There are quite a few superlatives I could associate with my viewing of this remake of the Korean thriller, 'Montage'.
1. A remake, that's quite as good as the original. In short, a good adaptation, both from writing and execution standpoints.
2. 'Inspired' not just by its source material, but also by 'Memento', this uses a similar narrative technique, though not quite as abstract (some might call it a 'gimmick', and those are people who'll be left scratching their heads at the end of it all - and mite think the movie was a waste of their hard-earned, or easy dough). Very nifty editing.
3. Performances - fantastic. One of Amitabh's best. No one can see the star, you can only see the character he's playing (a la 'Piku'). Balan is understated too, and that is one of this fantastic actress' strengths. Siddiqui, on the other hand, underplays his role (while overplaying it at the wrong couple of moments - though I don't think that was his fault - more on this below). The others are not given much to do, other than Sabayachi, who's fantastic to a fault.
4. Production design and score - fantastic. Real locations, by/large, and realistic interiors make for a superb viewing experience. Candyfloss sets be damned. The BG score by Clinton Cerejo is apt, and powerful, and the 2 numbers that repeat over the run-time are superb ear-worms.
5. Subtle change of one narrative technique slowly segueing into another, while trying to maintain continuity, which lost quite a few audience members, myself included, before I realized what I'd missed and bought into the tale once again. Subtle. Very. Master-stroke. Very like the technique used by Kirpalani in the recent 'Phobia'.
6. Acknowledgement of the source material, right at the beginning. Kudos!
7. 1 of my favorite sequences - Amitabh, a supporting character, scooter, helmet and everything else. Heart went out.
Now, for what did not work. Before delving into that, its only fair that I mention that these, for me, did not detract from my viewing experience much, not like it has done for many audience-members who felt cheated, towards the end. Without further ado - here's a list of what did not work for me, in descending order:
1. A glaring loophole made obvious multiple times towards the end. Not helped by a few glaring mis-steps in the characterizations of 2 key characters that become significant after 60-70% of the movie. What they did before, what happened to them before, doesn't quite hold up to scrutiny. Now, I say all that, but as a whole, to me, this movie worked in spite of it. Perhaps the first of its kind that did.
2. Siddiqui's character ringing false, vocalizing stuff that audience members need not be spoon-fed, quite a few times. Also, it is 'importance'. Enunciating the 'r' is important.
3. Focus only on the main 3 characters, and not the others. Other characters could have been given more room to breathe, in terms of characterizations and performance.
I'm heading back to the cinema to re-watch this one. Recommend it, if possible, along with the original Korean work.
1. A remake, that's quite as good as the original. In short, a good adaptation, both from writing and execution standpoints.
2. 'Inspired' not just by its source material, but also by 'Memento', this uses a similar narrative technique, though not quite as abstract (some might call it a 'gimmick', and those are people who'll be left scratching their heads at the end of it all - and mite think the movie was a waste of their hard-earned, or easy dough). Very nifty editing.
3. Performances - fantastic. One of Amitabh's best. No one can see the star, you can only see the character he's playing (a la 'Piku'). Balan is understated too, and that is one of this fantastic actress' strengths. Siddiqui, on the other hand, underplays his role (while overplaying it at the wrong couple of moments - though I don't think that was his fault - more on this below). The others are not given much to do, other than Sabayachi, who's fantastic to a fault.
4. Production design and score - fantastic. Real locations, by/large, and realistic interiors make for a superb viewing experience. Candyfloss sets be damned. The BG score by Clinton Cerejo is apt, and powerful, and the 2 numbers that repeat over the run-time are superb ear-worms.
5. Subtle change of one narrative technique slowly segueing into another, while trying to maintain continuity, which lost quite a few audience members, myself included, before I realized what I'd missed and bought into the tale once again. Subtle. Very. Master-stroke. Very like the technique used by Kirpalani in the recent 'Phobia'.
6. Acknowledgement of the source material, right at the beginning. Kudos!
7. 1 of my favorite sequences - Amitabh, a supporting character, scooter, helmet and everything else. Heart went out.
Now, for what did not work. Before delving into that, its only fair that I mention that these, for me, did not detract from my viewing experience much, not like it has done for many audience-members who felt cheated, towards the end. Without further ado - here's a list of what did not work for me, in descending order:
1. A glaring loophole made obvious multiple times towards the end. Not helped by a few glaring mis-steps in the characterizations of 2 key characters that become significant after 60-70% of the movie. What they did before, what happened to them before, doesn't quite hold up to scrutiny. Now, I say all that, but as a whole, to me, this movie worked in spite of it. Perhaps the first of its kind that did.
2. Siddiqui's character ringing false, vocalizing stuff that audience members need not be spoon-fed, quite a few times. Also, it is 'importance'. Enunciating the 'r' is important.
3. Focus only on the main 3 characters, and not the others. Other characters could have been given more room to breathe, in terms of characterizations and performance.
I'm heading back to the cinema to re-watch this one. Recommend it, if possible, along with the original Korean work.