Mission "AFAD" - February 2011

As usually, I learned a few new things this month (not talking about school, guys). But I apart from that, I gained some new cinematic experiences - seeing not more than zero films I'd already seen before.

Counting 23 films...

Among the things I learned are, i. e.: I'm officially a fanatic movie-addict-obsessive, movies being my favorite topic to talk about. I try to keep my friends entertained with other things, though, but... what can I do? I also learned that the German mass is full of idiots concerning the subject of "politics", that I can cry waterfalls watching movies (only film that came near of doing that [twice] was The Curious Case of Benjamin Button but My Sister's Keeper did waaaay better), that the Oscars were entertaining despite James Franco not being the big entertainer - just looking at him was better than sleeping (thanks to you, time difference!). What else... oh, India once again proved it's sense for making good satire (TBL)... I learned, that my prejudice of movies (I can't help it; it's there, right after I've seen a trailer) can turn out as a good instinct, when I still hope that the movie is going to be good, and also is, in certain aspects (True Grit), or it can turn to be a rather false opinion (Tees Maar Khan). Furthermore I learned to wait... for more people to read this blog. They might come, they might not. I am in balance, I do this for myself and for the people appreciating what I do (thanks to the book I'm currently reading, Eat Pray Love).

And finally I learned, that it doesn't feel very different if you're just about to turn 16, than if you're just 15. (PS: The 9th of March).

01.
Ocean's Eleven (2001) USA, English
First view. Wow, I did it: I watched a movie on the first date of the month. No, no, the best thing about it is, that I've finally, finally seen this movie. My friends were already laughing at me. Me, the movie buff, the motion picture geek... I couldn't stand it anymore. So, very secretly, I borrowed this movie from the library, and it was just as good, as I'd imagined. They kind of just put together all the hottest guys at that time, and made a movie out of it. Or maybe not - I'm sad to say that I don't count Clooney, Pitt and Damon to the hottest Hollywood has to offer (think James Franco), but the movie is good... Entertaining.

03.
Ram Jaane (1995) India, Hindi
First view. This film is so trashy, and in many aspects so not-qualitative, that it somehow is... good. I think you all are familiar with that phenomena. You just feel, how much fun the actors had during the shoot, especially Shahrukh. I also found the music quite... entertaining (pam pam the bhangda)... The length is one of the biggest faults, but I only forwarded a little at the end.
And, before I forget, this was the worst dubbing I've ever heard in my entire life. Hey, who decided to launch a DVD without original sound and subtitles? However, I'd incline to call it recommendable.

04.
Jodhaa Akbar (2008) India, Hindi/ Urdu
First view. How wonderful it is, finally watching another well-done historic film, that doesn't focus to much on war and facts, but which also attaches poetic lisense and therewith cinematic beauty.
I recognized, that I've only seen three BW-films of 2008, a year that's often being called a low of modern Bollywood. Jodhaa Akbar is thankfully not a part of that low. Let's just say: The romantic side of me felt good as it hasn't for a long time. And still, the film's not kitschy, 'cause I wouldn't have liked that.

05.
Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic (2008) India, Hindi
First view. Now this film was on the telly, which is nice, because that's rare these days, but I just didn't like it. My God, what did Kunal Kohli think he was doing? That was just... gruesome. Some scenes were animated so badly, that my mother and I almost bursted laughing, and otherwise every scene was totally predictable. Only good thing were the actors, even the kids, but the story ruined everything.

Jhootha Hi Sahi (2010) India, Hindi
First view. I gave this three Lime Stars in my review, so it's a normal movie, not bad, but also not highly recommended.

07.
Tere Bin Laden (2010) India, Hindi
First view. The second real review I wrote this month, four Lime Stars, I think I said it all. You might also have noticed, that I was starting on seeing some of the "between" films of last year: Not Blockbusters, but also not "tiny pearls" like Udaan.

11.
Nowhere Boy (2009) UK, English
First view. I'd call this one of my filmic letdowns... Went to cinema with two other friends, both Beatles-fans, and... don't know. Aaron Johnson wasn't as handsome, as he used to be (almost not handsome at all), and it was just one shattering scene after the other, almost everyone being negative... No bulbs of light... I just had expected something else.

12.
Das Weiße Band (2009) Germany, German
First view. Nominated for two Oscars, won the Golden Globe for best foreign language film... And I hadn't seen it yet. I was taken aback by its quiet brutality, wonderful cinematography and superb actors...

13.
Tees Maar Khan (2010) India, Hindi
First view. I've mentioned it before, and yes, I liked TMK. Actually, reading all those different opinions on it, I was very sure I was going to hate it - but I didn't. It wasn't as great as Farah's other creations, but come on: it was hilarious! In a different way than TBL, probably just worth 3 Stars, but still... It was more than I had expected. PS: My sister loved it too.

No One Killed Jessica (2011) India, Hindi
First view. Who watches NOKJ on the same day as TMK? Well, someone who can't get enough, I guess. Brilliant film, combining elements of the entertaining mass-film with subtle story and outstanding performance by Rani.

18.
127 Hours (2010) USA/UK, English
First view. No, no, I don't want to bore anyone talking about my new crush... Seriously, I love this movie. I love Rahman's music, which was perfect for the movie, I love the idea of action without action... I love survival movies... And, ok, I love James Franco. Platonically, of course.
I also love Danny Boyle - more of it, more of it!!!

True Grit (2010) USA, English didn't complete
First view. I didn't like it. Sorry, that's all I have to say. I liked the setting and Hailee Steinfeld, but after that boring court scene and not understanding a word out of my beloved Jeff Bridges' mouth, I cut the line.

19.
Into the Wild (2007) USA, English
First view. Wow. That's the best word to describe this movie. I mean, I'd heard what they say about it, but I could not in my wildest fantasies imagine a film so fantastic and touching. Wow. (I know how stupid I sound, thanks).

Monsoon Wedding (2001) India/USA/Italy/Germany/France, Punjabi/Hindi/English
First view. Very sweet movie - I thought it would be like "Bride and Prejudice" or "Bollywood/ Hollywood", so it took me some years till I finally watched it. And thinking about it, this was the time of K3G - as much as I adore K3G and its crew, Monsoon Wedding is a far more realistic film about family and love, also containing so many incredible actors... I really want to see it one more time.

20.
Fire (1996) Canada/India, English
First view. Read about it here

21.
Earth (1998) Canada/India, Hindi/English
First view. Read about it here

22.
Deewana (1992) India, Hindi
First view. They could at least have written on the DVD, that Shahrukh only appears after... not half an hour... not three quarters... one hour! And that one hour was so boooooooring... that I was mad. I skipped all the songs and thought that now they were finally together, but no, there had to be more songs. When Rishi is finally gone, the film gets some charisma, though, especially because of Shahrukh. The girl is also much nicer and sweeter, when Shahrukh is present, and not Rishi.
End was predictable, of course.

La Belle et la Bête (1946) France, French
First view. Last year, we should all talk about an artist we picked ourselves, in art class. I picked Jean Cocteau, whom I adore, but embarrassingly, I hadn't seen any of his films. Now I did, and I'm happy. I love French cinema and the language itself, and this film was a great fairytale movie. It's sad how infrequently we watch fairytale movies nowadays. It's very inspiring... and enchanting.

24.
Water (2005) Canada/India, Hindi
First view. Read about it here

25.
The King's Speech (2010) UK, English
First view. Everyone talked about the geniality of this movie, and as I was also keeping up on the Oscar trends, this was a must see. Colin Firth deserved his Oscar, as well as everyone else. The story and conflict of The King's Speech is very simple, yet it manages to be complex in many ways. Everything comes together in that last scene, where he finally holds his speech... magic.

26.
In My Father's Den (2004) UK/ New Zealand, English
First view. This is also a kind of movie that I adore... Confusing, quiet... mysterious, but not too arthouse-freaky, with too many pervert scenes etc. Matthew McFadyen is also, or has been, quite underrated.

My Sister's Keeper (2009) USA, English
First view. Do you see the similarity of these two movie titles, by the way? I borrowed both of them from a friend of mine. What one can say about this film is: You're going to cry, cry, cry. Just as Johnny Cash predicted. I didn't even know I could cry that much in a movie... But it's also really good.

27.
Yamla Pagla Deewana (2011) India, Hindi
First view. And now we have come to the last film of my February... also the 2nd 2011 Bollywood film, I've seen. It's not bad, at times very entertaining, but I'll forget it very soon... Nothing really special.

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And that's it for now. The month went by fast... but that's good, because I want something else now: I want my birthday, my class trip and my internship in Hamburg (which is in April). And then I want summer.