has done a stupendous job with a bunch of good technicians. This movie might not move you but definitely delivers what it promises, some powerful and rib-crunching action. Why I said 'rib-crunching', you will feel it in the climax.

Force has two layers. First, the romance between Yash and Maya. Genelia has been herself and was impressive in the peppy scenes. John tried to carry from New York but failed in a role that needed more facial flexibility. Both were very awkward in heavier scenes though pulled off the peppy ones pretty well. The second layer... Action. Remarkable is the word. You don't see this quality of action in Hindi Films. Crisp and hitting. As John's nemesis Vidyut is a revelation. He acts well and has an awesome physique. Mohnish Behl and the other cop (the bachelor one) were really good.

As I said, technically the movie is very good. Action sequences can numb your nerves and cinematography is commendable. Most of the scenes are copy from the original but treatment is impressive. If you haven't seen Kakka Kakka or Gharshana, you will be happily surprised. Music is weak. Yes, it is. Lyrics don't suit the soul of songs. Editing and direction is good. In simple words, easily something between two and half and three.

Written By: Sujoy Ghosh