Networking Socially

Social Networking is probably a buzz word now. I was not very fond on the online Social Networking sites just because of the pain of updating and keeping track of it. But around 5 years ago, when Orkut was the platform and all my friends asked me if I had an Orkut account, I finally decided I must have one. And one fine day, I created an account for me in Orkut. For the intial few months, activities in it were normal - logging in occassionally, finding friends, uploading photos, and scrapping. But slowly with time, the frequency and activities lessened. I used to log in only when I used to receive friend requests or some scraps I had to reply to.

Meanwhile Facebook gained a LOT of popularity. Now Orkut was not to be heard only. All of them were on FB. Even I had an account, but one which was never accessed. Apart for my name, there was nothing on my FB profile. It had been so for years now. Finally, it has come to a situation that people look down on you when you say that you don't access FB. They treat me like some person who do not know about Social Networking at all. I really didn't care about it. But now, even I have an updated profile on FB. Reason - Well I just thought, why should I be the only one left out. But let me see how long I am going to keep track of my networking on FB.

Anwar

Over the weekend, we watched the Malayalam movie Anwar. Directed by Amal Neerad, the movie is a good-watch, inclusive of beautiful shots, action, and a considerably good story. The cast includes Prakash Raj, Prithviraj, Lal, and Mamtha in the lead roles.

The story revolves around terrorism - the kind people behind it and the victims. The movie opens with the shot of a bomb blast in a textile shop in Coimbatore. Following we see the investigation, arrests, and the scenes in the jail. The story proceeds to show how Prakash Raj, an ATS officer, investigates the case; Lal, a person behind the blast and several similar ones; and Prithviraj, a victim of the Coimbatore blast, do things to achieve what they believe is right.

Through the first half we see Prithviraj joining the terrorist gang, planning attacks, training new people, and making bombs. From the second half, the movie takes a twist and it is now when it is revealed that he is actually a victim and wants to take revenge. From there the movie takes a fast pace.

The best part about the movie were some of the beautiful shots like the one in which the Coimbatore blast is shown, leaves rustle against the bus when it takes a turn and the like. The songs are good and are in harmony with the mood and movie. I like the colour tones used to represent the moods and the kind of lighting used. Everything seemed real about the movie including the sets and the characterizations.

Though I liked almost everything about the movie, the moment you leave the theatre, the movie is forgotten. The movie was not successful in creating a lingering effect on the audience.

A good movie, well-shot and presented.

Saagar

Have you watched this movie? It is a movie of the 80s. I saw it probably when I was very small. But the songs and the Kamal Hassan's character immediately attracted me to the movie. Since then I have been a big fan of the songs of the movie, especially Saagar Jaise Aankhon...

Today, probably after a lot of years, I am watching it again, as it is coming on television. Even after 25 years the movie and songs seem fresh. Except for Dimple Kapadia, who looks a bit old for her role in the movie, I love everything else about Saagar.

And if you haven't watched this movie by any chance, it is a triangular love story, where Rishi Kapoor and Dimple are in love with each other and Kamal in love in Dimple without her knowledge. Rishi and Dimple have nothing in common apart for their love for each other. Both come from different classes of the society and family backgrounds. The second half of the movie deals with these problems.

Whether you like the movie or not, you will definitely love the songs.

Madrasapattinam

A wonderful movie; beautifully pictured and well scripted. Above all I loved the characters and the entire story. One might find striking similarities to the Bollywood movie Lagaan in the song sequences and costumes. There are some striking resemblances in the plot to the Hollywood movie Titanic as well. Even though there exists these comparable factors, the movie is unique in its style and flow.

The cast includes Arya, Amy Jackson, and Cochin Haneefa in the leading roles. Arya's looks portraying the hero from the early 19th century is convincing enough and so are all other character's makeup and mannerisms. The director, A.L. Vijay has done a wonderful job. The putting together of the old Madrasapattanam and today's Chennai is marvelous. The music is by G.V. Prakash Kumar. There are melodies and spirited songs in the movie. The theme music is beautiful and plays in the background throughout many sequences. The movie is the soft love story of a rural illiterate man and a British girl, during the British rule in India. It shows the steady progress of how they like each other, communicate, sacrifice, and live and die in love. The director has been successful in blending together history and an interesting love story in equal proportions. Had it been in different ratios, the aftereffect would not have been this wonderful.

Milenge Milenge

Last weekend, I watched the movie Milenge Milenge. It was not a much awaited movie nor was there anything so interesting or worth watchable in the promos as well. We had tickets and had nothing to do in the evening. So we decided to watch the movie.

In one sentence - a hopeless movie. There was nothing worth watching in the movie. The cast, songs, art, nothing seemed interesting. The film which was supposed to be released years ago, it did show the lack of the modernity in it. The actors had looks what they sported few years ago, music seemed unpleasant, and story was unconvincing. Kareena (Priya) and Shahid (Immi) had a wonderful chemistry in Jab We Met. But that magic was not visible in this movie. We know that the movie was shot before Kareena becoming size zero and since we were so used to seeing her slim all these days, her chubby looks seemed odd in the movie.

The plot is based on a Hollywood and Tamil movie. Immi and Priya are in love with each other. Then they have a misunderstanding and want to test whether they are actually meant to be lovers by destiny. They write their names and phone numbers on a Rs. 50 note and book. The book is then sold off somewhere in Bombay and the note is used to buy something. The condition is that if they get back the note and book, then they are destined to be lovers. The story seemed unbelievable and lacking substance at times.

I wouldn't suggest watching this movie at all. Even if you miss it, you do no harm, but save a lot of your time.

Wake Up Sid

Wake Up Sid is a romantic comdedy film. The story is set in Mumbai where Sid is a rich, carefree college student and Aiysha, an ambitious girl and aspiring writer. The movie revolves around the story of how both meet, live together, and how Sid changes into a better person.

The character Sid is portrayed by Ranbir Kapoor and has done justice to the role. He is brat at times, and sometimes a sweet little child. Aiysha is Konkana Sen, and she is very much alike to the usual characters she portrays. She has the same looks and style. Anupam Kher portrays the rich dad of Sid, who wants his son to take up his business.

Everything about the movie is lovely! The story, the cast, colours, songs, and all. Everthing in the movie seems natural and something that a normal human being can relate to. The elements of life are portrayed well and beautifully. The movie as well as the songs are extremely refreshing. The songs synch well with the moods of the movie.

Wake Up Sid is the directorial debut of Ayan Mukherji and he has done a wonderful job indeed.

I would love to watch the movie over and over again.

Raavanan

Last week I watched the movie Ravanan (Tamil). Though I wanted to watch the Hindi version due to lack of ability to understand Tamil, I really thought that watching Vikram as Ravan was better than watching Abhishek in the same role.

The movie, as everybody knows is highly visually appealing. Based on The Ramayana, the story is set in the modern day where Dev is an encounter specialist and Ragini, his wife. He sets out to capture Vira, who is a tribal Robinhood, and in the process, series of events lead up to the death of Vira's sister. Enraged Vira kidnaps Ragini and then the actual Ramayana starts. The movie brilliantly portrays the silent feelings of Vira and Ragini for each other.

The story line is very thin but yes, you really watch it to see the beauty of the shots. Vikram does portray a strong character and so does Aishwarya. Prithviraj looks good has definitely done a lot of homework and hard work for the character.

A one time worth watch at the theater for its visual treat!

The Blind Side

Have you watched this movie? It's a slow paced yet soothing movie. I loved it.

The Blind Side is the real life story of Michael Oher, a football player. The main star cast includes Sandra Bullock and Quinton Aaron. This movie shows the early life of the homeless player, his poor and uncared upbringing, and his adoption into a wealthy family. The story is a real touchy one especially when you see the sad and unwanted Oher spend his nights on the roads and laundromat. It is heart wrenching to see him crying beside his mother's house.

Once Oher is adopted into the family, the movie shows how he becomes a part of the family, gets his athlete skills polished, becomes a more expressive person from his rather too introvert self, getting good at studies and how he gets universities come behind him with lucrative offers to opt those for higher studies. Then he chooses Mississippi University, then comes an enquiry into whether his family forced him to choose it, a misunderstanding with the family, and finally a reconcilation.

Some more interesting characters in the movie are Sean Tuohy, Collins, and SJ. SJ is the youngest in the family and seems to be an interesting character who inspires Michael to change positively.

It was a good watch and I must say this again - I loved it.

Kill Bill Vol 1 & 2

Kill Bill is a movie which I love to watch over and over again. Both the volumes! I saw this movie first when I was doing my Graduation. Then I did watch it a couple of times when it came on television. And this weekend I watched both the volumes again :-D

Kill Bill is a two volume movie by Quentin Tarantino. The story flows so smoothly that you can watch both the movies at one stretch. It is an action thriller movie and I must say that I loved the action sequences in it. It is the story of the revenge of a lady (Beatrix) who was shot on her wedding rehearsal day while pregnant. She does not die but goes into comma for four years. Finally when she wakes up she is desperately sad over the loss of her daughter and the things happened to her. She sets out on her journey of Revenge. The lead character is played by Uma Thurman and seemed apt for the role.

The story of the revenge spans over the two volumes. Beatrix has a list of people to kill and this is her mission. When the first part ends, she prepares the list of people to kill next. Here the audience is left with the message that her daughter is still alive.

The second volume shows the rigorous practice sessions of Beatrix and how she finally succeeds in her mission and gets her daughter back.

There are various kinds of music used in the movie. I am not familiar with the different music styles, so no comments on that :-)

A movie worth watching over and over again :-)

Saroja

I am not a person who watches a lot of Tamil movies. It is because I have a hard time understanding Tamil. If the movie has subtitles then I am eager to watch.

Yesterday I watched the movie 'Saroja'. In one sentence - a good entertainer. It can be termed as a comedy thriller movie and does live up to expectations. Directed by Venkat Prabhu, the movie is a story of four friends, a kidnap, and an escape. Four friends who set out to watch a cricket match get lost on the way and end up an factory area where a businessman's daughter is kidnapped and kept by some gangsters. The rest of the movie shows how the friends try to get out of the place unnoticed and save the girl as well. In the process, there are several comic incidents and dialogues very much in sync with the situation.

The events leading up to the main plot is shown in the first half hour. As the main plot is reached, the whole events take place during one night. It is pretty quick and thrilling. I didn't find anything too dramatic in the movie. Though it is said that the movie is based on a Hollywood movie, the change is perfect to the South Indian setting. Nothing seemed out of place.

Jayaram plays the role of a cop who investigates the case of the kidnap and Prakash Raj is the businessman whose daughter is kidnapped. Till the end of the movie I kept wondering how could Jayaram have such an unnoticed role in a movie. It is towards the end you know why it is so. There are more people to be mentioned like Sampath, Kajal, Nikita, and so on.

All in all, I like the movie. Worth watching once. Has all the required elements.

Swa Le

It is some time since this movie has been released. I had heard good reviews of it and hence decided to watch it. First of all let me say that the movie though is not too good, does meet expectations.

The story is of a news reporter of a not-so-good doing firm, his attempts to get scoops, making meet both ends of his life, and finally trying to be a human being. The film seems to be set in the early 90's and shows the hardships that news reporters then had to face. The brighter side of the movie is the visualization of human relationships, a feeling to be in sync with nature, and trying to be committed to work as well. The sarcastic comments and portrayals also hit the spots exactly.

The visualization is good and set with lots of backwaters and greenery in view. Though there are no songs worth a hum after watching the movie, the on-screen pair does look good together. Gopika did not have much of a challenging role. From the beginning till the end, we see the heroine as a pregnant lady who is extremely patient with her husband's odd timing. The character does lack emotions at times. Dileep has done a commendable job. After seeing the other contemporary super heroic and worst movies of Dileep, it seems he has done a good job.

Everything about the movie was realistic except for the last bit. It shows the sudden transformation of the person with lots of feelings to a very practical news editor. Apart from that, the movie was worth a watch.

3 Idiots

**I am pretty much surprised as to why this post didn't get published on my blog long back. I had written it long back and kept ready, but forgot to publish it. And today, after months, I am noticing it :-(**

Frankly speaking I didn't have much expectations when I saw the promos of this movie. But I was wrong! It is a good movie worth watching. You get to hear and see some fresh jokes and humor. Though the cast is not that fresh enough it is a new chemistry.

Disappointingly Aamir looks far too old for the character. Kareena rightly fits into the character and did a good job. She looks good in the movie and costumes are well-designed to suit the normal college going girl. Sharman Joshi also did a commendable job. Madhavan, it seems was just normal. Boman Irani's look is also refreshing and so are his mannerisms in the movie.

If you have read The Five Point Someone, you will be able to anticipate some of the scenes. The Principal, the red two wheeler, affair with the Principal's daughter, and so on. Though it is not a complete adaptation one can say that the sub plots are based on the novel. The major difference in the story between the novel and the film is the main plot.

The songs are quite good. I loved the choreography of the "Aal iz well" song. The film does show the colours of college life and freedom well in it. So after all, a movie really worth watching.

I am Reading...

Currently I am reading "Chicken Soup for the Soul at Work". The first time I read a Chicken Soup series was a couple of years back. May be during my college days. I was quickly fascinated by the stories. Since then I have read a few of the series.

Last month, when we went out, I bought this new Chicken Soup book. I must admit that I haven't finished reading the book. But now I have started reading at least one story a day before I go to sleep. This is easy because each story is no longer than 2 or 3 pages and it takes just about 5 to 10 minutes. I go to bed having a happy feeling that I derive from the stories and satisfied that I have read a story.

The stories are about the working people or those stories related to work. There are stories about work activities, people at work, and even work policies. All have a common feeling of humanity and love in it. This is the best part about the stories.

So I am looking forward to finish this book and buy a new one at the earliest.

Changeling

This is the movie I saw the latest. I had been wanting to watch this from a long time and had it on the PC for months now. But never got to actually watching it. Luckily, two days back, it was being shown on HBO. I sat and watched it, not even allowing my husband to change the channel.

The story is based on a true life incident of a mother whose son goes missing and is never found. The movie shows the mother's pain, fights to get her son back, and coping with life. The police department finds a child and hands him over to the mother and publicizes that it is the correct boy who went missing. And when the mother complains that it is not her child, she is blamed for being insane and misbehaving. Finally she brings the case to light and proves that her child is still missing.

Angelina Jolie does the lead role and has very well portrayed the emotions. It seems like you get a feel of what she is experiencing. I loved some portions of the movie too much. One such scene is when the police officer informs her that her son is alive and has been found.

The makeup, costumes, settings, every minor detail makes you believe that the film is actually shot around 80 years back. The last shot where the wide shot of the city is shown gives you lot of time and substance to feel the sorrow, experience her lonliness, and newly found emotion of HOPE.