Orphan: In search of the perfect family

What defines an excellent thriller film? They are usually known to be about sudden jerky camera movements, splashing of gory faces on the screen and explosive use of sound effects. Most thriller films seem to follow these patterns and usually fail miserably at evoking any kind of fear or any other emotion out of their audience. But the 2009 film Orphan which was directed by Jaume Collet-Serra is a thriller with a difference.

As a couple grieves the birth of a still born daughter for their third child, they decide to overcome the process of mourning by adopting a girl from an orphanage. The girl, Esther, appears to be an innocent child with a few inexplicable habits but all the while the couple tries to love her as they would their own daughter. Esther gets along perfectly well with the couples’ youngest, a deaf and mute girl who considers Esther her elder sister and follows her around everywhere; on the other hand, the son is reluctant to accept Esther as part of the family. Her unorthodox habits and rejection at home cuts Esther off from most of the family and her classmates. Slowly certain unforeseen circumstances occur with Esther being a prime figure linking up the unfortunate events. By digging up Esther’s past and joining the dots, the mother realises her family is in grave danger which she must rectify.

A dark and mysterious character throughout the film, Esther has qualities that make it overwhelming to figure out her true identity. The portrayal of the character leaves a cunning air of indecision yet confidence about her which sends a shiver down the viewers back. Not always in a good light, she provides the thrill in the film which is built on a wonderful, expressive and well thought out story.

Pain is the most important part of the film. Whether it is in the rejection from a husband, the breaking of an arm of a timid girl or the crushing to death of an innocent bird, the viewer can partake in the pain of what is portrayed on the screen. The feeling of pain also provides the thrill factor in the film which the audience can relate to. The film is made such that anyone can put themselves in the shoes of the character and imagine being in similar circumstances.

The film has a particular dark essence to it which adds to the feeling of horror it maintains. There is a feeling of unrest throughout the film which is maintained because of the gradual character development as the story goes on. The dark tone of the film also coincides with the personality of the protagonist, which is mysterious and unresolved.

From the very first frame itself the film carries a promise of being an exciting, blood pumping and pulse accelerating thriller which is able to captivate its audience to levels that thriller films in the past have failed to achieve.

Ferris Bueller's Day Off: A day in the life of a mischievous teenager

The saying ‘Boys will be boys’ usually goes to say that adolescent boys are always up to mischief and will continue to do so because it is in their nature. It is a justification for young men to talk and behave the way they do while the rest of society chooses to accept them as they are, provided they do not cross the bounds of the societal norms. The same phrase would be most apt to describe the 1986 movie Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, if it were to be explained in a single sentence.

Ferris Bueller is a mischievous school kid who is loved by everyone. His classmates and the rest of the school think he is a sweetheart and his gullible parents think that an angel like him could do no wrong. But unknown to them, Ferris always as some tricks up his sleeve and decides to skip school one day. He fakes an illness in front of his parents and claims to stay in bed the whole day. Instead he rings up his best friend Cameron and convinces him to take out his father’s Ferrari in order to rescue his girlfriend Sloane from the clutches of the school and have a day out on the town. They visit all the places they can think of and even manage to involve themselves in a parade. All the while, Ferris’ sister is aware of his sly ideas and vows to expose him before the day is done as does the dean at his school, Ed Rooney.

Written and directed by John Hughes and released in 1986, the film has gone down over the years as a cult classic. It is one among many films based on teenagers and specifically focuses on their school life. In its true essence, the film is all about a young man trying to fulfil his wishes to have a good time and wanting to stay away from responsibilities which are imposed on him. Thus the film reiterates the belief about young men being slack and that ‘boys will be boys’.

The most interesting technique adopted in this film is definitely the breaking of the fourth wall. Time and again the protagonist Ferris Buller, portrayed by Matthew Broderick, will step away from the normal proceedings of the story to speak to the audience and occasionally explain why he does what he does. In a way the film has an infomercial style to it with the protagonist giving the audience a list of do’s and don’ts, the text of which flashes on the screen as he recites it. On other occasions, he simply starts speaking to the audience about what he thinks and feels so as to make it easier for them to understand.

As mentioned before, the film is a cult classic. It follows a mildly dramatic plot and is infused with comedy at appropriate intervals. It is a good one-time watch.

Chronicle: The human behind the super power

Although many people would love to have superpowers and would dream about it plenty of times, it is very difficult to predict exactly how most of us would behave if our wishes came true and we did attain some superhuman abilities. The answer of whether we would use them for the right reasons and help other people, as is shown with most popular superheroes, or if we would use it for our own selfish gain and eventually end up misusing those powers can only be answered if we are actually placed in such a hypothetical situation. But that seems to be what the 2012 action movie Chronicle has touched upon.

Andrew is a teenager with a creative mind and asocial tendencies. He is terribly introverted as he goes through his high school life with a camera by his side and no friends but his cousin to hang out with occasionally. His cousin Matt tries to convince him to get along with more people by taking him to a party at a barn and introducing him around. Eventually, Andrew, Matt and Matt’s friend Steve wind up in the middle of a field where they discover a hole leading to an underground cave. Andrew reluctantly agrees to follow Matt and Steve into the cave where they discover a glowing stone embedded into the ground. After an unfortunate mishap, the three friends narrowly manage to survive but later discover that they have received telekinetic powers. They agree to keep it a secret and use their powers sparingly but Andrews’s fragile self esteem and longing to make something of himself lead to rifts in their friendship and more problems than they can handle with their powers alone.

The feature film directorial debut of Josh Trank, Chronicle follows the unique style of a handheld camera that is a part of the storyline. By establishing that the protagonist carries around a camera at all times, the film was then told through the eyes of the camera that plays a part in the film. Although utilised previously in a few other films, this style still manages to strike a chord with its audience for being a more creative style of filmmaking.

Although the character of the introverted Andrew is the protagonist in the film, he is in fact an anti-hero. The film follows most of his perspective which makes him the protagonist, however the actions he takes leads to horrible outcomes for everyone around him which throws him into the negative light.

The film does employ a bit of a creative style, but it’s nothing extraordinary that hasn’t been seen before. The film tries to portray the human side of exceptional beings but ends up succumbing to the grotesque use of visual effects and action packed scenes which can be seen in any superhero movie. While certain scenes of the film do have a visual appeal, like when one of the characters splits a spider into pieces by pulling each of its legs apart at the same time or by crushing a car into a ball just by making a fist, it’s disappointing that the potential for a good script would be sacrificed just for a more appealing visual production. Maybe that is what Hollywood has come down to, but it’s quite disappointing.

In the end, it is a cool-looking movie, but that shouldn’t be the only reason to watch a film. It could have been something special but as it is, it is just another Hollywood action flick.

Bombay Talkies: Four short films in one celebration of Indian cinema

100 years of cinema in India and we should be glad to have hit such a great milestone. In comparison to the rest of the arts, film is the youngest having been invented a little more than a century ago. But the potential that a single film can have to change an entire life and make its mark upon the world is something which cannot be short-lived. Even the advancements that have taken place over the past century in film are amazing. Indian cinema too has witnessed many changes and many legends in its ranks over 100 years which are celebrated in the film Bombay Talkies.

The film is a collection of four vignettes, each created by a different director and a different cast. The first short film, directed by Karan Johar, revolves around the life of an openly homosexual man who has moved out of his father’s house when he is not accepted by his family. He works in a tabloid newspaper where he forms a close bond with his boss and affects the lives of both her and her husband. The second short film, directed by Dibakar Banerjee, follows a single day in the life of a failed actor as he comes to terms with his failed career and the need to revamp his life in his own surrealistic environment. The third short film, directed by Zoya Akhtar, is about a pre-adolescent boy’s passion for dance and need to accomplish his dream as opposed to his father’s plans of bringing him up as a rugged man. The fourth short film, directed by Anurag Kashyap, follows a man from a small town who comes to the city of Mumbai to fulfil his father’s last wish of having shared a piece of pickle with Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan. The end of the film also features a short celebration of the past years of Indian cinema with a montage of past films followed by a title song which brings together many contemporary Bollywood stars.

It becomes difficult to categorise and critique the entire film seeing as it has multiple directors in multiple sections but the overall film does have a consistent theme with constant references to past Bollywood movies and the effect of cinema over daily lives of people in India. Each director has left his or her own touch on their respective film which thus leaves Bombay Talkies to be a film with multiple styles of execution; from long shots depicting anguish in one of the short films to close ups depicting the same emotion in another; from a surrealistic character revelation in one film to a more humanistic angle in another film with a conversation between a father and son. Each film follows its own plot and own execution style.

Unfortunately, the film isn’t really a celebration of cinema in India. It is just a celebration of Bollywood and its impact. The references in the film only mark box office Bollywood hits of the recent past years with no mention of regional or artistic cinema nor does it have a single mention of language films other than Hindi. The song at the end of the film features many contemporary Bollywood actors with references of their most popular box office appearances with no directors, composers or other members of crews being visible. The song does not feature past actors either which just goes to reiterate the fact that cinema in India is synonymous with Bollywood and that in turn Bollywood only cares about the people that rake in the big bucks and those that mass audiences can relate to.

On the whole, the film is quite good as it touches upon decent topics with each of four directors bringing their own originality to the table. But the guise of being a celebration of 100 years of Indian cinema is just a selling point for the film and nothing else.