The Dark Knight

My rating: 5 stars out of 5 Starring: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman & Maggie Gyllenhaal
The movie is flawless. It has nothing of the crap in the first movie. No background as to why a man would like to become “Batman” and how. It is pure batman which we have been viewing and reading since we learned to view and read. As in the last batman movie, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman and Christian Bale play the same roles of Alfred, Lucius Fox and Bruce Wayne-Batman respectively.
The Joker (Heath Ledger) is supremely portrayed. The action sequels are too real looking. Not even for a minute will u feel it to be the result of excellent computer skills. That’s because, I have read somewhere that it isn’t. It is all real, with the real truck flipping and everything. There is also a part where the reason for Two-Face to be so is explained.
When I said it to be flawless I mean it. There isn’t unreal make-up, comic looking things which are there in the books and cartoon. No colours on the face that shouldn’t be there. It is a movie which has made Heath Ledger immortal. He is even better than Jack Nicholson.
A must must watch. And watch it on a big screen to get the real feel and thrill of the movie, exactly what the movie is designed for.

Break ke baad

My rating: 1 star
Starring: Imran Khan, Deepika Padukone, Sharmila Tagore
It can be divided into parts that can be seen and that which cannot be or shall i say shouldn’t be.
What can be seen: the starting credit roll. It is innovative and never before tried.
(for girls) Imran Khan is a very cute and hopelessly romantic guy.
(for guys) Deepika Padukone is what every guy wants: a no-strings-attached- commitment-shy-outgoing-modern girl.
What shouldn’t be seen: the WHOLE movie.
The movie title and the story do not synchronise. Aaliya Khan (Deepika Padukone) and Abhay Gulati (Imran Khan) have been friends for 10 years and a couple for another decade. Aaliya wants to be an actress and to pursue that dream, she goes to Australia. their relationship is not able to bear the distance and they break up, to be more precise, Aaliya breaks up but Abhay does not accept it. So he follows her to Australia. there he realizes that he has lost Aaliya and finds his aim in life. In the meantime, Aaliya achieves what she wanted in life but finds that it is all meaningless without the people who make her complete, that includes her mother (Sharmila Tagore) and Abhay.
This movie is a major BLAH! Deepika’s character is a bit too much overtly “modern” (she is clad in hot pants all through the movie, gets drunk, smokes, and is on a first name basis with her mother). Iram Khan is potrayed as a (for the lack of a better word) “loser” who is OK with being treated like shit. It is very pathetic and an utter waste of 2 hours.

How to train your dragon

My rating: 4 stars
Starring (voices): Jay Baruchel, Gerard Butler, Craig Ferguson, America Ferrera

The movie is about a misfit Viking named Hiccup (Jay Baruchel) living in a place named Burk which, by the way, is under regular attacks by the dragons. The trouble with Hiccup is that where ever he goes, mishaps follow. Hell bent on changing his reputation as a loser, on winning his crush Astrid (America Ferrera) and making his father, the chief (Gerard Butler) proud, he decides to capture/kill a dragon named Night Fury. Well, as his reputation precedes him, no one believes him that he has accomplished that feat. With time that he spent with Night Fury (nicknamed Toothless), he learns that everything they knew about dragons was highly prejudiced. He also learns a lot more about the reasons for the attacks.
The soul of the movie lies in the witty dialogues and good voice given by Jay Baruchel. Don’t let the fact that its animation think that adults wont enjoy it. Anyone and everyone of any age group will find a good laugh. It was released in 3D but I enjoyed it better on 2D. An advice, watch it with a huge bowl of potato chips.

Bewtiched

My rating: 2 stars.
Starring:

This movie is a reconstruction of the Bewitched series. The movie sees Isabel Bigelow (Nicole Kidman) as a witch who wants to start a life without magic and is looking for a true love. Jack Wyatt (Will Farrel) finds her the best candidate to play Samantha in the remake of the series. Jack is a conceited and self centred actor who turns into a new leaf when Isabel tells him that he is a jerk (once) and then together they make a sensational series.
The movie, the plot, the acting, everything was utterly ridiculous. While being titled “Bewitched” it lacked scenes with magic. There was no chemistry between Kidman and Farrel and she even sounded so fake. My advice, DO NOT WATCH IT!

Udaan

My rating: 3 and a half stars
Starring: Rajat Barmecha, Ronit Roy, Ram Kapoor and Aayan Boradia
Rohan (Rajat Barmecha) is 17 and has been in a boarding school for a long time. He hasn’t seen his father for 8 years of that time who is essentially an authoritarian. He has been expelled from school for a prank and has been told to go home. At home he finds out that he has a half brother who is 6; his dad married again after his mother passed away. Rohan is a writer, a fact that is scoffed off at by his father. He is forced to work in his steel factory and study engineering. He fights for his life in his own boyish ways. The story is of him struggling with the misplaced authority and finding a way in life on his own.
Anurag Kashyap does it again. With Udaan, he has come up with a refreshing story which is not really unknown to people but still manages to pluck a string somewhere in the heart. The movie is very simple yet equally soulful. The poems recited by Rohan are beautiful and the fact that the actor has good voice only adds to their melancholy effect. The thing against the movie is the lack of synchromization between the story line and the presentation. There are a few scenes which i felt were either incomplete, needed more time or absent altogether. On the whole, a movie which can be watched over and over again just to hear the poetry.
the movie is a definite no-no to be enjoyed in the company of popcorn. it is serious and deepply emotional.

Alice in Wonderland

My rating: 2 and a half stars.
Starring: Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Anne Hathaway, Crispin Glover, Michael Sheen, and Stephen Fry.
The story is the same old drag of the good (white queen- Anne Hathaway), the bad (red queen- Helena Bonham Carter) and the ugly (mad hatter- Johnny Depp). The Red queen has taken over the kingdom of Underland by deceit and set the land in total gloom. Alice is supposed to slay a dragon-like creature “Jabberwocky” which is Red Queens pet. During the course of aimlessly wandering about in Underland, Alice comes across Mad Hatter, White Rabbit, the Dormouse, the Dodo, Tweedledum and Tweedledee and various other characters.
The movie was an utter disappointment. I didn’t find the character of Alice to have the impact as it should have had. The dialogues were very few and not powerful at all, rather dull. There have been better special effects in movies. The first half of the movie was especially bland and makes people wonder why they are watching it after all. The only things that I remember about the movie are the performances by Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter-flawless.

Cop Out

My rating: 3 stars
Starring Bruce Willis, Tracy Morgan, Juan Carlos Hernández.
NYPD cops Jimmy (Bruce Willis) and Paul (Tracy Morgan) are suspended from the force for a month when an encounter goes wrong. Jimmy’s daughter is about to get married and to pay for the wedding, he plans to sell a rare baseball card which eventually gets stolen. In addition to that, they get caught up in a mafia situation all the while trying to retrieve the card.
The movie wasn’t exceptionally hilarious. There were a few scenes in which i let out a bark of laughter but nothing to remember or quote. Tracy Morgan was a good character and a comic (obvious). But i felt that the dialogues lacked that spark which would have otherwise lent a tickling sensation in the gut. The story line is a bit worn out but nicely presented which is why i give it 3 stars. A good watch if someone wants to relax with a bowl of popcorn and a coke in front of the television set.

The Japanese Wife

My Rating: 4 stars.

Starring: Rahul Bose, Raima Sen, Chigusa Takaku, Moushumi Chatterjee

The tale is about a school teacher named Snehamoy (Rahul Bose), in a village of West Bengal earning $100 per month. He is an orphan and has been brought up by his aunt (Moushumi). During his college, he makes a pen-pal from Japan (Chigusa Takaku) whom he later marries over post only. Both are of meagre means and hence unable to meet each other though they try a lot. As the story progressed, a young widow (Raima Sen) and her son come to live with Snehamoy and his aunt who eventually starts to have some feelings towards the man. Also, after sometime, the Japanese wife falls really sick and is diagnosed with cancer. Snehamoy does everything that a husband would do in a situation like this (making allowance for the fact that they were an ocean apart).
The movie was very focussed and depicted exactly what the director wanted to. It has no sad stories about a poor family hardly able to make it through the day, or how difficult the life of a widow is. It showed a pure love and respect that a couple (should) have for each other. It is a timeless movie which as far as could gather needed no background score to make a person sit through it. It didn’t even require too much of a long story and thus wrapping it in 100 minutes. It being a bit of a drag at few points was one of its shortcomings. The movie was essentially in Bengali so subtitles are required for those who dont know it. The bond shown between two women in love with the same man can only be describes as beautiful.
The performances of all the actors were up to the hilt. They had the dialect down spat and not for even once were it faulty. It was a tremendously good effort by Aparna Sen.

The Green Mile

My rating: 5 stars

starring: Tom Hanks, David Morse, Bonnie Hunt, Michael Clarke Duncan

it is based on a book written by stephen king in the same name. the movie is about a police officer named paul edgecomb incharge of prisoners due for death row. during his career, he comes across an inmate named john coffey who has a power to make miracles happen but he was charged with rape and murder of two small girls. anyway, as the police officers spend their time with him, they learn many things about him and all were good. he has the power to cure people of their illness and he can punish people for bad deeds. there is a small element of suspence in the movie and i am not going to be a spoiler for those who havent watched it yet.

the movie does not suffer from the silent pauses and the holes in the story which most book adaptations do. it is by far one of the best movies i have ever seen. every minute of the three hour movie had me raptured and sitting at the edge of my chair. the movie has humour, suspense, drama, you name it. it was an utter perfection. my the end of the movie, my face hurt by the effort to not cry.

The invention of lying

my rating: 2 and a half stars
Starring: Ricky Gervais, Jennifer Garner, Rob Lowe, Louis CK, Jonah Hill

the movie can be best described as being abstract. it's plotted is around a hypothetical world where people can only tell the truth, no flattery or no false believes, which lends a mild satirical touch to the story. there is our everyday bottom-of-the-pile "loser" guy. he has been fired, about to lose his apartment and the like. going through all of this, he stumbles upon a remarkable discovery that he can lie. he uses this for the good and bad and in the process gives the idea of a religion to the world. he also tries to win his love and all in all get his life in order. the world changes by listening to his ideas and thoughts.
i found that the movie isnt about people speaking only the truth but every freaking thought in their mind. it lacked the very foundation of film-making and that is a story line. the movie ends without any message or climax or anything which might make people want to sit through 90 min of it. the performances were good, the intricacies thought well enough, the casting being fine. but it was very vague.
it can be seen if the mind is numb and you want it to stay that way

julie & julia

my rating: 3 stars

the notion of blogging about someone blogging hit me kinda weird.
anyway, the movie is about a woman wanting to do something with her life rather than being just a 30-something clerk. so, inspired by her love for cooking and food in general, she takes a challenge to finish 524 recipes in 365 days, along with blogging about them. she went through a lot of "melt-downs" which also affected her marriage. but in the end she comes out victorious with a lot of things to look forward to. she had found a connection with the chef julia child but apparently the lady hated the idea of being blogged about.
the performances were great. meryl streep did an awesome job with her role as julia child (but doesnt she always does a good job?!). amy adams showed her potential to be a new star in Hollywood.
there are a few things i learned from the movie:
1. one day i wanna marry a guy i would love to cook for.
2. my blog does have the potential to be famous, i just have to wait patiently.
3. one day i might learn to cook well given my love for food, i just need some motivation.

Raajneeti

my rating: 3 stars.

i know people have been going on and on about how good the movie is.
the plot is very new and attractive. the whole set up is good and appealing. i admit that some intensity was less but i guess that was required for "U/A" rating.
the movie is based on the epic Mahabharat. manoj bajpai plays duryodhan (very well played i might add), ajay devgan is karn, arjun rampal is yudhishthir, katrina kaif is darupadi and ranbir kapur is arjun. nana patekar plays the role of krishna who directs arjun through the different aspects of politics. the rest of the story is same to those familiar with the epic. ajay devgan is ranbir's and arjun's half brother but the fact is unknown to all. he turns against them and teams up with manoj bajpai for the fight for power.
the plot being so good, the movie does require some sensation which was downed by the lack of strong dialogues. they were very lame at many points and failed to attract attention. the songs of the movie were good but not well placed and ruined the emotions the scene was supposed to carry.
the females of the movie were disappointing to say the least. Katrina kaif has not learned hindi,thats for sure and thus it seemed as if the dialogues were forced out of her.
and i truly felt sorry for naseeruddin shah. his role is only for about 5 min at the very beginning. after that you wont even remember that he was casted in it.
all in all if u are a die hard bollywood fan then there is a chance that u might thoroughly enjoy it

Prince of Persia - The Sands of Time

my rating: 3 and a half stars.

to sum up in the least words possible, the movie wasnt bad.
the movie is an adaptation of a video game which i am led to believe that everyone has definitely played. anyway, the story is that there is a kingdom of Persia with three princes. one of them, who is also our hero is not a royal blood but an orphan from the streets.
the Persians were falsely informed that a holy city (whose name has escaped my memory), smuggles weapons into their country, ergo, they attack it. and there is a dagger which has a unique power to reverse time.
well, the story is very predictable with clichéd plot. i wasnt made to hold my breath and wait for the next scene. even the climax was blah. the only thing about the movie which might urge to spend money are the stunts. they are truly brilliant. and thats the only thing which made me not to plug in my mp3 player during the show. even jake gyllenhaal looked good after the interval, with his performance vastly improved.
all in all not something u have to catch on a big screen. it can be easily settled on the television with a rented dvd.

Shrek forever after

i liked the movie. it was wee bit more serious than the earlier sequels but not bad.
in the movie shrek in not so happily married to fiona as he doesnt realize the value of the people in his life. so he signs a deal with a trouble maker "Rumplestilskin" and goes into a world where he had never met fiona. infact he wasnt even born then.
in the new life he realizes what he had and the value of it and wants to get it back. in comes donkey, fiona, puss and dragon in very different avator than he remembers.
to make everything back to normal he needs to kiss his one true love, thats fiona, but the kink is that fiona hates him.
on goes the story and shrek's fight for the love and the life he previously had.
the message in the story wasnt for the toddlers and kiddos to really appreciate. i felt the movie was more for grown ups who need growing up or going through growing pains.

Up in the air

i saw the movie for two reasons: one being that its a george clooney flick and the second that i had seen it being nominated for some category in academy awards.

and it didnt really strike a cord. maybe because i had anticipated the movie to be exceptional and it was not.

the story is primarily wrapped around ryan's (george clooney) life style. he prefers to be a loner and has no stable home. he lives off in hotel rooms and first class air travels. he infact likes that kind of existence. no strings attached. he even goes far enough to be a challenger speaker "whats in ur backpack" which encourages people to shun all relationships. by the way, he works for a firm that fires people for other firms.

then there comes a new employee full of new ideas and bursting with energy, natalie keener. she has an idea that firing can be done through live video chat which saves money and time. now this threatens the very existence of ryan. he is asked to travel with her. during the course of his travels he meets a lady who is essentially a feminine version of himself. and it seems that inspite of all his restrictions he finally meets his soulmate. he even goes to his sister's wedding with her!

it will be awful of me to disclose their relationship. anyway out of the blue he has a turn of heart and realize that he cant go on living like that.

ask no more. i really cant say what really happened simply because i didnt get it completely myself. i felt that the thing which was the essence of the movie wasnt emphasised as much as it should have.

at the end i was felt confused and wondering what happened

the rebound

its a love story but the mushy kind (otherwise i wouldnt have even bothered to write about it).
catherine zeta jones (sandy): is a 40 year old mother of two who has sacrificed her career for her family until one day she discoveres her husband's infidelity. she leaves him and is thus hard up for money. so she moves into the city of new york, takes up a small job and an even smaller apartment which is really a loft on a coffee shop. incidently, justin bartha works there.
justin bartha (aarom): is a 24 year old college graduate with high profile parents whom he also lives with. he has absolutely no clue about what to do with life. he had married a french girl named elise who was in it only for the green card. being a hopless romantic, he doesnt divorce the wife so that she gets that wretched card. life: throws them together. justin happens to be really good with kids so catherine hires him as the nanny! anyway, during the course of time they discover that they are perfectly suited to each other and help complete each other. so they start dating (ignoring the 15 years of difference). but eventually the age gap catches up on sandy and they split up.
then fate plays...
the movie is gorgeous. there is no other word i can think of to describe it. the love story between them is not gross (which cannot be said in many cases). this might be owing to the fact that justin looked delicious and his character is dreamy.... hmmm... i zoned out just to dream about him...it had a very subtle and well placed humor, adding to its charm. a must watch for people who have done some growing up in lives and can take something mature and appreciate it

karthik calling karthik

i saw this movie with my oldest friend of 15 years!!! so my opinion might be highly biased.

i liked the movie. it was good i'd say. for the first time farhan akhtar was in a role which complemented him. he played both parts well. he looked good in both too.

the movie had a definite line which was followed till the last. deepika was fit for the role and her actions were completely understandable (i mean, after a series of bad relationships, a person needs to root in. i know this. trust me).

coming to my original self, the one thing i did not like about the movie was the climax. it wasnt clichéd or anything but it wasnt exactly catchy either. it could have been better but i am unable to suggest something. so lets leave it at that.

the movie hall was nice. it was air conditioned, the floor was carpeted and the seats were cushioned. the fact that the popcorn was yummy was just the added bonus.

all in all a good experience.

sleepless in Seattle

i wanted to watch this movie for quite sometime. the title was compelling and i am a sucker for nice sensible and cute romances (even though i dont really believe in them. read previous blogs). then i got it through a friend. after watching the movie for about half an hour i somewhere along the line... dont know what happened... i think that as the movie mentions it was... MAGICAL!

it was one of those movies which imake u think that everything is alright in this world. there are no criminals, no terrorists, no bomb blasts... everything is just perfect. everything turns out to be all well in the end. that there is nothing wrong in taking chances because the world is a beautiful place to be. its how God wanted it to be. our own little heaven. there are no worries no contemplations no compromises in relationships. there is someone out there made just for you. the whole cosmic is working to set u up. there are signs all the way and they hit you right on the face guiding you to your destiny.

dont know how far it is true but for the one and three quarters of the hour the movie played i was taken into someplace where i'd love to be. my world will tick just fine and everything will fall in the right place eventually. i dont care if its reality based or not. i made me feel very good and thats what important right now.

a must watch for everyone who is confused in relations and well... everyone in general. the best date movie from the best on screen couple according to me views.

My name is Khan and i am retarted

when i started to write the review, i sat with my hands poised over the keypad and i stared at the screen trying to figure out a way describe the excruciating pain i felt in my neurons while i was watching the movie. right now the best way i can describe the movie is: "it was worse than whats your rashee". in that movie atleast there was priyanka chopra's performance to be seen and admired. it could soothe the burnt souls. but in this... i am sorry to say this but kajol literally sucked.

i really liked the concept. close to the current scenario. what the world needs. a plea from the non-terrorist Islam community. blah blah blah.

why dont people understand a movie needs to be tolerated. it should not surpass the raw minimum tolerance level. not good for health. i think that even doctors will agree with me here.

ok coming back to what happened with me in the cinema hall. there were people sitting on the concrete aisle. my heart bled for them. so much trouble and for what? but the crowd thinned considerably after intermission. i was expecting it to be a family drama which to a certain extent it was. Shahrukh khan rocked!!! he acted superbly. hmmm... he even could have been starred in Paa. that would have been quite a publicity. just a thought.

i saw the first half of the... i dont want to call that a 'movie'.

the direction was badddd.... the presentation of the movie was baddd.... people dont marry other people just because they know a new place. then it will quite a task for the travellers of discovery channel to find a mate. i am finding it really a herculean effort to actually pin point the wrongs. so i might as well give it up

sherlock holmes - christmas day

i couldnt fathom the accuracy of the characters depicted in the movie. each part was played to perfection by the artists. i liked the sets. again faultless.

i didnt know that robert downey jr. could do so well as a lead. i liked him in ally mcbeal but thats a different image altogether. jude law is... HOTTT!!! i should not elaborate on it. when i heard that he was going to be the sidekick of robert downey, i admit i was apprehensive but my wise friends all recommended me to watch the movie. so i did and may i say that i enjoyed every second of it.

the plot, the mystery, the gadgets were great. the climax was the least expected one. the movie had retained the sense of Sir Arthur all along it. right till the last scene.

the director didnt lose the essence of holmes and watson nor did he lose his touch.

i liked the movie when i was never a big fan of sherlock holmes cases

3 idiots

i loved the comedy. thats just about what i liked in the movie, the humor. being an engineering student, i could connect with it a bit and at random points. also the historical speech of Chatur had me falling off my seat because of laughter.

but...

i found the movie too unnecessarily concentrated on Amir Khan. i doubt on the existence of an all encompassing personality like that. i could not for the love of dear God, digest the scene of the delivery with all the vaccum cleaner and web cam directions.

i felt the movie was like a biography adaptation of someone unfortunately named Phunsukh Wangdu rather than depicting the pressure on the students today. consequently the "aal izz well" concept didnt exactly fit.

i dont like kareena on principle so i wont comment on that aspect.

i believe that if they had casted some younger and fresher faces and stuck to the story line of the original book then the movie would have been bigger and better. there is a place for the veterans and it definately wasnt a college movie. Rang De Basanti is history