Watched 'Crash' recently and I must say I was depressed immediately after watching the movie. The movie itself was great I thought..amazing performances and slick story-telling. Although the movie rides mostly on these performances and editing, I felt the director held back a lot of things he wanted to say, but couldn't..for some reason. He leaves the movie saying racism exists..yeah, we know that, duh! Also, most sequences in the movie involve explaining to the audience that its misunderstanding which leads to racism. Interesting thought..
I've had my share of experiences, good and bad on this topic. Generally, I think that people exhibiting racism are the ignorant ones (this is my point of view, of course). Ignorance of being a part of the society which is a melting pot in a majority of cases. Of course, one may argue that its basically ignorance which usually leads to misunderstanding!
Coming to the part which I liked most about the movie, the performances. A near perfect cast for this movie, I would say. Director Paul Haggis must have been licking his lips at the prospect of directing actors like Don Cheadle, Sandra Bullock, Matt Dillon and Terrence Howard. None of these actors disappoint. You hate them, pity them and only can try understanding them in this movie which aims to be a critique. Although there are some 'nice, goody' roles in the movie, the ones that stay with you are these 'bitchy, racist' ones..naturally. Matt Dillon effortlessly walks through his role as a racist cop who is later shown to be having a sensitive side as well. Cheadle has the most screen time with no particular reason, although the movie begins and ends with him on the receiving end of things. Bullock is at her 'maniacal' best..as the rich, angry, embarassed and actually humiliated wife of Fraser. Commendable. But none of these big names could match up with the performance of Terrence Howard as the black TV director. His portrayal of a man caught between accepting racism, dealing with it and coming close to losing his senses is in a way, magical. Howard mostly uses subtle body language and awesome intensity in his eyes. The director takes full advantage of this and uses it to generate maximum effect in the scene which has the showdown with the cops. Fiery scene!
Other performances worth mentioning include Michael Pena as the humiliated but extremely patient locksmith and Shaun Toub as the persian store owner. Bahar Soomekh, who is cast as his daughter is beautiful and embodies the young generation of today. Ludacris catches your eye in some scenes but fizzles out in an artificially made-up image makeover.
The one thing which might wear you down in this movie is the sheer number of coincidences popping up one after the other. I initially thought it was interesting and in a way, keeps you thinking..but after some time into the movie, you feel ridiculed. Come on..this is LA..are these the only people in the whole greater Los Angeles area??
It'll be interesting to see and hear others talking about this movie too..and their experiences watching it. For me, it was a movie in which performances ruled over the story, cinematography and music score..however honest an intention was to make the story a worthwhile one.
Friday, March 24, 2006
Thursday, March 16, 2006
Paint it Yellow
Ok, this must be the umpteenth article you must have read in the past couple of months about 'Rang De Basanti'. Well, its not exactly a surprise when people see a good film, they tend to write about it..a lot. Anyways, while the movie itself was undoubtedly well made, what made it connect to the audience in such a way? What made people sing praises about the movie's brilliance in executing such a story (patriotism? Rebellion?) I think its the characters. Director Rakeysh OmPrakash Mehra smartly creates characters who are poles apart in personalities but still manage to hang out together as buddies. I feel there is this magic in showing characters like this...take the best known example in the history of Bollywood..yep, Sholay. Jai and Veeru are like chalk and cheese but still there is one common thing that binds them together..friendship? I dont think so. Of course, characters designed for movies have to be different to make the proceedings interesting, thats the age-old formula! But in RDB, what Mr. Mehra does is more than just create characters and have talented actors play them. He creates characters and 'shows' them as he wants them to be. The audience, in this case does not have a choice but to view that person in the exact same way the director wants. Take Aslam..the character is first introduced spray painting a wall with quotes like 'The rebel has arrived' and graffiti of sorts. Slowly, in the course of the movie, he is shown to be an inferior of sorts..he actually does not like getting into fights. When Laxman taunts him, he prefers to walk away rather than answer back. It is DJ, who is the hothead and comes to the 'aid' of Aslam. Sukhi is shown as a guy full of fun and frolic..a guy who seems to never take anything seriously. The audience is then treated to a scene later where Sukhi is the first and only person among the friends to actually insult and doubt the loyalty of his own buddy, Karan. It is this shock treatment, which I think makes RDB so interesting.
Let's look at the other characters as well. Sonia, the only girl in the gang is shown to be a simple, down to earth, caring and friendly person. She is the one who actually comes up with the idea of murdering the defense minister. While this is not exactly shocking, since she is shown in another character (a revolutionary) at that moment in time, the character's double identity is something which the director considered his trump card. People hide things, and when the actual identity of the person comes in full view at times of necessity, the acquaintances around him/her also tend to be shocked, let alone the audience.
While I agree that only Aamir Khan could have given DJ the life of the character..the vibrancy, mischievousness, I feel he underplayed his character very well. For the second time, I have seen a great actor (a superstar) actually give his best without going over the top. The first time being 'Swades'. It's such a treat to watch these 'bigger than life' actors just walk through the movie effortlessly and gracefully in characters that have been tailor-made.
Siddharth is a revelation of sorts producing one of the most electrifying performances in recent times. His Karan is the most silent and is the introvert. In spite of being completely alone in his personal life, he manages to bond well with the rest of the friends. Mehra shows Karan's character in a very interesting way. In a repeat viewing, I saw that Karan, in his earlier scenes chooses to be just a bystander..doesnt take a single decision (except maybe a very shocking one, which is not shown in the movie) and waits for others to actually talk about something. In the climax however, Karan is the one who tells the world about what their thoughts are and what they had planned. Finally, the one character that Mehra leaves unchanged in the whole movie is Atul Kulkarni's Laxman. A violent, firm believer of nationalism, Laxman is a confident man who is just on the way to becoming a major political figure representing the youth. Even though Laxman's thoughts about his party change in the course of the movie, he is still the same violent, extremist deep inside. I feel Mehra, in a way misled the character into showing himself to be a frustrated person who needs to vent out his anger at the world. Kulkarni does not disappoint and his rendition of 'Sarfarosh Ki Tamanna' still lingers..days after I watched the movie.
In this movie of introverts, extroverts, young, angry, frustrated people..the screenplay is king. The way the director, editor and screenwriter put together bits and pieces of our history is nothing short of genius film-making. All these technicians mentioned have a very, very serious knowledge of the art of convincing people by showing them pictures..beautiful pictures. Last, but definitely not the least..Mr. Rehman infuses each frame of the movie with such a delectable score that you cannot stop wondering how this man can come up with such a versatile range of music..all in one go. I loved all songs in the movie..the best one being the title song 'Rang De Basanti'. The energy of this song is so evident right from the beginning, that you just cant stop yourself doing a jig, the bhangra way!
Let's look at the other characters as well. Sonia, the only girl in the gang is shown to be a simple, down to earth, caring and friendly person. She is the one who actually comes up with the idea of murdering the defense minister. While this is not exactly shocking, since she is shown in another character (a revolutionary) at that moment in time, the character's double identity is something which the director considered his trump card. People hide things, and when the actual identity of the person comes in full view at times of necessity, the acquaintances around him/her also tend to be shocked, let alone the audience.
While I agree that only Aamir Khan could have given DJ the life of the character..the vibrancy, mischievousness, I feel he underplayed his character very well. For the second time, I have seen a great actor (a superstar) actually give his best without going over the top. The first time being 'Swades'. It's such a treat to watch these 'bigger than life' actors just walk through the movie effortlessly and gracefully in characters that have been tailor-made.
Siddharth is a revelation of sorts producing one of the most electrifying performances in recent times. His Karan is the most silent and is the introvert. In spite of being completely alone in his personal life, he manages to bond well with the rest of the friends. Mehra shows Karan's character in a very interesting way. In a repeat viewing, I saw that Karan, in his earlier scenes chooses to be just a bystander..doesnt take a single decision (except maybe a very shocking one, which is not shown in the movie) and waits for others to actually talk about something. In the climax however, Karan is the one who tells the world about what their thoughts are and what they had planned. Finally, the one character that Mehra leaves unchanged in the whole movie is Atul Kulkarni's Laxman. A violent, firm believer of nationalism, Laxman is a confident man who is just on the way to becoming a major political figure representing the youth. Even though Laxman's thoughts about his party change in the course of the movie, he is still the same violent, extremist deep inside. I feel Mehra, in a way misled the character into showing himself to be a frustrated person who needs to vent out his anger at the world. Kulkarni does not disappoint and his rendition of 'Sarfarosh Ki Tamanna' still lingers..days after I watched the movie.
In this movie of introverts, extroverts, young, angry, frustrated people..the screenplay is king. The way the director, editor and screenwriter put together bits and pieces of our history is nothing short of genius film-making. All these technicians mentioned have a very, very serious knowledge of the art of convincing people by showing them pictures..beautiful pictures. Last, but definitely not the least..Mr. Rehman infuses each frame of the movie with such a delectable score that you cannot stop wondering how this man can come up with such a versatile range of music..all in one go. I loved all songs in the movie..the best one being the title song 'Rang De Basanti'. The energy of this song is so evident right from the beginning, that you just cant stop yourself doing a jig, the bhangra way!
Thursday, March 02, 2006
Bollywood's 'Sehar'
Last weekend, me and my roomies went shopping..the usual, first stop - desi shop, then a walk around city center and dinner at a thai restaurant. We are four guys among which one is married and waiting for his better half to join him sometime later this month. Munich is a lovely place, has heart, soul and the city is very attractive..except for the cold, that is. It was especially cold on Saturday, the day we were out and we were glad to have caught the tram from outside our apartment to the city center. On the way, Sashi, who we call Mr.? because of all the questions we get from him each day asks me..'Bro, how's Sehar?'. I ask, 'What, the movie?'. 'Yes'. Having already watched the movie once a few weekends ago, I said 'Yeah, I thought it was okay, kinda slow moving..but a good movie nevertheless.'
And that ended the conversation. We came back home, our tummies full. Next morning, we carry out our usual sunday chores and settle down for the 'matinee'..our post lunch dvd session. Sashi pops in 'Sehar' and we settle down in our designated couches. I was apprehensive about watching this movie again for a repeat viewing. Only Ajay, the other guy has seen the movie and Venkat was naturally looking bored already after having learnt that 'Sehar' means Dawn in Urdu!! Anyways, we are 15 minutes into the movie and all four of us are watching the movie with rapt attention. Me, I was kind of surprised about my ability to sit still without a comment on my second viewing. An hour into the movie, I had to tell the guys that the cinematography reminds me of Ram Gopal Verma's 'Company'...which I would regret saying later.
'Sehar' is a movie which has been made with utmost care, precision and most importantly, an honest intention to make an honest movie. And director Kabeer Kaushik succeeds in doing so. I have not experienced the joy of watching a movie the second time so much since a long long time, and a bollywood movie at that! Even watching 'Company' which I wrongfully mentioned earlier, a second time seemed stale. Sure, Ajay Devgan and Vivek Oberoi have great screen presence but Arshad Warsi is no comedian in this movie. To cut a long story short, 'Sehar' is just falls short of being a perfect thriller of a movie.
The story: SSP Ajay Kumar is newly transferred (for the 14th time in his career) to Lucknow and the first thing he has to face is indifference from his superior officer on how to eradicate organized crime in the city. Slowly, the story moves on to how Ajay manages to convince his superiors of allowing him to create a special task force specially for combating organized crime. The man they are up against is Gajraj Singh, who with pure ruthlessness has managed to wipe out every single hurdle in his path and is well on his way to becoming a don with 'absolute power'. I will not reveal much more of the story here, but would like to mention two more characters which will leave a lasting impression on one's mind after watching the movie. Naved Aslam, as 'Solanki' is the gritty police officer and Pankaj Kapur, as the professor both of who work for Ajay Kumar. Kaushik's direction is depicted in harsh, realistic style with stunning visuals as backup. Dont miss the climax, which I thought was just awesome, just looking at the way it was picturised.
It was really hard for me to imagine that this movie has been directed by a first time director whose background was ad making. I mean, looking at the way Kaushik builds his characters, takes care to show the slightest detail in his shots, the subtlity, its amazing. Screenplay plays a very important part in the fact why this movie is so enjoyable in watching. So is the Cinematography. Music? Beautiful. Performances? Terrific. So what is it that's not good? The pace...there were a few instances when we looked at each other and thought..'I can imagine myself wanting to go out for a loo break if this were in a movie theatre.' For some reason, maybe conscience...the director lets the pace drop in a few instances which could have been easily avoided with various 'fillers'. But apart from that, Sehar is a movie worth watching just for the 'narration style' as Venkat put it and of course, Warsi's career best performance to date. Watching this movie, I couldn't help but thinking about these new directors who nowadays are popping up with these incredible films..sense has started to 'dawn' upon bollywood.
Rating 4 out of 5 stars.
And that ended the conversation. We came back home, our tummies full. Next morning, we carry out our usual sunday chores and settle down for the 'matinee'..our post lunch dvd session. Sashi pops in 'Sehar' and we settle down in our designated couches. I was apprehensive about watching this movie again for a repeat viewing. Only Ajay, the other guy has seen the movie and Venkat was naturally looking bored already after having learnt that 'Sehar' means Dawn in Urdu!! Anyways, we are 15 minutes into the movie and all four of us are watching the movie with rapt attention. Me, I was kind of surprised about my ability to sit still without a comment on my second viewing. An hour into the movie, I had to tell the guys that the cinematography reminds me of Ram Gopal Verma's 'Company'...which I would regret saying later.
'Sehar' is a movie which has been made with utmost care, precision and most importantly, an honest intention to make an honest movie. And director Kabeer Kaushik succeeds in doing so. I have not experienced the joy of watching a movie the second time so much since a long long time, and a bollywood movie at that! Even watching 'Company' which I wrongfully mentioned earlier, a second time seemed stale. Sure, Ajay Devgan and Vivek Oberoi have great screen presence but Arshad Warsi is no comedian in this movie. To cut a long story short, 'Sehar' is just falls short of being a perfect thriller of a movie.
The story: SSP Ajay Kumar is newly transferred (for the 14th time in his career) to Lucknow and the first thing he has to face is indifference from his superior officer on how to eradicate organized crime in the city. Slowly, the story moves on to how Ajay manages to convince his superiors of allowing him to create a special task force specially for combating organized crime. The man they are up against is Gajraj Singh, who with pure ruthlessness has managed to wipe out every single hurdle in his path and is well on his way to becoming a don with 'absolute power'. I will not reveal much more of the story here, but would like to mention two more characters which will leave a lasting impression on one's mind after watching the movie. Naved Aslam, as 'Solanki' is the gritty police officer and Pankaj Kapur, as the professor both of who work for Ajay Kumar. Kaushik's direction is depicted in harsh, realistic style with stunning visuals as backup. Dont miss the climax, which I thought was just awesome, just looking at the way it was picturised.
It was really hard for me to imagine that this movie has been directed by a first time director whose background was ad making. I mean, looking at the way Kaushik builds his characters, takes care to show the slightest detail in his shots, the subtlity, its amazing. Screenplay plays a very important part in the fact why this movie is so enjoyable in watching. So is the Cinematography. Music? Beautiful. Performances? Terrific. So what is it that's not good? The pace...there were a few instances when we looked at each other and thought..'I can imagine myself wanting to go out for a loo break if this were in a movie theatre.' For some reason, maybe conscience...the director lets the pace drop in a few instances which could have been easily avoided with various 'fillers'. But apart from that, Sehar is a movie worth watching just for the 'narration style' as Venkat put it and of course, Warsi's career best performance to date. Watching this movie, I couldn't help but thinking about these new directors who nowadays are popping up with these incredible films..sense has started to 'dawn' upon bollywood.
Rating 4 out of 5 stars.
Friday, October 28, 2005
The truth..
Why does Ram Gopal Verma make movies? Answer: Because he likes making movies.
Its sometimes hard to comprehend people like Verma talking about doing things just because he likes to. Does that mean he doesnt like other stuff. No! He probably likes to go home, watch CNN show some crap about the world, eat some dinner, andhra pickle and ice cream with his family more than he likes to make movies. But now, he would be no different than others, would he?
When I first watched Satya back in '98 in Hyderabad with one of my buddies, when movie-watching for me was a way of getting out of the house on your motorcycle, have some chai, get a smoke, I went into the theatre with normal expectations of watching a good, well-directed RGV movie. The buddy I was with, is a die-hard fan of the director and has a lot of information regarding what makes the director 'click' and how he manages to make movies in a non-bollywoodish style. He figures, that Verma has a vision. A vision? Every director has a vision, for gossake! True, but what's different with Verma is that he first envisions the audience getting a spell-binding experience out of watching his movies..other movie-makers might envision different things like distributors queing up, people thronging the movie theaters etc. Sure, Verma also wants people to watch his movies, but its with a different attitude. He wants to make it different for the audience when they watch his movie. I have listened to my friend, buddy talk about things like this for more than ten years. And I believe him.
Satya is the story of a simple man who, after arriving in Mumbai comes to power in the underworld through sheer grit, cleverness and a bit of luck. Verma does not waste time in flashbacks. I have read on one of the numerous fan sites that Verma originally thought of making an action movie, and started off making Satya. I feel he ended up making a different movie altogether. Spontaneous. Nothing is said about where the main protagonist comes from, what makes him come to Mumbai or what drives him inside. All throughout the film, he is projected as a normal, simple human being. Ruthlessness is a misdeamenor. He was probably born with it. The way Verma introduces the characters in this movie is nothing short of sheer genius. They are just a few among the millions, but then they are different..like the director wants them to be. The best part is, you agree with him. You do not understand why and how you connect with the characters in this movie, but you do. The best of them all..Bhiku. Actor Manoj Bajpai made this character look so effervescent and clear that you do not doubt for a moment that he is in fact, a member of the shady group. In spite of realizing the fact that all members of the bhiku gang are hardcore criminals, you begin to connect with them and in certain stages, like them for what they are doing.
One thing you will notice about Verma's performers. They are not great actors, no sir. But they all have wonderfully expressive eyes or the most amazing body language. Ajay Devgan, Manoj Bajpai, Nagarjuna, J.D Chakravarty, Jagapathi Babu (Gaayam), Abhishek Bachchan and of course, Urmila. All the above listed actors have, in one movie or the other have mesmerized me with their performances..only using their eyes. This is what RGV excels in. You dont need loud, garish costumes, music or special effects to show off action scenes, menace or destructive scenes. Silence, clever lighting and the actor's portrayal of his character using minimal body language can also have the same impact, if not a better one. One other thing, among many is the minimal usage of lighting for scenes. Dark scenes dominate most of the movie's indoor shots. You also get to see Verma's trademark body-mounted camera moving rapidly during action scenes.
Satya's character develops slowly over a period of two hours and the shattering climax brings out the desperation, anger, frustration and ultimately a fitting end. No longer is he, the calm, calculated criminal...he is kicking, screaming, crying and dying to meet his humiliated girl friend. Verma brings out the best in this relatively unknown, untapped actor.
A remarkable effort, I must say, by RGV for making a movie so different yet so close to the heart of Indian movie-goers. Succeeding in doing so, he has proven that he has the talent, resources, technical expertise to make world-class movies which almost everyone will watch and wonder how he was able to do it. That, I think is exactly what Mr. Verma wants. Encores all the way.
Its sometimes hard to comprehend people like Verma talking about doing things just because he likes to. Does that mean he doesnt like other stuff. No! He probably likes to go home, watch CNN show some crap about the world, eat some dinner, andhra pickle and ice cream with his family more than he likes to make movies. But now, he would be no different than others, would he?
When I first watched Satya back in '98 in Hyderabad with one of my buddies, when movie-watching for me was a way of getting out of the house on your motorcycle, have some chai, get a smoke, I went into the theatre with normal expectations of watching a good, well-directed RGV movie. The buddy I was with, is a die-hard fan of the director and has a lot of information regarding what makes the director 'click' and how he manages to make movies in a non-bollywoodish style. He figures, that Verma has a vision. A vision? Every director has a vision, for gossake! True, but what's different with Verma is that he first envisions the audience getting a spell-binding experience out of watching his movies..other movie-makers might envision different things like distributors queing up, people thronging the movie theaters etc. Sure, Verma also wants people to watch his movies, but its with a different attitude. He wants to make it different for the audience when they watch his movie. I have listened to my friend, buddy talk about things like this for more than ten years. And I believe him.
Satya is the story of a simple man who, after arriving in Mumbai comes to power in the underworld through sheer grit, cleverness and a bit of luck. Verma does not waste time in flashbacks. I have read on one of the numerous fan sites that Verma originally thought of making an action movie, and started off making Satya. I feel he ended up making a different movie altogether. Spontaneous. Nothing is said about where the main protagonist comes from, what makes him come to Mumbai or what drives him inside. All throughout the film, he is projected as a normal, simple human being. Ruthlessness is a misdeamenor. He was probably born with it. The way Verma introduces the characters in this movie is nothing short of sheer genius. They are just a few among the millions, but then they are different..like the director wants them to be. The best part is, you agree with him. You do not understand why and how you connect with the characters in this movie, but you do. The best of them all..Bhiku. Actor Manoj Bajpai made this character look so effervescent and clear that you do not doubt for a moment that he is in fact, a member of the shady group. In spite of realizing the fact that all members of the bhiku gang are hardcore criminals, you begin to connect with them and in certain stages, like them for what they are doing.
One thing you will notice about Verma's performers. They are not great actors, no sir. But they all have wonderfully expressive eyes or the most amazing body language. Ajay Devgan, Manoj Bajpai, Nagarjuna, J.D Chakravarty, Jagapathi Babu (Gaayam), Abhishek Bachchan and of course, Urmila. All the above listed actors have, in one movie or the other have mesmerized me with their performances..only using their eyes. This is what RGV excels in. You dont need loud, garish costumes, music or special effects to show off action scenes, menace or destructive scenes. Silence, clever lighting and the actor's portrayal of his character using minimal body language can also have the same impact, if not a better one. One other thing, among many is the minimal usage of lighting for scenes. Dark scenes dominate most of the movie's indoor shots. You also get to see Verma's trademark body-mounted camera moving rapidly during action scenes.
Satya's character develops slowly over a period of two hours and the shattering climax brings out the desperation, anger, frustration and ultimately a fitting end. No longer is he, the calm, calculated criminal...he is kicking, screaming, crying and dying to meet his humiliated girl friend. Verma brings out the best in this relatively unknown, untapped actor.
A remarkable effort, I must say, by RGV for making a movie so different yet so close to the heart of Indian movie-goers. Succeeding in doing so, he has proven that he has the talent, resources, technical expertise to make world-class movies which almost everyone will watch and wonder how he was able to do it. That, I think is exactly what Mr. Verma wants. Encores all the way.
The dogs of small things
Movies. Why do we watch a movie? What drives a person to watch a movie? Mind you, movie-making is different. It is a career-driven aspiration for some people to make movies, earn money, fame and overall satisfaction. But movie-watching is a completely different subject. It deals with human nature, interests, experiences, acquaintances yadayadayada.
I realized one day, that if I want to tell people something I know, I am not sure about how my reaction would be once I have finished expressing what I wanted to say. Would I feel satisfied, peaceful, content or what!? So , here is something I am attempting..
Last week, I was in one of those big electronic markets which sells everything that has the letter 'e' in its name or whatever-its-called. After spending about twenty minutes browsing three floors, finding nothing interesting or rather, finding everything unaffordable, I walk down to the lower level of the store where they have one of the biggest DVD/CD collections in town. Now, I've had some titles in mind that I wanted to buy and add them to my modest collection. These include some movies from Hollywood and Bollywood which I have recently read reviews of, on the internet. Now, you may ask..is reading reviews my favorite pastime? You betcha..
So Im looking for this one title which I have heard rave reviews of, and as I recall..have seen the movie in one of those college parties when I was half-drunk. Now, Reservoir Dogs is not exactly everyone's favorite movie, but let me finish.
Quentin Tarantino is a great storyteller, for sure. He probably stole this script from someone or some book or just dreamed it up..(Written by him, actually). Now, direction is something which has to be developed over a period of time..not many people are born with the talent for directing movies. Starting from the first shot of this movie, you see situations which do not appear in your regular hollywood movies. The movie is bloody, sure..but its the way the editor cuts between the scenes which give you the hair-raising experience of watching this Tarantino movie.
The movie starts off with this bunch of guys sitting around a table having breakfast, or rather finishing up breakfast and discussing about random stuff. Yes, thats 'RANDOM STUFF'. For many, this will remind them of a scene between John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson discussing about stuff relating to how fast food joints are known across the world. Pulp Fiction is considered a classic by many because of this unique methodology employed of getting the viewer involved in the proceedings of the movie. You first listen to these people talking, and initially, you can't help but wonder if the director is just trying to kill time with the wafer-thin storyline he has on his hands. You are right. That is exactly what the director has on his hands..a piece of story which probably has been recycled so many times in Hollywood, that it actually starts to smell like the trash-can in sardine-land. But then, as soon as the scene shifts, you see, on the screen, something so utterly indescribable, unrelated and unexpected that you can't help but again wonder why you had underestimated the director's talents in the first place
.
The story goes something like this..five people team up for a crime which goes wrong because someone tipped off the police. That someone is from the team of five. Tarantino does not make any mockery of the script by hiding things irrelevant to the narrative..instead, he concentrates on simple story-telling, taking the viewer from such a wonderful perspective of vision that you end up holding your breath for too long. He does not mock the viewer, instead he taunts them to guess how each character unfolds. Mr. Blonde, when first shown seems like a relatively harmless guy, loyal to his friends and wrestles with the ganglord's son. If you look at scenes of Michael Madsen having fun with the cop later on, you wouldn't want to even see the guy ever in your life, let alone wrestle with him. I seriously have second thoughts about being Madsen's fan. Harvey Kietel's character is again a revelation. Is this guy ruthless, caring, too sensitive, goddamit! What! Tim Roth is one of those underrated actors who need a movie like this to showcase their true potential. His agony, pain, helplessness and finally his apologetic scene stays with you for a long time even after the movie has ended.
I will not ask you to go watch this movie if you feel like watching it, if you like slick movies etc etc.. Instead, I will ask you rather to think about how you would imagine yourself to be in one of the character's shoes, if at all you get the chance to watch the movie. I would rate this movie as a classic example of story-telling at its best. Colorful.
I realized one day, that if I want to tell people something I know, I am not sure about how my reaction would be once I have finished expressing what I wanted to say. Would I feel satisfied, peaceful, content or what!? So , here is something I am attempting..
Last week, I was in one of those big electronic markets which sells everything that has the letter 'e' in its name or whatever-its-called. After spending about twenty minutes browsing three floors, finding nothing interesting or rather, finding everything unaffordable, I walk down to the lower level of the store where they have one of the biggest DVD/CD collections in town. Now, I've had some titles in mind that I wanted to buy and add them to my modest collection. These include some movies from Hollywood and Bollywood which I have recently read reviews of, on the internet. Now, you may ask..is reading reviews my favorite pastime? You betcha..
So Im looking for this one title which I have heard rave reviews of, and as I recall..have seen the movie in one of those college parties when I was half-drunk. Now, Reservoir Dogs is not exactly everyone's favorite movie, but let me finish.
Quentin Tarantino is a great storyteller, for sure. He probably stole this script from someone or some book or just dreamed it up..(Written by him, actually). Now, direction is something which has to be developed over a period of time..not many people are born with the talent for directing movies. Starting from the first shot of this movie, you see situations which do not appear in your regular hollywood movies. The movie is bloody, sure..but its the way the editor cuts between the scenes which give you the hair-raising experience of watching this Tarantino movie.
The movie starts off with this bunch of guys sitting around a table having breakfast, or rather finishing up breakfast and discussing about random stuff. Yes, thats 'RANDOM STUFF'. For many, this will remind them of a scene between John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson discussing about stuff relating to how fast food joints are known across the world. Pulp Fiction is considered a classic by many because of this unique methodology employed of getting the viewer involved in the proceedings of the movie. You first listen to these people talking, and initially, you can't help but wonder if the director is just trying to kill time with the wafer-thin storyline he has on his hands. You are right. That is exactly what the director has on his hands..a piece of story which probably has been recycled so many times in Hollywood, that it actually starts to smell like the trash-can in sardine-land. But then, as soon as the scene shifts, you see, on the screen, something so utterly indescribable, unrelated and unexpected that you can't help but again wonder why you had underestimated the director's talents in the first place
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The story goes something like this..five people team up for a crime which goes wrong because someone tipped off the police. That someone is from the team of five. Tarantino does not make any mockery of the script by hiding things irrelevant to the narrative..instead, he concentrates on simple story-telling, taking the viewer from such a wonderful perspective of vision that you end up holding your breath for too long. He does not mock the viewer, instead he taunts them to guess how each character unfolds. Mr. Blonde, when first shown seems like a relatively harmless guy, loyal to his friends and wrestles with the ganglord's son. If you look at scenes of Michael Madsen having fun with the cop later on, you wouldn't want to even see the guy ever in your life, let alone wrestle with him. I seriously have second thoughts about being Madsen's fan. Harvey Kietel's character is again a revelation. Is this guy ruthless, caring, too sensitive, goddamit! What! Tim Roth is one of those underrated actors who need a movie like this to showcase their true potential. His agony, pain, helplessness and finally his apologetic scene stays with you for a long time even after the movie has ended.
I will not ask you to go watch this movie if you feel like watching it, if you like slick movies etc etc.. Instead, I will ask you rather to think about how you would imagine yourself to be in one of the character's shoes, if at all you get the chance to watch the movie. I would rate this movie as a classic example of story-telling at its best. Colorful.
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