Archive for the ‘Cinema/Tele’ Category
Aamir Khan Issue: Let’s look it from Brand Point of View
So Aamir Khan is no longer a face of Incredible India Brand Building Campaign. Media debates and public discourse followed. Diverse views of vendetta and course correction were put forward. Let’s look at this decision from the brand point of view.
Aamir is promoting India as a tourist friendly country to get more and more people to visit India. And when he discusses how his wife wanted to leave India due to intolerance and he too feels despondency in the air, what it does to the brand India? Tourists would be like, “Dude the brand ambassador of India himself does not feel safe in India, to hell with going there. Let’s party in Ibiza”.
Won’t a responsible CEO pull up the ads and replace the brand ambassador to save the brand? This is what exactly Indian Govt. has done. When Aamir did the movie PK, and if he went on air and said, “I felt I should not have done PK. is the most pathetic movie ever made. Waste of time, don’t watch it”, wouldn’t it had affected the movie? Of course it would have. Wouldn’t the producer pull away Aamir from movie promotions?
What if Aamir had said, Coco Cola is a pesticide disguised as a soft drink, wouldn’t he have been replaced and contract scrapped. He might also have been sued by the company. If tomorrow I publicly badmouth the firm I work at, would I not be pulled up and subjected to disciplinary action. Does it really infringe my freedom of speech? Those who sympathize with Aamir and berate the Govt, try badmouthing your employer. Scared? You should be.
Aamir Khan is doing Incredible India for free. And here lies the problem. When you do something for free, you don’t have anything to lose. Had it been a 10cr/year contract, he would have thought 10 times before damaging the brand. He would fear losing the contract. I don’t blame him, we all are like that.
I would suggest Govt whoever they choose as the brand ambassador, either pay him/she well or if they refuse to be paid, ask them to sign a contract which mentions that their actions in any way should not demean the brand India.
To Aamir: Terror has no Religion & Intolerants have no Nation
Aamir Sir, when some people started lambasting you for the intolerance remarks, I stood up for you. You, whose movies I have loved, laughed and cried with. I would have stood up for all my childhood superstars be it Akshay, Shahrukh or Salman. I also stood up as your fellow citizen. We follow our heroes closely Sir and I know you as a person who only likes to express himself via your movies; a person who does not like to pursue any political agenda.
But the statement you issued post the incident, has saddened me. When you said, “To all the people shouting obscenities at me for speaking my heart out, it saddens me to say you are only proving my point”, I didn’t like it. I will tell you why.
People shouting obscenities at you are not the poll bearers of our nation. They are pathetic people who insult our nation. Why I am sad is coz, during the same interview you said, “People who kill citing Kuran are not Muslims. They are terrorists. Terror has no religion.” I couldn’t have agreed more.
Why then you consider people who threw obscenities at you ‘the face of intolerant India’. They are just bad people who like to badmouth other people. They got nothing to do with tolerance or intolerance or nation. If we go by your logic then Islamophobia will also be a ‘proven point’, which it is not.
You might have been hurt. I also feel hurt at times, but if we start generalizing for “proving my point”, something is wrong.
Just as you said, a person killing in the name of Allah is not a Muslim, he is just a terrorist. I request you Sir to consider the people who threw obscenities at you as just bad people. They have nothing to do with tolerance or intolerance or nation.
Spectre: Bond is back and how!
To be true, I found last movie Skyfall a bit slow and at times boring. I have a certain set of expectations from a Bond movie. It should have a bit of Bondapa if not more. Spectre gives me that and then some.
You won’t find a better opening sequence. It’s grand and would have cost some good bucks. This is where Bond movies are different. They don’t shy away from being lavish. From the first frame to the last, the air engulfs you. You enter a make believe world and go globe-trotting.
A lot has been said about similarities between Bond and Mission Impossible movies. Truth is nowhere near. Ethan Hunt has to perform some serious stunts to look like Bond, whereas Bond is already Bond. The calmness and assuredness that James brings in just blows you away.
The car chase sequence between Bond and Bautista is a class sequence in all its glory. You can’t take your eyes away for even a second. We have seen a lot of car chases over the years. This one stands on its own feet. The elegance makes the difference.
With Bond girl Lea Seydoux, I initially suffered with the MI-4 hangover, where she played a French assassin, a negative role. If you have seen Mission Impossible-4, you might also feel the same. I was waiting for the moment she went rogue and shot James. Another actor with a different filmography would have been better. But she plays role earnestly.
Kudos to Christoph Waltz for keeping up with the legacy of some great Bond villains. He is able to carve out a character for himself and that in itself is a rare feat. His back story could have been a little better but still he brings in enough insanity to go the distance. Monica Bellucci dazzles in a brief appearance. Andrew Scott (arch villain of Sherlock) is wasted. Moneypenny, M and Q play their curtailed role perfectly.
Given that this might be the last time Daniel Craig reprised the role of 007, it serves a fitting finale for his run. It gives closure to his previous Bond films and proves even Bond can have a happy ending.
७ बातें जो सिर्फ आपको ‘प्रेम रतन धन पायो’ फिल्म में ही मिलेंगी
७ बातें जो सिर्फ आपको ‘प्रेम रतन धन पायो’ फिल्म में ही मिलेंगी।
१. हल्दीराम: आजकल की फिल्मों में आपको मैक-डोनल्ड, पिज़्ज़ा हट मिल सकते हैं। पर सिर्फ सूरज बर्जात्या ही है जो हल्दीराम से भोजन करते हुए हीरो को दिखा सकता है। शुद्ध देसी भोजन। सिर्फ इसी फिल्म में हीरोइन चुपके से हीरो के लिए हल्दीराम से खाना ला सकती है।
२. गाने में मठरी-चकली: गाने के बीच मठरी, गुजिया, चकली, चिवड़ा का जिक्र सिर्फ राजश्री की फिल्म में ही मिल सकता है।
३. शुद्ध शाकाहारी भोजन: सिर्फ यहाँ ही आपको, हीरो भिन्डी की सब्जी बनाता दिख सकता है। साथ ही वेज-कोरमा और भरवां बैगन।
४. हीरो का बहन से प्यार देखकर हीरोइन का और प्रेम उमड़ना: कौन फिल्माता है आजकल यह। सलमान का बहन प्रति प्यार देखकर सोनम का रोम रोम सलमान के लिए प्यार से भर उठता है।
५. पद कंदूक मैच : फुटबॉल के मैच को हिंदी में बोलते हुए सिर्फ ‘प्रेम रतन धन पायो’ में ही पाया जा सकता है।
६. अभी नहीं: बर्जात्या ही है जिसकी फिल्म में हीरो, हीरोइन से कहता है कि अभी इस सबका समय नहीं आया है। शादी का इंतज़ार करते हैं।
७. शुरुआत राम लीला से: जहाँ आइटम गाने आम बात हो गए हैं और सीटी-मार शुरुआत जरूरत, वहां राम लीला से फिल्म की शुरुआत आपको ‘प्रेम रतन धन पायो’ के अलावा कहाँ मिल सकती है?
8 Things Every Guy must Learn from Pyar Ka Punchnama 2
1. Whenever the girl cites parental pressure for not marrying the boyfriend, she never would marry a 50K earning man which her father finds, if her boyfriend earns 2lac. No, she would wait till her father finds a 2lac or more earning groom for her. So much for parental pressure.
2. When you say Sorry, the girl is not content. “Do you know why you are Sorry”, “You don’t even know why you are Sorry” are her next statements. Come ‘on, I am saying Sorry for the thing we were just fighting about. How hard can it be?
3. “Where do you find such guys who are best friends with a girl, who is in relationship with another guy? Who makes such best friends?” Everything is platonic with them. Kiss, Hug, probably even s*x. At the end of the movie it is aptly shown that such best friends are nothing but a backup.
4. “I always split bills. It is non-negotiable for me”. Every time you pay, she would say, “Remind me to pay you back”. But she would never pay back. Her only issues will be about the money you spend when you are with your friends. “Your friends, they take advantage of you”. Irony is the girl is the one taking the utmost advantage.
5. A hint of financial instability, and she would be through the roof. If you want to do anything of your own, you can expect next to nil support from her. “Don’t I have any say?”, If you say Yes, then she would ask you to shelve your dreams and continue with the job, that you don’t want to. If you say No, then she would get a reason to make your life miserable.
6. She would spare no time to throw, “Lets Break up” on your face. Just for the fun of it and playing with your emotions. Something like, “to teach you a lesson”. So that you go crawling on your feet, begging and apologizing.
7. She would never agree with anything you try and explain. Same thing, if her friends and colleagues would explain, she would get it in an instant. You would always be the wrong one.
8. She knew she never would marry you against her parent’s wishes and her parents would never agree. Still for years she would use you for fun, shopping and time pass. She also needs some enjoyment till she gets married. “I know I don’t have entire life with you, have only few months. I would like you spend those few months with you. I want to”. She would not spare a moment, telling the police that you drugged her and molested her. Under parental pressure of course.
Talvar: A movie which should not have been made
Talvar. The case fascinated us all, didn’t it? It hijacked airwaves like no other. The mere mystery of it! It was like a crime thriller unfolding live television. It became a real world Bigg Boss which provided entertainment like no other.
Movie based on the case was the most apt culmination for this sordid saga. The movie is so intriguing, so heart wrenching, that it’s hard not like it. Add to it Irrfan’s acting and we have got a gem. But does it really portray the case or is mere art of fiction?
The crux of the movie is that Parents were innocents, servants were culprits and what happened was a travesty of justice. Title Talvar refers to the sword in the hands of Lady of Justice, a sword that has become rusted of late and more so due to this judgment.
Director/Writer claimed to have taken an unbiased view and presented all three viewpoints. Of local police (which blamed parents), first enquiry by CBI (which blamed servants) and 2nd enquiry by CBI (which blamed parents). But the fact is first and third enquiries are shown as shoddy. The 2nd CBI investigation is shown as proper. No wonder 2nd investigation was headed by our protagonist Irrfan.
Although the film makers are entitled to their expression. For their part they have changed the name of the characters to remove any direct reference to the real incident. But still, when you claim to be unbiased, you need to be unbiased.
The movie takes an open stand for the parents who are portrayed as victims (maybe they are for all we know), and demonizes the servants. They disregard the human rights of the servants who might be victimized by society post this movie. They too might be innocent. But not for the filmmakers!
It’s not too hard to realize why the storyline? A movie becomes emotional and heart wrenching if the parents are shown as victims of the system. If movie would have conformed to the courts judgement, it would have become a demonic thriller, where parents slaughter their daughter.
The only issue with such movies based on real incidents (when the matter is still in court) is, they tend to sway opinion of common public. I felt the mood in the theater after the movie was somber and everyone felt for the parents. Guilty servants went scot free!
I cannot pinpoint but I feel something was not right and this movie ought not to have been made. Not until the case was in court. It felt like an appeal on parents behalf under guise of a movie.
The Martian: Entertaining Flick with nothing new to offer
At the onset would like to mention that I liked the movie. However it suffered a bit due to the Interstellar and Gravity hangover which never let the movie standout and carve a niche for its own.
All through the drama I had this feeling of déjà vu. Like I have seen this all before. Space travel and spaceship gave me a feel of Interstellar. Space survival drama a bit like Gravity.
As I said overall the movie is good. Science is top notch. The hexadecimal communication is brilliant. So are other survival solutions. Movie has its heart and mind at the right place. What is missing is the novelty. Maybe if had come a bit later, when we were over the recent sci-fi’s, it would have made more impact. The fact that Matt Demon was himself stranded on a planet in Interstellar didn’t help either.
I found it more on the side of a pop corn thriller. The CNSA part looked artificially induced plot to score big in China (not unlike Transformers 4). A helpful but helpless aid of the in-charge sending encoded message to the Ares 3 crew also seemed borrowed. Tom Hanks has already done the stranded drama not once but twice. So when Matt is all alone on Mars, again it felt nothing to sit up and notice.
As I said apart from the science, which also at times is not explained to common people properly and I bet will go over the head for most, there is not much originality in the movie.
All in all, The Martian is a feel good pop-corn sci-fi with nothing new to offer. At the same time, whatever it offers has been made with a good heart. I wanted the movie not to end as I was enjoying it a lot. My feelings are kind of mixed. Not path breaking but entertaining. Much like Armageddon.
PK, Aamir and Controversy
I saw PK movie starring Aamir Khan and directed by Rajkumar Hirani, before any controversy erupted. It was quite clear from the trailers that movie was a satire on religious customs. I went to see the movie with an open mind.
Movie wise its a nice simple story without much drama or twists. A simple tale told with simplicity. Aamir’s acting was superb as always. I liked the message of the movie. About superstitions and wrong numbers and how easy it is to fool people in the name of religion.
But I will be frank here, I found few bits distasteful like the one in the climax involving a guy posed as Shiva, and the one where Tapasvi says that a person from particular religion do blasts…why should Tapasvi answer?
Then the controversy erupted. Hindu religious leaders objected, understandably so, as majorly they were the ones targetted. Then the political free for all.
My take is such movies tend to vitiate atmosphere in a multi religious society like ours. It would have been. difficult to target all religions equally in the movie and this is what caused issues. Right wing and appeasement politicians both made things worse.
My take is though in principle such movies should be celebrated but given the realities, they better not be made.
I find makers of the movie equally at fault as the religious traders. Both made money off religion. Some by celebrating it, others by denigrating it. Movie was made to make crores of rupees and this fact should not be forgetted. I would have liked if makers gave away the profits for social causes. Since their motive was to make money off public, they were always susceptible to attack and can’t take Holier than thou route.
Everyone alike. After all its money honey!
Interstellar: Possible Explanations of Plot Holes
Q 1: When 12 Lazarus missions were launched. Why didn’t they send embryos with each of the mission. 3000/12=250. We could have sent 250 Embroys with each of them. No need to wait 10 years for them to study the worlds and ping back the results. Whoever find the right habitat, start the civilization.
A 1: Maybe when Lazarus were launched, the Embryo breeding technology was not there. They developed it in those 10 years.
Q 2: Cooper met her daughter roughly 90 years later in Cooper station. That makes it around 65 years since Murph broke the gravity deadlock (with help from Cooper in bookcase). The idea of Plan A was to transfer humans from Earth to new planet that Cooper would have found habitable. What Murph and all the humans did in those 65 years? They just made the satellite stations. Why didn’t she send a reconnaissance mission through the wormhole in search for her father and the habitable planet?
A 2: Maybe it took a lot of time to build multiple such Stations. Maybe stress was on creating such stations and transferring all humans to such stations. All resources were concentrated on that. And given the human population (nearing 7 billion), to create such stations and transferring humans would have easily taken 65 years and maybe some poor humans were still living on earth in dire conditions waiting to be rescued. However Murph made sure a station was docked near Saturn (near Wormhole) which can pick up on activity if any.
Q 3: How was Cooper able to get rescued after entering the black hole.
A 3: Not exactly plot hole, but one hell of a blockbuster ending. The explanation that I can come up with is that 5D beings made sure that he travelled back through the wormhole and was left near the Cooper Station so that other 3D humans can rescue him. Or Maybe the force of love (Cooper for his daughter) was so strong that Cooper broke through the dimensions himself, travelled back the wormhole to see his daughter once again.
Q 4: How did Cooper and TARS interact in Tesseract?
A 4: Seems simple wireless technology. It might not have worked in Tesseract. But I feel 5D beings made sure they interact easily so that TARS relays quantum data from singularity to Cooper who relays it back to Murph.
Q 5: Why Mann wanted to kill one and all? He could have just explained that he lied as he did not want to die and that he is Sorry. Lets now got to Edmunds together and breed the humans.
A 5: I can only say that his evil actions made him see evil in everyone. He might have thought that other people can kill him for his lie. Maybe he thought they are going back to earth and even if he tell them the truth, they wont stop. To save the race he decided to kill them all and also let his deception die with them. Or he just went nuts.
Q 6:How did dying Murph knew about Amelia estranged on Edmunds?
A 6: Cooper might have been de-briefed and Murph would have come to know about adventures of Cooper via that. So she knew about sling-shoted Amelia’s landing on Edmunds.
Q 7: Why did Cooper go alone to Edmunds to look for Amelia and not with a whole new crew?
A 7: As to why Cooper went alone when Humans have to move to the new planet in the long term, I am really not sure. Maybe humans were happy with Satellite Stations and not want to got to another planet which can again die like Earth. Maybe it was that kind of politics. Hence Cooper had to go alone, not just for human race but also for his kindling love for Amelia who is the only thread left for him from the past.
Q 8: How old would be Amelia if Cooper did meet her again?
A 8: We can’t be sure as to how long in Edmunds time Cooper was in bookcase/blackhole. We can’t say how much did time slow down in blackhole w.r.t Edmunds. I leave this to experts.
Interstellar: 5th Dimension Explained
One thing that is left totally unexplained in the movie is the 5th Dimension. It talks of 5th Dimensional beings. It establishes Time as the 4th Dimension. But never lets out what the 5th Dimension is. It is just told that Future humans might have become 5-Dimensional beings.
1. Who are 5th Dimensional beings?
By referring 5-Dimensional beings, Nolan refers to beings for whom manipulating 4th-D (Time) is a piece of cake. They are beings who are no longer bound by the rules of 4D. They are not able to interact directly with the 3D people. They can only interact with people in 3D/4D, by manipulating gravity, which is explained as force that transcends dimensions.
2. Why has 5th Dimension not been explained in the movie?
Nolan has used 5D as a reference to people who have moved beyond 4D. Who can move across multiple 4D’s (Just like 3D people can move across multiple planes i.e. multiple 2D’s). Something like super humans. I think Nolan might not have wanted to over complicate already complicated fundas. Hence he just left at 5D beings who can manipulate 4D.
3. What is 5th Dimension?
My take is Parallel Timelines. In 5D we can’t just move back and forth in Time (Single line), but also adjacently (adding one more dimension). It means that 5th Dimension adds parallel timelines. In 5D we not just move through past-present-future but also different timelines of each moment of past-present-future. In Tesseract 5D humans, either rendered 3D projection of just one of the parallel timelines or there were all the timelines there, but Cooper concentrated only on one.
4. Why can’t 5D humans interact with 3D humans directly. Why toy with them indirectly?
Maybe they can. Maybe they can’t. Maybe they just choose not to interact directly. Just like StarTrek into Darkness’s opening sequence, where only observations of other evolving planets was allowed, but interference was outlawed. Or as Nolan explained, beings from different dimensions can only interact via manipulating Gravity. As Gravity is the only thing that transcends dimensions.
ArpitGarg's Weblog 