THE BOOK OF LAUGHTER AND FORGETTING

AUTHOR : MILAN KUNDERA

ORIGINAL LANGUAGE : CZECH

TRANSLATOR : AARON ASHER (translated from French)

This book got me back into the habit of reading books. It is a great experience in itself.

I was a voracious reader till 2010. Thanks to my friends and other sources like internet which have made me acquaint with some great books and kept me going. They were insightful and my personality was build by them. 

This book was suggested to me by my good friend Raghuveer, who reads books more than most people I know. He just handed over it and said just read any of the pages. I read a page in the middle and was taken aback by the intrigue. Though, I took his copy, I knew my weakness was that I will not be able to complete unless I spend my hard earned money, purchasing it. So I purchased it, then began to read.

The author was knew and so was the backdrop of the book. The book is a 1970's novel. It has a political backdrop and has some historical aspects involved too. Now, this is a Czech novel and I as an Indian would be least familiar with those happenings, but it's not the politics or history that made a connect with me. What I like most was that, the theme, the undercurrent of each narrative was love making. This is universal, these are essentially love stories which have lot many details embedded. These are surely above history and politics and are about the basic human needs and emotions. 

Love making is presented in the most humorous as well intriguing way. From fornication to foreplay it makes us visualise all the physicality in a rib tickling manner rather than emotional one. Yet, this is not a comedy either, and that's the speciality. With subtle differences it makes a compelling concoction of love, emotion, drama and comedy. Indeed, the undertone is philosophy and there are wonderful insights of philosophy too

The style I felt was Kafkaic (referring Franz Kafka). Perhaps, I may be wrong but the Kafka readers shall understand what I mean here. It's random. erratic and yet there are threads that seem to have been knitted well to make a good fabric.

From learning the word "Litost" to knowing the Renaissance poets like "Petrarch", "Goethe" and a few more, this is a book that if well explored, gives immense satisfaction of knowing new things. I loved it all the way through

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this and I must say, I would getting back to this more often, you can pick up any page to start with and go on, the fun is enormous in this.

2 of my favourite quotes from this book before I close.

"The struggle of man against power is the struggle of memory against forgetting"

"Joking is a barrier between man and the world. Joking is the enemy of love and poetry." 

Rating is a mere formality to this masterpiece. From me, it gets a 5/5.

RIO 2 (2014) - ENGLISH

A good animation is made weak by cliched writing.

Lot of work and thought and detailing goes into an animated film. But if the writing is weak it cannot be pulled off easily. RIO 2 precisely suffers from that. The scenes are too cliched for my comfort and the plot is very age-old. The bird formations, their beautiful feats have been all been seen in RIO and there is nothing new to offer on that front too in RIO 2. I felt like the basic format of the earlier film RIO was taken and just few modifications were done in writing. So it has that been there, seen that feel that does not add up any value.

The voice over is good and it seems like Jesse Eisenberg did make effort to feel like the bird Blu. Although the chemistry between the two birds, Blu and Jewel does not show up adequately, individually voice over of each was good. It's Anne Hathway for the female protagonist, Jewel.

The other aspects were fine, considering this is a commercial animated film. A word about music, which was good in RIO, comes weak and though are many songs, not even one was memorable, as I left the theater. So the music did not make any impression either. 

If people like average stuff or have not seen RIO, perhaps will like it as they may find some new things here. For me, I did not like it and felt like a big bore. An average rating of 2/5 for this. It's not bad, it's purely mediocre.

COUNTENANCE

Silence mulls in the mind

Reminiscing memories of us

Those were one of a kind

And were special thus

For long now, I have kept away

Avoiding your countenance

The visage I loved to behold

That was filled with nonchalance

Beauty was a lesser term to describe

But in words, I tried to ascribe

Your countenance looked without any care

From then on, rending was too subtle to bear

Now, I do not want to sit and pray

So towards you, I began to walk

To be there or walk away

Is your choice, I hope though that you do talk

RACE GURRAM (2014) - TELUGU

I do not understand few things in films and this film had many of my misunderstandings.

Why an irrelevant song comes in between two songs? Why there will be comedy track in climax? Why the sub plots take precedence over main plot? Why a female lead is confined just to songs or has little space in the film? There are so many questions that will be in my mind and most times the answer is simple "It's a Telugu Commercial Film". So we have to expect the unexpected, logic has very little or rather no space. The script is written only for the hero and comedy is forcibly inserted. The audience goes to the movies for entertainment and if they are given some time pass by comedy or songs, they are more than happy. 

I am an absolute misfit to rate commercial telugu movies because for me they are absolutely non-sensical and for the common telugu audience they are more than movies, they debate, talk over, use the same jokes and dialogues in real life and even follow the heroes. 

So, I would rather refrain from reviewing this. I can simply say, I got laughter only in last 20 minutes when Brahmanandam came as Kill Bill Pandey and rest of the film was forgettable for me. 

Without wasting any further words, I am going with 1/5 (purely personal rating) and that 1 is for Kill Bill Pandey.

रहेंगे महफूज़ खयालों में तेरी

खफा हो आप या नाराज़ हो, इस ज़ुल्म से मेरी 

ज़ुल्म भी प्यारी लगती है चाह में तेरी 

मरेंगे हम ज़रूर आज नहीं तो कल

जब तक जियेंगे, रहेंगे महफूज़ खयालों में तेरी 

इन्साफ करना

गुस्ताखी इस दिल कि माफ़ करना 
दाग है कुछ मेरी, तो साफ़ करना 
खारिज  करने से पेहले गुज़ारिश है 
मेरी मोहब्बत का ज़रा इन्साफ करना 

DELICATESSEN (1991) - FRENCH

Weirdly delicious film, I cannot define this in a better way. 

Filled with idiosyncratic characters and eccentric scenes, this film is all about these characters above all else. 

In a building where a butcher heads a group of people and invites tenants on his terms and conditions, he acts with a weird sense. The building is dilapidated, the time frame is not mentioned and is left for ambiguity, the actions of characters are mostly out of place and hard to find reason. Yet, all of this makes an interesting a fun film. 

The fun is derived by the color toning of the film which is partially sepia. Also, the fun lies in the camera work by Darius Khondji. The whole setup and production design is done peculiarly to make us curious. From the first frame, of the film I was kept curious till the end as to what is happening on screen and where will it lead. For sure, the screenplay is gripping and it proves that however a story may be but if told interestingly, it can be great fun to watch.

The editing is another department where the film knocks out a punch. It is meticulous and all the way meant to be interesting I believe that in a film if there is never a dull moment then the credit should go to the editing, and rightly so I do for this film. 

The actors are not known to me considering that this is french film. Yet, all of them are superb in their roles. From a tenant, to the head the looks they give, the expressions they showcase,. the tone of voice they speak in, are all instigating curiosity on the lines of fun and humor.  

Jean Pierre Jeunet and Marc Caro  have given us a treat of black comedy and sarcasm embedded with fun and frolic of unpredictable characters. These directors have to be commended for this work which is indeed one of the fine cult movies of 1990's. 

French Cinema in itself is years ahead of contemporary cinema in other parts of world and this film just proves that. A 4/5 for a delicious film.

हम दिखाएँगे

डरते हो आप हमसे, मिलने या बातें करने दिल खोने के वास्ते 
एक बार तो दिल से जान लो हमें, हम दिखाएँगे आपको सही रास्ते 

इतनी सी ज़िक्र

फ़िक्र नहीं मुझे अपनी मौत का, बस तुम्हारी ज़िन्दगी का फ़िक्र है 
रहे या न रहे साथ हम, खुशियाँ रहे तुम्हारे साथ बस इतनी सी ज़िक्र है

यु होता तो कैसा होता

सोचो अगर यु होता तो कैसा होता 

तारों पे अपना घर होता 

चाँद अपना छत, अम्बर पे नगर होता 

बादलों का ताज और तितलियों का राज होता 

कल कुछ भी नहीं सब कुछ आज होता 

बच्चों के खयालों से बना जहाँ  होता 

उनके सरगम से सजा हर साज़ होता 

मोतियों से बना जहाज़ होता 

किताब पन्नों से नहीं, हीरों से बुना होता 

झील पे नाव कि जगह, जुगनुओं का मकान होता 

रंगीन नज़ारों से ज़िन्दगी जमा होता 

सोचो अगर यु होता तो कैसा होता  

हमारे सिलसिले

अंजान थे आप, जब तक मिले नहीं 
मिले तो याद आये हमारे सिलसिले कई 
उन जनम के जब हमारी प्यार के गीत बनते थे 
अब मिले तो चाह जगी, कि इस जनम में भी न रुके ये सिलसिले कही 

LAKSHMI (2014) - HINDI

The plight of prostitutes and child sex workers has been strongly depicted. 

Before I begin reviewing I would like to convey my feelings towards women. I respect and adore women. It's tough and painful to be women. Women bleed more in their lives. A girl bleeds when she matures into a woman, she bleeds when she has her first sexual intercourse, and she gives her blood and mass while becoming a mother. Additionally, she has to undergo a certain pain almost every month until her menopause. So, as such the anatomy of women is intricate and indeed it takes a lot of pain to bear the bleeding. In some cases, it can be a matter of life and death too. So, most women have multiple lives embedded in a lifetime. If we as humans subject a woman to any further pain then it is simply inhuman. In the due course of the film, a girl is subjected to a lot of pain, and thus the tagline "Are We Being Human" is rightly justified.

I am completely against prostitution, yet if it has to be an ailment in the society then better legalize it. I am all for the legalization of prostitution. Coz, only then women can claim the right stake and they need not have to live a life in disguise or fear. If they bargain a petty amount with their customer(animal) as of now, then post-legalization they can demand the same and if that animal fails to pay, they can take some action. Firstly, they can live a legal life of dignity which is so much abhorred by the hypocritical society of India. So if sex workers or prostitutes have to be even considered as equal humans, their job must be legalized. This will keep the mafia and other dark forces out of this and I hope so that gradually forcing women into this kind of profession shall mitigate. Only after legalization, I believe they can claim their rights as girls and need not be put behind the bars for no fault of theirs. 

Okay, now coming to the review, this is a film that is about child trafficking. The title is aptly put as Lakshmi. It indicates the irony of our society where when a girl is born, it is said, "Ghar mein Lakshmi aayi hai" (Lakshmi! the goddess of wealth has come home) and as the girl grows, she is sold by parents for money, to acquire wealth. Thus, the title and the name of the protagonist is rightly put and it is wonderful of Nagesh Kukunoor to have such thoughts and present them in a provocative way. 

Acting by each and everyone is fine. The casting of Monali Thakur as Lakshmi is bang on. I am now a fan of this girl, who took the most challenging role in the recent times and played it with sensibility. Nagesh himself played as the villain. He was ruthless and terrific. Kudos to a director who can play a brutal negative role in his own film. The youth of a girl was raped and ravaged, there are moments that have haunted me and are lingering still in my mind.

The music was good. I loved two songs "Sun Ri Baavli" and "Sun Suguna Re". They will be on my playlist for a long time. The editing was precise, cutting out the unnecessary elements, and yet sticking to the needed things, which are a need to be shown, only then will evocative emotions come out from the viewers. When we say "this should not be shown" it essentially means that the particular thing has made an impression on the mind, you make like it or not is subject to the choice of conscience.

There are movies made on this subject long back but I cannot recall one in last 10-15 years. This one is not for the weak hearted and it takes a lot of guts to see it in the first place. The makers and actors need a huge applause for presenting it. Great work team.

Personally, I like the below lines on prostitution. 

Written by great "Sahir Ludhianvi" for the song "Jinhe Naaz Hai Hind Par" in the film "Pyaasa" in 1957.

"yahaan peer bhi aa chuke hai jawaan bhi

tan-o-mand bete bhi abba miyaa bhi

yeh biwi bhi hai, behan bhi hai maa bhi

jinhe naaz hai hind par woh kahaan hai"

My translation of those lines : 

The aged and the young have come here

The sons and the fathers too have come

These girls are wives, sisters, and mothers too

Those who are proud of the nation, where are they?

A 4/5 for the film. It's not flawless, and I will not be seeing it again, I wept badly after seeing this, and the scenes are still haunting. Perhaps, I will see only if it is a must. Yet, it is a must-see film, for those who are concerned about a girl child.

Note: This is a personal comment on the issue and not just a review. All opinions here are personal.

वफ़ा से जंग ज़ारी

ज़िन्दगी छूटी, होगयी मौत कि तय्यारी 
राज़दारी जो चली हमारी यारी 
खालिया मुझे वो बिमारी 
दिया बेज़ारी, किया बाज़ारी, छोड़ा बिखारी 
रंगीन थे अखियाँ, अब है वो बेआँसू सूखे पिचकारी 
खुददारी कहा, हम बमे बने बड़े नाकारी 
कफ़न में होगा साथ, यादों कि अलमारी 
होगी वहा पर भी वफ़ा से जंग ज़ारी

बहुत बाकी है

साज़ ए दिल सजती है आज भी तेरे लिए 
हर धड़कन कि ताल बजती है तेरे लिए 
केहना अभी बहुत बाकी है तुमसे 
अभी बात यही पर रहने देता हूँ 

प्यार में भूखा

आँखों के नीचे काले धब्बे, चेहरा रूखा रूखा 
तन पे अजीब छींटे, बदन रूखा रूखा 
हाल बदतमीज़ है, पर ये हाल है मेरा 
प्यार में मरने का ख्वाब देखा था 
शायद मरजाउंगा प्यार में भूखा

ख़तम होगी नहीं

रुक जाए ये ज़मीन, गिर जाए आसमान,
प्यार मेरी कम होगी नहीं 
रुक जाए धड़कन मेरी, मिट जाए हम भी 
प्यार मेरी कम होगी नहीं 
कहते गए ऐसे ही हैम, तो शायद 
कहानी मेरी ख़तम होगी नहीं

हम है मजबूर

ख़याल आपके ही आते है, जान ए हुज़ूर 
किसी और को जानता भी नहीं, आप जो है इतना मशूर 
फिर भी आप रहते है, हमेशा हमसे दूर 
जाने अंजाने में किया, तो माफ़ करना मेरा कसूर 
कितना भी नफरत करो, एक बात कहना चाहूंगा ज़रूर 
आपकी हर अदा और बढ़ाती है आपकी नूर 
इसलिए आपको चाहने के लिए हम है मजबूर

पल में ज़िन्दगी

फुर्सत नहीं तुझे बाते सुन ने कि,
फिर भी ये बात कहना चाहता हूँ 
एक पल हमारे साथ बिता दो 
उस पल में ज़िन्दगी बिताना चाहता हूँ

बिछड़ कर तुम्हारा साथ

संग चला तूम्हारा, रास्ता खोगया बिछड़ कर तुम्हारा साथ 
कुछ माँगता हूँ खुदा से, तो बस तुम्हारा हाथ 
एक बार मेरा हाथ थाम लो, गुज़ार दूंगा ज़िन्दगी ख़ुशी में 
वरना तन्हाई में तड़प तड़प कर मरजायेंगे, बिछड़ कर तुम्हारा साथ  

तुमपे कुर्बान

अंजान था मैं प्यार के रास्तों से 
तुमने दिखाकर, चलना सिखाया 
सपनों मैं भी कभी सोचा न था 
ऐसी मनिल तुमने दिखाया 
साथ देकर अपनी, किया मुझपे एहसान 
भूल किये सफ़र में, तो माफ़ करना 
आखिर हम भी है इन्सान 
तेरी माफ़ करने कि अदा पे होगया तुमपे कुर्बान 

एक शक

वक़्त को मुजरिम मानता हूँ, इतना दूर जो किया तुमसे 
फिर भी एक शक है, होगया होगा ऐसे ही कोई कसूर हमसे 

एहसानमंद हूँ

मशूर बनाया तुमने मुझे, मेरा काम औरों को दिखाकर 
एहसानमंद हूँ तुम्हारा, मरजाउंगा तुम्हे भी मशूर बनाकर

उलझन में

साँसे होगयी तेरी धड़कन में शामिल 
हम आगये आपकी निगाहों कि बंधन में 
तरस खा कर, ज़रा छोड़ दो हमें 
हम नहीं आना चाहते प्यार कि उलझन में 

QUEEN (2014) - HINDI

This film deserves the title QUEEN and most girls indeed are Queens in their own right. Girls. go watch this to feel liberated and Boys, please see to learn how to be and behave.

A simplistic story, narrated exceptionally well and executed with a finesse. It's real and can be easily related to, by many boys and girls. Girls must go and see it for what they can be despite the odds and hiccups in their lives. Boys must go and see to learn a few things of how to behave, respect and treat a girl. Some boys and even their parents want the new girl coming into their family, to be confined to the domestic responsibilities. This is precisely what the film takes on and in a very fun and light hearted way. 

Some feminists and women, have declared some men as having a MCP (Male Chauvinistic Pig) mentality. MCP's are men who believe it's a man's world and only men who take the right decisions. Some are even worse, few men, who under the guise of love, impose restrictions on their fiance or wife. As an example I can quote "Darling, you look beautiful in Saree, then why wear jeans" The girl responds "Anything for you darling". Jeans goes, saree comes in and that's how few boys intrude into freedom and start taking it off from the girl. This film stabs such boys right in their face.

Also, irrespective of caste, creed, nationality,race and even gender, a human being can live with his or her own ambitions, with free will and freedom, all can mutually exists and indeed help each other too. This is  another under current theme in the film. Self learning is better than being taught by someone else is also evident in the film.

So this is essentially a film that has multiple themes and comes off colorfully. It does not preach and silently does the job. I have not yet spoke about the protagonist Rani who is played superbly by Kangana Ranaut. Never did I think, that she can pull off a character with such ease and panache. There is a certain nonchalance in her restrain. She was never for a moment out of place or out of character. I was seeing a village girl Rani evolve into a matured girl, who learnt a lot about the world. Kangana shall win accolades and awards for her performance here. The next best was Lisa Haydon who played a sumptuous Vijayalakshmi.

All others have played their roles exceptionally too. Kudos to the director Vikas Bahl for extracting such fine performances.

There are many wonderful moments in the film. There is a "Sweater moment", a "Golgappa moment" and even a "Enraan Hashmi moment". Those who have seen the film will understand what the moments and those who have not, I request them to go see the film and explore these moments. 

Music complemented the film in a fine way. Amit Trivedi has done a fine job once again. The editing is simply knockout, there is rarely a dull moment in the whole film and editing deserves some praise and awards too. The cinematography is top notch. With production qualities being uncompromising, the production design was a treat to the eyes.

All this was done with a script that is very fluid and flows with a serene pace. The writers deserve a lot of praise for putting the script well. Surprisingly, Kangana has done some additional dialogue too and she did that well.

A 4/5 for a film that is a must watch for girls and for boys. It's youthful and extremely entertaining.

THE SOUND OF MUSIC (1965) - ENGLISH

Music is certainly divine. It brings order in chaos and peace in life.

Music is what Maria brings into lives of the children of Georg Von Trapp. They in turn become loving, sincere and disciplined kids.

This film is certainly about music, the impact of music and how music can be used as a tool of inspiration to children. From the song "How do you solve a problem like Maria?" to the inspirational "Do Re Mi" to the title song "The Sound of Music" and the other wonderful song "My Favorite Things", these are exceptional songs that are tailor-made to the script and carry the narrative forward. Even the final song "So Long" is done wonderfully by everyone. Credit to the composers Richard Rogers and his team for this. Also, the director Robert Wise who had a vision and let the songs flow into the narrative fluidly and let the songs speak for the movie, is a wonderful thing.

this is certainly one of the great musicals that will be there for as long as movies exist. The well placed nuances, the theme, the characterization blended with the glorious style and the grandeur set in the alps. It makes this a great movie. Yet, I have only one thing against this and it's the plot. The plot is predictable and thus making me lose fun in between the film itself. The climax is pretty simplistic and comes in haste.
barring these, the rest is mellifluous and poetic.

No wonder why many musicians have loved this film. Even I love this, wish it was more unpredictable.
A 4/5 for this.

DEDH ISHQIYA (2014) - URDU

Thankfully, the year began on a promising note for the Hindi Film Industry. Thanks to Dedh Ishqiya for that.

 This is a film that you will like to watch with your boyfriend or girlfriend (whichever is applicable) or spouse. Coz, there are some moments which will linger in head, long after you have seen this film. They may spice up some moments in your romance.

This film has subtitles. Thanks to the language used which is more Urdu than Hindi. I believe that since "Umrao Jaan" this is the first good attempt. 

The film works for the acting. Naseeruddin Shah is effortless. Arshad Warsi is the hyperactive Babban whose wit is hilarious and the spontaneity stupendous. Also they are ably supported by Huma Qureshi and Vijay Raaz and host of others. But above all others I give in to Madhuri Dixit as Begum Para. 

I love Madhuri Dixit and her dance. Thankfully, she dances and just those 5 minutes of her moves are divine. She has a divine grace in dancing and is surely one of the best dancers for screen. Thanks Madhuri for dancing superbly after a hiatus. 

The camera work is superb and even the editing is good. At least there is no nonsense. Dialogues by Vishal Bharadwaj and his team are exemplary. In fact the best I have heard in a Bollywood film in long time. 

Direction till the climax was wonderful and it fell flat in the climax scene. Apart from that, I have no big qualms from this. 

I am going with 3/5 for a good movie. It may not work for everyone but love and desire have always worked for me.

SHAADI KE SIDE EFFECTS (2014) - HINDI

Wonderful performances and some crackling dialogues, made this worth a watch.

Marriage is a beautiful alliance if the couple understand each other. It will be a nightmare, if they fail to do so. But more or less, it's an alliance filled of compromises and lies at times. Lies can be said to keep the spouse happy too. But at what cost, is a terrible question. The consequences are mostly dreadful at times even practically. This movie is about an alliance of Love and Lies. 

Farhan Akhtar is man with tons of talent and his acting talent and his coming come use in a great deal in this film. Vidya Balan has been one of the finest actress in recent years and she plays her role as a wife and mother wonderfully. Between the two, their chemistry is great, and they seem to slide well into their roles. 

Aa script about a typical after marriage life, having baby, and trying to run away from responsibilities, learning from mistakes and forgiving each other would have been nonsensical if it did not have some great dialogues, which should make the stereotypes as fun but not as caricatures. that's what precisely happened in this well written script by Saket Chaudhary. 

From being together and have fun in early years of marriage, to changing anatomy through pregnancy, while the man becomes more responsible towards the family, and even earns more for them. This is all a cliched tale that every family goes through. The parent teacher meetings, the birthday parties of the kid's friends, they are all part and parcel of life. Now, those are made interesting by some good writing and fine acting. 

Together, the team has done a wonderful job in taking the script to a respectable level. The execution through cinematography is wonderful too. Though, editing seems to have disappointed in second half by dragging on some very dramatic moments, which would have been better chopped off. 

To Farhan and Vidya alone, this film is worth. Also there are wonderful performances by others including Vir Das and Ram Kapoor among many others.

A 3/5 would be apt in a film that's hilarious right through the first half, and a kind of drama in the second half. Yet, its fun all through. 

HIGHWAY (2014) - HINDI

I love A R Rahman. He is the man behind much of this film. The sound, score, music are just wonderful.

I am not a big fan of the director Imtiaz Ali. I disliked his "Jab We Met" and I liked "Rockstar" only for Rahman's music and Ranbir's acting. In "Highway" too though Rahman speaks so much with his music but Imtiaz under utilized the songs than their full potential. Yet, I liked the film and indeed is a much better film than Imtiaz's earlier ones. In first half there are only 2 tracks and the remaining tracks come in the second half. This created a kind of imbalance and I wish they could have been spanned out well.

Soulful songs like "Patakha Guddi" and "Maahi Ve" got me hooked to the music of the film and made me wait or this. It's very rare that I see a Rahman's film in theatres coz I am very apprehensive how his music will be used. Barring, Roja, Lagaan, Rang De Basanti, Bombay, Taal and a few others, his music was used with incongruous visuals and that makes me feel sad for the genius of Rahman. In Highway, the light lilting lullaby of "Sooha Saha" was well used and the extremely philosophical "Heera" was wasted.

Apart from music, the second best thing was cinematography. Wow, was the expression for the way few locales were shot. The water flow, the clouds on mountains, the valleys, the snow capped himalayas. It was serene and beautiful. It was like a cheap vacation we had. A wonderful road trip was made with camera that spanned few states. 

Now, what about plot and story, there is hardly trace of a strong story or a big plot. Yet, there are characters, unreal Veera played by Alia Bhatt and more unreal Mahabir played by Randeep Hooda. Alia does give a wonderful performance that is nuanced well and indeed at times she goes full throttle. Like in a break dancing scene. Damn, that was too good. While, Randeep as Mahabir gave a poised performance with a great Haryana accent. Imtiaz for sure has extracted great performances from their actors. 

The pace is too slow and hardly something happens finally. Yet, it's an endearing story that spits on the hypocrisy of the society in a very subtle way. There a few philosophical moments too which are far off but well toned. 

A 4/5 for this and I am sure many would not like it as they would be expecting some story, some plot and something to happen. But, as nothing much happened, I gave a wow to this. This is more like poetry than a novel. And I love poetry so, thus my love for this. 

ALL ABOUT EVE (1950) - ENGLISH

A fine film, but fell short in my expectations.

I read considerably well about this film, before watching it. Also, this film had some similarities to another film "Sunset Boulevard" which was released in the same year. While the latter was terrific in writing and wonderful in acting. This film, All About Eve is different in terms of writing and involves 4 principal women who have their friendships, their careers at stake.

Eve Harrington played by Anne Baxter seems to be an extremely determined woman who goes to any length to get what she wants. From creating a false story to coldly intimidating her friend for a role in play, she is cold blooded and yet adorable. Anna Baxter played the role superbly and credit goes to the writing and her lines, more than half her job was done by the good writing itself.

The next most important character, I saw was of Margo Channing played superbly by Bette Davis. She is generous and yet very possessive and has a humane nature under the embellishments of fame. She is indeed the true gem of the film and takes the script and writing to a high by her portrayal of the character. "Tonight I forgive all, I forgive Eve" can't be said in much more cold way than how Bette said. Great acting by a superb actress. 

Even the other women, like Celeste Holm who played Karen Richards or the final character that is "Phoebe" played by Barabara Bates or even Birdie played by Thelma Ritter are well written and played well. This is essentially a film about women more than men.

The production design is superb and the music adds to the drama. I wish, the editing could have been better and the dialogues were crisp. Especially the long climax between Karen and Eve could have been cut short. Also, many moments would have been done away with reducing the time and also easing out the pace. Perhaps, the director Joseph Mankiewicz had been persistent to give detailing to every scene and thus made it the way it stand today. It's fine though but I wish it could have been greater than being just good, as per me.

A 3/5 for this, I liked it nevertheless, yet did not fall in love with it. I loved "Sunset Boulevard" though. I expected this film to be better and maybe that is the flaw, it's just good by all means. 

THE LEGO MOVIE (2014) - ENGLISH

A fun film that made me a kid. Of course, I am already a proud kid.

Never since TOY STORY 3, I had so much fun in an animated film. Also, this film made me nostalgic as I used play with Lego toys when I was a kid. So there are some personal things that are attached with this film, and indeed they drove me to the film more than the trailer of the film itself.

The film is a simple, the premise that an ordinary guy can become a hero, only if he believes in himself is well presented. It's not a film that has epic conflict or great story. But it's charm lies in the writing, the wit that is inevitably laughable. Most were laughing out loud in the theater, from my 4 year nephew to a 70 year grand uncle. 

The animation is surely top notch, we have to consider that making a 3D film with real toys is really challenging, and that's where the animation industry in Hollywood must be praised for. Their quality of animation just keeps getting higher and higher and it's so wonderful for the cinema world over. 

The music plays a vital role is conveying that indeed "everything is awesome". Also, the well choreographed events and the detailing of the animation is great. It's all colorful and pleasing to the eyes and the 3D technology gets due justification in a few scenes too. 

I am going with 4/5 and would love to catch it again at the theaters with more kids around, I loved it and hopefully if you ever see it, the kid in you is revealed or you are helped a great deal by your own kids.