The Sane Lunatic

One does not get to choose their family, and a family is often not a haven. The protagonist who shares his name with the film title, Titli, was raised by and lives with his father and two brothers, who lead by example, into a life of darkness.  Director Kanu Behl's debut feature gives a real world insight into the parallel of the criminal life in Delhi NCR, in a manner that you probably wouldn't have seen before in Bollywood. Which makes it a bit difficult to review without sounding like one of those pretentious jerks who write reviews for a living.  It is a family that eats together, and then goes out together. For a hearty share of violence, bloodshed and petty crime. Titli (Shashank Arora) is the youngest of three brothers who live with their father (played by Lalit Behl, the director's own father) in a lifeless hovel on the outskirts of the capital. Vikram (Ranvir Shorey), Pradeep aka Bawla (Amit Sial) and their father are people going nowhere very quickly, slow...

Its not rare for films to fail at an attempt to pay tribute to important figures, or less known historical characters but few fail as badly as this, considering the line up they had. Rock the Kasbah loosely inspired by the true story of Setara Hussainzada, an Afghan woman who braved death threats after appearing on the country's version of American Idol, wherein she broke into an impromptu dance which made her head scarf slide off. Even its cynical jabs at American foreign policy, or its cuddly ode to the unifying power of music, fail to entertain. Bill Murray, probably at his least charming, plays Richie Lanz, a selfish, irritatingly loudmouthed, out-of-luck music manager. Spouting off tall tales of his decades in the trenches, depending on who he's conning, he'll either claim to have discovered Madonna or to have convinced Hendrix to play the star spangled banner at woodstock. He has only one real client, Ronnie(Zooey Deschanel), a cover-singer-slash-secretary, with pr...

The witch hunter feels like one of those films based on a game or comic that didn't quite catch on because there seemed to be a dozen more like it. But perhaps it is an original action-fantasy idea conceived by the star, Vin Diesel, and screenwriter Cory Goodman, that has regrettably been drained of energy and character in the finished product, directed by Breck Eisner. In this storyline, armies of witch hunters, led by the  have battled vile supernatural creatures for centuries. Among them, one of their best, is Kaulder(Vin Diesel), a brave warrior who was "cursed" with immortality by the Queen Witch (Julie Engelbrecht) right before he slayed her. Eight hundred years later, he is their ultimate weapon, and the last surviving witch hunter, tracking down rogue witches who violate the rules of the truce between witches and humans that maintains their peaceful coexistence. However, it all goes south when the Queen's loyal followers decide to end the peace by resurre...

I've heard a mountain of jokes about how my generation spends more time interacting with their mobile phones then with the people sitting next to them, even friends. But it is still interesting to observe it happen within one's own social circle. Just the other day, I was at my friend's place for her birthday, and also there were her sister and two friends. Her friends had prepared a surprise for her on her return, decorated and set up the gifts all pretty in her room, and what happened next is what I would like to point out. There was the initial shock and excitement of the surprise being successful, then they spent the next few minutes taking photos of the whole set up to share on a plethora of social media, rather than celebrate this moment first. And it was all four of them, the birthday girl AND the girls who set it up. Second notable point, after the cake cutting, once we were all sat around the bedding, the next 15 minutes or so were spent watching those four ta...

A movie with Tom Hanks as the lead character, with great supporting cast, directed by Steven Spielberg, telling a story based on true events, is a perfect recipe for a great cinema experience. The story is based on events from the Cold War era of espionage, the film starts by introducing to the audience, Rudolph Abel(Rylace) who is painting a self-portrait with the help of a mirror besides him. This opening scene has already settled you in for a visual artistic treat of Spielberg magic that is to follow. It is evident that Abel is being followed by the FBI and is arrested for being a Russian spy soon after receiving a secret message that was in a coin, stuck to the bottom of a bench in a park. This is where insurance lawyer Jim Donovan(Hanks) enters the picture. Abel is to be given a 'fair' trial, if just to show the world the American way of justice, and the task falls upon Jim's firm, who assign it to him, thanks to his earlier credentials as prosecutor in the Nuremb...

Guillermo del Toro's new set of unforgettable visuals in the star studded large scale horror film, Crimson Peak, has had mixed responses. This gothic romanctic ghost story follows Edith(played by the graceful Mia Wasikowska), an aspiring writer at the turn of the century who is more interested in tales of ghosts rather than play the society games her peers are fascinated with. When she meets the foreign sibling duo, Thomas(played by the eloquent Tom Hiddleston) and Lucille Sharpe(played by the elegant Jessica Chastain), she is quite taken by Thomas' romantic gestures and soon married. They are then off to England, as winter sets in, to take up residence at the Sharpe's estate, Allerdale Hall-which the locals call Crimson Peak due to the blood red clay deposits that lie directly beneath the house. Alone in the country side with the pair, Edith soon starts to see apparitions, spooky, spindly and disfigured phantoms that seem to reside in the house. She discovers quickly,...

I just reviewed the movie, 'The Walk' in my last post. However, this is more personalized, sharing with you the experience of a film I've wanted to watch since trailer came out. Joseph Gordon Levitt is one of my favorite actors, and I haven't seen him give a disappointing perfomance till date. Couple that with Ben Kinglsey as part of the cast the the Director who made Forrest Gump, this film had a lot to live it up to, and it did more. At the start of the movie, I was a bit put off by Levitt's french accent going haywire in his monologues. But as the film progressed, and characters were introduced and developed, I got more and more engaged in the film. However, it was not until after the interval that I found myself immersed in the film. The tension, the excitement, the fear, I felt like I was sharing it with the lead character himself. Robert Zemeckis' excellent use of 3D viewing experiences is a sheer delight. The visuals of the view from atop the Twin Towe...