Downfall (2004) - War Film

It is indeed very tough to describe Adolf Hitler, should he be called one of the most hated man who ever lived on earth? And after reading and watching so many documentaries / movies on his life – I came across this one and it turns out to be one hell of a movie based on the “last ten days of his life as the Dictator”. Almost 150 minutes run time but never for a moment I felt that it was that long, simply superb casting, initially I thought I am going to laugh on the way he gets angry whenever something goes wrong but the way “Bruno Ganz” plays Hitler its totally amazing, terrific job, what awesome body language, expressions, dialogue delivery etc. So far, this is one of the closest account and a superb insight on the man and his last days, which actually shows how exactly it happened. You can call it predictable right from the very start since we all know by heart – how and what is going to happen next but it’s totally convincing to see how they made it. The movie is made on a book which was written on the memoirs of one of Hitler’s secretaries Traudl Junge (Superbly done by beautiful Alexandra Maria Lara). Obviously it will not be right to say that one can sympathize with Hitler during his last days, what happens to him in the end is actually painful but I believe he deserved much worse, he saves himself by deciding to never get caught dead or alive, and how his loyal team follows his orders is amazing to see. If the history has to be believed – he killed more than 6 million Jews and 50 million of his own men died in the war. Yet! What is unbelievable to read or see in a movie of this kind is that he had so many loyal followers who indeed stick with him till the very end, knowing what fate awaits them – now that’s something we don’t see or read every day, nobody dared tell him that what he is doing is wrong. The movie has so much going on in those 150 minutes, people are dying, Germans running out of ammunition / men, country in ruins, it’s heartening to see kids (German) blowing the Russian tanks and getting awarded for the same, there is a scene where Hitler actually gives awards an “Iron Cross” to a very young boy and says “I wish my Generals were as brave as you are”. One moment you see a furious Hitler delivering choicest of abuses on his Generals and next you see him smiling over kids singing in the bunker. It’s a must watch for those who love biographical stuff, although this can’t be called one as it shows only the last ten days but I guess they were one of the most researched part of History. My ratings – a definite 4/5 with two thumbs up and a very high recommendation to all. Not to be missed.

Oasis (2002) - Romance

One of the best love stories I ever saw, superb cast, amazing acting, fantastic premise and what awesome handling. As I started the movie today afternoon – wifey reacted “Another Korean movie, not again”, and as the movie progressed – we totally got engrossed and there was no looking back, it kept reminding us somehow as we had seen it earlier or something similar – dunno wasn’t too sure. It’s an amazing story of a mildly mentally disabled guy (who I believe was way too good than us normal people), who was just released from jail for a hit and run case, he straight goes to meet his own family and then goes to check on the family of the guy who he killed in the accident. He ends up falling for the daughter of the victim who herself is suffering from Cerebral Palsy. It was totally outstanding to see two disabled people helping each other the way they do who were discarded by their own families and society in general. Totally unbelievable stuff. What all little things they do with each other is heart wrenching and had so many lump in the throat moments. Trust me it has its own little happy moments too – I would not like to disclose too much but if you like serious movies with a great message – this is going to be one of the best. I will definitely rate it a great 4/5 for sure, I took one point away for a little over the top handling being a Korean movie, they do tend to go over board when it comes to nudity, action, emotion and almost all the things. Still this is something which shouldn’t be missed by anyone. A must watch for those who like serious movies.

The Great Gatsby (2013) - Drama

Finally I get to see a movie that I waited but unfortunately almost forgot about it once it was out of theater – don’t even remember why and how I missed it on big screen – anyways! I expected it to be a great lesson in history about some millionaire and it turns out to be a superb drama with fantastic cast, three of my favorite actors in one movie including Leonardo DiCaprio as “The Great Gatsby” – simply superb, Toby Maguire (My favorite Spiderman) as his neighbor and Carrey Mullignan as Toby’s cousin and Gatsby's love interest. One of the reasons for a lot of Indians was Amitabh Bachchan’s presence in the movie which lasts about one a half minute – I saw that scene twice J. It was better than my expectations for sure as story is nothing outstanding but the way its told and shot is truly awesome. Baz Luhrmann is anyways famous for lavish movies and I totally loved two of his earlier movies “Moulin Rouge” and “Australia”. But this one surely beats them all on a lot of departments like Cinematography for one, Thrill for two and last but not the least – Drama associated with it. LDC is again at his very best as the mysterious business magnate Jay Gatsby who holds extravagant parties (You’ve got to see it to believe it types) with superb support by Toby (a world war vet who writes his story) and an excellent roller coaster emotional ride by Carey (She fits the character). Who is Gatsby? A German spy? A prince? Or an Assassin? And how their life changes when the secret is revealed is totally awesome watch. It even is a visual delight to see the NYC of those days as captured excellently in the movie, his parties, car, body language and the heartbreaking ending, all worth the money and time. I will definitely give it a damn good 3/5 with two thumbs up, it’s a must watch for all cinema lovers, not to be missed at any cost.

Chennai Express (2013) - Action / Comedy

The biggest dilemma for us was when “Chennai Express” was declared by Rohit Shetty as his next with Shah Rukh Khan in lead – two reasons – First - we cannot for sure miss a Rohit Shetty movie as the whole family is a big fan of that genre and the man himself, Second – Almost all of us are SRK haters J. Still – we gave it a try today and VOILA! It turns out to be a laugh riot right from the word Go! I couldn’t believe my eyes to see SRK’s desperation – what he does onscreen I guess he did something like this about 10 odd years ago in a bollywood movie – he almost left no stone unturned to make this one of his best comic movies in a long long time. I don’t know what some people were complaining about Deepika’s south Indian accent – we found it simply superb, and it wasn’t that she did it only for a couple of scenes – right upto the last moment she was in the same mode and that’s something commendable, with this movie and YJHD – she has actually proved that she can pick up any character with ease and deliver. Although that typical Rohit Shetty touch was missing – more credit to SRK – I am sure he must have given a lot of inputs to him to make it the way it is still I am not complaining as it was a hilarious joy ride for us and I am sure my kiddo too is going to love it big time – we saw it today in her absence. One thing I should mention that even after making a Comedy / Action movie – the guy knows how much emotion to put and exactly at what point – it works big time as that adds a little more meaning to the narrative and scenes. Even the songs are aptly placed and work in favor of the movie more than a hindrance. Another problem which some people had with so much use of Tamil in the movie – my goodness – I was like totally shocked – C’mon man! It wasn’t that hard to decode what they were saying as it was all done for the comedy and was way too easy to understand what they meant and what SRK understood moreover Deepika worked like a perfect translator throughout the movie – still people complained. Deepika was simpy superb in those Sarees and with south Indian make up. Barring one great shot of Doodhsagar – movie hardly had any great cinematography or camera work – even the action wasn’t that outstanding as I was expecting but just about ok types. My ratings – a definite 3/5 with two thumbs up, it’s a great time pass if nothing else and I will certainly check it out a couple of times more for SRK’s outstanding energy and those awesome references from his previous movies.

Sixteen (2013) - Drama / Thriller

Another brilliant movie which went almost unnoticed largely because it wasn’t marketed at all – I don’t remember seeing a single promo of this one anywhere – second – it had almost an unknown cast barring Zakir Hussain as one of the parents of a teenager. Still – it turns out to be an excellent movie – so far the best on the subject made yet in India. It is simply superb the way Writer / Director has captured – What goes inside the head of a teenager in a particular situation and how they react to it. Since I’ve dealt with a lot of teenagers in last year or so – I can very well say that this movie shocked / surprised and made me agree with its point of view, even the ending is simply superb and solution offered is something you will mostly agree with. The best part is that we all have gone through this period in our life, although the time was different then and the society has changed so much in today’s time. (Taken from Wiki): The movie is based upon young boys and girls of India. Anu is carefree and ambitious girl who wants to be a model. Nidhi is a girl who is innocent and 'Miss virgin'of group. Tanisha is mature than her age and likes guys older than her. She lives with her aunt since her parents passed away in an accident. She wants a perfect guy-with good sense of humour, good looks and intelligence. Ashwin belongs to a middle class family with a strict dad who wants him to be an IAS. How their life changes and what they do with it makes up for the movie – if it was in my hands – I would make this movie a compulsory subject in all the school and colleges – even for all the parents – this is a must watch. Its gives a superb insight and works like a brilliant eye opener of sorts for parents – I will definitely give it a good 3/5 with two thumbs up rating. It’s a must watch if you haven’t seen it – do not miss it at any cost.