Film / Documentary - Recently watched & worthy of some discussion

[ajaybaskar]

Raanjhanaa

Havent seen any of Aanand L Rai's previous movie. Went to the movie for ARR and Dhanush. They have carried the movie on their shoulders. Dhanush couldn't have dreamt of a better Bollywood debut. Credit to the director for giving him a role which fits him to a T.

The first half moves at rapid pace while the second half is bit dragging because of the complete change of milieu. But it can be pardoned as it forms the base for the climax.

ARR, with complete freedom, can do wonders to a film. Raanjhanaa is one perfect example. All songs have been used perfectly. Nazar Laye is used too. BGM was apt.

[SoftSword]

Raanjhanaa

Havent seen any of Aanand L Rai's previous movie. Went to the movie for ARR and Dhanush. They have carried the movie on their shoulders. Dhanush couldn't have dreamt of a better Bollywood debut. Credit to the director for giving him a role which fits him to a T.

The first half moves at rapid pace while the second half is bit dragging because of the complete change of milieu. But it can be pardoned as it forms the base for the climax.

ARR, with complete freedom, can do wonders to a film. Raanjhanaa is one perfect example. All songs have been used perfectly. Nazar Laye is used too. BGM was apt.

idhu... idhukkaagatthaan...

[mappi]

Anyone remember or is a fan of Gaint Robot !
I was / am a huge fan of the series telecasted on DD. The theme music still rings in my ears, and how I used to take off just after an episode humming this theme brings back the golden days as a kid.

Here is an episode : (Johnny Sokko, Monster eating bullet, firing it back & Gargoyle ... LoL (now))



Now Warner Brothers and Del Toro bring back the classic (ofcoarse twisted American version) as Pacific Rim. Not to be missed :

[mappi]

Man of Steel [2013 : English : 2h20]

Directed by Zack Snyder
Produced by Christopher Nolan & friends
Adapted from : Known only to Zack & Nolan

Spl Effects : Weta Digital, MPC, and Double Negative
Music : (sleepy) Hans Zimmer

Banner : Warner Bros. Pictures

Starring : Henry Cavill & Amy Adams (others you can skip or look for their photos on internet)

Man of Steel Post Part 1 :

Summersing Superman Intro : Planet Krypton is dying - Zod the mad general wants to take it back and give it a chance with a funny rebirth system - EL (biological father of Kal aka Superman on earth) wants a more diplomatic (rather democratic) solution - Zod ends up fighting El, killing him ofcoarse - Lara (the mother) quickly launches the super-baby to earth - Zod gets arrested & sent to the space prison.

Summersing Superman as Young Clark : On earth, the Kents raise Kal as Clarke - Clarke is lost as he is not able to understand whats happening to him - The kents guide him to control his emotions (powers) - Clarke saves his classmates - Appa Kent shows the vessel in which Kent Jr. arrived - Clarke goes in search of his true identity saving people all the way.

Summerising Man of Steel : Clarke finds a space ship - Finds his cape - Agrees to be annonymous - goes too close to Lane's lips each time but not kiss her, no, not yet, not now - Zod escapes, comes to earth, wants Superman - Superman fights Zod and his sidekicks - Victory - And now Superman kisses Louis Lane.

You got all in there, anything missed is merely my ignorence and absolutely not the film-maker's fault.

The very first thought I got while the end credits were rolling, was whether Zack would acknowledge Mani Rathnam. The sun, the glow and Superman's "Lighted face" is a super-dooper lift from Thalapathy (Thalaivar and the glow - miss those days). That said, the movie is anything but engaging, eventhough it has some exciting but repeatitive grande finale with all sorts of noise, boom & blast. The intros are quite fast, and the movie quickly swifts from an angle to another gaining all our attention, until Clarke discovers his "underware-less" Cape. From there it goes not only downhill, but digs itself further more to the core of the earth and gets burnt before anyone can bury it. The Visuals, the machines, the specifications and attention given to minute details are all praise and note worthy. These guys are good on paper-work when it comes to technical details. Jumping straight on to the cast - as mentioned sometime back, Amy Adams is quite pretty. Its only while driving back I was wondering whether she blinked in the movie (LoL). Henry Cavill, his broad shoulder says it all. Apt as superman and lost as Kent, he gives a "not-so-engaging" but interesting performence. Rest of the cast (Michael Shannon or Kevin Costner or Laurence Fishburne or Russell Crowe) are there to pull people in by mentioning their names on the poster. And Diane Lane, my (once upon a time) favorite actress, she is more like the step-sister to "Indian" Sukanya.

As usual to show a difference and put their stamp on a comic-book movie, What the film makers concentrated much was on the narrative physics, ending up in making a "no-superman-returns" but Superman-Reboot. The whole premisis has changed (constantly adressing superman as an alien), and as Nohlan always tries to sprinkle political messages [Remember : our Dark Knight is Bush], Man of Steel is no exception to it, refering to "alien" Superman to the current president of US. Oh boy! should I mention the destruction the Steel Man makes. He does more than he was asked for, rather more than he can actually do. On the otherhand, Zack relies on godly and spiritual messages in his movies. Here suiting to the dialogue, Kal glides of the ship with his arms streched (ofcoarse a "glow" around his head - thanks Sun) as soon as its announced that he will be the god to the humans. There is much more to this political-jesus angle, but much of the audiences are really not bothered, thus no discussion about it unless asked for. Just as a Nota Bene 1 & 2 - immigration & Superman not saving US alone but going global - are 2 things that cannot be over-looked by any viewer.

[mappi]

Man of Steel Post Part 2 :

The writers have "modified" the superman basic tutoriols much intelligently. Actually El tells Kal not to use his super powers that will affect the Humans and Kent tells clark that he is on earth for a reason. In the reboot, El wants Kal to assure that Human do not destroy the earth as the Kyptonians did with Krypton and his being on earth is for that reason, whereas Kent tells clark not to use his superpower to help and destruct the balance. These changes are welcoming and fits the REBOOT. But all the Louis Lane (and for the records Louis is not the 1st grilfriend of Superman, its Lana Lang) & other encounters are ALL WRONG. Why all wrong because they mixed up eveything just to make a Global Franchaise out of it and escape with all the sequels they are going to produce. The main gap in superman Movies is because they did not know how to carry the series forward just with Superman versus Zod and Superman versus Luther [Guys, there are so many other super-villans that Man of Steel can fight]. But again they took the same villan-thing, analysed the failure of Superman Returns, scripted some brutal murders, used the selling-buying-reselling of DC efficiently and made Man of Steel.

One point I want to make it very clear and firm, I am all in for modifications / changes etc., But it comes with an enormous price and when paid back properly I am all happy. What disturbs me is Superman's attitude towards the end. Listen, the motive for comics and producing super-hero (& villans) is to show the difference between the Good & Evil amoung us. Good fights evil and its evil ways, and always trumps victorious not by killing it but putting it away [Even today in the TFI the cops are obligatory just before the end credits]. The principle is that Good never KILLS, if it does so, its no more considered GOOD. Superman has killed (but never Louis Lane ... I was LoL when she was credited for killing a "Phantom Zone villain"), so superman has killed but never coldly. Zod does die in the hands of Superman, but not this early and certainly not this way. Actually he puts Zod and his side-kicks in the mirror and toggles them into the "Pocket universe", and its only after Zod had merely suceeded in erasing the earth and was overpowered, Superman uses his "multi-colored" Krytonite to depower him and finally puts an end to Zod when he announces that "I will be back, even more powerful" (For records other couple of killings are credited as accidents). And Superman is there to save, not to provoke thousands of death. This film is a gory massacre of Humans than Superman saving the day. But still he has a good eye on Lane and catches her each time she falls !

Another thing is the trade mark of imagination. Where is the Red underware ? Else he looks like Spider-man having a very bad dream. And the glowing Red and Green Kyptonite ! (was dumbly replaced by a Black Key of a sort). Where is Zod's (huge voice) "Kneel before Zod" line? Man of Steel is a perfect exemple of what you get when your research is Half-Baked. Hope they don't omit the "telephone-booth-take-offs" in thier sequel. I can carry-on for pages, but I stop here keeping in mind, its a Tamil Film Discussion Forum.

Man of Steel : SapaMan

NB 3 : The movie was converted to 3D in Post-production and was never shot in 3D. The 3D is more forced than sweet. The 2D is just perfect. As usual, choice is yours, but watch it in a 7.1 dolby equiped cinema halls, to get the maximum from the flying machines and sleaths. Interestingly they have mixed 4 different sounds when Superman takes off ... Ok Ok, I stop here ... LoL.

[HonestRaj]

NERAM
- another extended short film stuff
- goes along with the recent trend..
- little incident - less characters - comedy for most part but not as a track - kind of good music - beautiful cinematography - earlier few years back, it was fast cuts & zoom in zoom out camera.. but now it is slow motion trend...
- vazhakkam pola.. oru vaatti parkkalam..
- Nasser's cameo cd writing, ausom ausom..

[Brianengab]

- Nasser's cameo cd writing, ausom ausom..

athe...athe...

and before nasser start to sing...allakkai (without patience) to hero, "thambi...thambiyai aditcha auto number paarthiya"...

[mappi]

Thala_rasigan, I wanted to ask you this morning but forgot. Is the DVD of Neeram available ? Like to get a copy of the film.

Wonderful narration, sad it did not make it big. Fine, no problem, Alfonse name sits in the dictionary where the word Talent is defined.
I am all support for him, his team & their future projects.

[Brianengab]

mappi...

its already out..u cn check wit uyirvani link...

[HonestRaj]

SATHILEELAVATHI

- had a hearty laugh for 2+ hrs...
- dialogues are good & humor is spontaneous
- Ramesh Aravind has done very well..