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