From the movies

The last fortnight of January saw me catching up with a lot of movies – Six DVDs on the computer and 2 movies in the theater. A few of them lingered on beyond the 2-3 hours of playtime. This post is about the thoughts/views/learning (in the lighter vein read Raaz-2) from the same:

1.Mona Lisa Smile –
A movie that had been eluding me for a long time, it turned out to be a beautiful realistic story where the director did not tie up ends to make it a “happily ever after” kind. A bitter-sweet story with a poignant ending endorsing the need to retain one's identity to the best possible extent and encouraging women to go beyond the so called “role” pre-ordained for them by society. It is a movie that shakes every woman into self-introspection and forces her to reassess her priorities in life. While the film may initially be perceived to deride the traditional role conceived for women, it redeems itself later in a very subtle way. A confidence booster as well as a thought provoking movie.

2. Friends with money –
A movie about mid life crises with a happy ending. It dealt with multiple issues of couples/families/psychological changes/unemployment/changing value systems in a group of friends. It was not preachy, instead it focused on the issues and solutions that they came up with – not all necessarily wise. Considering the fact that it pertained to a generation at least 10 years and more older I decided not to burden myself with “how I would have dealt with it?” thought process thus preserving my peace of mind.

3. Serendipity –
A beautiful love story after which my conclusion was 2 fold – one John Cusack is really cute (:P) and two try not to leave things to chance as you wouldn’t really want to torture your self waiting for the universe to put you together. Am a bit crazy and romantic but wouldn’t risk so much – the side effects of being a risk manager.

4. Slumdog Millionaire –
A realistic well-made movie. It showcases an underprivileged kid’s triumph over the dark side of India as it tries to cripple his childhood, his life, his love, and even his luck. While there is no denying that it shows India in bad light one must acknowledge the truth in the depiction. It’s a pity that as one of the largest democracies in the world we aren't able to protect a vast majority of our citizens, provide them a safe haven, or shake prejudices and genuinely help out the underprivileged. It's a reality check for a country whose citizens have defined it as a sovereign socialist secular democratic republic. Secular, & Socialist seem to be lost some where ! Population control and Poverty remain un-addressed. Easier said than done yes but my only take away is to find a way to contribute in addressing the same. May be more long-term objective I think considering the typical middle class worry of financial security, and as usual my risk aversion!

5. Raaz 2 –
Ah! This movie started as a disaster ended as a comedy! A tight schedule on Saturday made me make an advance booking for this movie (no other shows available at suitable timing!) on Thursday. Just as I overcame the disbelief at booking a ticket for an Emraan Hashmi movie (first ever) the scathing Friday review (The Hindu) stumped me with a googly … We considered different options including selling the tickets in black before it struck us that there would be no buyers! We approached the theater on Saturday steeling ourselves and mentally convincing each other we could turn the movie into a comedy. This since we were sure that the movie would succeed in disappointing.

The learning from this movie on the lighter vein:

• Going into a movie with negative expectations always works – you end up feeling much better at the end of it (than you did at the beginning that is)
• Carry ear plugs and use them liberally as soon as you sight a long pause especially if you don’t enjoy being stressed by the high pitched shrieks of the damsel in distress
• Focus on the hair styling of the actors – its bound to be hilarious as a good luck sign. You see the ghosts take one look at the hair and go ha ha he he.
• If the lady (heroine) wears heavy eye make up she’s bound to shriek and get animated in the scene. Be wary of the one screen histrionics to follow immediately.
• If you find your friend disinterested and getting carried away distract him/her on whether there is God and Satan or just God in the theater loud enough for others to hear. It gives them a break. A few of them might just reach the conclusion that there is no God since the Intermission or The End sign is no where near.
• Do not carry liquids – if you do wish to sip on any liquid ensure its water. Also ensure that people on the 4 seats around you carry only water, and do not sip on any hot liquids, and colorful liquids with any form of fruit pulp. Why? - you may be subject to a sudden air drop of the liquid which drenches you in case the heroine shrieks too loud or a hand reaches out to grab one of the actors and the person like yours truly decides to get scared for once! As a corollary do not wear white or light colored clothes and carry a lot of tissues! If you inspite of these precautions do end up subjecting your neighbor and your self to the divine shower – remember to use sorry liberally and then do not forget to drink up the rest of the juice (from the one remaining in your glass of course!).