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Dune: Part One (2021)
Dune: a frabjous sci-fi excellency!
In the land of sands, tells a story of consequential ambitions, political struggles & a fated destiny. Dune, originally written by Frank Herbert, is one extravagant grandeur. Adapted by the renowned director, Denis Villeneuve alongside Warner Bros. & Legendary Pictures, the breathtaking journey of 2 hours & 28 minutes lays the most astonishing foundation for what's yet to come.
For someone who's not been fortunate enough to have experienced the novels, I was in complete awe of such brilliantly laid concept. Usually, in a sci-fi series of such manner, you'd expect a lot more action deriving from its character driven tendencies rather than a sense of complexity and depth present within the story itself. For Dune, however, you get the perfect blend of everything with a very clear idea of what's there to come and what more could there be from your perspective. The suspence and excitement on the course alone leave you satisfied enough towards the end, if the film itself hasn't managed to amaze you properly yet. But given its slow-paced nature of storytelling, which was indeed a little wearying at times, one may find it hard to keep their attention level consistent or may even go onto dislike it, and understandably so. But considering how well crafted the film is, one is certain not to be left perplexed with the vast world of Dune.
The story is arguably the film's strength. Those who've seen Star Wars will undoubtedly be reminded of the iconic trilogies at the beginning of Dune, but it manages to set itself up for us to be able to espy the collosal differences. Much bigger, much more serious, more detailed conceptually, more emphasis on lores, a little less dramatic & overall more profound as compared to the hopeful, glamourous, straight-forward, heart-warming & action-packed saga's of Star Wars. The story itself is deriving from & driven by the themes of oppression, colonialism, political differences & faith, establishing itself something very unique excellently & quickly. The conflict between the Harkonnen & the Atreides possibly brings about the most significant contrariety. It's a political predicament stemming from the seeds sowed a millennia back, which itself leaves an opportunity to develop the characters, story & the world further. It's most definitely not a simplistic story of the "the dark vs. The good." It's much more nuanced than that, and even with a limited presentation, comprehending what exactly it's attempting to do is not too difficult. Perhaps, the realisation of the difference also hits harder upon the revelation of the fact Dune is, in fact, much older than the Star Wars franchise! But whether you find this or that amusing depends upon your perception. Personally, I'm a big Star Wars fan!
The direction, that apparently has taken quiet a bit of artistic freedom, has turned the film much more than anything you'd otherwise expected it to be. Right from the very beginning, the film makes it clear that the political tensions reign over everything else out there & as the sensational story progresses, it only becomes further evident. The sense of tension was brought to life with a spiffing work of direction that left absolutely no holes to dig in further. What's more, you've this massive cast filled with characters of different cultures, coming together to create and prevent chaos alike that it becomes significantly difficult to choose just one or two characters you want to explore further. For this fine presentation & near-perfect utilisation of the characters to create an impact on the story alone, the director surely deserve a lot appreciation.
Perhaps, one complaint I could think of ironically comes down to the very same characters who were so monumental to this extravaganza's success. Having so many characters in a film that's main purpose is setting up the world in a very limited screen-time always comes with one flip side: lack of enough layers, or depth within. You'd wonder what has led the certain characters, specifically Paul's mother in this case, to become what they've; or why are they seemingly so very monumental in driving this grand story forward. Perhaps, that's the cost a "part one" of such a complex & ambitious project comes with. But seeing how carefully the film has been crafted, and with its sequel coming in two years time, one can be more than certain that all the questions will inevitably be answered when the time arrives. Though, when's that remains another mystery funnily enough, confirming what has been the preferred format for serious movie watchers for years now: binge-watch! Lord of the Rings, Star Wars or Avengers wouldn't have been the kind of impactful classics they are if people didn't dive onto them again years later to experience them at once to form a conclusive judgement and solidify the love further! After all, not every franchise is James Bond!
Coming down to the protagonist - Paul - I feel like he started off in a very generic manner but quickly grew into something much more worth of our attention. Charming, smart, rational, a little hot-headed at times, ambitious & not particularly nuanced just yet but basically, everything you'd usually expect from a lead character of a sci-fi. The world is certainly poised to revolve around him (while having the consequences of its own) & given his strong sense of "developing" resolve, which is thematically paralleled to the themes of the film itself, I felt his subtle growth throughout the film was presented ideally. Nothing too extraordinary, but rather perfect enough to lay the foundation and show the potential.
Now, now, how could you just watch Dune and ignore the presence of Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, Chang Chen, Jason Momoa & everybody else? All of them, irrespective of their limited screen-time, did perfect justice to their respective characters throughout. The screenplay definitely enhanced the value of their participation as well. Be it the early interaction of Paul & his father, or the scene of Paul & his mother in the desert, the performances coupled with some great screenplay left an impact in the mind for sure. Oscar Isaac & Jason Momoa, in particular, were the stand-out actors for me despite the fact that they couldn't manage to get a good chunk of the runtime. Perhaps, they were little too good for the film, haha!
Coming along, another minor-or-major-or-whatever complaint I could think of was the lack of further exploration of the world, its science & its culture. Given how amusing the world seems to be, it's not my fault to be wanting to experience it further, right? But perhaps, the limited exploration was still not enough to limit the greatness of one of the best cinematographers out there currently - Greig Fraser. The coruscating way in which he managed to capture the sense of tension, the fast-paced action sequences and the mind-blowingly crafted CGI & VFX atmosphere as a whole played an enormous role in glorifying the already so dazzling piece of work! Surely couldn't have happened without the impeccable assistance of Legendary Picture & Warner Bros. Though! And coupled with some background scoring as peerless as ever by the stalwart Hans Zimmer, the experience of Dune is something to remember for long time to come.
Living upto the expectations is not so practical for everyone. There are elements in filmmaking which you've to add or sacrifice to spice it up, at the cost of leaving the a small fraction of the audience dissatisfied entirely. But Dune Part One is something that's bound to satisfy you in one way or another. Whether it's the concept, story, characters or the technicalities, Denis Villeneuve has undoubtedly done his finest as always. To sew this up, if Denis' name, the cast & the critically acclaimed novel series wasn't enough to convince or diminish the hesitance in you, I hope this review helps you sincerely in some ways because I reckon, you most definitely wouldn't wanna miss on getting aboard this wonderful rollercoaster of around two and a half hours... Not a masterpiece in any sense just yet, but a true extravaganza in every sense! A classic in making!
Tenki no ko (2019)
The beauty of rain.
Spirituality, the power of youth, the ignorant society where you can still expect support of a few, the bond of love, two relatable characters, some realistic supporting characters & how everything in the end affect the society as a whole are key elements of any Makoto Shinkai films. And Weathering With You was no different. Coupled with some fabulous animation, art & music, the film was a fabulous experience for me. The metaphorical themes of the film and how its narrated may not be so original but the execution just makes everything so perfect, mesmerizing and a joyful treat!
Marriage Story (2019)
Noah Baumbach's finest film till the date!
Regrets held deep down the lane of emotions and ego can often lead to a larger impact than what is usually imaginable & Noah Baumbach's "Marriage Story," a film with highs and as many lows, reflects the very realistic modern-day story of instinctive and very natural love alongside a forceful but understandable differences of opinions.
But as they say, no life is perfect. The very word of "imperfection" is an integral part of any human being. And Charlie (Adam Driver) and Nicole (Scarlett Johansson) were no different. After years of marriage and a kid of 7-8 years age, Nicole finally decides to move on, citing the selfishness of a normal busy businessman Charlie. And that's where, with a simplistic plot coupled with great depth, the film starts to question your mindset and righteousness. It keeps deceiving the audiences throughout and boggles the minds with numerous scenes that may lead to an emotional attachment....... With two fictitious but highly relatable on screen characters. And then there were the bunch of lawyers, who Charlie even went onto call "assholes," is a perfect example of all the troubles that couples face during the divorcing saga. But is the mental burden the end? No. How the entire society is impacted alongside your kid and how a relationship instinctively ends up lasting forever are well and truly showcased in the most appropriate manner possible in this film.
Credits to the the fantastic screenplay and even more fantastic direction of Noah Baumbach! But can we take away anything from the technical department? A huge no. The scoring by Randy Newman, cinematography by Robbie Ryan & editing by Jennifer Lame were top-tier. The usage of 35mm made the film looked more relatable than ever with all the actors looking much larger and closer, and therefore leaving a more mental impact. The off-white coloring helped capturing the essence of Los Angeles and New York alike magnificently. In the end, it was the spot-on dramatic background scoring which played a key-role throughout the film. Most importantly, the dialogue writing, supported by a wonderful yet compact cast selection, was on point. The way Noah Baumbach used metaphors via storybooks, body language and all held the artistical values within but the pace intact. Kudos to each one of the makers in the film for being able to deliver such a masterpiece!
All in all, Netflix's "Marriage Story" is definitely one of the finest divorce dramas ever and missing it is something I definitely won't be suggesting. Although, it may not be for everyone, partly due to slight bit of profanity and how the theme is adult-centric. But if you decide to watch - be sure to be prepared for an extraordinary emotional rollercoaster ride of lots of differences and other factors (relatable for many)!
1917 (2019)
The ugliness of struggles portrayed through beauty of camera.
Struggle, struggle and struggle. That's what comes to our minds when we hear of war. And 1917 horrifically just showcases that in the most appropriate manner. With a compact cast, beautiful cinematography and cracking background score, 1917 remains as one of the finest contenders for Academy Awards 2020!
Gisaengchung (2019)
A little fantastical journey that reflects the harsh and unfortunate reality.
The dark satirical thriller, directed by Bong Joon-ho, began in a very scampering fashion with the mention of the word "metaphor" for countless amount of time. And as you'd usually expect from a Bong film, the metaphor then played a key role throughout yhe film as the name - "Parasite" - suggests. Though, it depends on how you take it & what you'd like to call it because "stairway" remains as another option as well. How? That's the beauty of this two hour long flick. Why? Let's discuss!
And to begin with, there's the plot that on paper didn't particularly make a lot of sense as it's expected from a satire in general. But the layers beneath and the sui generis usage of the metaphor illustrated the beauty, giving the film a base to build upon. No matter how unrealistic and chaotic the occuring events were, the joyousness kept emanating throughout while keeping a lot of space for sympathy and questions in a sublime pace and lighthearted tone initially. Supported by a colourful yet limited and very important cast with a lot of depth. Each and every actors, in their respective roles, probably have outdone themselves in that regard.
On a technical note, the cinematography in particular, deserves a lot of credits. Hong Kyung-pyo managed to capture the essence of two types of Korea, something which was extremely important for the film in itself, while keeping everything so simplistic and relatable. The entire set-up of the film, that provided the innocence and realistic touch, deserves a lot of extolling. At the end, the editing acted as needle that knitted everything together. Supervised by CJ Productions (and of course, Bong) with a tight budget, it'd be totally unfair not to mention how impressed I've been by their mind-blowing piece of work.
But everything aside, what packs the ultimate punch? The theme of differences of classes and how it's showcased through the "stairways." Call it pessimistic as you may like, or realistic for the sake of argument, the harsh reality doesn't change. That said, do you stop dreaming? No. But sometimes you get carried away in the sea of hopes, which may be "greed" for many. The dependency on lower classes & prison of wealth is something the film depicts so very uniquely. And the ending eventually solidified whatever, pessimistic for some and realistic for many, Bong wanted to claim; or rather ask you. With a lot of differences of opinions on its simplistic yet so complicated ending scene, one thing remains certain - you're bound to fall in love with this masterpiece, that sure does have the potential to snatch the "Best Picture" award at the gala night of Academy Awards 2020!
The Mandalorian (2019)
An unique adventure, that's not worth missing out!
"The Mandalorian" started off as a spin-off of Star Wars franchise, only to eventually go down as the greatest Star Wars movie or show ever alongside the Luke Skywalker Saga (including Rogue One)! Jaw-dropping action, fabulous story, exciting and memorable characters, crunchy dialogues, neat cinematography, magnificent CGI/VFX, perfect cast & what not. Simply flawless & much beyond a simple tag of "Masterclass", to say the least! Go, don't miss it at any cost!
Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker (2019)
A fitting beginning, not end, for a new era of Galaxy!
"The Rise Of Skywalker", directed by J.J. Abrams, marked the ending to the decades old saga of Star Wars. Having a totally different theme from the tradition, with the core basics being pretty much the same, the film was never expected to satisfy everyone alike. However, as much as the hatred The Last Jedi recieved, I must say The Rise of Skywalker is totally a different case here. But to begin, remember, no sci-fi films are flawless & this one's no exception. With an inconsistent pace at times, the story still manages to act as a great conclusion with lots of unexplained aspects.
The story, in particular, was as predictable as any Star Wars films ever traditionally. Beginning with the shocking return of Palpatine in an attempt to establish Sith Empire once & for all comes Finn, Rey & Poe as the hurdles. Enroute to the unknown with grit & determination of helping The Force rise once again lies the unexpected turn of events with some heavily shocking & unexpected plot twists. With lots of actions packed, starting right after the opening crawl, the film overall stayed true to its tradition with a few tweaks as seen in this trilogy originally. But most importantly, hope never dies. And with hope comes the end to all the evildoers. And for that - Skywalker or not; lone-hero or not - it doesn't really matter & the film only solidifies its point, using the same controversial platform that was set a few years back. Carrie Fischer's unfortunate and sudden demise surely did cost the plot to some extent. But now, satisfaction upon the completion of story will only depend on one point - whether or not did you like "The Last Jedi," because as much as it's back to the traditional Star Wars route, it still is an evident sequel.
But having said that, story has never been the major talking point of Star Wars, has it? And this film is no different. With a top notch cast of Adam, Daisy, Oscar, Boyega & many more, an extravagant experience is guaranteed. Adam, Daisy & Oscar in particular were the stars of the film, giving me a tough time to judge who was actually the best. But for me standout performance definitely was by Anthony Daniels as C3PO (yeah, I'm just kidding)! However, their characters in particular didn't have significant amount of progression as you'd usually expect from a conclusive film. Finn & Ben's characters in particular have totally been wasted as to their potential & throughout the saga, it was evident how badly Ben was written with Finn getting next to no conclusions other than being just another comrade in the Resistance. But again, that's pretty much expected from a typical Sci-Fi film (but not necessarily a Star Wars film). Talking specifically about certain characters, I've to begin with Kylo Ren a.k.a Ben Solo, who didn't really have a definitive development throughout the saga & was rather used as a medium of flexibility to adjust as per the needs. From determination & lust of prowess to regretting and realising all those mistakes, we never really got the badass-ness within the depth of his character. Now, there's Finn too who had a lots of potential as well. But with potentially different love interests & showcasing next to no history, this character too went in vain at the end. But what differed between the two was Rey's evident significance as an entity to keep up the pace of the plot. Whereas, Finn was very ignorable. It was the acting from both, that saved these highly potent characters at the end. But then again, that's all expected from a Sci-Fi film, if not so much for Star Wars traditionally, considering developments in characteristics for the likes of Obi-Wan Kenobi, Han Solo & all.
On a technical level, the background scoring, cinematography, CGI, VFX & action choreography were just top-notch & perfect from every single aspect. At times, it felt as if it was a total experience which is beyond just a flick, on a level much higher than the previous Star Wars films. The music, cinematography & action, in particular, were a delightful experience & it seems the makers have put a lot of emphasis on this department. And trust me, the only film that comes closer to this one are Force Awakens & Avatar!
All in all, "Star Wars - Episode 9: Rise Of Skywalker" was an extremely enjoyable movie with a much deserved conclusion to our beloved Star Wars franchise & the Luke Skywalker Saga. Portraying women empowerment as a core of the film, J.J. Abrams has pretty much succeeded in redefining "feminism in film" with a strong characteristics in show with Rey & her "hope"! But satisfaction still only depends upon neutrality while watching. But having said that, trust me, it deserves a shot & I'm certain, you won't be dissatisfied after watching this extravaganza of approximately 2 hours & 30 minutes!
May the force be with you!
Gotro (2019)
A film, beyond the barriers of religious beliefs.
Beyond the barriers of religious beliefs lies the most gifted concept named "humanity" & with "Gotro", Shiboprasad-Nandita do their best to validate their point through a simplistic storyline and a generic message. As easy as it may seem, the message that was conveyed wasn't so easy to grasp for many even today. The attempt to showcase the core of humanity with such grit itself deserves a lot of praise much kore than the film. For a one-time watch, "Gotro" is a delightful treat nevertheless!
The Sky Is Pink (2019)
A treat of joy and fortune with little bit of sorrow.
"The Sky Is Pink" is unique in its own way. Lots of emotions and challenges packed onto a two hour package of slow paced non linear storytelling (which takes a lot of time to establish the context in first part) & a perfect cast of Farhan, Priyanka & Zaira, the film manages to succeed in showing hopefulness and acceptance should together be the way to lead the life regardless, because no lives are perfect. Sorrowful ending as it may seem, but to me, the conclusion was a joyful one in its own way. Wherever Aisha Choudhary today is, I'm certain that her "Sky Is Pink!"
Dream Girl (2019)
The all round entertainer with some meaningful message.
Starring Ayushmann Khurana, "Dream Girl" is definitely the most hilarious Bollywood film of 2019. Packed with some good music, cast, acting, story, dialogues, double-meaning jokes, inconsistent pace, decent cinematography & some hilarious moments - the film succeeds in mashing everything into one definitive statement at the end. Not the ideal film to be watched with the family though!
Rosogolla (2018)
A bittersweet "Rosogolla," with the sweetest message!
"Rosogolla," based on the life of Nabin Chandra Das & his creations, is a film with wasted potential. Directed by Pavel & featuring Ujaan Ganguly, Abantika Biswas, Rajatava Dutta, Kharaj Mukherjee & many more, the two hour long film fails to live upto the expectations. With awful lot of flaws, it's actually hard to point out what the core problem is.
First, the film isn't well written at all. Lack of definitive reality-checks and extremely predictable outcomes from the beginning, the film was bound to be an experiment with the outcome solely depending on its direction. And even in that department, Pavel has failed to keep a consistent pace and a perfect dramatic set-up. At times, I felt as if there's no point of watching the film & that, I'm actually watching some sort of overdramatic Indian serial on the silver screen. A polished and better resolution camera hardly ever manages to fill up the holes. But yet, the cinematographer has done a good job, considering the limited amount of resources, that was evident throughout the movie. Poor VFX with as poor sets is one point you can totally call a "core problem."
Talking about the story itself, it's pretty obvious. All of us have grown up eating the sweets & listening to the stories of Nabin Chandra Das. There was nothing expected out of it & still, the makers found hilarious ways to add "masalas" to it without any elaboration of the actual history. Eventually, the film ended in a peculiar fashion where Rajatava Dutta & Shantilal Mukherjee's characters' characteristics were totally destroyed to glorify the protagonist, for an even more dramatic ending. The ridiculousness reached new heights right there, even more so with the help of a poor cast selection and lead actors' poor acting (and dialogue delivery) skills. Ujaan Ganguly's one dimensional performance especially when his character demanded a lot of layers (with the core being joyous attitude), in particular, was absolutely a disaster in every aspect & that's really unexpected, given the amount of time Shiboprasad & Nandita, as producers, or Pavel, as director, usually spend. The struggle due to poverty and rejection being a lower-class, especially, was missing even though the story demanded it & at no moment did I feel a bit of sympathy for Nabin Chandra Das' cinematic counterpart. The British Era's Kolkata also didn't feel like "Kalikata" for one single moment.
But not everything is negative as the dialogue writing, editing & music were fabulous but not "sweet." Having a lot of expectations personally might've forced me to go a bit harsh on the film but even on a second watch, the flaws weren't really negligible. Innocence, however, was the brightest point of the film. At the end, the highly potential "Rosogolla" turned into one bittersweet experience & yet, it somehow manages to be below average family movie, especially for the children to teach them never to give up!
Chhichhore (2019)
A mix of perfect storytelling and simple plot.
Featuring Sushant Singh Rajput & Shraddha Kapoor in the lead, Nitesh Tiwari's "Chhichhore" is an unique journey down nostalgic-lane, that doesn't necessarily revolves around the leads.
With a simple storyline carrying a very serious message for any of the aspiring students and their parents alike, what made the film so significantly different is its unique form storytelling, while keeping its quirky tone intact. Consisting a both extremely peculiar and low-key foreseeable happy ending alike, the two and a half hour film definitely succeeded to satisfy me nevertheless & for that, Nitesh Tiwari undoubtedly deserves appreciation.
But without the magnificent performances of many layers from the wonderful and vast cast of Sushant Singh Rajput, Shraddha Kapoor, Varun Sharma, Tahir Raj Bhasin & others, would the film have been as good? The doubt's level is high. On the other hand, how they were handled and portrayed was something not in their control but to add to the film's significance and style of storytelling, whatever opportunity they recieved to shine were recieved with both hands. From comedic, to portray the typical college life as you'd expect, to being serious, to showcase parenthood and job-life, at times; it palpably was one tough job for the actors, even with the company of a very simple yet nifty dialogue writing. As characters, their chemistry was heartwarming and relatable for anyone but what stood out the most was the love-story of Anirudh (Sushant Singh Rajput) & Maya (Shraddha Kapoor). But at the same time, I could've appreciated the on-screen relationship even more had the reason behind the development of bitterness between the two been clarified properly. As neatly as everything else were taken care of, I certainly expected lack of Nitesh Tiwari's bad habit of neglecting certain points.
Coming to the technical aspects of the film, music department undoubtedly was my favourite one even though it held close to zero significance in the film other than giving it a kickstart. Pritam, as you'd expect, has done one very good job in understanding the tone and making music upon it. The film lacked one single bad song & how they were played, too, was one intelligent decision by Nitesh Tiwari. Accompanied by a good cinematography, which captured the essence of college life and afterwards so practically & great editing alike, the film was always meant to be one handcrafted-like product.
Overall, a lighthearted take on a crucial modern day issue, "Chhichhore" is truly one genuinely practical fest with slight bit of cinematic drama, handcrafted by Nitesh Tiwari with the utmost care. A film, that has zero chance of "failing" to win one's heart and carries a significant message, which needs to be taken very seriously in the era we're standing in.
Poketto monsutâ (1997)
Pokémon Sun & Moon (2016-2019) REVIEW.
The 6th series of 22 years old Pokémon Anime franchise, named Sun & Moon, was a wonderful experience of three years where we got to see a brand new take on Pokémon with a lots of focus on minor details, something which was never expected from Pokémon Anime. While keeping the tone down to childish, the series managed to achieve the greatest and touched the hearts of 8 to 80 alike. While it may take the full 146 episodes to totally understand how it pans out, it should also be noted that not every episodes were as interesting. In fact, the first season was tremendously boring at times with lots of inconsistencies in art; whereas the second season started to catch up the groove, on which the final season built upon to deliver us my joint most favourite (along with XY) Pokémon series ever. And yet, there was absolutely no significantly moving storyline but rather stories of individuals and arcs of certain characters that ended up weaving something far greater than a mere story, unlike any of the previous series. In short, I found the attempted slice of life set-up not so exciting at all, for a long running series but nevertheless, the experience as a whole was joyful at the same time.
Specifically speaking, the important episodes at times were great and even many fillers really stood out. What made the series so unique is how the characters, with tragic and simple backstories alike, got specific episodes over certain periods to shine specifically with slight interference of other characters. At some point or the other, even their childhood were revisited and how they played a key role in determining their characteristics was neatly showcased. The interactions between themselves were so original and how Ash inspired them to some extent was beautifully portrayed. And while Ash's surroundings kept discovering themselves, Ash himself never let himself down in front of those friends too. The tactical sense he discovered within himself after the shocker at League during the final season of Unova was intact & while not being too serious, he still was one hell of a clever kid as Ash had never seemed as vivid before.
Technically, the only negative points for me are Ash, Oak & Team Rocket's goofy designs, lack of traveling and meeting new persons every day & a bit of pacing issue initially (which, as I said, was solved by the middle of second season). On the other hand, the amount of character development we've had throughout the series is as same amount as we've had over all the previous series combined, which is totally unreal to believe! And I'm not even kidding. However, while Team Rocket started off as potentially on verge of being the funniest Team Rocket ever, the second season eventually started to take away their repetitive appearances with same motive with having close to zero significance in the league & therefore, failing to achieve the level of Advanced Generation at all.
Talking about the league, it was undoubtedly the turning point for the anime. Technically, the perfect climax too where each and every characters with different personalities got their much deserved conclusion and opened up new paths alike. More than the battles were the beautiful moments it delivered. Credits to the direction again.
But talking about a Pokémon series & ignoring battles is totally impossible so here it is. If I'm being honest, I cannot really say I've been impressed visually with the battles but most probably, the point of most of the battles were character development rather than "our heroes winning." But when it came to the league as well, it couldn't really please me on a visual level until the final two or three battles really. Lack of 3v3 battles in semis and 6v6 in finals, besides usage of dynamic angles, are some things that left me disappointed to certain extent. Ash vs. Kukui, though, was able to turn around my feelings to some extent.
Nevertheless, there's no doubt that every characters were great. However, Sophocles, and at times, Kukui, felt extra to the cast. Though, my initial guess of "crowded cast won't have enough significance or high amount of opportunities" have truly been proven wrong & I'm happy for that. But on top of everything, Prof. Kukui & Prof. Kukui slowly-cooked relationship was sidelined & greatly underappreciated. What stood out the most though was how the characters unknowingly went on a journey of discovering themselves, with the help of each other & there too, Ash's contribution for his own development as well as his surroundings was extremely significant, something which was never done so neatly before.
Now, the most difficult part of this review. As you'd probably guess, I'm no expert on the animation section & yet, it was evident that the movement of every characters and Pokémon are far better comparatively (in and out of battles). However, I'd have appreciated a bit sharper design with consistent amount of shading and slightly more saturation with a pinch less of brightness. However, through that animation only, the essence of Alola was captured beautifully as it actually succeeded in providing us a slight bit of taste of Hawaiian Islands!
But what accompanied everything and kept all the emotional and humorous moments of the series altogether? The melodious OSTs in the Japanese dub, that provided a brand new dynamic to the anime & enriched it with delicacy. Although, the English dub lacked good scoring, it still had far better opening themes compared fo its Japanese counterpart. Now, I've watched both English & Japanese Dub equally. And to choose one, I'd probably go with English because I found the voices more suitable for the characters even though Japanese Dub had some memorable music and dubbers.
But the most unique part was probably the lack of movies based on Alola. While it kept the timeline in check, it also offered new opportunities to the production to surf & as a result, we got three unique films in the last years with having no relationships with any of the previous movies or series whatsoever.
Overall, a slightly different take on Pokémon, while retaining majority of the traditional traits, was meant to go on as an experiment. An experiment that possessed high risk of not pleasing the majority. But now it's clear that it's paid off developing a "family in Alola" & hence, there shouldn't be any hesitation in accepting Pokémon Sun & Moon truly was a fantastic and memorable series, with the most perfect ending possible & one, that'll remain as my joint most favourite Pokémon Series (alongside XY), without any doubts. Where you wanna watch it or not completely depends upon your taste and love for Pokémon but if you ask me, I'd definitely reckon this to you! And hopefully, the production have gained further experience through this series to be able to move forward and deliver us even better as we await for the upcoming series! Best of luck!
Joker (2019)
With style over typical substance, "Joker" delivers an unlaughable masterpiece of its own.
"Joker," the tragic crime drama, loosely based on DC Comics' iconic villain & directed by Todd Phillips is a film of many layers but definitely not any sort of one typical comic book film. The impact and influence the film may as well leave behind is unimaginable & will definitely go down as one of the most iconic comic book films ever made.
Now, before jumping onto anything, let me be clear - Joker's story is weak to certain extent but it's upto personal realisation if a "story" is really possible in real life. Yes, the Todd Phillips (and Scott Silver) made sure that the film stays as realistic as possible throughout & I believe, they've done an exceptional job. Each & every directors have their own unique style of filmmaking. Someone like James Cameron prefers a proper cinematic story, someone like Makoto Shinkai prefers metaphorical exploration and depiction to explain the context, someone like Christopher Nolan or Quentin Tarantino prefer nonlinear storymaking with additional dynamics through extraordinary usage of camera & music. Todd Phillips' Joker is completely different from anyone of them because right from the first minute, the film doesn't seem to develop a story but rather get driven by the characteristics-development of Arthur Fleck & the consequences he faces in daily life due to an unfortunate neurological condition, which makes him laugh at any given time without consent. And to think, that's where the "plot" begins interestingly!
Nothing to take away from Joaquin Phoenix though as he undoubtedly was the best part of the film! The impeccable performance he delivered is definitely rare nowadays & it'd be unfair to not stand up and applause at the end. He made sure that the viewers actually start to feel his life of betrayal by the loved ones and ignorance by others as much as him, himself, while keeping the political tone of the film intact. Yes, undoubtedly Joker, the core character of the film, will go down as one of the most influencing, significant & impactful characters in film history. Dialogue writer, too, deserves a lot of credits. But at the end, it was upto Joaquin Phoenix only for portraying the highly complicated character. But other than that, the rest of cast had pretty much nothing to do (other than Thomas Wayne, who's the key of the film as well as Arthur's mother, whose own mother ended up being the biggest betrayal of all) & therefore, expecting some high level casting would've been unfair. Nevertheless, each & every minor characters didn't lack any kind of acting skills.
But every significant incidents that occurred & the impactful and questionable consequences took place in return in the films, largely find their tones due to the background scoring by Hildur Guðnadóttir. Pretty much on a Hans Zimmer's level performance, Hildur manages to provide an identity to the film as much as the director, writer & of course cinematographer. Laurence Sher, the cinematographer, too has had an exceptional performance behind the camera as he managed to capture the essence of poverty of America and how neglectful we, at times, are. The technical department, without a second thought, deserves one third credits for the success of the film and to be honest, that's highly usually as most of the time, their efforts go unnoticed. But this time around, the case is impressively different.
At the end, I'd say "Joker" is pretty much an unique and exceptional film & extremely rare of its kind. The title itself is a metaphor depicting the panglossian man whose optimism is being mocked and his core being shaken over & over again, rather than showcasing the glory of undoubtedly one of the most gruesome villains of all time as it's not one of your daily comic book films. It's not following any old storyline. It's not one pure psychological "thriller." It's not about just action, because the actions here are mostly not physical but mental. And it's definitely not about the iconic name of "Joker." It's about the negligence unfortunate people face, it's about events that can turn any person into criminals. It's about many things, which a film usually would fail to recognise or portray perfectly, unlike Joker & that's exactly why it's a must watch masterpiece. Todd Phillips & Joaquin Phoenix's true agathokakological representation of "Joker" sure is one that'll go down as one of the top (much deserving) contenders for Oscar 2020, one that'll highly influence you to not remain ignorant anymore and start to treat the unfortunate equally if not better, one that'll keep questioning you till the very end, one that'll test your own moral, one that'll shake your belief, one that'll introduce you to the actual dark world & most importantly, one that'll leave you spellbound to be answerable to yourself.
Alita: Battle Angel (2019)
A visual spectacle with a great old-school story!
The live action adaptation of a classic Manga (and Anime) named "Alita: Battle Angel," directed by Robert Rodriguez, is definitely not like one typical messed up Hollywood remake of other Japanese franchises. It's very neatly produced extravaganza with a humongous budget of $170M (provided by 20th Century Fox & James Cameron). But money definitely can't make a film perfect, it's the director who does & in this case, Robert Rodriguez left absolutely zero spot to complaint.
The story, however might be slightly different from its source, is nevertheless one great treat to watch. Even though it mostly follows the basic idea of any other superhero films, what makes is so special is its brilliant pacing and great casting, apart from fine direction of course. HOWEVER, if there's no sequel to explain a lot of opened opportunities to be explored, the film won't probably recieve its deserved conclusion.
Talking about the brilliant performance of Rosa Salazar (enhanced by CGI) as Alita, I can't deny but only accept her magnificent performance. Supported as greatly by the likes of Christopher Waltz, Mahershala Ali, Ed Skrein, Jennifer Connelly & others, the film was very much bound to leave no spaces for catching up flaws in this perfect casting. But what made them even better is the amount of screentime each and every characters got and how they developed a relationship between each other. Besides, the major characters and especially Alita herself had great amount of character development. It's no secret that it's very rare to see character development in superhero or sci-fi films as it's mostly about booms & bams but in this case, I'm impressed by how the character of Alita, a girl whose past was bound to be her destiny, was handled.
Dialogue writing also was one key reason behind the fantastic performance by cast but what mattered even more was the CGI & VFX department. I'll be lying if I say the department let me down. Right from the beginning, the CGI & VFX were as good as you'd see in any modern day superhero films. Especially how Alita was so lively (and lovely) is a wonder for a studio, not so well known for visually spectacular sci-fi films. Galore of crunchy fighting sequences deserve even more praise.
But as I said, at the end, if a sequel is not made, the film will be a complete waste. Though, that won't mean the film is bad to any extent. In fact, it's one neat film which no sci-fi or superhero film lover would want to miss at any cost. Regardless if a sequel is made or not however, the fact will remain the same that it deserves a sequel, nevertheless, for the films' own credentials, not for the sake of having it or the unexplained past of Alita and many more subplots it left behind. A thoroughly enjoyable two hour long extravaganza - Alita: Battle Angel!
The Lion King (2019)
A visual spectacle.
A delightful endless journey of bag full of emotions, Disney's Live Action Adaptation of their classic "Lion King" serves you the platter with not so satisfying garnishing. Packed with one crunchy first half comparatively, the second one causes a lot of pace issues and overall ends up being a let-down to one extent. But overshadowed by magnificent piece of work of CGI and VFX and lots of comedy and enjoyable melody, the film hardly ever felt boring and therefore, making it one perfect treat for the kids or even family. Clearing up my doubts of about being able to balance the line between realism and artistic values, Disney manages me to surprise me for, now, the countless amount of times. Yet again. At the end, with the film being awkwardly satisfying for adults, it turns out to be pretty much one must watch by Disney as you'd usually expect, especially if you're all set for a quick visit to the memory lane.
Super 30 (2019)
Reaching the unachievable!
More like a fantasy tale, Vikas Bahl's "Super 30" rather takes you to a scientific journey of hardship and rebellion in the age of so-called democracy and freedom. Written by Sanjeev Dutta & featuring Hrithik Roshan in the lead, the film looked all set to be truly one rare case of a perfect film. Though, the case really wasn't that even if the film was good as a whole.
Why? Probably the writing & a bit of direction, which took the word "hardship" way too seriously and provide as much spicy and happy (at the same time) as possible. While acknowledging the struggles of Anand Kumar, the climax yet seemed to be very unrealistic at times. But don't take anything away from the film yet because it's still good & fabulously inspirational, especially for the poor. However, the tone of the film, pacing and dialogue writing were all top-notch and easily understandable at the same time that all in all, ignoring that little hiccup at the end, I believe the film is worthy of all the praises. And partially, Hrithik Roshan deserves a huge chunk of credit for that as well.
Without Hrithik Roshan, I cannot really imagine the huge success of Super 30. He played the key role throughout the film & nailed it as Anand Kumar in every single aspect. His character was partially one dimensional but the development over certain period unlocked the path for Hrithik to showcase his potential at the very fullest. However, let's not forget the fact that the side-casting of the likes of Pankaj Tripathi, Mrunal Thakur, Virendra Saxena, Aditya Shrivastava & others also accompanied Hrithik Roshan very well. A few characters and their attitudes were really unnecessary and highly unrealistic at times, even though that was partly due to the construction of the film using the same old formula, taking away anything from any actors would be unfair. Therefore, "casting" can't be doubted but I've my reservations for a few characters though.
As for the technical division, I believe it's one underrated aspect of the film. Cinematography by Anay Goswami was absolutely spot-on as he simply magnificent in capturing the very essence of Bihar. At the same time, color grading & editing also accompanied him as well as the director in the perfect manner to add new dynamics to the film. However, the songs were disappointing for ears but not for the health of the film. The songs were truly situational & provided depth and intact pace to the film even though they weren't necessary. Ajay-Atul surely deserve a lot of credit for that!
And so, with all those predictable storyline (as expected from an adaptation) & something different from an usual-Akshay-Kumar-type-film, "Super 30" is an absolute cracker of a film as well as a fine medium of inspiration for the aspirants of any age, race, religion & society. Carrying a simple message, the film somehow managed to be complicated enough to open our ignorant eyes and mentality.
X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019)
An unnecessary conclusion to a greatly tangled franchise.
Written and directed by Simon Kinberg, "Dark Phoenix" is rather an dull attemp at adapting the classic Marvel's comic book saga having the same name. The movie by itself has numerous flaws with as many cover-ups but the one impossible to be hidden was surely its dishevelled timeline, which was being ruined for over years now. With as poor cast and its cover-ups intact, the movie at no point seemed to be potentially good if one is truly good at judging films by not getting carried away.
But in this review, I'd actually refrain myself from pointing out the timeline flaws because I, myself, am having a hard time figuring the huge mess out. It's like a woman's tousled hair after waking up; you never really get the slightest clue as to how they fix it. But at the same time, the same timeline didn't even need the movie to be deemed bad as the 20th Century Fox did everything possible to do it instead. From poor cast selection to urgency of adapting the story which failed a decade ago itself to finally having the desire to conclude an uncooked (or maybe overcooked) dish they've been trying so hard to drag on for years. I don't even know if I should actually blame the director for trying to adapt a comic book story which ran for four years into a mere two hour film. Lack of planning & urgency hurt this film as much as Warner Bros. did to "Justice League," which is really sad to think about as a fan of comic book films as a whole.
But other than everything else, there's no hiding the truth that Sophie Turner was one of the weak points of the film. With all her lack of acting skills and terrible dialogue delivery skills, she was given hundreds of moments to express the complicated character of Jean Grey to the fullest & yet, Sophie Turner somehow failed to achieve so, confirming my long time doubt of her acting skills. I guess, acting is really natural. But then again, is it really her fault? Considering how her character just got two films to blend into it for ultimately reaching a CONCLUSION of a SAGA, I don't really have the guts to go so harsh on her performance. But then too, on a soft note, she actually could've at least tried to add a new dimension to the character & romance with Cyclops to at least make us feel something for her in the end. But why her only? Because other than James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence & Nicholas Hoult, not even a single actor was potentially or proven A-Grade for a film of this magnitude.
But besides all these flaws, including inconsistent cinematography and computerized graphics, let's talk about the rare "good" aspect of the two hour long film. Some good quality action (which actually were failed attempt at adapting the original comic book saga), accompanied by some top class background scoring by Hans Zimmer & a good pace throughout. If it wasn't for these three points and Charles, Erik, Raven & Hank, I'm not sure if I'd have been even able to complete the otherwise two hours of pure boredom. But that's all, really & thus, I'm not confident myself to actually suggest you to watch it but on the other hand, I cannot really say you'll be completely bored either. I believe, the complication of determining the film's quality far exceeds the complications of the original "Dark Phoenix" saga ever had. But one thing is still clear - the original "Dark Phoenix" saga wasn't some cool cosmic event which lasted for four years; it was rather one complicated event of emotions, love, belief & self-redemption & the film has managed to fail at mostly every aspects of it due to unnecessary feminism, undeveloped characters and their relationships, and of course urgency & therefore, it'll always be extremely sad for me to see one of my favourite franchises reaching a conclusion without a proper and deserving but rather an old school "happy" ending.
Sweater (2019)
The film you absolutely need to watch in 2019!
Not many film have been able to convey the true definition of "feminism" of late but Sheiladitya Moulik's "Sweater" surely isn't one such flick! Featuring Ishaa Saha, Kharaj Mukherjee, Srilekha Maitra, June Malia amongst others, the film is story of the traditions, taboos, modernized rituals, different perspectives, immaturity & most importantly, a journey of self-redemption of an allegedly "good-for-nothing" girl from a town of Bengal.
The director laid blocks to build the film & used certain characters so brilliant to solidify the blocks and weave the sweet self6redemption story around them by not dragging anything even for a single moment. Of course, the whole idea is supported magnificently by good quality writing and reminds you of Kangna Ranaut's "Queen." However, what stood out the most was the concept and its execution by not over-exaggerating anything at all & that's pure brilliance from the director! Though, the pace was too fast at times but never been slow at all & that, I think, is acceptable considering the director lacks experience.
Though, no matter how the director used the characters, it was the actors who stood out equally on making the film so significant. The cast was very limited, yet, so vast even if it's not star-studded. Every single actors were so very good in the film even with their limited screen time but the three who overshadowed everyone else surely were Ishaa Saha, Srilekha Maitra & Kharaj Mukherjee without any doubts. And even among them, Ishaa Saha was probably the very best and definitely the most adorable. Her performance will force you to feel for the character and will also make sure you forget all the "social flaws" she unfortunately possesses. I won't wonder if some boy or mother-in-law falls in love with her character by the end of the film because that's the kind of magnificent job she's been able to do! Then again, she was greatly supported both by director and the other casts as well!
Coming to the technical points, I've to say that this is probably the only department which should be criticised a bit. Firstly, the cinematography was totally inconsistent but was saved by intelligent piece of editing. Secondly, color-grading was poor and the film looked dull throughout and we never got the chance to see the true beauty of North Bengal. Thirdly & lastly, music department was also not that great and most of the songs were completely unnecessary. Instead, the music department of Anindya Chatterjee could've looked to strengthen the background scoring which was very much needed on a film with this sort of subject.
Overall, the film is a fresh-take on ourselves, the society, modern-day women & their limitations, acceptance & what not, just through a mere metaphor of the reasoning behind the film's name! Just like sweater takes time to be woven, a human being also needs time to discover him/herself & that, learning is another thing which you can never force someone either. Giving barely two hours from your daily schedule to this film is absolutely worth it & in fact, you should watch it with your family if possible. However, if you're a geek or an avid film watcher, you'll probably be disappointed with the technical issues the film possesses due to its lack of proper resources but in case you're not one such person, you'll absolutely love the film because it doesn't really have any serious "flaws."
The Tashkent Files (2019)
A thoroughly studied piece of work.
A plot revolving around a lot of questions, out of which most have been suppressed by the superior over the years, Tashkent Files offer you new (yet old & the obvious) dynamics to the never ending mystery of India's 2nd PM Shastri Ji. With limited resources, minor but good cast & a lot of ambition, the director of the film wasn't really able to fulfill the potential of the story but nevertheless, did a hard work which definitely deserves praise. Editing, background scoring, song selection, usage of the cast & dialogue writing however could've been much better. Overall, an optional watch at very best but must if you're just like a normal Indian who's into politics.
Mukherjee Dar Bou (2019)
The most practical film of the year so far.
Pritha Chakraborty's "Mukherjee Da'r Bou" tries to surf all of our daily lives with a pinch of love. The-justified-2-hour-long-film teaches us the core concept of humanity, which is 'belief,' in the most beautiful way possible. Now, obviously the word 'belief' can be distinguished into different contexts depending upon situation & Pritha Chakraborty just manages to capture the situations with her touch of brilliance. The film, right from the beginning, is built and carried upon in a way which is ought to leave you awed.
However, as easy as the plot may sound, fact is, it is not. And that's just the beauty in itself. The story is filled with metaphors, crisp dialogues & and all those outcomes, sudden conclusions, desires & everything will keep you engaged throughout the course of 2 hours while forcing to question yourself. And that's exactly where Rituparna Sengupta's character comes into play; or rather your mind. That particular character drives the whole film to the direction it needed to go & for that, Pritha Chakraborty should be praised (again)!
But not taking away anything from Rituparna Sengupta's beautiful, yet, short performance either. Of course, her character was one dimensional with great prowess and she neatly did her role. While on the other hand, both Koneenica Bannerjee & Anusuya Majumdar's typical "Bangali Baari'r Bou" characters were complicated, outdated (intentionally) & very difficult to portray. Yet, they managed to overcome every challenges without any flaws. Especially Koneenica Bannerjee was magnificent in her role of a typical Bengali homemaker & I believe, Anusuya Majumdar's character only got to shine at fullest extent because of Koneenica Bannerjee's performance only. Apart from them, Biswanath Basu was probably the only weak point but Pritha Chakroborty still managed to get the best out of him by using him wisely. Rest of the casting such as Aparajita & Badshah haven't had the times to shine as they were never meant to but however they managed to leave a statement with such short roles.
Another plus point of the film was its background scoring by Indradip Dasgupta. And I believe, that background scoring played a massive role in strengthening the metaphorical points, the practical outcomes & most importantly, the climax. Though, I cannot say the same for the songs. They weren't unnecessary but their absence wouldn't have made any difference. While on a technical note, I can do nothing but praise the stellar cinematography. It captured the essence of Kolkata, lives of middle-class families, the different perspectives of thinking & what not.
Overall, "Mukherjee Da'r Bou" raises a lot of questions about acceptance, taboos & most importantly, the evergreen chaotic relationships of mother-in-law & daughter-in-law spread throughout the unreachable corners of our country with a pinch of love & sensibility on top of the old school concept most of the TV serials use nowadays for "entertaining us." The film teaches you that complaining is easy, questioning the reason behind instead is not, among the countless other things & leaves you in a state of confusion, utter disbelief, and maybe regret. At the end of the day, the film may as well end up offending you to prove its point further but if it doesn't, be confident about "Mukherjee Da'r Bou" being nothing short of a masterpiece.
Photograph (2019)
A glass full of old wine, presented in the most modern fashion possible.
Elsewhere in Mumbai is this struggling middle-aged fellow named 'Rafiullah' (played by Nawazuddin Siddiqui) from Uttar Pradesh. Then there's this academically genius girl from a high-class Gujarati background named 'Miloni' (played by Sania Malhotra). But little did they know about where fate will take them someday. Ritesh Batra surely was able to turn the old-school Bollywood formula into one very much practical and heart-touching story, but with a reasonably poor execution & soft dialogue writing. Then again, that too, is a subject of debate just as the character of Sania Malhotra.
The reason for 'Molini,' portrayed adorably by Sania, being so dull throughout was never really explained, in either artistic, metaphorical or practical way. Perhaps, assuming is the best we could afford & in this case, I'd like to assume she was very much tired of carrying the burden of expectations from a background consisting stalwarts of family-tree (of course, here I am judging by their standards of living). On the other hand, 'Rafi,' played by Nawazuddin Siddiqui, was a well-established (as in, cinematic value) down-to-earth character to begin with. His backgrounds were clear, his struggle was understandable, relatable & how he unknowingly ended up weaving a love story with the help of his dadi was a treat to watch & debate about citing the belief of 'fate.' Nawaz, as you'd expect, was brilliant from every aspect. But for side cast, I cannot really come to a conclusion because they hardly ever got time to show their potential, as they weren't really needed as much.
Now, one aspect of the film which really impressed me a lot was its cinematography, accompanied by some melodious background scoring. Tim Gillis & Ben Kutchins were magnificent in capturing the essence of Mumbai as well as the two different worlds of Miloni and Rafi. It was a delight to the eyes & I won't wonder if Tim-Ben end up winning Best Cinematography of 2019 Award of Filmfare!
But apart from everything else and most importantly, does the story even possess a reasonable ending to its glorious concept? The answer is perhaps a little to hard to answer. It's really upon the perspective of a watcher, or rather one observer, for reaching a conclusion & as for me, it all squared up at the end. I was happy and disappointed at the same time acknowledging the fact I've been presented with some old-school gimmicks... But hey, presentation itself possesses a lot of value, right? If not the execution; the redefined concept by Ritesh deserves a lot of applause. And thus, if you ask me if it's worth watching the film - I'd straightaway answer you with one big yes with a little warning of patience-management!
Spider-Man: Far from Home (2019)
A colorful trip to the neighborhood.
Embarking on a school-trip 'far from home' to Europe, Peter Parker finds himself in middle of all kinds of unwanted troubles he could only dream of being merely 'Your Friendly Neighborhood.' However, as light as it may sound, let me be clear that it wasn't by any means. The grief, or the aftermath, of 'Infinity-Saga' was very much clear from the beginning. But at the same time, the story was wittily written and focused mostly on 'Spider-Man' as it should be while being limpid in answering out many mysteries 'Avengers: Endgame' left behind. And that's exactly why I had my doubts before watching 'Spider-Man: Far From Home.'
"Will it be something like a spin-off to Avengers: Endgame?"
"Is it gonna be Iron Man 3.2?"
And many more.
Therefore, I was definitely all up for seeking my answers & if I'm being honest here, I wasn't disappointed for even a bit. It was neither an 'Iron Man 3.2', nor an 'Avengers: Endgame' spin-off. But it surely was a brilliant follow-through with essence of an Iron Man theme, which was kind of obvious to begin with. For tall these, a lot of credits should go to Jon Watts for directing such an amazing and 'practical' story written by Chris McKenna & Erik Sommers.
How 'Mysterio,' portrayed magnificently by Jake Gyllenhaal, drove the story all along with his cleverness and whammy intentions was probably the biggest plus point of the film. While it made the 2 hour long plot (with numerous easter eggs) far more interesting, it also allowed every single characters to shine on their own. The not so huge cast was spot on in terms of delivering the performances. The chemistry between them was even better. The short relationship of 'Betty & Ned' was, for me, the funniest point of the film! However, Tom Holland also delivered his career best performance as 'Spider-Man' as well as 'Peter Parker.' Without such brilliant performance, I don't think it'd have been possible to showcase the self-redemption while seeking answers to his own questions and the burden our 'Friendly Neighborhood' carries now that 'Tony Stark' is unfortunately gone. But at the same time, his growing maturity, humor and shy romanticism were spot on & his unique kind of dialogue-delivery made the character of 'Peter Parker' beyond just vibrant or colorful to experience.
But apart from all those & on a technical note; editing and cinematography were definitely spot-on. While the cinematography captured the essence of Europe so beautifully, the intelligent editing allowed only the needed portions to not glorify the beauty of Europe to an extent where 'Spider-Man' feels like a secondary subject. But the film's second biggest point sure was its magnificent CGI & VFX. VFX of Mysterio's illusions, numerous action scenes & many more were a treat to the eyes, coupled with some brilliant sound effects. At times, the VFX was at 'Avatar,' 'Guardians Of The Galaxy - vol.2' or 'Avengers: Endgame' level & I am not even kidding. Though, the soundtrack or the themes by Michael Giancchino weren't as good as 'Spider-Man: Homecoming' & that's acceptable considering the amount of pluses and surprises this little extravaganza has to offer!
Overall, a rollercoaster ride of self-redemption, humour, adventure, action & all, 'Spider-Man: Far From Home' is nothing short of a Marvel-ous masterpiece & can easily enlighten your boring summer days with a bang. Though while watching, keep in mind to not leave the theatre right until its very end for some even bigger surprises that'll absolutely make you go crazy!
Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi (2001)
The secret to maturity lies within!
A beautifully written & well directed animated extravaganza with numerous layers, "Spirited Away" will always remain right up there in the list of best anime movies ever! The journey of Chihiro maturing enough with struggles and her innocent love story is what it makes the film so adorable. Absolutely worth watching!
Article 15 (2019)
The country is being shattered by discriminative people & the film rightfully showcases it.
While watching the film, I had completely forgotten about pointing out the flaws. But by the time the film ended, I realised there was just one flaw and that was regarding............. Costume. That's how good the film is. Right from the beginning, you sense an extremely controversial yet impactful plot based on true incidents. Credits to one fine piece of direction, the justified 2 hour long film was successful in avoiding any indirect offensive attacks towards any particular person, group or race. However, that is debatable as it highly depends on how you want to take it.
However, the film is very unlikely to be as good if it wasn't for Ayushman Khurana. Acting in a police role for probably the first time, the young man just nailed it with a magnificent performance supported by crisp dialogue writing. As for support cast, it was highly disappointing to see such a short role of Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub. Yet, I cannot disagree upon the fact that everyone's roles and their screentime were justified for the sake of plot; and that, the "no star factor" and no romanticism definitely ended up enriching the film even further. However, that definitely doesn't mean the characters lacked chemistry (especially Ayushman Khurana & Isha Talwar) but at the same time, they weren't over exaggerated as you'd expect usually from Bollywood.
Coming to the technical points, the colorgrading of the film was neatly chosen and done. The brownish color and practical cinematography played a huge factor in setting up tone of the film as well as capturing the essence of Uttar Pradesh. Background scoring too was done intelligently and the decision to not keep a single song in the film was undoubtedly a brave one. And for all these, the perfect editing can't be ignored.
An impactful and eye-opening plot which takes you to a journey of tolerance, discrimination, acceptance, corruption, hopelessness, faithfulness, obviousness, optimism & all, "Article 15" is definitely a must-watch. But at the end I have to agree that this film might not be one from Shah Rukh Khan or one from Mrinal Sen, yet, it's so unique & powerful on its own.