"Paranormal Activity" -The Latest Gripping Horror Movie - Review

IMDB Rating: 7.4 ( Wat?? I will give much more than this)
Tops USA Box Office for consecutive weekends

Paranormal Activity is the latest horror film.

"Some thing" disturbs the life of Katie and Micah. It lurks in their house in San Diego and scares them like-hell. They try to find out what it is. They contact a psychic Dr. Fredrich, who tells them that they are being plagued by a demon. Like BWP, they use a camera and tries to find what is really happening to them. They keep the camera in their bedroom and whilst they are sleeping, the demon shows "what it can do". The night scenes in infrared are really creepy. They hear whispers, sounds, footsteps and the intensity of the weird things increases each and every night until the "last night".

The movie starts with just a credit, no titles. It ends with credits to the couple and to the police department who provided the footage.

We were really scared to our wits. I immediately searched about this movie and found out...OH NO!!! The movie is really the real footage(or so I thought)... This cant be true... I was totally confused... wait a minute, Micah and Katie... the couple... I searched imdb and many other sites... Their real names do match... Wat the hell is happening,....

But, then something clicked... Katie (Katie Featherston) has already acted in the film 'Mutation'. And, her next film 'Walking Distance' is under post-production... Micah Sloat who is the Micah in this movie. This is his first film. Only then, we got our breadth.

ok... now the review:

+ points:

Hats off to Katie Featherston and Micah Sloat for their so-so natural acting. Their expressions, the way they talk, everything is so-so real. We should give special credits to Katie. When she lets out her screams and fear, you tend to believe that what you are seeing is the real footage.

The Night scenes are very gripping. The night scenes are shown under Infra-red vision which adds to the intensity. The scenes start with Micah and Katie going to sleep, then a clock is displayed at the bottom-right corner indicating the actual time of the scene. The clock ticks for few seconds, then the video fast forwards and again slows down, an indication that something is going to happen. We wait, wait and wait... Then... Ah! Shit! the door moves on its own... This is just the first of the many nights. Each night the things happen with more intensity.

We hear sounds, whispers, bangings on the door, witness footsteps and many more creepy things. In the day time, the couple discuss about these things, after they watch the video they have captured. So, everything goes so so well. And, the movie has a gripping climax too.

Oren Peli has done a real good job. The way movie goes is (as said earlier) is so natural, and for that, this man certainly deserves the applause Clap...Clap...Clap... He has written, directed and produced the movie.

- points:

The film has its own negative side. People who expects too much of a 'Blair Witch Project' effect have reported disappointments. Though it depends on the perception of the audience, it is left entirely to the audience to decide..

The first half an hour of the movie are really boring. The editor could have cut these boring parts of the "footage":P. No one wants a long "jus-talking" scene in a horror movie. All the initial scenes seem so trivial, until the psychic Dr. Fredrich arives.

SPOILER ALERT BEGIN-

The Director has slipped in some parts of the movie, One night, when Katie sleep walks (or is put under a trance by the demon???) she escapes the security alarm. Katie always keeps the security system working before she goes to sleep. But, how did she escape from tripping the alarm on, when she goes out of the house and relaxes in the swing???

Another night, after we come to know that the demon is in the attic, we are shown that the demon comes down switches on the light, the switches off after leaving the room and reaches the bedroom. I didnt notice it ironical, until my friend commented "What a responsible Demon" Ha ha... True. If the movie is filmed as a real footage, and while Micah and Katie are sleeping, why should the demon switch the light on and off, is it to scare the audience? Sounds are OK... But, the lights going on and off, in an entirely different room, when no one is watching (forget that we are watching), is definitely not realistic. Its dramatic,

Here comes the next dramatic element. Micah and Katie argues over the weegie board and leaves the house, then a strong wind blows into the room, and the cursor on the weegie board moves on its own and catches fire. Ok, this might be considered realistic. But, this becomes so much like any-other horror movie, which is certainly not the motive of the director nor the expectation of the audience.

-SPOILER ALERT END

As noted in imdb: A miss in Continuity: In a shot when Micah is coming down the stairs, there's a tiny water mark or speck on the lens. In the very next shot (emerging into the living room) it has magically vanished

Neglecting these minor mistakes, the feel that the movie is the real footage stands out conspicuously. And, it cant be denied that this movie is one of the best horror films.

Some people who might act very sober and cool, may find it funny. You must watch this with little seriousness.

If you are not scared of the movie as a whole, you must really acknowledge the many + points in this movie.

ALL IN ALL, one of the MOST GRIPPING HORROR MOVIE with very little dramatic elements.

So, my rating for the movie is 3.6 out of 5. I could have given more points, if the director has made the movie more perfect.

The DVD or BLU-Ray is still not out. You can watch the Blair Witch Project, which is more or less similar to this.

The link for Paranormal Activity DVD or BLU-Ray disc will be available once they are released.

Till then enjoy the horror movie in theatres... You will get the desired effect...

Wake Up Sid - Review

Wake up Sid is a 2009 Hindi film, starring Ranbir Kapoor (Siddharth "Sid" Mehra) and Konkana Sen Sharma (Aisha Banerjee) in the lead roles. This movie is a Directorial Debut for Ayan Mukherji. Co-starring in the movie are Anupam Kher (Sid's father), Supriya Pathak (Sid's mother) and Kashmira Shah (Sonia), and Namit Das (Rishi).

Sid is a guy who doesnt want to grow up. He failed in his final exams, he doesnt want to work at his dad's office. He just takes life as it is - or atleast not so seriously. Sid meets a girl, Aisha Banerjee, who comes to Mumbai from Kolkatta, following her dreams. After meeting her, Sid understands the serious side of life. He realises that its his time to grow up. Meanwhile he fights with his parents, as his parents were very much pissed with his exam results and Sid stays with Aisha, and starts his own Independent life - which, ofcourse he has never thought of.

This movie is a reiteration of the same fact, that we have seen in many other films. A guy chasing his dream - but from a different angle. This is a movie about a guy who doesn wanna get serious about his life and then "Wakes up". The bottom line of the story might seem familiar. But, this stoy has been told in a different way. First of all, the credit goes to the new-face director Ayan. He has done some really-really good job. If you are looking out for some quality hindi movie, here it is. In an era of commercialism in Bollywood industry , movies like this will be a daring step taken by the director and the producers. So, hats off to Karan Johar too.

+ points:

The movie stands OUT OF THE BOX. It has got no peppy-party songs. No six packs. No item girls. No "Meri paas maa hai"-kind of dialogs. In short, no place for exaggeration. No place for commercialism. But, a motive to deliver a good quality at the same time enjoyable movie.

The movie has other good elements too. Music. Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy team has again done a good job. The songs are not like "out of the blue, the hero and the heroine start dancing in Switzerland" or "dancing in a discotheque"(which I have already told u). The songs go very well with the story. It actually BLENDS with the story. The music is nothing sort of new experimentations and all, but all songs are good to hear and hum.Especially, the title song "Wake Up Sid". It just sticks to your mind. The songs are like the types you must have listened to in "Life In a Metro" or "Taare Zameen Par" - with the soothing guitar in almost all the songs and lyrics by Javed Akthar that speak in simple but wonderful words about life.

Cinematographer Anil Mehta and Art Director Sumayya Shaikh have a very good role in the film, in making the movie so colorful. Especially, when Sid joins the company as a photographer, there these two guys show their talent.

Konkana Sen Sharma - hmm.. now the acting part. I would say, as far as the acting is concerned, only Konkana Sen sharma has done a really good job. No wonder. She has got a very good track record. Be it "Mr & Mrs Iyer" or "Life In a Metro". Her acting is so natural - which is very much needed for this movie.

- points:

Ranbir Kapoor being in the main role, COULD HAVE done much better. Of course, he hasnt got that much expertise. But, its good on his part to switch to more serioous roles like this. Clever guy. Else he will be stereotyped for a chocolate-boy type. Yes, its time to learn from such good roles. And this role in particular, he has shown great improvements when compared to his previous movies. Way to go, Ranbir.

The movie's run time is 138 minutes, i.e 2 hrs and 18 mins, which is too much for a simple plot. Of course, this is about real life, and you have got so much to tell. but, the more you tell, the more you deviate from what you actually want to tell. Only, that part has slowed down the movie. Either the movie should be short or the screenplay should have received more care.

So, In toto, "Wake Up Sid" is a DIFFERENT and QUALITY BOLLYWOOD movie, which you must have known, is very rare.

My Rating is : 3.8 out of 5 - a MUST WATCH film.

The DVD is still not out. But here is the audio release:

Road To Perdition - Title Soundtrack- "Rock Island, 1931"

Oh... My... God.... Thomas Newman ... One of the Best Music Composers. Gives Music that really touches the soul. After watching the movie, this particular score which comes in the background of the title of the movie, when the kid rides on a bicycle.- This has haunted my mind for so long and even now, this refreshes your mind instantly.

The splendour with which Thomas Newman composes the music can be felt throughout the movie. A music director who stands so uniquely from others, yet with his own magnificence.

Pulp Fiction - Breakfast Scene

IMDB Rating: 8.9/10
IMDB Movie Rank #5 in Top 250 list

Year: 1994
Director: Quentin Tarantino
Budget: US$ 8.5 Million
Revenue: US$ 107.9 million -domestic
US$ 212.9 million - worldwide

About the movie:

Pulp Fiction is a 1994 crime film directed by Quentin Tarantino, who cowrote its screenplay with Roger Avary. The film is known for its rich, eclectic dialogue, ironic mix of humor and violence, nonlinear storyline, and host of cinematic allusions and pop culture references. The film was nominated for seven Oscars, including Best Picture; Tarantino and Avary won for Best Original Screenplay. It was also awarded the Palme d'Or at the 1994 Cannes Film Festival. A major critical and commercial success, it revitalized the career of its leading man, John Travolta, who received an Academy Award nomination, as did costars Samuel L. Jackson and Uma Thurman. Also starring Bruce Willis, Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Amanda Plummer, Maria de Medeiros, Ving Rhames, Eric Stoltz, Rosanna Arquette and Christopher Walken.

Pulp Fiction? What is it?
The film's title refers to the pulp magazines and hardboiled crime novels popular during the mid-20th century, known for their graphic violence and punchy dialogue. Pulp Fiction is self-referential from its opening moments, beginning with a title card that gives two dictionary definitions of "pulp". The plot, in keeping with most of Tarantino's other works, is presented out of chronological sequence.

About the Scene:

This is towards the beginning of the film, when Jules Winnfield (Samuel Jackson) and Vincent Vega (John Travolta) goes to get the briefcase from the "kids", as they work for Marsellus Wallace (Ving Rhames) - the gang leader.

The dialogs of this scene play a main role here, with the menacing act from Samuel Jackson. The scene falls so so naturally, with john Travolta searching for the briefcase in the kitchen. This is one of the best scenes in the movie, one of the most viewed videos on youtube.com.

This movie should be your favorite collection. If you havent watched this yet, you better watch it today. Otherwise, you are wasting your life.

THE LOST SYMBOL - Finally it is out. And so is my Review.

I swear no part of the book will be revealed here. So, Read on. To tell too much would ruin the fun of reading this delicious thriller, so you will find no spoilers here....

{I started the habit of reading books very late. It happened during the first few days of my college life. All my friends were discussing about the Golden ratio, Da Vinci, Holy Grail this and that. This absolutely raised my curiosity. I started with Da Vinci code and from then, I have become Dan Brown's ardent fan and have read the books of many other authors too.}

It has been for almost 2-3 years, I was looking out for "The Solomon's Key". (Oops. Seems like Dan Brown lost the key) But, the expectation started dying. Then, suddenly the recent release of Angels & Demons movie gave rise to this conversation among my friends - "Hey, what happened to Dan Brown's next novel? Solomon's key right? When is it getting released?" Oh my God! Too many questions and too much expectation and at last on September 15, 2009, his fans (we) witnessed the worldwide release of "The Lost Symbol" [FYI, Solomon's key was the working title].

And, only a week ago, I got to set hands on this new work of Dan Brown. With much expectation, I didnt read any spoilers. So, I knew nothing about the characters he has penned down in this book. The book starts with the same kinda announcement like every other book:

*******************************************************

FACT:

In 1991, a document was locked in the safe of the director of the CIA. The document is still there today. Its cryptic text includes references to an ancient portal and an unknown location underground. The document also contains the phrase “It’s buried out there somewhere.”

All organizations in this novel exist, including the Freemasons, the Invisible College, the Office of Security, the SMSC, and the Institute of Noetic Sciences.

All rituals, science, artwork, and monuments in this novel are real.

*******************************************************

You must have guessed by now, Yes, Robert Langdon is the main character. Not a surprise, is it? But, the novel has many surprises, twists, suspense and a lots of accurate information. This novel blends so much with real time, with references to many present day situations like the use of iPhone and many other such things :). So, you get the feeling that Robert Langdon is there in Washington now, solving all those cryptic messages and clues:) . Like the previous novels, Dan Brown has done extensive research on symbology, but this time to pertaining to this "Ancient Mystery". The very mention of these words arouses curiosity among the readers and only in the last part of the novel the knots are unraveled.

But, at some parts of the novel, you feel like "oh come on, Dan Brown, enough of the lecture and suspense", and you feel like going directly to the last pages of the book. But all the lectures are crucial to the later part of the novel. And, you get to see the whole new side of Washington DC. Who has got time to delve into symbology, religion, architecture and history besides reading this novel? So, patience and you get to enjoy the novel to the fullest...

In this novel, we see a menacing villain. (I wont say his name, suspense... ha ha) His role is given great importance. His change from goodness to evil-heartedness is vividly described, which makes him more and more threatening.

And, yes, the novel has got a new heroine, not Sophie Nevue, not Vittoria, but a NEW LADY. Damn, Robert Langdon is lucky :)

All said, what are you waiting for? Go and grab your copy now........

And yes, My rating for this book 4.5/5.0

UP - The latest Animated Movie from Pixar (Review)

IMDB Rating: 8.6/10.0
IMDB's No.1 Best Animated film


Up is a 2009 American computer-animated comedy-adventure film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. The film premiered on May 29, 2009 in North America as the first animated film to premiere on the 2009 Cannes Film Festival. The film was released in the United Kingdom on October 9, 2009.

Up is director Pete Docter's second feature-length film after Monsters, Inc., and features the voices of Edward Asner, Christopher Plummer, Bob Peterson, and Jordan Nagai. The film has been released in 3D in select theatres (I was lucky enough to watch it in 3D).

Plot:
The film centers around a grumpy old man named Carl Fredricksen and an overeager Wilderness Explorer named Russell who fly to South America in a floating house suspended from helium balloons.

Music:

The music director Michael Giacchino has done a really-good job. Remember him? Yes, he is the same composer from The Incredibles, Mission Impossible: III, Ratatouille, Speed Racer and Sky High. Like his all other works, his music adds to the various emotions - tension, comedy, senti and more. You can definitely rely on him. For he is one of the best composers the world had seen and his orchestrations are stupendous.

Review:

The film starts with a slow pace for the first 10 mins. But hold on, you are about to see the greatest and humorous adventure. You start laughing from the moment the little kid enters the screen. The fun tops when the house starts "flying". Ofcourse, the movie has some boring parts. But, they are very few that it becomes totally inconspicuous.

UP, a movie so different, with amazing special effects and the right mixture of emotions, making it a perfect Animated feature film.

Fame:

The film has been ranked among the top 50 in the overall list and No.1 in Animated Films category in IMDB. I also got to watch this on a Blu-ray disc version. I got more or less the same feeling that I am watching a 3D film in theatre.

The film has received overwhelmingly positive reviews with a rating of 97% on Rotten Tomatoes. A video game of the same name, based on the film, was released on May 26, 2009

Best Scene from the Best movie - Magnolia

About the movie:

IMDB Rating: 8.0/10.0

Magnolia is a 1999 American drama film, written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, and starring John C. Reilly, Tom Cruise, Julianne Moore, Philip Seymour Hoffman, William H. Macy, and Jeremy Blackman. It interweaves nine separate yet connected storylines, about the interactions among several people during one day in the San Fernando Valley, in Los Angeles, California. The film was distributed by New Line Cinema.

Magnolia was a critical success in 1999. Of the ensemble cast, Tom Cruise was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the Academy Awards, and won the award in the same category at the Golden Globes of 2000.

About this scene:
Former TV producer Earl Partridge (Jason Robards) is in the final stages of cancer, and is being cared for by a nurse, Phil Parma (Philip Seymour Hoffman), while his young trophy wife Linda (Julianne Moore) is out collecting prescriptions for a strong dose of liquid morphine that will end his pain.

Her act in this particular scenes vividly expresses the frustration of the character-Linda. Her acting is so natural that people tend to see Linda not Julianne Moore. No wonder she has been nominated for several awards. But, I must say, anyone should wonder why she hasnt got the Academy awards for this film. The character, Linda, expresses her guilt on cheating his dying (old) husband. The way she repents and the way she goes all frenzied will definitely make one tied to the character. People start empathizing with the character.
This character, played by Julianne Moore, plays an important role in the critical success of the film.

This movie is one of my most favorite collections.

Rakkamma kaiya thattu - One of BBC's top 10 Best tunes of all time

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/us/features/topten/profiles/index.shtml

Composer: Ilayaraja
Movie : Thalapathi

Language: Tamil

Singers : S.P.Balasubramaniam, Swarnalatha

The beauty of the song lies in the synchronisation of those 64 VIOLINS. The orchestration is simply spell-bounding. The transition of the song from the folkish style to the devotional number and then back to the folkish style is amazing.

The no. of violins Ilayaraja has used and their synchronization is even now very difficult to reproduce by any other music director.

It rightly deserves the "BBC's One of the Top 10 Best Tunes of All Time" title.

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