The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)

Director: Peter Jackson 

Writers: Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens

Cast: Ian Mckellen, Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage, Orlando Bloom

The Desolation of Smaug, Peter Jackson’s 2^nd instalment of the Hobbit series, takes us back into the ever familiar world of Middle Earth. Chronicling the journey of the dwarves, Gandalf (Ian McKellen) and Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman) the film portrays our protagonists making their way to the Lonely Mountain to retrieve the Arkenstone from the fiery dragon Smaug (Benedict Cumberbatch).

The Sequel:

Slightly shorter than last years’ An Unexpected Journey, this film is a lot more high-octane, foregoing much background story and picking up where the first film left off. We follow our protagonists journeying and making their way past skin-changers, giant spiders and mysterious hallucinogenic forests. 

Those familiar with the source material, may be slightly disappointed with seeming excesses and exaggerations, but they seem very forgivable as director Peter Jackson once again looks to create a spell binding universe and takes a few liberties that come with that. The dwarves march on, taking the help of Bard and eventually reach the Lonely Mountain.

Meanwhile, Gandalf is separated from the party and heads to the evil ruined city of Dol Guldur, where he encounters and is warned of rising evil powers, more of which we will see later (or earlier?). Bilbo and the dwarves eventually come face to face with the Smaug (surely an epitome of the possibilities of CGI) the fire breathing dragon.

The good stuff:

Sri: 

The strong points of the movie are the action sequences and stunning visuals.An intense encounter with elves and orcs at Mirkwood is truly one of the highlights of film, featuring some breath-taking choreography during the fight scenes. Made specifically with 3-D and iMax formats, it proves to be a visual delight, as are all of Jackson’s Middle Earth based films. All the locations are luscious and detailed, providing a vivid imagery and backdrop constantly during the course of the party’s journey. Some of the action sequences featuring Legolas (Orlando Bloom) are scintillating, and the rise of the evil Sauron in Dol Guldur is definitely a highlight.

Arora: 

The most enjoyable part of the film was undoubtedly the tense dialogue between Bilbo and Smaug within the Lonely Mountain, with Bilbo attempting to avoid getting eating by praising “his radiance”, Smaug, in a manner reminiscent of the messenger imp intercepted by Bartimaeus in Johnathan Stroud's “The Amulet of Samarkhand”, .while frantically searching for the Arkenstone in a sea of gold.

RS:

Peter Jackson brought back his characteristic wide tracking shots of the beautiful Middle Earth. Set in New Zealand, (the same place that gave us the stunning planet Pandora in Avatar) the landscape varies from breathtaking green canopies to the cavernous stone walls of Erebor. Not a single moment passes where the camera stays still as it pans, tracks and races through the scenes allowing for a beautiful perspective of each character. The flying and crashing barrels being thrown around everywhere were reminiscent of Gore Verbinski’s work in the second Pirates of the Caribbean movie. These flamboyant action sequences, while not Peter Jackson’s style, were very welcome although a few of them involved a little unrealistic CGI.

Wheee!

The not so good stuff:

Sri: 

One of the few let-downs of the film was probably the unwanted love triangle between the elves Legolas and Tauriel and the dwarf Kili. It felt out of place and rather forced, not really providing any real purpose or value to the overall narrative.

Arora: 

The most significant shortcoming is the unrivaled winner of retarded character numero uno, Tauriel the elf. Portrayed as a love-stricken, hasty and impulsive warrior, she'd probably fare better in a teenage apocalypse porno than as a daughter of Mirkwood. Of course, our beloved Legolas would disagree, seeking her approval for all the archery skill that they share.

The film was extremely conventional in its approach in comparison to Jackson's original trilogy, giving a lot of focus to action sequences, and less to dialogue and narrative, which is what one would expect from LoTR. Not to say that the adrenaline was a bad thing, but it really compromised the “epic” feel of the film. A lot of unnecessary, contemporary humour did serve to ruin the atmosphere, like the part where the dwarves enter Bard's home through the toilet.

RS: 

The one thing that really put me off even in the first movie was Kili and how he looks NOTHING like a dwarf as if it were an attempt to make a good looking Dwarf-Elf romance between him and Tauriel.

But dad! He's not like the other dwarves!

The cast:

Sri: 

While some people would concede that a beastly, intimidating dragon shouldn’t possess the ability to talk, Benedict Cumberbatch as Smaug manages to match up to the evil looks and snarls as he once again showcases his abilities as a superlative actor.

Arora: 

Martin Freeman has done a spectacular job in his portrayal of Bilbo Baggins. Although not the prime focus of the film, the ring's influence on him has not been entirely left out. Bilbo can be seen gradually accepting the ring as a means to power, and a solution to tricky situations, using it against spiders in the Mirkwood forest (where he begins to understand their speech which, according to LoTR lore, is a direct effect of using the ring), when escaping from the elves, and when confronting Smaug.

            

RS:  

Thorin was portrayed well by Richard Armitage and exudes the majestic Mountain king vibe. Legolas was again very well portrayed by Orlando Bloom and is probably the only non-pussy character he will ever play. The earlier Dwarf-hating character was very different compared to the Legolas-Gimli Bro-mance in the trilogy. 

Still a better role than Mycroft in Sherlock Holmes 2

The movie makes for a very entertaining roller coaster ride although it seems like it is aimed at a younger audience, compared to the much more mature LoTR trilogy. I think a good 3.5 on 5 does the sequel justice while we eagerly await the final part to come next christmas. 

Logic waalo, Tumhari Aisi ki Taisi

Title - Dhoom: 3
Direction and Screenplay - Vijay Krishna Acharya
Producer and Story - Aditya Chopra
Starring - Abhishek Bachchan ("Dhoom is my film and I am the hero"), Aamir Khan, Katrina Kaif, Uday Chopra, Katrina Kaif, Jackie Shroff, Siddharth Nigam
Music - Pritam
Released on - 20 December 2013

Note: Read this review only if you have contributed to the box office record smashing run that Dhoom 3 is on. Or if you do not care about the story.

The film begins in the year 1990 with Iqbal Khan (Jackie Shroff) welcoming you and the bankers whose loan he is defaulting on, to a special show of the Great Indian Circus - home to a never-before-seen magic trick. This magic trick has in fact had an entire movie dedicated to it previously.

An apathetic Mr. Andersen who helms the Western Bank of Chicago rejects Khan's plea to let his show continue and decides to shut the theatre down due to its insolvency. Crestfallen, Khan shoots himself leaving his son Sahir (debutant kiddo Siddharth Nigam) to fend for himself.

Years later, Sahir (now Aamir Khan) has made it his life's driving purpose to ruin the bank that drove his father to suicide by simply doing their job. Like several of his brothers in the hip-hop industry, Sahir makes money rain from the sky and runs down the bank in ultra slow motion with a strange horny expression on his face. He then proceeds to ride his impeccably engineered and well advertised BMW bike, and evades the cops with ease. Having reached the limits of their ability, the Chicago police authorities decide to ring in Supercop Jay (Abhishek Bachchan) and Sidekick Ali (Uday Chopra).

I'm on fire even if my acting career isn't

The first tinge of real emotion that the movie manages to evoke is courtesy Ali's typically comical entry. The feeling of joy however is evanescent as the movie wastes precious time on the improbable task of trying to make Abhishek Bachchan look cool. Ali's monologue to buy himself some time reeks of dialogues that were probably meant to elicit some applause from the director's contorted perception of the Aam Aadmi. When Jai does finally arrive, he does so in all his overacting splendour and performs comical, gravity defying stunts in full Rohit Shetty ishtyle. These scenes illustrate why some things are best left to Salman Khan, although I must admit that Bachchan Jr looks more at home in an auto rickshaw than on a superbike.

The duo are ushered into Chicago by Police Officer Victoria (Tabrett Bethell) who is completely inconsequential to the plot barring her leading role in Ali's erotic fantasies. Soon after, Aaliya (Katrina Kaif) treats us to a titillating 5 minutes of seductive striptease interspersed with some acrobatic dance moves that helps her land the role of Asian Goddess who can sing and dance like water and fire hot trapeze artist in Sahir's circus.

I'm sexy and I know it

The whole sequence involving Supercop Jai taunting Sahir into robbing again and Sahir posing as an informant who would help Jai find his 'Chupchap Charlie' makes both characters seem incredibly naive. Anyway, Sahir robs the bank successfully and gets shot in the ensuing pursuit but manages to escape with assistance from his BMW superbike/speedboat. The only reason I was able to suspend my disbelief through this scene was due to the fact that I had seen Dubai's wonderbus earlier in the day. The same night, Sahir opens The Great Indian Circus - now revamped and larger than ever before as his highlighted by this song that they spent Rs. 5 crore on.

Immediately after the show, Supercop Jai confronts Sahir backstage in an attempt to expose him as the thief but the lack of any sign of a bullet injury on Sahir lets him off the hook much to the chagrin of Jai who is once again in his overacting prime. It is here that the major plot twist of the film is revealed. The person shot was actually Sahir's identical twin Samar whose existence is a secret hidden from the rest of the world. Samar assists Sahir in his stage tricks and bank robberies, loves Aaliya and suffers from the same disease that plagues SRK in My Name is Khan and Hrithik Roshan in Koi Mil Gaya.

The second half of the film, although initially promising fails to deliver and epitomizes the feeling of anti-climax. Simply put, too much of the film is a buildup to nothing. Another song is superfluously introduced to drive home the point that Samar is besotted by Aaliya. Although the chemistry between Samar and Aaliya is anything but sizzling, the two do share a scene that qualifies as almost cute and ends in Aamir entering the elite list of men who get to kiss Katrina Kaif's luscious lips on screen.

The technical work is decent and apart from a few aerial shots of Chicago that seem grainy, the CGI ranks fair compared to foreign films (especially The Amazing SpiderMan 2). Nothing of note can be said about the acting. The ending leaves you feeling shortchanged, especially for an Aamir Khan movie. I was certainly disappointed by the platitudinous script and would rank it several notches below its relatively much classier and more exciting predecessor, especially considering the tremendous hype that the movie had generated prior to its release.

But even as I write this, Dhoom 3 continues to smash box office records and is clearly on its way to becoming the all time leading grosser. Moreover, the response it has received from critics and audiences is mostly positive. So this may still be a film that you would want to watch for yourself and decide.

The title song sung by Adita Sen Sharma (and its Arabic version by Lebanese singer Naya who has a striking resemblance to twerker extraordinaire Miley Cyrus) is as hummable as the previous ones and offers some much needed respite as Katrina Kaif gyrates to it at the end of the film.

Overall verdict on the film: Watch it, curse it, forget it.

In Space, No One Can Hear You Scream

Title: Gravity

Director: Alfonso Cuarón
Cast: Sandra Bullock, George Clooney
Running Time: 90 minutes
Trailer:

SPOILER ALERT: This review contains material crucial to the plot of the movie.

Space - the vast, empty void where your revolutionary ideas and cinematic ambitions are merely insignificant specks of dust. Such may be said of Gravity by die-hard Star Trek fanboys who were terribly misled by its sci-fi label, thinking it to be an account of an interstellar voyage of epic proportions. To call it a blend of suspense and drama entangled with a lot of visual treats and pure cosmic awesomeness would be more apt. Apart from its rather mocking view of the laws of physics and the human mind, it's a great film to catch on the big screen.

Yes,yes, I used to work in a hospital, but now I sort out technical glitches under zero gravity.

The movie follows the series of unfortunate satellite explosions that lead to the well-portrayed and seemingly overqualified Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) being deserted by a bunch of cold, floating corpses that were once her crew mates aboard the space shuttle Explorer, and how she makes it back into Mother Earth's caring arms after inhumanly abusing her repeatedly ragdolled, oxygen-deprived body and suffering countless pangs of hopelessness and despair at the hands of cruel fate and fossil fuel depletion. As stated earlier, the film is a feast for the eyes, and one cannot help but gape at the ever-present Earth, in all her exaggerated, computer-generated beauty, as she bathes in the light of the sun and drowns in the shadows of its absence, illuminated only by lights from numerous cities. The scene which has Dr. Stone and Commander Matt Kowalski (George Clooney) slowly drifting towards the International Space Station serves to provide a reasonable amount of character depth through dialogue, and provides a vague sense of attachment to the protagonists – the hardship afflicted, warm-hearted doctor and the uncompromising, duty-driven commander, both very well portrayed by brilliant actors. The several tense, fast-paced escape/forced entry sequences, which strongly emphasize on holding on, in both the metaphorical and the literal sense, are very well made, keeping viewers at the edge of their seats throughout. The sound effects also help to make the movie quite the immersive experience, especially Dr. Stone's panicky breathing. Gravity certainly lives up to its expectations on the thriller front. Most importantly, it makes you feel involved till the very end.

I said 5% O2 left. Do I really have to keep talking to you?

There isn't much to be said about the negatives surrounding this film. One scene in particular which did provoke a facepalm was the rather convenient intervention of Dr. Stone's conscience, in the form of her commander's ghost, during her slow, painless suicide attempt resulting from several failed shots at salvation, which elicits a change of heart quicker than the speed of light, convincing her to live on to tell the tale of she who can tell herself not to kill herself when she wants to kill herself. Apart from this and several minor mechanical inaccuracies, which are not very relevant considering it's a movie, there's nothing bad to be said about the film. In my opinion, however, it is certainly not close to the "masterpiece" everyone deems it to be.
 

You and I, above this beautiful world, No one cares if we die, above this beautiful world

Gravity is one hell of a thriller, and must be seen in theaters, preferably in IMAX 3D, in order to thoroughly savor all that's been served. Taking the survivalist genre to new frontiers, Alfonso Cuarón has done a fabulous job as director. Gravity is an assured one and a half hours of pure entertainment.

Reviewer's Rating: 3.5/5

 

Elysium (2013)

Director     : Neill Blomkamp
Screenplay : Neill Blomkamp
Running Time : 109 minutes
Cast : Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Sharlto Copley, Alice Braga, William Fichtner.
Budget : $115 Million

“Diseased, overpopulated, ruined”.

Welcome to Earth - 2154, the opening scene of Elysium, Neill Blomkamp's latest science-fiction thriller. Elysium is a man-made utopia orbiting around Earth, 'created by the super rich to preserve their way of life', according to the movie. The citizens of Elysium live in bliss, completely ignorant of the happenings on Earth, which has degenerated to a state of Malthusian disarray.

The movie lets you explore an interesting world with lots of thrilling action pieces. The design and technology of everything in Elysium  manages to balance between reality and futuristic cool stuff. The director has incorporated some stunning special effects that go along with the tone of the movie. The cinematography was simply superb and we appreciate the attention to detail in many aspects of the surrealistic world.

The protagonist Matt Damon plays a disgruntled citizen of Earth, Max, who has been obsessed with the idea of reaching Elysium since childhood. However, faced with the harsh reality that getting to Elysium (or rather, getting citizenship of Elysium) is next to impossible, he indulges in crime and later tries to reform himself. Forced into a life-or-death situation and into a perilous condition, he realizes he has a far higher purpose to fulfill than simply bringing his own desires to fruition.


Jodie Foster superbly plays the part of Delacourt, the ruthless, steely, corrupt, and power-hungry Secretary of Defense of Elysium(watch out for her accent!). This is in stark contrast to her role in Silence of the Lambs, where she is docile and at mercy to the whims of Hannibal Lecter. It is a tribute to her acting that she is able to pull off both roles with ease. The awesome William Fichtner (The Dark Knight, Alex Mahone of Prison Break) convincingly takes the role of her emotionless and equally ruthless co-conspirator.

The engaging Sharlto Copley (District 9, Murdock  of The A Team) also deserves mention for pulling off a villainous role with ease , acting as Kruger an earth-based agent of Elysium.

Society is split into the “haves” and the “have-nots”, and self-preservation takes precedence over any sense of civic sensibility. Each of the main characters is corrupt in one way or another, including the protagonist, providing a refreshing break from the archetypal heroes we’ve been exposed to recently in cinema halls. Matt Damon’s slow progression from a man interested only in keeping his own life to one who is ready to sacrifice it, makes the plot line almost a “reverse tragedy”, so to speak. After watching the movie, we felt that Alice Braga was not the only thing common between this movie and  Will Smith’s I am Legend.

Several things set this sci-fi apart. For one thing, the movie seems to be a political commentary on the world today. Delacourt seems uncannily like Angela Merkel: both are “iron ladies” chiefly interested in preserving their own state's way of life and prosperity. Los Angeles has become a ghetto where Spanish and English are interchangeably spoken. Latinos and Africans trying to overthrow the whites and gain control. Yes, we get the point Mr.Neill!

Bizarre observations :
For a movie set 100 years in the future, the Earth computers were ancient and basic - Running on DOS!
Also, the president of Elysium is an Indian(funnily named Patel).

Ultimately, the movie presents provokes thought about questions that are relevant in today’s time. Can altruism be justified in a world running out of resources? If protecting your own way of life involves killing others, is it right to do so?

Well, if you are one of those who just wants some good action and killer acting with your popcorn and coke, this movie does just fine.

Rating : 7/10

This One Glides Sublimely Over the Chicane

Director: Ron Howard
Screenplay: Peter Morgan

Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Daniel Brühl, Olivia Wilde, Alexandra Maria Lara, Pierfrancesco Favino

Music: Hans Zimmer
Running time: 122 minutes

1976. It was an age before strict safety standards, press room decorum and radio transmissions with the team. It was the era of the monstrous V-12 engines, uncountable overtakes, flimsy unstable cars, a Ferrari pit crew in striking yellow, and a nightlife that would make Hugh Hefner jealous. It was also the year that will go down as the most exhilarating, the most unpredictable and the most dramatic of all Formula One seasons, thanks to the legendary rivalry between Brit James Hunt and the Austrian Niki Lauda. And Ron Howard’s makes it all come alive in the sleek, finely crafted sports drama Rush.

Without spilling too much beans, the 1976 F1 season is ingrained in popular motorsport folklore for the bitter, fierce and tumultuous feud between Hunt and Lauda – both on and off the track; and it also saw one of the most amazing comebacks in the history of competitive sports. Going into the German Grand Prix at the then notorious Nürburgring circuit, Lauda, driving a Ferrari, had had a clear advantage over Hunt, who had been having a disastrous season up till then courtesy a very unreliable McLaren. Driving in precarious weather, in a race that would later go on to define his career, Lauda crashed his car and suffered burns that threatened to end his racing career, if not his life. His absence from the track helped Hunt gain in on invaluable points and bridge the gap in the Championship Standings. About a month later, however, against the advice of all his doctors, the phoenix of Lauda – quite literally – rose from the ashes to compete in the last four races of the season amidst universal shock and admiration and tremendous amount of pain.

But what makes this rivalry one for the ages isn’t just the battles in their respective cars, but the polar opposite personalities of the two men. Hunt – British wit notwithstanding – was the quintessential F1 playboy, living each day as if it were his last, with a hedonic lifestyle involving a lot of women (including a short-lived marriage), drugs and alcohol, and always drove an aggressive passionate and often reckless race. Lauda on the other hand was a level-headed tactician, an Alain Prost of that age.

And does Ron Howard capture all this in a movie spanning less than two hours? Bloody hell, he does!

After mediocre outings like The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons, Howard shows the skill seen in earlier films such as Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind and Cinderella Man. The race sequences are adrenaline-filled, edge-of-the-seat affairs and yet keep you invested in the characters in a way no no-brainer action flick can do. You get more than a glimpse into the steely, stolid mind as the face disappears behind the visor as the drivers put on their helmets. Never once getting histrionic, there is enough drama to differentiate it from an insipid made-for-TV biopic, and I for one was engrossed as if it were all a real race being played out live before me. More importantly, the film manages to capture the evanescent nature of the whole sport; how it’s all so uncertain; how so much of it depends on luck. 

Peter Morgan (of The Queen, The Last King of Scotland and Frost/Nixon fame) crafts a screenplay that is engaging and well-paced, and never once does the movie seem prosaic or uninspired. The Hans Zimmer score, unsurprisingly, does not disappoint. The two leads cap off fine performances, with Chris Hemsworth stepping out of the pretty hammer wielding god image and effortlessly becoming the roguish, witty and likeable – and sometimes disturbed – Hunt, complete with a surprisingly good British accent (Hemsworth is Australian) and a mischievous twinkle in the eye to go along. The German actor Daniel Brühl (you might remember him as the German war-hero turned film star Frederik Zoller from Inglourious Basterds) is perfect foil as Lauda, with the characteristic level-headed obstinacy and no-nonsense speech that epitomizes the Austrian driver. The most memorable moments of the film are those where both actors share the screen and exchange nasty pleasantries.

Lauda (angrily, after their first race against each in Formula 3): Hey, what’s your name?
Hunt: It’s James Hunt. It rhymes with c***. And that’s what you are.

As a movie on Formula 1, Rush gets almost as good as the sublime Asif Kapadia documentary Senna. The vintage cars, the driver’s eye view of race sequences as the cars whiz past chicanes, and the glimpses into the lives of two antitheses of racers – both united in their drive to win, are all welded masterfully to present a smasher of a film. All in all, Rush is a well-made biographical action-drama, which ranks with The Damned United and even Chariots of Fire as far as sport dramas go, which never gets cloy or pretentious (like Remember the Titans), rusty, dry or brainless, and has more than enough poignancy, soul and mind, amalgamated with the right amount dry humour, to stay with you for quite some time.

Rush is worth every rupee and even more.

Rating: 8.5/10

PS. If any of you snicker at Niki Lauda's surname (as did many in the theater I went to), I curse that your mind doesn't mature beyond where it is right now.

Get Off The Express And Hit This Cafe Baby

Director: Shoojit Sircar
Writers: Somnath Dey, Shubendu Bhattacharya, Juhi Chaturvedi(dialogues)
Cinematography: Kamaljeet Negi
Editing: Chandrashekhar Prajapati

Starring: John Abraham, Prakash Belawadi, Nargis Fakhri, Rashi Khanna, Siddharth Basu 

Music: Shantanu Moitra

Running time: 130 minutes

Budget: INR 35 crore
Revenues: Hopefully more than Chennai Express


Let it be known up front that I give this movie a rating of 5/5. This, simply put, is world class film-making.

Shoojit Sircar's Madras Cafe is a political espionage thriller set against the backdrop of the Sri Lankan Civil War. It opens with an almost unrecognizable John Abraham, lumbering his way to Church, to confess that he could have prevented the assassination of India's Ex-PM (modelled on Rajiv Gandhi). Narrated by him, the film's first half does a fantastic job of getting the audience familiar with the two warring parties, the Tamil guerilla forces of the LTF, headed by Anna (Ajay Rathnam) and the Sri Lankan government/army comprising the Sinhalese people. Central to the story is India's role in trying to ensure a peaceful end to the strife, in the form of political elections. We find out how Major Vikram Singh (John Abraham) was appointed by the Indian intelligence agency R&AW to head its covert operations in Jaffna (a small island to the north of SriLanka, and the base of the LTF).

Vikram's meeting with his superior, the alcohol guzzling Bala (Kannada actor and director, Prakash Belawadi in a superb supporting act), is where the film turns it on, with Vikram being forced to take shots in the dark, unable to tell who's on his side and who isn't. R&AW, in its attempt to ensure an election, tries multiple strategies to dethrone the idealistic Anna, who rejects the idea of an election, believing that the army would swiftly eliminate his Tamil people, once the Indian authorities pull out. Parallel to this strife, Vikram's meetings* with British Journalist Jaya (a thankfully, solely English-speaking Nargis Fakhri) lead them to a massive conspiracy being hatched by international players and the LTF, complete with traitors cutting backroom deals at Madras Cafe, encrypted messages, and large sums of money to seal the deal.

While the first half focuses on the Sri Lankan civil war, the second half is all about the plot to assassinate the Ex-PM. Although you already know that this story does not have a happy ending, the unnerving pace with which the events unfold grips you till the very end. Saying anything more about the second half would probably ruin some of the magic for you. In the end, the film makes it clear that there are no winners in war, just innocent civilians caught in crossfire.

The cinematic beauty and tenderness with which the scenes depicting war and bloodshed are shot is reminiscent of Blood Diamond. There are absolutely no extra scenes in the entire movie.** It simply moves from one brilliant sequence to the next. Hats off to the phenomenal editing and cinematography for giving us 130 minutes of sheer brilliant story telling and visuals.

The actors all do a fine job, with John Abraham displaying remarkable depth in this role. A few of us noted a subtle South Indian touch to his accent, and kudos to him if it was intentional. Nargis Fakhri, slips into her small yet important role of a determined, wartime journalist (her minimalistic look accentuates her beauty). The unconventional casting of Siddharth Basu (more famous for his TV Quiz shows like KBC) as R&AW chief Robin Dutt works really well. So does Rashi Khanna as Vikram's wife Ruby, as she battles with her fears for her husband's safety.

So, stop wasting time and go catch this ASAP in a theatre near you. The teasers before the movie (Zanjeer and Boss) and during the intermission (Phata Poster Nikla Hero) will go on to reinforce just how amazing and different a film Madras Cafe is.


* Big shout out to the writers for resisting the temptation to let two of the most gorgeous people on the planet engage in a hot and intense one night stand, as they keep the relationship between Vikram and Jaya strictly professional and friendly.

**While some believe the 'blink-and-you-miss-it' love scene between Vikram and Ruby was unnecessary, I thought that it was the most likely thing that would have happened in a similar situation in a normal household. Also, can you blame innocent Ruby for wanting some action, when she rarely ever gets her hunk to herself?

Bhaag Milkha Bhaag

Director: Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra

Cast: Farhan Akhtar, Jabtej Singh, Pavan Malhotra, Sonam Kapoor, Divya Dutta

Music: Shankar Ehsaan Loy

Running time: 195 minutes

Rakeysh Mehra reclaims his place behind the camera for the much awaited “Bhaag Milkha Bhaag”. The movie recounts the life of champion Olympic runner Milkha Singh and the events leading up to his final race at a friendly Indo-Pak athletic event while also throwing some light on the Indo-Pak split which was the cause of Milkha’s traumatic childhood . The first thing that stood out about this movie was of course the length. But strangely enough, the 3 and a half hour film did not really feel long until the last 30 minutes or so. The chapters were pacey and just as long as they needed to be. The movie followed a pretty standard storyline with Milkha’s tale being discussed by his coach on a train journey. This would have been pretty bland if not for Mehra’s beautiful visual narrative.

Rakeysh Mehra brought the story to life with the use of warm and atmospheric colour (and a very unexpected cameo). Milkha’s troubled childhood was bathed in a dull, melancholic haze while his days as a lovelorn teenage troublemaker were full of colour. Mehra brought back the ‘Rang de Basanti’ vibe with some attractive black-and-white transitions during the story of the death of his parents. This was coupled with some innovative shots including a sped up tracking shot of the 200m circuit. He summarized Milkha’s victories in a stylish sequence of parallel shots in slow motion; and boy does he LOVE slow-mo. The film was riddled with innumerable slow motion shots and few too many songs (for a ROM flick) which probably gave the film its extra hour. The jolly Punjabi vibe was welcome.

Desi me rollin'

Farhan Akhtar hit the sets after a year of training with a vein popping chiseled body and a commendable performance. Following some very average acting in his previous movies, Farhan showed us a different side to his abilities with some intense bathroom mirror moments and insane running on the track. But he was defeated by the brilliant performances of Jabtej Singh as young Milkha and Divya Dutta as his elder sister. Sonam Kapoor reprised her Delhi 6 role as the ‘chulbuli’ village girl and makes a quick exit (just the way I like it). Pawan Malhotra was charming but Yograj Singh was very disappointing as Milkha’s Olympic coach. Prakash Raj had minimal screen time and a character that did nothing but lighten the mood with an exaggerated Southey accent while speaking Hindi. 

The storyline was quite straightforward and had some very touching moments and well-timed comic relief. The Farhan-Sonam love story was short and bittersweet which really pleased me. However the key message of the film failed to come through. The film intended to focus on how Milkha’s success was a result of his determination, perseverance and hard work but the idea fell apart. In a nutshell, Milkha lost a race because he had an affair with an Australian girl (The gorgeous Rebbecca Breeds) and won all the subsequent races because he said no to the Indian swimming champion. Parts of the movie describe Milkha’s gruelling training and his resolve, but him pulling a tire around a desert till he collapsed from exhaustion was not very provocative. Additionally, the Indian coach telling the Pakistani coach to F*** off after Milkha’s victory was in very poor taste, even if it was muted. Despite these shortcomings, Milkha’s story invited a lot of applause and left us swelling with patriotism as we exited the theatre.

When the screen went blank, I was left with a pleasant warm feeling which faded away as I got into the car. Bhaag Milkha Bhaag gave people a cause to celebrate one of the country’s most respected athletes and is a good candidate for the Independence Day special on Zee TV but did not leave a lasting impression. 

3/5

Quotes: 

Pakistani coach Javed: "Milkha, Yeh tumhare zindagi ki Aakhri daud ho sakta hai"

Milkha Singh: "Aur daudunga vaise hi" 

Isspessal chhabbis

After wanting to see it for quite a while, I finally got down to watching Special 26 (that's Chhabbis, and not twenty six for you wannabe firang junta). Directed by Neeraj Pandey (of A Wednesday fame), the movie opens with a CBI interview on March 18, 1987, being conducted by Ajay (aka Ajju) Singh (Akshay Kumar) and P.K Sharma (Anupam Kher). It then proceeds to the first of (a tad too) many flashbacks. Ajju and Sharma, accompanied by Joginder (Rajesh Sharma) and Iqbal (Kishor Kadam), are seen raiding a minister's home under the guise of the CBI. Soon after their departure, it is revealed that this was in fact not a CBI raid and that the minister had been robbed. SI Ranveer Singh (Jimmy Shergill) gets suspended for unwittingly aiding the conmen in looting the minister.

Hey Paaaaaaat! See the silver lining yet? 

Hurt by this rustication, Ranveer proceeds to uncover a series of similar robberies all over the country and realises that the brilliance of these robberies lay in the fact that it was black money and undeclared assets that were stolen in each case, leaving the victim unable to report the crime to the police. He reveals his findings to Waseem Khan (Manoj Bajpai), an officer with the CBI ("asli wali").

The rest of the film then unfolds at a brisk pace and with unexpected style, with Waseem trying to outthink, outsmart and outmaneouvre Ajju's eleven (or rather four in these case). The film culminates in a final act that is inspired by a real-life heist at the Opera House branch of Tribhovandas Bhimji Zaveri in Mumbai, on March 19, 1987.

An Akshay Kumar film with him neither jumping off a building nor laughing his trademark guffaw?! :-O 

All the actors are top notch, with no one overplaying their part or trying to hog the limelight. Also supporting the storyline is a cool background score and some nice dialogues. Completely unnecessary is the entire sidestory involving Ajju's love interest, Priya (Kajal Aggarwal). Her character is of no consequence, looks incredibly plain in a most unattractive manner but yet manages to hog the screen for a few songs. This however shouldn't be a problem thanks to <ctrl + right arrow key>. Mumbai Bombay of the 80s is recreated well with good attention to detail (barring a few poor background CGI shots). Waseem Khan asking his wife(Neetu Singh, in case you want to google her) to cover up and the fake CBI recruitment interviews prompt quite a few lulz.

Despite the fact that the film drags on for maybe twenty minutes too many post climax, this is still easily one of the better Hindi films made this year. A recommended watch, especially now that you have nothing to do but wait till the end of the holidays.

Memorable Dialogues:

1. Ishtud CBI applicant - I want to do...my country!
2. Waseem Khan - Yaha chullu bhar paani kaha milega?
3. Ajju and Sharma - Asli Power dil mein hoti hai
4. Sharma - Humaare time mein TV nahi hua karta tha

Ee toh matlab poora keh ke le li

STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS: Live long and make more sequels

Director: J.J. Abrams

Cast: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Benedict Cumberbatch, Zoey Saldana

Music: Michael Giacchino

Running time: 132 minutes

Warning: Spoiler Alert. This article exposes content crucial to the plot of the film.

It is never too late to write a review. Unfortunately I was too late to catch this movie on the big screen, which I regret very much. The theater screening was successful but brief; like when one gets a strong whiff of fast food in a momentary breeze.

Star Trek into Darkness was a superb sequel. The movie had the very familiar atmosphere and vibe that I experienced while watching the first movie and had my eyes glued to the screen. Michael Giacchino did a good job with the score. The music blended well with the story even though it does not stand out very much like most Zimmer tracks. Chris Pine returns as the stubborn and dependable James Kirk and calmly delivers throughout the movie including a few uncommon yet successful emotional scenes. Zachary Quinto fulfilled his role as the level headed and rational Spock although his cry of anguish after Kirk’s “death” didn't really do it for me. For his first ever open display of emotion, the half human side of Spock could’ve been a little more persuasive. And last and definitely not least, Benedict Cumberbatch did a spectacular job as the cold and ruthless Khan. The skull-crushing, punch-taking, stun resistant superhuman was relentless and inspiring till the very end. A general shout-out to the crew of the ship: Bones, Chekov, Scotty and a very badass Zulu who were all perfect for the roles. 

                                                Of course i have an important role!

The best aspect of the storyline for me is that they give you an episode sort of feel all the way. The story is pacey and very linear, preventing you from even gazing down at you popcorn, very much like the first movie. There is no definitive beginning or ending to each part which is why making sequels for this series is a great idea. There were of course some parts that didn't really gel with the story. I was expecting Carol Marcus to be a more significant character but it felt as though Kirk just needed a female counterpart. I was not too happy about Spock asking Spock-Prime how he defeated Khan. The Spock-Uhura tiff also seemed a little unwanted but eventually led to a memorable dialogue by Spock about “refusing to feel”. The death of captain Pike wasn't as ‘sudden’ as I felt during the movie but it was definitely an emotional moment. I usually shun stories involving the “resurrection” of characters but Kirk’s return from the grave seemed perfectly fine with me. I even pumped my fist as it happened. At first I thought the classic “This is the starship Enterprise” ending would be rather redundant but at the end it seemed like nothing would be more appropriate.

                                   I am going to walk over your corpses and look awesome doing it

But the one thing I was looking out for was the man behind the camera. J.J. Abrams, who has been entrusted with the camera for the upcoming Star Wars episode has not failed to impress. His dynamic action sequences which were once again similar to the first movie gave the story-line a brilliant drive. The scene where Kirk and Khan are launched from the Enterprise to Marcus’s ship through the field of debris was excellent. The vigorous action scenes are separated by beautiful tracking shots through the chambers of the Enterprise. Of these the one that really got my attention was when the camera follows Kirk and Spock into the elevator and the doors close, immediately after which they open again but on a different level (All in one continuous shot).

Star Trek into Darkness was definitely worth a watch in theaters or even a 1080p download whenever that will be available. Abrams has cemented my belief in his abilities and I will definitely be in front of the big screen if another installment is on its way.

4/5

Quotes: 

Khan: "Intellect alone is useless in a fight Mr. Spock. You can't even break a rule - how can you be expected to break bone?"

Kirk: "I have no idea what I'm supposed to do! I only know what i CAN do!"

World War Z: Pitt v/s Zombies

Director: Marc Forster
Screenplay: Matthew Michael Carnahan, Drew Goddard, Damon Lindelof
Story: Matthew Michael Carnahan, J. Michael Straczynski (based on "World War Z" by Max Brooks)
Cast: Brad Pitt, Mireille Enos, James Badge Dale, Matthew Fox
Running Time: 116 minutes
Music: Marco Beltrami

World War Z is a whole lotta fun, with a good mix of thrills and action. It's a Brad Pitt driven zombie flick which is essentially on hyper-drive mode throughout most of it's running time. The film endured it's fair share of production hassles, including a couple of script re-writes and addition shoots. It's based on a book of the same name but apparently shares very little other than the name itself (I haven't read the book, so will not comment on it's likeness). World War Z is certainly not without it's flaws, but the positive seems to outweigh the negative, making this a solid entry into the post-apocalyptic as well as zombie film genres.

Z-z-z-zombies !

World War Z is the story of Gerry Lane (Pitt), a retired United Nations employee living with his wife and two kids in Philadelphia, who has to travel the world to try to find out the origin and possible cure for a zombie-like pandemic which has spread across the world. What instantly strikes you about the movie is its pace, wasting no time to dive right into the action. There are some stunning scenes in a traffic laden Philly suburb which kick things off with a bang.

Zombies re-enacting scenes from Holi

The high octane intro results in (conveniently) less time dedicated to background stories or explanations. As a positive consequence, there is no muddled scientific jargon, and leaves the audience with as much information as the movie characters. However, there is also hardly any character depth or development, and you would be forgiven if you didn't really care about them much. However, Forster smartly sidesteps these complications with the break-neck and gripping speed of the film.

Now this is a PG-13 film. Yes, a PG-13 Zombie horror film. Which means there is hardly any blood/gore in World War Z. This was obviously done with a view to make up the hefty $190 million budget, but it tends to diminish the overall zombie effect. While it is admirable that the movie did provide it's fair share of thrills and chills without too much blood and gore, it wouldn't have been out of place.

I can haz blood?

You can generally go two ways with zombies, either they are the slow walking, dumbasses, or the fast-moving killing machines and Forster successfully chooses the later. The zombies are pretty damn scary and relentless. They know they are already dead, and put their bodies on the line to get that next bite. Most of the movie's strongest scenes involve them and that is a big positive in World War Z. 

The acting (Brad Pitt) is pretty top notch. I've been a pretty big Brad Pitt fan, and he tends to diversify his roles and never really fails to deliver (even if the film sometime does); and this trend continues. Pitt as Gerry Lane delivers an assured performance, whether it is as a consoling father, or in a Mission Impossible-esque stealth mode. The rest of the cast have relatively smaller roles and feature unknown faces. Daniella Kertesz does a solid job as a Israeli soldier Segen.

Yep, its cool for guys to say he's hot and not have their sexuality questioned

The film cannot help itself on occasion and falls into the action movie cliche category, with the "one-man-against-the-world" feel. Situations conveniently arise and sufficient lucky breaks help our hero in his quest. Ironically, in one scene, a researcher reminds Lane he's not the only one with a family in this ongoing tragedy, but the film tends to treat him like he is. The ending is pretty smart, but feels a bit underwhelming as opposed to the beginning. (with lots of indications of possible sequel)

Thats right, they climbed an inverted truck and hijacked a chopper

Overall, World War Z is an enjoyable watch. It packs enough punch for an action flick, and has enough spooks for a thriller. While it does seem light on the drama, the sci-fi aspect or the "believability" of the story line, the film embraces its limitations and does well on the back of a solid Brad Pitt.

4/5

Cool Quotes:

1. Gerry Lane: If you can fight, fight. Be prepared for anything. Our war has just begun.
2. Andrew Fassbach: Mother Nature is a serial killer. She wants to get caught, she leaves bread crumbs, she leaves clues... Mother nature knows how to disguise her weakness as strength.