Pitch Perfect: Accapela on the big screen

Films about music tend to be very interesting. The added dynamic of music means that the film must not only be a good piece of work by itself but importance should also be given to the musical aspect of the film. The soundtrack and score become even more important since they are a reflection of the subject of the film. It is rare when a film about music is also a comedy but the two have been blended together in the 2012 film Pitch Perfect.

Beca is an uninterested fresher in Barden University. She wants to follow her passion of making music by living in Los Angeles and getting a record deal but is forced to attend college by her father who is a professor. Her father agrees to fund the pursuit of her passion if she takes interest in her college life and mingles with her fellow collegians. At the same time, Chloe and Aubrey have been handed the mantle of the Barden Bellas, an all-girl accapela choir. They need to recruit talented freshers to be a part of the group and approach Beca who agrees after being pursued for a while. Beca also meets Jesse, a fresher who joins rival accapela team The Treblemakers. The feud between the Bellas and the Treblemakers goes all the way till the end of the accapela year, culminating in the coveted International Championship of Collegiate Accapela. Beca is torn between her love interest, her loyalty to her sisters in song and her reclusive identity as she makes it through the college year.

Directed by Jason Moore, the film is about one particular aspect of music: accapela. Through the fight for the championship, the film depicts sisterhood, loyalty, passion, tradition and more. The protagonist is a secluded person who does not allow other people to get emotionally attached to her and is a self admitted recluse. The film shows her character open up gradually and accept the people around her as friends and eventually one of them becomes a love interest. Most of the other characters in the film are shrouded in mystery with not much revelation coming through the course of the film. The comedy is sparse and subtle. It is mostly slapstick which makes it come across as a similar treatment that is adopted in modern parody films.

There are many references to the 1985 film The Breakfast Club. It is shown in high regard with one of the characters suggesting that it has the best ending ever made in film. The original soundtrack of the film is also mentioned and some of the songs from the soundtrack are performed in this film, possibly as a tribute to the original.

The selection of the songs in the film is predictable since most are chart toppers, however, the composition and arrangement in the accapela-style is unique and refreshing. It is probably the best feature of the film since the story is very easily predictable and the treatment and jokes aren’t excellent. Another redeeming feature of the film is that each character is eccentric making for an interesting collective.

Pitch Perfect could never be considered a great film. The only redeeming feature would be if someone were to watch it for its music.

Silver Linings Playbook: A rom-com tale of a bipolar man

Rarely do films depicting mental illness manage to do justice to real life situations that a mentally unstable person would go through. The norm in films when it comes to portraying a mentally challenged individual is to show them constantly upset, overreacting to simple situations with anger and attempts to show what the character is going through by use of graphic visuals which are meant to represent disorientation. Few films really fair well when it comes to handling characters with mental stability problems.

After spending eight months in a mental asylum to be treated for his bipolar disorder, Pat Solitano is released under condition that his parents will tend to his every need and keep him out of harm’s way. Having dedicated the better part of the eight months on losing weight and shaping up, Pat decides to carry on his workout routine outside the asylum in the hope that his wife would take him back on his release. Unfortunately, a violent incident prior to his hospitalisation resulted in his wife getting a restraining order against him and moving away from the neighbourhood in his absence. He reconciles with his best friend Ronnie and is invited over for dinner where he meets Tiffany. The widow of a recently deceased cop, Tiffany has some mental problems of her own which forms the basis of her friendship with Pat. They soon strike up a deal where Pat will partner Tiffany in a dance competition for her help in communicating with his wife in the hope that she will take him back.

Silver Linings Playbook was adapted from a novel titled The Silver Linings Playbook which draws its name from the protagonist mentioning the silver lining on every dark cloud every time he is faced with a challenging situation and his discussions with his therapist who insists he start making a playbook by which to live his life. It was written for screen as well as directed by David O. Russell. The film is mostly a drama which borders on the edges of a romantic-comedy.

The protagonist is established as a mentally ill person from the beginning. Unfortunately this paves the way for recurring aggressive behaviour throughout the film on his part. Although he is shown to have bipolar disorder he shows very few traits of the disorder itself; he does not seem to have constant mood swings between depression and happiness. Instead he seems to have violent outbreaks when things don’t go his way. Another unnecessary feature is the love interest of the protagonist also having a mental condition. The film seems to propagate a belief that mentally unstable people can only get along with other mentally disturbed people.

The story is easy to predict from the first instance that protagonist Pat meets his future love interest Tiffany. Unfortunately the story doesn’t gradually progress in the direction of the obvious. Pat is seen to be deeply in love with his wife the entire time that he is rehearsing for a dance competition with Tiffany. At the end of the film we suddenly find that Pat, who has been obsessing over his wife the whole film, realises that he isn’t really in love with her in a convenient climax.

The film doesn’t have too many ebbs and surges in the plot. It is mostly a drama with very few instances of dry wit humour. The only refreshing point of the film is the humour which is sparse unfortunately. That aside, the film is quite dry and depicts mentally unstable people far too stereotypically.

Django Unchained: A role reversal on slavery and a bloodlust quencher

Everyone learns from experience. To watch, hear and read is an important part of how we reproduce material in our own way. Paying homage to those that inspire and influence us comes naturally when we have reached a certain pedestal and want to show our gratitude. It was probably the same sentiment which influenced Quentin Tarantino’s 2012 film Django Unchained which shows heavy influence of an erstwhile film style, the Spaghetti Western.

The year is 1858 and it is approximately two years before the American Civil War. Django is a black slave in southern America who is about to be sold off in one of the biggest slavery auctions in the land. While being escorted the convoy is intercepted by Dr. King Schultz, a German dentist. Schultz bargains with the two brothers who own the slaves and when the discussion turns sour, Schultz kills one of the brothers and strong-arms the other to sell him Django. Schultz later confides in Django and admits that he is a bounty hunter looking for some men that only Django can identify. They agree to make a deal where Django will help Schultz claim his bounty in return for his freedom. Django himself confides in Schultz about his wife Broomhilda and they make another deal for Django to be his deputy in return for Schultz’s aid in freeing Django’s wife. They discover that Broomhilda is owned by Calvin Candie, a ruthless plantation owner who has a knack for violence. Together they hitch a plan to free Broomhilda from Candie’s snare.

The film was written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. Based on the prominent slavery problem in southern America in the 18^th and 19^th centuries, this film divulges from historical accuracies as the plot takes its own route. The central peg of the film is slavery, flesh trade and the general mistreatment of black people before the American Civil War in 1861. The protagonist of the film is named Django, a black man who joins forces with a German to hunt down and kill his former owners and the current owner of his wife. It is implausible that a black man would be allowed to go about hunting down and killing powerful white men across the southern states at a time when black people were treated horribly for no fault of their own. The film’s historical inaccuracies are a major downfall for the plot.

The film is clearly an homage to Spaghetti Westerns. Tarantino is well known for his action sequences involving gunfights and Mexican standoffs. He takes it a step forward in this film with extremely violent gunfights which are peculiar of Spaghetti Westerns. Also reminiscent of the genre are the characters in the film – southern Americans who dress in suits and speak with a distinct accent. The portrayal of the characters as cowboys is also picked up from westerns with the protagonist riding a horse, carrying a pistol and wearing a hat most of the time. The soundtrack of the film, one of the most defining features of a Spaghetti Western, is also a nod to the genre with similar music being implemented. However, few songs stray away from the typical Spaghetti Western style every now and then with the usage of rap and hip hop which leads to the film breaking out of character.

There are moments when the film seems to drag on with the exhaustive plot. There are many slow moments of conversation which seem partially inconsequential to the main plot. However, one of these breakaway moments does produce a moderately amusing scene as Tarantino takes a pot-shot at the stupidity of the Ku Klux Klan and their initiation of white hats. Tarantino himself appears in this scene briefly, as is his director trademark. He also returns later in the film as a slave owner who comes across the protagonist and wants to help him. Another trademark of Tarantino’s directorial style is the use of grotesque gunfight sequences and with the liberties that Spaghetti Westerns allow, he went all out in the penultimate action sequence in an attempt to make a blood splatter analyst’s job as difficult as possible. The blood splatter in this sequence is particularly hard to comprehend with the walls getting painted red with every gunshot that hits a human body; quite unnecessary apart from just being a director indulging himself. The actor-director relationship between Christoph Waltz and Tarantino does seem to be growing with this film as the actor provides a breath of fresh air with his performance. Leonardo DiCaprio also does a stellar job in his respective role.

Django Unchained has a slow moving plot and a confusing character which is neither Spaghetti Western nor contemporary. The film has its boring moments, is historically inaccurate, fairs moderately as a tribute and just seems to be a finished product of a filmmaker indulging himself with as many uses of the word ‘nigger’ as possible.

Searching for Sugar Man: Documenting two fans on the search for a rockstar

In the modern world we live in, it is nearly impossible to believe that any information would be impossible for us to find. Apart from certain countries which have a strict government or military regime, everyone has access to information anywhere in the world. Therefore it becomes difficult to imagine a rockstar who doesn’t even know he is famous, or his fans not knowing anything about him – not even if he is alive or dead. But this is the story of Searching for Sugar Man which was a 2012 documentary directed by Malik Bendjelloul about events spanning a timeframe from the 1970s to the late 1990s between South Africa and the United States of America.

In the 1970s, the situation in South Africa was strife because of Apartheid rule. No information was allowed to enter the country and the state of the country was not relayed out to others because of an oppressive government system. The news and other media were highly censored as everything passed through the careful eye of the government’s departments. At this time, the albums of Rodriguez, a previously unheard of musician, reached the record stores in South Africa. His protest songs were apt for the situation and inspired many of the political activists and a few musicians as well. However, because of lack of information about the artist himself, rumours spread that he had committed suicide on stage in the United States as a form of poetic expression. In the late 1990s, with the end of Apartheid and more likely sources of information emerging, a record store owner and a music journalist joined forces to find every piece of information they could collect about Rodriguez and find the truth about whether he actually committed suicide or was still alive.

Searching for Sugar Man paints an almost unreal story. Although the premise of the documentary does occur during the oppressive Apartheid regime, it is highly improbable that an entire nation would be unaware of simple facts about a rockstar that they rated so highly. The strict flow of information in and out of the country does go to show that it would be possible for such an event to occur. Even the censorship where one of the songs is scratched off the vinyl goes to show that an oppressive political system can control flow of information the way it wants to. The fact that Rodriguez wasn’t aware of his own fame could probably go down as a collective result of his lack of success in his own country coupled with information being withheld from him by the owner of the record label he was signed to.

The documentary carefully plots out Rodriguez’s failure in America through the eyes of the men that produced his album. It then goes to South Africa where his fans speak about the inspiration that he provided during their freedom struggle, something he was entirely unaware of. It documents the story of two fans that set out to find information about him once the oppressive regime had ended and how they went about collecting facts and contacting his family before they could finally consider their mission accomplished. There are many excerpts of people who worked with him in the United States – from construction workers to record producers – as well as others in South Africa; musicians and anti-Apartheid activists he inspired. The documentary also has clips of old video footage and photographs being used wherever appropriate. However, the documentary fails to acknowledge the fame and success Rodriguez did enjoy in Australia; it chooses to focus solely on the situation in South Africa and the two fans that set out to find him.

The documentary uses original music from Rodriguez’s past albums, which he is credited and receives royalties for. The music is original and it is difficult to understand why his music wasn’t well appreciated, but it is easy to see why this documentary can be highly rated.

Seven Psychopaths: A story about seven psychopaths in a story

One of the best forms of humour is deadpan. Deadpan is the ability to keep a straight face when making fun of a person or a situation. It involves a huge amount of self control not to laugh when making a joke and is mostly seen on stage, performed by a few good stand-up comics. When it comes to film, deadpan requires a really good actor to be able to bring about the humour to make his audience laugh while acting out the scene with a certain level of seriousness. It can be extremely difficult to achieve if the right actor and the right direction are not in place.

Marty is a writer who lacks inspiration to finish off his masterpiece – a screenplay for a film called Seven Psychopaths. He lives with his girlfriend Kaya who is supportive but has grown tired of his procrastination, his drinking habit and his deadbeat friend Billy. A struggling actor, Billy works with an elderly man named Hans to kidnap dogs in Los Angeles and return them to their owners for a cash prize. Billy is also aiding Marty finish his screenplay and suggests he use inspiration from real life after reading newspaper reports on the Jack of Diamonds killer in the area. On one of their routine kidnappings, Billy and Hans pick up a Shih Tzu unaware that it belongs to Charlie Costello, a gangster who is known for being unpredictable and terribly violent towards his victims. Charlie has an unnatural affinity towards his dog and starts a bloody trail to find it. Marty is confronted by Charlie and warned to return the dog or face his death. When Marty reveals this to Billy, they set up for a final showdown where it’s kill or be killed.

Written and directed by Martin McDonagh, Seven Psychopaths is about a story running within the main story of the film. There is a certain ambiguity in the plot especially with the constant discussion of a screenplay that the protagonist is writing. The story-in-story concept doesn’t quite work for the film as it complicates the plot and confuses the audience. The protagonist writing a story which interjects with his personal life and comes from his written work into his real life leaves a few questions about the coincidental situations he faces; an example would be where Marty writes a story about a Quaker who slits his throat which presents itself in the form of his best friend’s associate. The seven psychopaths in the film are not who they seem to be. The psychopaths would presumably be from the screenplay that Marty is writing but here again they exist both in his literary work as well as his real life.

While Colin Farrell plays the lead role and provides a level-headed personality to his character, he ends up being a balance as opposed to Sam Rockwell’s portrayal of the zany accomplice who creates more problems than he solves. Christopher Walken is entrusted with providing the deadpan humour that he is capable of and it does come across in the film at times, but the sensitive side of his character takes away from the humour and makes the line between seriousness and deadpan difficult to comprehend. Woody Harrelson as the antagonist does a decent job as a hard man with a sensitive side of his own but struggles with bringing the comedy to the film.

The humour doesn’t come across in the film perfectly. There are instances when it does play well as a comedy but not at all times.

Gangs of Wasseypur: The story of one family’s need for revenge

The use of narratives in a film are widely criticised as a lazy attempt by the filmmaker to establish his plot without having to work too hard to reel it into his story. Narratives allows a filmmaker the chance to have one of the characters in the story, or a third person who is independent of the actual plot, to tell the story from their perspective thereby having them talk directly to the audience to say whatever the filmmaker wants to be said. However, the use of narratives cannot necessarily be criticised in every film considering that they are used at certain times to help establish a bond between the narrator and the audience or at times they can be used to describe an event, or several events, in a timeline which would otherwise be difficult to establish without the use of a narrative. That said, one of the most prominent features in Anurag Kashyap’s 2012 film Gangs of Wasseypur is the use of a constant narrator who is a running character in both parts of the film.

Synopsis – Part 1

In pre-independent India, the small town of Wasseypur lay in the coal mine-ravaged state of Bihar. The townsfolk would work in the coal mines to earn their living and lived in fear and awe of Sultana Qureshi, a dacoit who would rob trains that passed through the town and was not recognisable to any law enforcement officer or villager. Taking advantage of the anonymity established by Sultana, a Pathan named Shahid Khan impersonates him to rob trains before Sultana himself can execute his plans thereby bringing down the wrath of one of the most feared dacoits upon himself. This starts a new war within the Muslim sects in Wasseypur as the Pathans and Qureshis start a blood feud and Shahid is forced to leave the village. Shahid moves to a larger town called Dhanbad, to the north of Wasseypur, and begins working in the coal mines at the same time that his wife dies giving birth to their son. After India attains independence, local industrialist Ramadhir Singh is assigned a few coal mines and hires Shahid Khan as his strong-man to make sure his business runs smoothly. While visiting Shahid Khan one night, Ramadhir over hears him speak to his cousin Nasir about planning to kill Ramadhir and take over his business. He immediately plots to kill Shahid by sending him to an assassin in Varanasi. Figuring out Ramadhir’s plan, Nasir protects Shahid’s son, Sardar Khan, and trains him to avenge his father’s death. Years down the line, Sardar grows up to be a fearless young man. He starts his criminal career by usurping the land of Ramadhir’s son JP Singh and reignites the feud as Ramadhir realises that he is Shahid’s son who he had murdered many years ago. Sardar is married to Nagma and they conceive two sons but Sardar is put behind bars for his previous crimes. After plotting out an escape from jail, Sardar takes asylum and marries a Hindu girl by the name of Durga. He returns to Wasseypur to find that the Qureshi clan is the widest known mafia group and tries to grab back power by planning bomb attacks on their shops during Muharram. Sultan Qureshi, nephew of Sultana Qureshi, is made aware of Sardar’s efforts and he resorts to join hands with Ramadhir Singh who supplies him with automatic weapons. In Sardar’s home, Nagma is once again pregnant with Sardar’s child and refuses to have sex with him which prompts him to visit his second wife Durga, eventually leading to Durga giving birth to another of his sons by the name of Definite. Nasir is busy taking care of Sardar’s family in his absence which comprises Nagma and her two teenage sons, Danish and Faizal. One night, Nagma is despondent and receives support from Nasir. They almost engage in intercourse but stop when they are spotted by Faizal who becomes scarred for life and forever seeks comfort in drugs in the future. In the coming years, Sardar’s sons grow up to assist him in his business. He is drawn closer to his first wife Nagma, provides his second wife with an allowance and agrees to have his eldest son marry a Qureshi to establish a temporary peace between the two families. Unfortunately, his second wife has grown tired of playing second fiddle and informs the Qureshis about his whereabouts in order to assist in an assassination attempt which takes place at a petrol pump. 

Synopsis – Part 2
When word of Sardar’s death reaches his family, his sons visit the petrol pump where he was murdered and Danish, the eldest son, kills the lone captor from the assassination plot. Realising the eminent danger, Sultan orders for Danish to be killed as well. Although the younger son Faizal is always inebriated, he vows to his mother that he will get revenge for all the killings. Lying low and waiting for the right moment to strike, Faizal announces himself to the rest of Wasseypur by brutally murdering his friend who won a local election and was an informer for the Qureshis. Faizal marries his sweetheart Mohsina and takes care of his father’s business. He enters into a truce with Ramadhir under the condition that he will receive political support if he does not carry on with his plan for revenge. By extension, Sultan is unable to carry on any attacks on Faizal because of the truce but Fazial carries on assassinating Sultan’s goons to reach the men that assassinated his father and brother. While the feud between the families carries on, many smaller criminals try to establish themselves as goons in Wasseypur thus bringing out new small gangs. Shamshad Alam, owner of a transport business, enters into a deal with Faizal to benefit both businesses but skims profits illegally without informing Faizal. At the same time, Definite, who is Durga’s son and also Faizal’s half brother, is yearning to make a name for himself in Wasseypur. Faizal’s younger brother, Perpendicular, is also gaining fame for his notorious acts in the town. This eventually leads to Perpendicular being killed by the Qureshis who were hired by the townsfolk and Shamshad double crossing Faizal to put him in jail. Definite and Shamshad face off to be the next big criminal in Wasseypur which leads to Definite being imprisoned alongside Faizal. Together they scheme to have Shamshad killed while Ramadhir joins forces with Shamshad and instructs him to bail Definite and recruit him against Faizal. Eventually, Definite sides with Fazial by dropping a bomb in Shamshad’s office which leaves Shamshad handicapped and bedridden. Meanwhile, Ramadhir is losing faith in his son JP Singh which leads JP to plot behind his father’s back. JP instigates Sultan to attack the Khan house after Faizal is released from jail. Faizal and his family survive and plot to kill Sultan which is carried out by Definite and Faizal’s goons. Definite is imprisoned and waits for Faizal’s orders but is neglected when the educated Iqlakh joins Faizal’s army and revolutionises they way he conducts business. Iqlakh, however, has an agenda of his own to kill Faizal because Sardar’s orders many decades ago had destroyed Iqlakh’s family. Faizal is aware of Iqlakh’s plans but goes along with his ideas as long as they profit his business. Under advice from Iqlakh, Faizal decides to contest the elections in his constituency by rigging the ballots. Ramadhir is shaken by Faizal’s growing power and orders for him to be killed, a plan which is carried out by Iqlakh along with the support of Definite who JP Singh has had released from jail. Definite double crosses Iqlakh, murders him and reveals the plan to Faizal. Enraged by the plan, Faizal gathers all the automatic rifles in his arsenal, stocks them up in an ambulance and drives to the hospital where Ramadhir is visiting Shamshad. Faizal’s goons easily overpower Ramamdhir’s security and Faizal has his revenge in the most gruesome manner imaginable before surrendering himself to the police along with Definite. While being transported to the jail, Faizal is killed by Definite who planned out the whole ordeal with JP Singh. JP Singh was fed up of his father’s taunts and formulated a plan to eliminate him as well as Faizal thereby allowing him to control Wasseypur and Definite to walk free.

At roughly five and a half hours in length, Gangs of Wasseypur is the longest film in the history of Indian cinema. The film was made in two parts to facilitate an easy theatrical release. The first part features a protagonist in the form of Sardar Khan while his son Faizal Khan is the protagonist for the second part of the film. The plot documents a fictionalised account of the gang wars in the town of Wasseypur over a period of 70 years. The story focuses particularly on one family that was involved in the wars over three generations and their blood feuds with the other mafia families in the town. By establishing a constant narrator in the film, director Anurag Kashyap was also able to tell the story through the eyes of the only family member who survived through all the battles thus turning the film into a personal account of the events. Most of the characters in the film are based on real life personalities that were known to have been part of the gang and political wars in and around Wasseypur.

Anurag Kashyap puts another notch in his belt of brilliance with Gangs of Wasseypur. The film uses the cinematic style of narration to break away from the clutter of other standard films. The narrative ensures the film is told from one particular angle thus lending it a prejudice and endearing the audience to one particular side of the gang wars i.e. the Khan family in the film. Although the political corruption, family vendetta and bloodlust is visibly practised by all the families, by virtue of having the protagonists and the narrator in the ranks of the Khan family, the audience does tend to have a soft spot for the family. Kashyap also uses humour (black humour most of the time since it is often associated with death and murders) to break the constant feeling of stress that develops during the film as a result of the innumerable number of deaths and other illicit activities that take place in the film which can put a strain on the audience’s sense of morality. However, at times, the humour seems to be forced and does not come across naturally; particularly the scene when Sultan is about to be murdered and his killers are hassling about his desire to buy bananas instead of mutton. As is his style, Kashyap does leave subtle clues to the audience about current affairs and his thoughts on the same as he has a character speak about a fascination with Bollywood and how people have become increasingly influenced by films in their day-to-day lives. He has also used other film techniques, most notable of which is a non-linear style as he uses flashbacks to narrate the story. The film also has multiple angles in the story since the list of characters is vast and the film does justice to explore the backstory of every character that affects the main plot. The film also has breaks and freeze frames when a new character or location is introduced. In such sequences, there is excellent use of animation and colours to stylise the sequence; one particular scene which stands out is after the cold start where a backstory is established and the British occupation of India and coal mining in Wasseypur are explained in detail. The level of gore in the film is meant to lend an effect of reality. However, the gore in the final action sequence and the blood splatter seem unnecessary; although it could been seen as the character making a statement and Kashyap himself, as the director, making a statement through his character. The soundtrack in the film is strongly influenced by Indian folk music but also has international styles with rock and dubstep being utilised in parts. The lyrics of most of the songs used in the film are explicit with many sexual references being made by virtue of music.

Gangs of Wasseypur is another excellent film churned out by Anurag Khasyap. The film is loosely based on true events and was originally penned down by one of the writers and actors of the film who is a resident of Wasseypur. Although lengthy, it is a stellar piece of cinematic work.

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.

My Brother the Devil: A coming of age for two brothers

The relationship between siblings can be quite an eccentric bond. At times, siblings want nothing to do with each other as they live their normal lives with their own peer group and, in other occasions, they can have a very close relationship where they have a common set of peers which leads to them spending a lot of time together. Quite often, it can be noted that the younger sibling takes up to the elder and consciously or unconsciously sees them as a role model.

My Brother the Devil is a story of two brothers of Eygptian descent living in London with their submissive mother and orthodox father. Beyond the walls of their well cultured building complex lie the streets which are rampant with gang wars and drug lords. The elder brother, Rashid, is neck deep in the mayhem as a drug peddler who is part of one of the gangs. He is trying to make enough money to help his family have a stable income and to try and provide a good education for his younger brother, Mo. Mo idolises his brother and wants to be just like him which leads to him joining the gang and selling drugs around the same time that Rashid decides to quit. Rashid’s journey continues as his best friend is killed in a gang fight and he meets a well off photographer who promises him a good pay for a full-time job. Rashid must pick between revenge for his fallen friend and a chance for a better life at about the same time that he starts getting confused about his sexual orientation. Mo, on the other hand, watches his brother drift away from a life he once idolised and finds it difficult to see his brother as the same person he once aimed to be like.

Most of the course of the film steers between the perspectives of the two brothers. The main protagonist of the film is the elder brother, Rashid, who is at a cross track in his life as he is faced with obstacles of being a grown, mature man. Rashid must not only pick the right path for himself, he is also aware that his decisions can result to a completely different life for his brother and parents. While his parents are unaware of his dealings on the streets, his brother follows him like a shadow and is most interested in spending time around his gang. For the most part, the film tends to be about making the right decisions while being true to yourself with a case in point being Rashid.

The film tries to deal with too many issues and highlights too many points. While the crux of the film is about a coming of age story of a young man, it adds too many elements including ethnicity, homosexuality, drug issues, family problems, gang wars, racism and the like. These issues are merely touched upon through the course of the film and not dealt with which tends to be a disappointment. Most of the cases are simply accepted as they are and let go off after a simple mention.

My Brother the Devil is the first full length feature production for director Sally El Hosaini and is a good effort. It does emphasis the difficulty of being a minority in a big city and it plays up the raw emotion that goes with it. The use of slang and manner of addressing each other which is seen in the film seems to be a typical raw use of language directly from the streets of London. Its appeal lies in the raw magnetism of being able to understand the characters. It does not have the appeal of the audience being able to place themselves in the shoes of the characters but it merely allows the audience to empathise.

The film has shortcomings since it takes on strong topics without actually dealing with them. Apart from empathy, it has nothing much going for it, but, all the same, it does produce a good story of a relationship between two distraught brothers.

Teddy Bear: The pursuit of true love

Love can have different forms and everyone wants to be loved in some form or the other. Love is a versatile word as well which can apply to the relationship between a mother and child, between siblings, between friends and between spouses. Of all the instances when one feels loved, the love of a spouse or a partner is one of the most desired. Almost everyone is born into a family and receives love from their immediate relative but finding someone to spend a night or the rest of your life with means much more to people. This is the story of Teddy Bear, a 2012 first full length feature film for Danish director Mads Matthiesen.

Dennis is a 38 year old bodybuilder who lives with his mother. While it is seemingly difficult for Dennis to find a date under normal circumstances owing to his overbearing figure, he is also introverted and finds it difficult to express himself as he is shy. Additionally, his mother is an overprotective and needy woman who wants her son to be at her side at all times of the day which allows him no time to meet other people. Dennis has an enormous amount of respect and devotion to his mother which adds to his problem of not dating as he does not want to disappoint her by bringing another woman into the household. However, Dennis’ views on the matter are drastically changed as his uncle returns from Thailand with a wife. Dennis is encouraged to visit Thailand and find himself a suitable mate, just like his uncle, and finally decides to slacken the bond between himself and his mother in favour of an attempt at finding a relationship with a significant other.

The film is actually a sequel of a short film made in 2007 by Mads Matthiesen which was titled Dennis. The premise of Teddy Bear picks up from Dennis, starring the same cast of mother and son, as Dennis tries once again to find love in his life. The relationship of the two is maintained over the two films with the differences only resulting from the finally outcomes of Dennis’ decisions.

The simplicity of the film is where its brilliance lies. But often, the simplicity of the film leads to it becoming monotonous and uninteresting. Most audiences believe that they are able to relate to Dennis and his lack at finding love because of being introverted and having a possessive mother but the fact of the matter is the problem in Dennis’ life is rooted much deeper than being merely introverted. Dennis has low self esteem issues and his perception of himself in other people’s eyes leads to him being introverted. His mother and problems arising due to her constant needy and possessive nature as well as Dennis’ respect for her leads to additional problems. But the main problem is in the fact that most people won’t give Dennis a second glance as a suitable mate owing to his grotesque figure. Dennis’ life as a bodybuilder picks up reactions from many people which are untoward. Although he is respected in the bodybuilding fraternity, to the rest of the world he is perceived as a ‘freakishly large man’.

Most audiences believe that they can relate to the story for the wrong reasons. In retrospect, Teddy Bear may be a good account of the life of someone who is different and trying to fit in, but it is by no means a story that applies to everyone’s lives unless they imaginatively impose Dennis’ problems in their own lives. At best, one can compare situations and identify with Dennis but not to the extent as to claim that the problems are the same.

The film is a simple account with no great dramatic finale, just something that was long coming finally happening in the end. It is an above average film but not a terrible disappointment. It is a fair reflection in the life of someone who stands out and is trying to fit in.

Ice Age - Continental Drift: A pleasant break from life’s fast pace

It is important to remind ourselves to slow down every once in a while and enjoy life as we did when we were children. Life moves too quickly in modern times, so much so that we forget the little things in life which are important and which should matter more to us than the more tangible possessions we tend to care about. To break it down, reminding ourselves of the little children in all of us is important and sometimes being a little immature and childish may just be the best thing for the long run.

Manny, Diego and Sid get separated from Manny’s family, wife Ellie and daughter Peaches, when an unfortunate event leads to the continents breaking apart and beginning to drift away. Ellie, Peaches and the rest of their herd keep moving on land as Manny, Diego, Sid and Sid’s Granny are set adrift on an iceberg. The trio and Granny try their level best to make it back to the herd but all efforts are in vain as they encounter the forces of Nature followed by a group of fierce pirates on the vast waters of the ocean. Captain Gutt of the pirates gives them an ultimatum to join his crew or walk the plank but with other ideas in mind, Manny and Diego destroy the iceberg ship and slowly drift to shore with Sid, his Granny and the pirate first mate, a Sabertooth named Shira who becomes Diego’s love interest. In a desperate attempt to get back to his family, Manny hitches a plan to steal Captain Gutt’s ship which brings on the wrath of Gutt in a final showdown.

Also known as Ice Age 4, the film is just as its prequels; entertaining and suitable for all ages. The film is a pleasant break from the continuous bombardment of sex, violence and more which is witnessed in other commercial films. A children’s or family film, it is a good experience for anyone who is ready to leave behind their inhibitions of terming a children’s movie as being childish.

This film is nothing special; it’s just a nice reminder of what life used to be like when we were kids. This film, or any children’s film, should definitely be on everyone’s watch-list.

Project X: It’s all about one epic party

What would you wish for if all your dreams could come true? If you had one chance to set everything right into place the way you wanted it, would you take the chance no matter the risk, no matter the outcome? It is kind of a story of life to take your chances and hope that everything falls into place the way you want it to. That is the story of Project X, the 2012 directorial debut of Nima Nourizadeh which was co-written by Matt Drake and Michael Bacall and produced by Todd Phillips.

Thomas is a nobody in high school. The jocks make fun of him and he is afraid to lift his head from fear of ridicule and failure. His two best friends decide to throw him a party for his 17^th birthday on the weekend that his parents leave town to celebrate their wedding anniversary. Costa is the loud mouthed, obnoxious teenager who is always in praise of himself while putting others down while J.B. is the soft spoken, naive one who goes along with the ride and plays the game. Costa convinces Thomas to let him host a huge party at his house and everything gets blown out of proportion as the crowd turns out to be larger than anticipated. The hosts struggle to keep the party going as the party poopers come knocking on the door to shut down their shenanigans.

The film is about an introverted high school teenager who wants to be noticed. It is about a group of friends trying to make a name for themselves by throwing a huge party and hoping that everything goes according to plan. Although the drastic scale to which the event goes out of control is well beyond the bounds of imagination, the final outcome is a sort of morbid perfection. It is a case where things just seem to perfectly work out in favour of the characters, the script and the director. The way that things just seem to fit into place at the end isn’t particularly believable but it is acceptable all the same.

The entire plot of the film revolves around the party. The main action takes place during the course of the party with everything preceding and following it being only a set up or an outcome in the plot which is a direct relation to the event of the birthday party. As such, the whole plot rests entirely on the way the party was executed in the film. The use of home video style footage was a refreshing technique to make the film interesting and is generally appealing. The actors, who are relatively unknown, have done a good job to make the characters endearing.

The film is all about one epic party. And the proportion to which the film takes it is marvellous. It is a youth-oriented film; not one that all ages will necessarily enjoy. It is fun and vibrant but applauds behaviour that is otherwise considered as morally wayward. Although most would probably enjoy this commercial production, quite a few may have an alternate opinion.

Football Rebels (Les rebelles du foot): More than just a sport

The world looks up to people with power. That is what power is all about, the ability to impact the world for the better or the worse. Being famous and successful automatically grants a person power and when it is achieved through the means of sport, the honour is all the more prestigious. The French documentary Les rebelles du foot (Football Rebels) is about international footballers who achieved a status of being great and then used their power to make a change for the better.

The documentary is narrated by one of the greatest footballers to have graced the sport in the recent past, Eric Cantona. Cantona was well known for have a fiery personality and playing exceptionally well during his illustrious career which makes him an ideal candidate to host this documentary about personalities who have made a difference using their sporting background. The first footballer in the limelight is Ivory Coast’s Didier Drogba who used his fame as the national team’s captain to unite his broken country and bring peace in a time of eminent war. Next up is Carlos Caszely, a man who was made to suffer personally for publically refusing to submit to military rule during Chile’s coup d’etat in 1973. Another personality who was celebrated was Rachid Mekhloufi, a rising star who left his professional club to form a football team that would support the formation of the state of Algeria. Predrag Pasic is the last person who is celebrated in the documentary for starting a school in Sarajevo which would teach children to play football and live peacefully in a time of war.

All the stories in the documentary feature prominent personalities that have caused a positive impact to their respective countries in their own ways. From being as subtle as the formation of a school in a war-ravaged city, as was done by Pasic, to taking a public stance by making announcements as was done by Drogba and Caszely, each have risked losing their fame and fortune and, on occasion, their lives for the sake of a cause they cared strongly about. The documentary celebrates the people who have gone past being mere footballers to being strong political influences.

Every moment that has strong emotional or ethical ties in the documentary sees the interjection of Cantona as narrator who asks the audience if they can imagine living in the middle of war with a gun against their head, or at times he draws from his own personal life to narrate a story which affected him and his family as he grew up to be the great footballer that he was. The documentary also uses stock footage from the actual events and footage gained from revisiting the locations which has an additional effect to lend to the film. The interviews with the personalities as they speak from their own experiences can be quite emotional at times and quite inspirational as well.

For any football fan, this is a must see to witness how football transcends the boundaries of being a mere sport and becomes a great influence in life. For a person who cares less about football, it is a narrative about how simple people who live with honour and dignity can rise above themselves to move a nation and the world around it.

Celeste & Jesse Forever: A modern anti-love romance film

It is normal human tendency to get bored with what we are always experiencing and want a change from the ordinary. It is for this same reason that we hate clichés and things that we have already gone through. One of the most clichéd plots in film is that of romance. The usual plot of a romance film can be summed up as a cliché of boy meets girl, they fall in love, go through a strenuous circumstance that takes a toll on their relationship and eventually they end up together. So it would be a refreshing change when a film like Celeste & Jesse Forever comes along.

Celeste is a hard-working trend predictor in the world of pop culture. She is married to Jesse, a slacker with no job who depends entirely on Celeste including living in with her after having separated for 6 months. All the same, Celeste and Jesse are best friends and continue to have a healthy but confused relationship in their separated marriage. It finally reaches a point where their friends burst open about how weird their relationship is and forces them to move on and finalise their divorce. During this time, one of Jesse’s past flings comes back into the picture and Celeste is forced to get over him, find someone new to fall in love with and bring her fading career back on track.

While the title reads Celeste & Jesse Forever, it may not necessarily refer to their relationship as a couple but in effect is an emphasis on the two of them as friends who are inseparable. The film is much less of a romantic film and more of drama with elements of comedy thrown into it; in fact, it isn’t a romantic film at all. The protagonist, Celeste, finds it difficult to move on with her life while dealing with the divorce as she compares herself to her partner who is a flop in the beginning and slowly begins to have a stable career and love life as hers begins to diminish.

Celeste & Jesse Forever isn’t actually a love story; far from it. It is a modern tale of two people who are in love with each other, and best friends, who find themselves at a crossroad as their romantic relationship fails but their friendship stays intact. It is a story that can apply to many odd couples, and individuals, who find themselves in a similar situation. It is nothing special but maybe something relevant and different from run of the mill commercial Hollywood.

The Angels' Share: A light hearted change of heart

What would someone do if they are given a fresh leash on life? A chance to start over after making a mistake with a fresh slate or merely a second chance after disappointing someone who is close to them; usually, anyone would grab the chance with open arms and try to stay away from anything detrimental. But when trouble keeps coming back after you it can be quite taxing and, as we witness in Ken Loach’s The Angels’ Share, it can be quite hilarious as well.

Robbie is a to-be father who is always caught on the wrong side of the law. From causing trouble in gang fights to run-ins with police officials, he has always been getting the short end of the stick. So when he tries hard to stay out of trouble with his pregnant girlfriend, he manages to keep away from a court trail for 10 months before he is dragged back in and confined to multiple hours of community service. In the community service group, Robbie meets a bunch of similar people who find it difficult to maintain stable jobs and stay clear of trouble because of the stigma attached to their previous prison terms. In this break, Robbie’s girlfriend gives birth to his son who he names Luke. Robbie vows that Luke will never have to suffer the same social stigma he has faced since he was a teenager and in his attempt to provide a stable future for Luke and his girlfriend, Robbie and his group of delinquents hitch a plan to make loads of money overnight at a whiskey distillery.

The Angel’s Share is a story of people trying to make it out of a rut to make a better future for themselves. In hind sight, there is a pleasant irony in the plot whereby they attempt to leave a life of crime behind by possibly committing a big crime in the bargain.  The film brings together a mix of characters including a person who is always indulging in brawls, a reckless dunce who might cause harm to society and himself, a vandal who holds grudges towards public property and a kleptomaniac. The course of the film leaves the lives of the three supporting characters shrouded in a mild sense of mystery while delving further into the life of the protagonist, Robbie.

Ken Loach brings subtle humour to the table with this film which has elements of slapstick and situational comedy. This 2012 comedy-drama film isn’t about hard hitting facts but an enjoyable viewing experience. It isn’t a feel good film but doesn’t fall short of bringing a smile to the face of the audience every now and then, and at a few instances, it is also good for a chuckle or two.

The film has a light hearted tone from the beginning until the end. It maintains its style of being an enjoyable film to watch from its opening frame right until the closing one.

Cosmopolis: A cross-city journey which takes a lifetime

A story should have a beginning, a middle and an end, but not necessarily in that order. These were the words once uttered by a legend of cinema, the French film critic turned filmmaker Jean-Luc Godard. What Godard was implying was that a plot can go around a theme and the story can be broken up to be used in an innovative style of storytelling without following a particular format.

Eric Packer is a high profile asset manager who is a 28 year old billionaire who can have whatever he wants. He lives aloof from the common man and when he decides to do something, he uses every resource required to get it done. This is the same reason that he decides to take a cross city trip to his favourite barber to get a haircut on the same day that the President of the United States is in the city and there is an assassination threat. Packer is adamant on getting the haircut at the same barber come hell or high water and sets out on the journey with his posse of white limousines which are equipped with his security personnel. Since he isn’t in his office, Packer conducts his business from his limousine which is set up as a travelling base of his operations. Along the way, he is visited by his business associates and many other people as he makes his journey across the city at a snail’s pace.

This 2012 film was written and directed by David Cronenberg. The inspiration for the script is derived from a novel of the same title as the film which was written by Don DeLillo. The film is very heavily dialogue based with little to no action being done by the main characters in the plot. Majority of the film takes place within the space of the protagonist’s limousine as the world carries on around him with traffic, riots and bloodshed.  The protagonist is oblivious to the world around him as he is successful in his own life, he gets what he wants and he doesn’t concern himself with the problems of the common man.

Going back to the words of Godard, a film should have a beginning, middle and end, but the order of which is not necessary. Quite a few films break away from normal plotlines to mix up the story for a desired effect. Unfortunately, Cosmopolis has no storyline. While the plot can be defined as ‘the story of a billionaire who takes a journey across town to get a haircut and meets people along the way’, the story falls apart since there is no real sense of progression and no cause-and-effect relationship which brings about the desired finale. Though it can be said that the story is a compilation of vignettes of meetings, there is still no relation between the individual occurrences to the final plot. The story of the film has no course and just hangs in the air with no explanations of why things happen and why the protagonist lands up in a questionable position at the end of the film. The dialogue orientation of the film and lack of action means that the pace of the film is exceptionally slow. The film practically makes no sense because the main focus of the film, the dialogue, happens without any real circumstance between characters which drift in and out of the plot at random intervals. The film breaks the cardinal rule of filmmaking – do not be boring. Although, arguably, it can be considered as the director portraying his views of the world through what he perceives as art, it is terribly self-indulgent and prophetical. It does not make arguments or highlight points of importance, it only shows the audience the world as seen through the eyes of the director. It is a film made for the sake of expressing the director’s opinions which must be accepted by the audience as the gospel truth while watching the film. The dialogue delivery of the actors and the minimal action that occurs is extremely boring. The lack of expression from any of the actors adds to the overall dragging feel that is emitted from the film.

While it can be argued that the film was made boring by way of intention on the director’s part since it is a reflection of Cronenberg’s views of the world, it would only be adding fuel to the flame that Cosmopolis is just a self-indulgent film which doesn’t care about its audience. It is one of the extremely rare instances when a film is just downright terrible and doesn’t deserve to be watched.