Film / Documentary - Recently watched & worthy of some discussion

[mappi]

Argo
Directed by Ben Affleck
Produced by Ben Affleck, George Clooney & Grant Heslov
Screenplay by Chris Terrio
Music by Alexandre Desplat
Cinematography Rodrigo Prieto

Starring
Ben Affleck as Tony Mendez
Bryan Cranston as Jack O'Donnell
Alan Arkin as Lester Siegel
John Goodman as John Chambers
6 Us Embassy officals
Bunch of Iranians
Others

Based on :
The Master of Disguise by Antonio J. Mendez
The Great Escape by Joshuah Bearman

Events happening after the attack of U.S. embassy in Tehran on November 4, 1979. The film concentrates on the extration of 6 escaped officials from Iran and not the hostage suituation inside the Embassy.

What is Argo ?
I don't Know
You don't Know ?
It means, ar-GO FàçK YOURSELF

No time wasted, Crip intro on Iranian (Persian) Cilivisation, Political heat, US embassy take over and Tony Mendes, a CIA tech op, is assigned to extract the 6 escaped officials from Iran, with limited option as their escape has been tracked by Iranians and they want them dead. All possibilities closed down, Tony comes up with a best Bad Idea, extracting them from Iran in the dusguise of Film Technicians. Approved, you got a Hollywood Film Argo, produced by CIA. With the help of a makeup artist and producer, Tony, within few days, mounts all the reliable documents to make ARGO an on going sci-fi Hollywood movie which has Iran as backdrop. He then travels to Iran as a film producer, fakes Passport for the 6 ppl as though they are the films director, script writer etc., trains them to get pass the security.
Whether they sucessfully leave Iran is told in a edge of seat thiller manner.

Firstly, this movie is a lesson showing how you make thrillers eventhough the viewer know whats going to happen. Eventhough quite dramatic, the Airport scenes were heart pounding. Secondly is the casting. Never seen a movie with so much effective casting (not comparing to the real life people). Each role has a man or woman playing it as though they are real. Thirdly, Direction : We got a story and a well written script. Now how do we execute it. See Argo. The tone of the movie, be it the color or music or sets take you back to the late 70s. Much attention was given to these details and they have come out sucessfully. Finally the dialogues and some very well made scenes like :

- Intro + Tehran suituation
- CIA meeting on the suituation
- Meeting with WGA (Writers Guild of America)
- Faking ARGO
- On going Film Rehersal compared with Iranians claims
- Airport scences
(to name a few)

Another thing worth mentioning is how the film maker draws and keeps your attention throughout. Long dialogues (coined as boring moments) cuts with a loud sound of a type writer or beaking windows or car honks. By this you are alerted and brought back to the proceedings and made to follow the story with much needed attention.

I personaly dont know what really happened. Heard it through documentaries. But in this movie the suituation and the escape were bit exagurated. I tell this to people who search for what happened and how it is shown in the movie. Its dramatised to the core to present it as a Thriller. And I stoped looking for accuracy. This film also has some flaws, but it could be noticed only by people who are looking for it.

Why this movie attracted me so much to say I calling it one of the best films I have watched in a decade because it easily connected me to it. To give you an ex :

If you want to sell a work (lie) Press will sell it for you !

Argo - A must watch

[NOV]

wanted to watch Kumki, but it was full house and therefore ended up watching Neethane En Ponvasantham

Not that bad as widely reported. Can watch once if not tired (so that you dont sleep in the hall )

Movie was generally artificial and sometimes the acting was plastic. The ending is totally unrealistic. And finishes with a Goundamani-Senthil joke
Samantha is mostly azhu moonju, and while Santhanam does provide relief, its few and far between.
Too many songs and after a point it becomes irritating. Dei, idlikku saambaaraa illa saambaarukku idliyaa
Maybe becos there is NO story that Menon had to fill 2.5 hours with songs.
The only good song, mudhan murai was practically molested and destroyed by Menon
BGM was atrocious at many places. The clashing of cymbals at every "shocking" moment is soooo outdated and juvenile.
The best part of the movie is the spoof on VTV
And why must every character in his movies say "what" (which they pronounce as vote!)

Can watch once, if you really have nothing better to do.
Probably the worst of Gautam. (tho his worst is still bearable speaks volumes)

[Scale]

[Scale]

Looking forward to your kumki review merely for the songs

sundarapandian in parts - thaadikaaran alambal thaanga mudiyalaye

[hattori_hanzo]

Looper (2012) - Disappointing

Read several positive reviews in sites like RT before actually watching it. I seriously cant understand how such a bad movie is praised by one and all(And a movie like Primal Fear is rated very low in these sites). There's absolutely nothing new in it. The scenes in the 2nd half, we've already seen them all in X-Men & Terminator 2. Gordon Lewitt has no screen presence and the one who has it, Bruce Willis is wasted. And the villain's character looked like an M.N.Nambiar operating out of his den with a bunch of henchmen.

Hollywood critics's movie ratings - Onnum Puriyala Solla Theriyala...

[HonestRaj]

Naduvula Konjam Pakkaththa Kanum
liked it.. but i feel the film needs little bit of editing.. atleast 20 to 25 mins of cut..
not a full length comedy.. had few sentimental scenes..
but LOL scenes were really good.. medulla oblongata, cerebrum, cerebellum, depression, oppression, kaadhalngradhu aal manasula adicha aani.. & lot more..
clash between bajji & bags was
2 1/2 hrs film with no songs except the title song & no fight.. it may test your patience.. may be in the last 30 mins
nice to see some new concept / one or two liners are made into a story breaking out from normal film making..
i read pizza is remade into kannada & recently they released subramanyapuram's remake.. it will be nice if big heroes also come out of remake mode & encourage new concepts & start working with "naalaiya iyakkunar" kind of directors

[HonestRaj]

Poda Podi
- didn't liked it
- parkka aarambichutten.. mudichuduvom'nu ore karanathukkaga parthen..
- songs edhuvum mindla ottalai..
- very easy to forget these kind of films after a year or so..

[NOV]

English Vinglish

Slow moving and at times reminds one of Mind Your Language series.
Everytime I looked at SriDevi's nose, it reminded me of Michael Jackson
Bad week of noses (the other being Kumki)

Once paarkkalaam

[Cinemarasigan]

Naduvula Konjam Pakkaththa Kanum
liked it.. but i feel the film needs little bit of editing.. atleast 20 to 25 mins of cut..
not a full length comedy.. had few sentimental scenes..
but LOL scenes were really good.. medulla oblongata, cerebrum, cerebellum, depression, oppression, kaadhalngradhu aal manasula adicha aani.. & lot more..
clash between bajji & bags was
2 1/2 hrs film with no songs except the title song & no fight.. it may test your patience.. may be in the last 30 mins
nice to see some new concept / one or two liners are made into a story breaking out from normal film making..
i read pizza is remade into kannada & recently they released subramanyapuram's remake.. it will be nice if big heroes also come out of remake mode & encourage new concepts & start working with "naalaiya iyakkunar" kind of directors

I also watched this movie yesterday,,, Liked it too

lot of LOL Moments..

More like a stage Drama... not much of outdoor scenes.

Movie evolves around 4 friends and there are some 15 odd actors. Home, Hospital and Kalyana mandapam are the locations..

Considering the limited scope and budget, the movie is made well. worth a watch..

[mappi]

Dabangg 2

Chulbul Pandey :
- gets transfered to Kanpur
- moves with his step-father-brother, wife to new location
- Dances with Munni and Kareena
- Fools his dad by talking as a girl on his mobile phone
- confronts Baccha Bhai - local goon / wanna be politician
- Throws bad guys in the air
- Shows 6 six pack in the end before becoming victorious

If you did not get these, Watch Dabangg 1.

Whats makes the movie click are the suituations. Each and every confronting scenes were well worked before and they come in the right moments making the watch so so interesting. Salman as Chulbul Pandey sells the same pot pourri, where as his brother, the director, cleverly took gun slinging shots from Max Payne Video Game series. Apart from such things there is nothing else to talk about. Rest the Media will take care to give it fancy figures just to make sure that Bollywood churns the best films in India.

Chulbul Pandey - Mental Harry lost in the city.