[Movie Review] Innocent Voices (Voces Inocentes). 2004. Spanish.

Although unpleasant, the way this movie recorded innocence and childhood getting muffled will make you think about how far we have come as a cultured race.

Chava (Carlos Padilla) became my instant favorite in the very first reels. He has an elusive yet extraordinarily expressive face. He really means it when he says he is the 'man of the house' amidst a missing father, a dedicated and loving mother, a younger brother, a cute little farty sister (yes you read that right), a few best friends, an angelic girlfriend, poverty, and guerrilla warfare.

It is really unfortunate that kids his age have to go through war and death when they should actually be attending summer schools to sharpen their favorite skills.

The village shown is as authentic as you would get (at least I thought so) with people eager to help each other even though their roofs cant help but let the rains through and the young kids get recruited to the army every year. And to think all this started because peasants opposed government's move to occupy private property.


The part that most affected me though was when Chava goes to his friend (Christie Maria)'s house to gift her a toad (watch the movie to know why), and all he finds is shreds of her dress in a burnt down war struck remains. The part where he copes with that incident, his performance is remarkable! In that one moment, I wanted to be that kid, and feel the pain he felt as his was squeezing Christie's dress-shreds close to his heart, shaking, and watching the toad jump away under tropical rains...

And did I mention Leonor Varela did one helluva job as a distressed single mother, who makes an honest living, and keeps her children away from all the political/anti-government propaganda? What prowess, what intimacy!

I still wish subconsciously that I could bring back his lost friends, the girl friend, his father, and his innocence, but I fear that would turn it into a senseless predictable flick. And then again, it is based on true stor(y)(ies).

'Innocent Voices' is the first movie in a long while that gets a perfect 5.0 rating from me. A must watch if you are open minded enough to appreciate international cinema!

[Movie Review] Funny Games. 2007. German.

Contrary to people who have been swearing that this is the most terrifying movie they ever saw, I found Funny Games to be quite funny!

First of all, NetFlix guys cheated. They show details of the English remake of the original German movie with Naomi Watts, but the online track actually plays the German one. Shame on them for this bait'n'switch trick!

And now to the movie itself. For originality, I wouldn't rate the movie high at all. It is a bad twist in the arm of a well scripted horror flick. The only problem is, it gets very predictable after a few scenes, and that's exactly when you start wondering why you started watching it.

Comic horror, torture, psycho-depiction, senseless gore: I watched it all...only in hope for one thing.. JUST ONE THING that would blow my brains away.

Unfortunately that didn't happen. And all I can remember from the movie now is the kid.

I would highly recommend AGAINST watching this one. My rating: 1.0/5/0. ( I wish I could go even lower. Perhaps I will!).

[Movie Preview] Raajneeti. 2010 (June). Hindi.

Raajneeti. noun. (Sanskrit/Hindi). Meaning: Politics.

I am eagerly waiting for it's release. For one, it has the stars that I admire: Manoj Bajpayi, Ajay Devgan, and Naseeruddin Shah.

The promos look promising. My only fear is that the screenplay will get lost following such a huge star-cast. But then again, it's Prakash Jha, so I still have my hopes up.

All the hype of relating it to real characters, and presenting known issues apart, I am most interested in what Jha brings as possible solutions to World's largest sovereign democracy.

The last movie I saw with Manoj Bajpayi in it was the movie '1971'. He played Major Suraj Singh. No matter how close the character was to the real hero, his rendition pricked a few in my conscience. I will probably never forget that movie as long as I am alive. And who can forget his portrayal of Bheekhu Mhatre in Satya?

Ajay Devgan is another such actor, who has gained immense versatility over the year since his debut in 'Phool aur Kaante'. His renditions in Zakhm, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, and Omkara will always feature in his top performances.

And need I say anything for Naseeruddin Shah? He is, because he acts. That should suffice:-)

Let it roll... cannot wait to write a review. In case you want to know, here is a link to the movie's official website.

[Movie Review] Take Out. 2004. Mandarin.

Ever watched yourself gasp as they gut your soul and walk away from you? Ever felt like that fish that is hooked out, but thrown back into the waters with a hole in it's heart?

Take out will take you there.

The 9 hours that you live with Ming Ding, as you become him, you will never want to live that way again. Every passing minute that Ming is on his run-down bicycle, you'd wish is the last one. It's a story to get inspired from. It's a story to fight with, and for. It's a story to learn to persevere in adversity.

Oh how Ming becomes your hero from a common home delivery guy. He doesn't speak much. But his eyes do. His soaked feet do. His hurting bones do. And his bike's paddles do.



In one day, the director makes you live one full life-time of hope, fear, courage, strong-will, and death of a soul.

Beware. It's not a feel good movie. The end message is not a glamorous one. However, it will take you closer to appreciating what you have. Hopefully, then, you will not complain much about the life that you have, that HDTV that you couldn't buy, the boat that you can't afford, and that expensive party you couldn't throw.

Watch it. It will give you a perspective into what life means to some of us.

I rate it 4.9/5.0.

[Movie Review] Pyaar Impossible. 2010. Hindi.

Just finished watching 2 hours 15 minutes of "Pyaar Impossible" in 30 minutes (fast fwd, Netflix online).

Do they really think young generation is that stupid that we will hail Uday Chopra for making a super-unified-Opetating System all in his home lab (an OS that works perfectly on ANY computer that exists, and ANY mobile platform that exists too)? VMWare kya teil bech rahi hai itne saalon se? Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr..

But wait, it doesn't stop there. Dino Morea gets impressed by the 'software' after barely seeing a splash screen, AND manages to copy all this wonderful software on a pen drive, that too in seconds!

AND in the end, the way original author is decided is by 'who can enter the correct password' test. And don't even get me started on how the smartie Uday manages to break into a top secure server room. WTF?

These big shot movie makers really need some tech consulting. Stupid crawlers!

In short, this movie has nothing worth attention except Priyanka Chopra, and her daughter.

I say we start boycotting such stupid movies. After all how long would we let the big banner guys make movies on stupid themes of love on campus, again, and again, and again, and again...? Enough already! Make some meaningful movies about someone making big in life because of their values, or hard work. There are many many such stories if we just look around. No one has any budget to make biographies on Pres. Abul Kalaam Azaad, or Infosys founder Mr. Narayan Murthy, or even movies that are socially relevant.

I rate this movie 1.0/5.0. What a sheer waste of time!

[Movie Review] Bliss (Mutluluk). Turkish. 2007.

Bliss (Mutluluk) 2007 (Turkish).

All the blue waters you will see in the frames, there is only one more thing more chaste in there: Meryem.

One village. It's customs. It's gullible people. And then there's her: Meryem.

All the power of the man. All the curses of humanity. All the tainted memories. And one; just one: Meryem.

It's a treat not only for the eyes, but also for the soul. All hell breaks lose. Yet she lives: that Meryem.

So clear that her eyes speak. So humble that the waves bow. So strong that the hearts change. What a soul: that Meryem!


It's an exceptional story with extraordinary character renditions and a breathtaking cinematography. And you can learn a bit of Turkish too!

I rate it 4.8/5.0.

[Movie Review] Sous Les Bombes (Under The Bombs). Arabic. 2007.

Sous Les Bombes (Under The Bombs) 2007, Arabic, is not about terrorism. Neither is it about religion, or extremism.

It is a story about a mother and a son separated by unfortunate bombings of a conflicted region in Lebanon.

It starts with Zeina rushing to Lebanon where she finds fear, apprehension, military, international media, destruction, distraught families. And then she finds Tony: a brave Christian cab driver. Both start on a dangerous journey to the disputed region, with their own motives (alert: Tony's motives do not see light until the very end).

What followed was beyond my predictions, and was subtle yet gripping. I forgot that I was watching a movie and not a well crafted documentary (I still believe some of the characters were actual victims of the war... I cannot fathom stage actors bringing the creepy calm that you see on their faces in some of the frames).

Tony, who starts with a greed to squeeze most of Zeina's money owing to her desperation, unravels his true self just when she needs it the most (I will keep the details for you to enjoy).

The frames are stitched together with eerie monologues, empathetic dialogues, poor yet helping hands, a failing state, and a dry yet gorgeous scenery of rural Lebanon.

In the end, sacrificing in their own ways, they do get within hand's reach of Karim, Zeina's lost son.



But are they able to get to him? And what happens to their life thereafter? Does Zeina leave her uninterested business-man husband for a stranger she just met, because he provided more for her in 3 days than her partner of 20 years?

Watch it now to know more. I guarantee a wash out of all your strong prejudices against the Arabic people. You will find that common people nowhere want to bear wars, and the losses that fall out. You will realize that underneath that stereotyped Middle-Eastern face of Tony lies a young and soft heart who enjoys music, food, dreams and a struggle to get to them.

I rate it 4.7/5.0.