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Reviews
Swades: We, the People (2004)
The whole is less than the sum of the parts
Swades is a mediocre followup to Gowarikar's previous effort Lagaan. Lagaan was a standard issue Bollywood fantasy which came together extremely well. Since it was a fantasy, clichéd dialog and cardboard characters were not a problem. In fact, quite the opposite since they provided comic relief when needed. Swades tries to be a quasi-serious movie and completely fails because no effort has been made to have serious dialog and fully fleshed out characters. (In contrast, see Shwaas for real situations, fully fleshed out characters and normal conversation.) Instead, we have quasi-seriousness imposed on a Bollywood fantasy background which is jarring to say the least. Oddly enough, Shah Rukh Khan delivers a reasonably good, understated performance. The new actress, Gayathri Joshi's nonverbal performance is top notch. Unfortunately, she's all dolled up (well coiffed and manicured at that) and nowhere to go since she's supposed to be living in a poor village which makes her look ludicrous. No attempt was made to make her less glamorous. Instead, we have someone who looks like Queen Elizabeth living in a slum. Finally, while Lagaan had a good screenplay, there's no story here and no payoff in the end. While the cinematography is excellent and the village backdrop authentic, it all amounts to a wasted effort. In summary, Gowarikar has lowered our expectations which is a very good thing for him and hopefully for us as well.
Mulholland Dr. (2001)
From awful to excellent upon repeated viewings
***SPOILERS*** ***SPOILERS*** I thought this movie was pretty bad and too cute and postmodern after the first viewing. It seemed to make no sense whatsoever. I had a vague theory that there were multiple parallel universes with events in one affecting the others and vice versa.
Then I watched it again. This time, especially after watching the beginning of the DVD several times, it seemed clearer that most of the movie was either Diane's story, Diane's dream or Diane's hallucinations (while awake). My suspicion is that this would have been an excellent film had it not had its origin as a TV pilot.
I think a somewhat straightforward story can be told by focusing squarely on the Diane character. She wins a jitterbug contest, inherits some money from a dead actress aunt, comes to LA, almost lands the lead in a movie, becomes a hanger-on to the actress who DOES win the lead, has a relationship with this actress, actress ends relationship, has actress killed by a hit man, and then takes her own life. She also has a long dream wherein the roles are reversed and she is in control.
Unfortunately, this interpretation doesn't explain everything and there are lotsa loose ends. However, interviews with Naomi Watts (found via google) confirm at the very least that Naomi shares this interpretation.
Regardless of whether or not one likes this film, the performances are top notch (especially Naomi Watts - WOW) and the music and cinematography are incredible.
Anand
Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998)
Crap
First half is an Archie, Betty, Veronica cartoon. Second half is more meaningless manipulative drivel. Avoid at all costs.