Kapoor Khazana: The Family Tree

While thinking about the things I could write about for Kapoor Khazana (in this last week that is left to me, because I'm leaving to Greenland after it), I remembered something that I had done a really long time ago - I think last summer or so, when I wasn't stressed out or anything: The Family Tree.

Yes, I made a family tree of the (official) Kapoor family (by official I mean, the Shammi and Kareena ones, not the Sonam and all those other ones).

There might be some little flaws in it, I'm not sure, but I tried my best, and I will now present it to you.

I think it's a bit too large to fit in here, so just click on the image, then you'll be able to see it more clearly.

Thank you for reading,

Mette M. K.

The Weekual Thursday PP: Debut-time!

THE 8TH WEEKUAL THURSDAY PP

I just ordered three 2011 Bollywood DVDs two days ago, and it's the first time that I've:

- ordered more than 1 Bollywood DVD on the internet (excluding German releases from amazon.de)
- ordered Bollywood DVDs from outside Germany (this time India), excluding Salaam Namaste and KANK, which I ordered from Yash Raj (not at the same time)
- been patient enough to buy new releases on the internet, and not bought them at the local (ahem... is Hamburg local?) Indian store, where you can never be sure, if it's an original

I'm so excited. I just hope they'll be here in time. How long do DVDs ship from India to Germany?

And if you wondered, which DVDs I've ordered:
Tanu Weds Manu - heard it's okay/ good (and Madhavan is in it)
Yeh Saali Zindagi - I need to build my own opinion, everyone thinks so differently about it
Dum Maaro Dum - I - am - so - eager - to - see - myself (if it's crap or "crackatastic")

Sadly, just the other day some other DVDs were released, but well... I think I can wait (or buy at the local... ar... no... I  wouldn't do that).

Achcha, this week we have four new releases (don't believe in indiafm - never heard of our first release?!):

"Cycle Kick"... well, something with bicycles and Subhash Ghai...

Could be an un-witty comedy... or a good one

"Shaitan" - do I have to say more?

"West is West"... sounds okay... No, I haven't seen "East is East"

Cycle Kick
Director: Shashi Silgudia (debuting)

Believe me, there is almost zero percent information to find about this film on the internet.

I've searched (almost) everywhere, and all I could find was this poster, some stills and a list of the cast.

The cast is completely unknown to me, except for producer Subhash Ghai, who... well, who hasn't been too successful for the past years...

So, just guessing without any information, I think this could be a sports film... also about friendship... and believing in yourself.

With a... big soul, you know? Like, a really good Subhash Ghai flick. There might also be music in it... And... it might flop.









Love Express
Director: Sunny Bhambani (debuting)

THEATRICAL TRAILER

This one looks even worse than "Cycle Kick", because it has a theatrical trailer. A bad one.

It looks so cheap and wanna-be, that... I want to puke. Okay, that's a bit exaggerated, but hello "they want to make it"? "FUN"? "Friends, family, songs, dance, masti, romance, fun and tears"?

And Subhash Ghai you little bastard, two films from debuting directors, both produced by you, releasing at the same date?

... That's all.











Shaitan
Director: Bijoy Nambiar (debuting but was Line Producer for Raavan)

THEATRICAL TRAILER

Watching the trailer a second time, some doubts are popping up, but I still haven't lost my belief in "Shaitan" being a good film.

I really, really hope that it's not just a "we-want-to-shock-the-audience-of-India" film (like "Love Sex aur Dhokha" was at times), even thought that can also be fun.

I just want it to be outstanding, brilliant, new. "Dev D"-like. I mean, Anurag Kashyap is one of the producers. Has he ever done anything wrong? (Rhetorical question).












West is West 
Director: Andy De Emmony (various TV-series and TV-movies (non-Indian))

TRAILER

I don't like it when films are praised too much on the first look posters, but this film actually looks good. Judging from the trailer - I (almost) never watch more than the theatrical trailer before watching a film. So many films are being spoilt already in the first trailers, so I'm afraid of knowing too much before watching the film.

The director of this film is British (I guess), which might be complicated (crossover films, ya know... Shahrukh talked about it lately), but I'm definitely getting the appeal for this film...

I think I'll watch "East is East" soon, to fill out to emptiness between now and the-time-I'll-watch-all-those-films-I-want-to-watch.

By the way, is 2011 the year of debuting directors in Mumbai?

And even more by the way: why haven't there been no debuting female directors yet?

Thank you for reading,

Mette M. K.

Song of the Month (June 2011)

Almost since the very begin of this blog, I've had a Gadget called "The Month", where I choose a Song of the Month and a Movie of the Month - each month. It is always a song, and a movie, that I've listened to a lot/ seen the previous month, and that I'm just crazy about.

Because I always write at least one sentence (mostly much more) about every film I've seen in the previous month at the start of the new month (I'm not confusing anyone, am I?), I didn't find it necessary to make a whole post out of Movie of the Month. (Read about this month's movie, Devdas (2002) here).
However, Jack had the idea, that I could write about the songs I choose every month - you know, thoughts on them, and the reasons I choose them.

Why didn't I think of that? I love music, but it happens that I love a lot of things at the same time, so it's hard to write about all of those things (I even often think that I don't write enough about films).

Anyways, one post a month? I think I can handle that.

So, let me present to you, the Song of the Month, June 2011:

The Sound of Silence

by

Simon & Garfunkel (Soundtrack of "The Graduate)

There are two versions of this song, one is more calm and acoustic, while the other one has some more instruments and is a bit "louder". Both are used in the film, but the last one more frequently. 

Here's the last one I mentioned:

I can't find the acoustic version on youtube, but you can buy it or listen to it on iTunes.

Both versions are awesome, but I think that the acoustic version is just a little, tiny bit better, because it... it really comes from the heart, do you know what I mean? (Though it sounds corny, yes, I know).

And after some time, when you've listened to the song like... 10 times or more, and you look up the lyrics... you will be even more enchanted of this masterpiece, and in awe of the two musical Gods that wrote and sung this song (I'm not sure if they also composed it...), because the lyrics are so poetic and true, and... awesome. Simply awesome.

My classmates were quite annoyed by the song - it appears a lot in the film, and every time it did, you could hear sighing from every corner of the room. After we finished the film, some went like "Yeah, great movie, ya know, awesome soundtrack..." and stuff like that (I mean, they said it in a very sarcastic way), while I was still up in the air/ the movie... (Oh, I forgot that, in case you didn't know: we watched the film in English class, in school).

It has been a really long time since I've been so obsessive about a song... Of course, I often find music that I love and listen to a lot, but it's not like this most of the time... 

I'm not an expert concerning love and all that, but I think you can be truly in love with a song, maybe even more than a film...

Here are some of the songs I've been falling in love with over the past few years:

Acoustic version of "Thinking of You" that Katy Perry sang at the KISS FM Spring Live Lounge (before she became famous).

Katy Perry is one of my favorite singers, but her new album is kind of crappy. Her voice has been modified in every song, and most of the songs seem so fake, just mediocre pop-crap.

The first album is wonderful, but the very best is when she sings her old songs live...

Straight from the heart (here it is, again).

"Never Think" by Robert Pattinson (please ignore the video, just listen)

You can discuss Twilight, even I don't think they're good films, I mean... they're just candy, if you get that... You can also discuss Robert Pattinson, and I understand that a lot of people don't like him, also because they've mostly not seen more of his films, except for... Twilight.

But this song. This song is wonderful, just wonderful.

And I won't discuss that.

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

Writing about music wasn't as hard as I had imagined, though I haven't really written that much.

So, what do you think - do you like this new feature? Would you like me to write more about the songs, or are there any other improvements you can think of? I'd like to hear all of your thoughts.

Thank you for reading,

Mette M. K.

Kapoor Khazana: Would I buy this? Kareena Edition

Kapoor Khazana is in full swing already, and I think I'm allowed to say that the entire Bolly-blogging community is celebrating the film family of India this month.

Just on the side, I already mentioned in my post for Deol Dhamaka, how much we needed a blog-event concerning the Kapoors... Thank you for listening to me (she said, with a humble expression on her face).

Whatever, I will surely be contributing with more than one post only, but let's start at the beginning (kya bataa, kal ho naa ho):

"Whatever". Whatever is a word I consider to be closely connected to Kareena Kapoor; as most of you know, the in-famous Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham marked mera-paihla-paihla-pyaar - my Bollywood debut. Not knowing that this was an actual film industry (I thought it was a Hollywood musical playing in India - hey, I was 9), I listened to the soundtrack again and again and again and again... An endless circle... I suppose you remember the catchy "Deewana Hai Dekho"? The song with some hilarious 2001-outifts? Right. In the middle of the song, Kareena says "Whatever".

And why's that interesting or important? Actually, I don't know. But it's Kapoor Khazana, so I might as well demonstrate some of the things that connect me to the Kapoor family.

Whatever, in this post, I want to more or less analyze some of Kareena Kapoor adverts, and debate, whether she succeeds in selling the product, or not (only theory, of course). Not the most original idea, but neither is a review. Or a blog.

Achha, then let the magic begin...
(All pictures from Kareena Online - the unofficial website and #1 source for Kareena).

AIRTEL

Kareena has been an ambassador for Airtel for many years now, as you can see from the picture below, which is... quite old. "Duniya se dost karoge" - become a friend of the world. That does sound intriguing. And also, if you get a 70s bodysuit like that one plus a nice microphone - I'm in it.

The newer add is a little more complicated, I mean... Kareena and Saif are obviously together. And Kareena is wearing a sari... Who's supposed to be lulled by that? Not boys... maybe some girls, dreaming of a husband like Saif... Okay, honestly: both ads are pretty fake.

The commercial is better: cute love story in 40 seconds... Not the best, but okay... Better than German commercials.

ANNE FRENCH

Kareena is using creme hair remover? That one? Oh, my, gosh! I need to have it!

And as a plus point, it's India's no 1 hair remover!

This ad seems to be an older one, but I don't understand why they don't show any legs or... armpits... Well, body areas that are "essential" for hair removal. 

Beautiful skin is in? I didn't know that. Must be some new trend... 

I think I'll try it.

BORO PLUS

Kareena has modeled for various creams of Boro Plus, and this was the most-seen ad by far (at Kareena Online). What can I say... It's photoshopped. Extremely photoshopped. And pink.

Ahm... weird soundtrack... Otherwise boring.

CHRONOTECH

This is actually a good one... I like ads for watches (don't ask me why)...

The watch itself is a little too big for my taste, I like them slim.

But the ad has some kind of classical touch (though a little boring).

Wouw... trashy... I like that.

The watch also looks better on video than in the pictures.

CITIZEN WATCHES

The first one is obviously rather old. The watches look very 2002, just like the ad itself.

Now, the second ad - I love that one. Not because of Kareena, she looks fake somehow, but the watch is beautiful. Not that I'd spend 1000 $ or something on a watch, but I might as well fancy it.

DULUX PAINTS

Kareena looks very pretty in this one, but she doesn't sell the product.

... Seriously, what is the product? 

Wall colour, furniture colour, colour for dying clothes? I have no idea.

FIRDOUS FASHION

That gaze is scary!

But I like the dress - nice colours. 

GARNIER NUTRISSE

Must have earned a stack of money on that... I heard that hair dye ads were highly paid.

The hair colour itself is pretty... I like reddish hair.

And by the way, I've used Garnier Nutrisse hair dye once, and it's pretty good (though I won't dye my hair once again, I don't feel it's necessary. Well, you try things when you're young).

It just struck me that the lines of the Garnier ads are the same in every country... They do the same ad, just with different models...

GITANJALI JEWELS

The first ad is well-made - very classic. If I ever marry, I'd like to have rings like those ones.

The second ad is little too much for me, and Kareena is staring too much.

Bollywood 90s in HD and not as long as usual... Sweet!

GLOBUS

Quite high-end-y... You know I was a fashion freak once. I'm still rather interested in fashion, but not as much as before.

Not sure if I like the clothes, but the shoot is well-made.

HEAD & SHOULDERS

My scalp doesn't tolerate head & shoulders, but...

I love that ad! It's really cute, and I'd buy the shampoo if I'd not be allergic to it.

LUX SOAP

Remember when that ad was released? I remember it... It was everywhere on the internet (I don't know about the blogs, it was before my blog-era).

This ad is really good.You just want that chocolate soap. You crave it.

Lux is often called the "soap of the stars", because the soap itself and the star-modeled ads have been and still are very popular in India.

MAHINDRA BIKES

Hahaha, I love that look on her face... And the scooter has a nice colour, even though I don't like scooters (so noisy).

But if I'd live in India or Italy, I'd probably have one (or my family would have one), so I'd probably like them. 

Oh, the scooter looks even cuter in the commercial...

METRO SHOES

Ew, I hate those shoes... What are they called? Oh, yeah, "booties". So ugly.

Otherwise, it's a typical shoe ad. Nothing new. If she'd wear nice shoes, I'd like it.

PEPSI

I heard that, in India, you're either Pepsi or Coca Cola.

Most Bollywood stars are Pepsi, but there are exceptions (Aishu for example).

Personally, I think that Coca Cola is the true original, but Pepsi is okay as an alternate.

PETER ENGLAND

What is Peter England, you might ask yourself. 

I don't. I ask myself: "Who's that un-handsome fella', and who told Kareena to wear lipliner?"

SANGINI

Not good. Salman is not-good-looking as always (don't mean to be bitchy, sorry Sallu-fans) and Kareena... well, she's looking like she doesn't like him. No Karva-Chauth magic at all.

An improvement to the picture ads... Kind of lovely, don't you think? I mean, for a commercial.

SONY ERICSSON

My cell phone is Sony Ericsson, so, I like this ad.

Although I'm an Apple-maniac, I feel that smart phones are so overrated. I don't need that.

I'm fine with the 2008-Sony-Ericsson Walkman-handy.

(Yes, I do know that Sony Ericsson produces smart phones as well (who doesn't), but the difference is that Apple produces nothing but I'm-so-smart-Phones).

That, I don't like. My Danish guest brother has exactly this handy, and it's:

1) So big/ unpractical.

2) So smart phone.

SONY VAIO

You didn't hear me, did you? 

I said: "I'm an APPLE-maniac"! The MacBook Pro is my best friend.

I was born-and-braid Windows before I discovered the fabulous-ness of Mac, and then I realized I was so sick of that Windows-crap.

But I must admit: Sony Vaio and Acer are 2nd best after Apple, IMO, Sony having a better design though.

VIVEL

Nice try, but Tashan still flopped, and is available on youtube for free (legally).

Anyways, Vivel didn't have to pay for the photoshoot.

I'd go for Lux though.

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I'll be back soon with more Kapoor-Khazana-fun.

Thank you for reading,

Mette M. K.

Mission "AFAD" - May 2011

A new peak of this mission has been reached: 26 films, May being the second most prolific month of 2011. There aren't even short films or TV shows on the list!
On the other hand, there are no loads of Indian films on the list either. No, I cannot explain that - I honestly don't know what happened. Maybe Baghban, Hum Aapke Hain Koun! and Koyla were just too stressful, so that I didn't get the taste for Bollywood this month...

Here's what I've seen.

Vingt-sept films...

And PS: From this month on, I'll make a post concerning the "Song of the Month" each month. "Movie of the Month" is too obvious to explain - you can read all about it in this feature.

3 Idiots - Director's Commentary (2009) Rajkumar Hirani
India, Hindi - Second view
This was the first director's commentary of a film I had ever seen, and it was so much better than I had expected. My brain is now filled with knowledge and information about "3 Idiots", so if I ever watch the film with other people, I'm sure I'll talk all the time. Rajkumar Hirani seems to be a very nice man, and it was great how he explained why he shot this or that scene, and why he shot it the way he did, which scenes were improvised, in which scenes the actors were actually drunk (yes, they were...), how they found the locations and on and on... I think I like the film even more now, than I did before (just read my old review and had a little laugh).

The Man Who Knew Too Much (1955) Alfred Hitchcock
USA, English - First view
I believe there is a point in your life, when you realize, that you haven't seen any Hitchcock films yet (at least in the life of a film fan/ buff/ student). I reached that point the last time I went to my local library to look for some DVDs I could rent.
"The Man Who Knew Too Much" is a perfect film to start with. It is interesting enough, well-made and also interesting from a technical angle. The scene at the end, when Doris Day sings "Que Sera Sera" is especially great, and I heard that it's one of film history's most famous scenes. Also, Doris Day had never been outside of America before making that film, so while they were shooting in Morocco, she fed all the animals that lived outside the hotel (I read that on the DVD-paper-thing).

Die Spätzünder (2010) [TV-film] Alfred Murnberger
Germany, German - First view
You caught me. I'm the kind of person who watches the "Film of the Day", recommended by the TV-paper. Hey, better than watching crap, isn't it? And I don't always watch the Film of the Day. I also watch independent, unknown films sometimes... The problem is just, they're always in the middle of the night, nowhere near 8 pm...
So, "Die Spätzünder" (= The late bloomers), is a cute little German tv production... It is not new whatsoever, the story is foreseeable and known, but nevertheless, it is entertaining and sympathetic. Old people winning a band contest with the help of revolutionary male nurse? Yeah!

Good Will Hunting (1997) Gus Van Sant
USA, English - First view
A good thing is, when the Film of the Day is as great as this one. And if it's one you always wanted to see, but never did. Robin Williams is one of my favorite actors, Matt Damon isn't. Both were fantastic in this film, though Williams has the love-him-bonus.
There are also some great quotes in this film, that I cannot remember right now... I love the "It's not your fault"-scene, for example. I also love, how much I can relate to Will, the main character, and how much I can't, in some aspects. "Good Will Hunting" is indeed a classic must-see.

The Man (2005) Les Mayfield
USA, English - First view
I'm sure this wasn't a Film of the Day, but there was a very important reason for me to watch it: "I love Samuel Jackson". Me? I don't. But my Danish guest father does (sweet, no?). So we watched this film.
It is fun, classic scheme film with some funny situations and... well, funny situations. Fast food.

Princesas (2005) Fernando León de Aranoa
Spain, Spanish - First view
Another thing I love: zapping through the pay-TV-channels of my Danish guest family in the afternoon, stumbling upon some ok-sounding film, starting to watch it - and finding out how incredibly fantastic it is! That the soundtrack is sung by one of my favorite-rather-unknown artists, Manu Chao, is just the cherry on top (and that the film is in Spanish, a language I'm learning and loving, is... the cream on top).
I never knew much about the life of prostitutes, not to speak of young and intelligent prostitutes, neither did/ do I know much about Spanish people (though I've been on that Canary Islands sometimes...), so I feel like I learned a lot from this film.
Luckily, it's not only a film you can learn from, but also a good film in all other aspects. Recommended.

Crocodile Dundee 2 (1988) John Cornell
USA/ Australia, English - First view
I should've listened to you, Jack, and not seen more than part one. Part two is bland, uninteresting, Mc-Donalds mainstream junk-food, and I would've been more happy, had I not seen it.
So don't watch it, especially if you liked part one.

Devdas (2002) Sanjay Leela Bhansali
India, Hindi - Second view
Sometimes, you forget the bad sides of a film when time goes by. But sometimes, you may forget how good the good sides of a film were, until you watch it again. That's what happened to me and "Devdas". I totally forgot how great the film is - really, really super-duper-vavavoom great! (You may hit me for using the word "totally" all he time -  I've seen "Clueless" way too often).

Koyla (1997) Rakesh Roshan
India, Hindi - First view
I think my Mini-review says enough about this film.

Hum Aapke Hain Koun! (1993) Sooraj R. Barjatya
India, Hindi - First view
This film is rated 7.3 /10 on IMDB!!! Are you freaking kidding me?! I rated it 4, but only because of Madhuri, otherwise it's not worth more than a 3. I can understand why people loved it back then, after all those exaggerating 80s action flicks, but why exaggerate the soft-family-friendly issue by producing a 3,5 hours (!) long wedding video?! That's not better at all!

Duel (1971) Steven Spielberg
USA, English - First view
Steven Spielberg's first full feature film is much better than some of his more famous productions (I'm looking at you, Indiana). It's what "Transformers" should've been like - cut the budget, put in some entertainment (oh, and cut Megan Fox, or give her a burger).
"Duel" is road movie, thriller and totally 70s - how could I not love it? But it also made me think about the plot and all those symbols that are used - why does the truck want to kill David, for example (biggest question of the film)? Is the driver God - maybe because David needs to be punished for not protecting his wife? That's my guess so far. But I have some other theories as well.

Water for Elephants (2011) Francis Lawrence
USA, English/ Polish - First view (cinema)
When I first heard about the film and saw the trailer and poster, I felt like I had to watch it. Robert Pattinson - I said enough. Then I heard it wasn't good, and I remembered that Robert Pattinson was officially a bland-actor-teeny-crush, and felt I couldn't watch it while calling myself a film buff.
But when my mother asked me to watch it with her, and even wanted to pay my ticket, I couldn't resist. Luckily. Otherwise, I would have missed a really good film. Not a fantastic film, or a very unusual, new film, but a very good film. Christoph Waltz is, among other things, one of the highlights.
And by the way, I just heard that Robert Pattinson is officially on top of the waiting list for becoming a  "good actor".

Amadeus (1984) Milos Forman
USA, English/ Italian/ Latin/ German - First view
The first film we watched in school this month - music class, of course. It was a bit hard to concentrate in class, but nevertheless, I found the film quite interesting. I never knew that Mozart was so weird, and also rather unsympathetic, that was good to know (no, I don't believe everything I watch or hear).
The music was also great, but I hadn't expected anything else.

Winter's Bone (2010) Debra Granik
USA, English - First view
To make a long story short: A good friend had recommended this film to me a long time ago, even before the Academy Awards, but I never watched it. So when she reminded me once more, I told her I was going to watch it instantly, and I did. Some people had found it great, others boring. I found it great.
And that's the story of Mette and Winter's Bone, and they lived happily ever after (except that Mette never visited Missouri in her whole life, because she had the impression people there weren't very nice).

About Schmidt (2002) Alexander Payne
USA, English - First view
Guess what? This was the Film of the Day, according to my Grandmother's TV paper. And guess what even more? It was just as fantastic as they promised. Or maybe even more.
Oh, I loved it. I love it. I want to watch it once more.

Baghban (2003) Ravi Chopra
India, Hindi - First view
Somehow I always end up only writing one single actual, classic review per month. This time, I reviewed "Baghban".

Atash (Thirst) (2004) Tawfik Abu Wael
Israel/ Palaestina, Arabic - First view
My plans of learning Arabic were spoiled, when I watched this film. I am now able to write and read... half of the Arabian alphabet. Which is all right, and I might learn the whole alphabet, because it's what they use in Urdu. But the language? It just sounds so... unmelodic. So harsh and... I don't know. I just don't want to learn it anymore. I don't feel like practicing my languages at all, at the moment. But... well, there are reasons for that.
Back to the film: It won some awards at Cannes and other festivals, bla, bla - listen to me: It is boring. The actors are good, the soundtrack is good, but the story and the screenplay and everything else is boring to death.

The Graduate (1967) Mike Nichols
USA, English - First view
Oh dear, don't get my started on this film. I could write novels about how great I find it, and how much I love the soundtrack. Honestly, I've been listening to "The Sound of Silence" from Simon & Garfunkel ever since we watched the film in English class. It's been a long time since I've been so obsessive about a song...
And the film... maybe I was exaggerating before. Maybe it's so good, that I can hardly find words to describe what I want to describe. It is definitely one of my favorite films already.
If you haven't seen it yet, do it now. (And watch "American Pie" after that - me and my friends from school were freaking out when we heard the Mrs. Robinson song at the end, because we hadn't seen "The Graduate" when we had watched "American Pie" the first time).

The Hangover (2009) Todd Philips
USA, English
I just watched "Hangover II" last wednesday, but that was already the first of June, so you won't hear a word about it until next month.
It was a good idea to freshen up the memory of part one - simply legen... wait for... dary!

Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na (2008) Abbas Tyrewala
India, Hindi - First view
Exactly as good as I had expected, though different. And I didn't like the end, I think the film should've ended when Jai and Aditi are lying down on the airport, or something like that. It seemed a little bit fake, that scene at the end, and I hated Aditi's wig... ahm, hair...
But otherwise, I'm happy I watched this. This month wasn't that good for me and Bollywood, and JTYJN was definitely one of the brighter sides of our relationship...
Aw, I want to see it again. Now!

Die Relativitätstheorie der Liebe (2011) Otto Alexander Jahrreiss
(= The love relativity theory)
Germany, German - First view (cinema)
All main characters are played by only two actors, and there are various plots, all somehow related to the subject "love". My mother was dying to see it, so she asked me to (once more this month) watch it with her, at the cinema. We both loved it - the perfect screwball comedy, with some wonderful actors and the genuine German humour (ha! you haven't heard of it before, have you?).

Dil Hai Tumhaara (2002) Kundan Shah
India, Hindi - First view
Let me defend myself first: Preity Zinta was, and still is, one of my favorite actresses, maybe even my favorite actress. So there was reason for me to sit through this. It wasn't even as bad as I'd thought. I mean, I wouldn't rank it in my list of the worst Indian films I've ever seen. There were good actors (some of them, at least), and... yeah, that's all. Fun!

Do Dooni Chaar (2010) Habib Faisal
India, Hindi - First view
Let me defend myself once more: I liked "Dil Hai Tumhaara" better than "Do Dooni Chaar", watching both of them on the same day. Sorry, but with the first one, at least, I got just what I'd expected. But for the latter, my expectations were really high, and they were not fulfilled. I was even seduced to press FFW, but I don't think I did... The film was just so boring... Wasn't it?
--- I know, I'm the only person on this planet thinking it was boring...

Ghajini (2008) A. R. Murugadoss
India, Hindi - First view
"Ghajini" is the story of me falling in love with Asin, going crazy about Aamir Khan for the 1001st time and being a little disappointed by Jiah Khan.
After the more or less disappointing past Indian films I had watched, "Ghajini" felt like my personal surprise hit of this decade. I was never ever bored - and that is impressing (at least when you've seen the films I've seen in May). Loving it.

Sister Act 2 (1993) Bill Duke
USA, English - First view
Me and some girl friends had a DVD night on the 31st and it was the first time in my life that I was awake for 24 hours, but that's a long story... However, I split the films we watched in two, and will rate two of them for this month, and the remaining three for next month (we also watched some comedy stuff, but I won't write about that, I'd bore you).
I barely remember "Sister Act", but the second film is fun. Not more, not less - pure fun. Singing, dancing... High School Musical in the 90s, and with some nuns.

Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging (2009) Gurinder Chadha
UK, English
I read somewhere, that this film should win the price for the worst film title in the world, but also for being one of the best teen-chick-flicks. I agree with both. I don't know, how many times I've seen this film, and this has not been the last time...
Oh, and let's not forget about Aaron Johnson (haaaaaah mmmhhhh....)... the reason why we keep watching this film over and over again (let's face it)...
Gurinder Chadha, I love you.

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June's Edition might be published before end of the month already, because I'm going to Greenland on the 21st... And I don't expect myself to watch many films over there (nor taking my MacBook with me).

Thank you for reading,

Mette M. K.