Maya Bazar - Movie

 1957. Telugu.

One of the top 100 films of Indian cinema and voted greatest Indian film of all time. No one can ever forget the famous 'Vivaha Bhojanambu' song with visuals of SV Ranga Rao gobbling up laddus and stuff. Anyway the story is about how Abhimanyu weds Sasirekha, Balarama's daughter, aided by his cousin Ghatotkacha and his demon army who resort to magic and trickery to confuse Duryodhana's son Lakshmana Kumara who was to marry her. Ghatotkacha carries Sasirekha away and returns in her form to wed Lakshmana Kumara. Loved it.

NTR plays Krishna, ANR plays Abhimanyu and Savitri plays Sasirekha.

 

Red Wine -Movie

 2013. Malayalam.

Massive star cast led by Mohanlal who is investigating the murder of a left party worker and a theatre artist (Faahad Faasil) - turns out that a struggling two wheeler salesman was assigned the job by a bank which wanted to eliminate the man who could have caused trouble for a project of theirs.

Movie flips to and fro. Some interesting angles!

  

Sankarabharanam - Movie

 1980. 

It's been on my list of rewatches for a while and I am glad I could watch it finally. Many new facets showed up this time - last I saw it must have been as a school boy in 1980! Sankara Shastri and his life of dedication as a musician, his principles and beliefs, the pure love between him and his admirer the courtesan Tulasi who finally becomes his patron, the carrying on of the legacy by her son, a dramatic end where the maestro dies in a music school dedicated to him by his secret patron.

K Vishwanath once again carries subtle shades of an artist's relationship with his art, the purity of relationships born out of mutual respect and admiration with finesse, bringing to fore the irony of life and also the beauty of life.

Sankarabharanam is so named because Sankara Shastri is supposed to have mastered the raga and he is called Sankarabharanam Sankara Shastri. The film apparently opened to empty theatres much as Sholay did, and soon picked up, running for years in some theatres - in Bangalore, Madras - until it was dubbed in Tamil, Malayalam and so on. It was played in many international festivals and received many awards. Somayajulu's performance is rated in the top 25 performances in Indian cinema and the film itself was ranked 11th in a poll about Indian cinema.

   

Namak Haraam - Movie

 1973. Came after 'Anand' and has the same stars - Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh playing key roles. Its loosely based on Becket, a 1964 English film which was remade into a Telugu film called 'Prana Mithrulu' and then a Tamil film. Gulzar wrote the screenplay and Hrishikesh Mukherjee directed it. Kishore Kumar sang the memorable 'Nadiya se dariya', 'Main Shaayar badnaam' and 'Diye jalte hain', Raza Murad played the role of his lifetime and what else can one ask for.

Seen it many times and it still does not fail to fascinate me - two friends, one rich and one poor, thick as thieves, the poor one helps the rich friend avenge a perceived insult by infiltrating the workers union in his rich pal's factory and soon gets overwhelmed by the poverty and hardships and takes the side of the workers which is why he is called the 'namak haram'. The ending is poetic justice. Rajesh Khanna, Amitabh, Raza Murad, Asrani, Hangal...just perfect. 

Nauker - Movie

 1979.

These days my favorite go-to when I want to feel good is the 70s, 80s, hit films. Most have simple stories with simpler people and end warmly. Nauker was one such - Sanjeev Kumar, a rich man wants to find himself a good lady to marry so she can also take care of his young daughter. He visits a prospective brides house (actually two sisters) - only he poses as the servant while his servant Mehmood poses as the boss. The idea is to test the character of the two girls - and he ends up falling in love with the servant there - a Cinderella type Jaya Bhaduri. 

All's well and that ends well for everyone except Jalal Agha who loses Jaya Bhaduri. I once met Jalal Agha on a cruise in Goa in 1985-86.

Trouble - Movie

 Swedish. 2024.

An electronic salesman gets wrongfully arrested for murder and is imprisoned where he finds a tunnel to escape and a bunch of guys who have dug the tunnel who mistake him to be a pilot and take him along. Somehow he has to escape the murder rap by finding a video made by the man who was murdered.

Complicated to tell in few lines so I will leave it at that. Just enough to say that it is entertaining and funny.  

Awakenings - Movie

 1990. Robin Williams, Robert De Niro

Dr Sawyer treats catatonic patients at a hospital in New York and realises that they have a similar history with encephalitis. He learns of a new drug ; Dopa and is convinced that it might have a positive effect on his patients. The most catatonic one, Leonard Lowe, fully awakens miraculously thanks to his experiment and all other patients also show significant progress. Just when things are looking good the drug's effectiveness fades off, Leonard develops tics and twitches and slowly goes back into his catatonic state.

It's depressing on one hand but also has hope, courage, love as its themes. Dr Sawyer's love for his patents comes through. De Niro is excpetional.

 

What Men Want - Movie

 2019. English.

Caught in a boy club of sports agents Ali Davis realises she has to more than prove herself to be made partner. It would be great if she could read men's minds and voila, she gets the power thanks to Sister, a cocaine snorting medium. It has some unhappy consequences but hey, it turns out good in the end what with Ali finding love and a great career!

  

Thank You for Coming - Movie

 Bhumi Pednekar plays Kanika Kapoor (Kapoor khandaan ki Kanika) who earns the sobriquet of Kaandu Kanika (which sounded suspiciously like a word I thought was not appropriate). But this name she has earned thanks to her regular landing up in kaands. Over the years we realise that she is featuring in all sorts of kaands but is not able to achieve one major kaand - the big O.

Many women tell her that its not a big deal. Kanika finds out that she is perhaps not destined to find her O despite trying all ages, sizes, intelligences, sexes and decides to settle down with someone who does not look like he is capable of an O himself. Turns out that after a major drinking binge on her engagement day she finds out the pleasures of masturbation which she obviously was not aware of (though she claims to have had sex with a few men - now seems a suspicious claim). Only she does not remember anything of that night except that she had orgasmed. The search is on for the orgasm giver and they sift through the list of her ex bfs (who obviously know nothing about an O). Some major twists later she has this epiphany - the O was caused by herself. She is the source of all her happiness. Men are not required in this process and most men do not know enough about this stuff anyway (like her fiance who has an O or an E or rather a premature E upon finding an amorous fiancee climbing all over him early morning. The film actually picks up on drama quotient as her friends who till then have been talking liberally in terms of setting up sexual partners for her accuse her of 1) sleeping with husband 2) corrupting intelligent child by encouraging her to have sex with a porn cameraman in the making. Her carefree and liberal mom and her grandmom support her in her hour of need and it all ends well. We do not need men for the O and hey, men are actually messing up the O because they do not know the ABCs of the whole process.

I fully agree with the premise. Glad for Kanika and her ilk. Happiness is your own responsibility dears.     

The Godfather - Movie

 1972. Rewatched it with Anjali. Gets better like wine. I am amazed how I remember the smallest characters, what happens after each scene. The book and the movie.

Classic.

Gone Baby Gone -Movie

 2007. Ben Affleck's directorial debut. Oscar nominee.

Two private investigators are hired to help find an abducted young girl and uncover a web of drug traffickers, kidnappers, double crossers, paedophiles and murderers - finally ending in a moral dilemma that breaks up many relationships.

 

The Teacher's Lounge - Movie

 2024.German. Oscar contender.

The story begins with an investigation into a series of thefts from the teacher's lounge. The investigation comes to a class which is being taken by a new teacher who is passionate about her job, about student's welfare and rights and also their development. When the class leaders are pushed to reveal the names of suspects they indicate names under pressure, supported by the new teacher. A young immigrant boy is unfairly suspected of being the thief.

While the teacher investigates on her own she identifies the thief through a piece of clothing that comes into the frame of her computer video. It starts a whole new series of mini drams - the suspect is staff - and she turns hostile and threatens to sue, parents turn hostile and most importantly her star student who is the son of the accused turns hostile. How a potentially messy situation is then slowly resolved by the teacher who sticks to her principles and protects the boy - and in the end, seems to redeem him.

Very nice. Intense. The school as the microcosm of society as one reviewer said. 

Elvis - Movie

 2022. English.

Narrated from the point of view of Elvis's manager Colonel Parker, who many felt exploited Elvis, the story recounts how Elvis grew up in poverty, in black neighbourhoods and picked up music and performance from there. It was racially divisive times but Elvis sticks to his music, his style (which was considered vulgar and not fit for white masses consumption) and makes it. How his life changes and he becomes a star dependent on drugs, sex while fighting loneliness - until his sudden death at 42 - is the rest of the story. Colonel Parker himself is fighting a gambling addiction and a mysterious past. 

But it leaves you with a message - Elvis was what he was because he was devoted to his craft. Despite his exhaustion and ill health he gives his final performance 'Unchained Melody' his heart and soul. I like these little insights into the lives of these stars.

Tom Hanks as Colonel Parker is brilliant. Just as Austin Butler as Elvis is.

Very watchable.

  

Minus 31: The Nagpur Files - Movie

A movie set in the second wave of COVID when people died for lack of medicines and stuff. The protagonist is a young cop, rebellious and foolhardy but heart in the right place. A murder investigation turns into something big - how people take advantage of every calamity.  Its an interesting screenplay, with some weird quirks to each character - entirely believable. Rucha Inamdar was perfect as Preksha Sharma, the young cop. Something about her that makes the movie quite watchable.

 

Maidaan - Movie

 2024. Hindi. Ajay Devgn.

It's a biopic on the life of legendary football coach Syed Abdul Rahim, considered the best football coach India ever produced. Under his tutelage the Indian team rose from being nobody's to becoming champions winning the Asian Games in 1962 against South Korea. A Hyderabadi, a school teacher, a gentleman, Rahim saab was called maulvi saab.

The film drags on for 3 hours needlessly. It also shows the cancer part a little too excessively - ok we know he is not well but don't drive it in. In fact its the most I think I have seen a character cough in a film, certainly there is one scene where he coughs and coughs and some more. And they are all smoking all the time - why is it necessary that they smoke all the time? The Hyderabadi accent is forced - by adding a miyaan at the end of every other sentence it just does not work. Anjali noticed something interesting - Ajay Devgn is ending every scene by walking off, or exiting.

Priya Mani hardly looks a Hyderabadi wife, not looks, not talks. Her English learning skills are amusing but that's about it. In the film the character comes across as arrogant to begin with and slowly becomes very docile. It does not appear o be the real Rahim saab who was supposedly soft yet a strict disciplinarian. Also, the two commentators lead us through most of the film and have roles that are next to Ajay Devgn.

In its favour the football is shown well and that saved things a bit. Also, the fact that sports is thriving in our country despite administrators is once again brought out in this movie. Where are the right leaders?

But 3 hours? Could have nipped an hour off.    

Sesham Mike-Il Fathima - Movie

2023. Malayalam.

Fathima is a spirited young girl, a chatterbox who loves football and is a natural at football commentary. How she overcomes obstacles to become a football commentator is the story. Kalyani Priydarshan fully lives the role of Fathima and adds life and soul to the film with her unstoppable energy and vivaciousness.

Loved it. If you want a feel-good film, go for it.

 

Kannur Squad - Movie

 2023. Malayalam.

Based on the real life Kannur Squad, an investigation team formed in Kannur, we follow the squad of four as they hunt down two killers across India and finally catch them and bring them to justice. Mammootty is the head of the squad. Once we get past the initial part, it gripped me.

 

She Said - Movie

 2022. 

How two New your Times journalists Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey uncover the Harvey Weinstein story starting a global MeToo campaign against exploitation of women at the workplace. The many exploited women who fear to come out against Weinstein because of potential law suits, shame and facing up to threats becomes a major block for the two journos but they slowly find small leads adding up to a bigger story. As more women start to come out big names like Ashley Judd join in and it becomes the MeToo campaign we all witnessed. 

Shows that the majority of the exploited keeps quiet - everyone can see whats happening but do not stand up. The perpetrator gets away with complete arrogance. The part about Trump denying his own adventures with women and then becoming President shows us what kind of a society we have become. What kind of leaders we have.

The moment when one of the two journos says 'I live in constant dread' is what is relatable. Just as the realisation that when someone stands up and opens the door, a flood comes in.

Stand up. You never know who might get inspired by your act.

Watch.

     

DJ Tillu - Movie

 I have been wanting to watch this movie for a long time and finally watched it today. Its a crazy laugh riot with Sidhu Jonnalagadda excelling in the lead role. Brilliant stuff.

Whacky  humour - the kind I like. Easily made me laugh out loud 10-12 times which means its a hit.

Will I watch it again. Certainly!

And will watch the sequel directed by our good pal Mallik which is in the theatres as well!

The Beautiful Game- Movie

 2024. English.

Chanced upon this beautiful film by chance on Netflix and loved it. I am sucker for sports drama anyday and for underdog stories and what could be a more underdog story than a 'Homeless World Cup'. The Homeless World Cup is an annual world football event run by the Association which hopes to eradicate homelessness by associating with football. Co founded in 2011 by Mel Young and Harald Schmeid it hopes to advocate a solution for homelessness.

The story is fictional - about a homeless English team being put together by a thoughtful manager who had managed big teams earlier. The story takes off like a shot and jumps right in. It is a short version of soccer with five players. England has in its ranks a refugee from Syria (I think), a heroin addict on rehab, a man who gambled away his life and ended up on the roads, someone who was an orphan and our protagonist Vinny who has the past of a star in the making who loses it all.

Thea Sharrock ties it all up beautifully - everyone gets the chance and break they deserve. Can't ask for anything more.  Watch it. Nice feel good stuff.