Since I've allready spent a bunch of time on this forum, I thought that it would only be fitting to start a thread of my own movie musings for the erudite members of this forum. As I am not often in the moment, my thoughts do ramble, but at least I can do my rambling in one place. I will not review movies in any particular order but will do so hopefully being under the influence of temporary clarity so that the reader can get a fair idea of what the movie is about and what some of my thoughts are pertaining to it. As grading can be a very subjective thing, I would like to make it as simple as possible or avoid it all together. The star system just doesn't work for me because there are overall too many elements to consider, and not every one weighs their stars the same. But, as all of you seem to have some kind of a grading system, I'll also play. I'll confine myself to 3 ratings:
Exceptional - Movies that I can watch more than once ( in itself failrly rare )
Enjoyable - Movies that I felt were worth seeing and that I can reccomend to others for their viewing pleasure
Regretable - Movies that I felt were a waste of my time nad money. In all fairness I have to admit that some of
those movies I didn't see in their entity, as usually the first 20 minutes or so would have
been enough to lose my interest. Thankfully, there aren't too many of those as I make it a
point to watch previews beforehand, however, there have been occasions in the past were
the preview was edited well and looked interesting but the movie itself turned out to be a
dud. So, for the most part what you can expect to see in these reviews will be movies
that I thought were enjoyable or exceptional.
I welcome all comments and opinions and am open to discussion, agreement and disagreement, so please feel free to voice yourselves.
As for me, I just hope that my experiences can further enrich yours.
So, without further a do I present my first movie review:
FIRE
There is no word in Hindu that corresponds to the English word " lesbian " . Deepa Mehta, who also scripted this equisite and thought provoking movie, drew the ire of the Hindus in India for directing a story of a taboo relationship between two Hindu in-laws in a Bombay family.
Pretty much rejected by their own husbands, the two main characters of this movie, Rada and Sitha, find each other to satisfy their dormant sexual desires. Every character in this engaging film is carefully developed and their interplay is honed like a fine swiss watch. The director makes us, the audience, participating spectators in a highly emotional and complex story about two women who, in the process of rebelling against custom and tradition, find freedom in discovering themselves.
One can not help but feel simpathy for them, as they are portrayed as victims of a religiously stifling, male chauvinistic culture.
In the process, one is also entertained and enlightened about taboo mores in modern Indian society.
This film is the third in Deepa Mehta's trilogy, that richly describes the prevailing social conditions in contemporary India.
The same as in her two other movies, Water and Earth, Mehta disects and questions Hindu customs and tradition and in doing so creates an unforgetable canvas that touches all our lives.
Mehta portrays a household that in essence is a microcosom of quircky personalities.
Rhada is the outwardly traditional, caring and doting wife, where as Sitha is the young and somewhat rebelious newly wed.
In the house, present is the 100 old grandmother who doesn't know whether she is coming or going and is constantly in the care of others. The one that spends most of the time with her is a reluctant and lecherous servant, who uses his alone time with her to watch adult movies and play with himself.
Rhada's husband is obssessed with religion and believes that sex is for procreation only and since Rhada can't bear children, then why bother.
Sitha's husband has a mistress and treats Sitha with bored indifference.
In the presence of these two negative male stereotypes, it's almost a fore gone conclusion that the two women will turn to each other for love.
In spite of comical touches created in akward circumstances, in India the subject matter is nothing to joke about. The Hindus take their riots seriously, which is exactly what happened after this movie first premiered.
As such, this Bombay gem is much more suited to the temperament of Western audiences, who will definitely enjoy the mixture of comic relief and the serious expression of human sexuality in a society that still doesn't have a handle on it.
EXCEPTIONAL
Exceptional - Movies that I can watch more than once ( in itself failrly rare )
Enjoyable - Movies that I felt were worth seeing and that I can reccomend to others for their viewing pleasure
Regretable - Movies that I felt were a waste of my time nad money. In all fairness I have to admit that some of
those movies I didn't see in their entity, as usually the first 20 minutes or so would have
been enough to lose my interest. Thankfully, there aren't too many of those as I make it a
point to watch previews beforehand, however, there have been occasions in the past were
the preview was edited well and looked interesting but the movie itself turned out to be a
dud. So, for the most part what you can expect to see in these reviews will be movies
that I thought were enjoyable or exceptional.
I welcome all comments and opinions and am open to discussion, agreement and disagreement, so please feel free to voice yourselves.
As for me, I just hope that my experiences can further enrich yours.
So, without further a do I present my first movie review:
FIRE
There is no word in Hindu that corresponds to the English word " lesbian " . Deepa Mehta, who also scripted this equisite and thought provoking movie, drew the ire of the Hindus in India for directing a story of a taboo relationship between two Hindu in-laws in a Bombay family.
Pretty much rejected by their own husbands, the two main characters of this movie, Rada and Sitha, find each other to satisfy their dormant sexual desires. Every character in this engaging film is carefully developed and their interplay is honed like a fine swiss watch. The director makes us, the audience, participating spectators in a highly emotional and complex story about two women who, in the process of rebelling against custom and tradition, find freedom in discovering themselves.
One can not help but feel simpathy for them, as they are portrayed as victims of a religiously stifling, male chauvinistic culture.
In the process, one is also entertained and enlightened about taboo mores in modern Indian society.
This film is the third in Deepa Mehta's trilogy, that richly describes the prevailing social conditions in contemporary India.
The same as in her two other movies, Water and Earth, Mehta disects and questions Hindu customs and tradition and in doing so creates an unforgetable canvas that touches all our lives.
Mehta portrays a household that in essence is a microcosom of quircky personalities.
Rhada is the outwardly traditional, caring and doting wife, where as Sitha is the young and somewhat rebelious newly wed.
In the house, present is the 100 old grandmother who doesn't know whether she is coming or going and is constantly in the care of others. The one that spends most of the time with her is a reluctant and lecherous servant, who uses his alone time with her to watch adult movies and play with himself.
Rhada's husband is obssessed with religion and believes that sex is for procreation only and since Rhada can't bear children, then why bother.
Sitha's husband has a mistress and treats Sitha with bored indifference.
In the presence of these two negative male stereotypes, it's almost a fore gone conclusion that the two women will turn to each other for love.
In spite of comical touches created in akward circumstances, in India the subject matter is nothing to joke about. The Hindus take their riots seriously, which is exactly what happened after this movie first premiered.
As such, this Bombay gem is much more suited to the temperament of Western audiences, who will definitely enjoy the mixture of comic relief and the serious expression of human sexuality in a society that still doesn't have a handle on it.
EXCEPTIONAL
Last edited by cinemaafficionado; 04-11-12 at 09:53 PM.