Movie Review: Avengers: The Age of Ultron..not the mightiest anymore..

Ah! The curse of the sequel. There are few who have mastered it and even fewer who will. Given, that is, the relentless focus on making a good thing, count time and again, even if it doesn’t shine as bright, even if it doesn’t have the same spirit – as long as it brings the money.

The Age of Ultron is not a bad movie per se. So aren’t any of those in the Ironman series, the X-Men First class sequel or any of those with the individual members of the Avengers team, in the lead. You see where I am headed with this..The Avengers is a good Marvel franchise movie. It doesn’t go beyond and become greater than the sum of its parts, as its origin movie did and that is principally what is wrong with the Age of Ultron

For starters, Ultron goes about the story in a horribly wrong way. Using a done to death plot angle to create an unconvincing villain, despite James Spader’s best efforts, drives the the first nail in the coffin. He tries his best to appear menacing and doesn't give away much, but while sounding deep and sombre, it all ultimately falls flat. It wasn’t like Loki was too menacing either. But at least he was coherent. He had a plan and he executed it. Herein, the plan itself seems either missing, or being thought up on the fly…not a great plan.

Then there’s the writing. Another gem in the original’s armour, this time round most of it falls flat and seems forced. Put simply, the movie lacks flow, a natural progression to the proceedings. Its almost like Whedon’s not in charge any more, except for some of the humor. You get the impression that he’s done this one in a rush. Not giving time for the script to breathe, come into its own and craft its own journey, as he did with the first one.

Avengers had one big advantage. It had to introduce all its characters and could take time building the underlying tension in the movie. Then of course, was the grand finale, the battleground. Such a complete movie for any superhero fanboy. The sequel though, is anything but. The quality of action, effects and visuals needs to be seen to be believed – no doubt about that. But the thrill is missing. That adrenalin rush you felt in the first movie, is simply not there.

There are some great pieces, but the way they are put together it just seems awkward – its like the pieces don’t fit and have instead been forced together. The unconvincing romance, dark tales and multiple back stories and the techno babble melded with might and magic – none of it really fits into the ensemble as it should

The most refreshing part are the additions – the Enhanced (not saying more). In terms of making this a true sequel, they have a brief but pivotal part to play and they meld into the fabric quite well. In the acting department, the performances of course, are top notch, with such veterans in charge. For a change, even Cap. looks like he fits – either the overall standard has dropped down to such an extent or he significantly upped his game. I sincerely can’t be sure which one it is, though I suspect it’s a bit of both.

A few years ago, Earth’s mightiest superheroes came together and became a force to reckon with. Their second outing however, does not retain their ungodly status. Instead, it’s a bitter reminder that the man at the helm, however fantastic he may seem, is only human. Let’s hope the next installments deliver better.

Movie Review: Detective Byomkesh Bakshy…a case of rare brilliance

There are few movies that can measure up in the detective, thriller, mystery genre in the bollywood context. Most are either shameless rip-offs from Hollywood or too feeble to make an impact. Detective Byomkesh Bakshy is one of those rare exceptions that not only leave their mark but have a signature style of their own..creating their unique brand and identity.

Firstly, and refreshingly so, let go of all fears and assumptions that this one will try and copy the established Mr. Holmes in any manner whatsoever. Byomkesh strives for greatness in its own way and while it may not seem so in the beginning or even as the movie progresses, once you leave the theater you will be in no doubt of the quality of movie, story, direction and presentation you have just witnessed.

Very few movies try and even less are successful to truly create ‘the world’ of its characters. One where you are drawn in to their world, witness proceedings from that perspective and are in no hurry to come back to reality and the present day scenario. With a masterclass in direction, Dibakar Banerjee accomplishes exactly that. From the production design to the very look of our detective, everything has been thought through in painful detail and the effort shows.

The movie starts off slow and for a while you wonder if perhaps Mr. Banerjee may have spent too much time in creating ‘the world’ than to give shape and substance to the plot. In fact, don’t go expecting a case, clues, suspects, questioning etc. the standard modus operandi for a detective story. Instead, just be willing to let go and witness the world and events from the eyes of Byomkesh Bakshi..not yet an established master detective, and neither one that is trying hopelessly to prove his point. The rest..you just need to witness for yourself

Barely recognizable as himself, with the enhanced unibrow, Sushant Singh Rajput does a credible job of playing Byomkesh Bakshy. To pull off this character required a restrained performance and that is exactly what he delivers. The weak links from an acting and performance standpoint are the women – Swastika Mukherjee has some chance to emote given her character, but that doesn’t happen. Divya Menon has a simpler role but doesn’t have a lasting presence. Some more established names could perhaps have lifted this already great movie, even more

But majority of the credit goes to the man pulling all the strings – Dibakar Banerjee. While already an established name, he takes things to a different level – using heavy metal as part of the background score, re-creating Calcutta in the era the movie is set, cutting across scenes and frames to keep a complex story coherent and keeping his audience engaged all through.

If you haven’t figured it by now – Byomkesh Bakshy is highly recommended. In fact, as the movie ends it points to the possibility of a sequel – I sure hope that’s gonna happen. Its not going to be easy, but after watching this one, I am pretty convinced that if anyone can do justice to it – its Dibakar Banerjee.