Movie Review: Rise of the Guardians…raises animation standards

I can imagine the look on your faces as you read that title. You might be scoffing by now – ya right, raises animation standards..as if there’s any further they could go, you would say – and I couldn’t blame you…The quality of animation movies has risen higher and higher with every new offering, whether its Dreamworks or Pixar, over what has been a very steep learning curve. Yet, just when you thought they couldn’t take you any further..Rise of the Guardians ‘rises’ to the occasion and you couldn’t ask for a better way to truly celebrate the festive spirit – this holiday season

Clocking at a very comfortable 97 minutes Rise of the Guardians packs in enough action in a very unconventional premise with visuals that simply dazzle. From the flakes of snow, to the magical dust of dreams and the dark wisps of nightmares  - its all there to spin a story of its own. The fact that this is all in 3D makes it just picture perfect. The characters are memorable and sure to awaken your long lost childhood. The philosophical angle to the movie is simple yet subtle allowing you to spend more time on the adventure as it unfolds. The voice acting is good as always. The humor is subtle yet you are bound to laugh out loud on a couple of occasions.

If I had to complain (and I’ll have to try really hard to do that) I’d say that the story progression is quite predictable but then I’d have to be Grinch to be watching this movie with that view.  My only concern is that while this is a movie made for children for sure, the villain is quite sinister, dark and dreary, so it might unintentionally be a little scary for some

Still I’d say its worth the risk since the heroes, or guardians as I should call them, provide enough spark and merriment to chase away those bad dreams and its wonderful to just watch them spread the magic. And you, grown-ups, as you walk away from the halls after the credits..just give it some thought..why was this movie called Rise of the Guardian(s)..and you’ll have your money’s worth

Movie Review: The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey…runs pretty much on expected lines

Here’s the thing..Peter Jackson managed to create some magic with the Lord of the Rings trilogy, especially the finale movie (Return of the King) that I particularly liked. With the first instalment of the The Hobbit trilogy, he does pretty much the same stuff and while its masterfully presented, it just doesn’t give that wow factor by the time the credits roll

The Hobbit is not a bad movie by any standards. The cinematography is top class, the action is engaging and the attention to detail is vintage Jackson. At a glance you would assume this is another one of the sets of the Lord of the Rings itself. But the issue is – we’ve seen all this before! As an audience, we want something new and that’s where The Hobbit is unable to deliver.

The 3D presented that opportunity for The Hobbit. It had clear potential – plenty of scenes that could simply dislodge you from your comfortable seat as the wolves lunged at you or you ducked the thrust of a sword – but sadly none of that is capitalized upon. The 3D is ordinary and unless I saw this in the wrong hall, its the usual post production 3D fare. After watching a gem like Life of Pi (as far as the 3D goes), The Hobbit falls far below standard in that department. Quite a pity that. That and the comparatively weak storyline yet extraordinarily long runtime (it runs for a whopping 169 minutes, for reasons beyond my understanding) are the minor blemishes in an otherwise high quality movie

The first half of the movie is extraordinarily slow and the movie takes its time to pick up. Thankfully, once it does the action is highly engaging, though a tad too unbelievable and illogical at times. However, the wide angle cinematography and breath-taking beauty of the landscapes with a pack of dwarves scurrying about are truly worth the silver screen experience

The performances are solid from the entire cast and Martin Freeman does a more than decent job as Bilbo Baggins. Gollum when he does enter has your complete attention all the time he remains on screen and Ian McKellen plays his usual Gandalf – a role he would be all-too-familiar with by now.

The Hobbit then, has that air of familiarity and while it does nothing new, what is done is done well. I’d say its still a worth a viewing on the silver screen but prepare to spend a long time in the hall while you watch the band of little men take what is yet only the first leg of a long and promising adventure

Movie Review: Talaash..is an engaging search

One of the most anticipated movies of the year has most things going for it – a stellar star cast, capable directorial hands, stalwarts to have written dialogues and a more than decent plot. For the most part it delivers too – only, when you emerge from the hall there is bound to be that tinge of dissatisfaction..why is that so? Well, the answers lie within

Within an engaging plot presented in a gripping fashion lies an unnatural and bizzare climax and therein lies the folly. For the most part of the little over two hours that the movie runs for Talaash is every bit as you wish it to be. It’ll interest you, confound you, confuse you and captivate you. The hunt is not as breathless and yet there is that eerie underlying tone to it – perfect for a thriller of this sort. Some sequences have a sense of directorial class showing regret and growing distances in a wonderful manner. The background score is just apt keeping the underlying tension going all through. And then, there’s the climax

A million possibilities reduced to one which quite doesn’t sound as appetizing and almost seems a disservice to the presentation before it. Its quite clear where the director wanted to go, when all is revealed but where a movie like Kahaani enthralled with its climax, this one lets itself down and is probably the only reason why Talaash wouldn’t get the kudos it otherwise deserves

With such an elite star cast performances are expectedly top notch. The good thing about the movie though is that all 3 leads get practically equal screen time and while Kareena dazzles in her character and Aamir is great as the brooding cop, it is Rani Mukerji who delivers a truly emotive performance and steals the show. Other than that, Nawazzudin Siddiqui is dependable as ever.

Talaash then, is an engaging and gripping search..to an unsatisfying conclusion. Still the hunt is well worth a visit

Oh, a word to the wise..please avoid knowing anything about the movie or even reading facebook feeds before you watch this movie as there is many an idiot who revels in giving the plot away and in movies like this once you know the main plot its just no fun at all.

Movie Review: Life of Pi..is spell-binding!!

I often try to use the movie name or something about it as part of my blog title. However, nothing short of ‘spell-binding’ does justice to this one. Ang Lee brings to life practically the impossible – a supposedly unfilmable book is presented in a manner that is a treat for the senses making Life of Pi a must-watch all the way!!

Life of Pi starts off slow and after a time you begin wondering where’s all the water, animals and action you saw in the trailer -  but patience bears fruit. Once the adventure begins you are completely swept away and by the time the film reaches its abrupt intermission (since there’s really no intermission in a Hollywood movie) you are well entrenched in the adventure and in no mood for a break.

There’s a lot of talk about the 3D of Life of Pi being better than Avatar. I’d just say that Life of Pi is presented in 3D in an Avatar of its own, the kind that perfectly suits the story that is told. The 3D isn’t as extravagant, but peaks up at exactly the right moments and some scenes are sure to give you the thrills you would seek from a 3D movie. Clearly some lessons for all and sundry on how to use 3D in a movie

However, while its a visual spectacle, Life of Pi is a real winner more because of the kind of depth its storyline offers. On the face of it, its an adventure, a tale of courage, hope and survival all very well but peel the layers and you find profound depth and meaning to everything you’ve witnessed in an entirely different light. I myself believe that I have only scratched the surface of what Life of Pi has to offer apart from its visual treat and best of all the director doesn’t push you to think in any given direction. Its for you to think, explore and ponder…or not

The performances are top notch too, Suraj Sharma the protagonist does a decent job and pulls off a difficult role. The treatment to his character and his visual appearance is thoughtful and consistent, making his unbelievable story come to life. Irrfan Khan delivers yet again and though his initial accent is a little unbecoming, his emotional delivery later in the movie takes the cake. So does Adil Hussain impress with his impeccable accent and delivery in the earlier part of the movie. The only one wasted, is Tabu who given her range of performance is given a rather simple and short role

The real star of the show is however, Ang Lee – first for believing that such a movie was possible and secondly for presenting it so wonderously -with scenes shot under and over water, at close quarters with a royal Bengal tiger and a host of other superb sequences.

After one has almost given up  here comes a real winner. One should never lose hope..so is the case with God, and Hollywood too I guess

Movie Review: Jab Tak Hai Jaan..doesn’t take your breath away

Jab Tak Hai Jaan is not your timeless classic of a tale well told and a story unfolding in a manner that would make for repeat viewings. It is your formula Bollywood movie, a formula that has been perfected over time by a master storyteller..well, at least on some counts. On others, its best if you go prepared to make certain concessions.

If you are willing to give up on logic/ believability of certain scenes, go mentally prepared that the movie would seem endless and runtime would be excruciatingly long, there’ll be plenty of unnecessary song and dance that could easily have been avoided – if you are willing to overlook all that well, then Jab Tak..provides another story of eternal love made quite watchable by the veteran himself. If not, then its best strike to this one off your list at this stage itself

The first half of the movie plays like a musical. With three songs and a long dance sequence crammed in, there’s little room for anything else. There is precisely one moment in the entire first half that would cause some stir and that’s where the master wields his magic wand. Other than that, its pretty much all about the song and dance. While the music itself is decent, one still expects more from A R Rahman, and considering it does nothing to progress the story line, it becomes frustrating

The second half provides more of the story though the twists and turns (if you could call them that) are less palatable. Each new sequence is less convincing then the earlier one and the movie lurches towards a rather delayed climax. Somehow, somewhere things happen and by the end of it all, Yash Chopra manages to convince you that this is yet another story of eternal, never-ending love, but only just, this time round

As for the performances, Shahrukh is predictable as ever and one really can’t see him for the character he portrays. While the same could be said for Katrina, given her historical record, this is probably one of her better performances. The real star of the movie though is Anushka Sharma who brings a natural ease to her character and a lot of freshness to the proceedings. That and the wonderful cinematography of exquisitely shot landscapes are some of the best reasons to watch this movie

So what’s the verdict? Well, Jab Tak Hai Jaan certainly doesn’t take your breath away but despite its flaws its a decent one-time watch especially considering this was Yash Chopra’s swan song and this is a man who has literally immortalised love on the bollywood mantelpiece – its worth a watch if only to honour his memory

Movie Review: Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana..is a completely ordinary recipe

This is one recipe you don’t want to try. I know variety is the spice of life but this is taking things a bit far. Despite a decent premise, Luv Shuv.. completely fails to bring home the gravy. Instead what you get served is rather raw and unappetizing

Firstly, its not as funny as it should be. In fact, the only laughs that are to be had are provided by the character Titu Mama, played to perfection by Rajesh Sharma and that’s about the only reason you manage to sit through the movie. For the rest, well, it all stands out for the wrong reasons. The plot, if you can call it that, is abysmal and its almost as if the director was thinking on the fly while shooting the scenes, for all the thought that’s gone into it. I don’t know in what addled state this movie was put together but it simply doesn’t make sense

In fact, given the recent success of simple movies that focused on a particular culture and brought out the laughs from therein, Luv Shuv had all its ingredients laid out. However, its not the stuff you use but the way you mix it together that prepares the meal and that spells indigestion for this particular movie. While it intermissions with some promise, the second half starts oblivious to the little that has already been told. Most of your time gets spent in watching how a meal is made, a meal which by now you would happily avoid

Finally, after considerable agony, the movie crawls towards what can be called the climax or maybe the anti-climax – one can’t be too sure. In terms of acting, there is further misery as no one other than Rajesh Sharma really stand out. Huma Qureshi looks pretty as ever and puts in a decent performance for the limited scope her character gave her. Kunal Kapoor was given more scope to perform but he is still not ready to take on a mainstream character and fails to emote convincingly when it matters most

As per its ingredients Luv Shuv..could’ve been told simply, with a little more sanity with maybe a decent and clear message. By not doing all that and making a pot pourri of events, this dish is best avoided

Movie Review: Skyfall..is Bond Shaken And Stirred!!

What I thought would be an easy verdict is probably one of the toughest to call. Skyfall is Bond as you would have never seen it before…but is it the best? is it the worst? Well that’s where it gets difficult

Skyfall is not the adventure popcorn action you and I have come to associate with Bond over recent years. It does not rely on adrenalin pumping action or fancy gadgets. Come to think of it, it doesn’t even have a very convoluted plot. By all these counts, this movie should be a no-go for all Bond fans..but it isn’t.

What needs to be kept in mind while watching Skyfall is that this is a franchise that has completed 50 years and this movie is meant to be a tribute to that franchise. The popcorn adventure could’ve been and has been played out many times over..Skyfall chooses to go deeper and take a real, hard look at Bond, M and the entire franchise itself. I won’t say anything further than that

In the hands of Sam Mendes, a director not really known for action adventure movies, Bond and Skyfall receive completely different treatment and in its own way it works. Landscape shots and focus on expressions replace gunfire and explosions. I won’t say its all great – there are times where you wish there were more incidents, more mayhem, more action sequences, more of the Bond you were attuned to but once you are willing to slow down, you begin to appreciate what’s there. Like Casino Royale was different and took some time to digest..Skyfall again makes you swallow a bitter pill and it takes some time to appreciate the sweetness within

As for the performances, Daniel Craig is just okay as Bond, Dame Judi Dench is in vintage touch as M and the villain of the tale is convincing but isn’t given enough air-time. With a little more work this villain could have established himself on a far greater plane but for some strange reason the film doesn’t go for that

I won’t say I am completely sold to the film. I would’ve liked some things to be different and there are other scenes that tempt, tease but don’t deliver. However, whatever is delivered is in a class of its own and seen at  its own merit, Skyfall takes the Bond legacy to new heights