You watched Karan Arjun? Whadda joke!

You watched----- REVIEW:
Karan Arjun (1995)

No matter how entertaining he can be in crash-boom-bang masala films like Dabangg, I cannot, and I probably won't ever be able to, take Salman seriously when he tries to "portray" a "serious" character.

In this one, like in many others, it's a mixture between "serious character" and flashing his naked upper body (which though wasn't just as over-pimped as it is today, in my opinion). He does well in dealing out blows, but as it has become a habit of his when playing "serious characters", he uses his "so-low-and-calm-because-this-is-a-serious-character"-voice, that I already mentioned in my review of Baghban. 

Neither has this been one of Shahrukh's better performances, even though he's cute and sympathetic as always. In one of the first episodes of Koffee With Karan, he said that he admired Kajol for only having chosen to act in films that she truly believed in and wanted to do. You can see that in Karan Arjun: while Shahrukh exaggerates a lot, and sometimes seems quite fake, Kajol is wonderful as always, even in this trash-pearl.

In the last (and first) episodes of these new reviews, I wrote about Koyla, coincidentally happening to be directed by Rakesh Roshan as well. Now, Karan Arjun is not as bad as the first-mentioned, but the image of Rakesh, that I used to have in my brain, is slowly bursting... Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai and Koi Mil Gaya are two films that I watched in the start time of my Bollywood-madness, and I love them so much. Even though there are some trashy aspects to especially the first one, I didn't see them as trash-bash-films, but more like... well, "normal" Bollywood films for their respective years. Krrish was also okay. But now, after watching Koyla and Karan Arjun, I don't really know what to think of Rakesh. Is he the king of so-bad-they're-good 90s flicks, instead of mainstream-but-fun 2000+ films? Help!

Okay, last but not least: something that Koyla had, and Karan Arjun didn't... really.... have - good music. Almost every song in Koyla is really good (90s-good), while there was only one song I liked in KA. But that one, on the contrary, was not only good, but really, really good - especially speaking picturization. 

So, here it is, the famous "Jaati Hoon Main" - enjoy!

Rating: 3.4

Thank you for reading, 

Mette M. K.

You watched Koyla? Bloody fool!

You watched----- REVIEW: 

Koyla (1997)

Okay, by calling this a mini-review, I would be seriously exaggerating.

Why didn't I write a real mini-review then?

Well, I'm really exhausted by all those summer tests we need to write at school, and also, this is pretty much all I can say about Koyla.

So that's what it feels like, when you admire a soundtrack for years, and then finally decide to watch the film. You're disappointed (even though you've been warned by the friendly Gaja Gamini).

... Or are you? I feel that, somehow, this film was not disappointing on all levels. At least regarding its incredible hilariousness. Every time (the late) Amrish Puri stepped in front of the camera, I had to go through some serious laughing-attacks. The very best was his Hinglish accent, and that a-w-e-s-o-m-e "Bloody Fool"! Now, that's hard to beat in its funniness. 

I did ask myself: "Was all this meant to be? Or did the makers think they were doing something great, or even just "good"?". Considering the fact that it was made by Rakesh Roshan: Yes, that's my guess. The title has his lucky "K" in it, so, yeah, I think he was very confident about this film.

But honestly: Whatever! That's how the best trash pearls are born, right? 

The true saviors of the film, though, are Madhuri and Shahrukh. Madhuri, because she's sweet, sympathetic and magical as always, and Shahrukh, because he was ... how do I say this... hill-hill... ah, there it is: hilarious. 

What a strike of genius, that they managed to create some song & dance scenes with a mute character. 

While many other 90s-Shahrukh-flicks are unbearable and of the "see-once-because-of-him-then-forget" kind, Koyla does have great potential to become a classic. I mean, a "so-bad-it's-good"-classic, off course. 

Rating: 2.9

------------------------------------------

This post is part of The Madhuri Week, hosted by Gaja Gamini from bollywood-ish Blog.

And before I forget: Please check out the trailer for the cannes-featured documentary "Bollywood - The Greatest Love Story Ever Told" and spread the word, if you haven't already. (We fans want to watch!)

Thank you for reading,

Mette M. K.

The Good, The Weird, The Awesome - Triple Mini-Review

ACTION REPLAYY - EK CHALIS KI LAST LOCAL - ANARI

That I would end up writing about these three films in particular, in one single post, was nothing I had had in mind when watching them. They were just coincidental views, films that I bought because I was curious and had heard about them. It's funny that Ek Chalis Ki Last Local was the only one I had been wanting to buy for a long time, the only one I watched even though it wasn't the first one of my new films, alphabetically - and the only one I ended up not liking, plus being disappointed by.

Anari and Ek Chalis Ki Last Local have currently received the exact same rating at the IMDB: 7.3/10. Both are Parallel Indian Cinema, Anari was a Superhit with superstars, directed by disinguished Hrishikesh Mukherjee - Ek Chalis Ki Last Local was a Flop with "normal" actors and directed by debuting director Sanjay M. Khaduri. Now, Action Replayy is something in between, starring two big Indian stars, but receiving a Below Average rating from the box-office, a 3.9/10 rating at IMDB and being directed by a unsuccessful but commonly known director (Vipul A. Shah). 

Differently from my other mini-reviews, I won't divide this one into the different films, but into categories and compare the films this way.

Who's who?

Just to clear this at the very beginning - without revealing my deepest thoughts, which I will do at the end only; 

The Good: Action Replayy (2010)

The Weird: Ek Chalis Ki Last Local (2007)

The Awesome: Anari (1959)

Story

Many people pointed out, that the main idea of Action Replayy seemed to be stolen from all-time-classic Back to the Future, which in some ways is true, but the story actually is very different. Still, this does not make it more original; I haven't heard or read anyone mentioning this before, but the plot is very similar to 2007 German tv-production Küss mich, Genosse! (IMDB). I don't appreciate story stealing at all, so in this category, AR does worst. One of the problems about Ek Chalis Ki Last Local is, that there doesn't seem to be any story at all. A guy misses his train at night, has to spend two hours in a village and meets a girl. Boring, and hard to make a good screenplay of (which I also don't think they did). 

The sad-funny story of a poor young gold-hearted man, who doesn't seem to have much luck by his side is typically Raj-Kapoor and 50's Indian cinema - so it's not hard to decide, who wins in this section.

Screenplay

As already said, ECKLL's screenplay doesn't count to the best ones made. The love story is minimally interesting, but all other plot lines didn't catch my attention at all, which is also why I turned off the DVD player after almost 2 hours. Off course, I could have stayed through the last 30 minutes, but I really couldn't stand it any longer. 

AR takes us on a bubbly, coulourful 70s-trip and manages to never let boringness slip through any giant screenplay-holes. How nice.

Everything in Anari can be classified as either interesting, amusing, or entertaining - in one word: as Raj Kapoor. Therefore, as in every other category, Anari wins.

Cast

You (and I) already know that no one can beat Raj Kapoor, but as I'm not the most versed person concerning actors from the 50s, I'll tell you what I thought about my first meeting with Nutan. I was very pleased by her performance, her wittiness and beauty, which reminded me strongly of Kate Winslet. Along with Raj Kapoor and Lalita Pawar, she is the person that makes Anari shine. -- If you've been following this year's Deol Dhamakka, you've most certainly read my (only) contribution to that event (if not, read it here). In that post, among other things, I tried to express my love to Abhay Deol, which thankfully is still untouched after watching this film. He was lovely as ever in ECKLL - thank god. An item song in Heyy Babyy was all that I'd seen of Neha Dhupia until ECKLL (and Action Replayy, for that matter), but she does look promising, even though I think there's much more she can, than what I've seen yet. 

Aishwarya Rai, I don't think you're the Queen of Bollywood, like Western media often tries to call you, but nevertheless what you are is: definitely already one of the finest actresses of this decade, one of the best dancers after Madhubala and Madhuri Dixit, and one of the most beautiful women I've seen. Akshay Kumar is... well, I think he's one of the most sympathetic actors I know, and also he can make the worst movies and still not loose me as his fan. He can also look incredibly ugly in films, and incredibly 70s-fashion-victimy - never will my affection for him die.

I think we can agree that all of these films could mention some worthy names in their credits, and that all of them did a good job.

Music

One of the reasons, and also the most important one, that I wanted to watch ECKLL, was not Abhay Deol, funnily. Around the releasing time in 2007, I had one of those periods where I listen to all of the latest Bollywood soundtracks, and immediately fell in love with this one - three years before I even watched my first Abhay-film. Laree Choote features a wonderful singer and is very intense, Ekka Chauka is funny and fast, Akh Ladiye is a great example for a disco-background/underground-track - shortly: I love the soundtrack.

Also Anari  was discovered by me through its music, namely when I listened to some of the songs that won a Filmfare Award for Best Singer. The song I'm talking about ("Sab Kuchh Seekha Humne") really is one of the best ones I know, combining satirical lyrics with the awesome singing talent of Mukesh and an interesting melody. But also the other tracks are fabulous and will stay on my mind (and iPod).

Though I listened to the music of AR before, I only really liked it in the film. The best tracks are Zor Ka Chhatka and Nakhre, while Baaki Main Phool Gayi can only be described with 9 letters: h-i-l-a-r-i-o-u-s, believe me. However, this soundtrack is the weakest, compared to the other two.

Title

Ek Chalis Ki Last Local = The Local Train That Went at 1:40.

Unusual title, but in the end just as totally meaningless as the film itself.

Action Replayy = Action Replay 

Fits the story, but the second "y" is just as annoying as stolen from Heyy Babyy (2007).

Anari = Idiot/ simpleton

Brilliant title, brilliantly used in the film.

Camera (Cinematography)

After all those camera-experimental films, filled with 1-second-shots, dizzy-making rotations and shaky hand cameras, a 1959 classic black-white motion picture can feel like a supreme vacation (inlcuding virgin pina colada). Long, clear-shot scenes, no distracting eastman colour, grainy quality... I am sighing with relief. One may notice, that ECKLL is also shot in a rather quiet and non-distracting way, but a little more bang-bang would have been nice due to the boring screenplay. I'd like to mention the kiss scene though, which was not only well-performed but also beautifully captured.

The poster of Action Replayy already says that the film is shot "IN EASTMAN COLOUR", and that's also what you NOTICE when looking at the poster. 70s slam-tam-bamboo-banga eastman colour, that's what this film is made of. Sometimes the camera setting is very mainstream-music-video like, for example in the song Zor Ka Jhatka, but otherwise very fitting and a good contrary to category-winner Anari.

In a nutshell... (Lucky-Nut)

Action Replayy: 

I expected a long-drawn, exaggerating, very below average film with some good songs.

I saw a never-boring, exaggerating, very entertaining personal-hit (with some good songs).

Ek Chalis Ki Last Local:

I expected a satirical, unusual, surprising film with a cute Abhay and a great soundtrack.

I saw a boring, art-housy-bad, uninteresting and weird film with a cute Abhay and a great soundtrack.

Anari:

I expected a Raj-Kapoor-film.

I saw a Raj-Kapoor-film.

---------------------------------------------------------

Let's end this post with a little smile:

"Marriage, now? We've only just sung a duet song!"

(Akshay Kumar in Action Replayy)

Introduction to Hindi Parallel Cinema

Including mini-reviews of 

BHEJA FRY (2007) and MIXED DOUBLES (2006)

 

When thinking of Hindi films, your thoughts immediately turn to the films that could be classified as mainstream Bollywood, even though many of them are good films. Mainstream is not a bad label, it is nothing the more intellectual viewer should be afraid of watching or "being caught" watching.

But one should always be aware of the parallel and independent cinema, which also exists as a part of the Hindi film industry, as in every other film industry I'm familiar with. The difference between mainstream and independent Hindi cinema is actually very small; basically, the independent cinema films have a very small budget, and you can sense that they're made for a special audience. Off course, most directors and producers would like to earn money with their films, mainstream or not, but the the mainstream cinema tries to appeal to the biggest audience possible. Meanwhile, independent films know they have a rather narrow amount of viewers, but for them, the most important thing is just a few people liking and thinking about their films.

The Hindi independent cinema has its roots way back in the time of silent black and white, when the well-known director V. Shantaram released his Sawkari Pash in 1925. The film is about a poor peasant, who looses all his money and is therefore forced to try his luck in a big city. (Source). I have not seen this film, as I'm not that familiar with Indian films before the 60s, but it sounds like being worth a watch.

Guru Dutt and Satyajit Ray are remembered as pioneers of Indian independent cinema in the 50s and 60s, especially Satyajit Ray's films are also famous in the Western hemisphere. Guru Dutt's Pyaasa (1957) was featured in the TIME Magazine's 100-movie list of "All Time's Best Movies". Again, I must disappoint you by not having seen the independent works of that era, but I will live up to that as soon as possible. However, it was only in the 70s and 80s, that the Indian Parallel Cinema reached a larger amount of viewers, also in India, and some of the contributors were Gulzar (which most of you probably know as lyricist of many well-known soundtracks, for instance this year's 7 Khoon Maaf), Shyam Benegal (still making critically acclaimed films today) and Mahesh Bhatt, who especially made some famous thrillers like Jism, and is the co-owner of production house Vishesh films.

This was also a time for many new talents to be discovered in Parallel Cinema, like Naseeruddin Shah, Shabana Azmi and Om Puri. Rekha and Hema Malini also took a chance to work in some Independent films, which had been rather unusual for popular actresses before. Today, it is a more commonly seen phenomena. 

Meanwhile, the movement (at that point called "Indian New Wave") dispread to various regional film centers, such as the Tamil and Telugu film industries, and the Malayalam film industry even experienced a so called "Golden Age" with its contribution to the Indian New Wave. As I've only watched three regional Indian films, this is obviously not my field of expertise, but my plan is to investigate this era and movement further.

Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak (1989)

After those years of joy and exhilaration for Art-house, Independent and Parallel Cinema, came the 90s. If you've ever seen a Bollywood 90s film (honestly, who hasn't, except for some of my non-BW-bloggers or readers maybe), you know that this was a time far from experimentation or cinematic independence. The romantic comedy Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak, released in 1989, was a guideline the largest part of films released in that decade. It was a blockbuster, and the two main actors Aamir Khan and Juhi Chawla became famous over night. The story line was based on stories like Romeo and Juliet, but however, it still brought some fresh air into the mainstream Hindi films. But because of its giant success, film makers orientated themselves by this film, producing thousands of cheesy, overlong, incredibly colourful and fashionably horrible films that overshadowed the independent productions. Off course, this is generalizing, and there were also good and unusual films in the 90s. While Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge is not what I'd call Art-house, it's a great film that I could watch over and over again, just like Darr or Baazigar were entertaining thrillers (Darr was a tad better). Speaking about those films, you made have noticed they're all starring Shahrukh - the 90s were the times of his big breakthrough, and he starred in a lot of crappy nonsense, but also in some of my favorite films. One of them was actually what comes very near to Independent Cinema, personally I consider it to be so, and one of my all-time favorites: Dil Se, which if you haven't seen yet, you must see immediately.

Vikram Bhatt's Ghulam, released 1998 and produced by Mukesh Bhatt, is also known for focusing on social aspects and problems, and I would also recommend it - if you can stand the seas of blood, and the fact that Rani's loved, smoky voice was dubbed, for whatever reason. Deepa Mehta also directed to famous pieces of Independent cinema in the 90s, which I have already written about here - the boundary-breaking film about two lesbian sisters-in-law, Fire, and the Indian-independence-investigating acclaimed Earth.

Another reason for the lack of Parallel Cinema in the 90s, was the big influence the Indian mafia had on Bollywood at that time. It was hard to find sponsors for controversial films, because the mafia basically was the sponsor of Bollywood back then.

With the millennium change though, Hindi Parallel Cinema slowly regained its strength and is again recognized as an important part of Bollywood, and I think the future looks bright for these films.

There are various labels for these films nowadays, as the border between Mainstream and Parallel Cinema is also beginning to smudge. Yuva, Omkara, Bas Ek Pal, Dev.D and also last year's Tere Bin Laden are examples for films that had success and are often described as "Off-Beat Films". Within the 2000's, another new label/ genre has evolved in Bollywood: Mumbai Noir. The term has already been used in the late 1990's, known as films that revolve around the Indian mafia based in the underworld of Mumbai. Pioneer of this genre is known to be Raj Kapoor, who already in the 50s made films concerning this particular subject. Nowadays, it is Ram Gopal Verma who seems be a leader in this genre, though some of his newer films turned out to be more or less disasters. However, his latest project, Rakht Charitra, which has been filmed in two parts, has gained much success and also good critical response. I've seen the first part only, and I think that RGV is back in his best shape, which is delighting. But Mumbai Noir is today also used as a label for urban-set films that deal with social problems in the city of Mumbai, such as this year's Dhobi Ghat - Mumbai Diaries by Kiran Rao, which I'm dying to see. Another trend inside Hindi Parallel Cinema is films spoken in Indian English, which might be useful for attracting an international audience. Deepa Mehta was one of the first ones to take advantage from this, in 1996's Fire. Also, like in various Independent cinemas all over the world, Hindi parallel cinema is often based on literature, western or Indian. Omkara, for instance, was based on Shakespeare's Othello. 

Independent and critical Coming-of-Age films are also up-and-coming, last year's Udaan being a good example. It was even nominated, and won, several Indian awards, which is actually uncommon, as the awards tend to focus on Blockbusters and big names (not what awards are supposed to be about, I think).

I'd like to finish this article off with my mini-reviews of two often discussed Independent Cinema films, which by the way can be viewed free and legally on bigflix.com - though I'm sad to tell you, that only Bheja Fry has English subtitles. Bigflix seems to offer various films of Hindi Parallel Cinema, which is something I really appreciate, and will definitely take advantage of in the future. 

BHEJA FRY (2007) Sagar Ballary

Plot: Rich music producer Ranjeet and his friends meet every friday for a special dinner, where everyone has to bring at least one "idiot", which they all find quite amusing. For one of those dinners, Ranjeet plans on bringing Bharat Bhushan, a tax-office-worker, who thinks he's the best singer in the world. When Ranjeet invites Bharat to come to his house before the dinner, the madness begins...

According to Wikipedia, "Bheja Fry"-director Sagar Ballary is planning to produce a sequel of the film this year, this time with a larger budget and an international setting (Malaysia). Therefore, it was high time for me, to watch the original film. 

You immediately notice, that "Bheja Fry" is a low-budget-production, but in a positive way. The makers wanted to produce an independent and unusual film (even though it's based on the French "Le Diner de Cons"). Especially the 1,5 hours of play time are almost revolutionary (even though there are films as short as this one, it's still not very common). If you're used to films with at least 2 hours of play time (normal is 2,5), this shortness can be quite refreshing. I don't mean to say, that long films are bad, but a equation of longer and shorter films would be desirable. With shorter films, however, the danger of being amusing only, is very big, and "Bheja Fry" does suffer from this at times. It's also a little disappointing, that even though one smiles almost end-to-end, there's no way we're talking about real hysterics or grand joviality. For that, the jokes are just to foreseeable and half-baked, though in a charming kind of way. Rajat Kapoor is an actor, from whom I haven't heard or seen to much until now, but also nothing negative yet. He plays the role of the rich anti-hero very well, though maybe a little bit too understated. Vinay Pathak, who's supposed to portray the "idiot", seems very familiar to me, and one gaze at his filmography tells me why, but funnily, I cannot remember a single one of his roles. In this film, however, he delivers a brilliant performance and masters the difficult tightrope walk between slapstick and good humour. 

I don't know anything about the director, Sagar Ballary, except for my little pearl "Mixed Doubles", in which he was Associate Director. But I'm excited for a sequel, even though a little skeptical because of the increased budget and "international setting". 

Rating: 6.7

MIXED DOUBLES (2006) Rajat Kapoor

Plot: To heaten up his 10 year old marriage, shy office-worker Ranvir asks his wife Malti to take part in a thing called "wife-swapping", where they'd swap their partners for one night. After a couple of discussions and fights, Malti finally agrees, without being really sure about this decision...

The name of my latest obsession is: Rajat Kapoor. After seeing "Bheja Fry", I discovered his work as a director in "Mixed Doubles", which I had only heard about in an interview with Konkona Sen Sharma, and a couple of reviews.

The film is a low-budget and independent-production, just like "Bheja Fry", but in contrary to last one, it was not at all successful at the box-office ("Bheja Fry" turned out as a surprise-hit). All the same, I find "Mixed Doubles" a lot better than the hit, because it's not only more recondite, but de facto even funnier. It is that subtile humour, which is not only caused by Rajat Kapoor, but also the rest of the cast (except for Koel Purie, she was good, but not that funny).

The second actor that I had already noticed in "Bheja Fry" (negatively), is Ranvir Shorey. He truly demonstrates talent in his portrayal of the shy, but at the same time nagging and somehow sweet husband. Most of you might know, that I admire Konkona Sen Sharma. She's not only one of the best actresses of India, but of the entire current film world (and I'm not overdrawing). By the way, I was very disappointed by her 3-minute role in 7 Khoon Maaf. She deserves so much better.

What I especially liked about the first half was, that everything seemed so incredibly realistic: the interplay between the young, but long-married couple, the small apartment, that every-day-life, which seems so familiar, even though it's actually unknown (I hope you know what I mean). 

Perhaps this was also due to the fact that there were no parents-in-law living in the apartment, which is otherwise very common even for Indian middle class and rich families.

The second half is slightly different, as most of it takes place in the apartment of that other couple and also in a situation, that most of us are not familiar with (especially not teens like me). 

But still, one can relate to the characters, and the second half is really fun.

Actually, I could imagine what was going to happen at the end, but it was still nice to see my thought confirmed.

With its 1,5 hours play time like "Bheja Fry", "Mixed Doubles" serves airy and entertaining reflectiveness off the beaten track, and all that without side-effects.

Rating: 8.0

...............................................................

I don't yet know, if I'm going to have internet or even time to write during my internship, so this might be the last post for the next two weeks. I hope you enjoyed reading, at least I had writing, and please wish me luck (and maybe watch some Hindi Parallel Cinema while I'm gone). 

Thank you for reading,

Mette M. K.

How I Fell In Love With the Bollywood 70's (Kabhi Kabhie Review)

Confused by the wide range of opinions on "Action Replayy" (this happened about a lot of other 2010 fillms, too), which was a film I thought would freshen up my curiosity for the world of the Bollywood 70's, I decided to jump into the cold water for real. I watched the two classics "Don" and "Sholay", an experience you can read about here... And as I found out, that I actually liked them, I watched "Kabhi Kabhie". You are the first ones to hear about this experience, too. Okay, I don't know anyone Bollywood-interested personally, so it's obvious, that you're the first ones.

KABHI KABHIE - LOVE IS LIFE (1976)

Director: Yash Chopra
Authors: Pamela Chopra, Sagar Sarhadi
Starring: Amitabh Bachchan, Waheeda Rehman, Raakhee Gulzar, Shashi Kapoor, Neetu Singh, Rishi Kapoor

Plot: The young poet Amit is in love with Pooja, but Pooja's parents arrange her marriage with architect Vijay. About 20 years after, the two meet again, and the next generation has to fight for their love.








Written the 15th of January 2011

This DVD has been laying around in my cupboard for almost one year now, courting for my favour with many other films. As I've mentioned previously, I've been quite lazy concerning old films. I could never pull myself together and watch those old classics, apart from "Mughal-E-Azam". Why, I don't even know the answer to that myself. Maybe because... old films are just something else, you need to yourself in the postition of the time and can't except a film that would have been made the same way today. However, I've already seen two old films since the beginning of the year, including this one. I do like it. It's not like I never watch old films (I've especially seen many Danish ones), but the list of Indian ones still leaves room for improvement (okay, the English and German ones too). Per contra to the other two films I've seen (remind: Sholay and Don), "Kabhi Kabhie" is no born-and-bred cult film idolized by everyone, but it is definitely a special film. Firstly, it starts quite unusual, very calm and quiet. We are introduced to the love story of Amit and Pooja, peppered with sweet dialogues and lots of poetry. Then we see a wedding song, in which, at the beginning, only Pooja appears - by the way, it is very well-filmed. The bridegoom arrives, he pulls up his veil, and... shock: It's not Amit! Amit(abh), who has put a spell on us from the very beginning, with all his poetry. Something, that not many actors succeed in, during the first few minutes of a film. Even less actors would succeed in actually allegorizing the, now on principle hated, bridegoom in a sympathetic way. Kudos to Shashi Kapoor, who I experienced for the first time (though his laugh reminded me of the bad guy in Sholay). I also liked Raakhee from the very first moment I saw her, she looks very healthy and beams down a motherly warmth. The chemistry is right, between her and Amitabh, as well as between her and Shashi... Effectively, in the second half, Shashi and Raakhee seem to be the couple having most fun together. Vicky and Pinky, played by Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Singh, are also a cute couple, while I instantly liked Rishi, but had to get used to Neetu at the beginning. Talking about getting used to something: I'm shocked by realizing, how much I've gotten used to the ideals of beauty we have nowadays, though I never thought about it this way. I realized it, when I thought, that Neetu and Raakhee were kind of... chubby. But then my alarm bells rang, thank god! My mind is so manipulated by all those human clothes rails, which are dominating our media.

Amit and Pooja

Talking about clothes rails: Amitabh wears some really cute, cuddly sweaters, that I absolutely want to own... (Beth wrote a post on this, but I can't find it right now). Back to the review. I really liked the camera setting of this film, it was whether too brash, nor too boring. Just at two moments, it seemed unprofessional too me, because they used the "shifting-between-to-faces-1000-times" technique. Otherwise, the scene changes were quite good, mostly rather subtle, but sometimes also with the good old impact.

Funny was, that Amit didn't look like his father at all, in contrast to Vicky, whose father was played by his real-life uncle. In addition, I liked the scene, where Vicky's father tries to catch Pinky's mother, and the two fiancés look at each other and vanish silently. Yes, the film has humor, why else should Vicky ask his horse: "Eritéz mon ami, yaar?"?

Actually, there was just one thing annoying me: Sweety, alias Naseem. She was just disruptive and beyond all bearing. By the way, I just IMDB-ed her, and this was the only film she acted in. Good decision!

"Kabhi Kabhie" is indeed quite long, but I've gotten used to that now, that's just how it is with old films. Though also many new films suffer from this - if they're poor. Because this is the secret advise for a long film, that's able to entertain: It has to be interesting. To the makers of "Shakti", "Sehar" etc. - remember this.

Rating: 7.2

Thank you for reading,

Mette M. K.

Mini-Reviews: "Eastern", Curry-Masala & Trash

One of my "new year's resolutions" (don't like using the designation, because it makes you think of "I want to quit smoking" and "I want to loose weight") is seeing some of the really famous and/ or critically acclaimed (Indian) movies that I haven't seen yet (which there are plenty of). Another one is what I call "A film a day", which is very obvious in understanding: I want to watch one film a day. At least. So, I've been good at it this first week of the year... And among others, I watched "Dabangg", "Sholay" and "Don" ('78). Why these? Well, because they are... really famous. Just what I wanted.

There are, as I found out, many similarities between those three. I love lists, so let's look at it in list form:

• They're slightly (as for "Dabangg": very) unrealistic. Ahem, walking a tightrope with two kids in your arms and a bad leg? (Don).
• They have great soundtracks ("Yeh Dosti", "Munni Badnaam", "Khaike Paan Banaraswaala" etc.)
• They have great actors and actresses (not a big fan of Salman, but I like him more and more)
• They exaggerate
• They are Blockbusters
• I love them (especially "Sholay and Don" - wouldn't watch "Dabangg" too often, but it's also good)

Here's a little more about each of them:

Dabangg (2010) दबंग

In this world, there are two kinds of people: Firstly, the bad guys and secondly, the good guys. And then, there is Salman. When Salman enters the room, a terrifying orchestra of e-guitars and hands being smashed sounds. Salman knows how to handle a lasso (ahem, water hose), how to deliberate new stunts (that are not cloned from Hulk or Matrix) and how to melt a woman's heart. And wen he wants to marry one, he doesn't ask: He just does it. Salman has got them, swiveling hips. He can agitate his belt, squash the sun with his bare hand and he has more hair today, than he had 8 years ago. Salman is fearless, oh yes, he is… Dabangg! (Two G's, very important!).

And if you haven't seen the fence post, on which is written "do NOT take this film seriously", I'm very sorry for you. Though I don't really understand the huge success of "Dabangg", I do have to admit that I couldn't have wished for more entertainment. Even the women don't miss out - admittedly, they're not very important in the plot, but they are presented by good actresses. You can't be very wrong with Dimple Kapadia, as everyone knows, and also the new face, Sonakshi Sinha, is not only a beauty. I do sense this woman's potential and hope that it will be utilized in her next projects.  Since "Ghost", we all knew that men are often attracted by female potters, but this is not the only wisdom we can extract from "Dabangg": Finally I know, that the same sound resounds, when you pack a puch, and when you fall onto the floor with a lot of kinetic energy (without breaking anything). Sonu Sood is, buy the way, no concurrence to Salman Khan, though he's allowed to show his six-pack more often than Sallu. Honestly, can anyone give this man a bra? And a hair-dresser?

However, my advice to you: Flip off your brains and let "Dabangg" take over your DVD-player!
6.4

Don (1978)

"Yes, who is it?". "Don". 

I say it, as it is: Whenever I think of those very famous lines, I automatically hear Shah Rukh's voice. Most people of my generation watch the remakes before having seen the original movies - if that's a good thing, or a bad thing, that's up to you. At all events, it entails that 1) I don't watch the originals very soon (as I'm a little "lazy" concerning old films) and 2) I always look after the differences between the two movies, taking the remake as my initial point. After having seen the original "Don", however, I came to the result that "Don" 2006 is certainly a good movie, but not comparable to its forerunner. It is indeed a little unfair comparing Shah Rukh to Amitabh, because Amitabh will always be a little bit better. I love Shah Rukh, and he is one of the best actors I know, but Amitabhji is… Well, he's Amitabhji. 

"Don" '78 is trash - the best trash I've seen until now. And a piece of film history.

8.5

                                                                                                      

Sholay (1975) शोले                                

My first Masala-Curry-"Eastern"… I had undertaken to see it this year, as I was quite ashamed actually… I mean, you must have seen Sholay! And if it's only because of the quotes and references in newer films… It is film history, in the truest sense of the word (can you say that?). 

Despite overlength: Sholay is cult with 4 BIIIIIG letters!!!!

(This part is very short and uncreative, but I find it hard to describe my feelings about Sholay. It's just a fantastic movie, and I'm so happy that I've finally seen it).

10
















Word explanation
"Eastern"???
Sholay has, among other films, been called an Indian western, because of all the guns and the countryside location. But I don't like that indication, because this is India, we're not in the wild west, we're in the wild east. Not in the countryside, "gaanv men". That's why I call movies like Sholay "Eastern". Simple.


Another resolution
As you may have noticed, there are not yet any entries concerning Kollywood or Tollywood. There's a simple reason for this, too. The reason is, that all I've seen of those until now, is one single movie. Yes, it's true. The movie was "Bumbai" (1995), and the only reason I watched it, was because of Manisha Koirala (buy the way, I miss you Manisha!). But I decided that I need to watch some regional movies, so that's another resolution for 2011. Happily, I have somewhere to start: Since I've watched Rang De Basanti, I'm so crazy about Siddhart, so I'll start by watching some of his movies.

Thank you for reading,

Mette M. K.