This movie looks sooooooooo pretty. And perfect. And it kind of reminds you in a vague way of an actual good film. But, at the center of it, there’s nothing. It’s just wax, no heart.
Yesterday I did an in depth post on the whole behind the scenes process of making Guide and who all the personalities involved where and what their background was and so on and so on (not including the Murder and Sex Cult part of the Anand brothers’ story, because those hadn’t happened yet). I wanted to say aaaaaaaaaaaaaallllllllllllllllll of that before I got into discussing the actual film. Which is what I will do now, only I will be referring back to stuff from the other post, so read this first!
I already said in my no SPOILERS review that this is a great great rom-com! And you should definitely go see it if at all possible. Don’t just read my SPOILERS review! Only read it if you have already seen the film, or if you are one of those people who can still enjoy movies even after reading all the spoilers.
As I mentioned in my non-SPOILER review, my Grandpa loooooooooves submarine movies. Well, really all boat movies, but sub movies are his favorites. And because of that, I have seen a fair number of submarine movies myself. And I have to say, this is a very very good example of the sub movie genre. I would have liked it even better if we’d gotten to the underwater warfare part sooner.
Okay, maybe I was just in the right mood, or maybe it’s because romantic comedies come along so rarely these days, but I was really really impressed with this one! Old-fashioned idea, new fashioned execution, real characters with real conflicts, and a happy ending! And a central couple that was kind of cute and sparky. If only there were some really big budget song numbers, it would be the perfect movie. Seriously, if you like light rom-coms and have been waiting for a new one to come out that feels like Happy Bhaag Jayegi or Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania, go right over and watch this!
This is a classic submarine movie. A very specific genre, which also happens to be my grandfather’s favorite. I cannot WAIT for this film to be available on Netflix so I can send it to him! If only there had been even more underwater shenanigans and videos of little toy boats moving in bathtubs, and slightly less patriotic stupidity.
I don’t have that much to say about this movie, really, but I also thought I should put up a post before Naam Shabana comes out. And there is no news today, or anyone’s birthday, or any other possible topic for another post, so I thought I might as well put it up.
Week four! Woo! This is kind of working I think maybe? Although we’ll have to see how it does now that I have finished all the big name releases from last year. Oh wait! I still have Oppam!
I know a lot of us are reading this (and if you aren’t reading it, you should! It’s great). So I wanted to put up a couple of posts for us to discuss the details. And, if for some reason you don’t have the time or access to read it yourself, I thought I should try to put up some interesting details for you to learn. And since it is how I always think of things, I have tied them to Karan’s different films. (part 1 here)
I already put up a quick SPOILERS review late last night for everyone who’s already seen the film, now I want to put up a NO SPOILERS version for those of you who are debating whether or not you want to watch it.
I’m tired, it’s late, but I also really want to start talking about Raees with you guys! And I want to do it in a place where we won’t spoil it for those poor people who haven’t been able to see it yet. And thus, a mini-review! I still get to write and put up a better review sometime tomorrow, but this is just something to hold you over until then.
Okay, I’m going to try something. Before, I would get a big DVD order or have a slow week at work, and post a ton of blog posts from Kerala or Tamil Nadu or whatever all at once. And then hit a point of being busy at work and running out of DVDs or whatever and post no reviews at all for a while. But that’s not good, this start and stop. So, now that the big Hindi release season is about to end, I am going to try to stick to a schedule, Monday Malayalam, Tuesday Tamil or Telugu. And then Hindi or whatever other random thing I am watching (Zindagi Gulzar Hai?) the rest of the week. Continue reading
Is this my first Chiranjeevi movie? That can’t be right! And yet a search of my archives for “Chiranjeevi” comes up empty! Oh! Magadheera! He had a little cameo in that, right? Okay, so I’ve seen him in one movie.
I watched Happy! Because I wanted Bommarillu and I got confused. But this one was still cute. Is it possible there is a whole genre of “Genelia D’Suoza rom-coms”? Just because she has such a young perky face, she ends up in cute young perky love stories?
No big massive full summary coming for Befikre! Partly because Dear Zindagi exhausted me, partly because my sense is that my commentators aren’t as interested in a massive discussion of this movie, as they are of other movies. But mostly because I don’t think it is analyzable, to take it apart would be to destroy it.
I was very very nervous about how this movie would work, but it totally worked! I was afraid it was going to be a big Aditya Chopra movie taking the industry in another new direction where I didn’t want it to go. But turns out, it’s just a little Aditya Chopra movie, a nice harmless little thing that just happens to be made really really well.
Attakathi, Vinnaithaandi Varuvaaya, Premam, and now this, they all have very similar content, the kind of content I don’t really see in American film, or even in Hindi films that much. The struggles and pain of being in love, and not being of an age for it. It isn’t something American movies deal with, maybe because it isn’t an issue in the same way in America? At least, not any more.
First, just like I did for ADHM, I put up a SPOILER review for DZ first so people who have seen the movie have a place to discuss it. So please, no spoilers in the comments here! And no specific questions like “what did you think it meant when the aliens landed and it turned into a gritty post-apocalyptic drama?” here either. This is the place for people who haven’t yet seen the movie to hang out and learn about it. Everyone else, go hang out here.
I saw Shivaay tonight! Because it was the practical thing to do based on theater schedules, even though everyone else is seeing ADHM. I’m glad I saw it, not necessarily glad I saw it before ADHM.
Fitoor is certainly the biggest flop of 2016 for the Hindi industry, if not of all time, and may have actually brought about the downfall of an entire studio. So it seems insulting to compare another film to it, but I didn’t actually mean it as an insult. Well, not an insult to Mirzya. I always mean to insult Fitoor, because that is a terrible terrible movie.
Okay, the first half felt like it had a very clear and defined message about working hard and pursuing excellence for its own sake, with no hope of reward. And then the second half just felt all meh and mushy. And it’s when the romance was suddenly shoved in with seemingly little connection to the rest of the film. (first half summary here)
I saw MS Dhoni: the Untold Story! My first opening night movie since Akira! It was so nice to be back in a crowded theater with whistles and crying kids and all the other good things.
It’s still Mahesh Bhatt’s birthday! I celebrated by finally watching Arth. Well, most of Arth, I think I may have ended up with a slightly edited version.
Boy, it’s been awhile since we had a nice glitzy release, right? With lots of pretty clothes and songs and a wedding somewhere in there? Well, if that’s what you’ve been waiting for, here it is!
I liked Mohenjo Daro better than Rustom! Surprise! I went in all set to be bored, since Rustom got the better reviews and the better box office, and then I ended up really like Mohenjo Daro! Much better than Rustom, which felt kind of old hat once you removed the period clothes and titillating connection to “real life”.
dontcallitbollywood 