A post for: Music of the Heart and Bach

Yesterday I watched the movie Music of the Heart. This falls in the categories music and inspiration. The movie is a sure #win for several reasons - the main ones being Meryl Streep, the music, the true storyline. Meryl Streep is a versatile actress. Be it her role in Devil wears Prada, Julie and Julia or this one, so very different - yet so well adapted.

The movie is about Roberta Guaspari. When her husband leaves her, Roberta's mom and friend push her into pursuing her passion - teaching music. Roberta teaches in a school at Harlem and life is a struggle. When the music program at school is cut due to budget constraints she fights back and wins.
Roberta later went on to found Opus 118 - Harlem centre for Strings.

At the very end of the movie, a charity show to be hosted by Roberta is almost scrapped due to non-availability of venue. That is when her friend arranges for musical greats like Itzhak Perlman and Isaac Stern help conduct the concert at Carnegie Hall. The finale gave me goosebumps when these musicians along with the children play Bach's double concerto. Such beautiful music.

Since last evening, I have been listening to classical music specially Bach's. These are in my current playlist:
Double concerto
Prelude - Cello Suite No. 1
Toccata and Fugue in D minor
Brandenburg concerto No. 3 (Allegro)
Cantata No. 29 Sinfonia

Movies, Books

Frost/Nixon:
Though the movie starts off like a documentary, expect nothing but sheer brilliance from director Ron Howard (A Beautiful Mind, Da Vinci Code et la).
The movie revolves around the interview of President Richard Nixon by a British TV show host David Frost. After the Watergate scandal that lead to the president's resignation, Frost wants to interview the president and get him to admit the truth to the public. He finds it difficult to get American producers to back him. How he prepares for the interview, how every question of his is shot down by the president with a very politically correct answer and how one telephone conversation turns things around... is the flow of the movie.
A good movie to watch for the brilliant acting and great dialogue delivery.

Milk:
After watching I Am Sam, I'd close my eyes and choose a Sean Penn movie over any other. In Milk, Sean portrays the role of a gay rights activist. All through the movie, Milk talks into his dictaphone giving a recorded account of how things are progressing on the personal front, the political front, the problems faced by the minority group, issues that he faces being the fore runner for the cause. Not just another weekend movie. Its an inspiration.

After two serious topics, moving on to comedy...
Sidin Vadukut's DORK is absolutely hilarious. From start to finish, the book puts you on ROTFL mode. This is Sidin's blog and @sidin is his twitter handle
Am now reading No Onions Nor Garlic. Though this is also of the humour genre, it has way too many expletives for my taste. But this is just me :)

The Constant Gardener

Based on the novel by John Le Carre, The Constant Gardener is a story of a Diplomat who tries to find the reason for his wife's murder. In his pursuit, Justin Quayle (played by Ralph Fiennes) discovers that his wife Tessa (played by Rachel Weisz) and her friend Arnold were trying to expose a conspiracy involving major pharmaceuticals and aid organizations in the African continent. Brilliant performance by all the actors, beautiful cinematography and hard hitting reality all well complemented by the music of Spanish composer Alberto Iglesias. A definite must watch, according to me.

Movie Time

Off late, I've been watching a lot of movies. Many movies on my 'to watch' list have now been struck off. I enjoyed watching most of these, but in a couple of cases... I thought the hype was a bit too much :)

Before Sunrise/Before Sunset:
I had watched Before Sunset a long time back and loved how the movie was so non-movie-like. Every action, every dialogue felt so real. It just takes you to a totally different world that is so beautiful. After watching Before Sunrise (the prequel - if I may call it) I think Sunset is better. But then, both movies are awwww so sweet.

The Visitor (2007):
The story of a professor, who travels to a conference to find a couple living in his home. the couple happen to be illegal immigrants. How this incident changes the professor's life is what the movie is about. The movie gets you thinking.... but I somehow felt there was something lacking in the movie. whatever said and done, the message is very powerful.

The Graduate (1967):
Dustin Hoffman, a graduate, returns home from school and only to be enticed by the wife of his father's business partner. Agreed, the movie has great acting and a very different storyline... but not too sure why the movie falls in the 'One of the greatest movies" category.

Mama Mia (2008):
Meryl Streep rocks in this musical :) Any ABBA fan would enjoy this movie. But what I loved the most were the locations - the Greek islands, the beaches, the chapel atop the hill and of course the Music.

mama mia, here I go again
my my, how can I resist you
mama mia, does it show again
my my, how much I've missed you

Rachel Getting Married (2008):
This is completely an off-beat movie. Many parts have been shot like it is a documentary. You think you've seen Anne Hathaway in Princess Diaries and Devil Wears Prada and thought she was cute? Watching her in this move, you'd hate her, because of the character she plays. That's the brilliance of her acting.
Anne plays a drug addict who returns from rehab for her sister's wedding. The relationship she has with her family and they with her and most importantly she has with herself is what the movie is about. Every part is played so perfectly - Anne, her dad, her sister and the man she is engaged to - very well made movie.

The Dark Knight (2008):
ha! what do I say about this movie, except that it is so brilliant. Don’t know why I missed this when it was showing in the theatres.

P.S. I love you (2007):
I know the title sounds cheesy, but the movie is a really nice one. Its about a husband, who through his letters to his wife, teaches her to live life. Hilary Swank. who plays the wife, receives the letters after her husband's death, when she really is in need of someone to guide her. Each letter perfectly timed, makes her smile, makes her laugh and makes her do things that she loves. They bring her back to life. Gerard Butler, who plays the husband makes the perfect match for Hilary in this movie. In case you are looking for something to warm up your heart, this is one movie to watch.

Man On Wire (2008):
You just have to watch this movie to understand what a masterpiece it is. No amount of description would suffice. Related link: If you want to fly

His Girl Friday (1940):
When Cary Grant comes to know that his ex-wife, Hildy is getting re-married, he tries every possible trick to get her to stay. The story is revolves around a newspaper office that is covering the story of a man accused of murdering a policeman. The movie just belongs to Rosalind Russell who plays Hildy in the movie. It is quick paced and has great comic-timing.

Atonement (2007):
Based on the novel by Ian McEwan, this movie is about a child who accuses her sister’s lover of a crime he did not commit. This is a life changing event for all of them. The surprise comes right at the end when you know the true story. Another movie that is very well made movie.

Thank You For Smoking (2005):
First it was No Reservations, then Dark Knight and now its Aaron Eckhart in this movie as well. Each role, completely different from the other, but played so brilliantly well. Nick, the protagonist works as the spokesman for a cigarette company. Though the public hates him, yet how he defends the company is what the story is about. He knows that smoking kills millions of people each year… It is a job that I do well and it pays my mortgage, thus I do it – is his answer to the question, why do you do it. A must watch for Aaron’s great performance.

Weekend movie

What starts off as a dark and sad story, turns into a really touching and inspiring one. the dialogues have been timed so perfectly and delivered so well that you want to watch some scenes again and again.
Though a few scenes like the one relating to the war could have been avoided/shortened, its a brilliantly made movie.
Cate Blanchett looks 'oh so wow', so does Brad Pitt in a few scenes.
One scene that I really liked is where Benjamin describes a series of events that all come together and result in an accident. Even if one of those events hadn't happened or had occurred a moment earlier/later the result would have been different. He starts off by saying "Sometimes we're on a collision course, and we just don't know it. Whether it's by accident or by design, there's not a thing we can do about it."

Other thought provoking quotes from the movie:
Our lives are defined by opportunities, even the ones we miss.

You can be as mad as a mad dog at the way things went. You could swear, curse the fates, but when it comes to the end, you have to let go.

It's never too late to be whoever you want to be. There's no time limit, stop whenever you want. You can change or stay the same, there are no rules to this thing. We can make the best or the worst of it. I hope you make the best of it. And I hope you see things that startle you. I hope you feel things you never felt before. I hope you meet people with a different point of view. I hope you live a life you're proud of. If you find that you're not, I hope you have the strength to start all over again.

Delhi 6

All things said and done... Great website
Imagine a movie plot with too many thoughts to be expressed. Actually so many ideas you want to bring out that you cannot fit it into one movie. So you neatly lay out all these ideas flat on a sheet of paper, cut the sheet into many pieces and try to put together a collage. The movie now has only nice looking pieces, but loses its story flow.
That's how I felt when I watched Delhi 6. So many scenes end so abruptly that it makes you wonder if it was meant to be that way or if someone did a bad job with the editing.
With such a star cast, music, location like old Delhi - the movie could have been so much more. My greatest disappointment was my favourite song Dil Gira - picturisation of which was such a let down :( Innovative - yes, appealing - maybe not.
When shooting in old Delhi, there are so many things places/culture/activities that can be showcased, but that doesn't happen here. Where Rang De Basanti had so many lovely locations/shots/picturisation this movie comes no where close to it. The only saving grace is beautiful Sonam Kapoor.
Half way through the movie you start wondering.... What were they thinking

A Good Year

What is it about some movies that make you want to watch them over and over again? Is it the story? the actors? or is it just a state of mind?
Got back late after a really bad day. A day which began bad, half way through it nose-dived further, more complications around 4pm. Yeah it was one of those fun days.
Finally it ended well, so should I say 'All's well that ends well?' nah... not yet the end of the day.
Was so frustrated after I got back home, needed something to calm my mind. Then what happened was A Good Year.

I picked up the DVD for Russell Crowe, but this movie is nothing like Gladiator, A Beautiful Mind or Cinderella Man. This is a movie, where you can just lose yourself - get lost in the beautiful landscapes of Provence, splurge in the luxuries of a French chateau, admire the beautiful people and enjoy the haunting music. A feel good movie that's very beautifully made. I notice I've used the word 'beautiful' so many times in the previous sentences... that is just the word that describes this movie.

An investment banker from London - shrewd thus successful. All that he can think about is money. When he hears about his uncle's death and that he consequently has inherited an estate along with its a vineyard - he's all set to sell it and make quick bucks. Going to Provence, a place he has not visited since summer breaks in his childhood days, staying at his uncle's house, interactions with the care-taker and his wife, an unexpected visit from an American girl who claims to be his uncle's daughter - a possible heir, his attraction to the lovely French cafe owner... will all this change his way of life?
More pictures of Provence from Flickr here
This song from the movie is the one playing in a loop currently. Moi Lolita by Alizee

One more movie added to the list "The Holiday"

Hans Zimmer with yet another amazing soundtrack. I love the part from 01:05 on...

50 movies to see before you die

UTV World Movies brings 50 movies hand-picked by the who's-who of the Indian movie industry.

This series kicked off last night with The Great Dictator - chosen by Mahesh Bhat.

Charlie Chaplin plays double role, one as a barber and the other as Adenoid Hynkel, the dictator. The thoughts and details gone into making this 1940 movie is something to be appreciated. For instance the symbol similar to that of the Nazis, Hynkel's way of uttering gibberish - compared to Hitler's style of speaking, Hynkel showing off his army and troops, wanting to become the dictator of the world, the names chosen for Hynkel's aides - all show the level detail.

The names of the aides of Adenoid Hynkel are parodies of those of Hitler's. Garbitsch (pronounced "garbage"), the right hand man of Hynkel, is a parody of Joseph Goebbels, and Field Marshal Herring was modeled after the Luftwaffe chief, Hermann Goering. The "Dig-a-ditchy" of Bacteria, Benzino Napaloni, was modeled after Italy's Il Duce, Benito Mussolini. (Source Wiki)

Though comical for most part, the movie brings out the plight of Jews during the Nazi reign.

The parts that I best liked in the movie are:

~ The scene where the barber gives a customer a shave with Brahms playing in the background

~ Hynkel dancing with the baloon in the shape of the globe

~ The touching speech the barber (mistaken to be Hynkel) gives the nation. this I understand was a personal plea from Chaplin to stop the attrocities. (source Wiki)

I agree with Mahesh Bhat when he says "You can't leave this planet without seeing Charlie Chaplin in the Great Dictator" :)

Next week its going to be 13 Tzameti - chosen by Anurag Kashyap (of Black Friday fame) . Will have to wait and watch

Animation rocks

Just got back from Kung Fu Panda.
Expect the unexpected from the person you least expect :D
Total entertainment!


Outside the cinema hall, I saw the poster of Roadside Romeo, another animation. Was in for a total surprise when I saw the preview. This is a Yash Raj + Walt Disney production looks really promising.


Saving the best for last... Madagascar - Escape to Africa. Though this preview was for less than 2 mins, it had everyone in splits all through.
Just can't wait to watch this movie :D

Attention! this is your captain speaking. I've got good news and bad news.
The good news is - We'll be landing immediately
The bad news is - We'll be crash landing :D

Mad world

All around me are familiar faces
Worn out places, worn out faces
Bright and early for their daily races
Going nowhere, going nowhere
Their tears are filling up their glasses
No expression, no expression
Hide my head I want to drown my sorrow
No tomorrow, no tomorrow

And I find it kinda funny
I find it kinda sad
The dreams in which I'm dying
Are the best I've ever had
I find it hard to tell you
I find it hard to take
When people run in circles
It's a very, very mad world mad world

Children waiting for the day they feel good
Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday
Made to feel the way that every child should
Sit and listen, sit and listen
Went to school and I was very nervous
No one knew me, no one knew me
Hello teacher tell me what's my lesson
Look right through me, look right through me

And I find it kinda funny
I find it kinda sad
The dreams in which I'm dying
Are the best I've ever had
I find it hard to tell you
I find it hard to take
When people run in circles
It's a very, very mad world ... mad world
Enlarging your world
Mad world

This is such a sad song.... yet so lovely, keep wanting to listen to it over and over again. What a voice! - Gary Jules
The song features in the movie Donnie Darko - which I have heard so much about but am yet to watch.
Other movies on my 'to watch' list are:
~ Into the Wild
~ Thank you for smoking
~ High and Low
~ Red Beard

Watched:
~ Babel - Sad, Scary, hard hitting. [Do not watch when you are feeling low/depressed]
~ Before Sunset - very sweet! may be I should've watched Before Sunrise first... anyway! :)
~ The Prestige - Brilliant is not the word for it. a must watch and definitely more than once!

any interesting movies that I'm missing out on? Do let me know

Secrets and Lies

Thanks to UTV's venture, we now have a new channel that plays award winning World Cinema. Yesterday I watched Secrets and Lies a British movie in the genre of drama.

The plot: A successful black woman, who after her mother's death tries to trace her birth mother. You can imagine her shock when she finds out that her mother is white.
What happens when she confronts her mother - is what the story is about.
Though for the first half hour or so, you get lost in the long list of characters where you have no clue how they all fit into the bigger picture, once you get all the relationships in the right perspective, you see how beautifully each one fits into the other's life.
A wife, who tries to distance herself from her husband who loves her so much
A daughter, who rebels against her own mother
A brother who stays away from his single sister and her daughter, though he is well aware of their difficult lives
and a daughter in search of her mother

I was really touched by so many scenes in the movie, a few of them being:
~ the legal aide when handing over the adoption papers to the daughter, tries to make her understand that though she wants to meet her mother, she should be prepared to accept the fact that her mother may not want to see her - that there would have been a reason why her mother didn't want her in the first place
~ the phone call when the daughter tells her mother who she really is
~ the first time the mother and daughter meet - where they are standing in front of the station, not knowing who to look out for - that is when you realize the mother doesn't know that her daughter is black and when she is told, is not ready to accept
~ the best scene in the movie is when the daughter meets her mother's family, when the truth is disclosed, the way each person reacts

I loved the mother and her brother's characters. So very realistically portrayed.
Very well made, the movie is a roller-coaster ride of emotions.
"Secrets and Lies... we are all in pain - so why can't we just share with each other our pain?"
so true!

RENT

RENT
The movie based on Jonathan Larson's Pulitzer and Tony Award winning musical, revolves around the life of 8 individuals:
~ Mark : A struggling film-maker, dumped by Maureen
~ Roger : An HIV positive ex-rock musician who lost his girlfriend to drugs
~ Collins : A teacher, suffering from AIDS, friend of Mark and Roger
~ Angel : A transvestite musician who is suffering from AIDS
~ Maureen : A musician who dumped Roger for another - a girl
~ Joanne : A lawyer who is Maureen's love interest
~ Mimi : A night-club dancer who is also HIV positive and a drug addict
~ Benny : Former friend but now a land-lord to most of the persons in the above list

Its a very touching story that depicts the hardships that these New Yorkers go through during the span of a year and how their lives change. Its about troubles, pain, worries, friendship, love, togetherness .... and its got some amazing music!

Here's the opening song Seasons of Love:


525,600 minutes, 525,000 moments so dear.
525,600 minutes - how do you measure, measure a year?

In daylights, in sunsets, in midnights, in cups of coffee.
In inches, in miles, in laughter, in strife.
In 525,600 minutes - how do you measure a year in the life?

How about love? Measure in love. Seasons of love.

525,600 minutes! 525,000 journeys to plan.
525,600 minutes - how do you measure the life of a woman or man?
In truths that she learned, or in times that he cried.
In bridges he burned, or the way that she died.

It’s time now to sing out, though the story never ends
Let's celebrate remember a year in the life of friends.

Remember the love! Measure in love. Seasons of love!

PS: If you don't like musicals, don't watch this movie... almost every conversation is a song :)

Movie time again

Watched 3 movies this week, good ones... each 1 of them.

Lambada - The story of a man who is Kevin - a brilliant maths teacher by the day and Blade - a mystery man who has his Lambada moves & grooves by the night. Blade reaches out to the lesser fortunate and backward kids through his dance and then helps them with their academics after the dance sessions.
When a jealous student exposes his two worlds, Kevin's whole life turns topsy-turvy and in the end its his night class students who help clear his name & prove what a great teacher he is.

The movie concept is in the same league as Dangerous Minds.
Amazing dance sequences and a couple of popular songs in the movie.
Eddie Peck is such a delight to watch :)


Fiddler on the roof - This is such a beautiful movie. A story about the Jews living in the small village of Anatevka. Their lives, their traditions, the hardships that they face. Their mental block towards change and new ideas and finally how the exodus impacts their peaceful lives.

Each character in the movie has played their part so well, it is natural and realistic. The songs are perfectly timed and beautifully performed. For me, the touching moments in the movie are:

• Every time Tevye has to decide if he will agree to his daughters' choice of husbands
• After 25 years of marriage when Tevye asks his wife if she loves him
• Hodel's decision to marry Perchik and when she sings "Far from the home I love"
• Tevye's refusal to go against his faith & allow Chava to marry Fyedka & many more brilliant moments....
  

& finally Cheeni Kum. All that I want to say about this movie is "Very sweet". No masala no non-sense, just real emotions and beautiful acting. I'd love to watch this again :)

Movie Classics

Remember the good old days when at Cartoon Network magically turned into the TNT movie channel. I used wait for 9PM to watch all the old English classics that they played.
And then one (not so fine) day, Cartoon Network became a 24 hour channel :(
Some 2 years back I was checking the net to get a list of 'must watch' English classics and its only now that I am getting to watch them...
I guess when it comes to watching Classics... its never too late :)

Movie #1 - Singing in the rain
I love watching musicals.... the songs, the dance, the expressions, the background scores!
I've watched this movie earlier but wanted to watch it again.
Gene Kelly is such a delight to watch with his moves, his song-dance sequences and comedy.
There's one scene where Donal O'Connor tells Gene that 'comedy' is what the audience want. For this he does a 5 minute dance-cum-comedy stint that'll have your sides aching from all the laughing.
Debbie Reynolds is such a pretty face with amazing singing & dancing talent.
On the whole I thoroughly enjoyed the movie :)

Movie #2 - Casablanca
I admit, it took me sometime to understand what was happening in the begining of the movie. But once I got there, I just loved the movie from then on....
This is a movie about patriotism, sacrifice, love, sticking to your beliefs no matter what and above all.... friendship. Amazing acting by Humphrey Bogart , Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid & Claude Rains.
This is one great movie and I'm going to watch again before I return the DVD :)

The Namesake

I watched the movie a couple of weeks back and was very impressed with the story-line.
The actors had played their role so perfectly, it was as though the story was made just for them... but still, there was still something missing. A few loopholes that I cold not understand - So I picked up the book.
I finished reading the book yesterday. Yeah I finished it in a day :)
Its again one of those books that you just cannot put down. The ideas, the narrative style, the reality of the story, the true portrayal of feelings and emotions - makes you want to go on.
Movie Vs The book
I liked the book better as it has the complete picture. The book revolves around the life of Gogol, the others just being 'other' characters in the movie.
In the movie, I felt more importance was given to Ashima and Ashoke's characters. At the end of the movie, I wasn't able to fully comprehend what the story teller was trying to put across...

But now, reading the book, its all clear. Any movie which is adopted from a book cannot capture all that the book has to say. Same is the case with this movie/book.
But then, I loved the book and would now love to watch the movie again :)

UNBREAKABLE

I don't know what it is about M. Night Shyamalan's movies.... but they really make you think. Even hours after the movie is over, you are still left thinking :)
Just watched Unbreakable. Don't know why I didn't watch it for so long....
Every movie of his.... the twist in the end... just amazing! And the acting, so very real!
I admit, I didn't like Signs that much... but still... this guy's a class apart!