Lessons In Forgetting (2013) Review by Shivom Oza – The Good Kind Of Different!

3/5 Stars

Based on Anita Nair’s book of the same name, ‘Lessons In Forgetting’ revolves around a middle-aged, divorced man, J.A. Krishnamurthy, trying to discover the truth behind a fatal accident involving his estranged 19-year-old daughter, Smriti. In the process, the father encounters several inconvenient truths about his daughter.

The story of the film, a portion of which deals with the issue of female foeticide, is very relevant and poignant. Adil Hussain (we’ve seen him before in ‘Agent Vinod’, ‘English Vinglish’ and ‘Life Of Pi’) delivers a strong performance as the beleaguered father, who is trying to come to terms with his daughter’s rebellious past and tumultuous present. The rest of the cast, comprising Maya Tideman, Roshni Achreja, Raaghav Chanana among others, do a fine job. While the film has its share of flaws, it is socially relevant and offers a very different kind of treatment to the story. ‘Lessons In Forgetting’ is different (of the good kind!).

A middle-aged, divorced man, J.A Krishnamurthy (Adil Hussain) comes to know that his estranged daughter, Smriti (Maya Tideman), has been found severely injured near the beach at a small town in Tamil Nadu. The 19-year-old girl, found in a near-dead-state, is almost paralyzed and thus, bedridden and taken care of by a full-time nurse. 

J.A. Krishnamurthy, who is devastated after finding about his daughter’s fatal accident and her present medical condition, wants to find out the truth. So, he starts looking for clues that will lead him to find out what actually happened to his daughter. In the meantime, he crosses paths with a middle-aged woman, Meera, who has been going through a tumultuous time herself after being abandoned by her husband, and left behind to take care of her two children and her mother and grandmother all by herself.

The film also comprises a touch of the ‘Save the Girl Child’ issue. The social issue has been excellently tailored into the plot of the movie. There’s not a single moment, when you may find the film overtly educative/preachy! ‘Lessons In Forgetting’ is about several more aspects; parent-child relationships, life after separation, abandonment, teenage angst etc.

All the characters have been well-written, with the exception of Meera. Her backstory was not necessary at all. Although the actress playing this character (Roshni) has done a great job, Meera wasn’t required in the film at all. Her side of the story has been introduced in an elaborate manner, but left untouched thereafter. A few scenes in the film do make you introspect about certain things. You may reconsider the way you behave with your parents/children after watching the film. It strikes a chord there! Other notable aspects about the film are; the absolutely terrific opening credits of the film and the excellent background score (Kumaresh Ganesh). The dialogue delivery of the actors was very good, which is a rarity for English-language films made in India! However, subtitles could have been compiled in a better manner (as there are a few portions in Tamil).

‘Lessons In Forgetting’, ultimately, is about how you strive so hard to know the truth, but once you know it; you desperately want to forget it (makes sense?). Anyway, watch the film! Take a bow, director Unni Vijayan.

Shivom Oza

The Croods (2013) Review by Shivom Oza – Clichéd, But Entertaining!

3/5 Stars

The Croods are a good mix of ‘The Flintstones’ and the recently-released film, ‘Hotel Transylvania’. The film is about how the ‘world’s first family’ had to give up on their trusted shelter (the caves) to look for a new roof on their heads. In the process, they end up discovering the ‘new world’, which they had been hiding away from since time immemorial.

The film has a clichéd storyline. The plot has oft been used for several animated movies in the past. Although the concept works yet again, it makes the story a bit predictable. Also, the 3D was a big let-down. However, despite these two ‘big’ drawbacks, the film emerges as a thoroughly entertaining watch!

Armed with old-world sensibilities, the father Grug (Nicolas Cage) does not allow his daughter Eep (Emma Stone), to venture out into the open, fearing that she could be harmed. The daughter, whose rebelliousness increases with the number of restrictions imposed on her, ends up going out anyway. She discovers a new world, much different from what her ‘orthodox’ father had imagined. She meets and falls for the mysterious young boy, called Guy (Ryan Reynolds), from the new world. Trouble ensues when the caves are on the verge of destruction and the family has to look for a new home!

The animation is terrific, but the 3D is disappointing. The characters and their dialogues are well-written. Watch out for the banter between Grug and Guy, Grug and his mother-in-law and the camaraderie amongst ‘The Croods’! Although the first half moves along at a sluggish pace, the second half picks up pace and manages to keep you engaged. The kids will love these terrific characters and the over-simplified story.

It’s a clichéd story, but it entertains!

Shivom Oza

Scary Movie 5 (2013) Review by Shivom Oza – WATCH, Only If You Prefer This Genre!

3/5 Stars

‘Scary Movie 5’ is the fifth film in the ‘Scary Movie’ series. Presenting its brand of unbridled crass humour, the film spoofs renowned names such as ‘Paranormal Activity’, ‘Mama’, ‘The Cabin In The Woods’, ‘Evil Dead’, ‘Inception’, ‘Sinister’, ‘Black Swan’, ‘Rise of the Planet of the Apes’, ‘Insidious’ and ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’.

I frankly believe that the ‘Scary Movie’ series is not supposed to be taken seriously. So, those looking for cinematic brilliance, go watch something else. The film encompasses innumerable cringe-worthy scenes, abundant toilet humour, fair amount of obscenity and the lamest of gags. However, they do manage to entertain. So, the purpose is served. You will find this film immensely funny, if you have a fair idea about the aforementioned sources, which have been parodied.

There’s a small gag at the beginning of the film, involving Charlie Sheen and Lindsay Lohan. This is a fairly silly, yet funny, rip-off of the ‘Paranormal Activity’ series. Lohan gets possessed and ends up killing Charlie. The couple’s 3 children are trapped inside the dingy-looking ‘Cabin in the Woods’. They are encountered by Snoop Dogg and Mac Miller, who initially visit the Cabin hoping to score some fine weed.

The kids, who have grown to become a bit animal-like and eerie in their mannerisms under the influence of their ‘Mama’, are taken in by their uncle Dan Sanders (Simon Rex) and his partner Jody Sanders (Ashley Tisdale). Thereafter, most of the film is a take-off on the Jessica Chastain horror film, with the occasional tribute (?) thrown in to films such as ‘Inception’, ‘Black Swan’ etc.

This film is what you would call ‘time pass’ in colloquial terms. Certainly, this film would be a better bet than watching a big-budget drag of a sci-fi film or a listless, meandering, meaningful (self-proclaimed) motion picture. Watch out for the rip-roaring sequences involving the couple’s Hispanic house-help, Maria (Lidia Porto). The lead actress of the film, Ashley Tisdale looks stunning and is absolutely hilarious. The take-offs on ‘Black Swan’ are also certain to evoke guffaws from the audiences. The special appearances (Snoop Dogg, Mike Tyson, Usher, Bow Wow among others) perfectly get tailored into the insane plot. There’s humour involving sex, dope, faeces, ghosts, amputated body parts, the works!

This film was unabashedly, and unapologetically, silly.  Yet, it was funny. Plus, it’s only 86 minutes!

Shivom Oza

Commando (2013) Review by Shivom Oza – Lights, Camera and ACTION!

2.5/5 Stars

Commando, produced by Vipul Shah, projects itself as an out-and-out action film, with unbelievable stunt sequences performed by Vidyut Jammwal of Force fame. The makers have also maintained that while it is an action film, there is a lot of emotion (in the form of romance, music, song-and-dance etc.) inherent in the screenplay. The film keeps its promises on most counts. To put it briefly, the plot revolves around how Captain Karanvir Dogra, a commando, rescues Simrit from the stranglehold of the local goon, Amrit Kanwal Singh (colloquially referred to as AK74, since he was born in the year 1974!), and his men.

Your opinion of the film will depend a lot on your expectations. So to lay it out for you, here's what you should expect from Commando - unbelievable action (never-seen-before in Hindi cinema), Vidyut Jammwal's electrifying screen presence, Pooja Chopra's decent acting performance on debut, hummable music, corny (most of them being cringe-worthy) dialogues, a villain with clownish tendencies, bizarre plot points, wonderful cinematography and one abominable, sleazy, unwanted item number.

Commando is a complete 'masala' film. There will be several moments during the film, when you will look around wondering, 'Who came up with that?'. So, expect all the aforementioned aspects and you might just end up liking it. Luckily, action remains a very dominant part of the film, and doesn't get overshadowed by other embellishments.

Commando of the Indian army, Karanvir Dogra (Vidyut Jammwal) escapes from China (where he was in the custody of the Chinese army after being falsely implicated as an Indian spy and mercilessly tortured thereafter) to India (albeit in miraculous circumstances). Here, at a small town close to the Punjab-Himachal Pradesh border, he bumps into Simrit (Pooja Chopra), who has run away from her home after facing a lot of harassment from the eccentric and much-feared local politician, AK74 (Jaideep Ahlawat). Thus begins the action extravaganza!

We get to see Vidyut perform innumerable and breathtaking stunt sequences, and mouth rip-roaring one-liners. The actor is sublime when it comes to flaunting his brawny side. The perfectly toned physique and the charming dialogue delivery, works wonders for the young actor's screen presence. Pooja performs very well, for someone who is making her acting debut. One wishes that her character had been written in a better manner (perhaps toned down its effervescence a trifle), but Pooja does well with what she had to do. Jaideep Ahlawat, who plays the villain, is absolutely marvelous. The actor plays the comical villain to the hilt and evokes chills and guffaws in equal measure. Jaideep is a real find, and should definitely be seen in more films. The supporting cast members deliver passable performances.

Mannan Shaah's music is pleasant and hummable. The song 'Saawan Bairi', sung by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, is as beautiful as its video, which features Vidyut and Pooja. Sejal Shah's cinematography is at its best during the shoot of this particular song. Sejal's camerawork is one of the highlights of the film. There's an unwanted item number in the film. This dance number screams 'sleazy' and almost withers away a fairly enjoyable movie-watching experience. Vidyut and Pooja have got terrific screen presence and are fine dancers as well. Hence, the songs, barring that apology of an item number, don't really slow the film down or spoil the screenplay. The dialogues of the film are outright corny. At times, one does wonder if this is really how people, or on a more widespread level, army people talk! The lines have been written in order to bring in the whistles, but sadly, not all of them work! Dilip Ghosh's attempt to make a movie like this, which seems like a good amalgamation of the realistic and the commercial, almost succeeds.

However, as already mentioned before, Commando is not everybody's cup of tea. Although the makers have moderated their sensibilities considerably for this film, Commando remains a 'masala' potboiler and only those who enjoy this genre will like it. Prasad Sasthe's background score deserves special mention.

If you're a fan of action films, go for Commando. However, remember that the film comprises many more elements, which one usually associates with 'masala' potboilers. So, keep that thought in mind!

Shivom Oza

The Place Beyond The Pines (2013) Review by Shivom Oza – Beyond Brilliant!

3.5/5 Stars

Crime-thrillers often make for fascinating movies; more so, when the screenplay of the film is spruced with innocuous mind games and dichotomous characters. ‘The Place Beyond The Pines’, starring Bradley Cooper, Ryan Gosling and Eva Mendes, is an intriguing three-part film which revolves around how decisions made by  a stunt motorcyclist and a dutiful police officer, affect the lives of their families. It is directed by Derek Cianfrance of ‘Blue Valentine’ fame.

Its wonderful story and screenplay, backed with awesome performances, make ‘The Place Beyond The Pines’ one of the better crime-thrillers to have come out in recent times. The multi-layered characters (and by layered, I mean sometimes greedy and sometimes selfless, sometimes bound by duty and sometimes by fate, sometimes white and mostly black), performed by the cast with much aplomb, make the film very real and relatable. An absolutely brilliant story about relationships, revenge and forgiveness, ‘The Place Beyond The Pines’ is ‘edge-of-the-seat’ stuff. Clocking in at 2 hours 20 minutes, the film doesn’t seem long at all.

A stunt motorcyclist, Luke Glanton (Ryan Gosling), is trying very hard to reconnect with his former girlfriend and the mother of his new-born child, Romina (Eva Mendes). In order to provide for her and his child Jason, Luke quits motorcycle racing and starts robbing banks. Being a rider, Luke lives life on the edge and is absolutely unapologetic about his actions.

Police officer Avery Cross (Bradley Cooper) is looking for growth at his workplace, but is pulled back by the rampant corruption in the department.

Two boys, studying in high school, Jason (Luke’s son) and AJ Cross (Avery’s son), fall into trouble with drugs, which leads to a lot of drama and some bloodshed.

The film is about how the lives of the aforementioned characters entwine. The film tackles relationships very well. Be it Luke’s and Romina’s romantic liaison, Avery’s turbulent relationship with his wife and son, Jason’s equation with AJ Cross, and Avery’s fabulous camaraderie with his father, the highs and lows of any normal relationship have been encapsulated brilliantly by the writers.

It even deals with the dichotomy that most of us often find ourselves in – ‘whose side to take?’. It’s true that if you stand for something right/wrong, you have to bear the consequences eventually. The characters are etched in such a meticulous manner, that you may find yourself sympathizing with the criminal at some points and cursing the righteous individual at others.

On the technical front, the film excels purely on its writing (Derek Cianfrance, Ben Coccio and Darius Marder). The score, composed by Mike Patton, is eerily delightful. In addition, the camerawork (Sean Bobbitt) wonderfully compliments the dark, gritty theme of the film. As a viewer, I connected with this film on several grounds – forgiveness, righteousness, ambition and compassion. The story is bound to strike a chord with you at some level or the other.

The film, just like its title, is open to several interpretations. It stays with you for a long time after you’ve watched it.  

Shivom Oza

Oblivion (2013) Review by Shivom Oza - The Title Says It All!

2/5 Stars

'Oblivion' is a science fiction film based on an unpublished graphic novel of the same name by writer-director Joseph Kosinski. Drone mechanic Jack Harper has been assigned to extract Earth's remaining resources (after its surface has been devastated following an alien invasion 60 years earlier). In the process, Jack discovers a crashed spacecraft, wherein he discovers a female stranger trapped inside a space-coffin. Post this incident, he begins questioning everything that he knows about the invasion and its repercussions.

The title, 'Oblivion', means 'state of being forgotten'. And yes, the movie is quite forgettable. Too many sci-fi films have been made on the 'dystopian' theme, so even the concept isn't novel. The lone good thing about the film was the background score. The half-baked climax added insult to injury. The 120-million-dollar-worth project is a criminal waste of resources.

According to the film's premise, planet Earth was invaded by the aliens in 2017, which left its surface nearly destroyed. 60 years later, former Marine commander Jack Harper (Tom Cruise) is one of the last few mechanics stationed on the planet. Jack repairs the drones, which patrol the skies and protect the planet from warring aliens.

He and his colleague Victoria Olsen (Andrea Riseborough) are a part of the operation to clean up the remaining forces of the invasion and extract the planet's remaining resources. Almost reaching the culmination of the mission, Jack rescues a female stranger, Julia Rusakova (Olga Kurylenko), from a space-coffin inside a crashed spaceship. Following this incident, he comes in contact with the mysterious Malcolm Beech (Morgan Freeman) and is forced to question everything that he knows about the alien invasion.

The film takes too long to establish its plot and premise. Most sci-films made in 2012 focused on the 'dystopian'/post-end-of-the-world theme and a majority of them were major disappointments. While this film makes a hash of the subject with its long-drawn and inconsequential screenplay, most makers should question the feasibility of the concept as well. The '2050/2060/2100 etc.' films do not intrigue the audiences anymore. So, no matter what the star-cast, budget, story or maker, there are more chances that the film will carry a strong 'been-there-seen-that' undertone.

In 'Oblivion', the plot moves on sluggishly for the first 90 minutes, until the makers realize that they have to give the 120-million-dollars spending some sort of justification. The writers have tried to incorporate several twists in the climax, but the damage is done and the sudden developments purely add to the viewer's chagrin. Tom Cruise and Morgan Freeman are completely wasted in the film. The background score by Anthony Gonzalez and Joseph Trapanese is quite nice, but that's about it.

The title says it all!

Shivom Oza

Chashme Buddoor (1981) Review by Shivom Oza – Don’t Call It ‘OLD’!

4/5 Stars

“The word classic means something that is a perfect example of a particular style, something of lasting worth or with a timeless quality”, says the dictionary. We often mistake most old films to be ‘classics’. However, the ‘something of lasting worth or with a timeless quality’ prerequisite seldom gets fulfilled.

Sai Paranjpye’s ‘Chashme Buddoor’ (1981) is one such film, which satisfies all the aforementioned parameters.

The film, which kind of embodied all genres – romance, comedy, drama, tragedy, satire and a bit of action, is what you would call in today’s lingo a ‘full-blown masala entertainer’. Although the songs do slow it down a trifle, the dialogues, performances and the writing make ‘Chashme Buddoor’ a must, must watch!

Siddharth (Farooq Shaikh), Omi (Rakesh Bedi) and Jai (Ravi Baswani) are three Delhi University students, staying together in a rented flat. While Siddharth is the studious one and spends most of his time reading books, Omi and Jai are absolutely ‘good-for-nothing’. They spend all their time chasing girls and fooling around! However, the three friends share one common interest – smoking cigarettes! They buy borrow their cigarette stock from a local shopkeeper, Lallan Miyan (Saeed Jaffrey) and never pay up, much to the old man’s chagrin!

This ‘uncomfortable’ camaraderie goes on until the three friends end up falling for the same girl – Neha Rajan (Deepti Naval) aka ‘Miss Chamko’!

The film encapsulates everything that was ‘cool’ about India during the 80s. Right from the language to the lifestyle to the behaviour, there was a good mix of the innocent and the liberal (and sometimes, the rebellious). The three main characters, played by Shaikh, Bedi and Baswani, are witty and wicked in equal measure. All the three actors manage to hold their own. While Baswani plays the foolish, crooked Jai to the hilt, Bedi shows that he is a genius when it comes to comic timing. Farooq, despite not getting to play one of the ‘funny’ guys, ends up creating his own niche of humour with his wide range of expressions and reactions. Deepti Naval had to play ‘hard-to-get’, ‘madly-in-love’, ‘damsel-in-distress’, ‘plain-Jane’, ‘glam-doll’ and what not, in the same film, and she brings out her best for this (still-memorable) character of ‘Miss Chamko’. Some of the sequences in the film are beyond brilliant, right from the opening credits to Omi and Jai’s futile wooing to Miss Chamko’s detergent powder demonstration to the light-hearted banter between the leads and Lallan Miyaan. Leena Mishra’s cameo as the grandmother is absolutely delightful.

The best part about the film is that it’s not the nostalgia which will make you smile. The humour is such that it would have worked even in 2013. So, you wouldn’t necessarily laugh because you got reminded of a certain era. You would laugh because you found the scene really funny!

The music of the film by Raj Kamal is the only aspect which may not work for today’s audience. Most songs do slow down the film. The songs are good, but in isolation and not within the screenplay. One song that really goes with the theme of the film is ‘Pyar Lagawat’.

Other notable aspects of the film include the terrific parody featuring Baswani and Naval, Amitabh Bachchan-Rekha cameo and the amazing restoration work done on the film.

Sai Paranjpye’s genius is written all over ‘Chashme Buddoor’. It’s a must watch (on the BIG screen)!

Shivom Oza