Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Wrapping it Up: December

Another month, another wrap-up post full of this month's viewings. I have few things to say at the end but first, lets talk movies!


The Broken Circle Breakdown(2013): If anyone asks me which was the last movie to make you cry? and I can not think of an answer, remind me of this one. I don't know any of the actors or directors(though I'd certainly keep an eye out for Veerley Baetens now). So I don't know if it's one of his trademarks but it was a good example of how jumping up and down the story can be used to its benefit. Usually, I'd be lost in connecting the dots but here whenever they went back, it had something to do with the present and it drew more emotional response out of me, as if it needed any more.

The Past(2013): Farhadi seems to be taken too much by couple going through separation. I am not at all complaining because if he can make such powerful films time and again, all the more power to him. Over the last two years I've been blogging, when I have made my end of the year lists I see a trend in them. Both the years were topped by foreign tragedies. I won't make those lists for at least two more months and I hope to see many more movies by then but don't be surprised to see this name there at the top as it does fit both the criterion. Just saying, it's possible!

Tokyo Story(1953): This month's Blind Spot entry. I find it rather funny that I saw these two films on the same day and there is also a good chance that this will be at the very top of another list I will do - Best First-watches of year 2013. Don't worry, you won't have to wait two more months for this list. It should be up by next week. My first film by Yasujiro Ozu but it would be hard to find a simpler story made any more compelling than this. I'll be certain to get my hands on few more of his next year. More here.

Frances Ha(2013): I will freely admit I had my doubts about this film, especially since I had never seen Gerwig in anything before and my only previous encounter with Baumbach wasn't exactly merry. But, with her writing as well as her performance, Gerwig won me over completely. I thought she was very quirky but endearingly so even at her lowest. She was doing everything that everyone of us wants to but can't just because we are supposed to be 'grown up'. It was sort of refreshing to see that for me.

Captain Phillips(2013): Tight as a Drum! (You know, I've always wanted to use that term) There are about 2 minutes of Hanks with his wife at the start and then he gets on his ship. From that very moment, film grabs your attention and never lets it go for one second. It's so great to see the return of vintage Hanks in all his glory. I know I have a lot to see yet but if anyone wants to give Best Actor Oscar to Hanks just based on that scene after his release, I am alright with it. I haven't seen United 93(2006) yet but if it's anything like this one, sign me up please.

MASH(1970): I had never seen an episode of TV series nor was I aware of this movie until last year. So I had no idea what to expect from this movie since all I know about it was long form of MASH. It took me some time to get into its style of humour with all those typical Altman styled overlapping dialogues, horde of characters and multiple things happening simultaneously but I got to say it was one of the funniest movies I have seen. Loved that football match in the end, end credits were genius touch and I still yell out "Mr. Geller!" whenever I see Elliot Gould. That will never change, I guess!

Catch Me if You Can(2002)(Re-watch): If you scroll down to the bottom of this post, you will know that I am not a big re-watching guy. I always feel like there is so much left for me to see that my time is better invested in watching a new film. But that wasn't always the case! Before I became serious about my movie-watching, I had my stock of films that I often watched again and again. This was one of them. There is so much to admire in it and I was so happy to see it this time and still able to find something new, interesting about it. 

Drinking Buddies(2013): I am not sure how to put it in the words exactly but I like the fact that this film had its own feel. I also admire this film for not taking the relationship between Olivia Wilde and Jake Johnson usual route. There was palpable tension between them throughout the film and on many occasions, even I thought they will start kissing or get in the bed together. I don't know how much it would've changed my opinion of it but I think it just would have been 'one of those' movies if they did.

The Act of Killing(2013): I saw 159 minute extended version of it and for good two hours of it, the reason people are praising this documentary for was the reason I was completely turned off by it - the brazenness, the utter lack of remorse for something atrocious done over and over again by horrible person. I don't see any reason to glorify that. But that is probably why the last 30-40 minutes hit me much harder. It really rubbed me in a wrong way to be one of my favourite of the year but now I get it why do we need this?

The Spectacular Now(2013): Anything that reminds me of Friday Night Lights(2006) is a good movie in my book. The reason I liked that series was because it portrayed people that were easy to believe actually exist; while I was in states I have seen some such people. Characters in this film maybe aren't the most interesting people but they feel so realistic, sometimes painfully so. If I could find some reason for Amy to stay with Sutter after the accident or at least see her struggling with it, it would have become one of my favourite of the year.

The Great Gatsby(2013): What makes the novel great is the emotional core of this story it gets to in the second half and romantic in me always falls for it. All the Gatsby's parties and his overabundance does make them look amazing but it's more of a distraction than anything else and it's gets old very fast. In first 30 minutes or so, before Daisy and Gatsby meet, I was beginning to be turned off by Luhrmann's lavishness but he toned it down just at the right time to make room for what's real point of whole thing. And we all know he can do a great job with combination of romance and tragedy.

Prisoners(2013): Incendies(2011) was my favourite film of 2011. I don't think I have still recovered from the shock of its reveal. So I was down for this one as soon as I saw Villeneuve's name on it. I still think it is a good film, not at the same level as Incendies but still quite good and especially memorable for all its performances from top to bottom. But why so bleak? I desperately wanted something good to happen at least at the end but it just kept getting worse and worse. I don't think I can handle that much bleakness. 

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close(2011): One of the 6 BP nominated movies I haven't seen in last 15 years. I remember it coming out of nowhere during that year. I did not 'hate' it but first 90 minutes of this film didn't do much to make me like it either. Max Von Sydow was great but that kid kept on behaving like a 30-something year old with weight of whole world on his shoulders and everyone was behaving like that's normal. It's really not! Last half hour catered to a lot of problems I had with it. So I may have a little favourable opinion on re-watch, if I do watch it again.

Sense and Sensibility(1995): I really don't have anything against this film. I think it is extremely well done and if I didn't know Ang Lee directed it, I never would've guessed a non-British director can make such an exquisite British film. I also like most of the performances but it's Jane Austen! I have seen and/or read her work previously. So even though I was watching this for the first time, it felt like I know everything about it. It has happened with some of her other works I have seen in the recent past as well. I am no literary genius and might get clobbered for this but it seems so repetitive!

Leviathan(2013): I am not sure how to feel about this exactly. On one hand, I can certainly see the artistic quality behind a movie like this but on the other, I don't see any reason why would anyone be interested in watching anything like this. To tell you the truth, main reason I saw this is because they filmed it on the coasts of New Bedford, MA, very place which inspired Mobey Dick and very place where I spent 2 and half years during my stay in US. But half the time I had no idea what was going on on the screen. I was like that crew member sitting in front of TV, dozing off most of the time.

Star Trek Into Darkness(2013): Except for the 2009 film, I don't know shit about Star Trek universe. So sorry to all the fans if I have no idea of some basic stuff. Apparently who Cumberbatch's character is was a big thing for everyone. Admittedly he was the best thing in it or only thing I liked in it. Everyone else, even those who worked well for me first time around, I wasn't much into. And every time Bones was on screen, he infuriated me; almost ruined the whole film.

The Kings of Summer(2013): I never got into this film. I didn't find the earlier lighthearted part funny, I didn't see the twist coming and didn't really care for sudden and complete change in tone for last 30 minutes. I don't really know the exact reason but I guess the fact that I did not buy the basic idea of the film might have a lot to do with that. I never believed it for one second, I swear! They were suppose to be 15. Sure, they would want to run away from their parents but build a house in the woods and start hunting and stuff? Nah...

The Way Way Back(2013): Another film that I don't get the appeal of. Sam Rockwell was great in it and I also like Annasophia Robb as well. Everyone else, including Liam James, meh! I know he is supposed to be loner and awkward but I never felt much for him even after he finally finds people he is comfortable around. And then there were so many absolute throwaway secondary characters. Allison Janney, as great as she was, and both the directors in their cameos were just there! If you are going to put them in, at least give them some reason.

The Vow(2012): There are films on this list that I know are better films but I don't know if I'll defend them if I had to. In a weird way, I find myself defending the second lowest ranked film of the month. I knew going in that it won't be a best film material and I was fine by it. I am just glad that it wasn't cringe-worthy. It was all lovey-dovey and predictable, typical Nicholas Sparks type thing and we know both the actors are capable of far superior things. But I think I can see it again if it comes on TV sometimes.

Post Tenebras Lux(2013): It took a lot of effort from my side just to get through it. There were couple of sequences that worked as stand alone scenes but I didn't find much of a narrative in it as a whole. Apparently using non-professional actors is director's trademark but they were terrible actors mostly, especially when it came to dialogue delivery. I am really sorry to dismiss it as such but it was an amateur effort at best. Maybe I am not as highbrow person here but if there was any real artistic value to it, it was lost on me completely.

Total Count: 20. 19 First Time Watches and 1 Re-watch .

Final 2013 Count
Total : 256. 235 First Time Watches and 21 Re-watches.

Another year has vanished into thin air and I have finished with 256 movies for the year, wayy less than last year. 72 to be exact but I sort of knew that from very start. 2013 was a year of lot of changes. I changed couple of jobs, moved back from US to India; two things that aren't directly related to movies but affected my movie-watching the most and despite starting the year well, slowed me down a little in the last few months. I also started this year with every intention of being more frequent around this parts of woods but ended up writing even less than last year. But it was all for good reason and I am not going to complain for that.

If these last few months are any indication, 2014 will be even more slower movie-wise but I am fine with that too. I am going to take it as it comes. For all I know I might settle down in my routine soon and find some more breathing room for films. As for 2014, I don't have any specific resolutions; I am not a resolution making kind of person but I am going to try and knock down remaining 16 Best Picture winners. Wish me luck! For the next couple of months, I will continue to be in 2013 mood as many films will slowly continue to travel down here. From the looks of it, February might be our December! Only after that will I make my 'Best of 2013' lists but my favourite first-watches of 2013 should be up around weekend or right after it.

I hope 2014 brings as many great films and as many amazing discoveries as 2013 and I continue to write this place to see another year pass by! I hope all the amazing people that visit this place keep on coming and continue to produce great stuff that would inspire me to do that as well! I hope each and everyone one of you have rewarding, prosperous and movie-filled 2014! HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE!!

So, how was your month? Did you see anything interesting? What do you think of the movies I saw? Any favorites?

Thursday, December 26, 2013

December Blind Spot: Tokyo Story

First and foremost, what makes this a Blind Spot movie? In other words, why is this film essential?
I have seen about 35 Japanese films. So if you go by number I have seen quite a few but let me did a little deeper. Of those, 17 are directed by Akira Kurosawa. 13 or so are under Studio Ghibli banner. When I saw Audition(1999) in 2011-12 and 13 Assassins(2010) soon after, those were first two Japanese films that did not fall in either of the two categories. Since then I have seen couple of non-Ghibli animes and features. I have been deep into filmographies of these two giants of Japanese cinema but what I dearly lack is any breadth in covering this industry. I could not think of any better way to dive headfirst into it than Yasujiro Ozu and Tokyo Story(1953).

So, what is the story about?
To tell you the truth, whole story of this film can be explained in one line - It is about an old couple visiting their children in Tokyo and it truly is just about that. Greatness of Ozu probably lies in the fact that he doesn't need to add any 'masala' to this plain, simple storyline. He has so much to say on this that this film is stripped of any extraneous detail and is still one of the most heartfelt experiences you'll ever get. Shukichi and Tomi Hirayama have two of their children, Koichi and Shige, in Tokyo along with widow of another son who disappeared in war eight years ago, Noriko. After their arrival, both their children find themselves so busy with their jobs that they can not find any time to spend with their parents. To make up for this, they send them to places they think parents will enjoy like Atami spa with hot springs. But what their children fail to comprehend is their parents are not really interested in materialistic pleasures. All they want to do is spend some quality time with their children and grandchildren and they will be more than satisfied. And time is only thing children can not find.

Now if the situation was like both Koichi and Shige were caught up with something that they can't get out of despite their best intentions, we could have understood them. But the fact is it is not like they can't, more like they don't want to. Otherwise Shige wouldn't kick them out just because they return earlier than planned from Atami and she needs her house for her beautician's meeting. Their parents are one of the sweetest, most innocuous old couple you will meet and were really looking forward to meet their family after a long time. However both their children seem to treat their parents as some sort of necessary evil they both have to weather for a while and be done with it. It's interesting that both their in-laws are much more welcoming and their spouses constantly keep them in check. Shige doesn't want her husband buying expensive rice cakes for them nor does Koichi think it's necessary to cook something special for them.

Speaking of in-laws, another person they meet in Tokyo is their second daughter-in-law Noriko. Noriko is married to their second son Shogi who has disappeared since WWII and hence is considered dead. Noriko is young and good looking but lives like she is still waiting for Shogi's return. Of all the Hirayamas in Tokyo, she is only person who treats the old couple with the amount of respect and attention they deserve. Despite her own busy schedule, she takes a day-off at the moments notice and takes them sight seeing around city. She also seems genuinely happy to bring them home after and treats them with best possible dinner she can afford. She even borrows from her neighbour just so her in-laws won't lack for anything. After spending few days with them, Shukichi and Tomi return back home but soon mother gets so sick that all their children have to rush back home to what could be last time they see their mother.  

What did I think of it? What did I like the most about it and what didn't I like?
First thing I have to say I like about Tokyo Story is it reminds me of Golden Age Bollywood films which were actually around at the same time. The type of acting we see in it, type of characters and their sensibilities, background music it uses; the whole setting of it in general is very much similar. Even though it is very first of my Ozu films, I know that he is a very trademark director. He has his own very distinct style and lot of tropes that appear through lot of his films. I was introduced to many of them here. First and foremost is the way he sets up his camera just a few feet above the ground. As Mark Harris says, it allows us to see the ceiling and gives more depth to the scene. For some reason I couldn't gauge how important it will be just by looking at one scene but when you have that for 130-something minutes, you certainly understand what it can do.

Again something Mark Harris says about Ozu is his films are never in a hurry to go anywhere. In most cases, this slowness would hamper the overall mood of the film. Here, it allows you to take everything in. He starts his scenes earlier than most would like before his parents arrive at Koichi's house, we see his wife and children waiting for them and preparing their house for them. He also lets his scenes play out longer than most. In the opening scene, we see Hirayamas packing their bags, talking about mundane things to their daughter, their neighbour and with each other. None of it has any real importance script-wise but it establishes them as quiet, peaceful couple which would prove important later. He goes further in his story than most would as well. I am sure many directors would want to stop with Hirayamas departing from Tokyo and in all fairness, I think even that would have been a great film. Just not this great! With more time we spend with this old couple and their selfish kids, more tragic this whole story becomes and probably that's the genius of Ozu. Giving us more than we bargained for and still leaving us wanting more.

After having seen it, do I agree with its 'essential' status? And why?
Not only do I have to agree with it, I can certainly see why Tokyo Story would be considered as one of the best films made ever. One simple fact is I don't think that anyone today would make such a simple film today. Whole plot of this film is in straight line. It doesn't take any turns, there are no twists in it. At no point will you be surprised by where story goes. But that's not to say it makes it any less compelling. On the contrary, it is so much more compelling than any twists and turns could make it and only reason is it deals with real humans in real-life situations dealing with real emotions. That's all it needs to keep you invested throughout.

Does it open few new doors for me? Does this inspire to watch any other movies?
As I said above, with this I intend to make it my gateway into other greats of Japanese cinema, especially Yasujiro Ozu. I always wanted to get into his films but after listening to Mark Harris going on at length about him in The Story of Film: An Odyssey(2011), I simply had to get to him as soon as possible. What I am really happy about is my very first endeavour into Ozuland was such a success. It should encourage me in future not only to return more often here but also to expedite my excursions into other unknown lands like Kenji Mizogichi.

Saturday, December 21, 2013

Bollywood Essentials: Lagaan

Indian squad in all it's glory!
As the name of this post suggests, this series is basically about some of the best movies Hindi cinema has to offer. As a film lover and someone who has grown up watching these movies, I want to give the glimpses of my world to everyone else who hasn’t yet been initialized to it or is under the impression of it being nothing more than glitzy, glamorous melodrama and random song and dance sequences. There is more to it and I intend to showcase that through these posts. 

I wrote first entry for this series almost one and half years ago for LAMB Foreign Chops. That day I made a conscious decision of starting this series with Satya(1998) than with Lagaan(2001) because I thought later would be too obvious a choice. You would imagine I will get back to it right after and I promise I did intend to but for some unexplained reason I kept postponing it. So today as I finally sit down to do just that, I am really surprised that it took me this much time and more than half a dozen posts to get back to it. That is not a strike against the quality of this film because I believe Lagaan is a quintessential Bollywood film. It is also a monumental film, a trendsetter in many ways that I will get to little later in this post. There will be spoilers almost throughout this post. So if you haven't seen this film and don't want it spoiled, avoid this but to tell you the truth, I don't think it matters. Everything that happens in this film is trademark Bollywood. So if you know the industry, most of it will not come as a surprise to you though it's no less riveting.

It takes place sometime in nineteenth century, when India was under British rule, in a small village called Champaner. Champaner hasn't seen a drop of rain in whole year but Captain Russell, British officer in-charge of Champaner and other villages in the vicinity which were originally under Raja Puran Singh's rule, wants to double the taxes. Villagers know that it won't be possible for them to pay a penny and decide to go and request Puran Singh to exempt them for this year. Captain Russell, however, has some other plans. He singles out Bhuvan, a young, dynamic guy who has already caused some troubles for him, and challenges them for a game of cricket. Britishers have been playing this game for a while and are quite skilled in it and villagers don't even know how to hold the bat right. But catch is if they win, they will pay no tax for three years and if they loose, they will have to pay triple tax. Quite a do-or-die situation! Bhuvan accepts the challenge. Initially everyone feels like it is a suicide mission but Bhuvan is determined to go the distance. He slowly starts putting a team together but real turning point comes when Captain Russell's sister agrees to teach them the game as she thinks they should get a fair chance in this match.

Obviously, game of cricket forms an integral part of the whole narrative. As someone who loves the game, what's interesting to me is during those three days of this match, every single thing that can happen in the game of cricket does happen. You have freakish run-outs, a hat-trick, on-ground controversies, complete collapse of batting orders and unlikely partnership that leads to last ball heroics. Anywhere else all these in one place would have looked hokey but this script makes it enjoyable. I also admire that director Ashutosh Gowarikar chose to show Bhuvan's teammates to be unaware of nitty-gritties of game. No one can in such a short time as villagers were given but this David vs Goliath match-up is what makes it so entertaining and thrilling. Also, cricket is not the most well-known sports in many parts of the world. So I was always skeptical about how it will travel overseas. I am so glad to be proven wrong by many people who have enjoyed this film as much as I did despite knowing next to nothing about the game. To me that is indicative of the game being so much more than just a cricket match.

And it is not 'just' a cricket match. As the whole diaspora starts to think of this as an opportunity than calamity, it becomes a channel to vent their anger, their frustration against their oppressors. A symbolic fight to beat British at their own game, in this case quite literally. It becomes some sort of glue to bring everyone together, a communal thing that everyone celebrates together or even reproach at times. By including Kachra who is from lower cast who were socially condemned then in team, Gowarikar also uses this opportunity to make social commentary. Another aspect that I make special point of mentioning in this posts is songs. In case of Lagaan, there is a special reason for that. If you consider all the songs in any film as some sort of album, I think I can make a very strong case of this being THE best in 100 years of Bollywood. Not only is every song just so much better than the previous, there is so much variety in them that it's mind boggling. There is an inspirational song, devotional song, straight-up love song, communal rain song and sort of lovers quarrel song. Each and every one of them have beautiful meanings, offer much more than surface value and are only one-uped by probably the best music A.R. Rehman has done in his career. 

Like me, there are many who consider it to be a ‘quintessential’ Bollywood film. Whatever you can expect from a typical Bollywood movie, you will get it here. You have an uplifting story with message that has a happy ending and provides a lot of social commentary. With Elizabeth falling in love with Bhuvan and Gauri who everyone in the village knows will be married to Bhuvan one day, you also have a love triangle, songs, good triumphing over bad with our protagonist snatching the victory from the jaws of defeat. You even have a character who sells the villagers out for his hatred of Bhuvan but even he redeems himself by the end. And on top of all that, there is cricket in the cricket crazy nation of billions. What else can you want? However where Lagaan distinguishes itself from most others is it handles this juggernaut really well. Despite being a sweeping epic of David Lean proportions which many others have tried in Hindi industry to varying results, there is not much I can find fault with in here.

It has created quite a legacy for itself by being only third and last Indian film to be nominated for Oscars (Mother Indian(1957) and Salaam Bombay!(1988) were the other two). But it has nothing to do with what I was talking about being a trendsetter. As far as I remember, it was the first Indian film that had a proper marketing budget and it was done with perfect planning. Aamir Khan, who starred in the film and also produced it, made sure that it would reach every corner of the country and everyone was talking about it even before it was released. But the reason I say there was great planning behind it is despite being marketed so heavily, no one had any idea that there was cricket involved in it until the day it was released. And that cricket match consists of about 50% of it's 224 minutes run time! When people came out of theaters on the opening day, everyone was extremely surprised about it. Once it rode that wave of surprise, it literally never looked back till the day of Oscars.

I like this film. I have always liked it but at the same time, I don't consider it to be one of my favourite films. As good and legendary it is, I have always had some minor quarrels with it. Minor because I am fully aware it's unfair to hold it against it but I can't help it. I have seen this movie more than half a dozen time, last time being less than a year ago, but over the last few watches I feel like this is dated already. I also have small problem with overall acting and tone of the movie. Even though there is a lot of humour in it, it's mainly melodrama and it's so much at the knife's edge that a smidge more of it would undo everything. It never really crosses that edge for me but it feels like it would on many occasions. However here I would like to underline the fact that I still think it is one of the essentials. I will even go further and say that if you've never seen any Bollywood movie before, Lagaan is as good a start you can hope for.

Rating(out of 5):

Previous Essentials: 
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