Apur Sansar

Christopher Nolan's so-called epic conclusion to his take on the Batman. The Dark Knight Rises is the third part of the trilogy that Nolan began with Batman Begins, which then continued on to The Dark Knight before finally reaching here. The Dark Knight Rises is a spectacle. It is definitely the biggest of the three pictures in its grandeur. But quality and grandeur has a lot of difference. I haven't seen the IMAX version of the film yet but I can't wait to catch up with that because I'm certain that there is a lot more to the experience than the one I just had. It would have been a few months since I saw the first few minutes of The Dark Knight Rises in IMAX. The feeling that I had then was something hard to explain. The very same footage when I saw it this time seemed to have a lot lesser impact. And I'm certain that it was not because I had already seen it but because it was not as big as the IMAX experience. I believe there is almost an hour of IMAX foota...

Detachment is a film that comes from the director of American History X. That was an awesomely shot film that was in Black and White about black people and white people or dealing with racism! Detachment is completely different from that film. This is shot in a manner that literally drove me crazy in its opening minutes. But the treatment was having its share of hook. Something made me sit through the entire film. I'm not certain if I understood the film completely. But I liked certain things about the film and that makes the viewing worth it. Beyond the way the film was made, something that grabs the attention in detachment would be the performance of Adrien Brody. He is indeed a fantastic actor and his performance is just as good as how it was in the Roman Polanski film, the pianist.

Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back is a film that follows the George Lucas film. The story continues to happen in a galaxy far, far away and there are major developments happening in the story in this part. It was only just as interesting as the earlier part for me and the visuals had some bit of additional brilliance compared to the earlier part. I think a few of the effects were achieved using stop motion in the film. It does lack perfection but for 1980, I think it was pretty decent work while not depending on CG. I loved many of the matte painting used in the film. It was given the picture a whole new dimension. I would say, Irvin Kershner has managed very well to take this George Lucas story forward in this installment. Watching this second Star Wars film, I'm also getting used to the ideas and creations of Lucas.

The amazing Spider-Man from director Marc Webb is a disappointing watch. Caught up with the Spider-Man in 3D and the even then things dint seem to be going in a very positive direction. There is some stunning 3D visuals towards the end of the film but a film isn't completely about the 3D experience but a totality. The amazing Spider-Man fails in this totality. The writing is slow and emotional there is no shit that works. There are a new set of actors, technicians, plot points, and even a new villain. But rarely can all these department give such disappointing an output. It has happened here. Even certain visual effects shots looked in complete and weak which is a surprise for a film like this! I feel Marc Webb should go back to making romance films. He was so good with 500 Days of Summer. I found myself the time to revisit the Sam Raimi version of Spider-Man as well. That film seemed to work a little more with me than this so-called Amazing version even now! But there was...

I had watched the first Star Wars film by George Lucas a few years back. I wonder how I felt it then. But I thought I would revisit the film again before I catch up with the other parts. I dint like the basic idea of the film. In a galaxy far, far away... Civil wars... Robots that speak English... People that speak English light years away! But then, the story is rather simple. It good versus evil. Now, that is okay with me. The film moved at a brisk pace for a while but then slowed down. But the film continues to be watchable for the two hour duration. Even when I don't like the premise of George Lucas I admire him for the kind of work that he had managed to pull off in 1977. The film has visual effects and complex shots that have been effectively done. The transitions in the edit do go a bit overboard at times but some of the wipes work well with the narrative. The music is pure John Williams and it would evoke a sense of deja vu!

Clint Eastwood films are one of a kind. They are never the same. He is such a great filmmaker to be not caught up with any kind of material in particular. His 1992 film, Unforgiven, is a western. It has a neat little story and it has been narrated with immense ease.  This is a revenge tale but one that is slightly different from other familiar revenge affairs.  The film moves at a slow pace. But turns out to be quite gripping in the second hour. The performances are wonderful and the dialogues are great as well. I hated Gene Hackman. Now that should be because his performance and writing of his part was done so convincingly well.