Change Your Image
nickyindia
Reviews
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)
One Level Up
A truly remarkable movie. When it comes to scale, grand is the word.
All the additional character-explorations, interminable plot-lines, deals, counter deals and spiraling betrayals notwithstanding, it is still a fantastic showcase of the fantasy genre. Mind, it is still Johnny Depp's show. Spectacular visuals compliment the good acting all around, but when Jack Sparrow is on the screen, you know who is powering the movie. And it just leaves enough unsaid and undone for us to expect Pirates 4.
A MUST watch. And if the second half gets a little too "plotty", just wait for the final sea-battle.
Beckett to Sparrow - "You are mad !!" "Well thank goodness for that, 'cause if I wasn't, this would probably never work." And Sparrow swings away on a "cannon catapult".
The Omen (2006)
Why make it again?
One word to sum it - Stale.
To begin with, though I managed to watch it on The Day 6-6-06, I missed the 06:06 pm show. Not much there to miss as i found out, except for the Number of the Beast.
The question to be answered is - WHY? Why make it again? The new version does absolutely nothing new. It is almost a shot-for-shot remake. The atmosphere is identical, the camera angles are identical, even many of the dialogues sound the same.
Added to that, the the actors are low profile and so is the music, which is far from Jerry Goldsmith's scary rendition in the 1976 original. And the lead actor is no match for Gregory Peck's impeccable performance as a man fighting his own beliefs in the battle against evil.
Of course, the deaths are more gruesome, a trend that seems to have been started by the Final Destination movies. The sound effects are good but they still cannot make up for the fact that there is absolutely no suspense that we don't already expect.
If you haven't seen the original version yet, go watch that first. This one can wait.
Pithamagan (2003)
A Fabulous Masterpiece
An absolutely fantastic movie, to say the least!! This movie is the stand-out proof, if any were required, that Tamil cinema has been there on top with the best in the world when it comes to meaningful n powerful contributions to cinema.
It's a simple story about an extraordinary man and his relationships with a perfectly ordinary world. Sitthan is a child of the graves, born in a cemetery and lived there all his life until one day, as a grown man he is forced to step out into the world. He is caught in times he does not understand. He is totally and believably unaware of such concepts as money, the police and dining etiquette. What he does possess is an animal instinct to survive.
A street-side drug seller takes him into her fold and gets him employed in a cannabis farm. The rest of the story revolves around how he meets Shakthi, a conman who becomes his friend for life and how the two proceed through their collective lives.
The movie is commendable in in many ways. Vikram gives a stellar National Award-winning performance as Sitthan. Almost dialog-less throughout the movie, he excels in every scene, emoting complex sentiments easily through gestures and grunts. His body language is compelling, almost prehistoric and carries a hint of an unspoken raw terror. The scenes where he mauls the policemen are brutal but bloodless. In one scene where he is hung on a rod like a captured tiger, he sends a growl into the face of a policemen, with such intensity it evokes unpleasant memories of Hannibal Lecter. Simply superb.
The rest of the cast delivers the goods too. Shakti, played by Surya as the one soul who understands Sitthan is touching and convincing. The ladies are largely soulful. The direction by Bala is splendid, taking the story along with effortless ease. The fight sequences with Vikram butchering everyone are chillingly choreographed to incessant wild grunting. Though the editing could have been a lot slicker, the camera work is pretty good.
The only scenes where the movie goes off track are the scenes with Simran and her hip-shakes. A totally unnecessary song-dance sequence. Also, Laila, playing Shakti's love interest, overdoes it at several occasions. But Vikram drowns it all.
On the whole, a fantastic movie that delivers the slow-paced caffeine of a classic.