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yuvarajvima
Reviews
Moonlight (2016)
Just another hood movie
The Oscars get bashed last year for not enough black nominations; enter Moonlight! Talk about right place, right time. A movie about a sexually confused black kid from a poor neighborhood who gets bullied – has Oscar bait written all over it. But Best Picture? Not for me. Since my watch recommendation is No – this review might contain some spoilers.
Moonlight does tell a story which is unfortunately far too common in American society; single mothers, segregated neighborhoods, mass incarceration & bad examples all around – but is executed in a very cliché and uninteresting fashion. A drug addict mom (well played by Naomi Harris) who prostitutes to make ends meet, a neglected fatherless child, and a neighborhood full of drug dealers and bullies seems like plot of several other black 'hood' movies. The kid is sexually confused and gets bullied in school, finds solace at a local drug dealer's home who becomes a surrogate father figure only for a short time before unexpectedly dying, the kid grows into teenage and has his first sexual encounter with a gay friend, has a school yard brawl with some bullies, ends up in prison and turns into a hardened criminal.
The main character in the film – 'Chiron', doesn't speak more than two or three word sentences at a time, and has a very dull personality. In the spirit of staying true to the play, the director chooses to cast three actors to portray three different phases in his life, so the performances seem broken. The kid ('Little') played by Alex Hibbert and adult ('Black') played by Trevante Rhodes end up being lackluster performances, whereas Ashton Sanders does a relatively fine job playing the teenage character ('Chiron'). Mahershala Ali plays a drug dealer with the same inexpressive style of his lobbyist character in House of Cards. Best Supporting Actor for about twenty minute role, seems like overcompensation by the Academy for 2015.
The script conveniently skips over milestones like life changes, deaths, transitions which would need drama or dialog, instead just focuses on the day to day coping and feelings of 'Chiron'. The screenplay is extremely tedious like many other Oscar movies and could use about 20 minutes of editing. The audience can empathize with the plight of a poor, black child in a drug addled neighborhood – but at any point, 'Chiron' doesn't seem to have problems finding food, shelter, clothing or education. Finally, his life is really an outcome of the choices he makes. With all due respect, more recent creations like 'Straight Outta Compton' and 'Black-ish' have done a phenomenal job portraying the challenges in Black communities while still delivering excellent entertainment value to audiences.
Hidden Figures (2016)
Hidden figures are all around us...
Even after laws change in courts or congress, it takes a while for public habits, social rules and workplace policies to adapt. Hidden Figures chronicles the achievements of three intelligent ladies who were courageous to challenge the social order while also making long lasting contributions to science and technology.
Segregation was deemed unconstitutional as early as 1957, at least in schools, but it is baffling to believe that while United States was trying to put a man on the moon, had separate bathrooms, bus benches and dining areas for colored people well into the 1960s. Hidden Figures wonderfully captures the hardships of three colored women in those days, while proving how a common goal can help people set-aside differences, break down barriers and achieve the impossible – something we all strongly need right now.
It was cheerful to hear punchlines like "At NASA, we all pee the same color" by Kevin Costner or "Every time we have a chance to get ahead, they move the finish line." by Janelle Monae; dialogues certainly being one of the best features of this film. Mahershala Ali beautifully portrays a military colonel who falls in love with a widow. Jim Parsons fits the mold of a math genius but it will take some time for audiences to not expect humor from him, his impeccable gift of timing remains unexploited in the movie. Octavia Spencer, Taraji Henson and Janelle Monae pay a tribute to Dorothy Vaughn, Katherine Johnson and Mary Jackson through their authentic and sincere performances.
While the movie provides these ladies their due credit, and the audiences a happy ending, our reality today is far from it. Unfortunately, over forty years after the civil rights movement and numerous laws passed, large parts of our society still openly deny a woman her right to choose, working parents their right to maternity leave, immigrants a wage they deserve, gay couples their right to get married, and a black person his right to a fair trial. We don't want our future generation to say, 'how were they OK with this?' There are hidden figures all around us, let's not wait to appreciate them until the next movie is made. Keep dreaming, try harder, fight for your rights and never give up
Lion (2016)
Gut wrenching story of separation & re-union
Lion was famously & deservedly nominated for Best Picture at the Academy and numerous other story, screenplay, direction and performance awards. But all these, and especially Oscar nominations raise a big question – Is this going to be another one of those dreary art films where you walk out depressed wishing you never watched it, yet feel the need to appreciate it for being an Oscar nominated movie? No. Lion is not only beautifully shot, it has authenticity, drama, mystery and romance which make it a wholesome entertainer.
Lion tells the heart wrenching tale of a lost child from India and the extremely real horrors faced by orphan and homeless children like starvation and trafficking which scar them for life. Today, searching for something or someone is almost so easy that we have too many options or privacy concerns. The film also makes you think how today we take several privileges like food, shelter, safety & technology for granted while there are billions of starving children and families living on less than $1/day. It is unbelievable that there are extraordinary families like Sue & John Brierley; true heroes who decided to adopt two children from India and give them a fighting chance in the world. A true story of separation, imperfection, family, love and closure - that needed to be told.
Sunny Pawar perfectly portrays innocence and despair of 'Saroo', and manages to look cute despite the homeless kid makeup. Nicole Kidman & Rooney Mara deliver poignant supporting roles, while Nawazuddin Siddiqui makes a surprising, eerie guest appearance onto international cinema. Dev Patel shows tremendous growth as an actor and expertly portrays the guilt and the yearning of a mature 'Saroo' who longs to find his roots and re-unite with his family. From a script standpoint, I would have liked a less dramatic; more realistic transition from Saroo's normal life overseas to his search to find closure. Technically, the film shows almost flawless direction and editing. Definitely watch the movie and find out why it's called 'LION'.
Badrinath Ki Dulhania (2017)
Feminist Rom-Com
Should you watch it? – Yes Rating – 3.5/5
For all those who are thinking that Badrinath ki Dulhania is sequel or related to Humpty Sharma ki Dulhania, it is not. Badrinath ki Dulhania is romantic comedy that offers a family friendly, colorful and comedic experience with a strong feminist message. After the success of films like Dangal, Sultan, Jolly LLB2, Bollywood's fascination with India's inner cities, continues here with plot set in small towns of Jhansi & Kota. The film touches on the prevalent practice of dowry in conservative patriarchal families in the small towns in North India, but balances this touchy subject with some refreshing comedy peppered throughout the script.
Varun Dhavan is amazing as 'Badri' who reminds you of Govinda's Raja Babu, who lives off a rich father, is barely educated and spends most of his time roaming around town with his sidekick. Unfortunately, 'Badris' are far too common in India, they barely finish school, inherit their father's fortune, are raised to be entitled and simply 'take' what they want in a male dominated society. Badri falls for a talented and ambitious Vaidehi (Alia), who immediately rejects his advances, which creates a romantic to and fro. However, the script inadvertently tolerates behavior like eve teasing, stalking, kidnapping and harassment against women, something Bollywood has been doing for years, but one could argue that art is just a reflection of real society
so #feminists, let's not punish the art here!
Alia and Varun as usual are looking fabulous and enjoy an electric chemistry on screen. Sahil Vaid plays a loyal sidekick and demonstrates great comedic timing. The supporting cast of the film could definitely use an uplift, with no known names it leaves a void. Especially Rituraj Singh who plays Badri's father – the evil patriarch, is miscast and delivers a weak performance; a seasoned actor like Ashutosh Rana, Anupam Kher or Saurabh Shukla would have been a great fit.
Like any Dharma production movie, Badrinath ki Dulhania delights with cinematography – managing to bring out the beauty in local sights in Kota. You can tell Karan Johar didn't design the costumes as the Burberry & Gucci coats are traded in for authentic 'jhintak' shirts for Badri and chic tie-die kurtis for Vaidehi. The film's music has a couple of foot-thumping song revivals in Tamma-Tamma and the title song, rest of the tracks leave little impression.
Badrinath ki Dulhania interestingly highlights why orthodox practices like dowry, forceful arranged marriage, discouraging working women, and male gender preference are still being tolerated by India's supposedly modern youth?? Well, it's simple
Financial dependence – If Dad pays the bills, Dad makes the rules. This is the modern generation that prefers liberalism but 'chooses' to live by the rules set by their family, even if they disagree with them. A compromise for a rent-free, risk-free and comfortable living. A comfort that comes at the cost of prolonging ancient practices and tremendously slowing down social growth. Is it time to speak up against what you don't agree with, even in your own home? See the movie to find out if Badrinath does.