Finding Dory (2016)

Director: Andrew Stanton
Story: Andrew Stanton
Cast: Ellen DeGeneres, Albert Brooks, Hayden Rolence 
Music: Thomas Newman
Time: 97 minutes
Bottom-line: Wonderful experience, but doesn’t have the same effect as Finding Nemo 

13 years after the magic of Finding Nemo, here comes the much waited sequel that reunites the adorable characters of Nemo, Marlin and Dory. Ellen DeGeneres and Albert Brooks reprise their vocal roles as Dory and Marlin, while Rolence voices Nemo. The supporting cast includes Ed O’ Neill, Eugene Levy and Ty Burrell.

The story picks off one year after the events of Finding Nemo, and Dory (DeGeneres) has become like family to Marlin (Brooks) and his son Nemo (Rolence). One day during Nemo’s class, Dory suddenly has a flashback that convinces she has parents. She is determined to mind them, and considering the help that Dory offered in finding Nemo, the clownfish pair agrees to help her out. The trio experience a whole new set of adventures now, from escaping a giant squid, to being taken to a quarantine section, to Dory meeting her childhood friends and a seven-tentacled octopus Hank (O’Neill) who agrees to help Dory in return for her tag (that shows she belongs in the aquarium). Whether or not Dory is able to find her parents with all these obstacles, not to forget her short-term memory loss, is what the film is about.

Marlin, Nemo and Dory

As expected, Finding Dory has an amazing blend of humour, sentiment, adventure and drama. However, I loved Finding Nemo so much that I have sort of fixed it as the benchmark for animation films, and this one doesn’t reach that mark. The lead characters are, of course, adorable and funny, and the character of Hank – with his cunning deals and short temper – adds a new and exciting flavour to the proceedings of the story. But for some reason I wasn’t as empathetic towards the characters as I was in the prequel; the vicarious feelings of elation and sadness aren’t quite as powerful.

Hank, with Dory

The story has a lot of plot twists, especially a series of them fired one after another in rapid succession in the last half hour. At times I felt the story moved too fast, but the action and humour compensated for it. This film has a big part of the story happening outside the ocean, so that fascination that I got on seeing the ocean life in Finding Nemo wasn’t there either. The vocal work is splendid, and Ellen DeGeneres deserves a lot of praise. The supporting cast, especially Burrell (who plays a beluga whale) and O’Neill have done well too.

I know I have made a lot of comparisons in this review but that is to tell two things: one, don’t expect this to be as breathtaking as Finding Nemo, and two, as a sequel, this film deserves credit for coming close to being as good! The story is exciting and thrilling, there is a sufficient of humour, and of course, you can watch the film just to revisit the characters of Nemo, Marlin and Dory! Watch the film with your family, and get ready to have wonderful ride!

My Rating: 3.5/5
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 94%

22 Jump Street (2014)

Director: Phil Lord and Christopher Miller
Story: Michael Bacall and Jonah Hill
Cast: Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum, Ice Cube
Music: Mark Mothersbaugh 
Time: 112 minutes
Bottom-line: As hilarious as its prequel 

The duo of Tatum and Hill are back with a bang in this comedy sequel to the 2012 film 21 Jump Street. The film, co-starring Ice Cube, Amber Stevens and Peter Stormare, picks up from the first film left off, and if you loved it, then this one will get you laughing twice as much.

Two years after the events of 21 Jump Street, buddy cops Morton Schmidt (Hill) and Greg Jenko (Tatum) are now back to chasing narcotics. After a failed attempt to nab a group of drug dealers led by Ghost (Stormare), they are reassigned to Captain Dickson (Cube), now located at 22 Jump Street. They are sent to MC State to track down a drug called WHYPHY (Work Hard, Yes, Play Hard, Yes) that killed a student. Jenko makes friends with a pair of jocks who dislike Schmidt, while Schmidt gets emotionally attached to a girl named Maya (Stevens). Schmidt has increasing suspicions on Jenko’s jock buddies but Jenko is interested in being with them and even gets a scholarship for playing football. Whether or not the duo manages to complete their mission is what the film is about.

Hill as Schimdt (left), Ice Cube
as Dickson (centre) and Tatum as
Jenko

While it is true that the basic theme of 22 Jump Street is almost exactly the same as that of its prequel, the movie is a whole new experience. The chemistry between Hill and Tatum is even more enhanced, and the humour too is fresh. The comic stunts, the plot twists are quite good but this film centres more on the duo and all the supporting actors have much lesser screen time unlike the prequel where the characters of Molly and Eric seemed to have a bigger share. Look out for the scene of the parent-teacher meeting, the scene in Dickson’s office that follows the meeting, and the hilariously action-packed climax.

The acting is quite good in terms of, as I said, the chemistry between the lead actors, and the humour content thanks to their actions (right from the start). Their contrasting characteristics and talents makes it all the more fun to view them together. Ice Cube has a bigger role to play here than just assigning the duo to their mission, and he takes credit for a lot of laughs (not to forget a large chunk of profanity too!).

Unlike films like The Hangover Part 2, which was pretty much a ditto copy of the prequel, 22 Jump Street equals its prequel in terms of presentation but is nothing like its predecessor. The jokes (a lot of dirty ones too) are superb, the acting is good, and the overall script is amazing. Look out for the scenes during the closing credits... where we get to see all the possible sequels (going up to even 42 Jump Street)!!

My Rating: 3.5/5
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 84%

Megamind (2010)

Director: Tom McGrath
Story: Alan J. Schoolcraft, Brent Simons
Cast: Will Ferrell, Tina Fey, Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill 
Music: Hans Zimmer, Lorne Balfe
Time: 96 minutes
Bottom-line: A new experience for a superhero film

A movie involving a number of themes, with the characters created to spoofs of Superman’s lead roles, Megamind sets the tone for a different type of superhero animation film. The film stars Will Ferrell and Tina Fey in the Lead roles, with Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, Ben Stiller and David Cross playing the supporting roles.

Megamind and his minion fish
(voiced by Cross)

“I'm falling to my death. How did it all come to this, you ask? My end starts at the beginning...the very beginning!”
With that as his opening line, Megamind (Ferrell) tells us his story, starting from the time of his birth in another planet. Along with Metro Man (Pitt), Megamind is sent to Earth, where they grow up to be superheroes and supervillians respectively. Metro Man always seems to have the upper hand in their battles, so Megamind decides to kidnap the love of Metro Man, Roxanne Ritchi (Fey) and as Metro Man attempts to rescue her Megamind finally uses a trick and wins the battle, and ends up killing Metro Man. Unlike what he expected, Megamind actually misses the fun: “What's the point of being bad when there's no good to try and stop you?” he asks himself. So he creates a new superhero out of Roxanne’s cameraman, Hal (Hill) and names him Titan. However things go wrong when Hal decides to misuse his superpowers, and Megamind starts having second thoughts on being evil...

Metro Man

Megamind is a spoof of Lex Luthor – gets repeatedly beaten by the hero and he finally decides to kidnap the hero’s loved one to set up a trap. Metro Man is a spoof of Superman himself: he can fly, and does only good for everyone around (and notice how he dresses up like Elvis Presley!). Roxanne, as expected, is a spoof of Lois Lane. The twist is that towards the end none of the characters end up what they originally started with, and that is one of the major themes of the story: people have the choice of doing what they want to do, and not to follow what they society expects them to do. More often than not we need some really powerful incident to realise what his purpose is but if we do find it out, then that will be one of the best things to happen to us.

Roxanne

Yes the story is clichéd and is very similar to The Incredibles, but Megamind has its own strengths: the visuals, the dialogues (not as funny as I would have liked but nevertheless) and the weird, but surprising characters. The film also talks a little about friendship
: how we can find friends in the unlikeliest of times and in the people we never thought we would, and how not valuing someone’s friendship can break that person (the extreme case being Hal).

Titan/Tighten (Hal)

Though Megamind isn’t the most original story, it still is a nice combination of several other films I found amusing, including Despicable Me. The humour could have been more polished, but with the memorable characters and excellent vocal work, this is still worth watching!

My Rating: 3/5
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 72% 

Before Sunrise (1995)

Director: Richard Linklater
Story: Richard Linklater, Kim Krizan
Cast: Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy
Music: Fred Frith
Time: 101 minutes
Bottom-line: Nothing fancy, nothing big...but that’s why it is charming

Linklater’s third film and the first film of the “Before” trilogy, Before Sunrise brings together Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy in this beautiful, simple love story. The entire story takes place over one evening and the night, but it will leave you thinking about it for days or weeks to come.

When love can come as a complete surprise.
June 16, 1994 – Jesse (Hawke) is an American travelling on a train to Vienna to catch a flight back to the US. On the train he meets Celine (Delpy), a university student returning back to Paris. As the converse in the lounge car, Jesse’s stop arrives. He convinces Celine to get off at Vienna with him, by telling her that she may regret this opportunity to start a relationship with him, some 20 years down the line. As the couple walk around Vienna they discuss various topics – love, religion, past relationships... and by next morning, both of them would have had perhaps the greatest night of their lives.

Hawke as Jesse and
Delpy as Celine 

You may have seen various other really emotional love stories, but none of them have the simplicity of Before Sunrise. Jack and Rose aboard the Titanic needed the actual disaster as a backdrop; The Fault in our Stars used cancer as a setting... while Before Sunrise just needed a candid camera. Jesse and Celine meet under normal circumstances, and fall in love the way most couples do – by just talking and being with each other. There’s no heroic incident, or sexual encounter; the story is so smoothly flowing it’s like the actors didn’t know they were being filmed. A scene I found interesting was the one where both of them pretend to call their best friends and tell their true feelings about each other (that is the only scene where they act). The future between Jesse and Celine after the screen cuts to black is left for the viewers to decide.

Both Hawke and Delpy deliver natural performances. Their exchanges, actions and expressions seem unscripted and it doesn’t look like acting at all! From the start both of them just converse like ordinary strangers who happened to meet, and before the next hour and a half you realise that they have fallen so deeply in love while spending just one evening and a night together. The scene where Jesse persuades Celine to get off at Vienna is one of the best moments – he says nothing out of the ordinary but yet in few minutes convinces her to make a life changing decision! I think Linklater excels when it comes to making realistic stories (he even filmed the film Boyhood over 12 years for this purpose), and that is why this film stands apart in the romance genre.

Yes it’s true there’s no comedy in the film, and barely any melodrama... but it is a love story of two people in their twenties that you can relate to. This is the first installment in one of the most successful trilogies, as far as ratings go (this film having an outstanding 100% Fresh rating), and it is certainly worth a watch, for all teenagers and adults alike.

My Rating: 4/5
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 100%  

Michael Clayton (2007)

Director: Tony Gilroy 
Story: Tony Gilroy
Cast: George Clooney, Tom Wilkinson, Tilda Swinton, Sydney Pollack
Music: James Newton Howard
Time: 120 minutes
Bottom-line: The scintillating performances keep you engrossed throughout 

An acting-driven legal drama, Tony Gilroy’s directorial debut Michael Clayton shines in almost all aspects, and emerged as one of the most successful films of 2007 (alongside No Country For Old Men, There Will be Blood and Zodiac). The story revolves around the personal and professional life of the titular character.

Clooney as Clayton

The truth can be adjusted.
Michael Clayton (Clooney) is a “fixer” (someone who cleans up after crimes by removing evidence, finding loopholes etc) for Kenner, Bach and Ledeen, a New York Law Firm. His personal problem – he has a debt of $75000 after a restaurant investment with his brother collapsed, and the loan shark is holding his brother and gives Clayton one week to return the money. His problem at work – one of the firm’s leading attorneys, Arthur Edens (Wilkinson) suffers a breakdown and strips naked in public, in the middle of a deposition involving a class-action-lawsuit against U-North, an agro-product conglomerate. U-North’s chief lawyer Karen Crowder (Swinton) is ready to go to any lengths when she discovers Arthur has access to a document regarding a carcinogenic weed killer, one of U-North’s products yet to be manufactured.  How Clayton solves both problems, while his own life is also at risk, is what the film is about.

Wilkinson as Arthur

George Clooney and Tilda Swinton both play characters at the top of their form. Clayton and Crowder are impeccably dressed, fierce lawyers and the only difference is that the former is calm and cunning, while the latter is panicky. Clooney’s best roles seem to be the ones where he has that business-man like attire and demeanour (Ocean’s Eleven, Up in the Air) – delivering powerful lines which can be intimidating despite his charming looks! Wilkinson plays the psychotic but brilliant attorney, Arthur, who decides to fight a lone battle against U-North and puts his own life in jeopardy. From his opening monologue to his threatening phone call to the firm, his acting is outstanding. Swinton won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, mainly because she captures your attention in such a short screen time even if her acting isn’t Oscar-worthy.

Swinton as Crowder

The story contains lot of legal terminology and related issues but it’s fairly easy to follow what is going on even for a layman. It is better to at least know what the terms like “fixer” and “class-action-lawsuit” mean but there is enough drama (especially in Clayton’s life) to entertain you even otherwise. The highlights of the film are the encounters between the lead actors: from the exchanges of Clayton and Arthur in prison to that between Clayton and Crowder in the climax, they bring out the best acting from the cast (and show why the Oscar nominations for Clooney and Wilkinson are well-deserved!).

For a debut film Michael Clayton has to be one of the most critically successful films, and moreover it was nominated for seven Oscars (including Best Picture, Director and Original Screenplay). With intriguing characters, made memorable by the superb acting, and a dramatic storyline, this legal thriller is a must-watch for all, especially fans of Clooney.

My rating: 3.5/5
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 90%  

Fight Club (1999)

Director: David Fincher
Screenplay: Jim Uhls (based on the novel by Chuck Palahniuk)
Cast: Brad Pitt, Edward Norton, Helena Bonham Carter
Music: The Dust Brothers
Time: 139 minutes
Bottom-line: A classic! Unforgettable! 

1000 days of Revisiting Films, With KRK! 

                          In Tyler we trust... 
Once you’ve crossed the required age limit to be able to watch R rated films, Fight Club is the first film you should watch! What was initially viewed as one of the most controversial films for its violence and portrayal of criminal behaviour, eventually emerged as one of the most talked about cult classics of the 90s, and that’s precisely what it is! This is Fincher’s most successful film based on public ratings, as it is ranked #10 on IMDb’s top 250 films.

Brad Pitt as Tyler Durden

This is your life, and it’s ending one minute at a time. On a long enough time line, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero. Meet the everyman, the unnamed narrator of the film (Norton). He works as an automobile company worker, suffering from insomnia. When he starts attending various support groups, he meets Marla Singer (Carter) who is also an imposter, without any actual disease or problem. On a flight back home, the narrator meets Tyler Durden (Pitt), a person who makes and sells soap. As they meet up in a bar, Tyler asks the narrator to “hit him as hard as he can”, and this starts a fistfight. As they continue doing this, several men are intrigued by this act, and soon Tyler and the narrator form a fight club in the bar’s basement, where men fight recreationally. As the club grows, it evolves into Project Mayhem, an anti-Corporate organisation. In this process the narrator starts to realise that the club is going out of control, just like his own life...

Edward Norton as The Narrator

The first thing I liked about the film is the portrayal of the narrator – he could be you or me, or just any ordinary white-collar-job person, doing the thing this quote mentions. He comes across a unique personality, Tyler, who introduces him to live the way he wants, instead of going with the crowd. While the actual story may focus more on the actual fighting and development of the fight club, it takes a second watch and some careful analysis to understand the meaning of the incidents. As Tyler says during the first fight, “How much can you know about yourself if you’ve never been in a fight?” That’s the idea the film develops on. As fight club grows, the narrator becomes more aware of who he really is... to say more would reveal too much.

Helena Bonham Carter as Marla Singer

The main highlights of the film are the acting, and the dialogues. This is one of Norton’s first films, and boy, has he given the best performance of his career! Playing the mentally unstable “everyman” required Norton to learn boxing and taekwondo, but the end result is well worth it. But the real star is the man playing his “teacher” – Brad Pitt. With numerous one-liners and as many meaningful quotes, the manner in which he portrays the smart, cunning and powerful Tyler makes it clear why this is widely considered his magnum opus. Bonham Carter superbly portrays the psychotic Marla Singer, whose significance is understood only on analysing the story.

Another quote from the movie. 

The most important part of the film is the twist ending. There are enough but very cleverly hidden clues throughout the film, be it in dialogues or the background. Once the film is over the ending may seem obvious, but when you’re watching, you are so engrossed in the web that Tyler and the narrator weave that the twist still hits you in the face! With the story built-up so well, thanks to the splendid acting, the endless quotes and the cinematography, the climax is simply perfect.

 

Last but not the least, the eight
rules of Fight Club

I have only one rule of Fight Club: if this is the first time you are hearing about the film, you have to see it! Get ready for Mischief. Mayhem. Soap.

My Rating: 4.5/5
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 79% 

Mission: Impossible (1996)

Director: Brian de Palma
Story: David Koepp and Steve Zaillian
Cast: Tom Cruise, Jon Voight, Emmanuelle Béart
Music: Danny Elfman
Time: 110 minutes
Bottom-line: Has its moments...but not as stylish as expected

Although the film is based on the television series of the same name, Mission: Impossible is the film that gave us one of today’s most iconic characters: Ethan Hunt. The film stars Tom Cruise, Jon Voight and Emmanuelle Béart in the lead roles, with Ving Rhames, Jean Reno and Henry Czerny in the supporting roles. The stunts and action sequences of the future sequels makes those of MI seem “mild”, but as a film on its own, it is pretty thrilling.

Cruise as Hunt - inside the vault at Langley

“If we're going to Virginia, why don't we stop by Fort Knox. I can fly a helicopter right in through the lobby and set it down inside the vault. And it would be a hell of a lot easier than breaking into the damn CIA.”
Jim Phelps (Voight) and his team: the IMF (Impossible Missions Force) plan to get the IMF’s NOC (non-official cover) list from the American Embassy in Prague. The mission fails as all the members are murdered, except Ethan Hunt (Cruise). Hunt informs this to the IMF director Kittridge (Czerny), and when they meet, the former realises the whole operation was a mole hunt, and since he’s the only one alive, the IMF suspects him. Hunt manages to flee and is later met by Claire (Béart), Jon’s wife, who says she escaped being killed. Hunt hires two more agents: computer expert Luther Stickell (Rhames) and pilot Franz Krieger (Reno) to help him retrieve the NOC list. How does Hunt clear his name? Who is the actual mole?

Rhames as Luther and Reno as
Franz (right)

The acting is average. There is no humour at all, while the last two instalments had sufficient amount (mainly due to Benji’s character). The only bright spot in acting is that you feel Cruise is the best person to play the role of Hunt, and he has done extremely well to perform that role in all the future films. One important scene in the film is when the crew break into the vault at the CIA Headquarters at Langley, with Hunt hanging by his legs as he tries to steal the list. He has to get past a volume sensor, temperature sensor and a pressure sensor, and has to be so careful that not even a drop of sweat can reach the floor of the room!

Beart as Claire

The story is exciting, but does not have that required level of suspense, except in that one scene, and the first encounter between Hunt and Kittridge, where Hunt escapes after being named the mole. Even the climax I felt, could have been bettered (how many people-running-on-top-of-trains sequences have we seen already?). The special effects are quite good, and the action sequences – even if not that impressive – have been filmed well.

Voight as Jim 

So Mission: Impossible isn’t a movie you would recommend to someone looking for a good thriller/action movie. It is fairly good, but more importantly its moderate critical and excellent commercial successes set the foundation for the MI franchise. This is one film series where the later instalments are better than the first film.    

My Rating: 3/5
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 63% 

Whiplash (2014)

Director: Damien Chazelle 
Story: Damien Chazelle
Cast: J.K. Simmons, Miles Teller
Music: Justin Hurwitz
Time: 106 minutes
Bottom-line: Exhilarating, thrilling and inspiring 

Perhaps the most inspiring film among all the Best Picture nominees at the 87th Academy Awards, this independent drama by Damien Chazelle is about a student-teacher relationship. Miles Teller and J.K Simmons play the lead roles, with Paul Reiser and Melissa Benoist playing the supporting roles. Whiplash won three Academy Awards – Supporting Actor for Simmons, Editing and Sound Mixing.

Shaffer Conservatory, New York – Andrew Neiman (Miller) is a jazz artist who plays the drums. Seeing him practice, acclaimed conductor Terence Fletcher (Simmons) decides to give him a chance in his band. But in their first class, Fletcher abuses Andrew – physically and verbally – when he can’t keep up the tempo. Despite this, Andrew gets a chance to impress Fletcher and is eventually promoted to the core drummer. As the story progresses, we see how Andrew’s life changes because of competition from peers, Fletcher’s eccentric behaviour, and his determination to become one of the best musicians (the next Charlie Parker, as he puts it).

Teller as Andrew Neiman

The chemistry between Andrew and Fletcher is quite engaging, right from the start. The first encounter where Fletcher hurls a chair at Andrew and abuses him gives the perfect introduction to the former’s martinet attitude. We see the kind of perfection he wants when he auditions all three drummers in taxing sessions till 2 AM. The scene where he dismisses Andrew from the band shows his crazy side but later we see that all he really wants to do is “push people beyond what’s expected of them”. That is what any good teacher will want, but Fletcher’s methods make you think twice if what he is doing to his students is morally right. Andrew’s character as a student goes through all the emotions one gets under such a teacher – depression at being rejected, sacrificing so much to achieve his goal, determination to succeed, and willing to suffer for it... and finally succeeding when the time comes.

Simmons as Fletcher

Whiplash makes you consider to what length you are willing to go before you succeed, or, on the contrary, break down. We hear the story of another student, a highly successful musician under Fletcher, but who committed suicide because of suffering from depression and anxiety. When Fletcher tells Andrew that he is so terrorising as a teacher because he is actually trying to create a “second Charlie Parker”, Andrew asks him what would happen if he student broke down before actually becoming that way and Fletcher responds by saying a true Parker would not break down. While the film inspires you to drop everything and move towards your goal, it also makes you think to what extent you are willing to push yourself, and whether achieving it will ultimately make you happy.

Something to think about... 

While you absolutely loathe his character for being so eccentric and abusive, you simply love J.K. Simmons for portraying Terence Fletcher. The director told Simmons that he needed to see an animal on stage from his character, and what a fine performance indeed! Simmons induced genuine terror from the band members, who are actual musicians in real life, and after the movie you’ll pray to never have Simmons as your teacher! Miles Teller gives an exceptional performance too. The way he shows determination and anger must be applauded. His role in the scintillating climax of the film (with an amazing drum solo) is the highlight.

Overall, Whiplash is thought-provoking, inspiring and highly captivating. Watch it for the acting, the story, and of course, the music!

My Rating: 4/5
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 94% 

WALL.E (2008)

Director: Andrew Stanton
Story: Andrew Stanton and Pete Docter
Cast: Ben Burtt, Elissa Knight 
Music: Thomas Newman
Time: 98 minutes
Bottom-line: Charming, funny and moving... Pixar has done it again!

Before WALL.E, the closest I ever got to being sentimental in a robot film is in the climax of Terminator 2. It is true that robots cannot feel emotions like humans... but can humans feel for robots? WALL.E is the story of two robots whose story is so moving, it could very well bring you to tears.

After 700 years of doing what he was built for - he'll discover what he's meant for.
The year 2805: all life forms have abandoned the Earth, which is now just covered with heaps of garbage. Seven centuries earlier, a mega-corporation Buy ‘n’ Large (BnL) had evacuated all the humans into automated star-liners, leaving behind WALL.E units (Waste Allocation Load Lifter – Earth-class) to clean up the Earth until they return (if they do). Only one unit now remains, and thanks to several years of life experience, this unit can feel emotions like humans do. WALL.E discovers a growing seedling one day. Soon a spaceship lands, and a robot EVE (Extraterrestrial Vegetation Evaluator) – or “Eeeeevaaa” as WALL.E calls her – searches the Earth for vegetation. WALL.E falls for her immediately, and as he takes her to his habitat, she finds the plant, stores it inside herself, and shuts down. We later understand that EVE’s mission, assigned by BnL, was to inspect the Earth for signs of vegetation. As the spaceship retrieves EVE, WALL.E manages to enter it too. The adventures the two of them have after this is what the film is about.

WALL.E (left) and EVE

There are barely any dialogues in the film – most of the story is understood through body language and the images. In fact, the robots WALL.E and EVE don’t say anything more than each other’s names, and the words “directive” and “plant”. But yet, the message of love, friendship and nostalgia is conveyed in such a beautiful manner that even if this was a silent film, it would have been equally captivating. This is one of the best pieces of animation I have seen (second probably only to Finding Nemo)– through the eyes and body language of two robots, so many emotions are displayed, that even reach out to the viewer! The last few minutes when EVE tries to fix WALL.E is really moving. These two could well be two of the most– if not the most – adorable characters Pixar has ever created.

The story addresses many themes, starting with the consequences of consumerism, and how human activities can eventually make the Earth a wasteland. In the film we see that all the humans are obese, and are living a mechanical lifestyle, in a world where everything is automated. We also get an idea of what would happen if robots actually had emotions like humans did. Another theme is nostalgia – portrayed in the way the captain battles the machines to get humans back to the Earth, the place where they belong. The best part is all these messages are shown in a fairly realistic manner – entertaining and funny, and at the same time, thought-provoking.

A minimalist poster of the characters (WALL.E, EVE, the plant,
the AI autopilot, the human pilot, the cleaner robot
and two humans in the star-liner)

You know a film is going to be terrific when it’s from Pixar Studios, but WALL.E is really an extra-special movie. In 98 minutes we are given such a wonderful experience, and so many memories, be it WALL.E’s eyes or the robots holding hands etc. Do not miss this film.
Get ready for an adventure, beyond the Ordinar-E! 

My Rating: 4.5/5
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 96%

The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

Director: Jonathan Demme
Screenplay: Ted Tally (based on the novel by Thomas Harris)
Cast: Anthony Hopkins, Jodie Foster, Ted Levine 
Music: Howard Shore
Time: 118 minutes
Bottom-line: Utterly terrifying and immensely captivating in equal measure; will haunt you for days. 

My 200th review: co-written by Taruna Sudhakar.

Well, Clarice, have the lambs stopped screaming?
1991 is a year that saw few of the most memorable Hollywood villains, and Dr. Hannibal Lecter takes the cake! In a year that introduced us to the new Max Cady and T-800, this horror thriller gave us the brilliant psychiatrist/cannibal, portrayed in the most magnificent manner by Anthony Hopkins (who surprisingly has barely twenty minutes of screen time!). The film co-stars Jodie Foster, Scott Glenn and Ted Levine.

Quantico: FBI trainee Clarice Starling (Foster) is called upon by Jack Crawford (Glenn) to interview cannibalistic serial killer Dr. Hannibal Lecter
(Hopkins), who might prove useful in tracking down another serial killer Buffalo Bill (Levine), who skins his female victims’ corpses. Dr. Lecter is kept beyond unbreakable Plexiglas at the Baltimore State Hospital for the criminally insane. He agrees to help Clarice and profile Bill in return for being transferred from the doctor who’s in charge of him. But soon Clarice realises that when it comes to Dr. Lecter, nothing is as simple as it seems. Before she knows it, their encounters turn into a deadly psychological game...

Hopkins as Lecter

Starling, believe me, you don't want Hannibal Lecter inside your head.  
Well Clarice may be an FBI trainee who can (almost) successfully tune her mind into keeping Lecter out of there, but the viewers like us are stuck with him for the rest of our lives! He is however an extremely gifted psychiatrist capable of delving into people’s minds and figuring out who exactly you are, your history, your deepest, darkest secrets... he knows you better than you know yourself, so much so that he can predict your actions and invariably make you do what he wants you to. This power he has is what makes him so terribly scary. From the first scene in the prison where we see him taunt Clarice, blatantly invading her personal space, till the last scene where he leaves us with a chilling “I'm having an old friend for dinner. Bye”, the movie revolves around Lecter. The crux of the film is not about how the FBI catches Buffalo Bill, rather, it is about the relationship between Lecter and Clarice.

Foster as Clarice

What starts out purely as an attempt to “use one to catch one”, turns into a battle of wits. Lecter uses his method of “quid pro quo. I tell you things, you tell me things” to delve into Clarice’s traumatic past memories, while Clarice must use her willpower and mental strength to complete her job of capturing Bill, without breaking down . His clues are never direct, they are difficult riddles, anagrams that are brilliantly composed. It’s his way of showing off and toying with Clarice at the same time. The part which involve Buffalo Bill, and the climax where Clarice encounters Bill are not as exciting as the psychological games between Lecter and the others. The reason the film is categorised as “horror” is probably because of a few bits of gore and one grizzly sequence where Lecter attempts to escape from his prison. Seeing Lecter go from the calm old man with impeccable manners to the raving monster he becomes, those 15 minutes of intense violence will truly shock you. He oscillates between exceedingly vile and atrociously charming. In contrast you get the minor villain: highly clichéd transsexual, Buffalo bill, who yearns to be a proper woman. He hates himself rather than his victims and it is this self-hate that drives him into killing. He is exactly what you expect him to be - uncouth, depressed and angry with obvious behavioural ticks that put you on guard at first sight. This is unlike Lecter who, mind you, is highly functioning and immensely proud of it.

Levine as Buffalo Bill

Anthony Hopkins plays this role to perfection. He has the excellent balance of emotion, voice modulation and body language that make one of the most terrifying movie characters ever – in fact, Dr. Lecter was voted the #1 villain of the century by the American Film Institute. It is never his physical violence or cannibalism that makes him dangerous, although watching it visually will scare you, but it is the fact that he has such a powerful control on his victims’ mind that makes him so terrifying.Who can forget the famous “A census taker once tried to test me. I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chi-an-ti”. Jodie Foster does a remarkable job. As another critic put it, her character is the short woman in an elevator full of tall men. I liked the way she plays the strong, brave woman and the way she tries her best to stay calm and bold in front of Lecter, despite knowing she is powerless, is amazing to watch.

The Silence of the Lambs won the “big five” at the Oscars – Best Picture, Director, Actor, Actress and Screenplay, the only film to do so after One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and It Happened One Night. So with sublime acting, spectacular cinematography (especially those close ups of Lecter’s eyes that hypnotise and petrify you; he looks right at you, into you), subtle metaphors bordering on genius along with a good dose of violence and “horror”, this 1991 psychological thriller is something you will never forget. Believe me, you don’t want Hannibal Lecter inside your head... but he’s going to end up there nevertheless.

My Rating: 4.5/5
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 95%