movie review : 2012

My teenaged cousin recommended this movie, so I went to watch it though I have an aversion for such movies. The previous disaster-movie I watched in theatres is Armageddon way back in the 90's. Then I almost fell asleep , bored of watching the destruction & mayhem. This time I managed to ward-off falling asleep. Infact the movie 2012 is throw back to 90's style of film-making. But one often gets the feeling that this style has run its course and is fast getting out-dated.

Undoubtedly 2012 is treat for special-effect fans. The whole experience is similar to that of playing a video-game , or taking a joy-ride in a theme-park. There is a feeling of instant-high which will fade sooner or later. And apart from the special-effects there is nothing else worth noting. None of the charactors stuck in the mind. The screen-play ( if such a thing exists) is shoddy. The dialogues are cliched and artificial. The back-ground score is predictable. The story-line has an uncanny resemblance of H.G Wells' short-story The Star (which deals with a star that is heading towards earth , causing many natural disasters in our planet) though Wells does not specify any particular date for the event. Like a typical Hollywood blockbuster, 2012 also has Us vs Them theme - only difference being Them is not an alien but nature's fury.

Many similar movies have released particlarly in last decade are from the same director but 2012 shows his prowess are on decline. Neveretheless the director succeeds in highlightinging the impact of world-end on different individuals according to their attitude towards life which he potrays satirically. For example, in one such scene where the fast impending disaster being watched by a pessimistic, lonely radio-jockey and the ever-optimistic hero . The first man smiles and even laughs at the dreadfull sight of nature's fury while the hero - a family man with a wife and 2 kids - wore a dump-founded expression , a la Kate Winslett of Titanic.


So if you are a die-hard special-effects fan , then go for it. Or if your idea for a perfect movie-outing is a small,quiet Woody Allen kind of movie , then ignore '2012'.

Jason Scott Lee

THEN & NOW ..

notable movies :

Blind Fury (1989) Uncredited, Bruce Lee's Brother
Back to the Future Part II (1989) Whitey
Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story (1993) Bruce Lee

The Jungle Book (1994) Mowgli
Soldier (1998) Caine 607
Arabian Nights (2000) Aladdin
Timecop 2: The Berlin Decision (2004)
The Prophecy: Forsaken (2005)
Nomad (2006)
Dance of the Dragon (2008) Cheng

movie review: Pazhassi Raja (2009)

I have been hearing good reviews about the latest movie Pazhassi Raja. So I went to watch this brilliant movie last week-end. It's not often that I go to the theatres to watch a movie, especially in a place where Bollywood is dominent. As a rule, a typical Bollywood movie always fail to live up to the expectations & hype and most of them are a copy of major Hollywood movies. They cater to the needs of mostly an ignorant and illiterete masses. In such a scenario, Pazhassi Raja - a regional Malayalam language movie comes as a whiff of fresh air.

The film tells the real-life story of Pazhassi Raja , the 18-th century king of Kerala who waged a guerilla-war against the colonialists with the help of tribals. The story-line of Pazhassi Raja has all the ingredients of a historical-flick, with its warrior-heroes, cold-blooded villains and treacherous-traitors. What makes the movie stands-out is its sheer international quality . 'Pazhassi Raja' is a double-treat for movie-goers : apart from being a good historical movie, it is also a brilliant action-movie. The action sequences are of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon tradition but never even once the movie resort to Bollywood style copying. Infact 'Pazhassi Raja' can boost on its own a few innovative fight-sequences. The director(Hariharan) himself is no stranger to making movies based Kerala's martial-arts Kalarippayattu and its legends. The story-line of Pazhassi Raja is more akin to another international movie with oriental-theme The
Last Samurai (2003) - esp. clash between two distinct cultures and mode of warfare - ie. sword/bow & arrow versus guns & cannons.

One such spectacular action-scene : the colonialists entraps Pazhassi Raja at his home and arrests him; the king gallantly gave himself up offering no resistance; but before being taken away the Raja asks his wife to get some water ; wife brings the cup on a brass-plate ; on the pretext of drinking water, Pazhassi Raja instead unleashes from the brass-plate an urumi

(a long, flexible sword) and as his captors watch in wonderment the brass-plate and cup that has shot up in the air (in slow-motion) , the 'urumi' falls on them like thunderbolt, creating all round destruction and mayhem.

Full credit to the action-director and the special-effects team. Infact the movie displays an array of talented and experienced film-personalities who have long proved their mettle in their respective fields. The sound-editing is done by none other than the Oscar-winner (Slumdog-Millionaire) Resul Pookutty. The back-ground score is by the Beethoven of India - Ilayaraja. The doyen of Malayalam literature M.T Vasudevan Nair has written a well-knit screen-play. The art-direction too is equally of world-class.

Among the actors, the Mega-star of Kerala - Mammooty is perfect in his potrayal as the warrior-king. Mammooty has this knack of getting under the skin of his charecters effortlessly - Pazhassi Raja is no exception. I expect no less than a National Award for his performance. The Tamil super-star Sarath Kumar excells as a second-hero with his great physique and action-skills. The cast & crew also include many foreign artists and technicians as well .
The review would not be complete with paying homage to the director HariHaran. For a film-maker who has been in the industry for 30-years, who has made movies in every genre - art-house,comedy, musicals, historicals - his command over the meduim is unparellel. 'Pazhassi Raja' turned out to be his magnum-opus.

More over Pazhassi Raja is a triump for the regional-language films in India which has long been in the shadows of Bollywood. At a time when the big bad Bollywood is rotting under a feudalistic, clan based system which has marked the end of creativity, the movie Kerala Varma Pazhassi Raja (the full-title of the movie) shows what can be achieved if the best of creative minds come together.

Elvis Presley

Kentucky rain -
[C]Seven lonely [G]days and a [C]dozen towns a[F]go,
I [C]reached out one [F]night and you were [C]gone.[C7]
[F]Don't know why you'd [G]run, what you're [C]running to or [Am]from,
[D7]all I know is I want to bring you [G7]home.
So I'm [C]walking in the [G]rain, [C]thumbing for a [F]ride on this
[C]lonely Ken[F]tucky [C]backroad.[C7]
I've [F]loved you much too [G]long and [C]my love's too [Am]strong
to [D7]let you go, never knowing what went [G7]wrong.[Fmaj7]
[D7]Kentucky rain keeps pouring [C]do[Bm]wn [Em]and up ahead's another [Am]town
[G]that [F]I'll [Em]go [F]walking [C]thru [Fmaj7]with the [C]rain in my [Em]shoes,[Am][Em][C]
[Am]searchin [Am7]for [F]you [G7]in the cold Kentucky [C]rain, [Em][F]
in the [G7]cold Kentucky [C]rain.
[C]Showed your photo[G]graph to some [C]old gray bearded [F]men
sitting [C]on a bench out[F]side a gen'ral [C]store.[C7]
They said "[F]Yes, she's been [G]here" but their [C]mem'ry wasn't [Am]clear,
was it [D7]yesterday, no, wait the day be[G7]fore.
So I [C]fin'ly got a [G]ride with a [C]preacher man who
[F]asked: "Where you [C]bound on such a dark [F]after[C]noon?"[C7]
As we [F]drove on thru the [G]rain as he l[C]istened
I ex[Am]plained and he [D7]left me with a prayer that I'd find [G7]you.[Fmaj7]
[D7]Kentucky rain keeps pouring [C]do[Bm]wn [Em]and up ahead's another [Am]town
[G]that [F]I'll [Em]go [F]walking [C]thru [Fmaj7]with the [C]rain in my [Em]shoes,[Am][Em][C]
[Am]searchin [Am7]for [F]you [G7]in the cold Kentucky [C]rain, [Em][F]
in the [G7]cold Kentucky [C]rain[Em][F], in the [G7]cold...
(fade)

kabsa

It was while living in Saudi Arabia 2-years ago I discovered this brilliant Arabic cuisine called Kabsa. The very mention of it brings water into my mouth. I was in Saudi as an under-study, to help out my uncle who is in the heavy-industries business.
Saudi Arabia is a country which stands half in medieval-times and half in modern-times. Much of the 21-st century leisure activities are taboo or unheard of in this ultra- conservative country. (Though there are efforts of late to change it but it will be a slow process.) Like all tribal communities, in Saudi too , eating (feasting) is a leisure activity as singing & dancing (strictly for men). And the dish which all Saudis (and the expatriates) like is Kabsa.

'Kabsa' is considered the national dish of Saudi Arabia but its origin not Arabian. Atleast that's what my hosts told me. After all, the main dish in the whole of Arabia consists of Quboos (wheat-bread), dates and meat (washed down with some camel-milk). But 'Kabsa' is a rice-based cuisine much like Biryani of the sub-continent. Therefore the origin of kabsa could be either central-asian or turkish. Or like itsmany ingrediants, Kabsa may have born out a mixture of various cultures.
Whatever be its origin , it is now a familiar sight in Saudi where gents sit in a circle (like they do in the deserts). If they are laidback and chatting, they will have black-tea. If they are leaning forward and busily engaged in the large bowl in front of them, then they are having 'kabsa'.

Despite my high-profile job including a spacious office, I do not regret leaving this boring, medieval country for good. Unless you are an expatriate whose sole aim is to make pot full of money, there is nothing else - particularly for anyone with an artistic & creative mind. Even though my employers greatly miss me (and I greatly miss them) so I am not keen to return .I feel I would rather be at home in a futuristic, hi-tech utopia than a medieval dystopia.
But I greatly miss one of my most favourite dishes - Kabsa !!!

Slum-dogs

As I write this, the Slum-dog Millionaire team are in the city to inaugurate a fast-food outlet. Last week they were in another city, for the opening of another show-room. I feel happy for these 'slum-dogs'- as they are popularly known, esp. the real slum-kids Azhar and Rubina .They are having a great time.But I cant help thinking -just imagine - what if such a movie was never made ? Or just imagine what was their situation one or two years ago ? Or just imagine the thousands who still live in the slums in wretched conditions ? One feels indepted to a film-maker such as Danny Boyle for giving them a new respectablity .
I hope that more 'slum-dogs' will emerge from obscurity and deprivation - especially in a land where oppurtunities and accolodes are the monopoly of a privilaged few.

creativity

Continueing with Tagore's selected letters, the sensitive young poet describe to his niece about an artist's frustration and craving for recognition.
Cuttack,Feb.1892

I maintain that until we can achieve something we should live incognito.So long as we are fit only for condescension from others, how can we make a show of our true selves in front of them ? When we have established some position in the world, and had a share in shaping its course , then we can meet it with a frank face. Till then let us keep in the background, remain
silent, and do our own work.
Our countrymen hold the opposite view: Whatever work is backstage or private they deem insignificant. The more transient and vainglorious the task in hand, the better they like it. Ours is truly a God-forsaken land. To hold on to the strength of will to do is so difficult here. One gets no real assistance. There is no one for miles and miles around whose conversation might inject one with vitality. No one is thinking, feeling or working. Of genuine striving no one has experience; not a single mature human being is to be found. Everyone moves about like ghosts. They eat and drink, do their office work, sleep and smoke, and chatter nonsensically.When they touch upon emotion they grow sentimental, when they reason they are childish. One yearns for the company of a full-blooded, sturdy, and capable personality, instead of these insubstantial
creatures that flit about, unattached to the world.
And so the hours pass. Now it is late afternoon. It is not yet cold, and as I look out the sun pours
down.

from book: Selected Letters of Tagore

edited & translated by: Krishna Dutta/Andrew Robinson