pk -it’s ok

Posted on December 28, 2014 by ramcsays

pk-movie-2014-newEver wondered how our country would look like to someone not human? Yeah, I could be talking about a dog or robot, but just to make the script interesting, it’s an alien. How would an alien react to all the diversities in our society while trying to interpret and communicate with us? It must feel strange and unique to not belong to any religion on this land. This film shows us that precisely – a look at our society through a lens free of religious shades.

Aamir Khan plays an alien in the movie that loses his radiant pendant like alien ID, which AK refers to as his property, to a thief. A Hindu God man gets his hands on AK’s property and claims that it’s a piece of Lord Shiva’s damaruk, fooling his followers as always. Meanwhile, AK ends up believing that only God can help him. But he is all at sea about how to appeal to/please Gods from different religions. How AK gets back his property forms the rest of the movie.

Now, what make the movie watchable? It’s the Performances, direction and a tight screenplay without many songs. AK is impeccable portraying un-human physical attributes. This is a rare film where the cast, Anushka Sharma, Boman Irani, Sanjay Dutt and others fit their roles almost perfectly. No complaints here. Costumes and styling for AK need a special mention as it adds a unique flavor to AK’s screen presence. Songs and background music are pleasant complimenting AK’s character’s innocence.

Coming to direction, Rajkumar Hirani passes the test easily in taking the subject in question on to the celluloid. He pokes us softly with needle-like questions aimed at the countless Hindu God men our country has. Yes, there are lot of God men in our country who take advantage of God fearing people, but the question which director seems to have forgotten to ask himself and the writers is, are there no proper/uncorrupted Hindu religious gurus in the whole country? Is society not benefitting from the yoga, meditation and other practices (like free food and free schooling for children, take Puttaparthy, Andhra Pradesh) some Hindu gurus preach? (You would be denying science to say No and Western countries aren’t idiots to follow them. Many of Hindu religious practices are backed by science, if not all). And, are all the corrupt religious gurus in our country Hindus? What about the other religions? These are the reasons precisely why the right-wing activists and some Hindu religious gurus are calling upon banning the film. The producers and AK will only benefit from all this drama though.

Politics aside, movie offers an interesting viewing for open-minded people. Weather or not you will like the film depends on your capability to broaden your mind to ignore the above posed questions. Think it over a morning coffee while news about another terrorist attack or a fake religious guru grabs your eyeballs, is PK a film that pushes you to realize the loopholes in the religious system for the greater good or it falls short by shying away from questioning other religions’ preaching and practices?

P.S1: I don’t think Hinduism is to be blamed/questioned for trying to preserve its values and culture by teaching the world its way to God, “peacefully”.

PS2: Can anyone explain what was that Train Blast all about? What, who and Why? It ended abruptly.

—Rahul Y

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Is Nenokkadine really that Bad?

Posted on January 19, 2014 by ramcsays

17-mahesh-babu-1-nenokkadineMy answer is a big “No”. Read my take to know why this is the Best movie in telugu in recent times!

Nenokkadine is a fiercely twisted, complex film built on a solid foundation of character-driven emotion. Those who think of Sukumar only as that guy who makes love stories will undoubtedly be disappointed,but if you’re interested in more than seeing how a psychological thriller is made in Telugu, Nenokkadine delivers. Mahesh’s performance is a critical part of that whole movie and like so much in the movie, it will payoff when the credits roll and Sukumar closes the book on his story. In doing so he leaves us with all the answers we need. My best scene in the movie is ” Here comes my golden rice”, the dialogue and the expression of Mahesh babu was over the top.

Ultimately Nenokkadine is an interesting departure for Sukumar and Mahesh, can understand as the end result isn’t perfect for the fact that the film was crafted by a director who made love stories, acted by a superstar who followed a different genre altogether, that too, in an industry where people like to watch more of a circus than a movie. Personally, I’m one of those movie lovers who appreciates a film that makes me want to watch it again as soon as the end credits have rolled. The climax is the best thing of the movie, finding about his parents was an emotional, intriguing, fantastic sequence that left me astounded while realizing that I have seen the best Telugu movie in recent times.

What might have went wrong with “1” of not being said as a hit in all classes:

Over Convincing:

As a feedback, the film got the reviews that it was too confusing. This occurred because the director tried to over convince people that the actor hallucinates things (for example, the parking fight in London) and many scenes in the first half of the movie. Also, too many scenes showing the female lead fooling the protagonist. Once or twice should have been good but it went on and bored the audience. We can understand that the director was trying to give more screen presence for the actress but it certainly, should not be at the cost of making the movie boring.

Songs:

Well, no one likes a speed bump when going on a highway, just like that for no reason. Well, this is what happened with this movie. When the story is about to take off, it attains a break to force fit a song. And another important aspect , the songs were not so impressive, at least a certain section who disliked the movie would have loved the movie for songs which unfortunately was not possible.

Length:

Before taking on the length of the movie, let’s talk about the line of the story, the theme. I felt the director deviated from the plot to introduce the female lead and show the unnecessary chemistry. The chemistry between the lead pair in first half was given so much importance which would not compliment the intricate story line of Nenokkadine. It was totally off track and in turn increased the film length. Here, I like SS Rajamouli’s take on chemistry, (take Vikramarkudu or Simhadri) he never gives a vital place in the story when unnnecessary, just a song in which hero and heroine would fall in love with each other.

Mahesh-Babu-In-1-Nenokkadine(1)

Despite above discussed potential drawbacks, movie is a must watch because the movie has got strengths in the form of Performances, Cinematography , haunting Background score from DSP which made every scene interesting and the best scenes like the Interval sequence and the climax sequence finding his parents and the important thing “Sukumar’s directorial and screenwriting skills”. Well theres so much more to add to the strengths which you can see in the movie and realize.

Mahesh just gets better with each film. There are layers to Mahesh’s performance that should be more evident upon subsequent viewings, but he is one of the few actors who can bring depth, complexity and delicacy to obsessed, often unhinged character like in this movie. Sukumar’s craftsmanship in this movie may be both the best and ironically the worst thing about Nenokkadine, but not to be disputed he made it a far more intriguing than it otherwise could have been. A “1” from Sukumar is still better than most other filmmakers’ best efforts on a similar theme.

PS: Like slow poison, ~1~ will slowly capture your senses to realize how awesome the movie was! Believe me!

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Raanjhanaa – A delight

Posted on July 4, 2013 by ramcsays

ranjhanaa630

Raanjhanaa is a recent film that is truly a masterpiece in the world of love stories. The director, Anand L Rai, has expertly captured the intensity and complexities of young love and the impact that time has on it. The film is a testament to the power of love and how it can endure, even when two people have matured and taken different paths in life.

The movie, centered on the lives of Kundan and Zoya, played by Dhanush and Sonam Kapoor, is a beautiful portrayal of a love that has stood the test of time. The screenplay, written by Himashu Sharma, is spare yet attuned to the complexities of human nature, and the dialogues are hilarious and emotional.

The film is not about a particular plot, but about life itself. Things unfold in a way that mirrors the unpredictable journey of real life, and the performances of the lead actors are a true treat to watch. They bring their characters to life in a way that makes you feel like you’re watching their love story unfold before your very eyes.

The music, composed by AR Rahman, is a standout feature of the film. The songs are a delight to listen to, and they bring an extra sense of pleasure to the movie-watching experience. The background of Banaras and the vibrant cinematography further contribute to the enjoyment of the movie and make it a truly original and delightful experience.

In conclusion, Raanjhanaa is a must-watch for anyone who loves love stories and appreciates the art of filmmaking. Don’t miss this celebration of love, life, and the human experience the subtle and perceptive new film by writer-director Anand L Rai, tests just such a relationship against the passage of time. What happens to love when two people who fell for each other as impetuous teenagers meet again years later and they have a little more maturity and when the other falls for someone else forgetting their teenage love and what one has for his or her love even when the other ignores. This is all the movie is about.Intensity can curdle up just as quickly into jealousy, possessiveness and depression; when a heartsick teenager uses a phrase like “I’ll die for her,” adults may roll their eyes, but it’s just barely a figure of speech

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Iddarammayilatho

Posted on June 1, 2013 by ramcsays

Iddarammayilatho-Full-Telugu-Movie-OnlineIt would have been quite hard to imagine Allu Arjun as Stylish Star, a decade back when he debuted in Gangothri. He metamorphosed into a real style icon for Tollywood audience. And his latest release ‘Iddarmayilatho’ is an epitome of that. He looks apt for his role, dresses like a rockstar, moves well on his feet and above all he emotes near perfect.

Iddarmayilatho is a regular love-drama-revenge saga with some complications. You have a cute Indian girl, Komali (Amala Paul) who arrives in Europe to study music. Obviously, she falls for our guy, Sanju Reddi (Allu Arjun) who is a street performer. Parents of either parties accept their love. A mafia gang kills both the families as Komali captures a murder incident in her camera without her knowledge. Unfortunately for the villain, hero survives and how he avenges them is the second half. How the Mafia and Aakansha(Catherine Tresa)’s politician-father and the hero are connected is the basic plot of the movie.

The first half is a cute love story, narrated to audience as a diary study by Aakanksha. Bramhanandam as music teacher of Komali makes the first half a joy ride. His song on Western vs Classical music is good. Puri squeezes in couple of interesting scenes about one’s character with some tongue-in-cheek lines. Apart from these and a couple of candid dialogues, there is nothing much to praise Puri for in this movie. He should get rid of his bad habit of introducing comedy characters in the second half which are totally irrelevant to the script. The Ali-Bramhanandam episode does no good to the movie and above all it fails to serve its purpose: to provide comic relief in a needlessly prolonged second half. Puri has to do more than just coming up with an interesting (or should I say, irrelevant) title for the movie, if he wants to get back his heydays.

The best thing about this movie is Bunny. Next to that, I can remember couple of peppy numbers by DSP. The violin song sounds as romantic as it can get. The mass song lives up to its name ‘Top Lesipoddi’. The background score by DSP is just awful in the action sequences, the loud unnecessary video-gamish eagle screeches are totally avoidable. The action sequence in the first half, where the hero tears into the villain’s henchmen with a dead expression is impressive. The cinematographer has done a commendable job and almost all the shots in Spain look beautiful, especially the way he has captured the beauty of those two leading ladies will not go unnoticed.

A special mention about the new girl (considering her first movie went unnoticed :P) Catherine Tresa captures your attention with some senseless-silly dialogues initially and later she sizzles in every shot with her oomph factor. Going by the role, one must say Amala Paul loses out to her on glam quotient. She also makes faces, typical girl kind of and uses her two extra large eyes to maximum affect to make an impression. Most of the cast, although unnecessary, do their job well. No complaints in that regard. However, you would wish you were the editor for this movie . This is one of those movies where you wouldn’t miss much if you skip. Anywhichways – this movie is just made to forgotten, thanks to the long and boring second half.

PS:As I was made to sit through the torturous second half I repeatedly asked myself this one question. Why so much exaggeration over everything.? Why so much exaggeration in Audio release functions over some trivial things Hero/Heroine does to prepare themselves for a role? They are actors. They ought to do those. No need of exaggeration. Why so much exaggeration on an inspired script/fight/music? Why exaggeration on presentation rather than content? And why not put the same effort on making the script impeccable? If you think through you will hardly find a handful of movies in the recent few years which are genuine and deserved to be watched every second on the silver-screen. What hurts me is, as audience we ought to take the burden of raised ticket fares (Imagine the situation of NRIs who buy tickets for tens of dollars) and be treated to nonsense like this. The director when has nothing to fill in the second half just throws in some absolute rubbish to make it a regular commercial 2.5 hour movie. Puri is an expert at this..!! Remember his vulgar comedy in Nenu Na Rakshasi and other films where comedy track has nothing to do with storyline? If the director can not twine comedy track with the main story and move the story forward (Off late VV Vinayak and Sreenu Vytla have excelled in this) then he better not fill in nonsensical stuff. This is coming out of frustration of audience esp. when you expect something from Puri Jagganadh and this is what he delivers and over that the cast and crew exaggerates this shit.

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