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Catch Me If You Can (2002)
a great movie
I have just seen this movie and it was a very entertaining experience.
The best thing about this movie (which is easy to overlook) is that although Frank is a cheat and a criminal in every sense of the word, we sympathise with him and want him to be more deceitful. We want to consciously overlook the moral bankruptcy. That is honestly how good the script and direction are.
The presentaion of the 60's is realistic and engaging. There are a few occasions where you think that Frank's "heroics" are somewhat exaggerated but perhaps it is understandable because he was a master con man. Di Caprio does not look 16 when he is portrayed as 16, but I guess you can't make someone aged 30+ appear that young no matter how hard you try! I did not like Di Caprio before I saw this movie but my perception of his talent has completely changed. He gives a spell bounding performance. In fact I don't think any other actor would have bettered his performance. He completely looks the character and portrays many different expressions with flawless expertise. Hanks is subdued but is reliable nonethless. The rest of the cast are also very able, be that Frank Sr or Frank Jr's would-be father in law.
In summary the direction, acting, scipt, photography, everything is top-notch. The only reason I don't give it a 9/10 is because it is a bit too long and I feel it could have been trimmed about 10-15 minutes. Well done Spielberg. Well done Di Caprio.
The Illusionist (2006)
a compelling movie
i would rate this movie very highly. i am surprised some people did not see its merits and say that they saw the final twist coming.
i was really taken aback by the final twist and it is one of the best movie endings i have ever seen.
norton looks the character he plays and does a fine job. same goes for the other actors too. the setting and presentation is realistic. the best part of the movie is that it never bores you. i was saw the matador and apollo 13 1 day before i saw the illusionist and i must say there were some parts in those movies where i was really bored.
a great movie and i hope we see more engaging movies like this.
Sutorîto faitâ II gekijô-ban (1994)
not very pleased
I had huge expectations with this one as I am a huge Street Fighter fan. However, I am fairly disappointed.
The plusses are few; the story is OK, and pretty much all characters are there, although most of them are in a special appearance. There is some good music and some good action scenes. And of course, Chun Li looks pretty and her nude scene (uncut version) will be a treat for every heterosexual male.
However the negatives are plenty. The movie is too boring and could be easily trimmed by 20-25 minutes. Ryu and Ken miss each other like hell but when they do meet up, it seems like they don't really care. Guile is very annoying, he plays the "bully" whereas M.Bison irritates to the hilt. The characters are largely annoying whether that is their voices or "character" in the movie.
The live movie starring Van Damme was much better than this.
Dhoom:2 (2006)
what a waste of time and money.......
whoever says this movie is good, while i'd like to closely examine their reasons for saying so. this is a typical Indian masala movie, meant to entertain the hoi polloi masses who leave their brains at home before going to the cinema. the list of bloopers/stupidities both in the script/action sequences is endless- it is hard to believe that even in this age commercial bollywood movies insult the intelligence of the viewer. Roshan plays an "international thief" whose speciality is that he cannot be caught. he flees after stealing priceless objects and dozens of policemen can't stop him. the world is desperate to catch him, yet our brave and smart cop (played by Bachchan) will not catch him when he meets him in a carnival and has a chat with him, because apparently, police "can only catch criminals when criminals are in the process of committing their crimes." how stupid is that? the worst thing is, our brave and smart cop (who is described by the Head of Indian Police as "our best man") can't do a thing, except make grumpy faces, blow air in his cheeks and frown. if you ask me, his idiot sidekick (played by Chopra) was more active in the movie- that guy should have been the best cop, not Bachchan. Aishwarya looks appealing no doubt, but this has to be one of the worst performances of her career. Abhishek is irritating, I have already described what he does. Uday is unlikeable and gets on your nerves, plus you cant understand half the useless bullshit which comes out of his mouth. Roshan does well for his part but suffers owing to poor characterisation. Bipasha has too little a role to warrant any comments.
I had high expectations with this, but I am really disappointed. Grow up, Bollywood!!!!
Superman Returns (2006)
disappointing to the fan
I would normally refrain from commenting on a disappointing movie I see, but since I have been a huge Superman fan all my life and since I was so hurt when watching this film, I will say the following:
As many people, I also had gargantuan expectations with this new Superman movie. The film offers nothing new to the viewer. I think comparing this movie to Batman Begins at every step would be a wise move, since there is a world of difference between the two movies. I don't understand the point of introducing Superman's child in this movie. Is that what fans really want? Fine, I understand that Lois and Superman love each other and this whole love thing on the side, creates a tension and suspense which is alright for the viewer. But to go to the extent of an illegitimate child, is a bit ridiculous. Are we going to see a Superboy in the sequel? What is the point of Superman (note, not Clark Kent) having a family? Why does the savior of the world need a son? I understand that Superman has "inherited" human emotions, human characteristics etc. when he came to Earth. But at the end of the day he is different to us, he is an alien and he has a responsibility. That responsibility is OK up to flirting with Lois or sharing intimate moments. But weeping over his illegitimate child is taking things too far. The reason I stress on illegitimate child is that, if Superman wants to be so human so as to love Lois and sleep with her
..why not use contraceptives? Surely if he can be so human to have sex, he can be so human to have protective sex? Or maybe something went wrong when they did use contraceptives, but that wasn't explained!
Why can't Superman just do what he does best- kicking ass of baddies? I felt that James Marsden's character suffered at the expense of the flawed script. I felt sorry for this gentle guy who loves Lois and "his" kid, not knowing that the kid is actually not his own. He doesn't condemn Lois for moaning about Superman all the time. If he had a villainous element to him, maybe that would have rescued the film. Talk about poor characterization!
It seems silly that when superman climbs the stairs (where kryptonite is hidden below) to speak to Lex, he becomes so weak that he can barely stand up, yet he is able to lift an entire continent fraught with kryptonite later in the movie. Poor lex, looks like he didn't know that Superman is sooooo powerful that he can do that, otherwise, why would lex bother in the first place?
The film was so cheesy. When Lex and his goons beat up superman, you are meant to feel emotional and get provoked. If you seen superman movies/cartoons as many times as me (me being a fan) , you get disgusted watching that sort of a thing yet again. And please, when I saw polly crying when that was happening, I just felt so uncomfortable. We have seen something like that a million of times.
I don't think the acting was bad. Spacey is great and although lex also suffers from poor characterization, spacey does full justice to his role. James marsden is the next best main character I feel, who performs despite being overshadowed all the time by superman. Brandon routh is good, but I think we need to see a more mature superman. Kate Bosworth looks appealing at times, but she somehow didn't seem like how Lois is meant to be. She looks more like a college girl.
I would give this movie 5/10, because of the special effects and reasonable acting. There is a slight rivalry between batman and superman. In this case, I feel Christopher Nolan has scored heavily over Singer. Batman begins was presented in an amazing way, the script was strong, the characters were strong, and you felt for the emotional side of batman- what made him into what he is, how difficult he finds it to resort to his "millionaire playboy" image. But you don't feel the same sympathy or feelings for Superman, unfortunately.
Mr Singer, if you want to make a sequel, please remove "Superboy" and his fake daddy from the script.
Rang De Basanti (2006)
a landmark accomplishment
i am writing this review, some months and RDB's release. I have seen it 2 times and the reason i am writing this review so late is because it is an incredible film.
this landmark film features a story which is completely original. RDB is patriotic without being anti-Pakistan or jingoistic. from that you can discern the originality of the story.
although the execution of the plot is melodramatic, it is justifiable since the theme is one of melodrama. the transition of typical/good for nothing guys into responsible martyrs is incredible. nothing is silly or predictable. there are many scenes which have been executed perfectly, so i cant name one or two.
the performances are exemplary. AMIR KHAN gives a powerful performance but clearly does not overshadow the others. ATUL KULKARNI,KUNAL KAPOOR, SIDDARTH, SHARMAN etc are all very believable and impressive. i reckon one of the newcomers will definitely get the "best newcomer award".
in summary RDB is a film that should remain in the minds of Indian youth forever. it is a film that will change the way we know India. the only reason i haven't given it 10/10 is because you feel it is too long in the first half. i think the film could have been trimmed about 15 minutes. but kudos to the director and scriptwriter.
RDB will awaken a moral revolution in India. kudos to the scriptwriter and director. clearly, my favourite Indian movie. it will beat the forthcoming biggies like fanaa, don, kabhi alvida na kehna and get the best film award.
when was the last time you saw a film that touched your soul and made you think differently about something?when was the last time you saw a film which actually motivated you to do something? dB has definitely done that.
thank you all who were part in the making of this film.
Humko Deewana Kar Gaye (2006)
good for romantic genre fans
this film is bollywood's classic love melodrama. in terms of plot it offers nothing new or interesting.
but what is does offer is the fresh pairing of akshay & katrina, one of the positives of the film. director raj kanwar is famous for such melodramatic films and HDKG is no exception. there are many songs in the movie, and they keep irritating. the dialogues are okay, the technical features such as editing and cinematography are okay too, nothing brilliant. this is the type of film females will enjoy more as opposed to males.family audiences will be more suited to this film than others. the music is allover average, Fanaa is a great track and the title song is passable
hdkg gets a mediocre rating more because of the fact that it offers nothing new, rather than the film being bad. i suppose, when you see too much of something, you start looking at it in a bad light??
now to the performances. i have always maintained that akshay has the potential to be the amongst the top. he tries hard in hdkg, and succeeds. it is a restrained performance, another feather in his cap and makes the fact more prominent that hes amongst the best superstars today. katrina is a revelation. she looks great and acts well. a pity that her dialogues are still being dubbed! the rest of the cast are OK.
in the end, the film is bad but isn't good either. watch it if you're an akshay/katrina fans or if love dramas is your cup of tea!