Sunday, July 29, 2012

Movie Review: Ice Age 4: Continental Drift..just about manages to keep it together


Ice Age 4 offers nothing new. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing since the Ice Age series has been pretty good fun all through. However, it is now looking rather episodic and drawn out rather than the fresh presentation the initial versions had. While the other series (Kung Fu Panda, Toy Story) improved with every sequel, this is one series that has pretty much remained the same.
Ice Age 4 then, is just about, the same wine in the same bottle. If anything, its becoming more kids oriented and the gags are comparatively lesser. At this point, I don’t really care if there’s an Ice Age 5, rather I am hoping there isn’t. Part of the reason for this indifference may also be that while the herd started off with fresh and quirky characters, there hasn’t been much progress since Manny, Diego and Sid got together and now they are definitely getting older. By now, even Scrat is beginning to look repetitive – I guess there’s no better indication
As for the current version, well its got all the usual stuff. Animation is top drawer and the 3D is well utilized, though I thought we could’ve done with a little more depth in some scenes. All the voice actors are in good form and the packaging of the movie is also pretty decent. One thing this version definitely misses is more of the smart gags – some laugh out loud moments that the earlier versions offered. Unless they can manage to pull a rabbit out of a hat, this series may well be on its way to extinction. Its been a memorable journey, but its important to realize when its time to go.
Ice Age 4 then, doesn’t make the must watch list. Still, with the other offering being Kya Super Kool Hain Hum..its an easy choice. At least this one won’t give you a headache

Saturday, July 28, 2012

Movie Review: Kya Super Kool Hain Hum..Kya Bakwas Hai!!


This one’s a no brainer – and I mean this in every sense of the phrase possible. The only reason I was keen on watching this sequel was because I had quite a few laughs with the original that released a few years back. If I had been given quite the same helping I would’ve been satisfied, but nothing could have prepared me for the bizarre, crude and downright amateur stuff that Kya Super Kool..has to offer. Forget Super..this one’s not even Kool..not by a long yardstick
This is usually that part of my review where I start off with something good about the movie..and I am actually struggling. Other than a handful of clever quips, most of the one-liners make you cringe, hold your head in frustration and wish that you’d never ventured to the hall in the first place. Gone is the nicely paced setup of the original offering, with decent characters, interesting situations and absolute laugh out loud sequences. Instead, what you get is an all the time in-your-face motley collection of one-liners distributed across dialogues, no story to speak of and absolutely nil connect with the characters. The somewhat saving grace is some of the song and dance, but that’s also probably because Dil Garden Garden is a clear lift from the Flo Rida hit – Right Round (from Hangover fame)
In the acting department, Riteish is in good form but this time doesn’t have the dialogues to support him in his fairly comfortable comedic avatar. Of the others, it pains one to see a veteran like Anupam Kher playing the role he does in the movie, though he still manages to bring a laugh or two due to his performance alone.
To expect any depth whatsoever in a movie made purely for the purpose of fun is a stupid expectation and I went in with none. What I did hope for was at least some of the laugh riot that the original had presented if not an all-out entertainer. What I got instead was a mind-numbing barrage of useless one liners that left me dazed. If this is not warning enough then probably your mind is numb already and Super Kool..couldn’t possibly do more damage.

Sunday, July 22, 2012

Movie Review: The Dark Knight Rises…No..it doesn’t


It is with a heavy heart that I choose this title for my review for what has been easily the most anticipated movie of the season. With the The Dark Knight, Christopher Nolan gave us one of the finest experiences in cinema, in a long time and instantly catapulted himself to that elite list of magical film-makers. Even as one emerged from the theaters then, one thing was amply clear – nothing would be better than this.
However, as the euphoria began to rise, trailers began to come and news around the movie and its plot began doing the rounds – some hope emerged – could it really be possible? could Nolan actually outdo himself? The anticipation reached a crescendo and the release of the film was met with packed houses
Sadly, it was all for nought. The curse of the third instalment of the trilogy (matrix revolutions, spiderman 3 etc.) was only too obvious as a disappointed and dejected viewer emerged after the last 165 minutes of the caped crusader. Forget Dark Knight, even Batman Begins was miles ahead of this last offering.
Movies like The Dark Knight and Inception have put Christopher Nolan in a special place. Almost where you felt that even if he made a bad move, it would still be a pretty good offering. However, with The Dark Knight Rises, Nolan probably offers his weakest movie till date. If Dark Knight and even Batman Begins offered you a complex and convoluted plot, psychological terror and thrills at the same time and memorable dialogues, The Dark Knight Rises fails miserably in all those 3 departments. Instead TDKR, relies on showing brawn rather than brain, explosive set pieces rather than unexpected events and twists and turns that add no merit to the story. The only saving grace is that you get to see Anne Hathaway looking delectable in a catsuit and delivering her role to perfection, so you can imagine the disappointment.
The first half of the movie starts well and builds in a familiar manner and you gear up for something exciting. However, the weakest point for Nolan is that the character of Bane is pathetic. That Bane is no Joker is but obvious, but his portrayal is too ‘in your face’. He may look menacing all right but by talking more than probably any other character including Batman himself, he leaves no mystery around him, his plans or what you can expect next.
To give credit, there are some jaw dropping action set pieces but they too are marred by an inept background score. If the first half gives you some hope, the second half dashes it hard into the ground. The action is predictable to the point of being mundane, the dialogues are cheesy and plain irritating. After gems like ‘This city deserves a better class of criminal and I’m gonna give it to them’, one expected a few more master lines that lasted for the next decade or two but TDKR almost seems written by someone else entirely. There is not one dialogue that stands out or stays with you.
At the end of the day, its really some fine acting by the entire cast that manage to leave some credit for the movie – Bale, Hardy, Oldman, Caine, Freeman, Marion, Joseph Gordon Levitt and Anne all deliver an earnest performance.
I really cringe while typing this review out because this is so not what I would have liked to say about the movie – but its important to face the truth. The Dark Knight deserved a better finale, a better tribute and Nolan was the right man for the job. Let’s just accept that he had a bad at the office.

Sunday, July 1, 2012

Movie Review: The Amazing Spiderman…is an unnecessary reboot to the franchise


When I first saw the trailers of this reboot of our friendly neighborhood web-slinger (and I am big fan)..there was only one question on my mind..Why?? Why would you plan a reboot for a franchise that had fairly established itself (of course, barring Spiderman 3 which is where things probably started to go wrong). Sam Raimi’s spiderman pretty much captured the essence of the superhero across various dimensions. What was the need for a re-boot? Unfortunately, after seeing the movie..I still ask the same question
If there was one thing about Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man, it knew the story it wanted to tell and told it well. In stark contrast, the story development in Amazing Spiderman is horrendously weak. Its almost as if the director wanted to just separate himself from the earlier franchise..by whatever means possible, even if it made no sense. So while Parker is still going to be bit by a spider there’s some unnecessary and unconvincing nonsense around how it happens and how he becomes Spidey. In fact, in the entire first half, the only saving grace is that though they replaced the character of Mary Jane with another girl, we get the much prettier and imminently watchable Emma Stone to play the love interest
Thankfully the movie picks up significantly after that and we get what we really came to see. With Spiderman having discovered who he is, its the Spidey action that really grabs your attention. You see, the thing about Spidey is that he is extremely fast, but with the marvellous camera-work of The Amazing Spiderman, the camera manages to stay on him every single frame so you follow the action to the T.
Andrew Garfield as the new Spidey tries his best to look the part but doesn’t manage to do very well in the end. Rhys Ifans as Dr. Curtis Connors, though, does a really good job and despite a weak villain makes quite an impression. Our own Irrfan Khan is also there, though his dialogues are minimal and he delivers them in his trademark no-nonsense fashion.
If the trailer of this re-boot impressed you, well it was meant to..because there isn’t too much the new Spidey has to offer. However, that 40 odd minutes of Spidey action is about the most immersive and well executed parts of the movie. Its also probably the only time when you notice the 3D. You can pretty much watch the first half of the movie without the glasses altogether, for all the 3D it offers.
All in all, the new age action, camera work and special effects make a new Spiderman movie every bit worth the effort. If only they had done it as Spiderman 4 (in continuation of the franchise) this could have been one kickass movie. As it stands though, there is little that is ‘Amazing’ about the new Spiderman and if you decide to give it a miss, you won’t miss much
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