Bhramaram

Somehow I felt the film was a great letdown. If somebody is to consider this as the movie where Lal has proved his acting then I don't think so. Lal has done it time and again in the past and this movie just again shows that Lal can do it. But let us look at it in a whole. Don't we have scenes in this movie created for Lal to just emote whithout an organic connection to the overall movie? I think yes. And that also may have killed the movie. That is also why characters do not seem to have grown through the movie and etched a permanant place in the viewer's mind.

Of course, needless to say the script was incomplete and lacking cohesion. As a one liner the plot somehow seems good enough; interesting enough and intuiging enough. But what was needed was some sensible developement - tell what needs to be told and dont tell anything extra(which is a big complaint I have with Blessy scripts after kazhca and probably Thanmathra) That acute sense of appropriateness that we used to see in Padmarajan, Lohi and MT scripts are seriously missing in Blessy scripts.

Another note that I want to mention is the casting - the whole casting of Mohanlal's family and his flashback is pathetic to say the least. Bhumika Chawla and the kid casted as Mohanlal's daughter irritates and takes all the life out of the most critical sequences in the movie. That was another really sad part of this movie.

As a post note, as a simple film viewer Bhramaram disappoints much more than an average movie (like Bagyadevatha which delivered what it promised), by overpromising and underdelivering.

Frontline remembers Ghatak

Jinxed Legacy: http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2420/stories/20071019507309300.htm

Some Ray Thoughts

A blog on meaningful cinemas not containing Ray, from an Indian can be read in multiple ways. Either we can feel that it is too obvious that it need not be written about or it can be read as not watched Ray becuase everybody watches Ray. But everytime you revisit or rewatch or even watch Ray fresh, you get back and want to write about it. Today I watched 'Satranj Ke Khiladi(Chess Players) by Ray. But nay I am not going to write mainly about Chess Players, its again about the enigma that Ray had created the Apu Triology.

Over the span of last month I rewatched that classic. 'Pather Panjali', 'Aparajitho' and 'Apur Sansar' and exactly in the same order. Ray was again mesmerising with his camera and script and above all his absolute appropriateness in handling characterization.

Pather Panjali has been lot written about, lot seen, lot discussed, lot studied and lot enjoyed. Running Durga, Running Apu, Pashi's silence, laughter, Train, fields, death, rain, pond, electric post, ice cream, travelling enternatinment, bead neclace, village innocence, warmth of relationships, poverty, theft everything has been retravelled to empteen number of times....

[Incomplete...Posting the draft as of July 22, 2007]

The Magdalene Sisters

This film from Peter Mullan won the Best Feature Award at Venice in 2002 is of course controvertial. With just a personal comment from my end that, it is indeed a very powerful film exemplifying what cinema can offer to an audience when its in the hands of an extremely skilled director like Mullan.

For your reference a couple of links on the ongoing debate over the film.

The Guardian reviews the film

A Catholic perspective on the film

I would perhaps come back to this blog and write more on the film. But one thing is for certain, you will not easily forget this film. It keeps haunting back with its scenes - powerful yes thats the word indeed.

A Top 10 list for a change

This was a list from me on all time favorites (compiled it some time Jan 2006):

1) Rashomon (Japanese) - Akiro Kurosowa.
The magic of the Japanese master about multi perspectives on truth.

2) Pather Panchali (Bengali) - Satyajit Ray.
The celluloid saga on the stark reality of Bengali rural life.

3) Schinlder's List (English) - Steven Spielberg.
The accurate documentation of some tragic moments in human history.

4) The Cyclist (Iranian) - Mohsen Makhmalbaf.
Simple yet articulate – life of a cyclist who keeps going on and on… exemplifying the aesthetics of Iranian cinema.

5) Gandhi (English) - Richard Attenborough.
The backbone of Indian freedom struggle through the life of "'the man of the century' minus the Noble Prize".

6) Modern Times (Silent) - Charlie Chaplin.
Silent cinema at its best – when men become hands and nuts and bolts.

7) Life is Beautiful (Italian) - Loui Bertlouicci.
Black Humour again about the German Tragedy in history – ‘*** and dogs not allowed!!!’.

8) Piravi (Malayalam) - Shaji N Karun.
The intervention of State in to the human rights – political, poetic and deeply human.

9) Forrest Gump (English) - Robert Zemeckis.
How art ridicules at history, - ‘keeps running…’.

10) Nayagan (Tamil) - Mani Ratnam.
I know my list hasn’t got Godfather, but this film – a similar detailed Indian version of the ‘just’ underworld.

Saraband, The Pianist and Others

I know that there had been a brief period of silence at this blog. It wasn't that I didnt manage to watch a movie to write on but it was something else perhaps. In fact in the meantime I had watched quite a number of good bloggable movies and travelled over 3 continents. Maybe the second explains the reason for my not blogging them out.

My memory, I have to admit, is a little weak to recollect details from all those good cinema which includes some indian like 'The Raincoat(Hindi)' and 'Achanurangatha Veedu(Malayalam)' as well as some foreign like Bergman's 'Saraband', 'No Man's Land' and Polanski's 'The Pianist'. But still I am hopeful that this sketch out here might help me to come back to these titles and contemplate them better later.

Saraband was a recent watch. Its currently (and maybe even eventually) Bergman's last film. Shot for the Television format the film exemplifies Bergman's mastery over documenting human relations and the deep recesses of human character. I vaguely remember watching Seventh Seal (it should have been in 1997-98; quite some time back there); the complexity of the theme, its poignant conversations/monologues on Death as well as the dichromatic beaty of the celluloid compositions still linger around. Saraband is different; of course; from Seventh Seal but still there are traces of the same old Bergmanish mastery handling of human psyche. The sequence where Henrik meets Jovan for the Cello(but is it just about the cello?), where Jovan is informed of Henrik's suicide attempt by Marriane(Liv Ullman), the scene where Karin opens out to Marianne etc are extremely captivating. This is just to quote some of the scenes; the list, of course, is not complete. This is a definite watch I have to suggest.

Saraband Official Link On the Net

The next film I want to write about is 'The Pianist' by Roman Polanski. It's another striking story on the holocaust - this time the Polish perspective on the anti-jewish nazi attrocities of the bygone century. Its an adaptation from the original story of Wladyslaw Szpilman, renowned Polish pianist, who survived terror during the German capture and extermination on the Polish soil. Its the story of an artist who fights using his natural survival mode when situation forces. Its the story of a family which slowly and firmly realizes how the disgraces of racism swallows the subtlety of civilized living. It's the story of a man realizing how humanity's black and white expresses itself through guns and breadx. Its the story of a pianist who plays the piano; his fingers an inch above the keys; generating a music, the music of silence, which is so captivating!

The music of the film, the screenplay and of course Adrien Brody all should be given a very special mention. Polanski's Pianist will definitely remain be one real good film that I have watched.

The Official Website of The Pianist

The Atheist's Shoah - Roman Polanski's The Pianist a review by Christos Tsiolkas

Thanmatra

Thanmatra (Molecule).

Thanmatra is the film that has the potential to liberate the Malayalam film audience from the abyss they are put in by the mediocre or rather substandard film makers who create some craps which they call themselves as commercials .To be liberated or not is purely the audience choice and the coming weeks will answer it.
The film title puts it all. “Molecule”, is something which clings on to another molecule, which sans an existence by its own. So its nothing ,but pure love . In the film we can see many molecules who cling on to one another out of love. Rameshan’s father (Nedumudi Venu) clings on to his son .Rameshan in turn clings on to his family and his son to Rameshan, and that’s the film all about. The final message the film conveys is that even a strange villain like Alzheimer’s can never break the molecular bond formed out of love. This film underlines the fact that a movie is the directors art. The greatest strength of the movie is its story and the way it is executed. How well the script is done and how well each character is etched out can be known from the fact that the even the dialogue of the unnamed character who carries the goods while Rameshan shifts to his ancestral home remains in our memory when we recall the film .All the artistes were terrific in their roles. The word to the director is the dialogue of his own character in this film- ”Payya thinnal panayum thinnam…ennu vechu pana angu thinnu kalanjekkam ennalla” .
Let Thanmaatra reinvent the magic of mid 80’s into the Malayalam film industry and let us all hope to see more of this genre of films .