Archive for July, 2009

  • 11
    Love Aaj Kal – We are about compromises (with treatment too)
    It’s a great idea and something that is truly a call of the times. Love has lost its meaning for this generation and “practicality” counts above all else. The story brings out this by contrasting two love stories – one, set in our time and other painted in sepia (could be before Independence but it’s a bit unclear). In our time, the lovers decide to part because...
    by Pankaj Mullick at July 31st, 2009 at 03:07 pm
  • 16
    Love Aaj Kal Review : No Jab We Met
    All along while watching Love Aaj Kal, I was constantly reminded of Jab We met. The mannerism of the movie, the overall feel, the characterization of the lead female protagonist and her dialogues, they all had the distinct Imtiaz Ali touch. The movie largely feels fresh. There are sequences which are definitely typical Imtiaz Ali specials. But overall, this movie falls...
    by Subhasish Chakraborty at July 31st, 2009 at 12:07 pm
  • 27
    What’s Your Raashee?- Trailer
    Check out this promo of Ashutosh Gowariker’s next film, What’s Your Raashee? starring Priyanka Chopra and Harman Baweja.Tentatively scheduled for release on 25th September ‘09, lets see if Ashutosh is able to break the jinx on Harman Baweja. Tip- Arati
    by Sethumadhavan at July 31st, 2009 at 07:07 am
  • 46
    Love Aaj Kal Review – The Burden of Expectations
    Love Aaj Kal is the 10th film I’ve watched in the last 76 hours, coming on the heels of All The President’s Men, Monster, Sympathy For Mr Vengeance, Definitely Maybe, Patton, Amores Perros, Shaun of the Dead (2nd viewing), How To Lose Friends and Alienate People, and Heavenly Creatures. Yes, I’m currently unemployed and I’m showing off my viewing list. I’ve...
    by Kenny at July 31st, 2009 at 01:07 am
  • 28
    Acid Factory : Teaser Trailer
    The trailer is in. Acid Factory stars Fardeen Khan, Dia Mirza, Irrfan Khan, Manoj Bajpai, Dino Morea, Aftab Shivdasani, Danny Denzongpa… and is directed by Suparn Verma and produced by Sanjay Gupta’s White Feather Films. With a lot of action, blasts, fire, shooting, stunts, somersaulting cars, black suits, black tie, black glasses, black shoes (cancel that...
    by PFCdesktop at July 30th, 2009 at 08:07 pm
  • 40
    Wanted – Theatrical Trailer
    Salman Khan’s much awaited Wanted, a remake of the Superhit Telugu movie Pokiri is all set to hit the silver screen shortly ( tentative release date- 18th Sep’09). This one is directed by Prabhu Deva who had also directed the Tamil version of the same ( also titled Pokiri ). So will Wanted spell success for Salman Khan? Well lets wait and watch.
    by Sethumadhavan at July 30th, 2009 at 08:07 am
  • 22
    Gran Torino – a beginner’s guide to Gandhiism
    If you haven’t seen Gran Torino, the Clint Eastwood directed drama about a bitter old man’s sweet turn in the twilight yet, please do yourselves a favour and stop reading this post further as it contains spoilers and crucial plot points discussed in detail. If you have already seen the movie, then this post is for you. So they say in the trailers and other...
    by V.P. Jaiganesh at July 29th, 2009 at 02:07 pm
  • 2
    Alice in Wonderland: Trailer
    It seems more like Tim Burton’s adventures in Wonderland. Here is the trailer of his latest 3D fantasy ‘Alice in Wonderland’….and a teeny weeny snippet from the director himself here…
    by Arthi V at July 29th, 2009 at 02:07 pm
  • 40
    Jumping without a Parachute
    At the outset, thanks PFC readers, for accepting me as a blogger, for showing me that there are still people out there, who care. My story is neither different nor more (or less) dramatic than any one of yours. Each day has come and the same day has passed. When you bunch a lot of such days and look hard, you begin to see some pattern. Carrying on with the tale… I...
    by Sarthak DasGupta at July 29th, 2009 at 01:07 pm
  • 25
    Anurag Kashyap on Venice Film Festival Jury
    The International Jury for the Venice Film Festival has just been announced and surprise surprise, Anurag’s been selected on the jury panel, along with Ang Lee, who will serve as the jury president, French actress Sandrine Bonnaire, Italian film-maker Liliana Cavani, American director Joe Dante, as well as Italian songwriter, singer and rocker Luciano Ligabue. The...
    by oz at July 29th, 2009 at 11:07 am
  • 14
    Remembering Mohammed Rafi
    Mohammed Rafi Come July 31, and it is Mohammed Rafi’s death anniversary. So much is written about Rafi (1924-1980) that I don’t quite know where to begin and what new to say really. I am stumped. It should just suffice if I say that Rafi was one of the most versatile singers in the history of Hindi film music. His pan-Indian (and beyond) appeal seems to get only stronger...
    by Nivedita Ramakrishnan at July 29th, 2009 at 08:07 am
  • 24
    Achamundu Achamundu – Where Fear Lurks
    This post is dedicated to Abhimanyu. Tamil Cinema has been having a fairly good run of late. Last year saw some really interesting movies like Subramaniyapuram, Anjathey, Poo etc which really bought back some glory to the industry. This year again has been no different and movies like Vennila Kabadi Kuzhu, Pasanga, Naan Kadavul, Nadodigal etc have all been quite unlike...
    by Sethumadhavan at July 29th, 2009 at 04:07 am
  • 12
    Veteran Actor Rajan P.Dev passes away
    Well known character actor Rajan P.Dev who started off in Malayalam Cinema and who did numerous films in Tamil,Telugu and Kannada also, passed away this early morning ( 29th July ). Rajan had been on treatment for liver disorder for quite some time. Though Rajan was very popular as a villain, he also went on to do many positive roles later on. Rajan even excelled in roles...
    by Sethumadhavan at July 28th, 2009 at 11:07 pm
  • 75
    Abhimanyu – Reeling the Real
    Harish Iyer, who was the trigger point, for Abhimanyu, sends in his post on the movie Abhimanyu and invites investors to invest in the film. There came a child with night in his eyes and dew in his voice… The sly twinkle was hard to miss. As I looked at him, he appeared unnerved. So unnerved, that I wondered why. When my eyes met his, he face shrunk in shame. It was...
    by Magik at July 28th, 2009 at 04:07 pm
  • 54
    Luck Stuck and One Smoking Jackpotboiler
    There is this particular contemporary Thriller- Suspense genre in Hindi movies which probably started with Kaante. By now, the format and formulae of such movies are well established which can be summarized thus- Plot- basically an ‘inspired’ story or a remake ( official or otherwise) from a cult, popular Hollywood or World movie involving a large amount of money...
    by ~uh~™ at July 28th, 2009 at 08:07 am
  • 9
    Yesteryear actress Leela Naidu passes away
    Actress Leela Naidu, who acted in a number of Hindi films including the national award winning ‘Anuradha’ as well as ‘The Householder’ by Merchant Ivory Productions, died on Tuesday in Mumbai after a prolonged illness. (TimesofIndia report) She was crowned ‘Miss India’ in 1954 and was declared as one of the most beautiful women in the...
    by Neeraja at July 28th, 2009 at 05:07 am
  • 23
    Gabbar Singh lives forever
    Amjad Khan and Amitabh Bachan in Muqaddar Ka Sikandar It  was  year  1992,   yours  truly  just  taking  his  tentative steps  into  adulthood,  yeah  was in my early 20’s.  It  was  also  the  age when we were all  agog,  exploring  the  brave new  world  of   Cable  TV.  What a break  from dreary  old  Doordarshan.   Its  another...
    by Ratnakar Sadasyula at July 28th, 2009 at 03:07 am
  • 9
    Where have all the villains gone?
    I was born in the late 1970’s. It was a time when all kinds of villainous fiends were having their day in the sun on silver screen. Their histrionics were never too far away from being used to good effect in our own humdrum lives. I remember an aunt telling her hyperactive young son, when all other polite efforts to put him to bed had failed, ‘bete so ja, so ja nahin...
    by Akshay Manwani at July 28th, 2009 at 12:07 am
  • 21
    Leaving Home, and the relevance of Indian Ocean
    Anyone who has spent the hostel life in India post nineties wouldn’t have missed the exotic intoxication of Kandisa, or the melodic persuasions of Maa Rewa. I for one didn’t catch them early(thanks to the lack of our hostel’s collective I.Q.) but it was a day at a music store that I was rather annoyed by the unending plays of Kandisa, that I decided to pick it up...
    by Tushar at July 27th, 2009 at 05:07 pm
  • 24
    “Life in a … village”
    They say more than 60% India lives in the villages. Hardly the impression you get watching Hindi movies of this decade. When was the last time you saw a village in a Hindi film? I think barring LAGAAN, SWADES and MALAAMAL WEEKLY (which was a remake) I can’t recall too many in the last … let’s see how many years … 10, 15 or more? Isn’t there really a dearth of...
    by Yusuf Tabatabai at July 27th, 2009 at 03:07 pm
  • 64
    Schrödinger’s Cat
    This was the summer of 2003. I hated the afternoons. Weekday afternoons were the times I would feel very lonely and frustrated. My wife would leave for office early in the morning and would come back late in the evening. The BBC World office was still at Nariman Point then and we lived in the suburbs. Though there were people in the house, it made no difference to my...
    by Sarthak DasGupta at July 27th, 2009 at 12:07 pm
  • 9
    Melbourne International Film Festival Website Hacked
    Melbourne International Film Festival Hacked The Melbourne International Film Festival Website was hacked, with a Chinese flag and messages (in English) demanding that the festival apologize to all Chinese citizens for showing the Australian film 10 Conditions of Love, a documentary about Rebiya Kadeer, the Uighur activist the Chinese government believes incited the riots...
    by t! at July 26th, 2009 at 10:07 pm
  • 27
    Censorship : Do we need watch guards to dictate what we see?
    A reality show in India, based on asking its participants, very pointed questions, as they are hooked to a lie detector machine – has come under fire. From politicians in particular. Since then every media channel, politician or anyone who could get some mileage or not off this, is slapping the front lines with their opinions. TimesNow, like everyone else has not...
    by oz at July 26th, 2009 at 03:07 pm
  • 4
    Luck – A Review
    Taking a chance on your own luck is passé, betting on other people’s luck is the next evolutionary level. Some people are unbreakable. While others keep dying around them they survive. Reminded me of a Manoj Shyamalan’s film where he narrowed his focus to the physical ‘indestructability’ of some people and gave it a supernatural tweak (others are being reminded...
    by Padmaja Thakore at July 26th, 2009 at 12:07 am
  • 40
    Understanding Cinema
    There is a story I often quote in my lectures on classical dance. It unfailingly brings out a spark of understanding in my students’ eyes. In an ancient text called Vishnudharmottama there is a story about a king who desires to learn dance. He approaches the venerated court acharya of dance. The guru tells him ‘go and learn the art of sculpture first.’ The king obeys...
    by Indu Raman at July 25th, 2009 at 11:07 am
  • 23
    Things in Sankat City
    Sankat City didn’t impress me that much but there were some small things that were used in the film that definitely caught my attention . Usually these small little ‘things’ tell you a lot about the director and the amount of thought he has put into the characters . I took a mental note of those things and here’s what I noticed : Title Graphics...
    by Saurabh at July 24th, 2009 at 12:07 pm
  • 23
    Luck Movie Review – Bad is so passé
    A smile still appears on my face when I think of Luck, which I watched first day first show, not because I was drooling at the thought of watching a big-budget multi-starrer but because I was curious to see what they had done to 13 Tzameti. (For those not in the know, 13 Tzameti is a cult French thriller which is being remade in English by the director himself. I haven’t...
    by PFCdesktop at July 24th, 2009 at 09:07 am
  • 0
    A woman desperate to retain a living sense of her dead son – ‘After Him’
    “A mother’s grief warps into a suffocating obsession in After Him, a sombre study of aching loss and broken hearts… an unsentimental drama that refuses to sweeten the story of a woman desperate to retain a living sense of her dead son.” – Allan Hunter, Screen Daily After Him revolves around a grieving mother, who develops an unhealthy interest in the man...
    by NDTV Lumiere at July 23rd, 2009 at 11:07 pm
  • 9
    Kambakth – the review proof movie
    Kambakkht IshqThis is not a review of Kambakth Ishq . I don’t  think the filmmakers themselves had any intention of making a film that is to be taken that seriously by the viewers that they start reviewing it . They had the blessings  2 of the biggest stars i.e. Akshay & Kareena  & decided to add a bit of Hollywood masala in it. These factors were more than...
    by proneet dutta at July 23rd, 2009 at 07:07 am
  • 14
    Harishchandra’s Factory
    A still from Harishchandrachi Factory. Everybody laughed. Everybody enjoyed the roller coaster ride. Harishchandra’s Factory was a great comedy. We had seen nearly fifty films during the Film Appreciation course, but the audiences were never as ecstatic as they were while watching this Marathi film. Paresh Mokashi came out of the FTII theater as a clear winner. Harishchandra’s...
    by Salik Shah at July 23rd, 2009 at 05:07 am
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