Some recent movies - Through the eyes of a layman

For sometime I have been wondering about the topics, which I am inclined to write on. A lot of soul searching later I figured, why not write about something which I have been doing a lot of lately i.e. watching Hindi movies (courtesy my wife, mostly). My guess is I have seen almost all Hindi movies which have been released in the recent past, except maybe the ones of the horror genre (again, since my better half isn’t too partial to their ilk - understatement).

In any case, I am not about to review these movies; firstly, I have no clue about the technical nuances of movies and secondly, since I am not even 1/100th part creative compared to the guys who make these movies. Hence, it would be rather presumptuous and preposterous (more so) of me if I were to pass a judgment about these movies. Hence, I would limit myself to a commoner’s viewpoint of these movies, and what I liked and disliked about them. I would also limit myself to the last few movies which I have seen without any specific time period.

A Wednesday: The best movie I have seen in a very long time, and no. I am not saying that in hindsight after the Mumbai terror arracks. I have seen this movie much before the terror attacks on 26/11 and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It brought forth a lot of contentious topics to the fore, in forms of civilian vigilantism, the rigid thought process and machinery of the upholders of the legal system, the limited authority of the law enforcers to deal with extraordinary situations etc. Without going into the pros and cons of these issues, which have now been discussed threadbare after the recent events in Mumbai, the movie amazed me with the detailed research that had been put into its making. The creators and the protagonists of the movie covered almost all aspects that can be associated with such events though there may be different schools of thought about the sequence of events resulting in the culmination of the movie. Naseeruddin Shah (played the role of the common man to perfection and Anupam Kher (the very believable and forthright police commissioner) were at their most amazing bests. The fact that this movie exposes the rebellious strains of thought that we all have, but choose nothing to do about, is to my mind what makes it a mind-blowing view.

Mumbai Meri Jaan: One of the best movies that I have seen in the recent times. What was very striking for me in the movie was the portrayal of policemen in the movie, their angst at the impotence of the system whose very fundamentals which they are supposed to uphold and their gradual resignation to their fate. The dithering of a common man about boarding a local train post the 07/11 blasts, was portrayed very vividly and it definitely struck a chord with me (I couldn’t also dare to board the Mumbai local trains for a considerable amount of time, at least a week, and when I finally did, I was very scared and conscious of the surroundings). Also, the virtues of tolerance towards all religions were put forth very subtly, minus any jingoism and definitely without a deliberate attempt to make that a central theme of the movie. For me, Paresh Rawal, was the virtuoso performer in this movie, very ably supported by Irrfan Khan (this man simply amazes me in all the roles he plays), Kay Kay Menon (likewise), Madhavan and Soha Ali Khan (Just to name a few).

Rock On: A movie very close to my heart, made me remember my initiation to rock music during my college days and the great times which me and my friends had college. Also, was especially heart warming since the movie released right after a trip with my friends to Goa and all the imagery of those fun filled college days and the sense of emptiness without all of them was brought to the fore. Awesome performance by all the actors especially Arjun Rampal and Farhan Akhtar (Brilliant debut – pretty good singing and acting at the same time). A movie for friends and rock lovers, with influences of Dil Chahta Hai and Jhankar Beats, methinks.

Dostana: I thought it was a very funny movie with no pretensions of sending out a social message etc. The movie was full of laughs and Priyanka Chopra (hot, hott, hottt). A very stylish movie, my only crib was the very minimal role of Boman Irani. I thought an actor of his caliber was absolutely wasted in the cameo given to him. John looked good as usual (with a bit of exposure too) and Abhishek was macho, but Priyanka stole the limelight, the best she has ever looked and that’s saying something

Golmaal Returns: An out and out comedy with Tusshar Kapoor (I hope I haven’t missed any “s” or “k” in his name) being the out and out best performer. Very slapstick, but very enjoyable (for the non snooty crowd, at least). Still, like all sequels, left a bit of an empty feeling as though it didn’t live upto the first film.

Oye Lucky, Lucky Oye: An understated comedy and Abhay Deol’s straight faced acting without trying to be outright funny is a revelation. Paresh Rawal is very good as usual and isn’t boring even in 3 avatars.

Sorry Bhai: Sorry Bhai, didn’t think much about the movie. The saving grace was it didn’t turn out to be a brother sacrificing his love for brother (Saajan etc.) type which I was petrified it would be. Chitrangada Singh is amazingly beautiful while Sharmaan Joshi has got too associated (stereotyped) with comic roles to ever appear serious now. Boman and Shabana Aazmi appear to be a cut above the rest in their limited roles.

Dil Kabbaddi: Awesome movie about marriage and the state of flux relationships are always in and what makes them so special. It touches slightly on the complexity of interpersonal relationships and misunderstandings and how silence may not always be golden. Again an awesome performance by Irrfan Khan (He lights up the screen with his presence) and nice performances too by Soha Ali Khan, Konkona Sen Sharma and Rahul Bose (Very awkward and shy). The movie talks about mid life crisis and dilemmas (not something which I have experienced yet and hence can’t comment on) and is a very enjoyable watch (For people who like both A Wednesday and Welcome genres of movies).

Fashion: Very presumptuous, very stereotyped (almost all men associated with the fashion industry are gay), somewhat racist (his portrayal of blacks) and very predictable (the ending), definitely not one of Madhur Bhandarkar’s best. In my humble opinion maybe he needs to explore a different genre of movies, but I am just an ill informed viewer.

Quantum of Solace: The only new English movie I watched recently and wasn’t too impressed. I am clearly a member of the old school who loves the suave and debonair Pierce Brosnan as Bond….. James Bond. Daniel Craig is good, but he is too athletic and in my opinion too raw to be a Bond. I do not watch Bond as just another action movie; I would rather watch Rambo, Rocky, Terminator, XXX et al. if I were to equate Bond with an action movie. Also, Quantum of Solace necessitated a keen watch of Casino Royale, in the recent past at that, to make any sense of what was happening. Can we have our old Bond back please?

Other than these, there were some which I missed; EMI, Phoonk etc. I am planning to catch up with the expected releases of Rab Ne Bana Di jodi, Ghajini etc. and write about them in the near future.

Also, since I have had the opportunity to watch only Hindi movies, would love someone to update this post with some recent English movies and which of them are in the “Must watch” category. Till then, have a good time and happy movies.