No one killed Jessica

Ok..when I saw the trailer..I was very interested to watch this movie. I expected it to be all realistic and dark and stuff. Sadly, I was mistaken. They took a serious issue and made it into a bollywood masala crap. Plus, the overacting was too much to bear. Rani Mukherjee was irritating throughout. She cant curse at all! It felt soo fake. Her role was of this hotshot brash journalist who has a doesnt-give-a-damn attitude..but it was all soo cliched. Right from her referring to herself as a b*tch in every line to the random use of the four letter word (f*ck!, f*ck you, shut the f*ck up..etc. etc.)..she couldn't carry it off at all. Vidya Balan was nice though and very natural in her role as a dejected Sabrina. Well, the movie could have been made much much better if they had got in good actors. All the other actors made everything sooo dramatic (except for the 3 guys who were involved in the murder and the police officer). The scene when Jessica's mom cries on hearing the death of her child tops the charts. I was actually laughing when she was "crying". The second half was a drag! Its almost a 3 hour movie!..and it could have been finished soo easily in 1.5 - 2 hrs. Its strictly an OK-ish movie. I wish it would have been less of a Bollywood drama and more of the real stuff.

Rush - Beyond the lighted stage

I hadn't heard much of Rush before. I had only heard the mainstream hits - Working Man, Tom Sayer and YYZ. I liked them but I never seek to listen to them. When these songs came up on my Ipod, I used to take a note and that was that. I never selected these songs to play. While randomly youtubin', I saw Rush - Beyond the lighted stage in the suggestions bar. What caught my fancy was that it was directed by Sam Dunn. I was in love with his previous documentaries - Metal - A headbangers journey and Global Metal. He has a really interesting way of telling a story. Anyways, I started watching it and was captured instantly.

The movie starts off with Neil Peart drumming in the rehearsal room, followed by Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson doing their thing. They reach the stage and when the announcer announces their name, Bastille Day kicks off! I had turned up the volume and the song literally burst out of the speakers. I hadn't heard the song before and it was oh-my-god soo awesome. The Robert Plant like vocals, the loud guitars and fierce drums had me gripped. Well, they are a trio, hence, they are automatically cool for me. When I heard their songs previously, I never realized they were a trio! Their songs are decently long. And YYZ is so intricately structured that at first I had thought it was a Dream Theater song. I don't think anyone who hears them for the first time will think they are a trio!

Anyways impressed immensely from the starting few seconds, I saw the entire thing without even taking a break (not even to pee!). Its an awesome story. They have captured the band's journey in a really nice manner. Plus they had this huge lineup of guests like Kirk Hammet, Mike Portnoy, Vinnie Paul, Sebastian Bach and even Jack Black! Jack Black should be there in every rock/metal documentary. He speaks soo passionately about rock and metal that you are bound to fall in love with it.

The movie is very successful in bringing out the awesomeness of the band, something which had not been done till now. No matter how talented these guys were, they never got the commercial success that many other bands (which really suck) enjoy (am looking at you LP!). But Rush weren't looking for commercial success anyways. They just wanted to have fun and do their music and really dint care about what the others thought right throughout their musical journey. Another thing worth noting about them is their humility. There was not a drop of arrogance in them at any point of time. In fact, Neil Peart, when he was at his peak, decided to change his technique with the help of Freddie Gruber and re-invented himself! The fact that someone that huge even thinking that he can improve and needs a change is a big deal. Well, that also explains why they are as good as they are. Its a nice tribute to them. I am now a fan of Neil Peart's drumming, Geddy Lee's vocals and bass and Robert Lifeson's solos. Listen to La Villa Strangiato and be mesmerized with the awesomeness of the band. Every song featured in the movie kicked a*s. I even listened to - Working Man during my run today :) . I would be spending loads of time listening to Rush for sure!

Iron Man 2

The last movie I saw was 3 Idiots which was quite a long time back. Blame it on my office, my procrastination, the weather or all three at the same time, I just did not go out for a movie...also there wasnt any movie as such which caught my fancy. Iron Man 2 on the other hand was one movie for which I was desperately waiting for. As it is I am a sucker for all superhero movies ever since I was a little kid .
Iron Man..the first part was sooo cool. I remember seeing it in Japan with my friend Sumit and Jain...and it was such a jaw-dropping movie with ultra cool special effects and a nice background score.
Iron Man 2 is awesome too. Its funny, the action sequences are really good...the villain is mean..plenty of stuff to keep you interested. Its not that long a movie. Its short and sweet and never looses pace. Robert Downey Jr. is awesome playing the arrogant billionaire superhero. The movie has lots of funny instances. I was either laughing or was dumb founded as to what was happening. I remember me and Viral saying "Oh bete..", "Oh bhai..." all throughout the movie. A nice way to spend an evening indeed.
The next movie I am waiting for is the last part of the Shrek series. I saw a trailer during the intermission and it looked soo cool. Cant wait!

3 Idiots

After soo many ppl raving about the movie..me, Viral, Amaresh and his roomie Shashwat booked the tickets for last sunday for the matinee show. We always book the matinee show so that there's enough time for beer afterwards. Anyways, coming back to the main point, the movie is really fun. There are certain sappy bollywood parts in it as well but the good parts does overshadow it completely. I thought the guy who played Chatur was awesome!...and so was Boman Irani. One more thing that I loved about the movie was that the songs dint distract the pace of the movie. There's just one song and that too in which you get to see a wet Kareena Kapoor..hence, no complaints. The second half does rely on classic Bollywood high voltage emotional drama stuff but the funny bits in between make up for it. As far as the Chetan Bhagat controversy is concerned my stand is that both are wrong in their places. Chetan Bhagat cannot really say that the movie is 80-90% of the book. Sure, the background and some bits are similar but the script is very different. The script writers have done a really nice job and adapted the novel really well. Its very much original. And I felt the movie was funnier and wittier than the book..and hence his claim that the one-liners are all from FPS is not entirely true. Having said that I also feel that they could have mentioned his name in the credits. It could have come up sooner than it does..maybe right after the movie ends and stuff. It comes a bit late..and it would be missed by most of the indian audience..who rush out from the theater as soon as a movie finishes. But, its not that people dint know that the movie is based on FPS. It would have been a lot cooler if Chetan would have been a little more classy. Everyone who has read the book would realize that its definitely based on the novel and those who havent would most likely want to read the book because the movie is so fun. If he would have been a little more graceful, it could have won him more admirers. Anyways I did have a nice time laughing esp when Chatur gives that speech during Teacher's Day. Awesome stuff.

Slumdog Millionaire

My morning was spent in watching Slumdog Millionaire. It was recommended to me by my colleague Ashish san. Anyways Anwarul had already seen it and was constantly raving about it. After last night's party at Syam's place..both me and Anwarul crashed at his place. We got up at like 10 and we had the entire morning with nothing else to do. So we decided to give it a watch. I loved the movie from the first scene itself. What caught my fancy was the unique way of story-telling. The child actors in this movie are excellent. The cinematography is colorful..especially the scenes shot at the Taj Mahal. There is this one scene when the protagonist and his big bro are on a train stealing food from a passenger. The passenger catches them and throws them from the train. When they finally break their fall..they see the Taj Mahal..and one of them goes like "Brother..are we in heaven??!!" And damn it was indeed sooo pretty! Anyways the story revolves around a slum dog called Jamaal who wins 2 crores at KBC. The story begins from cops torturing the protagonist accusing him of cheating. So he sits with them and explains how he had known all the answers. Every answer was weirdly linked to his life. Its an awesome feel-good movie. The dialogues are witty enough to make you chuckle at various moments in the movie...and the plot is gripping. Its a story of love, destiny and also sacrifices. I loved the sacrifices part of the movie. This guy's elder brother although makes his life hell (in a funny sorta way)..but he takes care of his li'l bro..whenever he gets the chance...like a classic elder bro. All in all a fantastic movie..go watch it!..big thumbs up!

The Dark Knight

Wow!..never have I been soo engrossed for 2.5 hours in a movie! I wanted to see The Dark Knight, ever since I saw Batman Begins. The end scene in Batman Begins, when Lieutenant Gordon shows a "Joker" card to Batman, got me all excited to look forward for the second part of my favourite superhero! Anyways, so..me and Rajesh were headed to Wave cinemas yesterday for the 7:50 show. I had already booked the tickets online..so all we had to do was collect them from the Concierge desk. While waiting in the small line..a guy asks me "When is the show for the Dark Knight". I told him the time. He goes on to say the stupidest thing I had ever heard in my life.....ever...and I have heard many ppl say the most idiotic things. He goes like.. "Its surprising that "The Dark Knight" got 4 stars and "Money hai toh Honey hai" got only 1". I had to stop myself from laughing out real hard and had to content myself with a silent chuckle and that too inside my head. Anyways..once inside the theater, it was nice and comfortable and the show began right on time. Its a rollercoaster ride throughout..excellent story..great chase sequences and there are soo many edgy moments in the movie that truly provides a nail biting experience. The Joker is awesome! He is soo different from the old movie "Batman". This joker is a complete psycho..and a terrifying villain who kills for the heck of it! Its awesome! Its modelled on the lines of the "The Killing Joke"..the famous comic which show the origins of the Joker. Heath Ledger totally owns the character. However I would have liked if they showed how the Joker became the Joker. They do give subtle hints though. The cinematography is excellent. The way batman glides over the sky scrapers gets your adrenaline going! The chase sequences are excellent..hell..they flipped a full truck!!..what more can you ask for!!! The movie had me thinking about it all night long..the last movie which had such a cool impact on me was 300...another Frank Miller classic. Well, I really can't wait for the next part. It would be very difficult to top this one!

Pursuit of Happyness

Since I had a day off from work today..I decided to laze around to the maximum. I have a bunch of movies on my PC which I hadn't seen for various reasons (time being the foremost one). I started with the Will Smith starer "The Pursuit of Happyness.".I really wanted to see it when it got released here..but I never got a company.
Anyways the movie is about a struggling salesman..who struggles every day to make ends meet. Frustrated and helpless he tries very hard to keep his family happy. He has a wife and a 5 year old kid to complicate matters. Anyways, so angry with the situation around the house, his wife leaves him. That's when he kinda hits rock bottom. He is thrown out of his house and his motel room to literally wander the streets with his li'l kid. He decides to join a Stock broker internship programme at a local firm. Despite all odds and everything going against him, he finally gets the job and kinda ends his pursuit for happiness. The story is based on a really person named Chris Gardener. Will Smith and the boy who plays his kid (he's Smith's actual kid too) are awesome in their on-screen presence. The screenplay is really good. You cant help but feel happy for Will Smith at the end when he gets the job and tears well up in his eyes. A really nice movie to lift one's spirits up.