The Adventures of Tintin (2011)

Speechless ….. !!!!

Now that’s how you do a CGI ............

Thanks to Spielberg who could so well carry it with his amazing technique of motion capturing rather action capturing where he moves the camera along with the protagonist on the screen. Beautifully manifested Tintin couldn’t have received a warmer welcome to the film industry.

I am a big fan of Tintin comics and of course the animated series as well, especially the unrelenting Captain Haddock and who could forget the amazing duos Thompson and Thomson with their clumsy behavior who always managed to giggle me every now and then. Tintin and Snowy however used to be my heroes solving mysteries and defying danger at every step. When I learnt there is going to be a movie and none other than Steven Spielberg is gonna direct it, I was more than elated.

A perfect 3D fest right from the inception of the movie till the end, the movie has taken CGI to the next level with Spielberg’s classic method of action capturing and boy I must say I was amazed as I kept on pointing how beautiful the effects appeared with every scene. Everything seemed so real, right from their countenances to the environment – the beautiful sea, the vast desert and every tiny detail. The story took us to one hell of a ride with Tintin solving the mystery and connecting the dots for us. Captain Haddock had never been portrayed that brilliantly, keeping in mind every tiny details and facial expressions. Snowy appeared ditto as it used to be in the cartoons and equally cute too.

Tintin, superbly portrayed by Jamie Bell, finds a Unicorn ship in the market and buys it only to encounter hell himself in the form of Sakharine (Daniel Craig) who is keen to get the ship for there is something in the ship that interests him. Tintin finds himself in trouble as Sakharine is hell-bent on getting the ship from the hands of the lad. Tintin however smells the foul play and since then takes us on a joy ride connecting the pieces together with the assistance of Captain Haddock (Andy Serkis – A perfect choice for the role …. He has gone so much better ….. Andy Serkis for president !) who has been kidnapped by Sakharine.

The movie gives you a unique experience of 3D and motion capturing which I think is a must watch. Steven knows how to impeccably exploit technology. Go watch this one if you want to witness awesomeness in 3D.

Immortals (2011)

Spellbound !!!

Magnificent....Action has never touched such heights before.

Big fan of Greek mythology while‘Immortals’ was everything that I wanted it to be. A wonderful script, brilliant cast as well as unmatched action.

King Hyperion (Micky Rourke) is in search of Epirus bow to destroy humanity by unleashing the Titans. Gods cannot interpose unless he does so. Till that time the people of Greece witness ‘hell’ as King Hyperion is bent on seeking the legendary weapon to release the Titans at any cost. Theseus, (Henry  Cavill) who has been trained by none other than Zeus himself, is the only hope who has the ability to stop the cruel King before he tramples everyone who stands in his way. Phaedra, (Freida Pinto) who is the real virgin Oracle priestess has the ability to foresee the future, assists Theseus on his quest to stop the mad king. Zeus played by Luke Evans was one of the finest portrayals I have ever seen. The disappointed and the wrathful God filled the air with some class acting. The final scenes stole the show to the otherwise normal action flick. The whole scenario metamorphoses into a bloody gore with a lot of stabbing and lancing followed by heads and limbs falling all over the place. A bloody mess and that was exactly what I paid to see.

I can’t comment on Henry Cavill’s part but Mickey Rourke did an amazing job as a villain and I must say he carried the flick single-handedly doing all sorts of ugly and arrogant things you could only imagine. His self-disfigured blood thirsty army was the most dreaded in the entire Greece and they certainly brought everlasting chaos to the country in the search of the mighty weapon.

The epic clash between the hordes of Hyperion and the Greeks led by Theseus was amazing; however the fight between The Olympians and the Titans totally stole the show. I was literally jumping off my seat with every blow.

Go for this one if you are a blood-thirsty bloke for action. You won’t be disappointed. If you are not an action-buff then save yourself the trouble and watch a chick-flick instead.

Righteous kill (2008)

"Man they are back again for the third time ... The awesome twosome - Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, once again, together, to recreate the magic of HEAT and of Godfather: Part 2 and they are gonna share the screen space as “friends” in this one ... so read the bulletins but the question is, did they succeed?

I’d say not really although they almost managed to touch the same class by the grace of the plot. The story seemed too apparent right from the beginning where Robert De Niro, an NYPD detective, seems to be narrating a series of murder that he committed. The second parallel version manifests Al Pacino, his best mate and a long time partner in the same pursuit, trying to catch the criminal along with De Niro. The killings slowly start to point all fingers towards De Niro, another indication that was leading towards an obvious plot, albeit that wasn’t exactly the case.

Right when one gets really bored of the evident storyline BOOM! comes the climax completing the picture and man, I must say, I was totally dazed when that happened even though the rest of the movie failed to enthuse me much. Russell Gewirtz definitely knows how to write a climax (Remember how beautifully he wrote it for The Inside Man!) and he still manages to rake in all the kudos with his plot.

I must add this about the two great actors here - so less did they share the screen space in the earlier flicks and yet it used to thrill us to watch them come face to face. All of that, spoiled in a jiffy yet I think the flick could have been much more of a success had they energized it a little bit. The aged cops made everything really boring in this one - even the chase eventually lasted a second or two without any theatrics. I must say, if anyone else could have done it then why waste such great talents as Al Pacino and De Niro?

Carla is at her sensuous best in the flick. Donnie Wahlberg and John Leguizamo did their bit, chasing the wrong tail, well but that’s where they were steered as the script demanded. 50 Cents’ cameo was not needed at all.

I’d recommend it for those who love suspense coz boy they would be thrilled with the climax although the movie is a typical thriller which generally ends with something like that so even they would cuss me for the suggestion.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)

Wow !!!!!

Watch this flick and you wouldn’t be able to get it out of your head. This is one of the finest movies I’ve ever seen. Everything scores here – Story, direction, plot, music, cinematography, screenplay, action, visual effects and to top that all brilliant acting by Andy Serkis.

The story is really touching and firstly you wouldn’t be able to decide whose side you are on. The poor creature’s (Caesar’s played by Andy Serkis) who lost everything on the very day he was born, who had a tragic curve in his life, or the ugly side of mankind manifested by the likes of Tom Felton (Yes our very own Harry Potter’s franchise kid Draco Malfoy), Brian Cox and the entire mankind which is eyed by the apes as their enemies.

Andy Serkis, my my, he just doesn’t stop. He has always entertained us and haven’t we felt that extreme sympathy for an ape before in our hearts when he had stepped in the shoes of the legendary Kong in Peter Jackson’s flick. I still remember his superb performance in Einstein and Eddington and of course as Gollum in the Lord of the rings. This is altogether a sudden whim of emotions revisiting us from the likes of King Kong, here in the form of Caesar the intelligent ape. I must say you’d realize the sympathy in you while watching the movie and you’d wish the poor creature to come triumphant in his venture eventually as ‘Pathos’ is definitely going to overshadow your ugly side as you’d reach the climax.

The story begins with a tragic scene where a mother chimpanzee is captured from a jungle along with other apes to be experimented upon. I felt goosebumps already and I was excited that the flicks gonna be a joyride after all. The flick didn’t disappoint me a bit from that point onwards and I wasn’t surprised. I was jumping on my seat with awe at Caesar’s (Andy Serkis) understanding and intelligence. Caesar (the ape with brains) is taken as a pet by James Franco who has a father of his own suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. Caesar happened to be the offspring of the mother ape that had died after she was experimented with a serum that enhanced intelligence which brought in the changes in him as well. James keeps few of the serum for his father and experiments them on his dad as he has a strong belief that the serum works just fine and that it was going to revive his father. As his father recuperates Caesar begins to grow and becomes a liability. After an incident Caesar is held captive in a cell where he weeps and craves to return to his home. It was really touching to watch him draw the window of his home on the blank wall with high hopes. James is meanwhile being duped by Brian Cox and Tom Felton that Caesar was being well taken care of. All of the wrong doings and incivilities on the part of mankind lead Caesar to rebel against them all.

There was no need to cast Freida Pinto in the ‘Rise’ as she was, literally speaking, not there in the movie. Franco was ‘alright’ in the acting department however he has been feeling ‘sleepy’ lately (and by that yes I direct my fingers towards the academy) so that’s the least that we can expect from him.

The flick has certain instants that define how the movie happens to be a prequel when the mention of Icarus being lost in a newspaper is manifested. That certainly brought a grin to my countenance as I happily connected the dots.

The movie is a must watch. I’d give it an 8 and hope it continues to score more with its awesome music, story, plot and characters. Go watch this one even if you aren’t an ape fan.

Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)

Where do I start with this one! (Remember I am not amused at all ... That’s my reluctance talking)

I must say that the hype the flick was getting as the release date neared was too much. I had high expectations when people started comparing it to Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows -2 (of course, in terms of gross earnings). I later realized that it wasn’t about how good the movies were actually but about the ‘nationality’ quotient that was attached to it. Americans and the British have been a part of this cold war for decades to prove their standards and in an endeavor to prove they are right, have left no stone unturned.

We all are big fans of the Harry Potter franchise. There was supposed to be no comparison made because if we had to choose one from any other flick Vs Harry our fingers would involuntarily point towards the wizard’s exceptional story.

Now coming back to the flick Captain America: The first Avengers I must say I entered the theatre with very high expectations (don’t do that) although every one on this planet who is a marvel fan knows the story behind the legendary Captain. We all knew that the story was bound to hover around the World War which was contemporary to our hero’s heroic deeds.

The choice of the actor was most apposite as Chris Evans stepped in the shoes of Captain America. The visual effects were brilliant not to forget the acting and the little amount of action it had. Mind boggling visual effects, as it was difficult to make out the body Chris Evans had, prior to being Captain, was actually shrunk. Skinny Steve was something, I must admit because I was in awe for a long time.

Tommy Lee Jones was in the movie while I forget it all the time because his role was so short that it seemed he was hardly there. Nothing was remarkable about the movie. I don’t seem to remember any particular stunt that was eye-catching even. Hugo Weaving seemed promising for a while but, out his light blew with a flash, definitely not what I had expected. 

Story? We all knew! So what was there to offer?

Same thing can be said about Potter but mind you, it still had superb action, superb visual effects, superb music, a superb direction and a proper screenplay to offer. Captain America: The first avenger lagged everything except maybe the visual effects part which too was short-lived.

Source Code (2011)

Ladies and Gentleman ... Duncan Jones .... once again.

After creating a beautiful movie like 'Moon' Duncan has done it again. Albeit the story wasn't written by him this time (Ben Ripley wrote it), his direction was just brilliant. A story like Source Code needed a director like him eh! and of course great actors like Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Monaghan, Vera Farmiga. Jeffrey Wright, Michael Arden and Russell Peters did their bit in the flick.

Source code had more than a brilliant story to offer. It had both action and drama intermingled and must I say it proved to be a pretty good fest altogether. Jake Gyllenhaal is getting better day by day, whoa he was already good wasn't he since his teen years (Donnie Darko and October Sky still rule). With great movies like The Day after tomorrow, Brokeback mountain, Jarhead, Zodiac, Rendition, Brothers,
Prince of Persia and Love and other drugs, he has another thriller to his name – Source Code where he Is the protagonist once again.

In the movie he poses as a soldier who wakes up to find himself a part of a mission wherein he is supposed to find a bomber who is going to strike again as is told to him by Vera Farmiga. Source Code enables him to take someone else's identity and revisit those 8 minutes just before the train is brought to splinters by the bomb. No matter how many times he dies he is supposed to find the bomber and the bomb. The question is can he do it?

Watch the flick for yourself because it's an action packed thriller which would definitely rivet you to your seats till the end. Some class acting by Jake, Michelle and Vera. A must watch. 8 on 10

The Silence of the lambs (1991)

The finest movie I've ever seen. Hannibal, the mere sight of him makes me scream like a girl, he is so dangerous. You would be shuddered by the way he speaks while to top all that he is a cannibal. The film trilogy is one of the finest series I have ever seen. Be it be, Jodie Foster or Julianne Moore or any other it has always be an amazing experience watching the brutal yet genius psychopath at work.

He knows what you are thinking, he knows when you are lying, he knows the way a psycho thinks because he is the ultimate psychopath. Dr. Hannibal Lecter, the name brings you the shivers. The fact that he devours human flesh is horrifying itself.

No one could do it better than Anthony Hopkins! No wonder he got an Oscar for the role.

While Jodie Foster is busy finding a psycho killer Buffalo Bill, she is asked to take every aid she could get from the god of Psychos himself, Dr. Hannibal Lecter(Anthony Hopkins) who used to be a well known psychiatrist, who is a cannibal yet a genius at comprehending the human behavior. Pretty queer interests for a top class shrink, eh! He is ready to help her only if she lets him wade through her inner soul so as to assist her as well. She is forced to comply every now and then with his witty sarcasm as she has to win his confidence to acquire as much assistance possible to capture Buffalo Bill before he 'skins' another(Watch it to comprehend the patterns).

Everything about the movie was wonderful. The way Anthony studied his subjects; his sarcasm, his accent and vocabulary were all captivating.

The movie's screenplay is the most apposite screenplay ever. The pun like 'I'm having a friend for dinner' is one of the finest lines that I can bring back to memory.

The one directed by Ridley Scott(Hannibal), however, wasn't as good as those directed by Jonathan Demme and Brett Ratner(Red Dragon) but then again it was Thomas Harris altogether, so no comments there.

Awesome flick, the greatest thriller and suspense movie of all times. I'd be a fool if I wouldn't suggest you this one. Go for the trilogy today!

Green Lantern (2011)

Whaaaaaaaaaat ?

Well I am a big fan of DC Comics and yes of course the Green Lantern. The recent animated movies (and by that I mean First Flight) and not to mention the comics have always managed to keep me riveted. 

When I heard that there is going to be a movie on him, I was so excited that I wanted to watch the movie real bad. The trailer seemed so promising. I was elated when I found great names served in the same bowl – Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively, Tim Robbins, Mark Strong and Peter Sarsgaard. I had high expectations. (Don’t have that!)

I was so much disappointed by the flick I couldn’t believe the director Martin Campbell (can't believe he is the guy who directed awesome movies like Casino Royale, Goldeneye and The mask of Zorro)got all clumsy mid-way. The story was almost the same. It went actually pretty good albeit with some lame acting. Parallax had affected Peter and had metamorphosed him into a diabolical psychic who seemed so promising that I wanted a fair fight against him and Hal. But it got over so quickly that I didn’t have a chance to even root for him. The training part trained Ryan so fast and well that I was like What the…..?? When the Parallax invaded earth I wanted it to be goddamn destructive. I wanted to see maximum annihilation and some breathtaking scenes in the end but I was surprised by the fact that Ryan had the blob in his platter with a simple thought which he had learned during his training. Before the adrenaline could even pump, it was pacified by the last scene. Sinestro played by Mark Strong said that he would try vanquishing Parallax with his fearless army of green lanterns but goes out on the battlefield with only a couple of green lanterns who get their ass kicked big time. The Guardians prepared a yellow ring which was never used. I was like …. then why go for all the trouble bro! I felt deceived, duped and cheated big time. 

However the story was really great, had it been directed by the likes of Nolan, Slade, Vaughn, Cameron, Snyder or any other thoughtful directors it would have been a huge hit.

Blake Lively tried her best but I didn’t expect much from her either. Tim Robbins had such a small onscreen role that it makes one wonder - Was he even there? While Ryan tries to hover around hither and thither in the movie there are only a few scenes that had great 3D effects and which had me drooling, the rest was pretty lame. I kept on watching Sinestro eventually as I wanted to be hinted how he turns foul but that never happened either.

The green was not enough, should have tried another because it was all god-damn colorless.

X-Men: First Class (2011)

Matthew, the mighty, Vaughn. I've seen all four of his movies and I must say he has never disappointed me so far. Layer Cake is still the most mind-boggling movie of all times. I can't get rid of Stardust from my mind and Kick-ass is the finest flick I've ever come across and my collection still retains it(Waiting for the sequel Kick-Ass 2: Balls to the Wall, keeping my fingers crossed for that). Matthew Vaughn was definitely the guy I'd go for, that was the first reason why I wanted to go watch the flick.

Actually, there were a couple of more reasons why I wanted to see this movie real bad.

James McAvoy, reason no.2, with awesome movies like Wanted and Atonement to his name, 'him in the boots of Charles' - I was a bit inquisitive.

Reason no. 3 - Magneto, My favourite character in the X-men saga (with Cyclops sharing the same position in the list) I was not sure whether Michael Fassbender was the right person for it(But you know what? He was impeccable as Erik.) 

Reason no. 4 - The awesome trailer and the trailer's music. I couldn't help humming the music every now and then. 

Reason no. 5 - Kurt's(Nightcrawler's) father Azazel, I was looking forward for this guy because Marvel Comics had manifested him as one of the most powerful mutant(teleporting in a different dimension even in the Mutant Chronicles is no joke, Right?) Although they modify the story every now and then (Geez !!! what about the part where Mystique falls in love with Azazel in Germany and conceives Nightcrawler?)

Reason no. 6 - The Oscar nominated actress Jennifer Lawrence(for Winter's Bone) had bagged the role for Raven? "CURIOUS"...........!!!

Reason no. 7 - Rose Byrne, I am watching her movies ever since I saw her in Troy and Wicker Park. Was looking forward to watch her as the famous Moira MacTaggert.

Reason no. 8 - Kevin Bacon, Although the trailer 'hardly' showed him hither and thither, I was looking forward for his role as Shaw and guess what he proved to be the finest of all! Reason no. 8 - A big fan of Marvel Comics and the X-men saga. So no questions there.

Some great acting by the entire crew with the HellFire Club's lead Kevin Bacon as Shaw, Riptide(he never spoke, dumb-ass! What up), Jason Flemyng as Azazel(now that's called skillful), January Jones as Emma Frost and of course the X team as well with Nicholas Hoult as Beast, James McAvoy as Charles, Fassbender as Magneto, Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique etc. The movie was kick-ass and worth watching. The screenplay was brilliant. Vaughn, no words to express his direction and Kevin Bacon along with Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy stole the show.

Heat (1995)

I’m a big fan of Michael Mann. Public Enemies, Collateral and The insider are still my favourite flicks.

Man-o-man Too bad I saw this movie too late in the 21st century….. Had I known somehow about it I wouldn’t have wasted a single moment to watch this flick.

Boy these are the actors, the real grim Robert De Niro and the coolest Al Pacino. What a combination awesome rivalry, finest actors ever in the same bowl.

While Robert De Niro plays a thief who is the boss of a group which had guys like Val Kilmer, Tom Sizemore, Danny Trejo in it, he keeps his head low and has rarely ever caught heat until this time with Al Pacino in the driving seat as a detective handling his team of cops, who is merciless yet cool and has never failed to nail any case. Al Pacino is keen on catching Robert De Niro whilst a robbery is being performed as it would mean a big sentence for De Niro but blunders on his end causes De Niro to flee more than once. A failed attempt to execute a fellow member of his group costs De Niro’s group a lot as he leaves one end of the cut thread open which leads Al Pacino’s team to slowly crawl over their necks.
While the movie went on I developed a soft corner for De Niro albeit he was a robber in the movie he was good at heart. He never gave precedence to love ever but eventually falls in love with a girl played by Amy Brenneman but things get ugly when she comes to know about his real identity. Al Pacino’s personal life is a mess too with two divorces and an attempt to rectify the third he keeps on trailing De Niro till the end. If it weren’t for his diligence in his work he would have been a good husband as well but not a genius at his job.
The screenplay was amazing. De Niro had one maxim that he always followed – ‘Never have anything in your life that you can't walk out on in thirty seconds flat, if you spot the heat coming around the corner' However he disobeys his own adage which costs him in the end.

The movie ends with a sad note although it was the most apposite ending to such a movie. Great direction by Michael Mann, great story …… Hats off to him…… Excellent choice (when he chose Al Pacino and Robert De Niro for the lead roles). The movie could have gone unnoticed or called as a clichéd one if it weren’t for the superb performances by the two veteran actors.

Priest (2011)

Man I was thrilled for this one when I saw the trailer for the first time. Karl Urban looked like the finest, meanest and the coolest nemesis but I was duped when I actually saw the movie. Paul Bettany, famous for his lovely speech-acting had only a few things to say in the flick while Cam Gigandet was 'all words and no action'. Maggie Q provided with few great action moves but eventually when I needed a climax in the movie there was none. The story wasn't well woven....The action scenes were limited unlike what the trailer suggested.

87 min flick, I thought it would have its twists and turns but I was deceived by the trailer big time. The movie finished in a jiffy albeit indicative of the next part but that hardly mattered as they failed to deliver the MOJO in this one. It could have been much much better if only it wasn't directed by Scott Charles Stewart. I know the guy worked wonders in the visual effects department but didn't his earlier venture include Legion ??? What can I say !!! I wanted it to be like Van

Helsing, if only Richard Roxburgh was given the role of The Hat, I kept on saying, but alas the director had the strings in his hands. The screenplay was already set. Poor editing as well I must say when they couldn't manifest the quintessential part of the flick, they could have come up with a psychotic twist in the end, the trio could've fought with an entire army of vampires ... or something like that....or

anything like that !!! It was all lame bro... I was left with a sour taste eventually !!!

The Painted Veil (2006)

Now that is called a movie. Wonderful chemistry! So apparent in today’s scenario and yet been depicted in a subtle manner.

Strange how Naomi Watts wanted a guy who would sweep her off her feet, ends up with Edward Norton who loves her beyond limit and marries her (although she doesn’t love him and does that in order to escape her mundane family life). Pretty soon he discovers his wife cheating on him falling for Liev Schreiber behind his back. She gets involved with Liev Schreiber although when the topic for a divorce is raised she gets baffled by an agreement of Edward after Liev flatly rejects her. However she follows Edward to a camp in China (as his agreement demanded) where the disease of Cholera was widespread like an epidemic. Edward being a doctor tries to help the people while she realizes how stupid she had been to betray a guy like Edward. She realizes her mistake and jumps in to assist him in every possible way.

The movie is wonderfully directed which apparently involved a great storyline. The flick is a worth watch as it toys with human emotions and elucidates both sides of the coin in a subtle manner. You have to sympathize with Norton and Watts sometimes although you would want everything to end happily.

The credit entirely goes to Edward Norton and Naomi Watts because of their joint venture and the magic that they created together. Although the director John Curran did some great directing here the writer W. Somerset Maugham’s novel shouldn’t be forgotten which deserves more kudos than anything else. Cinematography was brilliant. The story was well portrayed with an apt screenplay.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)

Jason Segel is trying to forget his girlfriend who breaks up with him at the very beginning of the flick and forgetting her is what he actually endeavours in the entire movie. Although it isn’t as easy as it seems. Every time he tries to get away from her he deliberately ends up getting close to her.

The movie is a comedy and of course a romantic one with a great star cast (most of them are my favourites). Who doesn’t love Russell Brand and wait he shows up as Aldous Snow the psychotic singer who is the current boyfriend of Kristen Bell. Mila Kunis is a receptionist at Hawaii where Jason Segel goes to mend his broken heart and ends up finding his girlfriend with Aldous Snow, (although I’m pretty sure that was an intentional attempt too). Mila Kunis aids him at the time of need which grabs the attention of Jason who finds her attractive and caring. She dates him (so he says) and starts liking her although he isn’t able to move on as Sarah shows up every now and then. This however causes some tension between Mila and Jason which leaves a miffed Mila eventually. Now it is the job of Jason to move on, stop thinking about his ex and make matters straight with Mila Kunis who is in deeply in love with him.

The movie has some great characters like Jonah Hill, Paul Rudd etc. who added flavour to the comedy.

I personally like Jason Segel for his acting and he happens to be one of my favourite actors for the character Marshall Eriksen the one he plays in ‘How I met your mother’. I have seen him act in a couple of movies and I must say I am pretty impressed with his comedy. He came up with such a wonderful story (yep he wrote it) and that in itself is a bravado.

Forgetting Sarah Marshal wouldn’t disappoint you at all. It is a real good movie and you wouldn’t stop laughing as the entire movie rolls on with fun written in every clip.

Cold mountain (2003)

Kudos to Jude Law and Nicole Kidman ( and how can I not mention the mouthy and boisterous Renée Zellweger). They were bloody brilliant in the movie. Albeit the story moulded itself in a predictable fashion, it was exceptionally well directed by Anthony Minghella. Love was what bound them together (Jude and Nicole), although the moments were brief and the talks were tacit, Nicole kept on waiting patiently for Law while he eagerly wanted to return for her. A great love story, I'd say,
hardly possible in today's scenario. While we always want things to end up happily, the movie ends up with a sad note. While I watched the flick I had a premonition that something bad was going to happen eventually.

Natalie Portman's role was brief although very well portrayed as a widow. Giovanni Ribisi and Philip Seymour Hoffman performed their part very well. Renée Zellweger surely deserved an Oscar for her performance. She was brilliant and fluent with her accent. Nicole Kidman was amazing in the flick. While the whole world crumbled upon
her and the wicked self proclaimed sheriff Ray Winstone kept on coming at her house asking her to give up but she wouldn't. She kept on patiently waiting for Law to come back as he had promised her. The war had separated them and that war demanded every man from the Cold Mountain to show up while the crude Ray Winstone didn't allow anyone who absconded from the war to live as he hunted them down wherever he
found a runner.

Jude Law had to return for her. She had to wait for him. That is the basis of the entire story. It was a well written story by Charles Frazier with a brilliant screenplay by Anthony himself. A wonderful love story with marvellous dialogues and great acting by the actors in the flick. I would rate this movie a 7 on 10. Albeit the story went on in a predictable fashion it was brilliantly directed and well produced eventually. It managed to wet the cheeks of the viewers and that is
what acting and directing is all about.

The King's Speech (2010)

Man that was excruciating watching Colin Firth stammer at the speech hours! But what a great performance ...... what a great performance. Why? Would I be surprised if Colin receives an Academy for this one. No not at all. Brilliant movie. Brilliant cast. Brilliant direction by Tom Hooper and a brilliant story by David Seidler.

The King’s speech is the story of King George VI of England prior to the time of World War II. While Bertie(Colin Firth) is forced to take on the throne as his elder brother abdicates because he decides to marry a divorced woman whom he loved (which is unacceptable for a king). Bertie is reluctant coz he stammers and lacks self confidence. He hires Lionel Logue(Geoffrey Rush) a speech therapist as suggested by his wife Queen Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter) to treat him to get rid of the stammer. His unconventional methods surprise Bertie which causes him to discontinue his services in the beginning and also when Lionel starts getting involved with the king’s business although he returns to him as his unconventional methods start to work on him. It used to get really embarrassing watching the king struggle with the words while people raised placards saying “God save the king” albeit Lionel assists him to get his fluency and works wonder eventually.

The drama is well depicted and well assisted by some great performances by Geoffrey Rush, Colin Firth and Helena Bonham Carter. The direction by Tom Hooper was brilliant. The flick was well strewn with catchy phrases and some great dialogues. There is one scene that depicts Hitler giving a speech to the German army (in German of course) while everyone was listening to him. One of Bertie’s daughters asks him what he was saying to which he replies: “I don't know but, he seems to be saying it rather well.”

True Grit (2010)

An amazing movie by Ethan Coen and Joel Coen and no one’s surprised as they make their way to the nominations for the Academy this time as well. Although I personally didn’t like No country for old men and I was a bit reluctant to go for another one of their flick but I was really taken by surprise when I actually found the movie quite interesting and brilliant. No country for old men had left me with a sour taste (yeah I am talking about the ending) although the movie was quite brilliant as I recall it now but True grit has certainly something more of a true grit in it.

What really worked apart from the obvious brilliant direction was Mattie Ross’s (Hailee Steinfeld) boldness and Rooster Cogburn’s (Jeff Bridges) true grit. Matt Damon did his part as LaBoeuf the Texas Ranger who follows them on their hunt completing the trio hunting down Tom Chaney(Josh Brolin) who has murdered Mattie’s father and absconded. Mattie is looking for revenge and hires Rooster Cogburn to hunt down Tom Chaney and punish him for his deed. Albeit LaBoeuf is already on the hunt for Tom Chaney and wants him hanged in his own town and there is a bit of a contradiction of opinions between the three of them. The drama is well portrayed as everyone wants a piece of Tom Chaney and LaBoeuf and Rooster are busy proving who’s the best in getting a Bulls eye. Rooster is after a guy named Lucky Ned Pepper (Barry Pepper) and is in for the kill for his reasons.

The flick is a marvellous depiction of the life of Mattie who is looking for vengeance, who is just 14 years old and still can do a lot about getting her job done because of her bravery, presence of mind and skills.

It is a worth watch and I’d rate the movie 8.5 on 10 and recommend everyone to go for it.

The Fighter (2010)

Now that's called a good flick. Some great acting by the cast and an exceptionally well acting by Christian Bale, made the movie worth it. The struggle of Mickey(Mark Wahlberg) as a boxer of Lowell with bits of drama in it assisted profoundly by his family and friends was really appealing and I must say the direction was brilliant.

The movie was based on true events. It is about a boxer "Irish" Micky Ward's road to the world light welterweight title. Dicky Eklund his elder brother portrayed by Christian Bale is the person who trains him and leads him to the road to glory. Christian Bale was the most remarkable person in the movie. No wonder he has been nominated for an Academy and I am pretty sure he would nail it. I was not surprised when got the Globes. Mellisa Leo and Amy Adams were good in the movie as well and did their part pretty nicely.

Mickey (Mark Wahlberg) leads a life of the brother of a famous boxer Dicky Eklund (Christian Bale) who has resorted to drugs and guess what he's happy coz HBO's making a movie about him. However Mickey is pressurized by his family a lot and loses many fight one after the other. He wants to get away from them and Dicky's drug habits have landed him in trouble every now and then. He decides to change his trainer and coach and wants to see the difference by the advice given to him by Amy Adams(his girlfriend) and eventually wins fights because of that. Although eventually the training given by his elder brother aids him to win a fight he was about to lose. He wants Dicky back without making anybody reluctant. The flick is a wonderful depiction of the life of Micky Ward and has been really well dramatized by the complicated family of Micky.

Go for this one and keep your eyes open for the acting of Christian Bale. He'd always bring a smile to your face every now and then.

127 Hours (2010)

Another great movie by Danny Boyle. Albeit the story is inspired by a true story and you had a ready made story in your lap, Danny Boyle did a great job manifesting the same in his own style.

The movie is about a guy named Aron Ralston (James Franco) who sets out on an adventure in the canyon of Utah. He finds himself in trouble as he gets stuck under a rock which accidentally gets tipped off as he lands on it, on his right hand. He finds himself stuck with the rock and has only a few things left with him to survive. The story is about how he actually survives the peculiar situation he has been put in. It is an adventurous tale of survival of Aron which is impeccably directed by Danny Boyle(who else could have portrayed this story better!).

There are only a few characters in the movie but that was because the script demanded it. James Franco performed really well and surely has landed himself for an Academy nomination on this one. The direction and the screenplay probably took the movie to a great height what otherwise would have been a clichéd story of survival.

The poster and the movie name had a lot to say and at one point I had considered not watching the flick but I was totally surprised when I found the flick totally mind boggling. It is highly recommended to go for this one coz it is actually a real good movie.

Black Swan (2010)

Kudos to Natalie for this one! She was brilliant in this flick and I wouldn’t be surprised if she gets an Academy for Black Swan because there is absolutely no match for her this time. Also, kudos to Darren Aronofsky for his wonderful direction which apparently led the movie to such a big height!

Nina, (Natalie Portman) plays a ballet dancer who is highly obsessed by the play Swan Lake. She is counted perfect for the role of White Swan - Princess Odette in the story however she faces a competition from Lily, (Mila Kunis) another Ballet dancer who is also perfect for the role of Black swan.

Leroy (Vincent Cassel) is the director of the play Swan Lake who chooses Nina for the lead although he’s unconvinced with her Black swan Dance. He sets his eyes on Lily for the same which worries Nina as she was desperate for the lead.

Nina’s mother on the other hand keeps on pestering her and holds a strange control over her every activity. She is smothered at home however she can’t do anything about it. Nina is so desperate for the role that in an attempt to grab the role she starts impersonating her dark side, Black swan and becomes obsessed with the character.

The flick is no doubt an Oscar material and a perfect watch for those who are sane enough to understand the intricacies of a human brain. Natalie no doubt deserves an Academy for this flick!

Lord of War (2005)

Now thats a movie worth watching. I think Nicolas Cage is one of the finest actors alive who is still imparting class to his roles. He adapts himself to the character in such a fine manner that one would consider him "born for the role". Now that is exactly what he did in this one as well.

Nicolas Cage is an arms dealer who has an obsession with selling arms and he is damn good at it. While doing his monkey business he encounters various problems from the interpol as well as from his conscience. The morality keeps on nibbling at his soul, however he never gets exhausted. Things mess up pretty badly for him as he fails to justify his veracity in front of his wife. It costs him a lot eventually.

Ethan Hawke plays the guy from Interpol who is on a hunt to catch him. Andrew Niccol wrote a brilliant story about war and politics. His earlier ventures as a writer The Terminal(a movie you can never forget) and The Truman Show happens to be my all time favourites.

This movie was exceptionally well directed by Andrew Niccol and brilliantly performed by Nicolas Cage(No one could have done it better).

Happythankyoumoreplease (2010)

What a movie....what a movie..... I must say I'm a big fan of Josh Radnor because of his hit series "How I met your mother" and (who isn't?) I think as a writer he is amazing and he has a long way to go. He has mentioned his love for short stories unknowingly in the TV show many times and I must say his endeavour has never gone unnoticed. Josh Radnor has a real potential. He just brought it together and the rest was obvious. The writing was superb(I'm a writer myself so bro Respect!) and not to forget the brilliant direction done by Josh himself.

A wonderful debut, by the way, as a director for him and all the very best wishes to him for his future ventures. Awesome acting and some great performances by the cast that included Malin Akerman (as usual she is brilliant in this flick too), Kate Mara (I'm beginning to like her already)and Zoe Kazan(with her sweet role which she generally plays quite naturally).

The story was wonderful. Gotta watch it to know it. I'd give it a 7 on 10 and I think the flick deserved it. I'd recommend everyone to go and watch this one because it certainly is worth all the accolades.

Master and Commander: The far side of the world (2003)

A great screenplay and direction by Peter Weir, Master and commander: The far side of the world is a depiction of a constant endeavour of a captain Jack Aubrey (Russell Crowe) to destroy a French enemy frigate during the time of Napoleonic Wars, thus putting the lives of the entire crew in jeopardy for vengeance as well as for the sake of his country.

During his crazy will to take on the Acheron, the enemy Frigate, Jack is often contradicted by his closest friend, the doctor Stephen Maturin (Paul Bettany) and albeit he never gives up the hope of invading the French frigate, he is constantly put in adverse situations wherein he is compelled to feel remorseful for the decisions he made. However he manages to keep the faith of his crew members alive and pursues the Acheron without giving an eye to the doctor’s concern and interests. A series of unfortunate events occur and their ship suffers bad luck every now and then but that doesn’t stop Jack from taking on the Acheron eventually.

Some great acting by Russell Crowe and Paul Bettany makes the whole movie an adventure worth watching. The situations that they were put in certainly demanded pluck and patience which was manifested well by Jack Aubrey.

This flick would make you fathom how things were really dealt with earlier. Back then when the technology wasn’t advanced enough, how sails were used by the crew and how much work was supposed to be done during a shipwreck.

The Experiment (2010)

This was a thought provoking flick. I felt what an animal man is. How easily he forces violence upon himself one way or the other. If you intimidate him, if you instigate him, if you add that fuel to the fire, he’d know no limits and would succumb to violence. The flick is an obvious depiction of the fact. There is hardly anything that can stop him from fighting for long. While the scientists tried to experiment by enticing them with a whole bunch of green and with the tinge of fear of losing it all in a jiffy the moment there were some serious injuries, every man decided to go along with the flow. Although the movie was a remake it was smooth.

Adrien Brody did a great job being the protagonist in the movie and supporting the right throughout the movie while facing some weird consequences in the long run. Forest Whitaker, on the other hand, plays the character which seriously needs a rehab as he starts to take things a lot more seriously right from the start. Prestige, dignity and humiliation were some of the main things all he could think of, the moment he was put in the shoes of a cop. While the downside of the movie was that Adrien Brody had to face piss and shit while he could do nothing but hold a grudge against Whitaker while he had the time of his life. While Whitaker enjoyed his gala-moment throughout the movie with him and with the rest of the prisoners (which weren’t many as the others had no self-respect apparently) getting what his psycho-brain wanted him done without any serious rebel from Adrien, the flick sympathizes with the character of Adrien. Money does that to you? What a dishonour he brought to himself. For Christ’s sake if there was someone else in his place he would’ve kicked Whitaker’s ass there itself.

Well overall the movie was good. There were certain demeaning moments in the movie but that’s okay coz it hardly mattered when there is someone else taking the shit and not you. The movie could’ve been made better although the concept rattled me, a better direction would’ve blown me away.

I would give it a 6.5 on 10 considering the good story it entailed. It is certainly a good one with some great performances by Whitaker and Adrien although I am told the original was better.

The Social Network (2010)

Talk about social networking and one thing that pops up in our head first is none other than the famous site Facebook. Who on earth wouldn't be interested in knowing the story behind the famous social networking websites of all time.

So Mark Zuckerberg is officially awesome. I was glad that the movie was being directed by none other than Fincher. I was excited beyond limit when I discovered that it was a David Fincher project, the guy behind such amazing movies like Zodiac, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and my all time-favourite The Game. His previous mind-boggling movies surely speaks of his virtue. As a director David Fincher has taken some of the brilliant stories of all times and metamorphosed them into the finest flicks created ever in the history of movies and The Social
network happens to be one of them.

Albeit Mark Zuckerberg in reality wasn't at all approached for the project and wasn't entailed anyhow in the flick, the movie was manifested as a series of events as they occurred altogether with the assistance of Eduardo Saverin(in real life). Each event was put down to the flick with the assistance offered by Eduardo and Boy! the story of facebook is interesting, must I say.

The evolution of how the ideas arose from Facemash to TheFacebook and eventually Facebook is really surprising and wonderful as well. The story began with Mark Zuckerberg's(Jesse Eisenberg's) girlfriend breaking up with him thus causing him to dirty-blog about her to soothe his agonized heart. Taking it too far he compares her face to every girl in the Harvard and thus develops a website named FaceMash which had the feature of comparing 'who's hotter' which eventually brought down Harvard's network. The creation of FaceMash in one night brought him in the eyes of the twin Winklevoss brethren Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss (played by Armie Hammer well that barely seemed like a single character) and their business partner Divya Narendra(Max Minghella) who gave Mark an idea about a new project of theirs -
Harvard Connection website asking him to be their programmer.

The main story begins when Zuckerberg gets his head to build a website named theFacebook without caring to look back at the Winklevoss brothers and in the long run dumping his best friend Eduardo Savarin(convincingly played by Andrew Garfield) as well as Sean Parker (Justin Timberlake) the co-founder of Napster. The character Eduardo Savarin is well portrayed by Garfield who brings in the real sensitive part of the flick. Justin Timberlake has become more of an actor now and he did his
bit in the flick very convincingly. As Sean Parker he suggests Mark Zuckerberg to drop the 'the' from theFacebook which clearly expounds why the whole world knows the website by the name of Facebook alone.

The plot is very intricate and full of surprises as you would see Zuckerberg playing around with his friends turning them into foes while Eduardo's geniality is well exploited in the flick by Mark. There are instances in the movie that clearly depicts how much dedicated Mark Zuckerberg was to his website with more than 10-14 hours of coding everyday while some showed him making fun of the jury and the
Winklevoss brothers of their ignorance, while one hilarious moment showed him stunning a teacher by his answers in the midst of his departure from the classroom.

The movie is simply awesome. I didn't find anything wrong with the movie and I hope to see David Fincher's next as soon as it gets released. I'd recommend everyone to just go for it.