Wrapping it up: November

Another month, another wrap-up post full of this month's viewings. I started a new job this month and at one point it threatened to derail my monthly viewings. To some extent even succeeded in it, even forced me to stay 2 and 1/2 weeks away from this blog. But then, there were weekends! You will see that this is the month that I am shifting gears to get into 2013 mode, the one I hope to remain in for most of the next few months. We will see how that goes but this is how this month went!

November

The Dark Knight(2008)(Re-watch): Every time I watch it, it brings back the memories of first time I watched it. This time I watched it for n-th time and still I like it as much as I did the first time; only difference is I didn't understand everything that went down then, now I know all the dialogues by heart. I am still in awe of neck-breaking speed of this film but I had never seen anything so relentless, something that would have me grasping for breath then. This was one of the first films of Chris Nolan I saw and one of the films that had a lot of influence in making me a cinephile I am today.

Before Midnight(2013): The trilogy is finally complete. I remember being not convinced about it when they announced they are going ahead with this but I am glad to be proven wrong. There is so much to talk about here. I LOVED Delpy's Bimbo and all I could think of during that dinner conversation, which by far was the best scene I have seen this year, was how many cameras did he have on? It is phenomenal. I know a lot of people didn't want to see the most romanticized couple fighting and tearing each other down to pieces. I am not sure if I was either but I guess, C'est la vie. I kind of like the fact that they went there.  

Stories We Tell(2013): I have known about this movie for more than a year now but I still can not believe Polley made such a movie. Not only the subject matter is so different, so personal, the way she treats this whole thing is amazingly professional. I love the fact that despite being such an integral part of this movie, time and again she sort of steps into the filmmaker's shoes and let everyone else take the stage. The kind of reactions she's been able to get out of everyone from her family is simply astonishing. More here.

McCabe and Mrs. Miller(1971): After watching The Long Goodbye(1973), Altman has become third director that I am making a deliberate effort to see more of. First two being Ang Lee and Akira Kurosawa. I am not sure how deep I will go in his filmography but these are still early days - this is only the 4th film I have seen. Julie Christy continues to amaze me by the incredible diversity of her roles and so did Beatty in his sort of dumb, spineless character. But one thing I'll never forget is the way Altman orchestrated that entire final sequence. All that snow and multiple things happening at the same time; the way he shot it was mesmerizing!

Quiz Show(1994): I am not exactly sure but this might be the first non-Coen brother film that I have seen John Turturo in or at least first one I worth remembering(Looking at you, Transformers(2007)). It might have been a big scandal in the '50s but I think now we kind of expect everything to be fixed. It might just be the cynic in me and I don't want to take anything away from the film because I thought it was really good but everything is run like a business now a days. Nobody wants to leave anything to chance. Look at Hollywood!

The Bling Ring(2013): I think I like this film a lot more than the overall consensus. I like that it shows the materialistic nature of lives of those involved. I like the way it pokes fun at the celebrity culture that is so much prevalent now and shows the dirty side of it despite all the glitz and glamour surrounding it and who else to show it than one of Hollywood's own royalties? Lack of depth to it was main complaint about it but given the shallowness of those involved, it does justice to them. The ending is once again a bit jarring but I can live with that.

Gravity(2013): I know I am extremely late to the party but I am glad that at least I got to see it in the theater. Everyone who said that this is as close to being in space as we can get is absolutely right. Lubezki's work is absolute genius, something we have never seen before. Even in the acting department it's uniformly solid. But, unfortunately, even those who said script has issues are right as well and some of them, I am thinking of certain someone's death in particular, are pretty egregious. I'll never call it a bad film, in fact I think it has a good chance of making into my top 10 of the year, but more I think about these issues, little less I like the film.

Much Ado About Nothing(2013): I have also seen the Branagh-Thompson 1993 version a year ago. While I loved it otherwise, I had two problems with it - language felt laborious and off course, Keanu Reeves and Denzel Washington were little ridiculous half-brothers. Like, duh! For some reason, this time around I had fun with that same language. Off course, it looked absolutely delightful in black and white. Amy Acker was stunning, dare I say even better than Thompson. Everyone else fit perfectly in their parts as well and Nathan Filion! Always nice to see familiar faces pop up.

West Side Story(1961): 65th Best Picture Winner knocked off the list. I didn't know much about it except it was about two gangs fighting against each other and involved a love story. Maybe it was just an opening sequence or maybe it just took some time to settle but I did not get into it right away; though by the end it certainly lured me in. It was charming, delightful and by the end even heart-wrenching. Maybe I did know it being a Romeo and Juliet adaptation but I forgot all about it until Anita delivers a message. I think the best compliment I can give it is knowing that did not make it any less sad.

Bombay Talkies(2013)(Hindi): Anthology film released earlier this year to celebrate 100 years on Indian cinema. It brought 4 contemporary directors together, each directing about 30 minute short about the way cinema influences our day-to-day lives. I LOVED one of the shorts, another one was really good as well. Didn't really cared for the third and fourth was actually good; I just didn't think it had much to do with what these films were supposed to do. I am hoping to write a regular post on it so you'll have to wait to find out which is which.

World War Z(2013): You might sense a little bit of theme here with a bunch films I saw this month that I had no initial interest in watching but I did because of strong word of mouth. First of all, I was really surprised how quickly it jumps into the whole shitstorm. Within first two minutes, zombie apocalypse has already begun and it keeps on going deeper and deeper. And it might the CGI but those zombies were running super-fast. Even though it was a little down-beat, I also admire the fact that it didn't end with the traditional ending.

This is the End(2013): I kind of do not believe I am saying this myself but I actually liked this film a lot more than I thought I would. Off course, I had zero expectations from it since I have no particular interest in anyone of those involved. I only saw it because I needed something lighter to see and this popped up in my mind. Surprisingly I found it quite hilarious despite all its stupidities! What I liked about it is it knows how ridiculous this whole thing is and never makes any attempt to hide it.

Madras Cafe(2013)(Hindi): I don't know why people did not like this film much. It's not great by any stretch of imagination and there were various departments of it that I would have liked to be more polished. It certainly could have been better but it worked well enough for me, maybe because I usually like political thrillers. The only real problem I have with the film is it starts off with the protagonist feeling he could have saved former PM and after watching it, I really have no idea what else he could have done.

Man of Steel(2013): Because of the involvement of two of my favourite people - Amy Adams and Christopher Nolan - I knew it was only a matter of when will I see it; never will I? For those two, I wanted to like it but unfortunately, I have to agree with the two most frequent complaints about it. One, it is too grim and I kind of don't see the reason for it. Second, it is far too long. Snyder really should have cut solid half hour of it, majority of it could have been from the final battle. 

Pacific Rim(2013): Despite hearing some pretty good comments about it, I did not have a lot of expectations about this film. From the trailers, it looked like more or less like a Michael Bay film. It was certainly more than that but I had few problems with it. I will admit that it was very entertaining, technically brilliant, no complaints there but I think there was not much in it besides that. There was nothing new about story, very predictable, it had all the typical characters you can ask for in such kind of movie, nothing special about acting. A Standard popcorn action entertainer. More here.

War of the Worlds(2005): Don't you feel like there is a little too much of happenstances going around in it? I mean, tripod keeps hitting just about 2 feet behind him in the entire sequence in its first appearance. They close the door just second after fire leaps in their room. I know it happens in every single film but wasn't this a little too much? Because the same thing kept on repeating over and over for whole two hours. How can any person be so damn lucky? And, yes!! I can recognize Morgan Freemon's voice.

Now You See Me(2013): I will freely admit that I wasn't one of those who easily guessed what was happening in it and could see he ending from afar but the reason wasn't because I was watching too closely. It was because I was tuned out of it way earlier than that. It was one of the 10 films I said I was most excited for at the start of the year and it could be the one I am most disappointed by of those 10. It looked something like The Prestige(2006) but extremely superficial script and sub-par acting killed it for me. 

Barry Lyndon(1975): Blind Spot entry for this month. I usually do not write about the movies I don't like. There is already a lot of negativity on the internet, I don't need to contribute my bit to it. The most I will do is here, in this post. When I decided to participate in the blind spot series at the start of this year, one of my concerns was this - what if I didn't like a film and have to write about it? For the first 10 months I somehow managed to avoid falling in that trap. However that streak has been broken. More here. 

Total Count: 18. 17 First Time Watches and 1 Re-watches .

2013 YTD Count

Total Count: 236. 216 First Time Watches and 20 Re-watches.

I started documenting my movie watching with these wrap up posts in February 2012. Since I have been doing this, this month is slowest of them but only by a couple of films. This is so for number of reasons I stated in the last wrap up post and I have every reason to believe this month wouldn't be much different. It wouldn't be one of the slowest though; if I plan properly I might be able to get to the usual pace of about 21 films. It all depends on how much time do I get on weekends!

When it comes to watching new releases, I was never the one to go to theater every week to catch them but I had a decent start to the year this time but my move back to India kind of messed up with my pace in the last 3 months or so. At he start of this month, I was at completely unacceptable 23 films for the year. I am hoping to reach at least somewhere around last year's tally of 70 films before doing the best of the year lists in early March. For that, I have to start early and play a little catch up with 2013 now. With clocking dozen 2013 films this month, I am hoping it will get me there eventually.

So, how was your month? Did you see anything interesting? What do you think of the movies I saw? Any favorites?

Catching up with 2013 Mini- Reviews: Part One

Before Midnight(2013): One of the best trilogies of our times is finally complete! Off course, we don't know if Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke will stop after this third installment. Hell, till this time last year I doubt if I knew there will be this third installment. I remember when the news broke that they are already working on this one, my first reaction was Why? Off course, I loved the first two and coming out of nowhere, this third movie seemed like nothing but a bad idea. Fortunately, Linklater-Delpy-Hawke trio proved everyone wrong. Not only did they prove everyone wrong, I guess now people will be much more receptive of any further installments if there are any. I ain't asking for them but I know I will be if they are up for it.

At the end of Before Sunset(2004), Jesse misses his plane and stays with Celine. Nine years after, they are not only still together but also have beautiful twin daughters. It opens with Jesse dropping his son, from his first wife, off at the airport. They are spending their summer somewhere in Greece at one of Jesse's writer friend's house. Once again, we spend a day of their life with them and once again we get plenty of long takes and beautiful conversations. As a matter of fact, I think I can make a strong case for the dinner table scene as not only the best scene of the whole trilogy but even one of the best ever. Delpy's bimbo herself would win half the battle. And then there is Natalia's story to cap it off. The only difference is this time, having spent nine years together, their whirlwind, perfect romance is through it's spring and is moving more towards its autumn. Conversations here are more about how the other one is suffocating them in this relationship. Sometimes it is just a cordial nudging, teasing while at one point it even transforms into full-blown storm. 

It's obviously hard to see what many of us perceive as the ideal, almost ethereal romance going through these very earthly phases but, if truth be told, I like the fact that they dared to go there. And not only did they go there but they did it convincingly. Sure we can go on playing the blame game, which as a matter of fact both Celine and Jesse do plenty of, but what I liked about it is it exposes both the sides. On many occasions, I found myself leaning back and forth during their fight. And in the end we have a glimmer of hope that maybe, just maybe, if we get another film, they are still together. I really, really hope they are!
Rating(out of 5):

Pacific Rim(2013): Yet another film that I had my doubts about when I first heard about it. I will be honest; from the trailer it looked like another Michael Bay vehicle with all the technology and showiness and not much anything else. Sure, it had Del Toro at the helm but you never know. Well, it was definitely better than that. I like the fact that it tries to go against the norm. For starters, Kaijus come from underground; not the biggest of the difference but hey, nobody thought of that before. Their first strike comes down at San Francisco. Once again, it is still in US but at least not New York and when was the last time someone mentioned Manilla in a disaster film? I was happy for all that but unfortunately, that ends here. 

Everything later on is pretty generic. It sets up the whole film in first 5 minutes with most generic voice over narration. As a typical disaster film, it gets over emotional at the end trying to make a big statement. It has all the typical characters, follows certain pattern and even overthrows logic for making a spectacle of it all. But fortunately, despite all that, it isn’t a crappy film. Even if it is just a spectacle, it is a good spectacle. Actually, it is a good action film. Technology used is brilliant, visuals are stunning, fights are amazing and both Kaijus and Jaegers are designed with great care eye for the detail. There is almost no dull moment in the film and as the movie progresses, even though very predictable and unnecessarily emotional, fights only get bigger and bigger in scale. Even though none of the actors was bad, I don't think they had much to do here. I remember Rinko Kikuchi being the big deal at the time of its release. She is quite good as well but except for the fact that she was a woman who had something to do other than being a love interest, I didn't think there was anything different to her character than all the others in the movie. Overall, I think Pacific Rim was worth watching for its technical feat but on the narrative side, it definitely could have been much better.
Rating(out of 5):

Stories We Tell(2013): I have been a fan of Sarah Polley’s work for a few years now. In the early months of this blog, I watched The Sweet Hereafter(1997) which affected me dearly. In fact, it was the first ever review I wrote. Ian Holm’s harrowing portrait of this guilt ridden lawyer was certainly the main reason for it but Polley’s Nicole, the only survivor of the accident, made quite an impression on me. Then Away From Her(2006), which believe it or not also introduced me to wonderful Julie Christy, and last year’s Take This Waltz(2012) further cemented her position. But even then I don’t think I ever expected something like this from her. Well, I didn’t expect something like this from anyone but here I am. Not only watching it but also writing about it.

Since it made its first screening in last year’s TIFF, Stories We Tell has been on my radar. I have tried to keep my distance but despite my best effort, I was exposed to certain facts about it prior to watching it. [SPOILER ALERT] I knew it revealed that Michael Polley is not her biological father. It even told who is her real father[SPOILER END]. So I thought I would be ready for it when it comes. To my utter surprise, it still sneaked up on me and even more surprisingly; this prior knowledge did not ruin the whole thing for me. What I did feel throughout the film but some sort of voyeuristic guilt, like watching something I am not supposed to and despite knowing that full well, can't take my eyes off because it is so fascinating. I still can’t believe she made a film out of something so personal and here is the whole family talking so candidly about it. Candidly! That’s a word of prime importance here as, despite everything, none of the family seems to be engaging much in the blame game. I am sure there are many families with similar stories out there but what impressed me the most about this documentary was the maturity with which this family handles the whole situation and how Polley presents it exploring every facet of the story.

This whole story is about perspectives. Like Rashomon(1950), this film is trying to tell us how the story changes according to who is telling the story? what are his affiliations and motives to be involved in this story? As Polley says towards end that to get the whole story, she felt it necessary to include everyone that played part in this story or was affected by it. It’s fascinating to watch every person associated with the story has his own version of it. At the end, it drags a bit longer than necessary but other than that I don't believe there are many films that made me think about so many things before.

Rating(out of 5): 

Take This Waltz

Over the last month or so, there was a lot of talk about Sarah Polley's latest movie Take This Waltz(2012) finally getting its theatrical release here. I find it strange that before getting into theaters, somehow it made onto 'On-Demand' television first, but whatever - it finally got there, after hearing about it for almost a year. I call myself Sarah Polley's Fan ever since I saw her first in Atom Egoyan's brilliant The Sweet Hereafter(1998) more than a year ago. This impending release also gave me that final push to check her first directorial effort Away From Her(2006) that I have been meaning to see as well and off course did nothing other than increase my admiration for her. So, I did go into this one with little bit of anticipation.

Take This Waltz is a story of Margot who is a wannabe writer and as we find out in very first scene, she hates connections of flights, she is afraid of being afraid, being stuck in an unknown place. She is married to Lou who is a cook. He is writing a cooking book and he tries the recipes he wants to include in the book on his family in their lunches together. When she meets Daniel on an airplane, there is an awkward but instant chemistry between them. When they both get down at airport and decide to share a taxi, they both find out that they are actually live right across the street from each other. Daniel is artist who paints but never shows his work to anybody and he pulls a rickshaw to pay his rent. Margot and Lou have a great family, very real and normal people except Lou's sister Geraldine who is a recovering alcoholic but she seems to be doing fine and is also very good friends with Margot. They seem to be happy together, at least on the outside but there is something missing between them, they seem to lack that spark in a relationship that usually keeps it going. Their interaction with each other is rather childish most of the times, either that or almost non-existent. I understand that after spending 5 years that Margot and Lou have spent together, almost every couple develops their own language that only they can understand. However, it is almost like they are being childish because that is only way they both can keep the conversation going. After spending 5 years together, after that so-called honeymoon period of their marriage behind them, they both seem to struggle with the idea of taking their relationship further from that point. In one scene in the movie when Margot and Lou go out for dinner on their anniversary, they seem to be at complete loss of even making a small-talk and when Margot tries it, Lou discards her completely.

With Daniel around, Margot starts to feel all those things that are basically missing in her marriage. Even Daniel seems to be into her, despite of knowing she is married. She tries to keep him away because she is in a happy relationship but never seems to get him out of her mind completely as she keeps returning to him. Margot is kind of person who is never exactly sure of herself and this fickle-mindedness perpetrates into everything. There seems to be something wrong with Margot as she is mostly not in the moment, especially in intimate moments with her husband. One minute she is afraid, next she is laughing and again in next minute she looks to be in despair and all this happens without any outside interference. As Luke Kirby's character puts it she seems restless in a permanent way. On one hand, she is uncomfortable getting out of her seemingly perfect marriage but on the other, she is waiting on her porch at 6AM just to see him leave. But with apparent staleness in her marriage, there is not much that can hold her back and it seems that their marriage is in real trouble now. But things happen in a way that you are not sure which one is cause and which is an effect and you don't really know if and who to blame. However, right here with not much working for Lou and Margot, Sarah Polley gives us a beautiful scene where Lou confesses that he was the one throwing cold water on her and not the faulty shower. If I had any real problem with the film, it was last 15 or so minutes were quite redundant. I agree that it brings it the whole circle proving main point of story - "New Becomes Old", but even then I believe it could have been, probably even more effectively without them.

Take This Waltz is one of those movies where I have seen the most divided opinion. In my opinion, it is basically because Margot, Lou or even Daniel are very normal characters and it is easily possible that anyone of us can find ourselves in Lou or Margot's position. And from there, the way you will react to this movie will probably come down to your own take of morality. I don't think it is a good idea to judge the characters this way but in this case I will give credit to Sarah Polley's writing and direction for making us do that. Actually, there are quite a few things that I will give Sarah Polley credit for. I loved the way this movie is shot in general, specifically I loved use of so many vibrant colors, use of Toronto and summer almost as characters in movie and also Margot and Daniel underwater. Also, scene immediately after that when she comes home and is sitting in kitchen and Lou is in the porch outside is shot really beautifully especially because the contrast in the background sound. In kitchen, there is soft, upbeat romantic song whereas sound of crickets on the outside and it keeps switching between the two. I am not really big on English music in general but somehow I noticed her choice of songs in this. I do not know any of those songs but they felt like perfect fit for that moment throughout the movie. Even though whole movie focuses on emotional journey of three leads, it didn't become overbearing or extremely slow in its pacing. Once it is established that Margot and Daniel are attracted to each other and the fact that she is married doesn't bother him much and despite being a little unhappy in her marriage, she doesn't want to cheat on her husband, it seemed to linger a bit. But, it does move forward albeit slowly with the introduction of Daniel and Lou to each other.

Second Lady that makes this movie work is Michelle Williams as our leading lady Margot. Her reaction when she finds out that Daniel lives right across her house and to their long term joke is pure gold. I know that almost everyone has said this already but it is really amazing the way Michelle Williams has become one of the best, if not THE best, actresses working today over last few years. With back to back Oscar nominations in last two years and bunch of other great roles, she seems to do nothing wrong. I pretty much hated Luke Kirby's character, incessantly lurking around her, proverbially trying to seduce her even though he knows she is married but that is completely my opinion and I won't take anything away from Luke Kirby for that. Seth Rogen was great in his role, more so because I never thought he had it in him. So, I am happy to be proven wrong. Sarah Silvermann is great as well. Take This Waltz is very frank, very different look at relationships. If nothing else, give it a try for two of the finest ladies in the industry, Sarah Polley and Michelle Williams.

Rating(out of 5):

Wrapping it Up: July

Month with quite a few firsts - I wrote about my very first Russian movie experience and inadvertently I saw one more this month, then my very first Bollywood Essentials post - hopefully there will be more to come soon and then finally, I got down to write about Audrey Hepburn which I have been meaning to do for little while now. But that's mostly what's been going around here, on site. Let's get into what I saw in July.

JULY

My Cousin Vinny(1992)(Rewatch): I was actually watching an Indian remake of this and it reminded me that I haven't seen it in a long time. I just love this movie. Joe Pesci is at his snappy brilliant self in it and don't even get me started on Marisa Tomei, just flawless - the way she talks, she walks, her body-language, her face expressions and most notably, her in witness box.

The Children's Hour(1961): This film is criminally overlooked whenever someone talks about Audrey Hepburn's career and just to do my part for it, I wrote a full review of it here. Combined with Shirley MacLaine, Audrey Hepburn gives a fine performance in this one. William Wyler certainly saw an actress behind that pretty face. 

Funny Face(1957): Anyone who complains that Bollywood movies break out into random dance and music sequences should see this. This is so Bollywood and so 60's and I certainly do not mean it as a compliment. It was all rather stupid and cartoonish, and worst part was it felt like it is done in all seriousness. However, I think Audrey Hepburn might have looked most beautiful I have seen her in this.

Airplanes II: The Sequel(1982): I usually avoid any of these spoof movies because of very few I have seen, I pretty much hate every one of them Except Hot Shots!(1991) and Hot Shots: Part Deux(1993). Generally in an attempt to make them funny, I feel like they are utterly unfunny, boring and just plain ridiculous. In first few minutes, this felt like another movie in line. However, as I caught some of the references to Star Wars and 2001 etc., it caught my attention. Mind you, I am not giving it any favorable opinion, I just didn't hate it as I thought I would.

The Amazing Spider-Man(2012): I probably won't call it amazing but it still was pretty good. First of all, I really like Andrew Garfield in this role and I loved how they set up the everything. Emma Stone has a very small part but off course she is good as well. Chemistry between their characters is probably the best part of the movie. However, It isn't without its flaws. One thing that I will mention is I distinctly remember couple of dialogues between Stone and Garfield from the trailer that aren't in movie and that is just stupid. Others can be considered spoilers. So, I will not get into it here. But still pretty good.

A Room with A View(1985): Helena Bonham Carter looked super adorable in her very first role on screen in it. Otherwise very conventional English Rom-Com, even a little too English if you know what I mean. I had a foolish grin on my face almost throughout though and Daniel Day-Lewis, very early in his career was interesting as well.

Wait Until Dark(1967): Meet World's Champion Blind Lady - Audrey Hepburn as recently blinded Lady as 3 thugs try to take advantage of her blindness and steal a doll full of drugs from her house. This has to be one of the best performances of Audrey Hepburn's career. Even Alan Arkin was brilliant and almost unrecognizable with hair on his head in this. 

The Birds(1963): Right from the word go, this film took a grip on me. Even those titles left an impression on me. Hitchcock masterfully develops a lot of tension in first hour or so with that lingering feeling that something is just about to happen and once those bird attacks start, it just goes to another level. I usually don't get scared easily, even when watching a horror movie but this movie just scared me shitless.

The Raid: Redemption(2012): For first half hour or so, I was really underwhelmed by what I was seeing. I have seen quite a few Asian action or slasher movies and hence didn't think I was watching anything extraordinary. However, in the next one and half hour The Raid: Redemption more than redeemed itself, especially because it goes to a completely another level after hand-to-hand combats started. It really is one of the best action movies I have seen, even more so because it pretty much never goes over the top. 

L'eclisse(1962): Monica Vitti and Alain Delon make a really handsome couple. For the first time in Antonini's trilogy, it's a woman that is facing alienation and aloofness though Vittoria here is much more likable character than his previous two leads. My only problem with it really was last seven minutes, apparently filled with references and allegories which I have no idea of, that ending confused me a little. 

Enter The Void(2009): I was kinda dreading to sit down and watch it especially since Alex included it this list. Though I agree that I will probably not watch it again as well, at least not for quite a while, it isn't because I can't watch it again. It will be because I don't think the pain is worth gain as I am not really impressed by it and surprisingly I wasn't even overly depressed either. It took me little while to understand few things which made it 'Mehh' for me while watching e.g. I realised that he was trying to show that Oscar follows the same path discussed in 'Book of the Dead' that he is reading, while making dinner that night.

Porco Rosso(1992): This hardly ever happens. Very rarely you will see me complain about Miyazaki film but I was a little underwhelmed by this especially because of the ending felt a little loose to me. There still was usual Ghibli warmth in it but there movies do little more than just entertain viewer. Sadly, I did not see that spark here.

Cache(2005): It seems that Mr. Haneke really isn't interested in giving us any answers. Just like Code Unkonwn(2000) we only get questions but no answers. I will love to know who was doing it and why ? How did Georges make that connection ? But it was a fascinating story, it didn't leave me frustrated like Code Unkonwn(2000) and at one point I really gasped out loud, I am sure anyone who has seen this movie knows what I am talking about.

Casino Royale(2006)(Re-Watch): An attempt to school my room-mates. In my opinion, it is best Bond movie made yet, certainly best of what I have seen. Maybe, it isn't what you would expect from a Bond movie, but that is precisely what I like about it. For the first time, James Bond is vulnerable, much more human and Bond Girl has presence and much more to do than look pretty and sexy.

The Double Hour(2009): It might be my own fault that I was expecting more from this. After the twist in the middle that took me off-guard, I kept waiting for it to pick up and explode at some point and it never did, it just kept going at its own pace till the very end. It is not a completely bad thing either as whatever does happen on screen is still quite a story but I was expecting something different or at least something more.

City Lights(1931): With this, the honor of Highest Ranked movie in IMDb Top 250 that I haven't seen goes to M. It was such a heart-warming movie, I instantly loved it. What worked most for me was it is a perfect combination of story, emotions, drama and Tramp's usual shenanigans. His boxing match had me in splits whereas that last scene almost made me cry. Such a beautiful and timeless treasure !! 

The Dark Knight Rises(2012): History is my witness that I never understood Christopher Nolan movies completely on their first watch. I probably shouldn't admit it but this one isn't any different. Having said that, this was everything I expected it to be - it is grand, dark, epic, perfect conclusion to what now is most certainly Best Superhero story of all time. However, what makes me most happy is Anne Hathaway did a great job. I do have few problem which I am sure subsequent viewings will make clear. For now, I firmly stand in Camp Nolan !! My Full Review here.  

Dogtooth(2009): I am little uncertain as to how do I say this properly. For some reason, I didn't feel like it was very difficult to watch but it was truly disturbing experience. Much like Festen(1998). I do not think that I will ever get that image of their brother 'checking his own sisters out' image out of my head. But, I felt kinda cheated by the end.

Contempt(1963): May be it is just me but more Godard I see, more I feel like he is trying to hard for us to take him seriously. After Breathless(1960) last month, even this is actually very good movie but it feels like he is purposely trying to be more obscure. Whatever he was trying to say, I am sure could have been said equally effectively but with much more accessibility. At least I don't think purposely making a movie inaccessible can be considered a good thing.

Dersu Uzala(1975): If I didn't know, I wouldn't have guessed that it's an Akira Kurosawa movie. It is nothing like any other Kurosawa movie I have seen. First of all, of dozen or so of his movies, I have never seen a word spoken in language other than Japanese and here, this whole movie is in Russian. Even look and feel of it is much more like Doctor Zhivago(1965) or Lawrence of Arabia(1962). But, that doesn't mean it is an inferior piece of art by any definition possible. It's a devastatingly beautiful portrayal of a purest of a soul which touches your heart somewhere deep down.

Cleopatra(1963): I am pretty much sucker for History and then with Elizabeth Taylor, I would have been down for anything. But more than anything I wanted to see this because I am not really sure if Cleopatra should be considered a heroin or a vamp. I really do not know the historical accuracy of this. However real problem is 243 minutes and glorious Liz Taylor performance after, I am still not. 

Take This Waltz(2012): I have been meaning to see it for couple of months now and I finally got a chance to see it this month. I will have a full review soon but to give you a glimpse of it, even though I have few reservations I really liked it especially because of the 2 ladies for whom I wanted to watch this movie - Sarah Polley and Michelle Williams. Both have done a great job in their respective departments.

Dirty Harry(1971): For a serial killer movie, it actually felt much straight forward. Even the killer wasn't really formidable and Clint Eastwood was, well, Clint Eastwood. But even then it somehow works because I think for some reason it isn't trying to be intelligent, it is just being cool and suave and it is just that. Even without getting into now cult status of character, actor or movie, I can still say I loved it for just that. I just want to watch it once and count how many bullets he shot from his .44 Magnum.

The Iron Giant(1999): With every traditionally animated movie I see, I become more and more pro-2D animation than 3D animation. These traditionally animated characters feel much more human to me even though they do not have that finesse of 3D characters. As for the movie, I would have liked it much more if not for the last 15-20 minutes which went bit too far in my opinion but until then, it was nice.

Earrings(2012)(short): I have been hearing, talking, reading about this film since I started following Alex's blog probably around a year ago. Believe it or not, I was pretty stocked to see it and I KNOW for a fact that I wasn't the only one. It isn't often that a guy you actually know has a film coming, Right? Those who follow him, we all knew how much time, energy and effort he put into it, we knew what this movie meant to him and to tell you the truth, it is everything we expected. If you haven't seen it yet, I urge you to see it here. DO NOT leave without leaving comment on his post - We need more like this from him.

L'illusioniste(2010): Rather sad, almost silent but brilliant and heartfelt animated movie that was nominated for Oscar in 2010 for Best Animated Feature Film. Our magician who wouldn't get big shows and doesn't want to do odd jobs because he doesn't think that is dignified, as well as his side story with the girl was told really beautifully.

Drugstore Cowboy(1989): To tell you the truth, this is pretty good movie. I never thought I will say this but Matt Dillon has done a great job in this and even his whole arc in story was well designed. But for some reason, I was left cold by the end and I have no idea why? As I said, I don't think it is a bad movie but I don't have anything more to say on it. Maybe next time I see it, I might have something more to say.

Viridiana(1961): Have you ever hated every single character of a movie and still think that particular movie is brilliant. I just did !! I can certainly understand Spanish government's prompt ban on it, because even I was fuming by the end, as it comments very harshly on poverty, misery and religion in post-civil war Spain under General Franco's reign and still think it was more than worthy of winning Palme d'Or because brilliance of Bunuel lies in highlighting that stark contrast between start and end.

Total Count:28. 26 First Time Watches and 2 Re-watches.

2012 YTD Count

Total Count:182. 172 First Time Watches and 10 Re-watches.

So I reached double figure in re-watches this year. That's good. 28 movies this month that is even better. Usual division comes up to 13 Classics, 15 new and 11 Foreign, 17 English movies. That is good too. But you know, my favorite part this month was catching up 4 movies from this year, 2012. That is as many 2012 movies as I have seen in first 6 months and on top of that 3 of them were in theater. So, that's one thing accomplished from last month. I also went on little binge of few serials I wanted to see. After finishing up The Wire in June, I started with The Sopranos and I have gone through 4 seasons now, 5th to start soon. I also gave in to Twin Peaks this month but I am largely regretting that decision as it went from weird - intriguing - strange - laughing with it - laughing AT it - are you serious!! - shoot me, already!! stages and I still have around 10 more episodes to go(So, remember to pray for me !!). 

As for the next month, I don't think I am going to try anything different this month, just take every day as it comes. I have few things to write in mind and my movie watching this month mostly will be so as to make it possible.

So, how was your month ? Did you see anything interesting ? What do you think of the movies I saw ? Any favorites ?