Pay it Forward

Movie Review
Film- Pay it Forward
Director -Mimi Leder
Written by - Catherine Ryne Hyde
Genre- Inspirational drama

This is a story of little Trevor (Haley Joel Osment) a seventh grader who is given an assignment by his Social Studies teacher in class. His teacher Mr. Simonet ( Kevin Spacey) inspires him to do something out of the box. Think of an idea that could change the world. Trevor thinks and things happen in his life to help him think and guide his thinking, and before long his mother discovers that a homeless man James Carviezel, is living in their garage. It was Trevor's idea to invite him in. Then he can pay it forward.Trevor decides to pay someone back by doing a good deed and helping three other people.Trevor lives with his mother Arlene( Helen Hunt) who works two jobs to make ends meet and her husband keeps coming in and out of her life. She is a recovering alcoholic. Trevor's teacher too has his own worries. His face is scarred with burns and he stays aloof yet he inspires his students and sticks to his principles. There are more complications. One of Trevor's theories is that his mom and Mr. Simonet would both be a lot happier if they were dating each other. Mr. Simonet does not agree. Spacey does a wonderful job of suggesting the pain just beneath the surface of the character; the teacher's life is manageable only because he sticks to his routine. The movie is a look at the pay it forward scheme and also at the budding romance between Trevor's mom and teacher. The movie follows the chain of pay it forward to find out where it started. There are some amazing performances by all the characters. 

A beautiful movie about how each one can make a big difference by acts of kindness, generosity, respect and empathy. This world of ours can be a better place if we all work towards paying forward acts of kindness. Nice movie with a great message. It's not that the world is full of bad people, we keep focusing on the bad. We need to appreciate and highlight the good that is happening around us too. Otherwise, there will be no hope and no possibilities. Please watch this one for some positive energy. Don't forget to pay it forward.

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Drishtikone

Movie Review
Film- Drishtikone ( Bengali)
Director - Kaushik Ganguly
Genre- Drama

Drishtikone is an intriging film with a nice plot and excellent performances. Prosenjit Chatterjee and Rituparna Sengupta play their respective roles with sublimity. The plot of the story becomes more complex as the movie moves along. There is a certain mystery in the characters and it is obvious that all is not as simple as it looks.

Widow Srimati Sen (Rituparna Sengupta) approaches advocate Jiyon Mitra (Prosenjit Chatterjee) to take up the case of her husband Palash Sen (Koushik Sen) who died in a road accident two years ago. Srimati believes the accident was not the sole cause of Palash's death. This is where the mystery begins. This story has a different kind of love story hidden between the case of the accidental death. Jiyon takes up the case and sends his assistant Avik (Soham Majumder) to record the testimony of Pritam (Kaushik Ganguly), Palash's elder brother who was travelling with him in the car when the accident occurred and has been left paralysed waist down. The film eventually takes a romantic angle as a chemistry slowly builds up between Srimati and Jiyon, which is not hidden from the eyes of Rukmini Mitra (Churni Ganguly), Jiyon's wife. Jivon and Shrimati's affair does not miss the eye of Jiyon's wife, Rukmini. 

As the mystery unfolds we see a different turn take place even in the equation between Jiyon and Shrimati. Director Kaushik Ganguly’s treatment of the storyline is such that one feels the pulse of a thriller despite the romantic unfolding of the relationship between the protagonists. Rukmini's jealousy is depicted with maturity and doesn’t appear cliched. The story is about the undefined yet strong bond between the advocate and his client and Rukmini's effort to save her marriage. At the same time, it is the story of the truth of Palash’s death.  The climax brings us to the end of the mystery of his death and also uncovers some other facts .The film is captivationg and has good performances. The story line is interesting too. A good watch.

Begin Again

Movie Review
Film- Begin Again
Director - John Carney
Genre- Romance / Comedy


begin Again is full of beautiful songs that touch you. There is a platonic love at display between the main leads of Mark Ruffalo,  a record company executive Dan and Kiera Knightly as Gretta, a Bristish singer and song writer. Gretta is an amazing artist and Dan sees her perform and is mesmerised. he wants her to know that she can make it big and they both decide to try their hand at it. Since they have no one at the music firm to support them, Dan puts together a group of artists who are ready to join them.

This movie tells us tht there are many things and processes that go into making a music album. All the trials and tribulations they face in their endeavor are brought to the fore and this forms the crux of the film. As expected they are successful in their venture after facing a lot of hardships.

Dan has a teenage daughter Hailey Steinfield and his relationship with her is not going right. Even his bond with his wife is hardly visible. Gretta is facing her own worries alongside as her boyfriend of five years cheats on her and moves away after being caught cheating. Gretta helps Dan get together with his daughter and they include her too in the demo recording which gives her just the boost she needs. All their shoots are done in open spaces like parks, alleys and driveways. It is a movie that has some great music that is an added bonus as the story is inspiring too.I am a fan of Kiera Knightly and Mark Buffalo also is a good treat for your eyes.Ultimately, any movie that is driven by music should leave you humming as you leave the theater. Whether it’s the tunes or Ruffalo or Kiera that causes you to feel that way, it is all good enough. A good watch indeed!

Gulabo Sitabo

Movie Review
Film- Gulabo Sitabo (Hindi)
Director - Shoojiy Sircar
Music director- Shantanu Moitra
Genre- Drama/ Comedy

Aana haii, jaanaa haii, jeevan chalte jaanaa haii....

A movie by Shoojit Sircar raises high expectations. Amitabh Bacchan and Ayushmaan Khurana are splendid as they always are. The character of the 90 year old Fatima Begum is a scene stealer. The film tells us about greed and to what lengths one can go to fulfil them. The story centres around the ancient haveli/mansion that is the cause of dispute.The film moves at a really slow pace like the era the haveli portrays. It was a delight to see the arches, stairs, huge pillars and the ancient artefacts that are scattered all around the haveli. We entirely feel the camera romance the different slaves of the haveli. It's a photographer's delight! The songs are all complementary to the storyline, specially loved the song played at the end. I also loved the movie poster, really colourful and interesting. The background score is also noteworthy.

Coming back to the story, it was not that interesting at all. I don't think I would have been happy to watch this in a theatre, I would call it a waste of money. I had second thoughts about watching this when I watched about fifteen minutes, but I managed to convince myself to watch it. At home on Amazon Prime, it's like - OK, I can spare some time to watch this one. Let's see what it's about. Message is that greed leads to grief. If you want too much, you will lose even what little you have. So if you have subscribed to Amazon Prime and like me, you have developed a curiosity about this movies for to the trailers that were launched, then go ahead and watch it. After all, it's lock down time, you have the time to spare. It's too slow moving for my liking.Take this as my subtle warning. Frankly, there are many better movies streaming on Amazon Prime. For me, this movie is an average watch. You can watch and decide.

12 Years a slave

Movie Review
Film- 12 years a Slave
Director - Steve McQueen
Written by - Solomon Northup
Genre- Autobiography / drama/ history

 "The story is amazing but not in a good way. " that's what a white man, Bass , a carpenter from Canada says when he hears the story of Solomon Northup or Platt. That's what we viewers too feel when we watch this heart rending story of a musician who is taken as a slave by the white elite.He faces the worst physical and mental abuses at the hands of his masters who buy him and worse still, he loses contact with his wonderful family. His wife and two children are unaware of his whereabouts and when he meets them finally as a free man once again, he has a lot of catching up to do with regards to the way their life has shaped after his disappearance from the family.

The movie is an adaptation of the story of the same name by Solomon Northup a citizen of  New-York, kidnapped in Washington city in 1841, and rescued in 1853, from a cotton plantation near the Red River in Louisiana. The story is a memoir by Solomon Northup as told to and edited by David Wilson. It is a slave narrative of a black man who was born free in New York state but kidnapped in Washington, D.C., sold into slavery, and kept in bondage for 12 years in Louisiana.The movie is a depiction of those years of Solomon in slavery.

Solomon Northup, played brilliantly by Chiwetel Ejiofor, makes us feel distraught as we see the inhuman treatment given to the slaves. When we watch this movie, we wish it wasn't a true story because it is a gut wrenching one. Solomon sees a life full of misery and torture. He even has to forgo his name and is rechristened Platt. 

Some of the scenes stay with us long after the movie. The way Platt sings at the funeral of a fellow slave, Platt burning the letter he had written with much hope,  Platt as he tries to keep his feet to the ground when he is hanging on the tree for disobeying his master , Patsy being raped and lashed, the slaves being auctioned away and Solomon meeting his family after his ordeal, all these are scenes that make us wince and make us realize the torture and trauma of the slaves. This movie also takes care to show us that not all whites are ruthless. As Solomon changes hands as a slave, he also has two masters that are more understanding and accommodating to his needs. One of his masters even gives him a violin as a gift. There is a lot of reference to the spiritual teachings by some of the masters who claim that the scriptures say that slaves are meant to suffer.

Solomon Northup hopes to get back to his family and see his children. This movie is about his quest to get back to his free life once again. This movie is definitely not for the weak-hearted as there are some really disturbing scenes. Cannot imagine what the so called slaves went through that time! 
It has excellent music and screenplay. Each and every character does an amazing job with apt emotions that reach out to us. 

A gem of a movie that cannot be missed unless you cannot bear to see the agony and pain the movie portrays.