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Reviews
The Namesake (2006)
This movie is a mess and dishonest.
I am not surprised by positive comments by a lot of people for this movie. Most are emotional responses by Indians (mostly bong) themselves. So it is easy to mistake them for critical responses. I found myself gagging by the start of the third act of the film.
This is a massive mess of a film.
First, It is dishonest. It is steeped in stereotypes. Gone is the magical realism of Salaam Bombay and even the innocence of Mississippi Masala. There is no subtlety here. No elegance even, Mira Nair takes the safe route here. And you can see how she scored points with Bengali visitors to IMDb, but, interestingly this film was major box office dud even in India. It is so disappointing to see an auteur of her promise sinking so low. The reason I gave it 3 out of 10 is the performances. Irfan Khan plays the weary Indian dad to near perfection. Tabu is amazing as a helpless Indian wife. Kal Penn, well. He is not scoring any points as a confused ABCD. His performance is just adequate. Zuleikha Robinson does shine above her limited stereotyped role of a sexy and philandering Paris-returned Indian woman reborn. (Yeah! Sure! Dream on Mira Nair. What a major stretch that is!). Glenne Headly does a fine job of a selfish blonde American girlfriend. And don't even get me started on the complete failure of the camera to evoke true emotion of the places Mira Nair is desperately trying to show. The Howrah Bridge, Calcutta, Suburbia. They are all seem they were filmed at a back lot. Awful editing.. et al...
Seriously Mira Nair! What were you thinking?! And whats with that laughable scene at the barbershop? And that silly hip-hop interlude? Are you TRYING to show off your ignorance of music? Second, from the end credits it seems the director wanted this to be a tribute to her parents, I am just astounded at the producers' ignorance here! I found character development in this story lacking. The story has no point except for being just another immigrant's tale, sanitized for a low brow audience. One thing does ring true though. The connection to the title - the namesake. It starts off, albeit very lazily, about Kal Penn's characters's name, and ends with a discourse on his mother's name. Those thin threads are tied together nicely. However, I kept finding myself wanting a lot more about these characters. I am sure Jhumpa Lahiri's novel sheds more light on them. Mira Nair's movie just brakes short, especially at the critical junctures of the story.
Mira Nair is now a lazy director. She should not be allowed to take projects of such magnitude.
I recommend to this movie to anyone who has an IQ of no more than 80.
i.e. If you are ignorant or a moron, you'll love this movie.
Severance (2006)
I can't get enough of this film. It is the best film yet to be released of 2006 ! :)
I was thinking 2006 was gonna be a damp squib, in terms of creative, original and clever film-making. Boy was I wrong! SEVERANCE! The best film of 2006. (Period) If anyone says otherwise, you'd better be able to prove it. I can't find one fault with this film. And I usually can find faults. Not one fault with this one. This is amazing film-making. And at this budget! Wow! I am not a fan of the horror genre. But this film takes the cake for pretty much every genre this year. I would love for it to be recognized for its brilliance in the US, but apparently it doesn't get released there until April 6, 2007! Oh well.
This is a film you wanna watch with friends! You wanna get some nice fat-filled buttered popcorn and beers and just go nuts! This is absolutely the best 95 minutes I have spent in front of my TV this year! Not one single frame wasted! My kudos to Chris Smith for an amazing job... and hey anyone know Ed Harcourt's phone number? He's that guy with that wonderful rendition of "we'll meet again.." in the end credits! What a way to end a film! DUDE! Am doing cartwheels! I have told all my friends about this film - from New York to New Delhi, they all know about it! Hope it helps.
You have to have to have to have to watch this film! P.S. The reason I didn't write about what this film is about is because you need to watch it! I hope my enthusiasm rubs off on you.. :)
Children of Men (2006)
A beautifully crafted story about despair and hope
This is a film for the ages. It is a very unpleasant film, very bleak. But once it draws you in, it leaves a lasting mark. You can't help but think about it and its message...
I have now seen it twice. And while it gets more interesting with each viewing, it also gets more bleak, and you start to think about the chaotic world portrayed in the movie in such great detail. Cuaron's world of the near future may be dystopian but certain aspects of it ring true with where we, in our own real world, may be headed towards. So I guess this is a very political film too. People will either agree with it or completely disagree with it. There is no middle path.
As a filmmaker and a student of film, this is a film which stands out for me in 2006. It is a fantastic example of thoughtful film-making. There are some problems with continuity and whatnot, but overall this is one that demands repeated viewing. I loved Michael Caine in this film. This guy is getting better with age :). Clive Owen should get a nod for an Oscar for this, but considering how political this film is, it may not happen. The Academy is just a bunch of old, cowardly sissies in any case, so who gives a hoot whether it is nominated or not for an Oscar.
All in all, an enthusiastic 8 out of 10 for this really good piece of film-making by Alfonso Cuaron! 2nd best film of the year, after Severance :) .
The Buried Secret of M. Night Shyamalan (2004)
Great Fun! More enjoyable than some of his films. But there are problems...
I actually quite enjoyed this "mockumentary." I had heard about it vaguely, but only got to see on TV a few hours ago. I think it was actually more interesting than say "unbreakable." :).
That aside, I thought it started becoming quite obvious this could be hoax (in case you didn't know already), when they started interviewing Night's high school friend, who he "confided" in about his "secret." She was way too poised and articulate to not be an actress. One of the main reasons documentaries are so interesting is the spontaneity of the subjects; their every-day kind of reactions; not composed, emotive, acted out sequences. I don't think you have to be completely gullible to believe it was real, especially if you didn't already know it was a hoax. One could actually believe it, if seeing it as a piece completely disjointed from the marketing hype of that last Night disaster, the village. It was well-crafted, but I have seen a lot of documentaries that are even better crafted and have extremely high production values. Yes, the sea-sickening hand-held camera jiggling got a little too over-the-top sometimes. It did start to especially unravel around the end, where it got needlessly melodramatic.
The reasons this failed so miserably has a lot to do with the way it was handled by the Hollywood spinmeisters, rather than its content. I don't think there is anything wrong with mockumentaries, especially if they are well crafted and entertaining. But the Hollywood spin-machine seems to have lost touch with the real world, and are increasingly underestimating the intuition and intelligence of the audience. The marketeers seem to now be living in their own little fantasy world. They actually seem to believe that by creating such obviously over-hyped sensationalist marketing ploy would actually impart any kind of believability to a project like this. They just don't seem to know how to use the media anymore. There are just too many overpaid and way under-qualified marketing (moron) executives working as publicists and marketeers in Hollywood today. I just hope M. Night doesn't eventually fall prey to this vicious vortex of doom. He is a frightfully intelligent person, and a director with great style and potential. He needs to shed that twist ending thing to sell his films though. He will then do a lot better, with or without the help of spirits :)
The Girl in the Café (2005)
An extremely well crafted piece of cinema.
This is an extremely well crafted film by David Yates.
It is very rare that I get all passionate about a film. But this is one such film that virtually demands that!!
Yes, like the previous critic said, it is quirky and it can be looked upon as a comedy.. but the best thing about it is if you look at this film as a separate entity. It is about two characters, the civil-servant and the nobody girl (.. in the café...), who meet by chance. Both from such completely different worlds! One speaks with that the propah British accent and she speaks with the crude Scottish brogue. However, its that Scottish brogue that enraptures you from the start! I mean, Kelly MacDonald put in such a fine performance of her character, I admit, I was taken aback, i wanted to personally hand her the golden man!! The beauty of this film is the subtlety with which director David Yates weaves together the sweetness of romance with the ugliness of world poverty, and the rich world politics etc.. It is an absolute treat of a film. I am surprised this wasn't released in the theaters. Isn't that some kinda of irony in itself!! You must watch this film!!! YOU MUST!!