Black Swan - the review

Black Swan is a mesmerizing and disturbing insight into the life and mind of an obsessive ballerina. An unlikely juxtaposition of the bright with the dark, beautiful art with a bloody underbelly.

Nina Sayers (Natalie Portman) is the ballerina working for a ballet company that plans to stage a “visceral and real” production of ‘Swan Lake’. She eventually gets the coveted role of the Swan Queen beating off fierce competition. While the ballet director Thomas (Vincent Cassel) is confident she can portray the fragile White Swan, her performance as the seductive Black Swan is not impressive enough.

Nina is a frigid, fragile perfectionist who cannot lose control enough to be truly superb. Her manic obsession with her craft and her paranoia about losing the part lead to a gradual erosion of her ability to distinguish reality from delusion. Add to this a psychopathic mother (Barbara Hershey) who partly pushes her daughter to fulfill her unrealized ambitions and at the same time deeply resents her budding success. She treats Nina as a small child and it is scary to see Nina in her room surrounded by soft toys as her mother puts her to bed. At work she stays aloof from the other performers and is at a loss how to tackle the demanding director. She feels that she is not good enough and she cannot please him with her ballet even when he manipulates her sexually. For a while it appears she can be friends with the feisty and free-spirited new ballerina Lily (Mila Kunis) who takes her one night on a trippy nightclub ride. However soon she is seeing Lily as a competitor out to grab her prized role.

Nina’s struggle to break free of her unnatural lifestyle and her mother’s control , to perform the perfect White and Black Swan creates a dichotomy that splits her. She sees mirror images, doppelgangers everywhere. It culminates in a tumultuous and phantasmagoric opening night performance where she ‘becomes’ the Black Swan in her own mind. While her performance is a roaring success, her mind disintegrates almost completely. She feels feathers sprout out of her shoulders and sees enemies out to steal her part. In fighting her inner demons, Nina stabs herself in the process. We leave Nina as she lies in a pool of blood with the appreciation of the audience ringing in her ears.

Director Darren Aronofsky has created a movie that takes one right into the mind of the tortured protagonist, a movie that preys on you long after you have seen it. Here beauty is brittle and pain and paranoia a reality. There are gruesome scenes aplenty and ballet is a hard taskmaster that makes one bleed. Literally. There are also a few somewhat unnecessary sexcapades –perhaps to reinforce Nina’s stunted development there also. The director confines us in the same schizophrenic hell as his ballerina.

Natalie Portman, who won the Oscar for this role, throws herself into the role of the obsessed ballerina. She's fragile and harsh, strong yet weak, unsure yet confident, light and dark. Her performance is convincing and captivating.

For a movie that draws you into its dark spaces and takes you on a mind-bending ride, 7/10.

7 Khoon Maaf - review

Susanna Anna Marie Johannes has a problem - 'duniya ke saare galat aadmi uski kismat mein likhe the'. And she is a survivor who would rather kill her wayward husbands rather than leave them. So you have Priyanka Chopra giving it her all as the tormented Susanna whose hope for a lasting love withers with age. Husband after husband proves undeserving of her love and is summarily disposed of.

At a young age she marries the older Major Edwin Rodrigues (Neil Nitin Mukesh) who stifles her spirit with his insane jealousy and egotism. Next in line is rockstar Jimmy Stetson aka Jamshed Rathore (John Abraham) who woos her with his guitar but falls quickly to drug addiction. Poet Wasiullah aka Musafir (Irfan Khan) appears to be a harbour for peaceful love but turns out to be a sadomasochist.

By now Susanna is middle aged and a more than a little disillusioned but this doesn't stop the long list of men wanting to marry her. Russian spy/scientist Nicolai Vronski courts her with 'shudh' Hindi and Bollywood dialogues till she agrees to marry him. Only to realise that he is duping her and is already married. To stave off a police investigation, Susanna is forced to marry the exploitative and horny Inspector Keemat Lal (Annu Kapoor). He is sent to meet his maker at the earliest opportunity. The elderly grieving black widow is now tortured enough to make a suicide attempt. In this she is thwarted by Dr. Madhusudan Tarafdar (Naseeruddin Shah) who is a comforting mix of allopathy, naturopathy and spirituality rolled into one. That is until he tries to kill Susanna for her money. Susanna replies with a game of Russian Roulette revealing her frustration with her own accursed life and Tarafdar joins the other husbands. By now unable to handle so much pain, Susanna burns down her house and is believed to be dead herself.
Susanna's story is told through the eyes of the young orphan boy, Arun, who she brings up in her household and who eventually becomes a Forensic scientist (Vivaan Shah) seeking to confirm her death. His love for and worshipful obsession with her leads him to Pondicherry where he finds Susanna alive and well and about to be a 'bride' for the seventh time...

Vishal Bharadwaj's latest offering is based on a short story by Ruskin Bond titled "Susanna's Seven husbands" and to give the devil his due, Vishal again tries something different with his black-widow story. There is a lot of detailing like topical references to Babri Masjid dispute, the Berlin Wall coming down, the IC 814 hijacking, shootouts at Mumbai etc. to show the passage of time. The curiosity value for the audience is in figuring out why and how the next husband will be bumped off. The devices range from panthers, to pistols, to even Viagra! Priyanka Chopra puts in a very commendable performance and is undoubtedly one of the finer actresses of her generation (just imagine Katrina trying to pull off something like this and you will know what I mean). Among the husbands, Irfan and Naseer stand out with their assured presence despite being just a part of a much larger whole. Ruskin Bond himself has a cameo in the movie. As does Konkona Sen Sharma in yet another unaffected and endearing performance. Usha Uthup however is completely wasted in her role as Susanna's macabre maid.

The movie however, is just not engrossing enough. The first half is especially tedious with long winded and unnecessary sequences like the fight between the Major and Gunga the servant and Jimmy's raucous songs. The actual killing of the husbands is also hardly shown and is more often done by her servants than by Susanna herself.
Bharadwaj's big problem here is that the transition from the pages of a book to the big screen does not happen smoothly. One is constantly left wondering how much better it would have been to read the story to experience its darkness and hidden spaces better. Watching the dimly lit sequences, the Greek chorus like characters of Susanna's servants who help her with each crime, Arun the sly kid whose love for Susanna borders on Oedipal and Susanna herself who appears to have an Elektra complex make one feel like maybe a play would have worked better than a movie. The need to justify Susanna's actions in true Hindi cinema tradition also feels forced. I wonder what the movie would have been like if she were to gleefully dispose of her husbands rather than make it seem like a painful duty.

Falling into the grey area between 'artsy' and mainstream cinema does not work so well this time. When the movie ended the confusion of the audience was almost palpable.
So am left wishing for a more tightly knit script, sharper dialogues and better makeup for Priyanka (who looks hideous in most scenes).

Rating: 5/10

Band, Baaja, Baarat - the review

The big, fat Indian wedding is always a fascinating subject for Bollywood. Yashraj makes this their subject this time in 'Band Baaja Baarat' (henceforth BBB for obvious reasons). Despite having lavish North Indian weddings as the backdrop it is a small budget film (no Swiss locales), with a newcomer in the lead (no big names) and a story centred around the middle-class (no swish set). But even so, or maybe because of it, the movie works as a light-hearted weekend watch.

So meet Shruti (Anushka Sharma) a no-nonsense 20 year old girl from a middle class Delhi household. Her goal in life is to setup her own wedding planning "bijness" called "Shaadi Mubarak". She is determined to make a success of it before appeasing her parents and settling down herself.

A chance meeting at a wedding (what else) with Bittoo Sharma (Ranveer Singh) takes her plans forward. He is a the son of a Saharanpur farmer who has no goals in life besides chasing girls, gatecrashing weddings and generally having a good time before he is forced to return to the fields of UP. He is as unmotivated as she is motivated.
He tries to hit on Shruti but when Shruti makes it clear that she is not interested, he decides to do the next best thing and becomes her "binness partner" to avoid going back home.

The rules of the game are clearly specified by Shruti: "Jisse vyapaar karo, usse kabhi na pyaar karo" (Don't mix business with pleasure). But of course the audience knows that rules are meant to be broken. Shruti and Bittoo's business does well and their friendship grows. Bittoo proves to be invaluable to the set-up and shows much dedication to his job. They clearly make a good team and the future looks promising. The move from Janakpuri to Sainik Farms begins to happen.

However their grand plans derail when they end up spending the night together. While Shruti wakes up with the realization that she loves Bitto, he panics at the idea of getting involved emotionally. Before long, the Shruti-Bittoo partnership ends acrimoniously. She throws him out and he starts his own company, "Happy Wedding" to compete. However, soon it is clear that their magic was in their team and they begin to lose money and run from creditors. When a business magnate insists that they join hands if they want to plan his daughter's wedding, Shruti and Bittoo come together for one final gig to solve their financial problems. Needless to say that Bittoo realizes he's being an idiot and wins back Shruti so that their Shaadi Mubarak can take place.

The chemistry between the lead pair keeps the film alive - whether they are mouthing quick repartees or hurling abuses at each other. In terms of characterisation also, the level-headed and responsible Shruti is a perfect foil for the impulsive, street-smart Bittoo. The middle class Delhi setting of the story is realistic and believable and adds to the element of interest. The dialogues are sharp and snappy with no unnecessary drama and keeping the characters in mind. Songs are catchy as well especially "Aenvi, aenvi".

Anushka Sharma impresses in her third celluloid outing much more than she did in the first two. She fits the role to a T and shows off her acting chops as the spirited Shruti. Ranveer Singh makes a very assured debut and is clearly a total package. With his craggy looks, he suits the role of the uncouth, happy-go-lucky hero whose poor mastery over English does not come in the way of his running a successful "binness". One hopes to see more of him.

All in all a surprisingly feel-good, fun movie. 8/10.

Endhiran a.k.a. Robot

Finally experienced the Endhiran (released as The Robot in Hindi) phenomenon. I say 'experienced' because that is what the movie has become of course, thanks to Rajnikanth's overwhelming presence and the crores spent on never-before seen special effects. Amid media reports about fans queuing up for shows at 4 a.m., Rajni cutouts being felicitated with garlands and milk and simply countless Rajni jokes, the movie quickly became one of the biggest grossers in recent times.

I was in Chennai recently and decided to go watch it at a local PVR multiplex. The multiplex was packed despite the movie having released more than a month back. However, the crowds were largely calm other the odd whistle, spontaneous applause or two. Perhaps I should have chosen a standalone theatre to capture exactly how Rajni induces mass hysteria.

The story deals with what happens when man plays god. Rajni plays Dr. Vaseegaran, a scientist who invents a robot named Chitti in his own image (Rajni again). In his efforts to make the robot more perfect and hence secure approval from his peers, he invests it with human emotions thereby paving the road to hell. Chitti falls in love with Vaseegaran's fiance, Sana (Aishwarya Rai). When implanted with a 'destruction program' by Vaseegaran's competitor and one-time mentor Dr. Bohra (Danny Denzongpa), he goes on a bloody rampage to secure Sana and take over the city with an army of lookalike robots.

Endhiran is a movie that works on several levels. While it is easy to see it as a merely a vehicle to showcase and cash in on Rajni's popularity, it also serves as an allegory mirroring the relation between God and Man. How god created man in his own image, how emotions are a necessary evil that perfect and corrupt us at the same time. One can sense both Vaseegaran's pain at the way his prized creation has turned on him and sense Chitti's frustration at being denied love because he is after all a machine.

The special effects are spectacular with Rajnikanth as a robot now being legitimately able to do, in the name of science, all the stunts he did in the name of style in his other movies. And more. Yes, its over the top and yes, its illogical. But watch this with less cynicism and more of an open mind and you might just enjoy it.

Dabangg - naam aisa toh movie kaisa!

A movie that deliberately tries to be a takeoff on Westerns, typical Bollywood masala movies and Rajni style over-the-top potboilers at the same time, should definitely be called Dabangg (Fearless)! This time bomb succeeds to a large extent due to one man – Salman Khan as Inspector Chulbul Pandey who uses his quirks and eccentric acting to great effect. Leave your finer sensibilities at home and you are sure to enjoy this movie.

“Dil se bulbul aur dimag se dabangg” – that’s Inspector Chulbul Pandey for you in this crazy ride through UP heartland. He is the "Robinhood Pandey" of the masses, the apparently corrupt cop with a heart of gold. He beats up goons with flamboyance, in action scenes that look like they are straight out of a video game. But what sets Chulbul apart is how he breaks into a jig in the middle of one such encounter when a cellphone starts playing a song from ‘Wanted’. He is also the loving son to his mother (Dimple Kapadia) and the ignored son of his arrogant stepfather (Vinod Khanna). His relations with “mand-buddhi” step-brother Makkhi (Arbaaz) are not too pleasant either. On his knuckle-cracking way he falls in love with the beautiful village belle, Rajo (Sonakshi Sinha) and almost bullies and hustles her into marrying him. On the other side of the fence we have Chhedi Singh (that’s Sonu Sood and really, who thought up the character’s names in this movie!) – evil doer and aspiring political party leader who’s always practising his smiles before the camera.

Chulbul Pandey works not despite, but because of Salman’s swagger. His major attitude and his corny one-liners are designed to draw a “seeti” from the audience. Salman looks fresh (and interested) after a long time. He delivers outrageous punchlines, beats up goons and romances his lady love with an equal mixture of in-your-face style and pelvic thrusts. It is hard to imagine anyone else pulling off this “sanki” (eccentric) character so well. Sonakshi Sinha makes an assured debut. She is beautiful and has good screen presence – making her presence felt in what is essentially Salman’s show. She fares better than Arbaaz who bumbles his way through even in his own home production. Sonu Sood is good and perhaps an underrated actor. What people like Vinod Khanna, Dimple Kapadia, Mahesh Manjrekar, Om Puri and Anupam Kher are doing in this movie was a mystery to me since their roles did not warrant the use of their talent. Especially Om Puri and Anupam Kher’s roles were just like bit parts that anyone could have performed.

Director Abhinav Kashyap’s debut venture faces limitations in the form of a weak script and perhaps loses the plot in trying to be too many things at the same time. On one hand it is a no-holds-barred comic spoof type and on the other it still tries to be serious enough for son-avenging-mother’s-death type cinema. This attempt to straddle different spaces makes the narrative somewhat disjointed and one is not quite sure what to focus on – Chulbul’s dysfunctional family, his relationship with his father, his pursuit of Rajo, the political machinations in the state or the conflict with Chhedi Singh. Finally one has to decide to just forget everyone else and go with what Chulbul Pandey says and does – that’s the only way to enjoy the mayhem. Don't question the sudden change of heart of Vinod Khanna's character or the chances of Rajo reciprocating the love of a terror like Chulbul. The movie is also quite crass in several instances so be warned. From toilet humour to sexual innuendo, this has it all. They are gunning for every kind of audience and they go forth with all guns blazing.

The songs are quite good especially ‘Tere mast mast do nain’ if you can get over Salman’s bizarre dance moves which look like something he thought up himself. ‘Munni badnaam hui’ is off course the chartbuster to dance to if you want to let your hair down and go crazy.

Watch it to have a laugh with your friends. And watch it to understand that you may like him, you may hate him, but you can’t ignore Salman Khan.

For providing some good timepass of the kind that we more often look down upon, this one gets a 7/10.

Lafangey Parindey - the review

Lafangey Parindey - such a strange name. Like the director couldn't decide which word he liked better and decided to go with both. The movie is literally about Lafangey (or Rascals) and figuratively about Parindey (or Birds). The Lafangey are One Shot Nandu (Neil Nitin Mukesh) and his sidekicks who spend their time pumping iron in some Wadi in Mumbai. Pinky Palkar (Deepika Padukone) symbolises Parindey with her aspirations of leaving behind the wadi life and moving up in life with her dancing skills.

As Nandu tries to flee after helping out in a goon's murder, he rams his car into Pinky who loses her eyesight as a result. To assuage his guilt, Nandu teaches her to cope with her blindness and she teaches him to skate and dance. Quite naturally, the feisty Pinky and the taciturn Nandu fall in love. They are all set to compete in "India's got Talent" when trouble rears its ugly head in paradise.

The movie is a good watch and the fast pace of the narrative helps. More than anything, the backdrop of the story with its lower class setting, its tomboyish, aggressive heroine and its local tapori boxing hero hold one's interest. It is a visual relief after all the beauty and gloss that mainstream Bollywood throws at you.
The thing is, that this is the kind of movie that can never really aim to be a blockbuster with its limited scope and premise. Its almost as if the creators thought Deepika and Neil would look great dancing together on skates and made up the rest of the story from there. Its lead actors are also not talented enough to elevate the film above the subject.

Deepika though much improved, continues to find it difficult to establish a connect with the audience. Her dialogues often fall flat to the floor and stay there. She does look the part to a T though. Neil Nitin Mukesh looks hot as the local boxer but sadly his contribution stops there. He is unable to bring any kind of nuance to his role and simply goes through the motions. He also seems too refined and soft spoken at times to be really convincing as the tough talking action hero. Many models have started acting. Maybe Neil can now start the opposite trend. He looks so much better than he acts.

The climax of the movie is also very weak. Shiamak Davar, Juhi Chawla and Javed Jaffrey are brought on as judges of "India's got Talent" and don't have a single line of dialogue to mouth after the all-important final performance! They just wipe their tears! I mean come on! The ease with which the cops capitulate is also completely absurd. Director Pradeep Sarkar seems to lose the plot towards the end. In fact he could have had a better plot. To his credit, he never dips into the melodrama so readily available when you have a blind heroine and a hero who gets beaten up for a living. Huge really when you think that this guy made the totally bullshit Laaga Chunri mein Daaga - a regressive melodrama if ever there was one.

So coming back to Lafangey Parindey. I liked the fast pace, I liked the restraint (coming from Yash Raj that too!), I liked the characterisation, I liked the setting and I liked Nandu and Pinky's love story. So a 6.5/10.

Go watch this movie if you have the time. Go with no high expectations and it will entertain you.

Aisha - the review

Lesson No. 1: Do not believe everything you read in the papers. The critics who gave this movie their thumbs up and praised it to the skies are LYING! 'Aisha' is one forgettable movie from start to finish.

Lesson No. 2: Jane Austen would turn in her grave if she could see this blasphemous production. Even ‘Clueless’ starring Alicia Silverstone was a much more entertaining adaptation. It kept the essence while transposing the context to fit an American high school rom-com. Best of all it showed the ability to laugh at itself – the protagonist is ‘clueless’ but well-intentioned and likeable. Something that Aisha definitely isn’t. Aisha is just a spoilt Delhi brat. Sonam’s affectations were not cute.

Lesson No. 3: Clothes may make the man but they do not make a movie. I went to see a fun story about fun characters peppered with fun dialogues. Haute couture would have been a bonus not a necessity. Sonam Kapoor has chosen her home production as a forum to highlight her love for designer labels. Looks like they paid so much attention to the clothes, bags and shoes, they forget about screenplay, dialogues and characterization.

Lesson No. 4: Abhay Deol is possibly the best thing to come from the House of Deol since the founder father, Dharmendra. He is a natural performer and stands out amongst a bunch of wannabes. (Actually I feel bad for Sunny – he wasn’t that bad. Despite trying to fend off the whole of Pakistan with a tubewell. It’s basically Bobby who bombed the House of Deol).

Lesson No. 5: ‘Gal mithi’ is the only song that stays with you. And that plays right at the end. With all the girls in South Indian style dressing. Why? Who knows. Just another loose end like so many others in the movie.

Rate this 4/10. And maybe I’m being generous.