Saw prasthanam today, and i was dissapointed. deva katta is no exciting talent to look out for. i read a lot about prasthanam. unfortunately the depth and intensity was found missing in the movie which was otherwise aplenty in the paper's. and yet once again trailers did the trick for me. they deceived me. read in a interview in which MR.katta claimed that he never thought about the commercial success of the movie and that he made an uncompromising attempt. but, dear sir why do you have to include three shitty songs and a highly irritating love angle to the film which you've claimed to be made without any compromise.
Except For the extraordinary hair raising first scene and the brilliance of the cameraman sprinkled at selective places through out the movie. the rest is what we've already been watching throughout the years. on the whole not so enjoyable " Prasthanam ".
Friday, May 28, 2010
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Book's
Everytime i feel a bit sick. i skip my college and head to British Library. The very sight of those 30000 odd book's warms my heart and takes away my sickness. i've been reading a lot off late here's a small sneak-peak at those which really made sense and taught me something.
1. Mr. hitchcock written by Quentin Falk.
Few minutes ago, when this thought of putting together a small compilation of the best of the lot i've been reading this summer stuck me i strongly decided not to include the book's on films and film makers in it. really cant help it they have rehabilitation centres for drug addicts hope they would soon find something for movie addicts. Before i caught sight of this book Hitchcock to me was just another of those super hyped classic hollywood directors that everybody talk's about but nobody actually watches . but quentin falk' honest book made me realise that hitchcock is not merely a director but an innovator. The book cover's everything right from his very first feature " The Lodger " to his very last " The Family Plot ". I have seen 14 of hitchcock's including The lodger. The Lodger is a passable thriller from outside seen from a distance but when you approach closer it unravels the making of an extraordinary film maker. The Camera Angles might have surprised quiet a many back then. Being a hitchcock fanatic i've got to enlighten you with some facts. In the 1944 hitchcock classic " Lifeboat " the entire movie takes place in a boat. Hitchcock racked his brain about how to make space for his customary guest appearance which has by then achieved a cult status among hitchcock fans, and the fat man came up with a crazy idea. He reduced 20 pounds for a news paper advert about obesity. In the movie this paper lies crumbled in the boat until one of it's passengers finds it and discovers hitchcock in it. And with the 1948 release Rope Hitchcock's obsession with the camera reached a Vertigo. The master of cinema introduced the Longshots which would later on become hitchcock'c trademark.
2. The Illumination Of Merton Browne Written by J.M.Shaw.
Once again i start this with a thankyou note to british library. Without the library i wouldn't have got access to some of the Classic's which have certainly made some impact on me. One such classic is " the illumination of merton browne " The central character browne loathe's everything around him. his mom, step father, and his stinking neighbourhood.Merton Browne hides in his cupboard with a torch and a Tintin book and pretends he's going to space. As he gets older things don't change much. He thinks secondary school will be about learning, but mainly it's about staying out of trouble. Disenchanted and desperate to avoid the attentions of Savage and his posse, Merton finds refuge among the forgotten history books in a dusty basement, remnants of another regime. Inspired by what he reads he think's that he is on the verge of a revolution. The Reason i found this book amusing and a must read is Merton Browne is the closest a fictional character could get to the real life character Sandeep. I ran away from people just the way merton ran away from Savage and his posse. Merton found refuge among forgotten history books in a dusty basement and i found refuge in the airconditioned british library. Both of us are in need to decide who we are, what we want to be and the place where our loyalities lie.
3. And Then Then There Was No One- Gilbert Adair
The book Starts with the author dedicating it to the " Undisputed queen of mystery " Agatha Christie. this is the third of evadne mound whodunit. Had no idea of who the author was when i started reading the book but once i knew who he is and the things he did. respect for the book overflowed. He is none other than the guy who wrote the book " the holy innocents" basing on the book provided the script to the movie i bow in devotion " The Dreamers ". Read this book twice and i am still unable to decide who the killer is. it sure is the best thriller the rack's of british library have got. Jumpscares gaurenteed. I bow my head in devotion and respect to the " Undisputed King Of mystery" Gilbert Adair....
1. Mr. hitchcock written by Quentin Falk.
Few minutes ago, when this thought of putting together a small compilation of the best of the lot i've been reading this summer stuck me i strongly decided not to include the book's on films and film makers in it. really cant help it they have rehabilitation centres for drug addicts hope they would soon find something for movie addicts. Before i caught sight of this book Hitchcock to me was just another of those super hyped classic hollywood directors that everybody talk's about but nobody actually watches . but quentin falk' honest book made me realise that hitchcock is not merely a director but an innovator. The book cover's everything right from his very first feature " The Lodger " to his very last " The Family Plot ". I have seen 14 of hitchcock's including The lodger. The Lodger is a passable thriller from outside seen from a distance but when you approach closer it unravels the making of an extraordinary film maker. The Camera Angles might have surprised quiet a many back then. Being a hitchcock fanatic i've got to enlighten you with some facts. In the 1944 hitchcock classic " Lifeboat " the entire movie takes place in a boat. Hitchcock racked his brain about how to make space for his customary guest appearance which has by then achieved a cult status among hitchcock fans, and the fat man came up with a crazy idea. He reduced 20 pounds for a news paper advert about obesity. In the movie this paper lies crumbled in the boat until one of it's passengers finds it and discovers hitchcock in it. And with the 1948 release Rope Hitchcock's obsession with the camera reached a Vertigo. The master of cinema introduced the Longshots which would later on become hitchcock'c trademark.
2. The Illumination Of Merton Browne Written by J.M.Shaw.
Once again i start this with a thankyou note to british library. Without the library i wouldn't have got access to some of the Classic's which have certainly made some impact on me. One such classic is " the illumination of merton browne " The central character browne loathe's everything around him. his mom, step father, and his stinking neighbourhood.Merton Browne hides in his cupboard with a torch and a Tintin book and pretends he's going to space. As he gets older things don't change much. He thinks secondary school will be about learning, but mainly it's about staying out of trouble. Disenchanted and desperate to avoid the attentions of Savage and his posse, Merton finds refuge among the forgotten history books in a dusty basement, remnants of another regime. Inspired by what he reads he think's that he is on the verge of a revolution. The Reason i found this book amusing and a must read is Merton Browne is the closest a fictional character could get to the real life character Sandeep. I ran away from people just the way merton ran away from Savage and his posse. Merton found refuge among forgotten history books in a dusty basement and i found refuge in the airconditioned british library. Both of us are in need to decide who we are, what we want to be and the place where our loyalities lie.
3. And Then Then There Was No One- Gilbert Adair
The book Starts with the author dedicating it to the " Undisputed queen of mystery " Agatha Christie. this is the third of evadne mound whodunit. Had no idea of who the author was when i started reading the book but once i knew who he is and the things he did. respect for the book overflowed. He is none other than the guy who wrote the book " the holy innocents" basing on the book provided the script to the movie i bow in devotion " The Dreamers ". Read this book twice and i am still unable to decide who the killer is. it sure is the best thriller the rack's of british library have got. Jumpscares gaurenteed. I bow my head in devotion and respect to the " Undisputed King Of mystery" Gilbert Adair....
My Five- Music.
I am tired of the refusal mails sent by The Hindu. for the last three months my list of Five songs has been continuosly rejected by the committee of My Five. My Five is a column in downtown which comes along with The Hindu every saturday. wherein people can get their list of five best songs published. here goes my list...
1. marilyn manson - nobodies.
Marilyn Manson, the name formed from the names of actress marilyn monroe and her convicted murderer charlie manson. this guy is more of the manson than marilyn. the song i am talking about " Nobodies " from their album Slutgarden is probably the most disturbing song i've ever heard. the reason why i place it at the top giving it top honours is because this song made me realize that i truly am a nobody in this huge world of somebody's. I truly beleive that this song was written and sung by manson with people like me in his mind. depression is something which isn't new to me. i still remember those days when i locked myself in my room. dark as hell without a trace of light with nobodies playing in the back ground. that really gave me some releif. 3 cheers to the manson guy for his " nobodies " from this nobody.
We are the nobodies
wanna be somebodies
we are dead wanna know just who we are
we are the nobodies
wanna be somebodies.
2. Netti Moore- Bob Dylan.
Thoughts can be contagious, though they can serve a purpose at the same time. if there is a song which can describe the person i am now then it has got to be " Netti Moore". When ever i sit down to hear this it sounds as if dylan dedicated this to me. The song is all about those souls which have lost their track and got a whack. though it sounds a bit similar to dylan's much earlier work " Moonshiner " filled with trademark dylan. " they say whisky will kill ya, but i dont think it will" " If whisky dont kill me, i dont know what will". if given a chance to choose the song for my funeral. netti moore it would be.
Lost John's sittin' on a railroad track
something's out of whack
Blues this morning falling down like a hail.
gonna leave a greasy trail.
3. God Is An Astronaut - The End Of The Beginning
My first brush with this irish band happened while watching the movie " Night Breed " there's this famous quote in the movie where in the protagonist compares god with an astronaut. This was 3 years ago when God is an astronaut to me was just a famous quote from a stupid movie. I was pleasantly suprised when i was told by my brother that the name of the band is inspired from that famous quote. the founders of the post rock three piece culture. god is an astronaut to me is a mystical band. their music has this element of enigma. "End of the beginning" the very first song recorded by the band took the entire rock culture by storm. the future belongs to the post rock.
4. Bob Dylan - you gotta serve somebody
Here comes handsome bob again. If you are the kind who belong to the revolutionary shit then here's the song for you. indeed here's an anthem for you. Before this song entered my life i had this " I wish i was rich " going on in my life. but the song vacuumed it away. I first heard it play at the back of some shitty movie whose name i lost in some shit storm. but the song remained with me. though it sounds a bit preachy, it's heart is at the right place. It doesn't matter who the fuck you are you gotta serve somebody.
5. Dream on - Aerosmith.
Everyone wants to be a fitzcarraldo, everyone wants to chase their wildest of dreams. but only some become a fitzcarraldo and the others run away shittin their pants. sung by the great stevie tyler in his dopey voice. This song helped me get over the past like dusk to dawn. it taught me " you got to lose to know how to win". Long may he live and sing.
Yeah, I know nobody knows
where it comes and where it goes
i know its everybody's sin
you got to lose to know how to win.....
1. marilyn manson - nobodies.
Marilyn Manson, the name formed from the names of actress marilyn monroe and her convicted murderer charlie manson. this guy is more of the manson than marilyn. the song i am talking about " Nobodies " from their album Slutgarden is probably the most disturbing song i've ever heard. the reason why i place it at the top giving it top honours is because this song made me realize that i truly am a nobody in this huge world of somebody's. I truly beleive that this song was written and sung by manson with people like me in his mind. depression is something which isn't new to me. i still remember those days when i locked myself in my room. dark as hell without a trace of light with nobodies playing in the back ground. that really gave me some releif. 3 cheers to the manson guy for his " nobodies " from this nobody.
We are the nobodies
wanna be somebodies
we are dead wanna know just who we are
we are the nobodies
wanna be somebodies.
2. Netti Moore- Bob Dylan.
Thoughts can be contagious, though they can serve a purpose at the same time. if there is a song which can describe the person i am now then it has got to be " Netti Moore". When ever i sit down to hear this it sounds as if dylan dedicated this to me. The song is all about those souls which have lost their track and got a whack. though it sounds a bit similar to dylan's much earlier work " Moonshiner " filled with trademark dylan. " they say whisky will kill ya, but i dont think it will" " If whisky dont kill me, i dont know what will". if given a chance to choose the song for my funeral. netti moore it would be.
Lost John's sittin' on a railroad track
something's out of whack
Blues this morning falling down like a hail.
gonna leave a greasy trail.
3. God Is An Astronaut - The End Of The Beginning
My first brush with this irish band happened while watching the movie " Night Breed " there's this famous quote in the movie where in the protagonist compares god with an astronaut. This was 3 years ago when God is an astronaut to me was just a famous quote from a stupid movie. I was pleasantly suprised when i was told by my brother that the name of the band is inspired from that famous quote. the founders of the post rock three piece culture. god is an astronaut to me is a mystical band. their music has this element of enigma. "End of the beginning" the very first song recorded by the band took the entire rock culture by storm. the future belongs to the post rock.
4. Bob Dylan - you gotta serve somebody
Here comes handsome bob again. If you are the kind who belong to the revolutionary shit then here's the song for you. indeed here's an anthem for you. Before this song entered my life i had this " I wish i was rich " going on in my life. but the song vacuumed it away. I first heard it play at the back of some shitty movie whose name i lost in some shit storm. but the song remained with me. though it sounds a bit preachy, it's heart is at the right place. It doesn't matter who the fuck you are you gotta serve somebody.
5. Dream on - Aerosmith.
Everyone wants to be a fitzcarraldo, everyone wants to chase their wildest of dreams. but only some become a fitzcarraldo and the others run away shittin their pants. sung by the great stevie tyler in his dopey voice. This song helped me get over the past like dusk to dawn. it taught me " you got to lose to know how to win". Long may he live and sing.
Yeah, I know nobody knows
where it comes and where it goes
i know its everybody's sin
you got to lose to know how to win.....
Fitzcarraldo
"It is only the dreamers who move mountains" fitzcarraldo is one the most ambitious film that i've ever been across. the film starts with the title character fitzcarraldo played graciously by klaus kinski and his wife travelling 1200 miles just to hear caruso sing. fitzcarraldo is the story of a dreamer who dreams of building an opera in the peruvian jungles. with one major failure already behind which nearly bankrupted him, fitzcarraldo remains unaltered. now, the fact that all this has truly happened and the dreamer fitzcarraldo has really existed in blood and flesh makes the experience of watching fitzcarraldo even more interesting. with the meager money left in his pocket this guy set's out on a journey and you secretly pray in your heart that he hit's the bull's eye. he travel's around trying to set up a proper business that would generate the money to fulfill his casino dream. once again our guy does the unexpected. he leases an inaccessible parcel of area that generates rubber from the peruvian government. purchases a 340 ton steam boat raises a crew and sets off up the pachitea, a river in peruvia.This river is known to be more dangerous the further one gets from the Amazon because of the unfriendly tribes that inhabit the area. Fitzcarraldo's plan is to reach the point where the two rivers nearly meet and then, with the manpower of enlisted natives, physically pull his three-story, 340-ton steamer over the muddy hillside across an isthmus, from one river to the next. Using the steamer, he will then collect rubber on the upper Ucayali and bring it down the Pachitea to market.
The most toughest scene ever shot by a man who call's himself a director is the ending scene where we spellboundedly watch a smiling fitzcarraldo and his crew pull over a 340 ton steam ship across a mountain. the director werner herzog didn't want special effects to ruin the most important scene of the movie. instead he wanted a real 340 ton boat moved over a hill and he got what he wanted. only a dreamer himself would have ever dreamed of making a film on fitzcarraldo and the dreamer happened to be werner herzog. " I live my life or end my life with this film" is the first statement made by him when he announced this film.
indeed " It is only the dreamers who move mountains"...
The most toughest scene ever shot by a man who call's himself a director is the ending scene where we spellboundedly watch a smiling fitzcarraldo and his crew pull over a 340 ton steam ship across a mountain. the director werner herzog didn't want special effects to ruin the most important scene of the movie. instead he wanted a real 340 ton boat moved over a hill and he got what he wanted. only a dreamer himself would have ever dreamed of making a film on fitzcarraldo and the dreamer happened to be werner herzog. " I live my life or end my life with this film" is the first statement made by him when he announced this film.
indeed " It is only the dreamers who move mountains"...
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Coming Soon.
1. Legend Of The Guardians.
Snyder man is back in action. Zack snyder the visionary director who gave us 300 and watchmen is back with yet another action filled, blood spilling flick. this time around the only change being the action take's place in mid air and humans are substituted by owls. don't be dissapointed the man with the most stylish ultra slow motion sequences has retained his style for this epic on the battle between owl's. the ost by 30 second's to mars the us based band headed by jared leto ( remember, the harry goldfarb from requiem for a dream) is being regarded as their best so far since their formation in 2007. though snyder dissapointed a bit with his visual adaptation of watchmen. the man's back with vengeance and as mel gibson puts it in his recent edge of darkness " few can escape justice but none can escape vengeance ".
2. Robinhood.
Two old men who seem to be getting it all right in their prime are clint eastwood and ridley scott. both of them have delivered their best cinema well after their sixties now, that is why they store alcohol. the older the better. here comes the sad part east wood has been respected and showered with four oscars but the latter has only been respected. the oscar's been a bit harsh with him. but the 75 year old thespian is at it again. and this time it is robinhood. the title played by russel crowe. probably the only other highly successful pair after scorcese and de niro/ de caprio. the trailer looks promising. experience has taught me not to trust trailers. but, this surely is the most awaited summer release.
3. Kick ass.
I cant read your mind but i can kick your ass. mathew vaughan the money machine behind snatch and lock stock is back to his first love with kick ass. after kick ass was written off by studios for it's disturbing content vaughan decided to do it on his own. no amount of all our superheroes put together equals kick ass. because kick ass is nothing like any other super hero movie out there. this guy's sick, this guy's stupid and this guy's hell lot of fun. all of you out there shut up and kick ass...
Snyder man is back in action. Zack snyder the visionary director who gave us 300 and watchmen is back with yet another action filled, blood spilling flick. this time around the only change being the action take's place in mid air and humans are substituted by owls. don't be dissapointed the man with the most stylish ultra slow motion sequences has retained his style for this epic on the battle between owl's. the ost by 30 second's to mars the us based band headed by jared leto ( remember, the harry goldfarb from requiem for a dream) is being regarded as their best so far since their formation in 2007. though snyder dissapointed a bit with his visual adaptation of watchmen. the man's back with vengeance and as mel gibson puts it in his recent edge of darkness " few can escape justice but none can escape vengeance ".
2. Robinhood.
Two old men who seem to be getting it all right in their prime are clint eastwood and ridley scott. both of them have delivered their best cinema well after their sixties now, that is why they store alcohol. the older the better. here comes the sad part east wood has been respected and showered with four oscars but the latter has only been respected. the oscar's been a bit harsh with him. but the 75 year old thespian is at it again. and this time it is robinhood. the title played by russel crowe. probably the only other highly successful pair after scorcese and de niro/ de caprio. the trailer looks promising. experience has taught me not to trust trailers. but, this surely is the most awaited summer release.
3. Kick ass.
I cant read your mind but i can kick your ass. mathew vaughan the money machine behind snatch and lock stock is back to his first love with kick ass. after kick ass was written off by studios for it's disturbing content vaughan decided to do it on his own. no amount of all our superheroes put together equals kick ass. because kick ass is nothing like any other super hero movie out there. this guy's sick, this guy's stupid and this guy's hell lot of fun. all of you out there shut up and kick ass...
The other Ray
This guy is not to be mistaken with our own creative genius satyajit ray. now, who would that be? the answer my friend is nicholas ray. i would bet my freshly bought logitech speakers which made me poorer by 1600 buck's that none of you out there who would eventually find some time to read this would have heard of him. even, i wouldn't have got to know about this largely unknown brilliant film maker if ashok had died in a plane crash few days ago.
" in a lonely place " the film which got ray the cult status and placed him in the A league along with the likes of billy wilder and orson welles follows closely the life of a hollywood screen writer. what started as any other hollywood production began shaping up itself as a classic with the brilliance of ray oozing out through his pen. " I was born when she kissed me, died when she left me, and lived when she loved me".
In a lonely place was followed by films like johnny guitar, rebel without a cause and bigger than life. people back then found ray's cinema modernistic and this would later on be cited as one of the most prominent reason for the commercial failure and critical success of ray's cinema. with his modernistic approach and expressionistic use of colours ray has been an influential filmmakers and this was revealed in recent years by the likes of scorcese that his use of colours to present the shade of the character delights him to this day.
Celebrated german film maker wim wenders who claims " I am the biggest fan of nicholas ray" dead or alive, paid his homage to ray by naming his sci-fi thriller " until the end of the world " which are claimed to be the last words spoken by ray.
" There was poetry, theatre, dance, painting, music and henceforth there is cinema. and the cinema is nicholas ray"........
" in a lonely place " the film which got ray the cult status and placed him in the A league along with the likes of billy wilder and orson welles follows closely the life of a hollywood screen writer. what started as any other hollywood production began shaping up itself as a classic with the brilliance of ray oozing out through his pen. " I was born when she kissed me, died when she left me, and lived when she loved me".
In a lonely place was followed by films like johnny guitar, rebel without a cause and bigger than life. people back then found ray's cinema modernistic and this would later on be cited as one of the most prominent reason for the commercial failure and critical success of ray's cinema. with his modernistic approach and expressionistic use of colours ray has been an influential filmmakers and this was revealed in recent years by the likes of scorcese that his use of colours to present the shade of the character delights him to this day.
Celebrated german film maker wim wenders who claims " I am the biggest fan of nicholas ray" dead or alive, paid his homage to ray by naming his sci-fi thriller " until the end of the world " which are claimed to be the last words spoken by ray.
" There was poetry, theatre, dance, painting, music and henceforth there is cinema. and the cinema is nicholas ray"........
Madiba.
People say there was a jesus between 5 bc- 30 ad, there was a krishna, there was a rama. some beleive they exist and some dont. i say there was and there is a nelson rolihlahla mandela a physical equivalent of all the three entities mentioned earlier. i was taught in my sixth standard by my then social studies madam ragha latha that mandela served 27 summers in a prison. that was my first brush with mandela and i reproduced the same in the unit test bit paper, and it ended there. until yesterday evening when i was taught a complete new lesson by clint eastwood through " invictus".
the film starts with the footage of mandela walking out of prison in robben island and we listen to a news reporter announcing " there comes mandela a free man now". the film follows closely not mandela as a person but mandela as a president. there's this scene in the movie where one of the security personnel of mandela objects his decision to recruit white people as his bodygaurds only to hear mandela say " when people outside see me they also see my bodyguards and when they see people of my own clan protecting me they might develop this false notion that i may do the same and i don't want that to happen". this brilliant scene roots the character of mandela and all through the film you just cant stop admiring him. very few people stand their ground and fight when the need arises and a very few of them like mandela succeed.
A day before the crunch final between south africa and the all blacks kiwis in the 1995 rugby world cup. the south african captain visits the prison which imprisoned mandela for better part of his life. minutes before the match we see him gazing blankly through his window. he turns towards his wife and tells her " i was thinking about how you spend thirty years in a tiny cell and come out ready to forgive the people who put you there". i've been waiting for a scene like this. the kind of scene which makes you celebrate your very existence.
" I thank whatever gods maybe for my unconquerable soul, i am the master of my fate, i am the captain of my soul ".....
the film starts with the footage of mandela walking out of prison in robben island and we listen to a news reporter announcing " there comes mandela a free man now". the film follows closely not mandela as a person but mandela as a president. there's this scene in the movie where one of the security personnel of mandela objects his decision to recruit white people as his bodygaurds only to hear mandela say " when people outside see me they also see my bodyguards and when they see people of my own clan protecting me they might develop this false notion that i may do the same and i don't want that to happen". this brilliant scene roots the character of mandela and all through the film you just cant stop admiring him. very few people stand their ground and fight when the need arises and a very few of them like mandela succeed.
A day before the crunch final between south africa and the all blacks kiwis in the 1995 rugby world cup. the south african captain visits the prison which imprisoned mandela for better part of his life. minutes before the match we see him gazing blankly through his window. he turns towards his wife and tells her " i was thinking about how you spend thirty years in a tiny cell and come out ready to forgive the people who put you there". i've been waiting for a scene like this. the kind of scene which makes you celebrate your very existence.
" I thank whatever gods maybe for my unconquerable soul, i am the master of my fate, i am the captain of my soul ".....
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