Cidade de Deus (2002) a.k.a City of God

in one word, eye-opener! but for this movie, i wouldn't have known what life is like in the ghettos of Rio De Janeiro. i wouldn't have know that being born in, ironically, the city of God, is akin to being handed a death sentence at birth. I'm referring to the City of God housing project, a mass housing initiative in the 1960's for thousands of homeless, on the outskirts of Rio De Janeiro. Civility ceases to mean anything in this part of the world. Life is war and everyone is a potential enemy. Lawlessness rules and the lawbreakers flourish.


If you've liked movies like 'the constant gardener' and 'blood diamond', this is another one that you will love. you'll love it for the realism that its able to portray. What i like about such movies is the way they go about telling you their story. the crux of the movie is subtly woven into a plot involving 2 protagonists, one doubling as the narrator. there is the underlying message or effort to educate, rather, of certain ground realities that escape the glossy pages of tourism brochures. But the director does a great job of not making it look like a documentary.


City of god also delights you in its cinema tography. The mode of communication for some of the scenes, one in particular, is very stylish. I also enjoyed having to keep lot of things in mind to keep track of the flow. felt kinda challenging, what with the movie shifting between sub plots ceaselessly. There is some amazing trivia associated with this movie. You'll really enjoy it once u've seen the movie. read it from here.

to sum it up, an entertainer of the other kind.

Khosla Ka Ghosla (2006)

original post as on 31st march 2007


First and foremost, let me tell you that i'm only halfway through this movie at the moment. But its been such a pleasure so far, that i'm sure its going to be one of the best movies i've seen in a long long time.

Khosla Ka Ghosla, deceives by name, but more than makes up for it in virtually every department of film-making. If i had my say, this film would have gone to the Oscars as India's official entry. Yes! it has a very strong and relevant story to tell and its telling it beautifully to me. Anupam Kher and Boman Irani need no eulogies, but every other member of the cast has been a revelation. Ranvir Shorey and Vinay Pathak have newfound respect in my eyes. they are truly magnificent in this movie.

I'm yet to see Navin Nischol take centre stage, but its understood that he'll do a damn good job. Everyone fits their role to perfection; Tara Sharma as a slightly hare-brained theatre artist, Parvin dabas as the no nonsense software professional, Kiran Juneja as the mediating and caring house maker and surely every other character that i'm yet to come across.



Three cheers to director Dibakar Banerjee for his brilliant effort behind the camera. The pace of the story is just right and interspersed with the right amount of comedy and executed to perfection by the aptly selected cast. The plot is so real, i got scared when i put myself in the protagonist's place. This is something that could so easily happen to you and me. And this is something that, if it happens, you'll have very little that you can do about it.

Whether the Khosla family has what it takes is to be seen and i can't wait to get back to the movie for that

If you think Hindi films have lost their meaning , this is the movie that will prove you wrong and wrong, in a big way. So go ahead and redeem your faith in Bollywood. I got to rush now

ciao :)

The Departed (2006)

original post as on 21st november 2006

Just saw it a couple of hours back and am still in the process of digesting the movie. So i may have more insights on this, but i just have to post about this awesome movie as soon as i can. First of all, lovely cast and superlative performances. At times, the tensions within a crime fighting police aquad were palpable. With some hard-hitting language and unabashed violence, this is not a movie for the faint hearted. But for all you motherfucking sonofabitches ( yeah, without the slang), u've just unleashed a goldmine.

Excuse me for the language there, but thats exactly what u'll get in the movie - unadulterated street talk. makes you sit up and think whats with this 4 letter word and all its connotations. Anywise, the plot is tight and builds up to a nice stage where the viewer can predict every conceivable ending and still miss the real one. stroke of genius i aver, the ending. There are still a few loose ends to be tied up as far as i'm concerned, but i'll probably figure out with time.

About the action, i loved the spontaneity!! The sequences showed a lot of imagiation and ingenuity. Another thing that struck me as good is the detail shown in the depiction of the police force.

To criticize, i'd say that i thought for a while, but didn't find anything strong enough to be written. There are a few others but that would steal some fun out of the movie.

Final verdict - if u like thrillers, this is a movie you shouldn't miss. your brain will work overtime with this one, rest assured

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its been about 18 hours now and i have some more insights. The way i feel about it, the movie has blended into reality. Its as if i was led through a reality show. Just as real life incidents stay in your short term memory and slowly get accepted, the movie too snuggles into a comfy spot. Henceforth, whenever the brain registers a movie from this genre, memories will be recalled. Only a fast and gripping screenplay can achieve that. Thats one more facet of 'the departed' for you

Rocky Balboa ( Rocky VI)

original post as on 7th november 2006.

Rocky VI is slated to release in the third week of December '06. The sixth edition of this blockbuster series comes as a very pleasant surprise. That Sylvester Stallone plays the lead in the movie might raise eyebrows, but the movie trailor will convincingly dispel all doubts. He looks as fit as ever and age seems to have added an aura to his personality.

As far as the story goes, Rocky Balboa, is leading a peaceful retired life running a deli in his native, Philadelhpia. The love for boxing ceases to leave and he is drawn out of retirement by a one match challenge with the current world champion. Its the typical Rocky theme, but what is interesting here is that Rocky Balboa is an old man. At 50 odd years, what's in favour of him is his experience and his trademark "undying spirit" that made him what he is - the champion. How he works that to his advantage or if he does at all, will be soul of the movie.

Stallone writes the script and does the Direction too for this sequel. Reviews from a premiere held 2 months back, suggest two moving speeches by Rocky during the course of the movie. I don't know much about the new soundtrack, but the old one is still there and that in itself is more than enough. "Eye of the Tiger" is one helluva song

This is one movie I'm gonna lookout for!!!

Update

I guess i saw the movie soon after i originally posted this. My overall reaction was that of respect; respect for respecting the sensibilities of the audience. The movie did not engage in hero worship. Sylvestor stallone is an old man, rocky the character is an old man, and old is how he was portrayed in the movie. but
age can't wilt heart. you'll love the movie for the heart in it. you'd wish you had a heart like that. rocky balboa is a perfect character. you just can't stop loving rocky

The Boondock Saints (1999)

original post as on 23rd september 2006

very interesting movie...has 'different' written all over it. a feel good movie in a primal sense of the term; triumph over evil couldn't have been more literally potrayed than in The Boondock Saints. A movie that would have definitely done wonders at the box office with a more powerful cast. William dafoe starts out shakily, but one comes to terms with his character soon and then on its smooth sailing...the fraternal siblings, heroes of the film, come across as a fresh interpretation of heroism...no overt display of emotions, yet clinically effective.

a crisp movie with a crisp plot...good watch!