Its always a different feel when you watch a good short film. So I have decided to start a series - "Shorts On Sundays". In this I will be posting about three short films a week. If possible a link to watch and enjoy these shorts. I hope that you guys enjoy this series, if you have any suggestions about this series or if you want to recommend a short film you enjoyed, feel free to comment below or send a mail.
So here comes the first post of this series.
1. Meet Meline:
Meet Meline tells the story of a little girl whose curiosity is sparked by a mysterious creature as she plays in her grandparents’ barn. It is a 3D animated short film created independently and without any budget by Virginie Goyons and Sebastien Laban (Sound Design: Cedric Denooz, Music: Guillaume Roussel)
2. The Raven:
Chris Black possesses a power that could lead to the destruction of the current regime, and they will stop at nothing to destroy him. The chase is on as Chris runs for his life in this sci-fi thriller set in an alternate and futuristic Los Angeles. This short is directed by Ricardo de Montreuil with a budget of 5000US$. And the latest news is that Mark Wahlberg took over the project with Universal Pictures to make a feature film. Wahlberg is not only planning to produce, but also to star.
Inception
The theme of the movie is about a group of people who navigate their way through the mind of the people and steal their secrets in the dreams. Leonardo DiCaprio plays the role of the most skillful extractor Don Cobb, a fugitive who is longing to meet his children back home and is often troubled by the memories of his dead wife Mal Cobb(Marion Cotillard) whom he supposedly murdered. Joseph Gordon-Levitt stars as his long-time right-hand man Arthur.
But this latest mission is different- a Business tycoon Saito (Ken Watanabe) wants him to plant an idea (hence termed inception) within a rival's (Cillian Murphy) mind in order that he will break up his ailing father's business empire after he takes over. Cobb agrees to this dangerous mission as Saito promises that if Cobb succeeds, he will wipe Cobb's slate clean so he is allowed to return to the United States to see his children. So Cobb begins assembling his team- the architect Ariadne (Ellen Page), the forger Earnes (Tom Hardy) and the chemist Yusuf (Dileep Rao)- think of it like a heist, only much more complicated.
The First half of the movie explains the audience about the rules of the game that the team plays. And the second half is where the test begins for the viewers.There are some jaw-dropping actions sequences and some heart winning sentimental scenes. The entire cast of the movie has done an excellent job on their part, the best performances came from DiCaprio and Joseph Gordon-Levitt.(Though DiCaprio's role is pretty similar to the one he played in Shutter Island).
This movie engages the audience and takes them to whole new world. I have never seen the audience get engaged so much for an English movie here at Chennai. But to really enjoy this movie the audience has to earn their right. The screenplay was exceptional especially in the second half where we go into a dream into a dream into a dream into a dream. The Music by Hans Zimmer is the Icing On The Cake.
Although there are some visual similarities to the anime Paprika, Inception is one of the best Original stories that I have seen in a long time. A Masterpiece by Nolan. In the end those who watch this movie would definitely go into the Limbo state.
Don: "Dreams feel real while we're in them, it's only when we wake up that we realize something was actually strange."My Rating: 5/5
I Hate Luv Storys
Yesterday night I went to the movies to watch the movie I Hate Luv Storys. The movie is the first venture for the director Punit Malhotra. To be frank I didn't expect much when I decided to watch this yesterday but I was pleasantly surprised.
Imran Khan stars as Jay, a typical Casanova who doesn,t believe in the word 'love' yet works as the Assistant to one of the most successful romantic directors in the bollywood industry, Veer Kapoor played by Sameer Soni. Sonam Kapoor stars as Simran, a typical bollywood girly character who works as an Art Director for Veer and has a perfect fiancé Raj played by Sameer Dattani. The two lead characters are off to a rough start. But Veer decides to punish Jay for his lousy behavior by transferring him under Simran as a prop buyer(Although I don't believe that any director would do this since props are important and it needs to handled by experts...carrying on).
This way the leads get to spend more time with each other, during which we get to see the same old bollywood romantic clichés. But the way the director carried it was good, there were some really good comic scenes that made me laugh. The Music by Vishal-Shekar is vibrant and the background score by Salim Sullaiman really brings life for the movie. Though there were some scenes which were "inspired" from HIMYM, like 'The Hot Vs Crazy scale', 'The Climax', etc, I liked this film.
The first half of the movie is really good whereas the second half brings us the same old romantic clichés. In the end if you don't demand too much, you will definitely exit the theaters with a smile on your face.
My Rating: 3/5
Killer Bride's Perfect Crime
But on the night before her wedding, she accidentally kills her landlord and then discovers that he has been stalking her for a while now. So making her escape with the landlord in a suitcase, she drives to a forest near Mount Fuji where she plans to leave the body and, after her big day, turn herself in to the police. There she runs into Fukuko, a girl who is trying--and failing--to commit suicide by hanging herself from a tree.Fukuko offers to help Hiroko dispose of the corpse on one condition, Hiroko must help Fukuko become a corpse herself.
But they are not alone in the forest, they are on the run from a menacing motorcycle gang and a frantic young cop on a bicycle. From here on we can fairly guess whats going to happen next.
In the end this is a slapstick road movie that tries to deliver an emotional punch while shining rays of hope on its female target audience. This is one movie that you could enjoy watching with your buddies over an weekend.
My Rating: 3.5/5
Attack the Gas Station!
In this group of four there's a failed artist, a failed baseball player, the singer of a failed band and a failed bully. Their life is a dead end, and they're bored as hell. And so they decide to attack the same All Night Service Gas Station again. Why? Because it's fun. Because they can. Why not? They rob the station and take the owner and his teenage staff hostage. As the gang attends to the customers to keep all quiet, they realize that instead of just robbing the place, they can make even more money by keeping the money that the patrons give them for pumping their gas!
This is when the real fun starts. The way they treat the rude customers, the way they piss off the delivery boy and the way they beat up some high school punks.This leads to a big gang fight in the Climax and the way the director handles the group dynamics is great. The director has made great use of the limited locations used.
This flick had some really amazing performance by all the lead actors.The movie is very fun and mixes the Action/Drama/Comedy together real well. While some parts are a little silly and cheesy, and there are still goofs this makes for a nice movie to watch and keep in the collection one you could watch over and over and still be able to laugh. I definitely recommend to anyone who is a fan of crime capers, like Snatch and Pulp Ficiton.
My Rating: 3.5/5
It's a Wonderful Life
I was struck by how comprehensive the character study of George Bailey played by James Stewart was. He was a good man, but his ambitions were frustrated at every turn. He wanted an Education, that was just outside his grasp. He wanted to travel, life conspired against him. At every step of the way, one person saw George 'rolling with the blows', that was Mary Hatch played by Donna Reed. This woman loved George and wanted to stand at his side, so they can face the slings and arrows of misfortune together. This is love of the purest kind.
This is a beautiful, touching yet dark film. You see so many emotions, attitudes and values in this such as envy, love, corruption, joy, hope, faith and despair, all beautifully portrayed by the actors. It runs along at a fast pace and has a beginning, middle and an end. It also has a moral, which is lacking in so many movies today.
And one more thing. You know that feeling you get—that really, really good feeling in your soul—whenever you see a really, really good movie? If you want to revisit that sensation, see "It's a Wonderful Life" as soon as you can, because you are going to enjoy every single second of it from start to finish, you really will, every bit of it you will enjoy!
My Rating: 5/5
Toy Story 3
Toy Story 3 is the story of our classic and new favorite characters Woody, Buzz, Slinky, Ham, Rex and friends as they try to cope with the fact that Andy is going off to college. They haven't been played with in years and they're becoming restless. As much as they want to believe Andy will save them and keep them in the attic as Woody predicts, our beloved toys start to question his motives as college day is coming and Andy's old room is starting to deteriorate into a trash hold. Which will Andy decide upon? The plot for this movie at first glance made me very satisfied, seeing as Pixar and the writers are trying to follow the time frame we are accustomed to. Back in 1999 when Andy found his new toys Jesse and Bullseye, he was still a child with imagination and joy to play with these toys. Ten years later, he is no longer a child but grown into a graduating senior who is ready to venture off the college for the first time. This plot is a classic scenario that new-bound college teens deal with on their moving date: whether or not to give up hold on our childish bonds. It's time to grow up sometime. This plot grabbed me in easily. As the rest of the movie continued, Pixar led us on a classic Toy Story adventure.
There where some really funny scenes such as the scene where Ken and Barbie meet for the first time and of course the scene when Buzz is reset and becomes El Buzzo and dances to salsa music with Jesse. In the whole this a movie for all ages and is definitely gonna grab some Oscars this year.
My Rating: 5/5
