A few movies from Hollywood and Bollywood that have left their mark on the audience. If you haven't watched them yet, catch them on the newly released DVDs, says staff writer Esha Nag.
The Departed
We have Martin Scorsese back in prime form in The Departed. The film is an adaptation of the 2002 Hong Kong action film Infernal Affairs and has a 24-carat cast with Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson and Alec Baldwin. The film has some brutal, in-your-face violence, but it is perhaps the best mob film from Scorsese after Goodfellas. This film will definitely win over a new generation of moviegoers who, to this point, have only been able to catch Scorsese's best work on video. This film also has a very mature DiCaprio playing an undercover cop. DiCaprio's boyish handsome ways are still there, but the role gives his character a hard edge. Nicholson's dervish portrayal of an untouchable, perverted mob boss is another reason to watch The Departed. The film's supporting characters are equally competent and match up to the performance of the lead ones. An excellent film that is loaded with dark humour, graphic violence, and stunning performances, The Departed is wild and edgy and the best you can get from the master of mafia films.
Happy Feet
More than anything this film makes us aware that man-made problems are threatening penguins near the South Pole, and almost everything else in the South Seas. The film is about emperor penguins struggling to survive with a depleted food supply, and one tap-dancing penguin's epic search to learn what is causing the colony's fish to disappear. Winner of the Best Animated Feature at the Oscars and the Best Animated Feature Film at the 60th British Academy Film Awards, the film is set deep inside the icy land of Antarctica.
Two emperor penguins have a baby named Mumble. Hatched upon his feet, he has an amazing skill for tap-dancing. However, penguins are expected to sing and not tap dance. Shunned by his community, Mumble goes home with a group of Adelie penguins and soon discovers that all their fish is being taken by an unknown ‘alien' source.
Embarking on an incredible adventure, they try to discover the threat of their food source and fight for their survival. In an age when global warming and climate change is an issue of great concern, Happy Feet teaches us something important about our environment in a lighter vein. After all, anything that raises the consciousness of what goes on in the Antarctic is important. And Happy Feet does just that — it brings the region to the forefront.
Rang De Basanti
A unique tale told in an unconventional narration by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, this film made critics and youth sit up and take note when it opened in theatres across India.
On the surface the story is simple – that of a British filmmaker coming to India to make a documentary on India's freedom fighters.
She gets to meet a bunch of university students and casts them as her main characters — Bhagat Singh and Chandrasekhar Azad among others. While shooting for the film, the group realises the importance of not just freedom, but values that are intrinsic in Indian culture. The journey takes them to Punjab and they start discovering things are in stark contrast to their metropolitan life.
Excellent performances by Aamir Khan, Soha Ali Khan and Alice Patton are applaudable. This film is a masterpiece that can be watched again and again. A.R. Rehman's music and Prasoon Joshi's lyrics helped the album to become a chartbuster. The film was the official entry from India for the Academy Awards.
The Pursuit of Happyness
This is one film that will make you feel thankful for all you have in life. Based on the true story of Christopher Paul Gardner, a self-made millionaire, who struggled during his early life while raising his toddler son Christopher, the film explores the American dream and its nightmare shadow. Directed by Gabriele Muccino and screenplay by Steven Conrad, this is a film with terrific performances by Will Smith and his son Jaden. Smith plays Chris Gardner, who loses all his savings trying to sell medical scanners.
After his wife leaves him, he is left to fend for his son. From homeless shelters to public bathrooms to soup kitchens, Gardner tries to give his son a life. He succeeds, finally, with an internship at Dean Witter, a prestigious stock brokerage firm.
Although the catch is that there's no pay, Gardner works his way up. In the hope that Gardner's story would inspire the down-trodden citizens of his hometown Tennessee, the mayor of Chattanooga organised a screening of the film for the city's homeless. Gardner felt that it was imperative to share his story. In one of his interviews, he says: "When I talk about alcoholism, domestic violence, child abuse, illiteracy... those are universal issues; those are not just confined to zip codes." The actual message of the film comes out simple – we don't need much to be happy.
Omkara
On the surface, Omkara is Shakespeare's Othello, but the adaptation is very Indian. It highlights the universal traits of suspicion in human relationships.
Vishal Bhardwaj is an accomplished storyteller, and he creates a darkness that is almost sinister in India's badlands. The gifted chieftain Omkara heads a gang of outlaws, which includes the crafty Langda Tyagi and the dynamic Kesu.
The story begins when Omkara appoints Kesu and not Langda as his chief lieutenant. Langda's pride is hurt and raging with envy he hatches a plot to falsely implicate Omkara's beautiful lover Dolly in a love affair with Omkara's favourite lieutenant — Kesu. This leads up to a dark tragedy where Omkara finally kills Dolly.
Set against the milieu of political warfare in the interiors of the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, the film follows one man's descent into sexual jealousy because of his passionate love for his woman and the final destruction of that love at the altar of blind obsession.
This film is a real testament to crimes of passion. Excellent performances by Ajay Devgan as Omkara, Karina Kapoor as Dolly and Saif Ali Khan as Langda Tyagi make this film a must-watch.
