MADRAS CAFE - Taut is the word

Its very seldom that we can boast a Bollywood thriller to be taut. In majority of the cases, the films fail to carry on the tension till the climax, and looses its steam by the last act. But MADRAS CAFE  manages to achieve just that. In fact, the film's second half increases the intensity and keeps the audience on the edge of their seats. This film is an excellent effort by the director Shoojit Sircar who has done extensive research on the subject of the film.

An Indian military officer Vikram Singh, played by co-producer John Abraham, is assigned by RAW chief, Robin Dutt (Siddharth Basu) to conduct covert operations in Sri Lankan city Jaffna. Once in war zone, Vikram reports to his superior Bala (Prakash Belawadi) and bumps into London-based war correspondent Jaya (Nargis Fakhri) before channeling his energy to track down the activities of LTA boss Anna Bhaskaran (Ajay Ratnam) and lure his political ally Shri (Kannan Arunachalam) to go against the former.What follows is Vikram’s close encounter with gun-toting extremists who view themselves as revolutionaries and determining the dangerous conspiracy to kill an important Indian leader with a human bomb.

Based on the assassination plot on ex Prime Minister Mr.Rajiv Gandhi, the story is narrated in flashback by Vikram.He explains the whole political situation and the different power dynamics in Sri Lanka at that point of time and prepares the audience with the background of this outrageous plot. This consumes the first half of the film and then the thriller aspect in this political thriller takes precedence. Its a race against time for Vikram and his team to track down codes and get to the middle of the conspiracy and everything is captured at breakneck pace.We all know the ending, but we still root for Vikram.

The editing is crisp and the cinematography excellent -I cant remember the last time I saw a better shot movie in Bollywood-  and the screenplay holds everything together.While the only expression of John Abraham was that of intensity, its good for the movie to cover up for his lack of acting depth. He delivers excellently in his role as the protagonist. In fact of his lack of acting skills, the thing I like about John is his decision to do a variety of roles (NO SMOKING,WATER, TAXI NUMBER 9211) , and Madras Cafe would add another feather in his cap. My main concern before watching the movie was the casting of Nargis Fakhri. She was the only weak spot in the excellent Imtiaz Ali venture ROCKSTAR , and I was afraid it would be the same case here. But she held her own in her role as the London based journalist and was helped by the choice of not speaking in Hindi. The rest of the supporting cast was great which included many new faces and a special mention must be made of Siddharth Basu who gives an excellent performance.

All said and done, it is no BLACK FRIDAY, but still an unbiased and honest look at a very horrific and violent incident in the pages of history which is told extremely well by the entire crew. This is the type of movies Bollywood need and I hope these films get the audience they deserve. With the news of CHENNAI EXPRESS breaking the record of 3 IDIOTS, it hurts me to see the theater only half full on a Saturday evening for MADRAS CAFE.

MY VERDICT

***1/2 - Go Watch It

10 SCARIEST MOVIE ENDINGS THAT MADE MY HEART SKIP A BEAT

As I have mentioned at some point in my blog, I am absolutely intrigued by the horror genre in films. Horror may be depicted in many forms. The slasher movies use gore while some others use the more conventional technique of building an atmosphere and shock the audience when they are least expecting for something to happen. I would like to add that many believe that horror is synonymous with ghosts or zombies, but some films evoke real fear without the participation of any of these creatures. Thus, a couple of my entries are films without the presence of the paranormal, but would surely scare the stars out of you.So here comes my list of the 10 scariest movie endings rated accordingly.....PLEASE BE WARNED THAT THE LIST MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS EVEN AFTER BEST EFFORTS TO AVOID IT.


10] IDENTITY 

This flick surprised the hell out of me when I watched it for the first time. The twist is clever and unexpected. This was a psychological thriller of the best type. There is plenty of opportunity for you to guess the bad guy and while you may be right in a sense you will probably also be wrong. The ending is a real shocker - and I suspect that the typical reaction of many viewers is to be spellbound - but if you think about it, it is the only possible ending. But you have to think about it - and the film is so action-filled that you never have time. SO the realization must come after the closing credits roll.

9] ORPHAN

Orphan really amazed me. I expected some family drama movie that somehow got an R rating. That was not the case. Let me tell you, Orphan is very disturbing at parts, and pretty gruesome. The movie overall is excellent, has some great acting, an amazing script, and and excellent twist. The movie really has a lot of suspense and the twist is pulled off very well and packs a big punch to the viewer. I must admit I have never heard of the condition before , but it added a great end to this story. Isabelle Fuhrman deserves a special credit for her wonderfully evil performance.

8] REC

Unfortunately, due to the trailer of the American remake of this film, QUARANTINE, we actually get the final shot of the film spoiled for us. Going into actually watching the movie, however, only made the ending WAY creepier. The empty, soundless void surrounding the film’s main character and knowing there’s a killer creature with her in the same room, plays out horrifically and beautifully. The movie will make you appreciate it regardless.

7] PARANORMAL ACTIVITY

 The poster advices the viewer not to watch the movie alone. I did precisely that - At 2 AM - and I must admit I was scared out of my brains as the movie reached its climax. This movie builds on the viewer and gets scarier with each passing night in the young couple's life , building up to the horrific finale. This has to be the best horror movie in the last few years , though the sequels are not quiet up to the mark. One interesting point about this movie is that it has two alternate endings.

6] HIGH TENSION

Cécile de France turns in an incredible performance in this Alexandre Aja venture. High Tension is noteworthy because, unlike many of the films that have since tried to impersonate High Tension, the story is being retold from the killer's POV. Relaying the story through the killer's eyes gives the director a legitimate reason to show the murders being carried out by a killer that only exists in Marie's mind. This is one of the best French new age horror films (MARTYRS and INSIDE are others worth a mention) with the right amount of gore and an excellent twist.


5] CARRIE

It would be depressing if a Stephen King adaptation didn’t make the Top 10 somewhere. Carrie fits the bill beautifully. After killing just about everyone on prom night our hero/villain with telekinetic powers suffers her own fate.  As the fire erupts and the entrances are locked securing everyone’s doom, the screen goes red with blood and flame.But for all the blood soaked mayhem depicted till the climax, it was Amy Irving’s visit to Carrie’s grave site in a dream sequence that had me jump in my seat. As flowers are laid on the fresh grave a hand immediately pops out of the ground and the scene did for a 2-D flick what many 3-D films couldn’t. It was as if Carrie’s hand had thrust out and grabbed our own.Surely my hands went cold.

4] THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT

Like it or hate it , but you cant ignore this film when discussing about horror. This film is one of the first films in the genre of MOCKUMENTARY (Barring CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST) , which has gained ever increasing popularity ever since.The film’s tension is slow building and the gore is non-existent, but the use of a hand held camera makes you believe that you are in the forest alongside Michael, Josh and Heather – searching for answers – fighting for survival. By the time the frantic ending arrives and as the camcorder works its way towards an abandoned room of an old house, you will have experienced a terrifying evening and a film ending that proves that you don’t have to spray blood all over the screen to get an audience to scream.

3] A TALE OF TWO SISTERS ( KOREAN VERSION)

I have mentioned the Korean version since some of the best horror movies in the last two decades have been from that side of the world. The hollywood version is pacy and provides the same ending, but the slow purposeful buildup of the Korean film is something different. This movie may seem a touch slow to some, but I guarantee you that you will skip a few heartbeats and jump about your seats when some of the horrific scenes are built up.Its so unnerving. But the icing on the cake belongs to the ending which is never expected and would surely take a while to digest.

2] PSYCHO

This movie is mentally scarring. While the shower scene is undoubtedly frightening, the ending by far takes the cake. From the unveiling of Norma Bates to Norman’s memorable therapy session at the end, the sinister smile sprawled across Anthony Perkins’ face is one of the few things that will give me chills to this day. He was one creepy man. The ending in true Hitchcockian style left the audience shell shocked  during its time and still evokes genuine fear after all these years. Whats more remarkable is that all this fear is garnered without the help of any gore or modern CGI techniques. Pure horror.

1] SHUTTER (THAI VERSION)

For majority of film addicts, Psycho is the movie which defines scariest movie endings , but then I chanced upon this gem from Thailand. According to me, SHUTTER is the best horror movie I have watched till now, and I am sure I have watched quiet a few. The first time I watched this movie, it was without any subtitles and at 3 PM in the afternoon surrounded by a group of friends. I must admit I have never been this scared while watching a horror movie before. While there are a number of terrifying scenes in the movie, the ending shot which reveals the location of the entity really shook me up. It hit me hard and I was both amazed and shocked simultaneously. A movie never felt so terrifying before and I was convinced i watched a horror masterpiece.

So, this is my list and I would welcome suggestions from my readers and maybe refer to some other movies with equally scary endings which I might have missed out. But before closing the topic, I would like to mention three films which narrowly missed the list

• SIXTH SENSE - Somehow it is similar to HIGH TENSION and not as scary as the French movie.
• THE SHINING - A horror masterpiece but not particularly dependent on a scary twist. It was great throughout.
• MARTYRS - A bit too extreme for my liking to include in the list.

This flick surprised the hell out of me when I watched it for the first time. The twist is clever and unexpected. My complaint with Identity, however, is that it's a one trick pony. There's no reason for viewers to watch it a second time. The entire film is so reliant upon the twist that revisiting it is rendered pointless. Learning that the entire film is taking place inside a madman's mind negates any need for subsequent viewings. Nonetheless, it is worthwhile to check out once.   - See more at: http://www.fearnet.com/news/news-article/spoiler-alert-most-surprising-twist-endings-horror#sthash.kNVpSvHN.dpuf

This flick surprised the hell out of me when I watched it for the first time. The twist is clever and unexpected. My complaint with Identity, however, is that it's a one trick pony. There's no reason for viewers to watch it a second time. The entire film is so reliant upon the twist that revisiting it is rendered pointless. Learning that the entire film is taking place inside a madman's mind negates any need for subsequent viewings. Nonetheless, it is worthwhile to check out once.   - See more at: http://www.fearnet.com/news/news-article/spoiler-alert-most-surprising-twist-endings-horror#sthash.kNVpSvHN.dpuf

This flick surprised the hell out of me when I watched it for the first time. The twist is clever and unexpected. My complaint with Identity, however, is that it's a one trick pony. There's no reason for viewers to watch it a second time. The entire film is so reliant upon the twist that revisiting it is rendered pointless. Learning that the entire film is taking place inside a madman's mind negates any need for subsequent viewings. Nonetheless, it is worthwhile to check out once.   - See more at: http://www.fearnet.com/news/news-article/spoiler-alert-most-surprising-twist-endings-horror#sthash.kNVpSvHN.dpuf

DEAD MAN DOWN - Revenge has many faces

The first thing I want to say about this film is that DON'T GO BY THE TRAILER, its misleading. But having said that, this is a decent effort from Niels Arden Oplev - the director of the swedish version of THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO. The story deals with the effect revenge can have on different individuals and what happens when two such persons are bought together.

Colin Farrell plays Victor, who appears a loyal lieutenant to Terrence Howard's crime kingpin, Alphonse, who of late has been under mysterious threat. Rapace plays a young woman who lives in an apartment directly across from Victor's. She's scarred, both physically and psychologically, by a recent auto mishap. Under the pretext of flirting, Rapace's Beatrice arranges to meet with Victor ... and then shows him phone video of Victor killing a man in his apartment.Beatrice tells Victor she'll keep his secret if he agrees to dispense with the drunken driver whose negligence marred her.

Colin Farrell acted his part well; after his cold, unpredictable start, we gradually learnt more of his character. Dominic Cooper, playing a fellow gang member, gave a standout performance, with real depth, to a believable character. The best of all though was the power-house performance of Naomi Rapace. Utterly believable and raw emotions. She is the real star of this film. Terrence Howard could have done better.

DEAD MAN DOWN is a good tale of revenge that could have been great with improvements in the story and a better conclusion.The gangsters are too dumb and never suspects of Victor.Noomi Rapace's character fails to evoke pity or sympathy from the audience. The ending could be a lot better.But, as I said before, its a decent effort by the director facing some bottlenecks in his first Hollywood venture.

WORTHY MENTIONS

The unique casting of Isabelle Huppert who provides some light moments in this dark movie.
Watch out for the transformation of Noomi Rapace during her first date from a shy girl to a vengeful soul all in a matter of minutes.

MY VERDICT

*** - Nice effort

THE DESCENT - Will leave you claustrophobic

Among all the different genres of films, according to me, horror must be the most unique. The audience knows its a movie and none of this is actually happening. If the script misses its mark even by a little, it can nosedive to its way to mediocrity and even sometimes border on comedy. Maybe this is the reason that there are very few good horror movies which will be remembered even 20 years from now. I think I have watched majority of those but still look around for any ignored gem or some that I may have missed. THE DESCENT is one such movie. While not a gem, but its quiet decent.

One year after a tragic accident, six girlfriends meet in a remote part of the Appalachians for their annual caving trip. Deep below the surface of the earth, disaster strikes when a rock falls and blocks their route back to the surface. The girls soon learn that Juno, the thrill-seeking leader of the expedition, has brought them to an unexplored cave and that as a result no one knows where they are to come rescue them. The group splinters and each push on, praying for another exit. But there is something else lurking under the earth . As the friends realize they are now prey, they are forced to unleash their most primal instincts in an all-out war against an unspeakable horror – one that attacks without warning, again and again.

The Descent is one of the best horror movies in recent times. Not only is it terrifying, but it’s supremely well-written . It’s  proof that it’s not hard to make a horror movie full of likeable characters, and in fact, this helps the film. The film gives us time to care about the characters before things start to go wrong, and it also spends a significant amount of time building up masterful tension and dread.It doesn’t matter if you’re claustrophobic or not, the caves in this movie will suffocate you.

It’s dark, cramped spaces envelop the characters in a claustrophobic nightmare, heightened by disorienting handheld shots and a booming soundtrack. When the headlamps and flares are consumed, one character resorts to using the night vision function on a camcorder, which brings an uncomfortable proximity to the gruesome proceedings.

A British horror flick involving six female leads tormented by some bloodthirsty creatures. While the premise did not sound particularly interesting even to me,  I was grateful I gave it a try. So would be you.

WORTHY MENTIONS

Watch out for a scene involving a blood pool which will remind you of CARRIE
This film has an alternate ending.

MY VERDICT

***1/2 - Breathtakingly leaves you breathless
 

TRANCE - ultimate mindtwister

Imagine a movie combining themes of INCEPTION and ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF A SPOTLESS MIND.I am sure the idea itself will send you in a TRANCE. Welcome to the world of hypnosis and human mind which will surely leave you spellbound and consumed by the end of it.Welcome to the latest offering from the talented Danny Boyle.

Trance stars James McAvoy as Simon, an auctioneer who gets mixed up with the wrong group of thieves. Simon's auction house is selling a painting when a thief by the name of Franck (Vincent Cassel) breaks in and attempts to steal it. Before Franck can do so he and his crew notice the painting has gone missing and Simon is the only person that knows where it is. Unfortunately for Franck, Simon suffers a serious blow to the head during all the chaos and cannot remember where it is. After trying to divulge the location from him proves unsuccessful they turn to a hypnotist (Rosario Dawson) who can recover any memory and that's where the audience joins in this psychological trip to find the painting. This film will leave you as hypnotized as any member of the cast was I assure you.

Keeping you indulged for its entire one-hundred and seventeen minutes running time the film is majorl based on narrative backed by some wonderfully pacy background score which makes the film more stylish.All the characters are more than meets the eye at first.All the characters are played exceedingly well by the three leading actors and their subtle body movements slowly gives you the hints of what actually is going on.And this is precisely why some people are criticizing this movie.The film so heavily relies on tricking the audience that it's actually very easy to get lost and unfortunately lose interest in the film.

Danny Boyle, like Ang Lee, sticks to a plan of never repeating genres and he has come up with a masterpiece that would  surely develop into a cult in the coming years. While everyone may not like to be played with their intellectual capabilities, this film is a delight to watch.Repeated viewings suggested.

WORTHY MENTIONS

The wonderful background score.
Keep an eye for subtle significance of use of some particular colors (Red and Blue) to understand the film better.

MY VERDICT

**** - Psychedelic Thriller

LOST IN TRANSLATION - The most unusual relationship

What happens when two of the most dimensionally opposite characters, who otherwise would surely not notice one another, gets united due to some foreign circumstances? The answer to this is beautifully essayed in this masterpiece by Sofia Cappola.At times this movie feels like a poetry in motion with the cold and alien Tokyo atmosphere as the canvas.

Bill Murray plays Bob Harris, a  ageing actor whose glory days are far behind him. He comes to Tokyo to shoot an ad for whiskey. It is clear that Harris attempts to avoid new experiences as a matter of habit, and he is only in Japan to earn the much needed money. Given his sourattitude  and age, the young and beautiful Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson) has no reason to notice him, but she does, if only because both of them are bored, killing time in a Tokyo hotel. The two develop a purely platonic relationship, bonding over their shared struggle with loneliness and an alien culture.

The friendship that transpires is initially uneventful. The most obvious result of throwing two bored tourists together – sex – does not seem to be an option. Their relationship is intense but ultimately platonic. In fact, introducing intimacy into the relationship would ruin it. So, Charlotte and Bob enjoy a brief period of talking, an even briefer period of laughing, but mostly, silence. Their experience of Tokyo has been marked by bored silence, and unsurprisingly, their relationship is built on sharing this silence. Their friendship grows from a basic need for companionship. Alone, the silence and boredom is unbearable, but as long as there is someone beside them, it becomes tolerable.

At its core, the film explores how two strangers in an unfamiliar environment can give each other hope. A recurring image throughout the film shows them window gazing. Charlotte seemingly spends all of her days sitting in the window, gazing out onto the city below.Bob similarly gazes in confused awe at the city through taxi windows, unnerved by seeing himself on billboards. This recurring image ultimately serves to convey Bob and Charlotte’s sense of separateness. They see the world around them through a screen, a world they aren’t part of. They don’t belong in Tokyo. They don’t fit in.

Lost in Translation is a lesson in loneliness.Coppola confronts the characters who are unhappy in their life, with a strange and unnerving city.Bob and Charlotte would normally never meet, but their presence in the madness that is Tokyo drives them to seek out a companion, someone to share in their shock of this new culture. They never truly learn anything of consequence about each other’s personalities and lives but give each other momentary comfort when they are lost.

ACHIEVEMENTS

Won Oscar for Best Writing, Original Screenplay (Sofia Coppola)
Nominated for Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role,Best Director and Best Picture

MY VERDICT

****

JAWS - How a Shark changed Hollywood forever

Steven Spielberg’s Jaws (1975) was a commercial hit. Upon its release in theatres during the summer of 1975, it broke box-office records. Essentially it was a product specifically made to make money- a lot of it. It is regarded as being the first ever “blockbuster” in New Hollywood.Spielberg managed to  create a film that would go on to be one of the most well-recognized and celebrated films ever made.

Jaws works differently than other big spectacle films of today; it has far more heart, more virtue than its modern day successors. It is not empty or devoid of sentiment. Although Spielberg was part of the new way of thinking in Hollywood, he still very much combined what he learned from filmmakers that had come before him with the idea that there are new audiences waiting to see something different. He believed that you could still use the classical system even if the world continued to change.

The film is well made; a lot of time and energy from a lot of talented people were put into the making of Jaws. There was good, solid technique, a strong, well-worked script and characters with depth. It was also well directed, even though the film’s producers at the time were not so sure about Spielberg’s vision and budget. The result was deemed a major success.  It cemented Spielberg in the industry and he went on to make quite a name for himself. From the very beginning of his career he demonstrated a strong style in his film-making, allowing for audiences to be able to easily recognize his work.

The reason for the film’s immense popularity was not only due to the fact that the film was well made and cleverly written, but perhaps more so because of its content. It is a movie about a killer shark plaguing a small, island community during the Fourth of July weekend. At this point in time, the American public was still coming to terms with the Vietnam War. It was far easier for the public to witness the horror of a shark attack then it was to deal with the war . It was a controllable fear; it could be destroyed. It was safe and could be handled. It actually made people feel good in a way. It provided an escape from the problems being presented all around them.

 The success of Jaws permanently hooked the industry on blockbuster windfalls. It set an example for future spectacle films. And there have been a lot of them ever since. Now, every summer has a multitude of event films that everyone rushes to go see. It is because of Jaws that the movie theatres are packed on the long hot days of July. It has almost become a tradition. Unfortunately, most of these films are unmemorable to say the least. We can never predict how history will be made, like how a movie about a shark rewrote the rules of Hollywood.