George Clooney Vs Mohanlal

Yesterday Manu and I headed off to PVR Cinemas expecting to get tickets for Mohanlal's movie Casanovva. It was not the expectation of seeing a good film that made us look forward to getting the tickets but it was to have a good laugh at the club song 'Hey Manohara Theerame' in the movie and many other gimmicks. Both of us are not anti-Mohanlal but in fact, we are hard-core Mohanlal fans of the 80s and the 90s. So when we compare his recent movies, we tend to reminisce about the amazing characters he portrayed back in the 80s and the 90s and wish for the same only to be disappointed with the movies he has been associated with lately. Why does Malayalam cinema have to ape Kollywood and Bollywood? Of course, at the moment, I am being quite unfair by assuming that Casanovva would be a disappointment without seeing the movie or reading the previews and reviews. However, this post is not a movie review on Casanovva so let me get back to the point and not digress further.

We were misled by the 'Now Showing' poster of the movie Casanovva and realised later that the movie was yet to release. (We are movie buffs but not to the extent of keeping track of the dates of movie releases!!). Determined to watch some movie, we decided to watch an English movie called The Descendants. The fact that it got 5 Golden Globe nominations and Oscar nominations was an added plus to look forward to the movie. As the title of this post suggests, this is neither a movie review of The Descendants.

After the movie was over, we stepped out and as usual, I asked Manu for his feedback about the movie. He agreed with me that the movie was interesting and engaging. But he did not feel that George Clooney's acting deserved a nomination for Best Actor. He asked me, "Don't you think Mohanlal had plenty of movies where his acting skills have truly surpassed George Clooney's back in the 80s and the 90s?" Of course, this thought is only regarding George Clooney's performance in the movie The Descendants. Manu felt that Will Smith would have done justice to the role. I too agree on this.

Probably if Malayalam movies like Deshadanakkili Karayarilla, T. P. Balagopalan M.A., Gandhinagar Second Street, Namukku Parkkan Munthirithoppukal, Nadodikkattu, Akkare Akkare Akkare, Yodha, Manichithrathazhu, Pakshe, etc were promoted globally, these movies would get a wider audience and who knows, these movies would have got a nomination at least. Then comes the question - Why do Malayalam movies have to run behind the Golden Globes and the Oscars? The only reason that comes to my mind is that in doing so, it would receive much-deserved critical acclaim on a global scale just like many other foreign language movies. Malayalam cinema is a special genre in itself. Nothing should change that.

Some things are never meant to happen.....

This thought comes to my mind very often whenever things never turn out as expected. Many say that is what makes life exciting. I agree....to a certain extent. It hurts when some things never happen the way we desire.

These lines of thoughts often remind me of a Malayalam movie which I really like; maybe because it has my favourite actors (Mohanlal, Shobana) or probably because of its story, I am not sure. The movie is called Pakshe, released in 1994. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0292167/

One of the songs of the movie, wish the video had more clarity.

It is one of those movies I really wished that the ending was not the way it is. It is sad to see the harsh reality of life, where one comes so close to reuniting with your childhood love but alas! , that yet again never happens to work out for those two. Many a time, I do not watch till the end of that movie only because I feel sad after the movie is over and the thought of "Some things are never meant to happen..." lingers for a long time.

The Devil Wears Prada

The Devil Wears Prada is a movie that inspires me quite a lot. The first time when I saw it, I felt more convinced that even if our work is not exactly how we expect it to turn out, as long as we are dedicated and do our work with sincerity, we will get recognition at some point in time if not immediately. The movie consoles me many a time when my mind wanders often to thoughts that make me think that my career has no future in what I am doing now.

Yesterday was yet another hard day for me; my manager forever asked for updates, questioning or rather interrogating every task that had to be done and not even noticing the work that had already been done. My manager would ask me to follow up on so many things at the same time and I sometimes wonder whether I am doing his share of work too. I was so frustrated that I had a frown on my face even when I got back home and started working from my laptop.

The Devil Wears Prada was being shown on TV that evening. Occasional glances at the scenes that I had already seen in the past started looking different to me. I could see myself in Andy Sach's shoes being ordered by her boss Meryl Streep. The movie calmed down my frustration and I said to myself, "Just keep going, girl!" Don't let her/him stop you!' It was quite a coincidence to see this movie on the same day when I could relate to most of it.

Meryl Streep was just awesome in this movie!

The Ron Clark Story

I watched today a movie called 'The Ron Clark Story'. I didn't know what it was about before the movie started which is good in a way because one would not have preconceived notions on the same. As the movie started, I realised it was yet another movie about how a teacher lifts up the spirits of kids who think school is just crap. I guess there are lots of movies in Hollywood based on this concept. But I must say, this movie was really good. It is based on the true life story of a teacher called Ron Clark.

Mathew Perry, part of the cast of the world-famous television show called "F.R.I.E.N.D.S", plays the lead role of the teacher. I have always been a big fan of his and after watching this movie, I have become a bigger fan than ever. It was heart-warming to see a teacher take so much pain in turning rebel kids into people who can rule the world with their hidden talents. The movie was entertaining and not entirely preachy.

Watching the movie made me wish to turn back time and become a twelve-year-old all over again. The movie reminded me of those who had faith in my talents, many of them quite hidden.

Check out the video for a sneak peek of some of the scenes of the movie.

Rock On!!!

Yesterday I saw Rock On!! , a movie which I had put on my 'Must See' list the very first time I saw the trailer on TV almost a month ago. I still remember getting all excited seeing Farhan Akhtar as a rock star. I am a big fan of all the movies he's directed and I was looking forward to him acting and singing in this movie. The only thing that made me think in a sceptical way as to how the movie would turn out was the fact the movie was not directed by him. Thankfully, Abhishek Kapoor (director, also Ekta Kapoor's cousin) has not let us down. :-)

We got stuck in traffic which is quite usual on a Saturday night in Chennai and finally, when we reached the theatre, all of us started running through the parking lot, ran up the stairs only to find out we climbed an extra floor, ran down the stairs and finally made it to our seats just before the movie began. I was crossing my fingers (and toes), hoping the movie would not be a letdown (considering the number of Bollywood movies that are flops....and also the fact that I had to run...a lot....to make sure we didn't miss anything...).

I am glad that I was not disappointed. The movie definitely had a rock concert flavour to the songs that were performed on stage. My friends and I along with the audience sang along to the songs and had a really good time. I can’t say for sure it’s a superb movie...because I am not really sure whether people who don’t like rock songs would enjoy the movie or not. Or in my mother's words about rock songs, "Chevy vedina paattu" which means "Songs that pain the ears" ...hehe...

This movie....definitely not to be missed!! Check out the trailer.

Little Miss Sunshine

I had no idea about this movie until I saw the trailer on Star Movies one day. It seemed to be an interesting movie and boasted of as the winner of two Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor.

I was in the mood to see something new and I watched the movie. I wouldn’t call it a superb movie or anything, but I did like a few things about the movie. It was nice to see how the family was supportive in helping their 7-year-old daughter fulfil her desire to participate in the finals of the “Little Miss Sunshine beauty pageant” even though the girl was a very plain type, not the kind who would stand a chance of winning. There are lots of other strange characters in the family to look out for. Also the family vehicle, the Volkswagen T2 Microbus does steal the show many a time in the movie. On the whole, it’s a good watch and the characters do bring out a laugh or two out of you.

I guess every family has their own strange characters!