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Succession: Chiantishire (2021)
A Masterpiece that chokes your soul
I won't go into a lot of words. This episode explored the absolute realness and darkness of every character in this show (except Ken who is definitely the Odd one out for being more or less a genuinely good person). Yes this episode's ending is by far the most horrifying and painful moment of the show so far- but what was most disturbing for me was- the words Shiv used in the supposedly intimate conversation with Tom. When she said "I don't love you..but you still want me"- was a true heartbreaking moment and Matthew Macfadyen's brilliant expressions did great justice to that scene. I truly feel he is one of the best in this show especially on how complex his character is.
Ramprasad Ki Tehrvi (2019)
The most original film in recent times.
Has Seema Pahwa just made the most original Hindi film of recent times? I certainly think so.
RKT deals with loss like never before. The first scene of the movie is 16 minutes long - though not a single shot - but in essence takes you through all aspects of a person's death to their cremation in the typical lower middle class Hindu setting in UP. Every single person. Action and object is well thought out. The scene is so real that if you're watching it for what it is- you can't not feel the emotions of the characters and will most likely bring tears to your eyes.
Most Hindi films I had watched before, wrapped up Death and funeral in the fastest way possible as if it does not mean anything. Interestingly, RKT takes a very different route. It explores each person's journey in dealing with the loss of their loved one but is brutally realistic in that exploration.
It hits you hard in your gut to show how people move on and what their real priorities are. No one is a villain and no one is a hero but everyone is human.
The common thread that surprisingly connects every scene in the movie is Supriya Pathak's performance as Amma. Her grief and the immense emotion her character goes through is what keeps bringing the audience back to the real crux of this story- Loss.
The film is such that it intentionally keeps diverting to various different subplots - so much so - that as an audience you will forget that the setting of the film is essentially a funeral but every time Amma comes on screen you realize- what this is all about.
Some may find RKT as a comedy film- because there are some genuinely funny lines and scenes in the film- but in my opinion- the joke is on us- on all of us who don't realize how loss hits us. It is a complete package of the twister of emotions that come to us.
Epilog:
This may be just me , but in a way I find Ramprasad ki Tehrvi a sequel to Aankhon Dekhi and more importantly the 3rd installment of the "Life Trilogy" of Ship of Theseus, Aankhon Dekhi and Ramprasad ki Tehrvi.
Glass (2019)
The superhero story we all deserve
I don't often write reviews here. But this is one of those that compelled me to write one. I am also going to comment on the ending without going into spoilers.
Let me start by saying - If Unbreakable was a movie way too ahead of it's times, then Glass is a movie way too late for it's times (and I mean it as a compliment, which I will explain). Glass is a film which is essentially an origin story of all that is about to follow in the universe of superheros and super villains. The fact of the matter is that as a generation we have already witnessed the expansion of this superhero DC/Marvel universe (for the better or worse of it). This is why it takes a little bit of time and thinking in understanding what the ending suggests.
among other things, Glass really is not just the beginning of the superheroverse but also a commentary on the origin of what drives these superpowers in the first place. Why does a Super hero become one and why does a super villain what he really is.
Structured like Unbreakable- it is more of a character portrayal than a gadget infested super hero vs villain fight over some New York skyscraper (well done, Mr. M Night Shyamalan for that clever dig on the fast food entertainment). Shyamalan goes into what he does best- setting the environment of each character (David Dunn could have been done more justice though).
It is really reminiscent of that feeling of reading through a comic book and letting your own imagination do the work.
Flaws: Yes there are many. And they are mainly in the last 45 minutes regarding the security of the mental facility and yes they will bother you. But when the climax hits and you give it enough time to sink in, you will realize that that's the victory of the film.
If you haven't watched Unbreakable or Split- I highly recommend you to do so before you check this one out, because that allows for the bigger picture to make sense. Its beautiful how Shyamalan has stitched the story together. The only thing that comes close to it in the popcorn comic movie world is the X Men/Wolverine story.
Overall: If you are a true comic fan and you know how to watch a super hero movie beyond the graphics and the noise, you will live this one. A rare original superhero movie.
P.S. I am sure James McAvoy will again be criminally ignored at the awards just like the last time for Split, even though this is yet another class act from him.
Andhadhun (2018)
Rabbit or Duck? Ending Explained.
Many have reviewed Andhadhun and rated it highly and I am no different. I found it pretty damn entertaining myself. Following is just a review of the ending and how enriching that experience was for me as an audience. Hope you all like it.
Watched Andhadhun again today. I never made a post about its ending the first time because I liked the Director's version of the open ending and leaving it up to the audience's interpretation.
However, when I watched it again today, I realized that the film does not have any open ending if you carefully observe it.
Before I go into the meaning of the ending we have to understand the phenomena of Rabbit or Duck illusion. Google "Rabbit or duck" for the image and the reference for rest of my review.
For decades now, the Rabbit or Duck illusion has been presented as a test for level of creativity. What you notice in the image determines what part in your brain is more active. A lot of people look at Duck only, Some people see Rabbit only and some see both.
Of course you can see both if you know that it's an illusion and you pay way too much attention to it and if you try to look for it.
However, the real trick is (and this is the next level - not part of the original illusion but something that Raghavan has done here), that what if there is no illusion? But being used to the concept of illusion, we are forced to look for both Rabbit and the Duck.
Andhadhun - There is no duck. It's only a rabbit.
In the last scene of the movie, the waitress from the Restaurant comes outside and gives Ayushman his cane back. This Cane has a Rabbit at its handle (Raghavan starts his Rabbit/Duck illusion here)
The movie begins with Ayushman's voice telling Radhika - "bahut lambi kahaani hai.... Coffee? - It's a very long story...Coffee?" (This line is repeated towards the end and that's how the audience know, that Ayushman is telling the story of his life to Radhika)
But interestingly, the story telling takes a pause right towards the climax (when Ayushman and Doctor in the story are driving off)...the scene cuts to London and Radhika says - "Aur phir? (and then?)"
This is sort of the writer's way of writing an Epilogue solely to "create the illusion of creating an illusion". In the Epilogue story, where Ayushman tells the story of Tabu's accident and how the rabbit jumped and caused the accident - there are only 2 souls that can know about the Rabbit. 1- Tabu (who was distracted) and 2- Rabbit (because it caused the distraction)...Even Ayushman won't know because he was blind. So very clearly, Raghavan tells you that Ayushman is simply bluffing in this final piece.
Now some may say that the shooter also saw the rabbit and he could have come and told Ayushmaan (blah, blah) - but I am basing my explanation on what is shown. Not on, what is not shown and is pure conjecture.
Here is one more thing - Tabu dying would have been a bigger piece of Info which Radhika would already be aware of since the case was such a high profile one, but she seems to get all this info first hand from Ayushman, completely oblivious of Tabu's whereabouts until that moment.
So Raghavan very cleverly tells the truth, but by that time- we the audience are so trapped in this brilliant tale of our hearts wanting to continue in the suspense, that we want to believe there is an illusion for sure.
Raghavan even more clearly tells it very loud and clear that there is no illusion- by having Ayushman's cane with a Rabbit(or duck) handle, clearly saying- that Ayushman is selling the illusion because he has no way of validating the presence of Rabbit but he is telling that in his story.
It is absolutely a delightful way of gripping your audience by having them look for things that they invent as they go.
Adhadhundh (the original word not the movie title - notice the spelling difference) - basically means, something that happens extremely fast and recklessly without any validation or thought - Exactly what the ending is.
Fantastic!
Oblivion (2013)
A Visual Delight
As a big fan of the sci-fi genre, it often saddens me to see the same old Aliens attacking the earth and wearing slightly different costumes every time. Somehow someone always turns out to be the hero and saves planet earth. All the innovation on the part of filmmakers is spent on the guns, artillery and destruction images. For me, this doesn't work at all. What I desire to see in a Sci-fi movie- more importantly a movie dealing with Outer Space are images- Strong images that emphasizes on the idea of the life beyond earth or far from earth. This is where 2001: A space Odyssey succeeded in an almost unparalleled way. Those visuals that showed the outer space or should I say the Director's (or the novelist's) imagination of the outer space. Those images and the strong focus and pause on each and every image are what made it so much special. Similarly Danny Boyle's Sunshine or Duncan Jones's Moon worked for me big time- both have them having strong focus on the visuals and done subtly.
Watching Oblivion was a great experience for me. It's quite different from what's shown in the Trailers. It's such a breath of fresh air from the loud action zero story science fiction which have less science in the fiction. The most striking feature of the film is its visuals. From Tom cruise's Aircraft to the monitoring system to his station where he lives are all simply stunning, There's a scene where the lead actress goes bare body in a swimming pool- Trust me if you will- the beauty of that scene is not the actress's body but the swimming pool. The Images of a disaster struck Earth and the mini twists in the story compliment the visuals beautifully. It's a long 2 hour plus film and believe me, I was ready to watch it again once it got over.
The story is very good if not great and even though I could guess the twists and turns, I liked it that they were there. The first 30 minutes and the last 15 minutes are visually stunning. Tom Cruise is perfect for this role. It's amazing how calmly he portrayed a character which could have been done horribly wrong by some other actors. Tom displays the right emotions and manages to depict his attachment to his planet through his monologues and gestures.
Oblivion is a great film for me. Not because it has an exceptional story to tell but because the path the filmmaker chose to tell it. There could have been a lot of noise and unnecessary activity in this film but it remains subtle and does the job in a brilliant way. Love it for the story , love it for the background score, love it for discovering the now getting lost emotion of "Man's love for his planet" and love it for the visuals. I hope there are more such Sci-fi movies in the future.