I probably watched more movies this year in cinema halls than i have done ever before (and it burns the pockets.. damn those multiplexes) It is very hard for me to put one movie as my favourite movie out of the lot for the year as we really had some amazing releases.

But i have made up my mind , its a movie by a debutant director and in a genre where very few movies have been made which genuinely work with me on a viewer level - Bheja Fry by Sagar Ballary. Comedy movies are an absolute rarity, particularly contemporary comedy which is genuinely funny without the need of loud music , outlandish clothes and over the top dialogues. Bheja Fry had me in splits throughout , and i found the movie very in with the times , the dialogue writing was very good, the acting was top notch as well & vinay pathak is one the most brilliant actors we have in the industry. There was simply nothing wrong with the movie & i expect they bring out a sequel or at least another movie with the same cast & crew.

Besides the obvious choices , there were some really good movies which went unnoticed either due to lack of publicity or due to the fact that they carried no star value.
One of such movies is 1971 , another movie by a debutant Amrit Sagar. Movies with patriotic theme are probably more bastardized into nothing more than jingoistic anti pak pieces which have no points to prove. 1971 not only had nothing of that but it also has been one of the most realistic representations of army personnel , the whole movie looked real , there was nothing that went over the top or looked unbelievable and the whole cast here was spectacular with special honours to Manoj Bajpai & Piyush Mishra (Another actor who has never got his due, I have watched Black Friday’s Extra’s DVD innumerable times only to see his role as thapa which was unfortunately cut in the final cut of the movie) 1971 went unnoticed & unappreciated by the Indian audiences for the most part.

Manorama Six Feet Under - Another debutante director Navdeep Singh , movie was layered, the mystery was intriguing & and the movie was a amazing blend of style & substance. Bollywood’s first noir flick , it earned a lot of praise from all quarters & a place on my dvd rack.

Cheeni Kum - Another debutante R. Balki , Being a fan of Mr Bacchan , I was looking forward to him doing something good … almost to the extent of redeeming himself after the dismayal over the top BLACK , and here he is in all his suaveness. The movie was again funny where it wanted to be & serious when it had to, there were a few things that could have been done away with and probably the second half wasnt as good as the first half but overall i would give the movie a thumbs up in terms of performances of the leads & the chemistry between them, Balki really had no worries in terms of performances all he had to do was work on the script & dialogue writing wherein he was more or less successfull.

Johnny Gaddar - The slickest movie this year , I was wondering where Raghavan had disappeared after Ek Hasina Thi , Johnny Gaddar was pretty good, it had a lot of trivia pertaining to the 70’s in it , gotta love that. Well made film , fast paced thriller , thoroughly enjoyable , cant wait for raghavan’s next.

PART II comming up soon ……

I didnt expect much from this movie as soon as i learnt it was hacking based , i mean boring. There isnt anything left there to see already. Havent we all watched too much of 24 already. After 24 everything seems more or less been there seen that. But still Die Hard is easily my favourite all time action series & i just had to see the latest installment of the series.
 
And well it doesnt disappoint, while it might not be the best movie from the series (personally i loved Die Hard 3 the most , it had action , humor & well .. samuel L jackson ) there is lot of action here & ample use of technology by the mtv genx director wiseman. There hasnt been a good action movie in a long time now specially this year & die hard 4.0 more than adequately fills that void. The film is fast paced , its keeps one hooked throughout & very much in the classic action movie mould.
 
Bruce Willis is as always kickass as Det. John McClane , Timothy Olyphant might not be the scariest nemisis of McClane but he plays his part. Justin Long adds in the humour element a little more & is good in it too. Maggie Q does catch the eyes more often & really wished there was more of her in it. The only actor who was wasted thoroughy here was Cyril Raffaelli.
Considering most people would recognize him after Banlieue 13 aka District 13 & will expect a lot of action from him specially against McClane , but it doesnt quite happen as much as we want it to be.
 
Overall Die Hard 4.0 doesnt disappoint at all & is easily one of the best summer blockbusters out this year.

Blue Velvet is not your average rental which you can just pickup watch & forget about it a few days down the line. Few movies can stay as vivid in memory as Blue Velvet, it really does stick with you for life. I for one have seen this movie as many times possible & each time deriving a cinematically orgasmic enriching experience from each viewing. And each time there was something new to see in it , some new viewpoint to look at the movie.
 
Its impossible to classify this movie in one genre. It works as a drama, mystery, psychological thriller , it can mean a lot of things to lot of people depending on the person one can interpret it in many ways as well which is true hallmark of any good art film. The atmosphere it creates be it via the music or the visuals which every frame looks like a picture. The reds look the reddest , the blue hues , the shadows all give a very unqiue noir feel to this unlike any noir film you have seen. The movie is all about symbolisms .. about metaphors , It is a bizzare , sick, frightening, visually & audibly superlative surrealistic masterpiece by one of the greatest directors of the world.
 
The performances are superlative MacLachlan, Dern, Rosellini, ..Hopper well is simply mindblowing, frank booth is easily the scariest character potryaed on the screen.
The picture of rosellini singing ‘blue velvet’ in the nightclub will stay with you for quite some time. And so will be the seemingly grotesque scenes of violence , sexual & otherwise.
 
If you havent seen blue velvet you have quite missed a cinematic experience like no other. It’s definitely a buy it now DVD.

Im big on horror movies, specially anything from stephen king & usually i am disappointed with movie adaptations of his work. 1408 is short story from king’s 14 Dark Tales (and a very fine one at that) With most horror movies going in for too much CGI or too much blood / gore to hook the viewers in , 1408 is a breath of fresh (albeit very evil) air. It creates a tense sunspenseful eerie atmosphere to hook us in & keeps us hooked in till the very end.
 
The plot is simple enough of a cynical non-fiction writer who stumbles upon a real haunted house. 1408 is essentially a psychological horror movie & it does make one feel just as confused & scared like the lead & yes ..it will scare you. Its an absolute edge of the seat atmospheric surreal cerebral thriller will all the chills associated with a king movie. This though is very much a edgar allen poeish movie in terms of a stories we associate with rather than an out & out stephen king movie.
 
One thing this movie did lack in terms of plot was the lack of any background on why the room was haunted. There shouldve been some history behind it. The shining had a picture in the end which showed jack in it & there were a lot of conclusions one could derive from it. However in this the cause of the haunt is unexplained. But ofcourse this is no Shining. There were a few things that needed to either be explained or were unnecessary for the outcome of the movie like the writer earlier book or his meeting & relationship with his father. Perhaps they couldve been chopped off for a little insight into the room’s past.
 
Its a one man show , its all cusack & he is brilliant. The supporting cast mainly comprising of Samuel L Jackson who is almost always fantastic in what he does inspite of being onscreen hardly for 10 minutes.
 
Do watch this one if you are into horror although the movie isnt without its limitations, but definitely worth the rental.

And yes it is ‘inspired’ from It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (1963)

Ocean’s thirteen might just be the ocean’s triology’s best movie yet. Everyone loved Ocean’s Eleven, it was quircky, fast paced & very slick , something which are much used to for a Soderbergh movie. Oceans’s twelve had a sort of a mixed response , though it did really well at the box office setting up for another sequel in the ocean’s franchise.
 
We assume everyone who walks into this movie has seen the earlier ones , atleast an ocean’s eleven watch is a must to get the feel of the charachters , the subtle humour which does comprise of a lot of in-jokes, probably ocean’s twelve too since vincet cassel makes an appearance here which does have its own angle to it.
 
Besides the ocean’s regulars, we have al pacino here as well who just adds in to more fun in this ocean’s franchise. Andy garcia was a great nemisis & he makes an appearnce here as well , but pacino’s indimidating glare & menace is something no other actor can match.
The chemistry between pitt & clooney is amazing again & so is the rest of the cast. What’s missing here are the female leads julia roberts & catherine zeta jones. Ellen Barkin as the nasty aide of Al Pacino is the only female in this cast. Matt damon has his moments though it does seem like he couldve been used a lot more.
 
The plotline in this one isnt as complicated as ocean’s eleven but thoroughly enjoyable at that.
The casino rig is played out to perfection here. Many people do accuse soderbergh of overstylising the movie, some even go to the extent of calling it more style over substance. But the syllizing is essential for a con/hiest movie where one always feels like been there seen that. This year’s hyped up CGI infested blockbusters failed to deliver their promise & almost killed their franchises, Ocean keeps it very much alive.
 
All in all its a must watch if you have been following the franchise & even if you havent , you’d still love this fast paced con movie (although a very light one at that)

Knocked up did sound to me like just another standard american comedy movie with a few crude jokes here there but it was directed by Judd Apatow whose “The 40 Year Old Virgin” was howlarious.
 
Knocked up works because the situations are absolutely something one can totally relate to. The jokes range from ribticklingly funny to crazily hilarious. I’ve never laughed out so hard during sex scenes in any movie. Judd has taken a simple story & absolutely turned it into a hilarious comedy. But inspite of having fart jokes & its likes the movie is very sweet & romantic as well.
 
Some of the side stories are absolutely hilarious , specially the bearded guy one. And any movie with a reference to Back to the future gets a point up for me. At 132 minutes the movie might sound a little long but it sure does’nt feel that way. One is entertained throughout the movie , there isnt a dull moment anywhere.
 
My only complaint here would be that the romantic angle between ben & alison wasnt really explored in further which should’ve happened. The change in ben should’ve been shown more & there should’ve been more scenes of them together to drive in the point.
 
But ofcourse this movie aint for everyone , mostly would appeal to the under 30 demographic. But there is genius in this movie & is totally worth the rental if you really want to have lots of laughs & spend those lazy sunday afternoons.