If all the world were as honest as I, we would be passing on a better earth to our children. If you are wondering where that statement came from, look at the name of this post. It’s called Two Reviews. And what does it contain? Nothing but Two Reviews. Well, may be some wamble-ramble here and there, but by and large, it contains two reviews.
The first review is about a movie called Monsoon Wedding. I know I am not one of those prompt reviewer birdies who post their solicited (or otherwise) opinions half an hour after the opening of the first show. But I think the most important criteria for reviewing a movie is to have actually watched it, which I have, therefore here we all are.
You dear reader, being so discerning, will read the storyline on the link I have conveniently provided. So let us circumvent all that story-telling protocol. Indeed, the story itself is not simple. It starts with many threads- a father torn between the harassment and the joy of his only daughter’s wedding, a young bride-to-be with a ‘nice’ boy who is still in love with her married ex, a mother with red-colored nails who catches up with a few smokes in her bathroom and a mama’s darling teenage boy who loves dancing and wants to become a chef. All these are members of just one family.
In fact, the primary thing about this movie that fills me with so much awe is how so many characters are so well-defined and well-shaped. No matter how little the exposure of one role is, the viewer gets a fairly good picture of the personality of that role. I can’t pin-point if that is to the actors’ merit or the director’s or the story’s. But it turns out to be a good mix.
The movie is also visually rich. The camera captures Delhi across golf courses, Punjabi marriages, chai shops and bazaars. And I enjoyed the peeks into India; not shockingly dramatic (like Mumbai under-belly scenes of Slumdog Millionaire) or unrealistically pinked (like, well, all Johar, Chopra, et al movies), just India as we know it. Then again, neither have I lived in Mumbai slums, nor have I lived in Delhi golf courses. So may be my observations aren’t very authentic.
The music, needless to mention (I love this phrase: why do you mention it if it is indeed needless? Everyone mentions it anyway, like a collective joke), is enjoyable. You might also enjoy the whole range of languages you hear in the movie – I lost track of all the Hindi and English dialects and accents. It doesn’t even seem excessively done just to emphasize the ‘diversity’; each language fits very naturally on each character.
All in all, I think it’s a swift, no-nonsense narration. Although Nair’s put in this entirely unnecessary scene of a News show debate recording on censorship. Needless to mention (hehe it’s that needless phrase again), she was trying to make her case. But going past that, good movie. Catch up with it. If you still haven’t since 2001 A.D.
The second movie we will be hearing about is Avatar 3D(Ha! How’s that for promptness). I watched it with the rest of the three Achars in Fun Cinemas. The cinema hall itself wasn’t much Fun – the seats were good and all, but the smallest pack-size (10g, I kid you not) of Popcorn cost Rs 75 and box office was underground and suffocating. The movie though, to put it in vernacular, was paisa vasool.
The story of Avatar is as old as time. Mighty evil against under-dog good. But we will never get tired of Evil v/s Good. I will always support Good and brother will always rally for Evil. (For some reason, Evil always seems cooler to teenagers.) Anyway, yeah we all liked it. The first half of the movie was somehow introductory in nature. You know, basically telling the viewer such-is-such and this-is-this. This is the part of the movie where you are allowed to lay back and enjoy the (un)natural beauty of Pandora. The second half is all dishoom-dishoom bang-bang.
Please don’t think of that as a criticism. Its actually the type of dishoom-dishoom bang-bang that makes you go Wow. Eventually it ended up giving Mater a mild migraine, but she doesn’t let all that come in her way.
Like all other fantasy stories, this one was very close to reality. Destruction of natural habitats for “progres” is the story of our times. In fact, if there was one umbrella activity that would describe the human activity of the last and this century, it would be persistent, well-funded and single-minded destruction of natural habitats. The movie has a message, it does pang you. The nature of your pang and what you do with it is, of course, is entirely your outlook on life.
Dad was mighty impressed with all the animation and warships (so were we all) and Mom found the statement “… and then, the aliens (humans) returned to their dying planet.” very disturbing. Much discussion on the topic ensued on the dining table that night. Then again, much of the Achar “family talk” is actually the stuff that people are writing about in papers.
But as far as my perception goes, dear reader, we are indeed a dying planet, aren’t we?