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(4.5/5) Simply beautiful. A work of art that shines with rare intelligence, wit and humanity. If Chaplin were a robot, he would be WALL-E.
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(4/5) Spike Lee’s tour-de-force isn’t perfect- but it’s a biopic of enormous, blazing power.
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(3.5/5) Vague, empty, shallow, unsatisfying and frustratingly random. But as I found out later, it’s also terrifying, hypnotic, audacious and unexpectedly haunting.
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(2/5) Very flat, clichéd and uninspiring adaptation of Khaled Hosseini’s novel.
IMDB

Going to the movies this year has largely been a mind-numbing experience. I had just criticized Kismat Konnection a few weeks back, but compared to the fare that the next few weeks offered (Ugly Aur Pagli, Singh Is Kinng), it really feels like a criminally underrated classic now.

Till now, there have hardly been any films this year that were good or satisfying to an extent:

Mithya, I thought was excellent, even if only for Ranvir Shorey’s superbly funny and poignant performance that blew my mind totally. The film was nice and edgy, terse and full of dry wit, and yet it touched the heart. (Though some people I know happened to find it very ‘pseudo’, for some reason :) )

Aamir was thoroughly gripping, tense and a pleasure to watch. Kudos to everyone behind this brave little gem- especially Rajkumar Gupta, Rajeev Khandelwal and DOP Alphonse Roy- all of who did an …

(4/5) As outrageously funny and vibrant as it is deeply moving and poignant. Beautifully realized, this is poetry in animation. A must-watch.
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(4/5) Brilliant, clever, extraordinarily inventive and extremely compelling. Superb stuff.
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(1/5) Spectacularly unfunny and unromantic. A root canal operation would have been more entertaining.
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(3/5) Powerful performances from Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett. Dench creates a superbly creepy portrait of isolation.
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(2/5) Aziz Uncle, we’re disappointed- this konnection’s just not happening.
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(3.5/5) Haunting love story moves from deeply poetic to near pornographic anchored by its soulful leads.
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(4/5) Relatable, real, moving. A lifting celebration of family and life. WOW.
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Aziz Mirza is back. Okay, Chalte Chalte was a damp squib- but that shouldn’t stop us from looking forward to his next release after quite some time. The first look of Kismat Konnection is out, and hey, it doesn’t look bad at all.

Thankfully, neither does its lead actress, the gorgeous but sartorially-challenged Vidya Balan, who after much flak for her wardrobe on and off-screen, manages to look quite pretty here. There’s no drastic ‘makeover’ as such, but Shabina Khan’s (who replaced Aki Narula after he had differences with Vidya) styling seems to have worked well, even if it isn’t absolutely stunning. One can safely say that you can finally get over the shock of seeing her dressed as a 70’s vamp at a jewellery store launch and as a Christmas tree at the Filmfare Awards.

Okay, enough about Vidya Balan- forgive my exaggerated concern about her costumes, but I think her …

(1.5/5) Umeed kum, ‘Sugar-free’ zyaada
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0430193/

Truth be told, nothing can match the joy I get from watching bad films. No, I don’t mean the likes of One Two Three, Lovesongs and the other one dozen terrible films I have been subject to in theatres owing to my work as a film reviewer. I am talking specifically of those bad films which represent some of the few guilty, vicarious pleasures life offers us. They seduce us, they entice us, they excite us in a way boring good cinema never can, shining with that God-awful brilliance only a few filmmakers manage to bring on screen.

Just the day before yesterday, while I was busy watching the wonderful Little Miss Sunshine at night after another busy Friday of college followed by film reviewing, I couldn’t help but be tempted to catch snatches of Aap Ka Suroor: The Moviee: The Real Luv Story in between- a surreal film experience I …

Jodhaa Akbar is the flavour of the month- some love it, some love to hate it- as for me, I fall somewhere in between, I guess. Maybe the reason why I am not so drastically dejected by the film is that I wasn’t really expecting a Lagaan or Swades out of it, and also that the leads actually did way better that I expected them to- admittedly, if anyone’s faltered here, it’s Gowariker- without doubt. (My review, which I cannot publish at PFC, owing to website policy is dying to be read here at my blog.)

I doubt if Gowariker is ‘the new K Asif’, as someone on PFC recently proclaimed him to be- I frankly find the comparison rather absurd- but he definitely is one of the best filmmakers we have in India- and I don’t really mind if if his film gets a little more than it deserves, …

A PLEA TO THE MAKERS OF JODHAA-AKBAR

I feel like pulling my hair out. UTV Motion pictures and Ashutosh Gowariker- what is wrong with you guys?

It’s less than a week for the release of what is the biggest magnum opus this year and what should be the most awaited film to hit the screen in a long time, and yet, strangely- though not very surprisingly- there barely seems to be any buzz at all. Other than, of course the usual yawn-inducing controversies that almost always seem to hound historical films made in India, any real excitement over the film really escapes even a hardcore Gowariker fan like me.

Can’t the producers see the writing on the bloody wall? Just making a good film simply doesn’t suffice- you have to first get bums on seats- period. And I don’t see the makers …

In what is otherwise perhaps the very definition of a thankless role, Vidya Balan in Halla Bol gets the unique distinction of being the first Hindi film heroine to refer to a man’s genitals. As nasty reporters an journalists aggresively swarm around with their super-sleazy questions, the traditional-yet-modern and empowered pativrata naari defends her spouse with equal force- “I am proud of my husband- because…he’s got balls!”

It’s only such part-startlingly crude, part-positively howlarious scenes- also like the one in which Ajay Devgan unzips and pees on the corrupt Chief Minister’s prized carpet (”From Persia!”- he proclaims with uncontrollable glee) right in front of him (as if to provide conclusive evidence that he DOES, in fact have…well, never mind)- that remain with you after you walk out of the theatre.

That’s just about as er, ballsy that this Halla Bore gets, as Rajkumar Santoshi dishes out this surprisingly shoddy film after …

Prejudice is opinion without judgement.

Appreciation is a wonderful thing: It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well.

I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.

Voltaire; French author, humanist, rationalist, & satirist (1694 - 1778)

I take this opportunity to begin this super-frivolous post on a somewhat more serious note. I am truly appalled to see the horrible backlash on reviews that are in any way critical of Taare Zameen Par, including the ones by Kavita and Kartik Krishnan on PFC. While it is a fine film and a brave effort, is being critical of TZP a crime? If I did not totally freak out on it, should I be hanged?

I admit I am often quite …

AARGH!- The Worst of the Year (Photo by yours, truly)

Friends, PFCites, cinefanatics. Happy New Year. And congratulations for being the Indian blog of the year…the passion continues to run strong.

And so comes the time when I can’t resist pretending to be important and unleashing on everyone my own (and YET another…yawn) list of the films and performances that rocked the year that was.

Let the drums roll…(a little pomposity never hurts!)

MY TOP 7 FILMS OF 2007:

(And YES, Taare Zameen Par is not included- read my review for more…it’s amazing how much I agree with you Kartik; you took the words right out of my mouth)

7.Ek Chalis Ki Last Local
Okay, it may have lacked finesse, but when you have real, hardboiled pulp, who cares? Sanjay Khanduri’s film has enough originality, eccentricity and wackiness to make us excuse the occasional tackiness. (Excuse the bad poetry- …