Films January 2019

When Angels Sleep

Watched on Netflix. Pathetic film. The one in which a man runs over a woman. Then her friend - both doing drugs and wearing short clothes. Were with their boyfriends. One resists one of the boys who wants to rape her. And then this guy is forever trying to convince the girl who survives that he is not the killer. In the end he has to kill her because she doesn't believe him. Stupid shit. Why was this film even made!

 

Guru (1997)

(Malayalam)

By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=44183712

The one starring Mohanlal - it's only now that i realised that the whole blind people's land etc. started with Hindu Muslim violence in Kerala. Wonder what prompted him to take that up and surprisingly it is VERY neutral. A miracle, because Malayalam films invariably side with hindu fundamentalists in such films, portraying all Muslims as terrorists and extremists. Also idiots. This is completely different. Raghuraman, the protagonist starts by denouncing his Brahmanyam. It is very anti - Brahmin. I read that it was India's official entry in Oscars that year. Apparently, the first Malayalam film to go there as nomination. So strange that the director did not continue making films. He is also a sculptor an and art director - something hard to miss from the art direction in Guru. Want to watch the rest of his work. And stalk him of course. :) Rajiv Anchal - the director. The film failed miserably at the box office - strange - it was really good. It should have done well for all those crappy hit movies mallus watch. Rajiv Anchal had admitted that Guru's story was influenced by HG Wells' short story, The Country of the Blind - from this newspaper article on the film. Interesting. Have to read.

Thugs of Hindostan

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I watched Thugs of Hindostan and can't understand why people were so unhappy with it. I am a Pirates of the Carribean fan myself and i still can't understand the outrage. Because if this is plagiarism then the whole of Bollywood is plagiarism! It was a normal film that had some good moments and to be honest a rather feminist twist. Yeah the shoddy VFX - i get. But really? Didn't people have ridiculous VFX parrots and crap? Or is Thugs bad because it did not demonise Muslims like Padmaavat did? I find this really intriguing. Opinion is definitely being manufactured. In the case of Mallu films like 'Odiyan' that faced a similar fate, we knew the reasons. Bollywood might want to look at the politics of opinion making soon. And as far as filmmaking is concerned, be aware of your contemporaries. In the era of Tumbbad, you cannot expect to do shoddy work and get away with it. People have tasted the better wine.

I also liked some of the fights. Especially the one in which Amitabh Bachchan and the girl fight together with curtains. Liked the eagle. Not the VFX but the sound and its presence. 

Butterflies (1993)

 

By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=26017966

Malayalam film starring Mohanlal. 1993 by the director of Guru. It is really strange. This film was also kind of ahead of its times. It spoke of a relationship between a man and a woman in which man argues that he is not sleeping with her. The woman is waiting for her father to be hanged. She wants to commit suicide at the same time. Mohanlal and Jagadish try to get clemency. The funny part where 'execution is suspanded'. The jokes and comedy are not ugly and bad. It's pleasant. Really. The rebel in the house of a Menon - That's Mohanlal, again. Suits him, i guess. The woman from a Nambiar family. :) The father who murdered the ones who raped his daughter. Twin sisters Anju and Manju - so sweet! When exactly did these idiots like Renjith start making crap and ruining everything for us!

 
Also, this shirt Mohanlal was sporting in 1993 - i find that hawt now.

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl

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Watched it to watch it with Vai Vow. The characterisation of everyone is the best part of these films, i think. And it's consistent throughout the three films. I have forgotten the fourth part completely. The one i watched in Crown with an asshole.

Raazi

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The one where Indian intelligence agents work undercover and ensure victory to india. Alia Bhatt has done a really good job. Very convincing you hardly see that in the heroines of Bollywood. really well done. Anyway the film was just weird. An attempt to tell people that Indian muslims are patriotic and will be willing to sacrifice their lives for India? Why? Also, why was the marriage such a normal thing? And why was Alia Bhatt's mother wearing sindoor? Which Indian Muslim wife does that? I didn't like the explanations bits. The portions where they explain how Alia duped police officers, how the husband gets to know who the traitor is etc. There should be an effective way to show that without showing it by directly addressing the audience. That's something i am working on at the moment.

Pirates of the Carribean - The Dead Man's Chest

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I had clubbed this and the third part in my head. This film is only till the death of Jack Sparrow - Captain Jack Sparrow - by the Kraken beasty. Like it when he goes into its mouth. Slight romance between Sparrow and the governor's daughter. I dont like that female actor though. Never liked her in the whole trilogy. Knightley. Also guilty of watching Depp, the wife beater.

Dismissed

The stupid Netflix one i watched because it said it was the story of a psychopath who wants to go to Harvard. Nothing of the sort. Stupid shitty film where student harms, kills etc to get the grade he thinks he deserves.

Gurgaon

By Source (WP:NFCC#4), Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=54483445

What a shitty film. It's so shitty that it gets funny after a point. Vai Vow and i watched and had a great time laughing. The mother is always asking the family to eat roti. In the end the son asks her to eat roti just like i predicted. God it was hilarious. The roti mother also shoots the son because women have to be strong in films of today huh. I felt ten different directors were trying to say ten different stories. Like the French girl who comes with the architect daughter - what was the deal with her? Then there is a sex worker on whom the son places the French woman's photo and strangles her or something. A guitarist. The woman's character changes when someone gropes her in the bus. It was really weird.

Solo

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That film with Dulquer Salman playing fifty roles that make no sense. It took me three days to watch this film because it was so pointless and bad. What was the meaning of it all. Why was this film made! And what's with the Shiv analogy? What the fuck is Shiv doing in title plates? What's wrong with people who make these films!

Pirates of the Caribbean To the World's End

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The third in Pirates films - this is the most visually stunning one i think. The beginning of the film is one of my favourite openings. Where they start singing during execution.

Ab Tak Chappan 2

By Source (WP:NFCC#4), Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=45401548

This shitty film starring Nana Patekar, a sexual harasser. I was feeling guilty for watching it but then felt a little better seeing that the film is BULLSHIT. This encounter police sent on a mission and crap. He has a son. Apparently this is the second part of another film. This one was shot in Marathi and later dubbed to Hindi perhaps. Because there was absolutely no lip sync in many places. Don't know.

Nirnayam (1995)

By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=27435437

This is the film in which Mohanlal cracks his knuckles from time to time. There is another doctor. Annie. They fall in love and marry and everything. And it's a dream, their marriage. But Annie discovers that the doctors are running an organ transplant racket in the hospital. So she is killed. Dr. Roy - Mohanlal's name in the film, he is arrested because there is evidence against him. Anyway i love this film. Didn't know it was directed by Sangeeth Sivan. It is said to be the copy of a film called 'The Fugitive'. Will have to watch that to see if it's true. Copying can be a tricky business you know. I found a funny part where they have used miniatures with all confidence in us mallus that we won't mind. See this accident scene.

Rahasya

By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=45025763

This one looked like it's based on Arushi murder case. But why do i keep feeling that the mother of the girl who gets killed - i have seen her in some mallu film, specifically the trailer of a mallu film by a rapist? Anyway the film is quite good. With Kay Kay as the investigating officer from CBI.

Pavithram

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The chettachan film. It was the debut of Binduja Menon and it was Santosh Sivan who did camera. Didn't know. Sobhana so beautiful.

Gandharvam

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Another film by Sangeeth Sivan starring Mohanlal. He is a mechanic. Very poorly done. It looked like the earlier thing in Nirnayam was attempted and failed probably because it was not copied from some Hollywood film. Very loose. Even the songs are bad. Mohanlal is great though. He he

Oru Abhibhashakante Case Diary

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The one starring Mammootty. Looks like i have watched all these. This is the one in which you remembered Bindu Panicker character having the problem of undressing herself whenever she sees strangers because she was raped once. She is the sister of the LIC agent whom we see from time to time. And my face recognition software worked this time when i thought the lead female actor - sister of the falsely accused Maniyanmpilla Raju - was the same as the heroine of Nirnayam. She was. Looks like she stopped acting. She has a very nice face but not Malayalee i think because very dubbed it sounded, both the films. Also remembered a small bit where Vijayaraghavan says that he can't trust his own shadow and shadow being the big twist in the end. Fully shot in Kozhikode, i suppose. It was nice to see those places. That petrol bunk in Kottooly.

Fully shot in Kozhikode, i suppose. It was nice to see those places. That petrol bunk in Kottooly.

Soni

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Watched again after MAMI. It was worth it. I really liked both the actors. Kani was talking about it yesterday in relation to my script. The two police officers and each having their own problems. Soni for example asks the girl to start dressing like a boy. Kalpana treats police constables like her domestic help. That's the twist and turn in characters one needs. It's a really good film. Amrita Pritam was taunted saying her autobiography would fit in a postal stamp because it was so unhappening. So when she published her autobiography she called it postal stamp.

Thoovaanathumbikal - Padmarajan

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I kind of understand why it is called a cult film in Malayalam. I really liked it too, by the way. Saying this now because earlier whenever i'd tried watching the film i would stop midway because it got unbearable for me to listen to the WRONG Thrissur accent. It's horrible. Don't know why they did it and don't know why an actor like Mohanlal could not do it properly. But then again he has always had the same slang - the one with a little trivandrum mixed in - in all his films - except while speaking in Tamil, i guess. Hmm. Interesting.

Anyway i really liked the film and have no idea why. It could be because of all that love. I love watching people in love. Clara and Mohanlal are really in love and for the time, it was really a very unconventional polyamorous relationship. It was Padmarajan's novel first and then his film. I remember trying to read Padmarajan's short stories at home and finding it disgusting. Some sex and shit. However, Prathimayum Rajakumaranum was Appachan's favourite. I read it as a child. The purple cover. Was the sketch by Padmarajan too? Bharadan did the illustrations for Udakappola novel, i learned. Maybe i will read that novel once. And Prathimayum - this time when i go home. That book case upstairs. That's capable of making my eyes moist. For no good reason.

This screenshot reminded me of the ivory possession scandal Mohanlal later became involved in.

The Fugitive 

https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6141388

So when i realised that 'Nirnayam' is the copy of a Hollywood film by the name The Fugitive, i decided to watch it. Just to see how they have copied it. From whatever discussions i have had about rip offs, i have realised that my take on it is not that popular. What i don't like is lazy copying. First of all, i don't understand why one has to steal stuff when there are so many stories around. New stories are being born and we have not even exhausted the already existing reserve.

I guess people decide to copy films when they like it. Or think they can tell the same story in their land in a very nice way. Or even a better way. For example, in the case of The Fugitive, the director of the copy, Sangeeth Sivan, felt that the story might be a good way to make a successful film if the lead is played by Mohanlal and the angle changed to organ transplant scam instead of medical trials. Whatever his reasons were, i would say that he was not creative while doing it. I will try to explain why i think so.

What is it that the director did? He copied the entire story and added a bit in the beginning. The part where the doctor and the woman fall in love. The lead character was transformed into a medical genius. The usual invincible hero who is wronged by the corrupt society - a role that Mohanlal, the star excels in. Think Kireedam and Chengol.

But if you decide to copy something, you really need to work twice as much as you usually do just to compensate the lack of originality. For me, stealing is hard work. All stories are stolen, yes. I have, however, never felt like copying an entire story. I have felt like copying direction. If you are copying a story, in my opinion, you should at least direct it in your own way. Not do lazy work like below.

Look at how in the Malayalam version, they deliberately made a miniature truck to shoot the accident scene. In the cleaning scene below, couldn't they have thought of a hundred things that could be done instead of the same blinds cleaning? The list is huge. A police officer pointing out to Mohanlal in disguise that his fly is open. Even the appearance of the character has been made the same. The entire accident sequence. Looks like the 'imagination' of the story teller was used only in the love story part. That's sad.

I, however liked that the director deviated from the original and showed us beforehand in the Malayalam version that an organ transplant scam was running in the hospital with Ratheesh at the head of it and the one armed man as his gunda. This was the only decision that worked. In fact, i felt that The Fugitive would have been even better if that was done.

Autumn Sonata

https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10547775

This movie that moved me so much when i first watched it in Main Theatre in SRFTI. I MISS Main Theatre. I miss SRFTI so much. It's funny how everyone accused me of bringing a bad name to the institute but all i always did was to love it immensely. I still look at the photos and breathe in the calcutta air and cry etc. Never mind. It's gone now.

It didn't move me much this time and i felt even worse. Bergman however, is a director i like very much. And who are these IDIOTS who say that Unniser April is a copy of this film. People really have no sense of stories and storytelling, i feel. Thinking of taking these two films to Calicut University to speak about women filmmakers.

The music. The acting. The sick child, the singer mother and the daughter who confronts her mother after many years. She lost her own baby. I remember writing down that beautiful music will look good on any close up. This time, i did not feel like writing that down or noting it. How wonderful is the journey when you are travelling in and to and through cinema. 

Ordinary People

By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4369376

Since i am reading 'Story' now, just trying to familiarise myself with the films mentioned in the book. It's a long list but you can always start.

This is the one in which there is a broken family after a death. Two brothers. One dies. We are shown the life of the survivor brother, mother and father. This whole family life has been portrayed really well and all credit goes to the screenplay. The live brother tried committing suicide after the death of his brother because he blames himself for it. This is not shown. We only see the survivors. And the accidents and some memories from the past. It is Robert Redford's directorial debut. He is the founder of the Sundance Festival. He won Oscar for best director for this film. Importance of seeking help for mental health issues. This is a key point in the film.

Some colours i like

The Usual Suspects

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What is so great about this film? I didn't see anything. And i think i was watching it for the second time. And i knew that it was Kevin Spacey all along. God i just looked up the director - Bryan Singer - his whole career is ridden with allegations of sexual assault of minor boys. And it's so disgusting how till 2019 every story was pushed under the carpet. Every lawsuit dropped. Look at this article.

The Conversation

https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2090984

Old film by Coppola. About a person who does surveillance for a living. He does not want the subjects of surveillance to get affected in anyway. Reminded me of 'Lives of Others'. This is a mystery though this film. A twist in the end and everything. But it's beautifully done. Especially the sound. One conversation played round and round. The whole film is about that yet about this man too. The recordist. Bugger.

Very interesting facts turned up when i looked the film up. One thing is a typical film student's reaction to the following information will be 'benchod' Mine will be 'thendi' The information is that that year 1974 in Oscars, The Conversation by Coppola lost the Best Picture award to The Godfather II by Coppola himself. *weep*

More interesting is how Coppola said that 'Blow Up' was his inspiration for this film. That makes sense to me. So nice. When it is not picture and sound that we are after, magnifying is a different business altogether, isn't it? Wow! Wikipedia gave another interesting fact. People interpreting it as a response to watergate scandal which itself got made into more than one film, if i remember correctly.

Coppola cited the 1966 film Blowup as a key influence. However, since the film was released to theaters just a few months before Richard Nixon resigned as President, he felt that audiences interpreted the film to be a reaction to the Watergate scandal.

And i was thinking that the last scene in which he is looking for the bug everywhere and then playing the saxophone while the credits roll - i almost read 'the saxophone is the bug' in that frame. And look here what the article says!

According to Kaiser, the final scene of the film—in which Caul is convinced he is being eavesdropped in his apartment, cannot find the listening device, and consoles himself by playing his saxophone—was inspired by the passive covert listening devices created by Léon Theremin, such as the Great Seal bug. "He couldn't find out where [the bug] was because it was the instrument itself."^[10]

This has to be added to my trivia page :D

The Virgin Suicides

Sofia Coppola

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What a beautiful film. I love her. Coppola. I have never been a fan of adaptation. I know there are great adaptations but never felt like adapting anything i ever read. But i don't have to read the novel to know that the film is a beautiful and great adaptation. Look at what the director said about it. And it was her debut film, mind you. It's so nice to know that she wanted to become a director because she read this book and not because her father made great films.

And it seems that Kirsten Dunst, was sixteen years old at the time of her casting as Lux. But more interesting is something she said about Coppola which i think is absolutely true.

When I met Sofia, I immediately knew that she would handle it in a delicate way... [she] really brought out the luminous aspect of the girls; she made them like ethereal angels, almost like they weren't really there."

I might watch Lost in Translation again. Just to watch more of Sofia. 

"I really didn't know I wanted to be a director until I read The Virgin Suicides and saw so clearly how it had to be done," she said. "I immediately saw the central story as being about what distance and time and memory do to you, and about the extraordinary power of the unfathomable. 

Ah. That feeling. I know that feeling. :)