Meet the Spartans (2008)

Well made spoof! I think sticking to one movie did the trick here. Epic movie was such a disaster! Maybe that brought down the expectation from directorsJason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer famous for the scary movie series.

Some of the jokes were very classy and imaginative. good fun!

Concept 8/10
Performance 8/10
Screenplay 7.7/10
Technical 7.8/10

Overall 7.9/10

Michael Clayton (2008)

Its a good movie, not a great one. What will happen in the end is quite evident 15 minutes into the movie. It was always a question of how exactly, and the drama unto then was a bit of a drag.

Tight performance from the cast, no doubt about it, but you didn't expect less in the first place.

I didn't find the screenplay quite appealing, especially the idea of a flashback. It just didn't serve any purpose. I'm still battling with a few loopholes in the plot. I'll be glad to be proven wrong.

Its a watch it forget it movie. Surprised how it made it to the oscars. Star power, i suppose cos its packed with the who's who of hollywood. Check out the cast . If you liked this movie, u'll also enjoy Syriana. Thats George Clooney again

Performance 8/10
Concept 7.5/10
Screenplay 6.5/10
Technical 8/10

Overall 7.5/10

the namesake (2006)

the namesake is a light story well told. It absorbs you into the life of the ganguli family as it is lived, from the start to a the beginning of the end. there are the moments, good and bad that touch upon you...a sensitive film, well made.

Special mention of Irfan khan and Tabu for their convincing performance

Also by the director, Mira Nair : monsoon wedding (2001) and do watch out for Shantaram when it hits the screens next year

i wanna experiment with 11'09''01 - September 11 (2002)

Concept 7/10
Performance 8.3/10
Screenplay 7.8/10
Technical 8/10

Overall 7.8/10

love actually (2003)

what is with the british and romance? they always have me hook, line and sinker. For one they create such sentimental plots and then they spruce it up with people like hugh grant. at the cost of sounding gay, he's the best thing to happen to romantic comedies. i loved the movie to bits and pieces.

its a feel good movie, no doubt about it! just sit back and feel joy

also watch : a walk to remember, music and lyrics and ofcos notting hill :)

Performance 8/10
Screenplay 7.8/10
Concept 8.5/10
Technical 7.8/10

Overall 8/10

the deer hunter (1978)

its another vietnam movie, but the similarities end there. here the focus is on the characters and how their lives are affected by the war in vietnam, not just of the soldiers, but their friends and family. To that extent its a great movie, but its not an entertainer. the deer hunter is more like a beautiful documentary supplemented by a lot of life in the characters ably potrayed by stalwarts like Robert de niro and christopher walken. The film truly gives you a glimpse into the atrocities that was the vietnam war. Obviously its tilted heavily in favour of the US, but thats a legitimate part of the story too. Come to think of it, the movie is not about the warring nations at all; thats what makes this movie stick out. Director Michael Cimino weaves a thick thread
around the lives in the plot.

The focus on originality as gleaned from extra reading can be seen in the brilliant action sequences, especially those featuring the deadly russian roulettes.

The screenplay i felt is a bit loose, tending to drag at times. there are also a lot of fill in the blanks. I guess that came with the movie being cut down from 4 hrs to 3 hrs.

Overall, there was a lot of enlightenment and poignancy, but it did feel like an ordeal in between. Must watch for movie buffs

other famous vietnam movies : platoon (1986), full metal jacket (1987) and apocalypse now (1979)

i now wanna watch : in the year of the pig (1968)

Performance 9/10
Screenplay 6.5/10
Concept 8.7/10
Technical 8/10

Overall 8.0/10

P.S Meryl Streep looks heavenly throughout the movie. i saw her first in music of the heart (1999) as a middle aged woman and instantly fell in love. you can imagine then

The Big Lebowski (1998)

I don't approve of weird comedy. This is the same guy, Joel Coen, who gave us Fargo. Steve Buscemi is a permanent fixture in his movies. I couldn't quite fathom the consequence of his presence in this movie though. Well, nor of a lot many other characters. Damn! the whole movie didn't make much sense to me. I mean, it did make sense, but a lot didn't.

There are some good laughs, u would enjoy them. But the core competence of this movie is its weirdness and i don't approve of that, as i said before.

Jeff Bridges brings a lot of charisma into the character. He's the only sane character in the movie and thts a huge relief. Rest is a crazy lot

Some thing!

Performace 8/10
Concept 5/10
Screenplay 6/10
Technical 7/10

Overall 6.5/10

Meet Joe Black (1998)

You have to give it to hollywood to come out with bizarre themes yet do a good job of it. Meet Joe Black is pure fiction made believable. Well, the stress is so much on emotions and the enactment is so near perfection that you wouldn't worry about it. Brad Pitt
brings staggering sensuality to the character of Joe Black. Women could watch this movie just to stare at him. On the other hand, Anthony Hopkins, playing the successful businessman William Parrish, is the epitome of character and confidence, someone to look up to. In between these extremes lives the character of susan parrish, a delicate songbird of a person

Directed by Martin Brest who's given us Scent of a Woman (1992), another terrific yet eccentric movie.

A kaleidoscope of emotions embellished by terrific acting, thats Meet Joe Black

Perfromace 9/10
Concept 8/10
Screenplay 7/10
Technical 8/10

Overall 8/10