mov[5]-Avatar

Avatar is a 2009 American science fiction film written and directed by James Cameron, and starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Sigourney Weaver and Stephen Lang.Avatar had been in development since 1994 by Cameron, who wrote a 114-page scriptment for the film. Filming was supposed to take place after the completion of Titanic, and the film would have been released in 1999, but according to Cameron, “technology needed to catch up” with his vision of the film. In early 2006, Cameron developed the script, the language, and the culture of Pandora.He has stated that if Avatar is successful, two sequels to the film are planned.

Plot Summary

The film begins in the year 2154 and focuses on Pandora, a fictional inhabited Earth-like moon in another planetary system.The story set in the 22nd century revolves on disabled ex-marine Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) who is called to replace his dead twin in the Avatar program. To fulfill his duty, he travels to the planet populated by Na’vi, Pandora. The Na’vi are hostile to the human race due to the humans’ destruction of their home planet caused by mining for minerals. In the humans attempt to win over the race and the planet, they brew up an experiment that combined human and Na’vi DNA to create the unique Na’vi avatars. These avatars controlled by mental link will proxy for humans in the planet.

Sully is tasked to take control of one of the avatar ambassadors. He agrees to the proposition in exchange for the treatment to his broken legs. In the course of his mission, he must gain the trust of the Na’vi people whilst convincing them to abandon their home turf. Unexpectedly, he falls in love with the Na’vi princess Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) who had been training him in their Na’vi life and ways. In the progression of the film, Sullu must make a choice whether to help his own human race to carry out their plan or to battle against the tide to side with his new friends, the Na’vis.

Review

James Cameron returns to the directing seat after he sank “Titanic” 12 years ago. Long before, he was known for his high quality sci-fi films that set new standards for 3d effects including “The Terminator”, “Aliens”, and “Terminator 2: Judgment Day”. With his refined state-of-the-art, $300 million worth production using CG effects in “Avatar”, he lines up with known sci-fi classics that came down history: “Star Wars”, “Jurassic Park”, “The Matrix” and “Lord of the Rings”.

The largest achievement of the movie comes from the most-talked about CG animation. Using this technology, Cameron brings to life the ten-foot-tall, blue-skinned, cat-like, indigenous people of the planet Pandora, the Na’vi. Though they’re quite a sore to the eye during promotions, while watching them thrive in their natural habitat, they’re a wonder to behold.

Another highly-talked about CG success in the movie is the dense forests populating the world of Pandora. The depiction of the ecologically-balanced, harmonious, and bio-diverse environment is filled with a lush jungle, floating mountains, and a gargantuan tree that stands out among the rest. The team has also created unique wildlife roaming around the planet like vicious viperwolves, six-legged direhorses, mighty thanators, graceful woodsprites, griffin-like banshees, and the predator leonopteryx.

The film’s soundtrack was something which complemented greatly to the success of the film.Composer James Horner scored the film, his third collaboration with Cameron after Aliens and Titanic.

My Verdict

When i started watching the films i was with half baked expectations as i was not a huge fan of Cameron,s earlier works[Titanic,Terminator etc].But the movie just made my perspectives change as as the projector started casting the images on the screen.Avatar  is not simply a sensational entertainment, although it is that. It’s a technical breakthrough. It has a flat-out Green and anti-war message. It is predestined to launch a cult following similar to Harry potter or Lord of the rings. It contains such visual detailing that it would reward repeating viewings and there lies real success of the film!

Cameron’s eye-popping visuals are the story, particularly because the actual narrative is too simple to sustain the 150-minute run time. The movie is about 95% cgi but there are no loose ends everything appears as if they are real.The movie was so involving that into the climax scenes i was almost in complete hysteria over the battle scenes.

I wouldnt say the 3d effects in the movie is top notch but unlike most other 3d films 80% of scenes in this film is 3d.But the effects of the 3d are not over expressive,it maybe because the Cameron must’ve considered it as a distraction.If  you want the ultimate 3d experience ,you may watch gore flicks like Final Destination 4 or My Bloody Valentine.

In short-
Staggering, spellbinding, a virtual trip to another world. Cameron has created the best film of the year and maybe of the decade

rating-7.5

PROS-CGI,presence of Stephen Lang,Zoe Saldaña etc and James Cameron’s direction

Cons-lackluster performance of most supporting actors,3d effects etc!

Avatar
Directed by	James Cameron
Produced by	James Cameron Jon Landau
Written by	James Cameron
Starring	Sam Worthington Zoë Saldaña Stephen Lang Michelle Rodriguez Giovanni Ribisi Sigourney Weaver
Music by	James Horner
Cinematography	Mauro Fiore
Editing by	James Cameron John Refoua Stephen E. Rivkin
Studio	Lightstorm Entertainment Dune Entertainment Ingenious Film Partners
Distributed by	20th Century Fox
Release date(s)	December 10, 2009 (London) December 17, 2009 (United Kingdom) December 18, 2009 (United States)
Running time	161 minutes[1]
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$237,000,000[2]

mov[5]-12 Angry Men

12 Angry Men is a 1957 American drama film adapted from a play by Reginald Rose. Directed by Sidney Lumet, the film tells the story of a jury made up of 12 men as they deliberate the guilt or innocence of a defendant on the basis of reasonable doubt. The film is notable for its almost exclusive use of one set: with the exception of two short scenes at the beginning and the end of the film set on the steps of the court building and two short scenes in an adjoining washroom, the entire movie takes place in the jury room

Plot Summary

The defence and the prosecution have rested and the jury is filing into the jury room to decide if a young Spanish-American is guilty or innocent of murdering his father. What begins as an open and shut case of murder soon becomes a mini-drama of each of the jurors’ prejudices and preconceptions about the trial, the accused, and each other. Based on the play, all of the action takes place on the stage of the jury room

Review

Contain spoilers!

The fact that plot takes place  almost entirely in a single courtroom was the main thing which attracted me into this film.its actually a very interesting premise to set a courtroom drama like this one.Actually i already saw “A few good men”[starring tom cruise] before seeing this classic movie.Being an Indian i’m not actually very familiar with the American Judicial system where consent of many jurors are needed for the judge to take his final decision.But i was not at all disappointed by this classic directed by Sidney Lumet.

This is a film where tension comes from personality conflict, dialogue and body language, not action; where the defendant has been glimpsed only in a single brief shot; where logic, emotion and prejudice struggle to control the field. The visual strategy of the movie is discussed by Lumet in Making Movies [cited from www.filmsite.org], one of the most intelligent and informative books ever written about the cinema. In planning the movie, he says, a “lens plot” occurred to him: To make the room seem smaller as the story continued, he gradually changed to lenses of longer focal lengths, so that the backgrounds seemed to close in on the characters.

The movie plays like a textbook for directors interested in how lens choices affect mood. By gradually lowering his camera, Lumet illustrates another principle of composition: A higher camera tends to dominate, a lower camera tends to be dominated. As the film begins we look down on the characters, and the angle suggests they can be comprehended and mastered. By the end, they loom over us, and we feel overwhelmed by the force of their passion. Lumet uses closeups rarely, but effectively: One man in particular–Juror No. 9 (Joseph Sweeney, the oldest man on the jury)–is often seen in full-frame, because he has a way of cutting to the crucial point and stating the obvious after it has eluded the others.[as explained by Roger Ebert,noted film critic]

My verdict

If you love classic movies,this is not a film to be missed at all! The director is so good in his work that he successfully manipulates the audience emotional stature without questioning their intelligence.Even though i saw only 1 film directed by this great director he has found 6th position in my Top 10 directors list.Eventhough this is a classic movie which is set in a single room dont think that this one will be boring.I was actually on my seat’s edge through out the film and was awed by the screenplay and dialogues!

ratings-9.0

pros-presence of Henry Fonda,skills of Sidney Lumet as a director,screenplay and dialogues

cons-lackluster performance of some jurors

Directed by	Sidney Lumet
Produced by	Henry Fonda Reginald Rose
Written by	Reginald Rose
Music by	Kenyon Hopkins
Cinematography	Boris Kaufman
Editing by	Carl Lerner
Distributed by	United Artists
Release date(s)	April 13, 1957
Running time	96 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$340,000

mov[4]-psycho

Psycho is an American 1960 suspense/thriller directed by Alfred Hitchcock, from the screenplay by Joseph Stefano. It is based on the novel of the same name by Robert Bloch, which was in turn inspired by the crimes of Wisconsin serial killer Ed Gein. The film depicts the encounter between a secretary, Marion Crane (Janet Leigh), who is in hiding at a motel after embezzling from her employer, and the motel’s owner, Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins), and the aftermath of their encounter.

Plot summary

Phoenix office worker Marion Crane is fed up with the way life has treated her.  She cannot marry Sam,her boy friend because Sam has to give most of his money away in alimony. One Friday Marion is trusted to bank $40,000 by her employer. Seeing the opportunity to take the money and start a new life, Marion leaves town and heads towards Sam’s California store. Tired after the long drive and caught in a storm, she gets off the main highway and pulls into The Bates Motel. The motel is managed by  Norman Bates, a troubled young man who seems to be obsessed with his Mother.After Norman feeds Marion dinner, she goes back to her room for a shower………………………..

Review

                                                                                           beware! may  contain spoilers!

Hype

 ”I was directing the viewers,” the director told Truffaut in their book-length interview. “You might say I was playing them, like an organ.” It was the most shocking film its original audience members had ever seen. “Do not reveal the surprises!” the ads shouted, and no moviegoer could have anticipated the surprises Hitchcock had in store–the murder of Marion (Janet Leigh), the apparent heroine, only a third of the way into the film, and the secret of Norman’s mother.  ”It is required that you see ‘Psycho’ from the very beginning!” Hitchcock decreed, explaining, “the late-comers would have been waiting to see Janet Leigh after she had disappeared from the screen action.” These were the ways by which the movie was promoted and remember in1960!Just imagine the hype it must have created and the film truly lives up to its hype!Whenever i saw the is film in greatest films’ lists,imdb top 250 etc i was so eager to see the film.It took me nearly 6 months to get my eyes on this film!And my patience was greatly rewarded by Alfred Hitchcock through his master piece!

Hichcock’s misleads

It never for a moment feels like material manufactured to mislead us. And as Marion flees Phoenix on her way to Sam’s home town of Fairvale, Calif , paranoia about the police is used with extreme perfection to mislead the viewer to a different plot ending. A highway patrolman (Mort Mills) wakes her from a roadside nap, questions her, and can almost see the envelope with the stolen money. She trades in her car for one with different plates, but at the dealership she’s startled to see the same patrolman parked across the street, leaning against his squad car, arms folded, staring at her. Every first-time viewer believes this setup establishes a story line which the movie will follow to the end. The scenes involving Norman Bates and Marion makes  us thinks that they will be players for the rest of the film.Here also Hitchcock with his masterful skill shown in scenes and dialogues misleads the viewers!He does that during their long conversation in Norman’s “parlor,” where savage stuffed birds seem poised to swoop down and capture them as prey. Marion has overheard the voice of Norman’s mother speaking sharply with him, and she gently suggests that Norman need not stay here in this dead end, a failing motel on a road that has been bypassed by the new interstate. She cares about Norman. She is also moved to rethink her own actions. And he is touched.

The Famous “Shower Scene”.

The famous shower scene stands out with its artistic excellence!Unlike modern horror films, “Psycho” never shows the knife striking flesh. There are no wounds. There is blood, but not gallons of it. Hitchcock shot in black and white because he felt the audience could not stand so much blood in color[not because there was no option for a colour take!]The slashing chords of Bernard Herrmann’s soundtrack substitute for more grisly sound effects. The closing shots are not graphic but symbolic, as blood and water spin down the drain, and the camera cuts to a closeup, the same size, of Marion’s unmoving eyeball. This remains the most effective slashing in movie history, suggesting that situation and artistry are more important than graphic details.

Anthony Perkins Presence

 Perkins does an uncanny job of establishing the complex character of Norman, in a performance that has become a landmark. Perkins shows us there is something fundamentally wrong with Norman, and yet he has a young man’s likability, jamming his hands into his jeans pockets, skipping onto the porch, grinning. Only when the conversation grows personal does he stammer and evade.

Substitution Of Protagonists

The death of the heroine is followed by Norman’s meticulous mopping-up of the death scene. Hitchcock is  fantastically substituting protagonists.  The sequence ends with the masterful shot of Bates pushing Marion’s car (containing her body and the cash) into a swamp.  The car finally disappears under the surface.Analyzing our feelings, we realize we wanted that car to sink, as much as Norman did. Before Sam Loomis reappears, teamed up with Marion’s sister Lila (Vera Miles) to search for her, “Psycho” already has a new protagonist: Norman Bates. This is one of the most audacious substitutions in Hitchcock’s long practice of leading and manipulating us. The rest of the film is effective melodrama, and there are two effective shocks. The private eye Arbogast is murdered, in a shot that uses back-projection to seem to follow him down the stairs. And the secret of Norman’s mother is revealed. [for some moments of the film we may even get convinced that this private eye is the protagonist!]

The Ending

For thoughtful viewers, however, an equal surprise is still waiting. After the murders have been solved, there is an inexplicable scene during which a long-winded psychiatrist  lectures the assembled survivors on the causes of Norman’s psychopathic behavior. This is an anticlimax taken almost to the point of parody.Until that moment i thought Night Shyamalan was the real king of twist endings and that perception was changed by Hitchcock!

My Verdict

If you are seeking another usual horror movie with its extra amounts violence and gore you are in the wrong place for sure!This movie is not another one of your horror flicks!This is a classic movie where artistic perfection,directorial skills,well placed dialogues and screenplay meet at a common point!This movie is undoubtedly one of the greatest classics ever produced by the Movie industry

AWARDS

Psycho was nominated for four Academy Awards: Best Supporting Actress (Janet Leigh), Director (Alfred Hitchcock), Black and White Cinematography (John Russell), and Black and White Art Direction-set decoration (Joseph Hurley, Robert Clatworthy, George Milo). It did not win any Academy Awards, though Leigh did win a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress, and Perkins tied for best actor in an award from the International Board of Motion Picture Reviewers.

Ratings-9.0

pros-Presence Of Anthony Perkins, “Hitchcock”ian style,great scene and dialogue placement!

cons-the doctor’s  explanation of Norman’s dual personality

Extra add ons-

1.One of the reasons Alfred Hitchcock shot the movie in black and white was he thought it would be too gory in color. But the main reason was that he wanted to make the film as inexpensively as possible (under $1 million). He also wondered if so many bad, inexpensively made, b/w “B” movies did so well at the box office, what would happen if a really good, inexpensively made, b/w movie was made.

2.In the opening scene, Marion Crane is wearing a white bra because Alfred Hitchcock wanted to show her as being “angelic”. After she has taken the money, the following scene has her in a black bra because now she has done something wrong and evil. Similarly, before she steals the money, she has a white purse; after she’s stolen the money, her purse is black.

3.First American film ever to show a toilet flushing on screen.

4.When the cast and crew began work on the first day they had to raise their right hands and promise not to divulge one word of the story. Hitchcock also withheld the ending part of the script from his cast until he needed to shoot it.

mov[3]-American Beauty

         American Beauty

American Beauty is a 1999 American drama film directed by Sam Mendes in his feature film debut. The film was written by Alan Ball and stars Kevin Spacey, Annette Bening, and Thora Birch as a dysfunctional suburban family. The film cost $15 million to produce, and filming took place in California, though the suburb was depicted as one that could be placed anywhere in America. American Beauty was positively received by critics and audiences alike, and it grossed over $350 million worldwide. The film won the 1999 Academy Award for Best Picture and was nominated for and won numerous other awards and honors, mainly for direction, writing, and acting.

Lester Burnham, the hero of “American Beauty,” is played by Kevin Spacey as a man who is unloved by his daughter, ignored by his wife and unnecessary at work. The movie starts with a startling claim made by the hero-”I’ll be dead in a year,”"In a way, I’m dead already.”.Thus the movie is a kind of a journey to his death.

Lester Burnham’s wife, Carolyn (Bening), is an ambitious real-estate broker; their 16-year-old daughter, Jane (Birch), abhors her parents, has low self-esteem and is saving money for a breast enlargement operation.Thus the family depicts a typical american sub urban nuclear family.During the first 10 minutes itself we can understand that there is no healthy relationship between the husband,wife and their daughter.

Lester Burnham played by Kevin Spacey is a man in his mid 40s who is having a troubled romantic relationship with his wife.This forces him to  develop a sexual fascination towards a teenage girl,Angela who happens to be a friend of his daughter.Angela is not Lester’s highway to bliss, but she is at least a catalyst for his freedom. His thoughts, and the discontent he has in his mind,Blast him free from years of emotional paralysis caused by his unsatisfying marriage life.In the mean time Burnham finds out Carolyn is cheating when he sees her with her lover in the drive-through lane of a fast-food restaurant (where he has a job he likes). Jane,daughter of Lester Burnham is being videotaped by Ricky (Wes Bentley), the boy next door, who has a strange light in his eyes.Later on in film they both fall in love and decides to settle  in New York City.Ricky’s dad (Chris Cooper) is a former Marine who tests him for drugs, taking a urine sample every six months; Ricky plays along to keep the peace until he can leave home.

All the emotional circumstances weave itself into a bizare night where Lester Burnham gets shot in his head as he rightly said in the satrt of the movie.But the question still lingers…WHO?The movie during its last phase kind of give a chance for us to “Choose The Correct Answer”? Then the movie presents itself the real man!

The movie uses satire to its best using Kevin Spacey’s magic!And Oh!yes Kevin Spacey is the right man to play Lester Burnham.He does reckless and foolish things in this movie, but he doesn’t deceive himself; he knows he’s running wild–and chooses to, burning up the future years of an empty lifetime for a few flashes of freedom. He may have lost everything by the end of the film, but he’s no longer a loser.

“American Beauty” is not as dark or twisted, It’s more about sadness and loneliness than about cruelty or inhumanity. And nobody is really bad in this movie, just shaped by society in such a way they can’t be themselves, or feel joy.This Great Movie occupies the third position in my list of greatest movies of all time!

AWARDS

Won 5 Oscars. Another 83 wins & 74 nominations

72nd Academy Awards	Best Picture	Bruce Cohen, Dan Jinks	Won
	Best Actor	Kevin Spacey	Won
	Best Director	Sam Mendes	Won
	Best Original Screenplay	Alan Ball	Won
	Best Cinematography	Conrad Hall	Won

I rate this movie 9.3/10 

pros-Kevin Spacey’s acting skills,superb direction,great background score and flawless screen play

cons-Casting of Thora Birch as  Jane Burnham[burnham's daughter]

Extra Add ONS-

 1.The title of the film refers to a breed of roses that while pretty and appealing in appearance, is often prone to rot underneath at the roots and branches of the plant. Thus, the tagline “…look closer” tells the viewer that when they look beyond the “perfect suburban life” they will find something rancid at the root.

2.SPOILER: When the funeral caravan passes by Jane and Ricky, he tells her that looking at a dead homeless person was like God staring at him, and he could stare right back. At the end of the film, when he sees Lester’s body, he momentarily stares into Lester’s eyes, fixated as if looking at God.

3.According to his Oscar speech, Alan Ball was sitting at the World Trade Center plaza when he saw a paper bag floating in the wind and was inspired by it to write the film.

mov[2]-The Shawshank Redemption

 

The Shawshank Redemption

The film portrays Andy Dufresne[Tim Robbins] who is convicted for murders he did not commit.The plot of the film revolves around andy spending nearly two decades in a fictional prison,the shawshank state prison and his friendship with fellow inmate Red[Morgan Freeman]

The partnership between the characters played by Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman is crucial to the way the story unfolds. This is not a “prison drama” in any conventional sense of the word. It is not about violence, riots or melodrama. The movie is based on a story,Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption, by Stephen King.

Andy, as played by Robbins, keeps his thoughts to himself. Red, as Freeman plays him, is therefore a crucial element in the story: His close observation of this man, down through the years, provides the way we monitor changes and track the measure of his influence on those around him. And all the time there is something else happening, hidden and secret, which is revealed only at the end.

The story is narrated by Morgan Freeman whose voice catches the interest of the audience!I frankly think that this movie wouldnt be so touching and binding if it wasnt for Morgan Freeman’s narration.The work done by Frank Darabont is higly appreciative because if there was no great directorial skill involved the movie could have been easily passed as another regular prison drama.another great thing about the movie i felt was that there was not even a single moment in the film which you could say was melodramatic in its strict sense!

There is a lot of life and humor in the movie, and warmth in the friendship that builds up between Andy and Red. There is even excitement and suspense, although not when we expect it.

AWARDS

In the 1994 Academy Awards the movie was nominated for seven awards (Best Picture, Best Actor – Morgan Freeman, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Editing,Best Original Score, and Best Sound) but, in the shadow of 1994’s big winner Forrest Gump, did not win a single one.

i rate this movie [9.5/10] and this is the best movie i have ever seen<tied at the top another movie>[incidentally it is currently ranked No. 1 on IMDB's 250 Greatest Films of All Time.]

pros-every aspect

cons-A VERY BIG NIL

GENRE -Prison Drama

DIRECTION -Frank Darabont

SCREENPLAY -Frank Darabont

CINEMATOGRAPHY -Roger Deakins

PRODUCTION -Niki Marvin

DISTRIBUTION -Columbia Pictures

Extra Add ON-I have a close pal named Jaykay who saw this movie just after he saw Escape From Alcatraz by Clint Eastwood,surprisingly after seeing shawshank he didn’t have a good opinion about the film.He kept on saying that shawshank was copied from escape from alcatraz!And when i watched shawshank i too noticed many similarities<too much for coincidence!>Let me list some,Prisoner keeping a pet of some sort,Attacks by prison gays,Long time in Solitary,Extremely harsh wardens,gets a job in a library, a black fellow inmate cum friend etc etc!

This my take on the issue!-One could probably find lots of other prison based film that have all or some of these examples. Think of any prison based film, they all tend to have harsh wardens, attacks by prison gays and periods in solitary!I do not think Shawshank Redemption has copied the style of Escape From Alcatraz. These prison films are just showing what life behind bars in some prisons is like.By the way i think escape from alcatraz is a mediocre film has nothing special to offer!So Shawshank still remains greatest film ever made according to me!

mov[1]-Saving Private Ryan

Saving Private Ryan

A 1998 American War film set during the invasion of Normandy in World War II. It was directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Robert Rodat. The film is notable for the intensity of its opening 24 minutes, which depict the Omaha beachhead assault of June 6, 1944. Afterward, it follows Tom Hanks as Captain John H. Miller and several Rangers (Tom Sizemore, Edward Burns, Barry Pepper, Vin Diesel, Giovanni Ribisi, and Adam Goldberg) as they search for a paratrooper of the United States 101st Airborne Division.

The movie’s opening sequence is as graphic as any war footage I’ve ever seen. In fierce dread and energy it’s on a par with Oliver Stone’s “Platoon,” and in scope surpasses it–because in the bloody early stages the landing forces and the enemy never meet eye to eye, but are simply faceless masses of men who have been ordered to shoot at one another until one side is destroyed.`

Saving Private Ryan” says things about war that are as complex and difficult as any essayist could possibly express, and does it with broad, strong images, with violence, with profanity, with action, with camaraderie. It is possible to express even the most thoughtful ideas in the simplest words and actions, and that’s what Spielberg does.I frankly think that film is doubly effective, because he communicates his ideas in feelings, not words“Saving Private Ryan” is a powerful experience.

I’m sure a lot of people will weep while seeing the film. Spielberg knows how to make audiences weep better as i have firsthand experience when i saw movies like schindler’s list and the terminal.The movie is visually prolific,emotionally involving and overall a great war film with realistic action sequences!

AWARDS

  There is a hell lot of awards…Won 5 Oscars. Another 52 wins & 53 nominations

Academy Awards

Best Cinematography Janusz Kaminski

Best Director Steven Spielberg

Best Effects, Sound Effects Editing Gary Rydstrom  Richard Hymns

Best Film Editing Michael Kahn

Best Sound Gary Rydstrom  Gary Summers  Andy Nelson  Ron Judkins

i rate this movie [9.5/10]!!!

PROS-Technical and directorical excellence,great cast and acting and involving screenplay!

CONS-none! as far as i can see!

GENRE                                     – War Film

DIRECTION                            - Steven Spielberg

SCREENPLAY                        -Robert Rodat

CINEMATOGRAPHY            -Janusz Kamiński

DISTRIBUTION                    -Paramount Pictures