Wrapping it Up: April

Another month, another wrap-up post full of this month's viewings. Again I have clocked 21 movies in a month. Third time this year. I am feeling like I am unconsciously doing it on purpose. I am not really, I try to watch them whenever I can but I guess, I've eased into this routine now. If you remember, I promised to watch movies from 1001 movies list only this month. Scroll down to see how did I do?

April

Do Bigha Zamin(1953)(Hindi): One of the most iconic films by certainly the most iconic Hindi film director of all time and the oldest Bollywood Essential I have written about. After finally watching this movie from start to end for the first time, I feel like calling it Father India - most of melodrama in it or at least first half of Mother India(1957). More about it here.

Four Lions(2010): I remember hearing a lot about it the year it was released. It even made the '1001 Movies' list that year but I guess it lost the steam pretty quick and was left out the very next year. I don't know what the exact reactions were that year but I imagine it must have offended a lot of people. There is a lot of material that is indeed extremely offensive but what can I say, I loved it!! It's ridiculous but is extremely well played, hilarious and more often than not very to the point. It's like I feel bad for laughing on these jokes but can't help myself laughing.

Three Kings(1999): After writing a movie blog for nearly two years now, you would expect I'll be able to say why I like certain movie, right? I am sorry but you are wrong. I am still kind of confused as to why I like this movie. Like I said here, there are so many things in this movie that ideally should not work or do not work in many other cases but somehow despite them all, I still think I like this movie. I did my best to try and explain in the post above.

Mulholland Drive(2001): Naomi Watts could easily go into one of my favourite performances of all time. She was absolutely fantastic in it. As for the film; for someone who has pretty much hated everything made by David Lynch, or everything I have seen that he made, this was quite a surprise. It took me some time to really understand it properly but even if I didn't, I would have agreed that it is a good film. It is an intelligently made mystery film which makes you think and even that is enough for me to like it.

Dear Zachery(2008): I had heard a lot about this documentary, especially how emotionally drenched it is. I wasn't a wreck after watching it; thankfully, I was able to hold my own but otherwise, every word I heard was true. It is shocking, terrifying sequence of events that nobody should have to go through but extremely laudable effort to help a child know his father that he'll never see. If not for the way it ends, I can not think of a better present for any kid.

Kes(1969): I never had very high opinion of The 400 Blows(1959) and I realize that these two films aren't exactly same but I think what they are trying to do is very much similar. Kes succeeded in doing everything that the former didn't to me. Basically I cared for Billy, who was played brilliantly by David Bradley, from very early in the movie. His teachers, his family and friends were terrible to him but I guess, that was a part of his allure. His eagle and all the shots featuring him were glorious but it was that ending that really killed me.

 




Blow-Up(1966): My first introduction to Blow-up was through the Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron(1983) tribute to the event that gives this movie its name. I loved that it seamlessly shifts its focus a couple of times with Vanessa Redgrave's entry and exit. While I thought that segment of the movie was really interesting and intriguing, there were many things in the movie I struggled to comprehend like I didn't understand what did the side story of painter and his wife was for? Overall, I like it but it is still a little all over the place.

Sideways(2004): This month's Blind Spot. With the help of his last two films that I saw, Alexander Payne is becoming one of the directors I really look forward to. This movie came very highly recommended from multiple sources and I have been meaning to check it out for a long time. As I said in this post, I like this movie. It is not Payne's best work but it is good enough to spend couple of hours on it. I just wish I didn't go into with so sky-high expectations that despite liking it, I feel disappointed by it.

The Wedding Banquet(1993): Ang Lee's second film, even before he made Sense and Sensibility(1995), which was kind of his introduction to the western world. When I put it on, only reason I did it was because it is in the '1001 Movies' list and was expiring on Netflix at the end of this month. By the end, I was really glad I did. It is nothing extraordinary but very honest, heartfelt as well as fun story. I really enjoyed the first half and even in the second half when things turn quite serious, it managed to surprise me with its heart. I really am glad I saw it.

Dr. No(1962): First ever Bond film and also one of the better Bond films I have seen. Given that what I have seen is mostly Brosnan onwards Bond, it probably wouldn't matter much but still, it's a good film. It has a good villain, Ursula Andress and Bond has decent mission which incidentally comes with something like script. Only thing it lacked was his gadgets and little less action but if you look at Goldfinger below, that turned out to be blessing in disguise.

Thirst(2009): I have seen a bunch of Korean movies and almost every single one of them contains crazy amounts of blood and gore. I had to get it out before saying that this is the craziest Korean movie I have seen so far to give you the idea of how crazy it really is. Chan-Wook Park's vampire drama is probably second only in craziness and the amount of blood and violence we see on screen to another one of Park's own movies - Oldboy(2003). Ok-bin Kim's Tae-Ju, however could easily be my favourite performance in Korean film.

One, Two, Three(1961): Billy Wilder's follow-up to the brilliant The Apartment(1960), which he all won a bunch of Oscars for and incidentally which can also be argued as his last great film. Considering it is a Wilder film, it felt a little too loud in acting and in dialogue delivery but Wilder's words are as sharp as ever, as funny and as effective as well. He wins it all with his script but I still think it could have been much better, if they dialed it down a bit in their dialogues.

Waiting for Superman(2010): I often find it very hard to comment on or rate documentaries that talk about social issues or on broader level, are about changing the system. Another one of my pet peeves is finding a fault in system, without giving a solution. Even though this documentary avoided these pit-falls, criticizing such a vast system based on a small sample set. Does the system needs improvements? Sure. Can they be implemented on that vast level? has to be the question to be answered.

Fight Club(1999)(Re-watch): After watching it a couple of years ago for the first time, I was kind of surprised by my reaction. Given a reputation of this movie, I really wasn't expecting that I'll hate it and yet I did. This month, when I decided to do Fincher's profile, I wanted to see it again before putting it on the paper and getting all the shot about it. I did and even though it worked much better this time around, I am still not in love with it. I don't even think it is one of Fincher's best.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button(2008)(Re-watch): Another one I wanted to watch again before saying anything in this post because I remember watching it about 4 years ago and never since then. Like Fight Club, I did not hate it the first time but wasn't much into it either. Second time confirmed my reaction. I like the topic, I even like his aging process from technical point of view but it is too long and even slower for its length.

The Kid with a Bike(2012): From point of view of cinema as an art, I appreciate this movie, even like it. From personal standpoint, there are some things that I like in this film but I hated that kid within the first five minutes. So much that I was completely indifferent to whatever happens to him in the end. Even though it makes me a bad person, it did not move me because I usually have a problem appreciating any film where I really don't care about the protagonist.

Natanki Saala(2013)(Hindi): I haven't watched a single English movie released this year yet but this is my third Hindi movie of 2013 and surprisingly none of them are really trash. Yeah, they aren't gems either but at the start of the year, we don't expect many quality films, do we? For me, this movie had more vices than virtues. Virtues include lead actor and his rapport with supporting one. Everything else could have been better.

Goldfinger(1964): I think I can understand why this is considered as one of the best Bond films. It has a great villain with equally good sidekick, Bond girls are great with Pussy Galore being one of the best, his gadgets(is it the first movie that Aston Martin makes appearance in?) and Bond's adventure actually is intense. However watching it now, it really shows it's age. Even more so for for an action movie as action sequences feel really dated now. You can see punches are nowhere close to the person and he still drops dead.

In the Loop(2009): Another movie that was in '1001 Movies' list for one year and was taken out immediately. But since I am including such movies as well, it was on my list and after loving Four Lions, I thought this would be a good choice as well. Unfortunately, I was wrong since most of the humour really did not work for me. A lot of characters were really stupid, annoying and very unnatural. When it comes to comedy, I've learned that there is nothing right or wrong. Some things work for you and some just don't and this one really didn't.

Godzilla(1998): You know a Rolland Emmerich movie when you see it, right? Well, unless you are watching Anonymous(2012). Knowing what to expect from his movies, in a typical Emmerich fashion, I think Godzilla more or less delivers. It is a fun movie that you should enjoy or rather you can harmlessly enjoy. If you start talking about weak script and uninspired, cheesy and illogical turns story takes, you are looking at the wrong place. Well, he didn't exactly claim to be Chris Nolan, did he? 

Dead Man(1995): Oh God! My very first Jim Jarmusch film turned out to be quite an ordeal to even get through. By now, I am sure we are all used to see Johnny Depp in all strange roles but I am really not used to see him as the most sane person surrounding all the other crazy ones that did not make a lick of sense and it wasn't just the way characters were portrayed that didn't appeal to me. The problem was absolutely nothing, nothing made any sense to me.

Total Count: 21. 19 First Time Watches and 2 Re-watch .

2013 YTD Count

Total Count: 85. 79 First Time Watches and 6 Re-watches.

So till about 20th of the month, I kept my promise of watching movies from the list only. Even my re-watches were on the list, haha. Then, as it invariably happens and as I forecasted in the last post, Netflix came in way by announcing to retire more than half a dozen movies from my queue off their instant service. Now there is a reason they are in my queue and that is I want to watch them at some point of time. So if they are about to retire, I can't just abandon them all. That'll be so cruel(?). So I had to abandon my plans and get them done by the end of month. So, 13 from the list this month isn't that bad and I hope to continue it going into the next month. However I do have one more urgent thing I need to take care of. I still haven't seen a single 2013 Hollywood movie. I HAVE to fix this this month. Looking at you, Iron Man 3(2013).

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

April Blind Spot: Sideways(2004)

I needed something recent this month to satisfy by idiosyncrasies of the list making that I talked about in the last post and though I have strayed a bit from it already, preferably something from the '1001 Movies' to comply with my idea of watching movies from the list all month. Considering all these boundaries I've put on myself, I think I only had one choice - Alexander Payne's Sideways(2004), a movie I have been meaning to watch for almost a year based on countless recommendations it has received. 

First and foremost, what makes this a Blind Spot movie? In other words, why is this film essential?

In all honesty, there is only one reason - Alexander Payne. Alexander Payne really impressed me with The Descendants(2011) and even more so with Election(1999) which I saw afterwards. When I wanted to include one of the recent movies in this year’s list, Sideways was the first one that came to my mind because I’ve heard so much about this movie. It is considered as one of the best movies made in recent years. Almost every list includes it as one of the best of the decade. It is one of the few movies of the recent years that are equally lauded by critics as well as masses and still unseen by me. I guess that is what this Blind Spot series is for – to knock off such titles.

So, what is the story about?

Jack and Miles have been friends since their freshman year in college. Now they are both leaning towards middle age and Jack is about to get married. Before he does, these two best friends set out for a week to have a good time. Miles, who has been a long time wine enthusiast, takes his friend to the wine country in California where plan is to hit different vineyards tasting fine wine, play some golf and send Jack off to his married life. Jack however has his own plan. He desperately wants to have one last fling before getting married. Miles and Jack, despite being best friends, are very different people. Miles is a middle school English teacher and struggling writer who is trying to get published. He is divorced and is fighting with depression ever since. Jack is an actor though not much successful. Some people recognize him but most won't. However, more importantly, he is happy-go-lucky kind of person who just goes from one mistake to another. He is like a small child in many ways who has to have a certain toy regardless of everything else.

Miles is a kind of known face in wine country and has many friends and acquaintances there, one of which is Maya. Maya is a hotel waitress they meet on the first day and Jack immediately fancies her but it looks like she is more interested in Miles. In one of the wineries they also meet Stephanie, who is more adventurous kind, more like Jack’s type. Jack and Stephanie hit it off immediately and in a typical fashion, he just doesn’t get where to stop. Jack gets his fling and as you would expect, Miles and Maya struggle though eventually find some common ground to connect to each other. However Jack’s impending nuptial, which they have kept secret from their female friends, plays its part in both their relationships. In a typical Alexander Payne style, it is much more interested in progression of the characters in a limited space than story and once again he succeeds in making audience care for them, even at their worst, with his pen.

What did I think of it? What did I like the most about it and what didn't I like?

Like any other Payne movie, its characters and the way he portrays them in his screenplay is by far the best thing about Sideways and is underlined by his Oscar win. It is very typical of him to have characters that talk and walk and behave like normal, real people we see every day around us like Shailene Woodley’s Alex or to take a clown of a character who you would think has nothing more to do than give us something to laugh at and then give him such an amazing depth like Sid in The Descendants. Thomas Haden Church and his Jack fit into that definition too. He is very easy to just call a terrible person and hate based on sheer stupidity of his actions in movie but Payne gives his character much more depth that makes it difficult to just brush off as one-dimensional. However, I think Maya here is that typical Payne character. Very natural, very real in her acting, someone that probably will not catch your eye the first time you see her but Payne brings her out so well and Virginia Madsen who stamped it with an Oscar nod. Paul Giamatti who is at the center of it all is obviously superb in it and deserves a lot of credit for it. He and Maya talking about Pinot sitting in Stephanie’s porch was my favourite scene of the movie that showcases everything that is good about this movie.

Another notable thing about Sideways is its humour. It’s different from what we are used to, very subtle and mostly comes from the situations characters find themselves in. There are many elements in it, especially concerning Jack and all his adventures that would make it an adult comedy but it never makes any crass jokes about any of them. Plus all the talk about wine was interesting. I don't understand anything about it; I don't even drink but the passion with which they talk about it, especially Paul Giamatti, was intriguing  Overall, I liked it. It is not Payne’s best work, I still think that is Election but I don’t have anything particularly negative to say about it. My only complaint is despite everything I liked about this movie, I still have a lingering feeling of disappointment somewhere. It might just be that I had lot more expectations from it after all the praise I heard of it but in all fairness, that is not something I shall hold against it. I’ll try not to.

After having seen it, do I agree with its 'essential' status? And why?

This is where I kind of struggle to articulate an exact response of how I feel about it. From whatever I have written above, it should be ample clear that I like this film. Yes, I don’t think it is Payne’s best work but that is more of a compliment to his resume than a dig against Sideways. However, I don’t think I have got enough from this film to justify this essential status. Reason I am faltering to substantiate this is there is no checklist in my mind to qualify for such a tag, it is all very subjective. There is also personal tendency of mine not to call many recent films essentials or classics. There are likes of The Dark Knight(2008) or There Will be Blood(2007) that I will not hesitate a heartbeat to put into that category but it definitely doesn’t reach that status for me; it didn’t even clear ‘one of the best of the decade’ bar for me. It is a good movie that I will definitely recommend to others but unfortunately I don’t think that qualifies it to be an ‘essential’ film in your film knowledge.

Does it open few new doors for me? Does this inspire to watch any other movies?

Once again, it is more about wrapping the things up than opening new avenues. Since I saw The Descendants in theater last year, I have been meaning to get more of Alexander Payne and with Sideways, I have pretty much seen all of his feature films except The Passion of Martin(1991), which actually I haven't even heard of anywhere. He was someone I was looking forward to watch more of and I have to say that he has never disappointed me yet. His subtle humour, very real and easily relatable characters and his screenplays have always fascinated me. I might even try and find this last one just so I can get to profile.