Happy New Year 2012

Hoping this new year will be an entertaining and knowledge achieving one. Happy New Year to all of you.
 

New Year Forecast

Wish you all a very Happy New Year 2012

 
I have been reviewing movies, and books on this blog, and you my readers have been enthusiastic about them. I must admit that 2011 was a year of movie reviews on this blog. There was a little extra focus on movies that one could watch for free on youtube. I watched a whole bunch of non-mainstream and indi movies last year. I watched several Indian language movies too - Hindi and Kannada to be precise.

 

This is a short blogpost to let you know what to expect next year. My first resolution is to post at least one book review every month, this will put pressure on me to read one new book every month. Then I will post at least one new movie review every month, i.e. I will make sure I watch at least one new movie every month. I will try and post one review every week, either movie or book.

 

If you have movie/ book suggestions for this blog feel free to leave a comment about the same.

Movie Review: Bad Reputation

High School is the age when children are undergoing transformation into adults. This is the time when students indulge in lots of reckless behavior, sexual experimentation, rebellious outbursts, etc. In the United States the High School years are held in high esteem by most people. While most people come out of high school happy and hopeful, a few unfortunate individuals suffer the brunt of bullying, exploitation, date rapes, etc and are damaged for life. The movie Bad Reputation is the story of one such girl who is wronged and branded as the 'high school slut' by peers. She embraces the Bad Reputation, transforms herself into a flirty, bold dressing individual and takes revenge on those who had wronged her.

Meet Michelle, a shy high school student who has been a nobody at her school. One day the most popular guy in school, Aaron invites her to a party at his home. She attends the party where the host Aaron is attracted by her looks. He gets her completely drunk and takes her to his room in a weakened state and rapes her. His friends Jake and Steve help him in holding her down and guarding the door. Michelle passes out and the when she comes to she is tied up to a tree in the yard and everyone is calling her a slut who slept with the three guys. Aaron's girlfriend is specially mad at Michelle for attempting to steal her boyfriend.

The next day when Michelle gets to school there is graffiti all over calling her a slut and all kinds of demeaning names. She goes to the school counsellor in a bid to get some support, but he makes a pass at her too. Michelle's depression makes her mad and she decides to embrace her new found Bad Reputation and take revenge on the people who destroyed her life.

This is not a family movie, definitely not for children under 15, at the same time a must watch for parents and high school kids. The movie convey's a social message about high school and how things go very very wrong when alcohol, and drugs are involved in unrestrained parties.

Movie Review: The Lucky Texan

I am an unapologetic fan of western movies - of course only the ones in which the conflict is between White people and I totally abhor those films in which Native Americans are portrayed as wild, cruel and uncultured people. Anyway when one thinks of western movies the first name that comes up is undoubtedly John Wayne. I have watched several of his movies including Big Jake, The Red River, among others.

The Lucky Texan is a movie that deals with the gold rush and how unscrupulous businessmen tried to usurp property of gullible individuals in the recent past in the United States. The protagonists in this movie are Jerry Mason effectively played by John Wayne and Jake Benson (George Gabby Hayes) who are partners in the gold mining operation. They have been able to keep their mining site a secret from everyone in the town. They want to extract as much gold as possible before they stake a claim on the mine so the area remains a secret.

Then there are two businessmen in the town who also have an eye on Jake Benson's ranch and are interested in knowing where the gold strike has happened. Meanwhile Jake's grand daughter comes to live with him from New York and life begins to get complicated. The businessmen follow Jake and try to kill him and steal his gold and then use some fraudulent documents to claim the ranch. Things take an ugly turn from here on but the end is funny court scene which has to be watched.

This movie is not one of the best of John Wayne's but it is definitely one that cemented his acting career. He is at his formative years as an actor and definitely has an appealing screen presence. It is available free to watch on Youtube, go ahead and enjoy it.

Movie Review: Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo

Cover of Deuce Bigalow - European Gigolo

This is one laughing circus of a movie. Set in Amsterdam the movie features the old favorites Rob Scheineder (Deuce Bigalow) and Eddie Griffin (T.J the Pimp). Duece is a former Gigalow who has gotten into research about fish and is living a quiet life in Los Angeles. Out of the blue he gets a call from his former Pimp TJ who is operating in Amsterdam to come and work for him. A sudden turn of events make him decide to go to Amsterdam and there things are quite different.

Drugs, and prostitution are legal and everyone seems to be in the trade. There is a university to train young men to become gigolos and there is an association to protect their rights. Male prostitutes aka gigolos pay taxes and have insurance. Just when everything is cozy and nice, a serial killer starts murdering gigolos one at a time. The association is worried, cops are after the killer.

TJ gets framed as the murderer and now it is upto Deuce to prove his innocence and secure release. The next part of the movie is fraught with hilarious scenes, one liners and other jokes. It is an R rated movie so I wouldn't advise watching with kids. Adults can watch this movie and enjoy the comedy. There is not much nudity so don't worry about getting embarrassed.

It is available free on Youtube, so you may as well take advantage of it.

Movie Review: Caught Up!

B-Grade Hollywood Action Movie
 
Caught up is a movie about how one can get stuck and fall into bad times even when the intentions are good. This is the story of Daryl Allen, a former drug peddler who is out of jail, living with mom. He has decided to go straight and do everything legal from now on. He comes to know that his girlfriend is pregnant with his child which makes him all the more motivated to turn a new leaf.
 
He wants to start a classy club and run an honest business. He is short of money, his friend who is still in drug peddling business promises to help him and asks him to drive to the bank so he can withdraw the money. Daryl believes him and they head to the bank. The friend steps in to get the money while Daryl relaxes in the car. The next thing we see is a lot of shooting and Daryl's friend comes running with the money chased by the bank's security guard. Quite predictably there is a car chase which ends in his friend getting killed and Daryl being arrested for bank robbery. He is sentenced to 5 years in jail.
 
when Daryl gets out of jail after 5 years. things have changed. His mother has passed on, his girlfriend has moved on and married someone, and much as he tries he can't find a job. On top of all this there the probationary officer breathing down his neck, keeping track of everything he is doing. Meanwhile Daryl bumps into Vanessa, a look-alike of his former girlfriend and gets attracted to her. As he is leaving he coffee shop with Vanessa a gunman shoots at them and Daryl is scared. He thinks it is someone after Vanessa and confronts her for the truth. She says it is her former boyfriend how is psychotic and she is out of the relationship.
 
Vanessa helps Daryl find a job as a limousine driver with one of her friends. The limo service is a shady operation which offers high-priced taxi service for people to exchange goods such as drugs, contraband, etc. The gunman is still after them and Daryl doesn't understand why? Later Vanessa reveals that she is in possession of a very valuable diamond that belonged to her former boyfriend and that is why he is after her.
 
Things begin to heat up after this. There is conspiracy, treachery and action all packed in the last 20 mins of the movie. It is a movie that the directors and team hoped it would hit off with all the action, but it simply doesn't have what it takes to become a hit. So I would say it is worth watching once but not worth searching for it. You can find it on Youtube's movie channel and watch it there for FREE.

Movie Review: Kissing Cousins

Funny Movie misrepresents Indian culture
 
This is one of those ABCD movies (American Born Confused Desi) that tries to depict Indian youth as completely accultured in England and America. Meet Amir lives in Los Angeles, works as a heart breaker, his job is to deliver messages of breakups to partners who have been dumped by their significant other. Basically men and women who doesn't have the courage/ heart to tell their partners their intention to end the relationship use him to deliver their message. He lives alone, watches porn every night, doesn't believe in lasting relationships, and goes on with his life. He best buddies are Tucker and Charlie who are in relationships and Bridget who is the former's sister and single.
 
Charlie meets Tina and decides to get married. It has been agreed for several that Amir is going to be the best man but while making plans Charlie and Tina decide that Tucker should be the best man because he has more positive "relationship karma". Amir is disappointed and outraged by the sudden change of plans. He goes home for the Thanksgiving holiday and notices that things have changed. His room has been rented, his sister is married to an African-American and is expecting, his father has a best buddy who is 15 yr old and Amir has no place to sleep other than the sofa. He meets his cousin Zara after a gap of 20 years. Zara lives in London and is in the US for a holiday.
 
After the holiday Zara travels with him to LA and she starts presenting herself as Amir's girlfriend in front of his friends. Everybody believes this and what follows is a fairly comical turn of events and Amir is once again given the mantle of the Best Man in Charlie's wedding. Things take sudden twist at this point. I wont reveal the end and spoil the climax.
 
While the movie is pretty entertaining, there are several factual errors and gaps in the story. First off, the names of the main characters Amir and Zara are Muslim names. Second Amir's mother appears like a Hindu. They celebrate all Christian festivals such as Thanksgiving and Christmas rather than Diwali which takes place around the same time as former. There is no indication that these people have converted to Christianity or otherwise. The film makers have made a cultural mess out of this family and its portrayal. I wish film makers were a little more culturally attuned before they start making movies of this sort.

Movie Review: Hot Fuzz

What happens when a hot shot police constable is transferred from London Metro area to a small sleepy village on promotion? His life goes crazy trying to enforce law and he finds out that the sleepy village is indeed not so, there is something going on and a secret society is bent upon murdering everyone who is not in with their agenda. Meet Nicholas Angel (Simon Pegg) who is the best policeman in London, he is so good that his colleagues are being questioned about their efficiency. They conspire and get him transferred to a small village out in the country on a promotion as a Sargent. He protests but he has to go.

Once there he is paired with a new recruit who is more interested in eating that anything else. The village community seems to be peaceful and there is no crime at all. Sargent Angel is not convinced, his gut feeling tells him something is amiss. Then there are a series of murders starting with an actor and then a local businessman and then the city newspaper editor. Sargent Angel is working on the case and there seems to be no leads whatsoever.

The motive and murderer's identity remains a mystery till the end. The mystery is good but it is the comedy that is the hallmark of this film. I'd recommend it to everyone, it is a complete family entertainer so you can watch it with your kids and parents and everyone.

Movie Review: The Mechanic

Action Packed Corporate Gangster Movie

I love action movies of all kinds - Western, Military, War, Police, Crime - you name it and I will watch it. However I don't like endless gore and blood on the screen. Watching explosions, gun fights and fist cuffs are fine but then when these get meaningless the movie clearly doesn't have a story but is trying to appeal to the primitive sense of humans.

Anyway I chanced upon this movie The Mechanic at the college library and picked it up so I can pass some time during the break. The Mechanic features Jason Statham as Arthur Bishop and Ben Foster as Steve and Donald Sutherland as Harry as the main characters. Arthur is a professional hit man who is hired to eliminate high profile individuals across the world. The movie begins with Arthur eliminating a drug lord.

Arthur's mentor cum friend Harry is the main conduit man who is one of the bosses in the enterprise that eliminates people. Harry is disappointed with his son Steve and confides that with Arthur. There is a small twist at this time Harry is murdered. Steve wants revenge and so Arthur trains him to become a killer. Now both are on the pursuit of the target - Harry's killer. From here on there is a load of violence, car chases, fist fights, etc. The end is rather different. Watch it and you will not be disappointed.

Movie Review: 17 Again

American culture glorifies youth so much that most people are obsessed with their high school years. I wouldn't blame them because high school is something that one either hates or loves. This movie kinda glorifies the high school experience once again and how decisions made at that time will go on to shape the rest of an individual's life. The story centers around Mike O' Donnell who has been thrown out of his house by his wife, his teenaged children don't want to have anything to do with him and at work he is passed up for a promotion.
 
Back up a few years Mike was the high school basket ball pro who was all set to go to college. On the evening he was supposed to play the match that would get him a scholarship to go to college he comes to know his girlfriend is pregnant. He throws it all away and settles down with this wife to raise a family. But deep within he harbors a sense of loss, a feeling that he would been someone else, done something else if his girlfriend now wife had not gotten pregnant. This feeling leads to angst and gets him to the brink of divorce.
 
There is a divine intervention at this point in his life and he is transformed into a 17 year old. He goes back to the same school that his children go to and then starts the fun. He becomes the coolest kid at school and changes the lives of his son and daughter and finally reclaims the love of his life - his estranged wife. The whole process is riddled with comedy and high school fun. The story and theme could have been handled much better but this movie is ok... not too bad. Worth watching once.

Expendables - Movie Review

I have been wanting to watch this movie ever since it was being promoted couple of years ago. I am a big fan of Stallone so I will like his movies even though they might have bombed at the box office. Anyway this movie was being promoted for its mega action star cast and also the presence of Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger. If you are expecting all these mega action stars to work shoulder to shoulder, forget it. Willis and Schwarzenegger only appear in one short scene, suited and booted in a church. Absolutely no action for them.

Anyways the movie is about Stallone (Barney Ross) and his band of mercenaries who would do anything for money or so they say. Everyone rides a fancy motorcycle, choppers, sports, crotch rockets, etc. They charge millions of $$$s for their jobs and generally lead a low profile but comfortable lives. They are approached by one Mr. Church (Willis) who wants them to travel to the island of Vilena in South America and eliminate the military dictator.

Naturally Barney wants to go and recon the area before taking up the job. Once on the island they are met with the beautiful Sandra who shows them around and they get into trouble with the soldiers. Later it is revealed that Sandra is none other than the General's daughter. There is an American businessman who is trying to cultivate cocaine and transport it back to the States to be sold on the street and make billions of $$$s.Smelling something fishy Barney refuses the job but the memory of the girl continues to haunt him. So he decides to go and then all hell breaks loose.

One thing I don't understand about this movie is that though Barney lives in US of A, there are no cops in the streets they roam around. Nobody turns up when a bunch of assassins surround Barney and his friend shooting on city streets. Where are the cops??? The other day my car stalled at an intersection and there was a cop within 15 mins there. Strangely this movie doesn't show any American police, I wonder why.

When I see such movies I get the feeling that Hollywood is slowly but surely getting its inspiration from Bollywood or other Indian film industries. There are too many gaping holes in the plot to go unnoticed.....

It is an entertainer nevertheless, watch it once if you can get hold of the DVD free, like I did from the library.

Happy Karnataka Rajyotsava

Image via Wikipedia
Wishing all my readers a very happy Kannada Rajyotsava 2011. November 1st is the day when the great state of Karnataka was formed as a part of the Union of India. I have been reviewing several Kannada movies that I have mostly watched after coming to the US. Kannada film industry has really transformed into a creative hub and recently there have been a slew of different and original stories, accompanied by excellent screenplay and photography too.

Keep visiting this blog to see reviews of more Kannada movies soon. I bid farewell for now with the familiar saying "Siri Kannadam Gelge"

Happy Diwali 2011

Image via WikipediaThis is not a book review or a movie review.  I haven't had the time to read any books other than the prescribed textbooks. I have watched couple of movies but haven't had the time to review them. Right now it is Diwali so here I am wishing all of you a very Happy Diwali and a Prosperous New year which is shortly coming up.

May the gods bless you and your loved ones with all the happiness and peace that would endure a lifetime. For me I'd be happy if I am able to blog as frequently as I'd like to and this becomes a runaway hit among readers and of course generates lots of revenue for me, through adsense, online advertising and internet marketing.

Aarakshan - Hindi Movie Review

Aarakshan is one of those movies that has a Good story but the flick itself is not good because of too many subplots or bad screenplay. This movie starts as being about reservations set around the Mandal Commission recommendations of 27% additional quota for the Other Backward Classes, but is it about social reform and upliftment of the downtrodden? The movie takes a totally different twist and becomes an anti-coaching classes story which ends in the commencement of another coaching/ remediation center.

Movie Review: Vaare Vah

Komal's comedy masterpiece is definitely worth watching and when it is available for free on youtube don't miss the laughter brigade.

Mr. Theertha - Kannada Movie Review

Sudeep's Mr. Theertha is another good family entertainer that follows a somewhat familiar plot. I watched this movie on Youtube thanks to the newly active Kannada movie fans who are uploading full movies. This movie is about how a stubborn father can destroy his child's life. Meet Theertha (Sudeep), son of Shastri Sir (Ananth Nag), the match teacher and principal in a high school. Shastri is totally aghast that his son is not interested in studies but in mechanical stuff, instead of working with compass and dividers, he is keen on playing with cutting pliers, screw drivers and spanners.

Shastri wants his son to become a great mathematician like him. In order to make Theertha conform to his aspirations he inflicts corporal punishment on the innocent boy and destroys the things he creates. This leads to animosity between father and son and the final straw comes when the father asks son's class teacher to fail him. Theertha goes and stabs his classmate in the hand with a compass and runs away. His father takes him and hands him over to the cops saying that he deserves to be in a remand home and not in the society.

Theertha transforms into a rowdy and has his own two wheeler service station. Now enters the heroine and the vamp together. The heroine is his childhood sweetheart and the vamp is the wife of the director of the school he went to. The story hots up with the usual fights, songs and conspiracies and ends the usual way. Lovers get united and father and son make peace. Theertha becomes the inventor of a revolutionary carburetor which will make motorcycles return over 100 km per liter.

Overall the movie is a good one, Ananth Nag excels in this role as a disciplinarian and rigid father. Sudeep delivers a stellar performance as hero. The movie is definitely worth watching and you can watch it with the entire family.

Movie Review: The Last Time

Suspenseful and Emotional Drama

This movie kinda caught my attention on Youtube's movie channel. I decided to watch because the star cast looked good. The movie is a corporate suspense drama and has been very well executed. Micheal Keaton, Brendan Frazer and Amber Valletta play the main roles in the movie. Ted Ryker (Keaton) is a very successful salesman in New York city, but he is extremely aggressive and has a very dry and sarcastic sense of humor. Jamie Bashant (Frazer) arrives into town with his fiance Belisa (Amber Valletta) to join Ted Ryker as his assistant. Bashant claims to have been a star salesman in his previous job and hopes to deliver the same performance here, but miserably fails.

Meanwhile Belisa and Ted get close to each other and begin an affair. Jamie continues to fail presentation after presentation and Ted watches him without any sense of comaraderie or sympathy. Something changes in Ted as he gets closer to Belisa, he becomes soft, good mannered and loses his dry sarcasm. The company gets taken over by rivals and everyone loses out in the process.

The final is a totally interesting part to watch. What happens to the corporate bosses and how things are orchestrated in the world of business is a totally different way of life. Watch the movie to know more.

Dasvidaniya - Movie Review

Living life to the fullest

What would someone do when he/ she is diagnosed with terminal cancer? Most of us would crib, complain, grieve, and become recluses either at home or at the hospital. In Dasvidaniya the hero is in the same situation but he handles it in a totally different way.

Meet Amar Koul (Vinay Pathak), the protagonist of the movie. A typical nice guy living in Mumbai, India. He has never smoked, gotten drunk, or been with a woman. He is a very organized person and makes a to-do list every morning, things like shopping for grocery, toiletries, battery for his mother's hearing aid, etc. He works hard as accounts manager at a pharmaceutical company in Mumbai and lives with his mother. One fine day he goes to a doctor's appointment where is informed of the disease that afflicts him.

Amar is completely devastated and does not know what to do. He comes to terms with the disease and realizes that he has less than few months to live. Here comes his other form - a vision of what he would like to be - and then he makes one list of things that he would like to do before he dies. That is what he sets out to do, starting with buying a brand new car, going abroad, meeting with the love of his life to whom he could never express it, etc.

Life takes him through several peaks and troughs and finally he achieves all the ten things in his list. In my opinion this should have been a super hit movie but I guess Indian audiences are not mature enough to watch a serious drama flick such as Dasvidaniya. The performances by Vinay Pathak, and Rajat Kapoor, are stellar. Neha Dhupia plays Neha Banot the childhood love of Amar.

I would definitely recommend this movie to anyone and everyone who like a serious emotional drama about how to lead life while suffering from Cancer. It is an inspirational movie. Watch it, it is free on youtube and you will not regret it.

Ashoka - Kannada Movie Review

Image via WikipediaAction Packed Story of modern day Robin Hood

I try and watch Kannada movies on Youtube and other online sources as and when I have some spare time on hand. I have noticed that while the overall quality of the movies are getting better there are still many many formula-based movies in Sandalwood. I wish the directors stopped making these movies, this will give a fillip to the industry and enhance the reputation of our state.

Anyway this movie also follows the typical storyline. A poor lowly police constable dreams of making his only son an IPS officer. The son Ashok (Shivrajkumar) is also a very straightforward, law abiding, diligent student and active in NCC and other extra curricular activities. The hero Ashok gets into trouble with the underworld just before becoming an IPS officer and his father throws him out of the house.

Enraged Ashoka becomes an underworld Don and starts getting into all kinds of businesses: Real estate, transport, extortion, kidnapping, etc. You name it and Ashoka is the king in that industry, but he is slowly and surely eliminating all the existing rowdy elements. At the end of the movie like in almost all Indian movies there is a huge confrontation between Ashoka and the real underworld Dons and it is anybody's guess who wins.

There is some emotional drama when Ashoka's father comes to know his son's true identity from the police officers who are pleased with Ashoka's work without a uniform or authority. There is a family reunion and of course the reason for the confrontation is Ashoka's girlfriend who discovers a scandal and reports on it. Will anybody make a movie in India without a heroine and few duets??? No way... similarly Ashoka also has two heroines and there are some suet songs and an orgy song :)... Ashoka dances and sings with two heroines instead of one.

My final verdict on this movie is - pass it unless you have a lot of time on hand. Shivrajkumar has delivered much better performances and has acted in movies with great storylines - go watch them.

Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara - Movie Review

zindagi-na-milegi-dobara-poster - Bollywood World

I watched this movie when I was in India recently. The movie is for the young and young-at-heart viewers who like the feel-good themes that bollywood throws up sometimes. The movie centers around three heroes Arjun (Hrithik Roshan), Imran (Farhan Akthar), and Kabir (Abhay Deol). Of course there are three heroines too, otherwise it wouldn't be a Indian flick. Anyway the story is all about Kabir's impending marriage and a road trip that the three friends take as part of their bachelor party.

The three friends of course atrociously rich - most middle-class Indian kids would not be able to afford a trip like this - meet up in Spain and start of their adventure sports. Deep sea diving, sky diving and being part of a traditional bull chase festival is what the three intend to do. The movie also exposes the baggage that the friends carry and help resolve issues between the friends and also in their lives.

Imran reconciles to the fact that his biological father is just that, Arjun finds a new girl friend and Kabir understands that marriage is not for him right now.

Summing up I'd say it is definitely worth watching and one of those movies without too much drama and few songs and can be watched with the family.

Singam - Hindi Movie Review

Action Packed Flick with Powerful Performances

I had watched the Tamil version of this movie while I was in the US and knew the plot pretty much. Then the much promoted Hindi movie released when I landed in Bangalore and I thought I should take a look and see what Ajay Devgan has done. Whether the Hindi version was better or the Tamil one was more entertaining. Well after watching the movie I must say I enjoyed the Hindi version better, simply because I understood what was being said and the superior technical details. Performance wise the stars in both languages have delivered equally well.

The story is a typical Good cop versus corrupt police department and their political and rowdy henchmen. A honest inspector has a tangle with a politically well connected underworld don and that starts off an ego issue between them. The cop gets transferred to the big bad city where every one in the police department is corrupt and hand-in-glove with the thugs and politicians. The rest of the story is about how the cop combats his frustrations and eliminates the rowdy elements of the big city.

There was no need for a heroine in this movie and I don't know why good film makers see the need to include a pretty face even though the script doesn't demand one. If only Indian film makers were to see the potential of movies without song and dance routines, and heroines showing off their curves and skin I am pretty sure the industry would be able to attain new heights. But I guess right now the industry is still not mature enough... maybe the audience isn't also...

Movie Review: Raakshasa

Story of an Honest Cop

When I was in India I rarely watched movies, and when I did I preferred to go to English, Hindi, and Kannada movies in that order. After coming to the US I have watched more Kannada movies than ever before. Probably because I don't want to lose touch with the language that I was raised talking. Here I rarely speak my mother tongue - Kannada.

Anyway coming back to the movie under review, I stumbled upon this movie quite by accident while searching for something to watch on Youtube. This movie according to the producer/ director is based on real incidents. The film centers around the exploits of ACP Harish Chandra (Shivrajkumar) who constantly puts his life in line to perform his duty. He kills the younger brother of underworld don Shabbir Khan while trying to arrest the latter. Khan swears revenge and tries to eliminate Harish Chandra and family, but succeeds in killing only his wife and son.

ACP Harish Chandra returns to police force with a vengeance and is made the head of the Anti-Rowdy squad in which he successfully eliminates notorious miscreants in the state. Meanwhile Shabbir Khan returns to India from Dubai to settle scores with ACP Harish Chanddra and regain control over his underworld empire. The story ends with a different type of ending, once again displaying the broadminded nature of Kannadigas.

I must say that this movie is one of the few fast paced movies that doesn't bore the viewer. I only fast forwarded the songs. Ruthika the heroine looks good but has no role in the movie, if the songs and unnecessary drama were cut out the movie would probably be comparable to any fast-paced Hollywood movie. I guess Sadhu Kokila the director should think about making a fast paced narrative story like this without songs and unnecessary drama.

Bottom line is that Kannada film industry is moving forward and making better movies. Cinema that is watchable and entertaining.

Apaharan Movie Review

How Criminals are Made?

This is one of the movies based on real incidents that took place in India. The name of the movie Apaharan meaning "Kidnap" itself indicates the theme of the film. The movie is about the rampant kidnapping that used to take place in one of the most lawless regions of India.

Three main themes dominate the storyline of Apaharan: the controversial and ubiquitous nexus between politicians and mafia; greed for position and power inherent in political leaders who will stoop to any levels to retain them; and finally how innocent youth caught in this anarchic could easily get disillusioned and resort to crime.

The movie centers around two main characters: Ajay Shastri (Ajay Devgan) and his father Prof. Raghuvansh Shastri (Mohan Agashe). The other main character in the movie is Tabrez Alam played by Nana Patekar. The heroine played by Bipasha Basu is more like a guest appearance than a heroine, she pretty much doesn't have any role in the film.

Ajay Shastri and his father share a tumultuous relationship. While his father is fighting against corruption, Ajay is running from pillar to post trying to land a job in the police department. In between Tabrez Alam, sitting MLA is running his own kidnapping mafia on the sly. Ajay gets drawn into the kidnapping mafia when he borrows money to bribe the bureaucrats for a police job. This involvement makes him the right hand man of Tabrez Alam and the leader of the mafia.

Meanwhile a journalist Akash Ranjan (Anup Soni) threatens to expose all the corruption to public. Ajay is given the assignment to eliminate Akash Ranjan by Tabrez Alam but at the last moment he finds out that it is none other than his father Prof. Raghuvansh Shastri who is behind the corruption expose. This makes Ajay realize his fault and he decides to turn himself in and with the help of an honest police officer he makes a statement against all involved including Tabrez Alam. Corruption wins and instead of getting punished Tabrez Alam becomes a minister.

The movie shows how legislative, executive and judiciary branches of the government are manipulated by self serving politicians in India.

Movie Review: CC and Company

True Blue Biker Movie

I have seen several biker movies but only few really successfully depict the true spirit and quest for freedom that bikers claim. The Easy Rider of yore and the recent Wild Hogs show two extremes of the biker spirit. CC and Company goes one step ahead in this, the movie successfully shows both kinds of bikers. On one side are a gang of rowdy, and unruly bikers who chose to drift on the periphery of the society and earn a living by stealing, prostitution, and other illegal stuff. Then there is the other side where people enjoy biking as a sport and recreation.

The protagonist of the movie CC is a biker who blends the best of both these types of bikers. The movie starts off when CC and his biker friends find a beautiful woman stranded on the highway in a limo. The bikers try to force themselves on the woman and CC interferes. In the ensuing fight CC wins and the bikers flee to join the gang.

The next major event in the movie is when the bikers chance upon a dirt bike race and the gang decides to gatecrash into the event. When they see dirt bikes flying across the track, the leader decides that his gang is better than them and hit the tracks and start riding in the opposite direction of the racers. The bikers end up making fools of themselves and feeling humiliated they return to their camp. CC is interested in this racing game and he buys himself a dirt bike.

Next thing we see CC riding a race and he nearly wins. The leader of the gang is not so happy with the attention CC is getting from the rest of the gang. Now begins the tussle between the gang leader and CC. The rest of the movie is about how CC is able to get out of the gang successfully and move on... or shall we say ride on into the sun.

I would definitely recommend this movie to everyone who wants to watch a short entertaining movie with good biking action.

Tall in the Saddle - Movie Review

I am a big aficionado of John Wayne movies. I try and watch every movie I get hold of starring John Wayne. His imposing screen presence, smart dialogue delivery and rough demeanor make it highly entertaining. I have enjoyed his performances in Big Jake, Red River, and a whole list of others. I stumbled upon Tall in the Saddle on youtube and decided to watch this 1944 monochrome flick.

As expected the movie is all about the land, inheritance, treachery, gun men, swindling and of course horse riding. The movie is set in an era when there were no automobiles, the only mode of transport was horses and carriages. The movie starts with the arrival of Rocklin (Wayne) along with a beautiful young woman Clara Cardell along with her domineering aunt. Rocklin has come to work at the Cardell Ranch while Clara has come to claim her inheritance. Old man Cardell who promised employment to Rocklin is dead.

Rocklin has a run in with Arly Haroldy, the young and beautiful owner of the Topaz Ranch that adjoins the Cardell ranch. After being shamed Arly wants to take revenge and hires Rocklin as a foreman in her ranch. Things start getting nasty at this point, there is an attempt on Rocklin's life and he soon comes to know that some unscruplus elements are trying to cheat Clara off her property. Rocklin returns to town to settle scores and there ensures lots of fist fights and few gun fights before the movie draws to a close with a totally unexpected twist.

What I like about this movie is it is short and fast paced. There is no unnecessary conversation, and drama. The best part of the movie I'd say is not the gunfight or the fist fight but the smart one liners delivered effectively by John Wayne and the amazingly hilarious facial expressions and kinesthetics by the drunk carriage driver.

Thoroughly enjoyable I'd recommend this to anyone interested in western movies.

Kshatriya Hindi Movie Review

Tale of Two Cities - Bollywood style

Whenever I get some free time I try and watch some Indian movies on Youtube. There are couple of reasons why I watch Youtube, first and foremost they are free, and except for the pesky advertisements they are pretty good quality. I particularly like action movies starring Sunny Deol, Sanjay Dutt, Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty, etc. I also enjoy the previous generation of heroes Dharmendra, Vinod Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan.

This movie was one of those multi-starrer films with many action heroes and gorgeous heroines. The main theme of the movie is how love overcomes hatred passed down for generations. The story could have been told in a much better way without the unnecessary drama, over acting and by reducing the number of illogical twists to the plot.

The story centers around a famous temple of Kali Mata in Rajasthan where the ruling clans of two kingdoms Surjangarh and Mirtagarh fight for the right to sacrifice a buffalo in order to propitiate the goddess and get rain for their respective kingdoms. In between there is the corrupt Minister of Mirtagarh who along with his son wants to take control of the treasury and enjoy the wealth. The villainous minister and his son plot to kill the crown prince of Surjangarh during one of the sacrificial events but is unsuccessful.

The rulers of both the nations played by Dharmendra and Sunil Dutt don't see eye to eye and are always at war. Now comes a twist, the nephew of Dharmendra, crown price of Surjangarh falls in love with Sunil Dutt's daughter, the princess of Mirtagarh. Despite families ordering them not to meet each other they get together clandestinely and are caught by the elders of Mirtagarh. When the prince tries to escape he is murdered by the conniving minister and his son. In retaliation, Dharmendra Kills Sunil Dutt. This leads to a bloody battle between families and Sunil Dutt's brother Vinod Khanna kills several members of Dharmendra's family.

The result is quite predictable the family members hate each other. In order to keep their children away from all the politics both families send their children to London to study. There the children played by Sunny Deol, Sanjay Dutt, and Raveena Tandon oblivious of their family rivalry become very close friends. Raveena and Sunny even fall in love with each other.

They return to India only to face the wrath of their respective parents, who are bent on separating the lovers. There are numerous dramatic outbursts, twists, conspiracy, sub-plots to the movie which sometimes is quite confusing. All in all it is three hours of entertainment, Indian style.

I am not surprised that the movie didn't do all that well in the box office when it was released. I am sure the sales of DVDs are not bursting any charts either. If you have time and the movie is free go ahead and watch, otherwise it is completely passable.

88 Minutes Movie Review

Absorbing Crime Narrative

I have always liked Al Pacino's movies because they are action packed like the Serpico, full of suspense such as Dick Tracy and of course the super crime thriller The Godfather series. 88 Minutes is available free to watch on Youtube and that helped me make a decision to watch it. The movie doesn't have a high number of votes on Rotten Tomatoes but still I decided to watch it and boy it was not a mistake at all. The hour and 47 minutes spent watching this movie doesn't have one boring moment and thrills the audience to the end.

Al Pacino plays successful forensic psychologist Jack Gramm whose professional opinion seals the fate of serial rapist and killer Jon Forster played by Neal McDonough. Fast forward nine years on the day Forster is supposed to be executed Gramm receives a phone call saying that he has only 88 minutes to live. This sets into motion a frenzy of bombing, shooting, car chases and there is no indication as to who is the real villain.

The screenplay is so well conceived that there is no hint of who the culprit could be till the very end of the movie. The twists and turns of the plot keeps the viewer guessing as to who the real killer is. Is it Gramm himself, or is it his beautiful homosexual assistant or the male student who is questioning his professor's logic, or is it one of the female students who has a crush on him.

Director Jon Avnet has done a good job in extracting great performances from all the actors. The cool jubilant exterior of Forster when his execution gets stayed even if briefly. The tension on Gramm's face and the aloofness of the FBI agents etc are all well done. Writer Gary Scott Thompson has done a good job in story telling which has been translated into visual imagery very well by Avnet.

This is definitely entertaining but does not merit any awards. Simply put I am pretty sure the producers made good of their investment and everyone involved is happy with the return on their investment. I wouldn't watch it again, simply because I know the end.

The are times during the movie when the plot seems confusing and abrupt. Apart from these little irritants 88 Minutes is a totally watchable movie and I would suggest take the opportunity to its free availability on Youtube and grab it.

A Nation of Farmers: Book Review

Food shortages have become the buzzword everywhere in the world. In a globalized world where food is no longer grown and consumed in the same place, crop failure in one nation means shortage somewhere else. In the recent years we have had instances when India had banned export of rice because crop had failed in Thailand and other rice producing nations.

The first world nations have the money power to out buy crops and food from impoverished third-world nations and leave their citizens starving. How long can this practice continue? There have been food-related rioting, protests and movements in various third-world nations and emerging economies also.

The worst hit in this crises are the poor in every nation, be it America or India or China or any sub-Saharan nation. The poorest of the poor always go hungry and are most affected by any price rise.

In this context Sharon Astyk and Aaron Newton have come out with this noteworthy and information-rich volume: A nation of Farmers. The main theme of the book is how American people can save themselves and their nation from the impending food shortage. The book is a fervent appeal from the authors to the common people of America urging them to convert their backyards into gardens where they can grow their own food, rear chickens and other consumable animals.

I believe that with so much land and so little population America could well become the bread basket of the world. There needs to be political will and a social change... no social transformation. After reading this book I am convinced that it should be mandatory reading for every high school and college student in the country. This is one of the sure-shot ways to attain food-self-reliance for America and today's citizens owe it to themselves and their nation to achieve this.

Valkyrie (2008) - Movie Review

Story of the Non-Nazi German Army

Adolf Hitler, the German dictator whose name is written in the annals of recent history of the world as one of the most ruthless military leaders was an extremely lucky man. He survived not one, two or three but 17 attempts on his life and finally ended up killing himself towards the fag end of World War II.

The movie Valkyrie is the story of one such assasination attempt on Hitler's life. The story revolves around a patriotic German army officer Colonel Von Stauffenberg, who firmly believes that only Hitler's death will bring about an end to the war and prevent Germany from being reduced to ashes. He loses an eye, his right hand and two fingers of his left hand in the war and is seen as an ideal German Army Officer by Hitler.

Tom Cruise plays Stauffenberg very convincingly and is well supported by David Bamber (Adolf Hitler), Bill Nighy (General Fredrich Olbricht), Tom Wilkinson (General Fromm) and others. The recreation of the true incidents that took place during July 1944 is very convincing. Bryan Singer has extracted the best out of each and every member of the Valkyrie's cast.

The story starts with Stauffenberg arguing with his superior officer about the importance of taking his men home safe. Few minutes later his battalion is attacked by the allied airforce during which Stauffenberg is grievously injured. He returns to Berlin and meets with other disgruntled officers who believe that if Hitler would lead to Germany to destruction and mass murders in Europe. The rest of the movie details the plot to kill the Fuehrer and how it is executed. What happens after that and how the entire team of conspirators along with Stauffenberg are arrested and shot dead.

This movie is one of the many attempts by the Hollywood directors to clean the image of Germany and its people. The film spiritedly attempts to show that only a small section of the German people was behind Hitler in his mindless carnage of Jews and that there was a large majority of Germans who did not approve of his ways.

An effort that has not gone in vain, I'd say.

Whip It - Movie Review

Roller Derby and Teenage Rebellion in America

Spinning down the arena on eight wheels is not easy especially when there there are many others out there blocking your move. It takes courage, speed, agility and determination to accomplish this and achieve points in a potentially dangerous sport played predominantly by young women - Roller Derby.

Whip it starring Ellen Page of Juno fame, Drew Barrymore, and Kirstin Wiig is a movie that celebrates roller derby during an age when the roller skating itself is in serious decline across the US. With youngsters getting interested in console gaming and virtual play skating rinks across the US are struggling to sustain themselves and keep afloat. Roller Derby is a much less respected sport and is often considered a violent sport where women beat each other up. In popular perception it is the sport of tramps, drug addicts and losers.

Whatever it maybe the Whip it team has been able to present Roller Derby as a contact sport as intense as American Football. The movie centers around Bliss a teenager in small-town Texas whose postal employee mom wants to make her a beauty queen. On the contrary Bliss gets attracted by Roller Derby and starts seriously practicing for the sport. Her petite frame and determination enable her to make it into one of the teams.

The rest of the story is a short broken romantic fling she has with a wannabe rock star she meets during one of the after-derby parties. Her intensely committed practice regimen, and of course the derby plays themselves. Don't dismiss this movie as some girlie flick, it is indeed as action packed as any of the guy movies I have seen. The action is not blood and gore, but inside the stadium sporting. Of course there is a liberal dose of fistcuffs between girls in the movie too.

Watch it, you will not be disappointed.

Movie Review: Chor Mandli

Starring: Mukul Dev, Sweta Keswani, Razak Khan, Dharam Pal, Vishwajeet Pradhan
Director: Sanjay Khanna
Genre: Comedy

Last week while snow and ice were wrecking havoc on the roadways, causing accidents, I was cooped up at home reading my textbooks. To take a break I watched this totally nonsensical Bollywood comedy Chor Mandli. Surprisingly the movie had few songs and was over in less than two hrs. This is surprising because Hindi movies are usually 2-3 hrs in length and have the standard formula, five songs, one rape scene, 3-4 fight scenes and a climax. I am glad Bollywood directors are finally moving away from the used, reused and abused formula concept. The director has moved away from the standard formula and woven a story around five common and petty thieves.

Set in Mumbai, India, the movie features Honda the car thief, Nandu the mobile thief, Marco the gambler, a struggling actor, Buta Singh, Chindi someone who watches while others steal. Honda gets caught and goes behind the bars where he meets another entirely crazy character who gives him a tip about a safe that contains lots of cash.

Honda tries to enlist his friend's help to get bailed out and steal the cash, instead the twist of events make him stay in jail for 3 years. His friends how meanwhile have come to know of the details of the loot plan and execute the job. The ending is completely different and quite illogical and stupid in my opinion.

The movie is available free on Youtube, watch it if you have lots of time on hand.

Movie Review: Streets of Legend

Movie Name(s): Quattro Noza/ Streets of Legend
Year: 2003
Genre: Action, Drag Racing, Gangster
Director: Joey Curtis
Cast: Brihanna Hernandez, Victor Larios and Robert Beaumont

Well! What can I say about a low budget movie with new faces? It is a good effort but doesn't have the stuff to make it into the big league. It is probably limited a few viewers on Youtube who watch the movie free and a few others who watch the flic by mistake.

Anyway the movie tells the story of illegal drag racing on the streets of East Los Angeles and on the side lines is the romance between the main protagonists of the story Noza and Quattro. Then there is the villain in the form of Noza's former boyfriend who is in prison for drug abuse and tampering with evidence. He storms out of jail when he comes to know that Noza is going out with the new guy on the block and then all hell breaks loose.

The movie ends on a rather sad note and could have been easily changed. The races could have been pictured better which would have made the movie much better. It has an R rating I don't know why? There is absolutely no scene in the movie worth an R rating.

Final Verdict: Don't watch it unless you have absolutely nothing to do. Or you are a great fan of street racing.