Movie Review: Argo

When the American embassy is attacked in 1978 following the Iranian revolution and subsequent escape of the Shah, six embassy officials manage to escape the furious mob by walking into the streets and ending up in the Canadian Ambassador's house. Later, CIA manages to get them out of the country by constructing a story of Hollywood crew on location scouting. Ben Affleck bases his latest directorial venture on this true story to bring out an interesting and gripping drama on the screen.

Tony Mendez(Ben Affleck) is part of the operation which is trying to rescue the six American embassy officials taking refuge in the Candaian Ambassador's house. CIA has no concrete plans for the rescue. The only plausible plan is the one in which the embassy officials can pose as a crew on a location hunt for a movie. In order to make this plan work, Tony has to recruit help from Hollywood in the form of John Chambers(John Goodman) a makeup artist and Lester Siegel(Alan Arkin) a movie producer.

Ben Affleck quickly sets the action in place after providing a primer on the whole confict using voice overs. He keeps the viewer engaged with the fast paced drama on the screen. He has also an excellent supporting cast. Ben uses not only photography techniques reminiscent of the era but also the famous TV clips from the same era. The tension is captured brillianty during the US Embassy seige in the initial reels. However, the drama during the escape from Iran seems to be far fetched and also a bit forced for the thrills.

Performance wise, the movie belongs to Ben Affleck's Tony Mendez and Alan Arkin's Siegel. Ben Affleck effectively underplays his role making it more enjoyable to watch. Alan Arkin gets the best lines and provides the best humorous scenes in the movie.

Go for it. Although it tells only the American angle, it is still good to watch for foming our own opinion about the crisis.

Language: English

Genre: Drama

Rating: ***

-->

Movie Review: Thuppakki

An army man on vacation takes on a terrorist leader planning massive attacks in Mumbai. That is the story in a nutshell. So you have Jagadish(Vijay) who is in Mumbai for vacation, meets a girl(Kajal Aggarwal) on his parent's insistence, rejects her on various grounds, repents the decision soon, courts her shamelessly and spends all his idle time with his inspector friend(Sathyan). While doing all these, he accidentally uncovers a terrorist sleeper cell. Now he has to thwart their plans. He succeeds the first attempt. Then the sleeper cell leader(Vidyut Jamwal) is irked.

This time, A R Murgadoss addresses the issue of terrorism in this movie with an Indian army man as the resourceful protagonist trying to stand up on his own, never complaining about lack of anything. I like heroes who complains less and accomplishes a lot with less. There are a few of them from Indian cinema of late. But there are issues with this movie in spite of the interesting theme. The main problem with the movie is the first half where nothing happens and an interesting second half. If you analyze the first half, the best scenes are already shown in the trailer. In order to fill in the first half, unnecessary comic scenes with Sathyan, Jayaram(in the silliest role he has every played in his career) and Kajal Aggarwal (less said the better). The visuals looks stunning thanks to Santosh Sivan. The script by A R Murugadoss doesn't leave any scope for the editor Sreekar Prasad to make the proceeding racier. Harris Jayaraj's music is nice but the placement of the songs is not good for the narrative.

Vijay performs well as the army man often underplaying his weaknesses. Even though he doesn't get to sport army uniform, he gets to do many other things. The wardrobe has undergone an ocean of change. He also does what he has not done in most of the movies. He gets to mouth English and Hindi dialogues. Forget the diction. This is a good sign because Tamil actors(or read stars) are finally willing to change according to the script. Vidyut Jamwal gets to show off his mean side as the terrorist leader. Unlike Billa 2 where he had disappointing role despite a terrific screen presence, Vidyut is able to perform in this role. The biggest drawback of his performance is the voice over (sometimes in Tamil and sometimes in English), a mechanism used instead of subtitling, backfires and takes the steam off his performance. Then, that is the director's fault.

The movie is a cat-and-mouse game between the good and the bad. But the thrills are lacking. It is like a cracker in a cycle of cracks-fizzes-cracks. I recommend to wait for the DVD. Using this option, you can still get some work done while watching the interesting parts alone.

Language: Tamil

Genre: Thriller

Rating: **

-->

Movie Review: Bachelorette

A wedding event that might turn out to be a disaster because of dysfunctional friends. There are twists and turns till all is well that ends well. Haven't we seen this many times on screen? Yes, we have. Bachelorette directed by Leslye Headland based on her own play is the latest addition to this genre. It is told from the girl's point of view and it does raise a few laughs.

So, you have three friends Regan(Kirsten Dunst), Gena(Lizzy Caplan) and Katie(Isla Fisher) who are in NY to attend Becky's(Rebel Wilson) wedding. The foursome were great friends from their high school years. They have seen ups and downs. The upcoming wedding is another up and down at the same time. It is a moment to rejoice for Becky while the rest of the three are not very happy about Becky being the first one in the foursome to settle down.

Leslye Headland's movie starts with jealousy. It then then traces the lives of the three friends through conversations and funny incidents. It peaks to a meltdown when egos clashes and secrets tumble out of the closet. At the end, everyone finds peace and happiness in their lives by correcting their past mistakes. Although there are funny moments, there isn't much to write about this movie. As for the performances, Kirsten Dunst stands out and Isla Fisher brings out smiles although she is playing the stereotypical superficial woman.

Watch it on DVD if you have nothing else to choose.

Language: English

Genre: Comedy

Rating: **

-->

Movie Review: Skyfall

The latest installment of Bond can't get any more British than this. You have "the" Lord Voldemort in the star cast. Yes, I am referring to Ralph Fiennes. If that isn't enought, you have a British director Sam Mendes, who has found recognition from directing intense drama based on American lives, at the helm. I understand the decision on Ralph. But I couldn't say the same about the director. What is a director who specializes in drama doing in a thriller which ideally should have diluted sensibilities?

The opening reels of Skyfall casts all the doubts away even though subsequent reels are a different matter. You see James Bond(Daniel Craig) chasing a bad guy to retrieve a disk. If the previous movie used the Bourne techniques to give an edgy look for the action sequences, here it outdoes the Bourne. Bourne may be running over the rooftops fighting villains and jumping from across the building. Bond prefers to chase the villain over the rooftops of Istanbul on a bike wearing a suit. How cool can it get? Then both continue their stunt on top of a train. That is where Bond's companion Eve(Naomie Harris) takes a shot at the villain at the command of M(Judi Dench) and ends up hitting Bond.

Now, Bond is presumed killed. MI6 and M are under political scrutiny by the newly appointed Gareth Mallory(Ralph Fiennes). If that isn't enough, MI6 networks are hacked by an unknown organization and the headquarters bombed. It is time for Bond to come out of hibernation. Did you really think he was killed in Istanbul? The non-action if you discount the ones with the local exotic girls, drinks and age is catching up on Bond. He has to pass the medical examination before embarking on the next mission. The next mission takes him to Shanghai, Macau, London and finally to Scotland. Somewhere in between all the globetrotting, Bond meets the mastermind behind all this, Raoul Silva(Javier Bardem).

When you choose Sam Mendes to direct a movie on the 50th anniversary of the Bond, it raises your expectations. For once, we have a Bond with very vulnerable looks. He is more athletic than any of his predecessors. What you need in the series is a bit of drama. That is what one hope Sam Mendes will provide. He does it but in excess. That is the problem with this movie. When there is too much drama, the series loses the meaning. So you see a icon struggling with his past, his mentors and his capabilities. Deja vu if you have seen another caped crusader doing the same a few months back.

The main problem lies in the plot. The plot is reminiscent of the past Bonds, at least some sequences. The die-hard fans, including myself, love it when there are references to the past successful movies in the franchise. The first action sequence is the best and wastes no time to get the viewer in the middle of the action. Then there are action sequences which is over before it even starts. The villain's entry is late, presents himself as a diabolical figure and ends up as a madman hellbent on revenge. Where are the plain old villains with sinister hideouts and a sole intention of global domination? Please bring them back.

The poorly written villain damages one of the best performances of the movie, Javier's Silva. Not a conventional villain, when Javier makes the first appearance walking carefully towards a captured Bond, you are hooked. Javier delivers. During the long stride to meet Bond, Silva begins his monologue, flirting with audience in guessing his sexuality. In that sequence alone, he is able to bring multiple emotions in the viewer, some of them outrageously funny. After this scene, there is nothing much for Javier to do.

The plot is designed to showcase the exit of one character, entry of another character and parental feelings in Bond. At the end of the day, it is a Bond during the initial reels, a Batman Rises in the middle and a Western in the end. Usually, I like to end the reviews with a simple but definite verdict. For this one, I leave it up to you. What the hell? It is a Bond. Are you really going to listen to what I have to say?

Language: English

Genre: Action

Rating: **

-->

Movie Review: The Paperboy

A woman is in love with a condemned man on a death row. Two investigators are busy following up a story that might set this condemned man free. The three people are connected by a young man who helps in their investigation by doing odd jobs. In the process, he become jealous of the increasing distance between him and his brother, who is also one of the investigations. He also falls in love with the woman.

Lee Daniels directs this drama which tells the story of coming-off age from the perspective of Jack Jansen(Zac Effron). Nicole Kidman plays Charlotte Bless who is in love with the condemned man while the investigators Ward Jansen and Yardley Acheman are played by Matthew McConaughey and Danny Oyelowo respectively. The condemned man Hillary Van Wetter is enacted by John Cusack.

This is primarily a director's movie. Hence the storytelling overshadows the performance. The performances are good with each of the main character getting away from their comfort zone and acting in a very different role than we had seen them in earlier movies. Though a director's movie, Lee Daniels fails to keep us interested in the proceeding because of a predictable story involving discrimination, coming-off age and violence. The narrative employed by the author fails to hold our attention or keep the movie gripping. As a result, the movie meanders through interesting moments but fails to leave an impression as whole. The story is told by the household maid Anita(Macy Gray) of the Jensens.

When you run out all options for a drama, you may choose this.

Language: English

Genre: Drama

Rating: **

-->

Movie Review: Maattrraan

K V Anand's movie about conjoined twins tries to be many things except an entertainer. He tells the story of conjoined twins, Vimalan and Akhilan, with Suriya playing both the roles. The two are different like chalk and cheese. The makeup makes them looks different. The actor makes them feel different. Finally, the computer graphics makes the same actor looks conjoined. The CG is tacky. Fifteen minutes into the movie, you tend to overlook this factor. But the trouble with the movie is not any of the above.

It is a terribly long movie with nothing much happening in the first half and a lot of things crammed into the second half. So you see the birth of the twins, their mother refusing to sacrifice one of them and their father struggling to get a foothold to becoming a successful entrepreneur in the first few minutes. This happens in a breeze. Then you see one of the twins flirting with everything that moves and also helping his other shy half to find a suitable girl. At this point, the movie is actually in a standstill till the interval. From the interval, the movie moves from being drama to a mystery.

An uninteresting script and excessive length of the movie kills the joy of watching Suriya on screen. What could be told interesting in a matter of two hours have been stretched beyond that. The action sequence of conjoined twins is the trickiest. When the action is focused only on the conjoined twins, it is an interesting watch. But when the action is focused on the thugs and the conjoined twins together, it becomes confusing. The music by Harris Jayaraj is good. But the songs acts as a speed breaker.

Performance wise, Suriya stands out. He is a good actor. But there is nothing he can do to salvage this movie. Tara as the mother and Sachin Khedekar as the dad acts their part well. As the leading lady, Kajal Aggarwal has to look good. But she miserably fails to do so.

There is nothing in this movie. As the second half is based in Ukraine, you might think of watching this for the foreign locales. I say, No. You are better off with the pictures on the internet and videos on Youtube.

Language: Tamil

Genre: Drama

Rating: *

-->

Movie Review: Taken 2

Bryan Mills(Liam Neeson) might have saved his daughter Kim(Maggie Grace) from the hands of Albanian slave traders. But the death trail he leaves behind causes anguish and desire for revenge in the mind of Murad Krasniqi(Rade Serbedzija), father of the person who was responsible for abducting Kim. Meanwhile, Bryan is trying to spend as much time with Kim trying to make up for the lost time. When Lennie(Famke Janssen), Bryan's ex-wife, breaks up with her husband, the trio gets a chance to spend the vacation in Istanbul. To complicate matters, Murad is able to successfully track Bryan down to Istanbul.

Directed by Olivier Megaton, this movie is one of the action movies that Luc Besson's production company has been churning out at intervals. Of late, all such movies are becoming more and more predictable. There is a thin plot line filled with action sequences; Columbiana and Lockout being some of the recent ones. The purpose of the movie is to take the viewer from one action sequence to another. The good thing about this is the action lovers has something to watch every six months. The flip side is the entertainment quotient goes down with every movie. This movie only helps in hitting a new low.

In all fairness, I haven't seen the first part, Taken. I have seen bits and pieces of it, mainly the action sequences. From what I saw, it wasn't a surprise that the movie redefined the image of Liam Neeson; an aging actor becomes an action hero all of a sudden. In the sequel, the director fails to invoke the same feeling as the first part in the audience for multiple reasons. The action sequences are very few in numbers. Hence it becomes a tedious watch. The movie is set in Istanbul. Except for a few sequences set on the rooftops, everything else is shot inside rundown buildings giving a poor look which may be due to a tight budget. All the action sequences are of close combat types where opponents are close to each other, the movements restricted but fast and lethal. The shaky camera and fast editing employed during these sequences gives the impression of actors being too slow or too old for this type of action.

An action movie should have cheesy and also corny moments. Although there aren't enough of it in this movie, the scene that gets the maximum laugh is how a captive Bryan finds out his location with the help of his daughter.

This isn't worth your time. Stay away.

Language: English

Genre: Action

Rating: *

-->