Leader and Ye Maya Chesave (YMC)

I had this pending…so thought I’ll go ahead and finish it!

Watched Leader and YMC couple of weeks ago. Frankly, both the movies did not impress me much. I had much expectations from Leader since the director’s Shekhar Kammular and the film starred Rana…..but I did not understand why Rana’s character had to be so serious all the time. He was more like a machine than a human being. I know he’s supposed to be this young politician and all but I am sure politicos also manage a smile now and then. I liked the whole concept of buying politicians to become the CM and all…but the rest was not worthy of giving a thought. The whole female(s) angle was unnecessary. Shekhar Kammula always had meaty roles for his heroines…but I was very disappointed with the choice of story line for the female characters in this one…they did not have to be part of the movie atall! The best part of the movie was the ending…with a very decent remix version of Maa Telugu Talliki. It was good to watch Andhra Pradesh again…as ONE!

Ye Maya Chesave (YMC) seems to have created ‘some’ hysteria in the urban centres of AP. Call me a cynic, but I wasn’t totally impressed. I loved the songs 😀 and that’s it. Again, Naga Chaitanya disappoints. He’s definitely improved from his first movie…but I did not understand why he always had this irritated expression on his face and a lazy tone to his voice. Samantha was good…but I did not like her character. For someone who comes across as a ‘know it all’…she took an awful long time to make up her mind about a guy she loves very much…fickle minded she was! The two characteristics don’t go together 😛 I loved the Alleppey setting…brought back memories of my trip there with S couple of years ago. Absolutely beautiful!

One of my favourtie songs from the movie 🙂

Happy for No Reason :)

No..I did not get a new job offer, the weather could not have been worse….my head’s throbbing since morning but I am still happy! Isn’t it lovely to be happy for absolutely no reason atall?! We had such a bad long weekend. The weather was horrible. We wanted to go out one of the days but it was windy and rainy 😦 So stayed home and enjoyed a lazzyyy weekend. I broke my own record yesterday by waking up at 2PM 😀 the reason for my headache. Another reason for me to be happy today…I can now write text on my photographs! Yayyyy!!!! (OK..before you laugh at me…let me just clarify that I am NOT a techie…so this is a big deal!!) . Not that I care if people use my pics but I’d not like people basking in my glory 😛

Currently, listening ot AR Rahman’s Jeans…remember…the terrible movie starring Aishwarya Rai and Prashanth…which was the official entry to the Oscars in 1998 (if I am not wrong) ROFLL!!! I cannot even imagine how this movie was selected by our great panel…I am sure the jury was either drunk or bribed by Ashok Amritraj…producer of the movie…oh yea…the tennis player.

One of my fav song’s from the movie..Njoy! (Terrible lyrics since it’s a dub…but enjoy the music)

Movie Review: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

OK..my dear readers…let me first tell u that there definately will be another Indiana Jones and you will know in a minute why 🙂

This is one of the most highly anticipated movies of this year and I consider myself privileged to have watched it on the day it released…(since I am not in Cannes this year :D)

I shouldn’t have watched Entertainment Tonight (ET) on BBC before going for this movie. If it weren’t for ET and the guys sitting behind us burping, chatting and laughing away to glory…I might have enjoyed the movie. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is not as spectacular as the previous ‘Indi’ movies. Harrison Ford is in good shape…but does look older…with  the slight stoop and the wrinkles. Can’t really blame him can we? He is 66 for Pete’s sake.

I did not understand the story very well but I will try and give an abridged version. So the story starts off with the KGB (The Russian Secret Service) trying to steal a Crystal Skull belonging to the Peruvian Gods……which will give the person who find it and places it at their temple, ultimate power over things and beings and Mr. Jones is out to stop this from happening. While doing what he does best…he is betrayed but also finds love and family (a son aka Shia LeBeouf of The Transformers…who I am sure is the next Indiana Jones) and the rest is usual.

The movie could have been definately more exciting. This movie is more like a bridge between the old Indiana Jones’s movies and the upcoming ones…where I am sure Shia will be Henry Jones Jr aka Indiana Jones Jr.

I love mysteries, adventures….but when we compare this movie with National Treasure 1 and 2, NT scores big time! The movie is a drag sometimes…with Shia and harrison ford ocassionally providing us with some humour. There could have been more action, more fun and less reptlies 😛 I won’t say more sense…’cuz I did not find any sense in ‘Indian Jones and the Temple of Doom’. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade is my favourite.

My Rating: 3/5

PS: I don’t know why SS (Spielberg) cannot move on from the whole theroy of aliens being a part of our world. The ending spoilt the whole movie for me. Leave the aliens to The X-Files…their movie is coming up soon 😛

Okhay…Dirty Sexy Money is on…so I am gone 😀

Movie Review: Tashan

Ok..before i start…let me just clarify that my image header actually reads ‘Deccan Chargers’.

Coming to the movie, I did not have a good feeling about it from the beginning…since I saw it’s rushes. I wasn’t sure if I’d like it. But what the hell, I had the unlimited movies card and I could watch as many number of movies I wanted……never mind how crap they were.

The movie starts off with obviously the titles which had quite a resemblance to Kill Bill or Sin City…like the titles rolling and in the background you are shown actual scenes from the movie…as in a heads up of what we could expect.

The movie starts off with the story of Saif Ali Khan aka Jimmy….how he works in a call centre…how he loves sleeping around with women etc etc…meaning he leads a pretty ‘bindaas’ life. And one day, he gets bored with the regular dumb girls he usually goes out with and wants a ‘hindustani woman’…wearing a shalwar…really long ear rings and is a jeegtha jaagtha example of the ‘so called’ Indian traditions and cultures. And that is when he meets Kareena Kapoor aka Pooja Singh aka Gudiya. Pooja works for Anil Kapoor aka Bhaiyyaji aka the villian. Bhaiyyaji recruits Jimmy to teach him English to show off in front of his Foreign delegation due to arrive in a few months. After a couple of songs…Jimmy and Pooja fall in love and end up stealing 25 crores from BhaiyyaJi to repay the debts Pooja’s murdered father owed.

This is where Bachchan Pande aka BP aka Akshay Kumar comes in…arguably the best part of the film. He is hired by BhaiyyaJi to get back the money from Jimmy and Pooja. After a few more songs and fights, BP and Pooja realise that they were childhood sweethearts who were torn apart by destiny. They re-kindle their love for each other and vow to take revenge on BhaiyyaJI who is the person responsible behind Pooja’s father’s gruesome murder. The rest of the story is about how the three (Jimmy, Pooja and Bachchan Pande) do it.

So did I like the movie? I didn’t.

Usually, on a weekend, S and I watch 2 movies in a row. So the next movie we were supposed to watch was Leatherheads starring the irresistable George Clooney and Renee Zellweger. By the end of Tashan, our Bheja was deep fried so badly that we had to go home and instead of Leatherheads…watch Dirty Sexy Money. So, what didn’t I like about the movie. Here goes

• Anil Kapoor’s HINGLISH. Though it was amusing in the beginning, after 1 hr, it got really annoying. Thank God there were subtitles. I tried ignoring the subtitles for a while but could not understand a single word of what he was blabbering
• The action sequence at the end of the movie. I have heard so many people make fun of Rajnikanth’s movie because of his fights…like when he kicks…20 men go flying in the air and he comes out without a scratch…? Tashan is exactly like that. Just because it stars the big wigs of Bollywood..there are no comments. The prolonged fight scene at the end was terribly funny (in a bad way) and at times BORING!
• Kareena. I don’t know if I should include this aspect or not…but I didn’t like her. She looked really pretty in Jab We Met. But in Tashan, she looks like a dried Drumstick. So thin! And the costumes she wears in the song ”Challiyan’ are out right Ugly!

One of the reasons for me to go and watch this movie on friday itself was Raja Sen’s review on rediff. He gave it a three star…which was really surprising. I know he critically rips apart most of the movies….but this one? C’mon…definately not worth a three star.

I’d give it 2/5.

Movie Review: Om Shanti Om

 

I was super hyper before we walked into the screen to watch Om Shanti Om. We arrived at the Cinemas 45 mins before the movie began to make sure we got the best seats 😀 Screens allocated for international movies here are so small in size and the public so large that you need to push your way through.. 😉

So finally it started…and the best way to begin the movie could have only been with the song ‘om shanti om’ from Karz. It’s one of my fav and I was literally jumping in my seat..clapping and giggling and Rishi Kapoor….how handsome he was. I am sure I was the only one showing my excitement. What I found really delightful was Farah Khan and SRK fighting over Rishi’s jacket in the opening scene when the song om shanti om ends.

Om shanti Om is a pure masala bollywood flick…it cannot get better than this. S was unsure if OSO would do better than Saawariya but I was certain that it would since Farah knows really well what a typical bollywood movie should have…and she adds all the ingridients in the right amounts. OSO has romance, action, drama, song & dance, emotion and even horror 😀

The movie starts off with SRK a.k.a Om Prakash Makhija…a junior artist trying very hard to make it big in the film industry. He is supported by his very close friend Pappu Master played by Shreyas Talpade. The role of Om Prakash Makhija’s ‘filmy Maa’ is played by Kiron Kher. Om is deeply in love with Shanti Priya…the top actress of the 70’s and also ends up saving her life once which leads to their friendship. Shanti is unaware of Om’s love for her but Om on the other hand dreams of a future with her. Circumstances leave Om’s heart broken and the death of both Om and Shanti one night.

Om..in his next janam….is born to the 70’s super star Rajesh Kapoor. Om is now the toast of a whole nation. He is a spoilt actor who comes late for shoots, demands script changes etc etc. Eventually…his punar janam catches up with him and soon realises what happened and is now out to take revenge. He is determined the find the person who let the love of his life burn to death and left him to die in a hospital.

SRK is fantastic in the movie. He playes both the characters with ease…that of Om Makhija and Om Kapoor. He is fantastic and looks as if he’s shed 20 yrs of his age. His toned body and new hair style add to his look immensely. It must have been a huge task to make a 40+ year old actor look as young as Deepika Padukone ;). Deepika Padukone is alright. Farah made sure that her screen presence was kept to a minimum. Shreyas role is best in the first half. In the second half….he looks unnaturaly old and tired. Arjun Rampal playing the negative character is a revelation. I can safely say that this is without doubt the best role he’s played and he does it with élan.

But all  praise should go to Farah Khan. She makes the movie into a complete entertainer till the last shot. SRK pretending to be a tamil super star and the filmfare awards scene where we get to see Big B, Little B, Hrithik and a number of other super stars are the best parts of the movie which will leave you smiling even after you’ve left the screen. The scene in which AB and Akshay loose the best actor award to Om Kapoor and what follows later are hillarious. I was literally off my seat lauging.

The title song Om Shanti Om (Deewangi Deewangi) starring a number of actors is very well choreographed. Even when the finishing titles are rolling, you get to see the cast and crew along with their names..including spot boys and light boys…..which I thought was very noble of Farah. Rarely do they get any recognition for their efforts. It’s always the big shots who take all the glory.

I was not born in the 70’s…so essentially, I don’t know how it was and what it was. It was only through my parents that I came to appreciate the 70’s. I was not a great fan of the melodrama but my favourite were the songs which still make me stand up and dance like crazy.

As I wrote in my previous article, if you are one of the ‘artsy’ types…..this movie might not be the one for you. As SRK rightly said…’if you want to enjoy the movie, leave your logic at the door and enter the screen and you will love it’….till the last shot.

I give the movie 4/5. Go watch it!!!