Thought for the day

"If you resolve to give up smoking and drinking, you dont actually live longer - it just seems longer."
Playright Tom Stoppard, quoted in the London Express.

Make it thought for the year, or...probably thought for the rest of your life...

Movie reveiw - Anniyan (tamil)

I have seen few movies that are as bad as this one. When I saw the mail that Anniyan was going to be screened, I screamed "wakaaw..!" to myself. I had not seen a tamil move for a long time and was looking forward to it. Its a Shankar movie and it has the usual dose of computer animation, "dic - chic" dance dumbers and a few dozen cars overturned. Shankar movies are usually the masala ones and this one is no different. But this one has so much of it that it leaves you gasping.

This movie is just an alternate version of shankar's superhit "Indian". It has some reference to the "Garuda Puranam", which talks about "hell" as seen by hindu mythology and what kind of punishments await the evil doers. It has the same format, the same issue and the same final message. The only difference is that Indian was good.

The movie starts with Ambi (vikram), an Iyengar lawyer. Ambi is a simple minded person who follows society rules to the letter. He quotes a rule in almost every sentence and tries to correct the entire system. A person straight out of utopia. With the result, he is a laughing stock at all situations, for being impractical.

Remo (vikram again) is a contrast. The self proclaimed charmer. He is the cool dude in town...a little too cool perhaps. Shankar's attempt to portray Vikram as a suave, self confident fashion model ends up with a over-stylized vikram with a fake accent and some corny pick-up phrases. "Come on babe..! Lets go do the yo-yo thing...!" he says to his love interest Nandini (Sada), which leaves you grimacing into each other's faces.

And then there is Anniyan (more Vikram..!) The Killer. The same character as indian thatha.

A series of gross murders by Anniyan sets a police investigation lead by Prakash Raj (DCP) in motion. The motivation for vikram to don the killer mask is again a sister (remember kamal's sis in Indian), who is killed in due to an unattended electricity wire that was cut due to rains. This impacts vikram deeply as a boy, and he takes it on from there.

The result is a senseless concotion of drama, action and romance. The movie constantly reminds you of other shankar movies, Indian, Mudhalvan and Boys. Vivek keeps you from walking out, with his witty comedy.

But the message is good. There are some footages shown in the movie about how our neighbouring countries have developed while India is still developing. Surely to set people thinking...and it does. But the movie fails hopelessly otherwise.

If you have seen Indian and read Sidney Sheldon's Tell me your dreams, you can write this story yourself. For the rest, dont decide to watch the movie reading some reveiw like this one...
http://www.indiaglitz.com/channels/tamil/review/7066.html


Rating: (2/5)

The rise of Fall

I see people!
In your dreams?
No.
While you are awake?
Yes.
People like...in offices?
No. These are new students. Walking around the campus, like regular people. They see each other. Chat with each other laughing, smiling, and obviously enjoying themselves. They are everywhere.
How often do you see them?
ALL THE TIME!!

Yahoo..!
Fall semester has started...!
I was a heartening sight...to see the campus abuzz with activity. To see so many people after the desolate look the campus wore for about three months. Drumrolls..!!!

Change...!

I think I will agree with harry (in this matter)..! Change is required. It keeps you rolling. This is perhaps why I grow and shave away my french beard every 4 months. This is perhaps why I change my wallpaper everytime I feel like. This is perhaps why I have changed my apartment four times already...! (jest kidding') But still...change is needed. Else you cant even travel by public transport, let alone anything else.

As Rafiki, the baboon, nodding his head sagely, says in The Lion king, "Change is good." Anyway, there isnt much flowing out of my head these days. Maybe this new templete will knock some activity into my head and words out of my fingers. Amen..!

Sarkar: movie reveiw

The movie is good, but not outstanding.

Primarily, the entire portrayal of Sarkar seems a bit overdone. The way people, throng outside the gates of Sarkar's mansion to get a glimpse of Sarkar is a bit unrealistic. There are people carrying automatic machine guns in and around the house compound. But the public seems totally indifferent towards it. It is as if the whole of the masses fully understands the political dynamics of the state and completely endorses the activities of Sarkar. The news on TV too pretty much implies and accepts that it is Sarkar who runs the show.

How many people are required to shoot down two unarmed men in a lonely boat jetty? 10 armed men...! And do they do a good job at it? NO..! The first walks in the way of the bullets and gets shot, while the other runs away...! Abhishek Bachchan sprints across the wharf coolly dodging the bullets of 10 men, while the background score goes..."govinda...govinda..." Jeez..! You can attempt making reality movies but there is no denying the fundamental laws of bollywood.

The women of the house are portrayed loosely. Their sole purpose in the movie seems to be for dispensing tea and coffee to every minister or arms dealer who walks into the house. They are all around, calmly listening, if not making suggestions about who to thump and where.

But there and no songs thankfully! The casting is pretty neat. Amitabh, his right-hand man, Abhishek, his evil elder brother (this guy has done very well), and the evil gangs...all have done a clean job. The cinematography is nice. Shots from under the table, beside the coffee cup, and beside the fence, all give an elegant effect. The close-up shots are classy.

The movie lacks the vibrance and energy of Mani Ratnam?s 1987 hit Nayakan. But all the while, it is definitely a movie worth watching.

Read Apercevoir's reveiw too..!

http://apercevoir.blogspot.com/2005/07/what-evening.html

To put it simply !!

The life of a grad student in the US can be summarized as:

Apartment,
Department,
Advisor,
Budweiser...!