Movie Review – Babette’s Feast directed by Gabriel Axel

I watched ‘Babette’s Feast’ today. It is directed by Gabriel Axel and is based on a short story by Isak Dinesen, who also wrote‘Out of Africa’.

 

 

The story is about two Danish girls, Martine and Philippa, whose father is the local pastor. When young men show interest in these two girls, who are very beautiful, and ask for their hands in marriage, their father typically rejects them. The young women grow up and become old and continue their father’s good work. One day a younger woman arrives at their place. She is French and her name is Babette. She gives our heroines an introduction letter which is from an old French singer who courted Philippa when she was younger. The letter says that Babette had to leave France because her family was killed in the civil war. He requests the sisters to help her. The sisters take her in. Babette’s initially learns the chores from them and then is able to handle everything on her own, including the cooking.

 

One day a letter arrives from France for Babette, which says that she has won ten thousand Francs in the lottery. The sisters think that Babette will go back to France. Babette says that she wants to organize a French style feast for the sisters and their friends and congregation to celebrate their father’s hundredth birthday. The sisters, after some initial reluctance, agree to the plan. Babette goes to France, gets her lottery winnings, and comes back with the ingredients required for the French feast. When the sisters see the ingredients – which include a live turtle, quail and French wine – they get uncomfortable. Martine has nightmares about it and feels that having a feast like this is sinful. The sisters gather together their friends and tell them that though they would all go to the feast, they won’t think or talk about the food and they will ignore the taste.

 

The day of the feast arrives. An army general, who courted Martine, when he was a young officer, also comes to the feast with his mother. Everyone is apprehensive when the food is served. And then magic happens. The feast is divine. Each dish is a work of art – in colour, in appearance, in taste. The guests lose themselves in the sensual pleasures of food, which also brings them together as people and makes them remember their lives, their past, their loves. The feast magically transforms everyone’s hearts. After the feast all the guests go outside and hold their hands and dance in a circle while gazing at the beautiful twinkling stars. Martine and Philippa thank Babette for her wonderful feast. They then discover that she was a famous French cook. They also realize that she has spent all her lottery winnings on the feast to make them and their friends happy and also to practise her art to the best of her ability one last time. They also realize that she is not going to Paris but is going to stay with them.

 

I loved ‘Babette’s Feast’. It is a celebration of food – almost spiritual in its intensity and vision. It is also a celebration of love and art and beauty. When Babette says towards the end – “I don’t cook. I practise art” – it gave me goose bumps. I wish I was there at Babette’s feast, taking a sip of the ‘Clos de Vougeot 1845’ and trying out Babette’s delicious works of art.

 

I read an essay on the movie, after watching it. It had this beautiful passage which I loved – “The spectacular repast that crowns the film conjures up a vision of spiritual well-being created by the transcendent artistry of a chef who sacrifices all for her art and, through that art, recreates her country. This restitution of place and resurrection of time makes the most powerful case yet for the intimate drama of culinary metamorphosis.”

 

‘Babette’s Feast’ won many awards when it came out, including the Oscar for Best Foreign Language film in 1987. I can see why. If you like movies which celebrate the pleasures of food, you will love this. Recommended J

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Movie Review – Terminal Station directed by Vittorio De Sica

My book reading has been going quite poorly for a while now. And so my blogging has come to a standstill. I haven’t even finished the fourth part of my ‘Mysteries of Udolpho’ readalong yet and I am feeling quite bad about it (Sorry Delia!). So, I thought instead of waiting till I finish my next book, I thought I will write about something else. I have been watching a lot of movies lately, and I thought I will write about some of them. So, here is the first post of this series.

 

 

I watched ‘Terminal Station’ today. It was directed by Vittorio De Sica. And yes, it is a Hollywood movie! I didn’t know that De Sica directed Hollywood movies. This one had Jennifer Jones and Montgomery Clift in lead roles. The story is about an American housewife, Mary, who goes to Rome on a holiday to meet her sister and her family and falls in love with an Italian (and half-American) teacher, Giovanni. When I heard the haunting initial score by Alessandro Cicognini (which I am listening to, on repeat mode now – do check out from 0.14 to 1.25 at the link), I knew that things were not going to end well, for the main characters.

 

The movie was initially released in English with the title ‘Indiscretion of an American Housewife’ which is a very poor title, in my opinion. The Italian title ‘Terminal Station’ is far better, as all the action in the movie happens in the Rome Terminal Train Station.

 

An odd thing for me is that Jennifer Jones is not one of my favourite Golden Age Hollywood actresses. Ingrid Bergman and Bette Davis are. With honourable mentions to Joan Crawford and Lizabeth Scott (Yes, no Elizabeth Taylor and Marilyn Monroe!) Somehow I don’t think Jennifer Jones’ acting is up there. But this is the third consecutive movie of hers that I have liked very much. The others are ‘Portrait of Jennie’ and ‘Since You Went Away’. She must be doing something right. I want to watch three movies of hers that I have – ‘Duel in the Sun’, ‘The Song of Bernadette’ and ‘Love is a Many Splendored Thing’, for all three of which she was nominated for the Best Actress Oscar and won for ‘The Song of Bernadette’. I should then upgrade her status in my favourite actresses list.

 

In the last scene, when the lovers are parting, probably to never meet again, the conversation goes like this :

 

Giovanni : “I guess maybe I better be getting off.”

 

Mary : “Not yet. It’ll begin soon enough…the wondering. All my life I’ll wonder, “Where is he? Where, just this moment…just now? What is he looking at? What is he thinking? Is he well? Is he in love? Is she beautiful?”"

 

Giovanni : “He is in love…and she is beautiful.”

 

It was heartbreaking. (You can watch the scene here, if you like. It starts from 5.25.) Movie connoisseurs say that the scene from ‘The Philadelphia Story’ where Tracy Lord (Katherine Hepburn) says : “Put me in your pocket, Mike” is the most romantic scene ever. I haven’t seen ‘The Philadelphia Story’, unfortunately. For me, though, this last scene from ‘Terminal Station’ is up there on top, as the most romantic, heartbreaking scene ever. It is going to be tough to beat this one.

 

This is a must watch movie for romantic movie fans

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Favourite films of all time – an attempt at making a list

After reading Steve’s and Kelly’s post on Roger Ebert’s top-10 greatest movies of all time, I decided to make a top-10 list, because I thought it will be fun. Writing down a list should be easy – it would start with the first movie and end with the tenth. Unfortunately, life is not so simple. So, you have to endure with me, during this long introduction at the beginning and a long apology at the end. I am sorry for that.

 

I wasn’t sure whether I can separate the meanings of ‘favourite’ and ‘greatest’. It was too hard. It was difficult to leave out favourites in the pursuit of ‘greatness’. So, I will call my list ‘My top-10 favourites’. However, I decided to not include romantic comedies, action movies, thrillers, horror movies, spy movies, animation movies and the like. I love all these genres (I can watch ‘The Transformers’ and ‘The Transporter’ any number of times), but I thought that I will include only ‘arty’ kind of movies. (Now please don’t pounce on me and tell me that there are ‘arty’ romance movies and ‘arty’ action movies and kill me ) I also decided to include only American, European and Japanese movies on this list. I would have loved to include Indian movies but then I decided to make a separate list of favourite Indian movies. I also ignored Oscar nominees of recent years – selectively, of course.

 

So, subject to the above caveats, here is my top-10 alltime favourite movies, in no particular order.

 

(1) Hamlet – This film version of Shakespeare’s play is faithful to the original. Laurence Olivier as the tortured Prince of Denmark is peerless. The last scene where Horatio says – “Good-night, sweet prince; And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.” – still makes me cry.

 

(2) Casablanca – I had to include a Humphrey Bogart and an Ingrid Bergman movie – two of my favourite movie stars – and which one better than the one in which both of them had acted together. One of the great love stories of all time. It still makes me happy and sad.

 

(3) Burnt by the Sun – Set in Russia during the time of the purges brought out by Stalin, this tells the story of a retired army officer who is living the happy Russian life in his village with his young wife and children when the boyhood sweetheart of his wife arrives on the scene. But appearances are deceptive and this man is not what he seems. This movie showed me that things can change in an instant and then we will spend the rest of our life or whatever is left of it, yearning for the past. I am a big fan of Nikita Mikhalkov who has acted in and directed this movie. I love all his movies but I think this is his best. It won the Jury prize in Cannes and the Oscar for Best Foreign Language film – both in 1994.

 

(4) A Special Day – It is a movie set during World War 2 Italy. Hitler has come to Italy and Mussolini is welcoming him with a parade. Everyone in a particular apartment complex has left to see the parade except for the building caretaker. And two people. One of them is a housewife who has work at home. Another is a mysterious man who is packing stuff in his house. When the two meet accidentally, something happens. Sophia Loren is brilliant as the housewife – I didn’t know that she was such a brilliant actress. Hollywood has totally wasted her talent casting her in sexy-siren roles. Marcelo Mastroianni as the mysterious man is wonderful too.

 

(5) Rashomon – A man is travelling with his wife through a forest and he gets killed. Who is the murderer and why was he killed? The court assembles witnesses who each tell a different story. Which is the truth? Is there something called the absolute truth? The movie asks these interesting questions. I have seen this Akira Kurosawa movie many times and it is wonderful each time. One of my dear friends who has probably watched all the best movies ever made, told me that Kurosawa’s ‘Ikiru’ is better than ‘Rashomon’. I can’t see how Kurosawa could have improved on ‘Rashomon’. I want to watch ‘Ikiru’ now and find out.

 

(6) Wild Strawberries – A retired professor goes on a long trip by car with his daughter-in-law to get a honorary degree. During the trip he meets many people who remind him of his own past life. He takes a trip down memory lane. This interplay of what happens during the current time and the professor’s trip down memory line form the rest of the story. I haven’t seen many of Ingmar Bergman’s movies, but this is my favourite out of the ones I have seen.

 

(7) Things We Lost in the Fire – Shows the relationship between a young, widowed mother and her husband’s closest friend who is a drug addict. For some reason I have never warmed up to Benicio Del Torro before but loved his performance here. Halle Berry as the young widowed mother has done brilliantly. This movie also taught me a new phrase ‘God’s Kiss’. 

 

(8) 12 Angry Men – How a juror convinces the rest of the jury of the innocence of the accused is the story.  I have mostly seen Henry Fonda as a villain, most memorably in ‘Once Upon a Time in the West’. So it was interesting to see him as a juror in this movie. Fonda is brilliant in that role. I fell in love with director Sidney Lumet after seeing this movie.

 

(9) Pulp Fiction – I love all of Quentin Tarantino’s movies. But this one – the most studied and analysed movie of his – has to take the cake. It was a close race between this and ‘Reservoir Dogs’ though. Samuel Jackson is brilliant in this movie. Uma Thurman played her perfect role to date. And Tarantino shows that violence can be art.

 

(10) The Good, The Bad and The Ugly – I had to include a Clint Eastwood movie ‘The Good, The Bad and The Ugly’ is one of my top two favourite westerns, the other being ‘Django‘. Coincidentally, both of them spaghetti westerns. Film critics and connoisseurs of westerns might look down on spaghetti westerns (westerns made by Italians and non-Americans), but Sergio Leone showed that the imitation could be better than the original. When people tell me that John Wayne was the greatest hero of westerns, I ask them – ‘Have you watched Clint Eastwood?’ J

 

Some of the movies that I really wanted to include, but had to leave out were ‘Juno’ (a movie I love watching again and again. It is about teen pregnancy), ‘The Reader’ (I really wanted Kate Winslet on the list), ‘Heaven Can Wait’ (which has one of my favourite golden-era actresses Gene Tierney), ‘The Little Foxes’ (starring another of my favourite actresses Bette Davis who plays the role of an awesome villain in the movie), ‘The Petrified Forest’ (in which I loved all the characters including the charismatic robber played by Humphrey Bogart), ‘The Piano’ (Jane Campion is a genius), ‘The Godfather’ (It used to be one of my favourite movies but for some reason the power of the movie has waned in recent times.), ‘Before Sunrise’ (I really felt bad at leaving this one out), ‘Crimson Tide’ (the conversation on Lippizaner horses by Gene Hackman and Denzel Washington was enough for me), ‘The Band’s Visit’ (beautiful movie about Egyptian musicians who travel to Israel for a concert and lose their way there and end up in the middle of nowhere and have some pleasantly surprising experiences as a result), ‘Stromboli’ (I had included one Ingrid Bergman movie and so had to leave this out), ‘Irony of Fate’ (probably my most favourite Russian movie. Unfortunately it is a romantic comedy and because this was an ‘arty’ movie list, it was pipped by the artistic credentials of ‘Burnt by the Sun’), two Clint Eastwood movies ‘Gran Torino’ and ‘A Perfect World’ (there was room only for one Clint Eastwood movie), ‘An Unfinished Piece on the Mechanical Piano’ (a movie based on a Chekhov play called ‘Platonov’. The long unwieldy title hides behind it a beautiful work of art. Unfortunately, there was room for only one Russian movie), ‘The Weakness of the Bolshevik’ (a Spanish movie which tells an achingly beautiful story of love between a bank executive and a teenage girl), ‘Dr.No’ (the first Bond movie might be viewed as just an entertainment vehicle. But the first scene where Bond is introduced is one of the best character introductions I have seen. It gives me goose pimples even now! Sean Connery is so masculine and handsome –  it is no wonder that he is frequently voted as the sexiest man alive! The film nearly excelled itself on this aspect with the introduction scene of Ursula Andress as Honey Rider. The Bond introduction was better though, in my opinion), ‘Amelie’ (a beautiful, funny French love story which made me fall in love with Audrey Tautou), ‘No Man’s Land’ (a film based on the Bosnian war which I really loved and for which I should really have found room in my list) and ‘The Curse of the Golden Flower’ (directed by my favourite Chinese director Zhang Yimou, it is a grand movie with sweeping sets and depicts palace intrigue during the Tang dynasty).

 

There are no movies by Stanley Kubrick (one of my alltime favourite directors – I really wish I had found room for ‘Paths of Glory’ on my list), Alfred Hitchcock, Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorcese on my list, which is really disappointing.

 

 If I try making a top-10 list tomorrow, I am sure I will have a different set of movies on that list!  It is so hard to make just one top-10 list! I think I should make separate lists for American, European, Indian, Asian and ROTW movies.

 

What do you think of my list? Which are your alltime favourite top-10 movies?

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Doing one’s own thing and believing in things one can’t see

I saw a movie called ‘Portrait of Jennie’ yesterday. It was a movie from a different era and it was beautiful and haunting. It was about an artist who finds his muse and starts producing beautiful works of art, but who is intrigued and puzzled by his mysterious muse and her secrets and her magical appearances and sudden departures. The character of Miss Spinney, the artist’s patron who is an art dealer, is played by Ethel Barrymore, great-aunt of Drew Barrymore – she was around 70 years when this movie was released, but even at that age, she looks so beautiful and graceful. I am giving below some of my favourite dialogues from the movie.

Gus : Let me put it this way, Mac. I have got a lot of respect for a guy that’s doing what he’s got to, even if, maybe, it’s killing him. You want to paint pictures, so you’re going right ahead doing it, no matter. I like that, Mac. Most of the time, fellow’s got the idea that there is nothing much to life except getting through it as easy and as comfortable as they can. Making a quarter here, a dollar there. Eating, sleeping and dying. Then a fellow like you comes along who’s not thinking too much about them things. It starts you wondering. Wondering maybe if you’re not missing something.

Miss Spinney : You know, something about you appeals to me.
Eben Adams : I can’t imagine what.
Miss Spinney : I think you are like the beau I wanted when I was young. When I was doubting myself.
Eben Adams : Not you, too?
Miss Spinney : Even me. Look what it’s brought me. Just a frustrated old maid, lecturing a frustrated young artist.

Eben Adams : Maybe I will paint only one important painting in my life, that much I know I can do.
Miss Spinney : A Portrait of Jennie?
Eben Adams : Yes. It’s the first and only thing I have ever been sure of in my life.
Miss Spinney : But you couldn’t do it without her.
Eben Adams : Of course not.
Miss Spinney : Suppose she doesn’t make another appearance?
Eben Adams : I can’t even think of that.
Miss Spinney : I didn’t realize how much you needed her. It took you a long time to find something to bring your talent to life. You couldn’t find it, so…
Eben Adams : So you think I created her, because I needed her for…
Miss Spinney : Inspiration? Perhaps. Maybe you really saw her, maybe you didn’t. What is the difference? As you grow older, you will learn to believe in lots of things you can’t see. Better get that canvas ready for her.

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Delightful moments at the movies – Feb 2010 Edition – Part 2

Here is the second part of the February 2010 edition of ‘Delightful moments at the movies’

(1) Before Sunrise – Directed by Richard Linklater - Lead Actors and Actresses : Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy – Saw ‘Before Sunset’ a few years back and liked it very much and so have been wanting to see its prequel ‘Before Sunrise’ since then. A beautiful movie which only has a marathon conversation between the main characters, in Vienna, during the course of a night. Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy have done quite well, though I liked Julie Delpy’s character a little bit more. ‘Before Sunrise’ is better than ‘Before Sunset‘, though ‘Before Sunset’ is also good. One of my favourite movies of the year!

(2) Rules of Engagement – Directed by William Friedkin – Lead Actors and Actresses : Tommy Lee Jones, Samuel L.Jackson, Guy Pearce, Ben Kingsley, Bruce Greenwood, Anne Archer – Legal drama based on a war scene. A bit disappointing. Some of the scenes reminds one of ‘A Few Good Men’. But ‘A Few Good Men’ is a wonderful movie with stellar performances by most of the cast (Tom Cruise, Demi Moore, Jack Nicholson), but though here there are  heavyweight actors here, in Tommy Lee Jones, Samuel Jackson, Ben Kingsley and Guy Pearce, the movie somehow doesn’t work. There is no surprise in the end and things are a bit too predictable.

(3) Half Light – Directed by Craig Rosenberg – Lead Actresses and Actors : Demi Moore, Henry Ian Cusick, Kate Isitt, Hans Matheson, James Cosmo, Joanna Hole, Beans El-Balawi – Saw a Demi Moore film after a long time. She looks as young as ever! It was an interesting thriller which grabbed my attention, but unfortunately, towards the end, everything became predictable – like a 1950s/1960s murder mystery. The scenes in the movie have been sculpted beautifully and the locale – seaside Wales – is breathtakingly beautiful.

(4) Kettle of Fish – Directed by Claudia Myers – Lead Actors and Actresses : Matthew Modine, Gina Gershon, Christy Scott Cashman, Isiah Whitlock Jr. – Nice romantic comedy about a sax musician in a nightclub and a biologist who is his roommate and starts her acquaintance with him by hating him. I didn’t know any of the actors or actresses but liked most of them. Matthew Modine does well in his role as a sax musician in a nightclub and Gina Gershon does well as the biologist. Christy Scott Cashman as the wife of a rich man does well too. Ending is predictable, but the movie was romantic. There is an interesting romance between a frog (the biologist’s) and a goldfish (the musician’s). Was surprised to find that this movie didn’t have a Wikipedia entry – even the vaguest movies have. Looks like it didn’t do too well in the box office. It is sad, because the movie was actually nice.

(5) Analyze This – Directed by Harold Ramis – Lead Actors and Actresses : Robert De Niro, Billy Crystal, Lisa Kudrow – Robert De Niro plays the role of a mobster and Billy Crystal is his psychiatrist. Lisa Kudrow is Billy Crystal’s character’s girlfriend. Nice comedy. De Niro does well – after the critically acclaimed hits of his younger days, he has reinvented himself as an elderly comedian now.

(6) Rails and Ties – Directed by Alison Eastwood – Lead Actors and Actresses : Kevin Bacon, Marcia Gay Harden, Miles Heizer – Story about a train driver who has an accident which kills a woman, who commits suicide on the tracks. An added complexity is that the son of the woman who died, likes the train driver and his wife, and becomes a part of their family. Kevin Bacon does excellently in the role of the train driver and husband and mentor to the young boy – he shows all the vulnerability of the family man on his face. It is sad that in the first part of his career, he was just given bit-parts and it is nice that he is getting meatier roles now. Marcia Gay Harden plays the role of the wife of Kevin Bacon’s character and does quite well.

(7) Mama Mia! – Directed by Phyllida Lloyd – Lead Actresses and Actors : Meryl Streep, Amanda Seyfried, Pierce Brosnan, Julie Walters, Christiane Baranski, Colin Firth, Stellan Skarsgard – Interesting story about a girl who invites three men (one of whom could be her actual father) to her wedding. Reminded me of a movie called ‘Definitely, Maybe’ which I saw sometime back, which had similar elements in its plot. The film has all the famous ABBA songs and so is a pleasure to listen and watch. I loved the performance of Meryl Streep (the mom), Amanda Seyfriend (the daughter) and all the three former boyfriends of Streep’s character, one of whom is played by Pierce Brosnan (why did he walk out of the Bond role? Sad!)

(8) The Time Traveler’s Wife – Directed by Robert Schwentke – Lead Actors and Actresses : Rachel McAdams, Eric Bana – Interesting story about a time traveller and about his beloved and his family. Rachel McAdams as the time traveller’s girlfriend and wife does well (I really liked her role as Irene Adler in ‘Sherlock Holmes‘ and her performance in this movie is nice as well). My favourite character was the younger version of the heroine played by Brooklynn Proulx. Earlier the only way to write story about time travel, was to write a science fiction novel about it. Audrey Niffenegger has used the premise to write a love story (on which this movie is based) which is wonderful!

(9) Under the Tuscan Sun – Directed by Audrey Wells – Lead Actresses and Actors : Diane Lane, Sandra Oh, Raoul Bova, Pawel Szajda, Lindsay Duncan, Giulia Stiegerwalt – Beautiful story about a woman whose husband leaves her and how she is able to find her life and love after moving to Italy. The Italian culture and people depicted in the movie are very wonderful. I am hoping to read the book (the memoir of Frances Hayes) on which the movie is based, sometime. Diane Lane does well in the leading role, while her character’s Italian boyfriend Marcello (played by Raoul Bova) also does very well. Liked the way Italian men are portrayed in the movie – handsome, masculine and flirting with women all the time (though I suspect that it is just the archetype and not true). Loved the movie. One of my favourites out of the ones that I have seen this year.

(10) Love Happens – Directed by Brandon Camp – Lead Actors and Actresses : Jennifer Aniston, Aaron Eckhart – Story about a bestseller writer who helps others overcome grief, but who doesn’t recognize his own grief. Liked watching Aaron Eckhart and Jennifer Aniston, but something didn’t come together in the movie and though it was nice in parts, overall it wasn’t satisfying. Also Eckhart does quite poorly in the emoting scenes, which was disappointing, because I have liked all of his movies that I have watched till now (Erin Brockovich, No Reservations, The Core). It is difficult to believe that Jennifer Aniston has crossed forty now – she is so beautiful!

(11) Alex and Emma – Directed by Rob Reiner – Lead Actors and Actresses : Luke Wilson, Kate Hudson, Sophie Marceau – Watched it for the Nth time! It is a movie about how a novelist has to finish writing a novel within thirty days to repay his debt and how he uses his own life experiences to write the novel, and how, in the process, he falls in love with the lady from the stenographer agency who transcribes his novel. Loved Kate Hudson’s role in the movie. It was also interesting to see Luke Wilson’s character trying to write a novel – the process described is very real and true (many times authors don’t know how a particular scene will turn out or how the novel will end), though the movie is a comedy.

(12) The Road – Directed by John Hillcoat – Lead Actors and Actresses : Viggo Mortensen, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Charlize Theron, Robert Duvall – Film adaptation of the Cormac McCarthy novel. Bleak from the beginning to the end, though the ending offers a ray of hope. The landscape, the sky, the houses, the road, the sea – they are all grey. It looks like the director didn’t need any colour to film this sombre story. I read somewhere that the role of Charlize Theron’s character has been expanded in the movie, when compared to the book. She does well in her role. I haven’t read any Cormac McCarthy novel before, but with the kind of bleak tone the movie had, I think one needs to be in the right mood to read any of McCarthy’s works. I am surprised that this movie was not one of the ten nominees for the Best Picture Oscar this year. Maybe this is the year of the sunshine movies – most of the nominees I have seen make one happy and smile in the end. I have seen Director John Hillcoat’s movie ‘The Proposition’ before and liked it very much. It has its violent and dark moments but was wonderful overall. I would rate it higher in terms of likeability, though in terms of cinematic art, ‘The Road’ is at the same level.

(13) P.S. I love you – Directed by Richard LaGravenesse – Lead Actresses and Actors : Hilary Swank, Gerard Butler, Lisa Kudrow, Gina Gershon, Kathy Bates, Jeffrey Dean Morgan – Old-fashioned romantic movie about a young woman who loses her husband with whom she is very much in love with and how her husband had arranged for his letters to reach her which show her how to get on with her life. I loved the movie! I can’t imagine Hilary Swank in a romantic movie, but she does quite well. Gerard Butler looks cool! I loved the song ‘I took a stroll on the old long walk’ which comes in the movie – it is so wonderful that I couldn’t get the song out of my head You can see two versions of the song here (how it comes in the movie) and here (has movie scenes with singer and lyricist Steve Earle’s voice). Jeffrey Dean Morgan plays the role of an Irish singer and he looked to me like Javier Bardem. Critics seem to have panned this movie, which is sad. (It is like some of those unhappy people I have met, who say that icecream and chocolates are bad – what do they know about icecreams and chocolates!!) Critics have even panned the above song! (If you do see the videos do tell me whether you agree with me or with the critics ) I am glad that movie makers don’t listen to critics and continue making romantic movies! Thank God for romantic movies! I was in a terrible mood when I sat to watch this movie and by the end I was laughing and crying – that is what an old-fashioned romantic movie can do. I am going to unashamedly say that it is one of my favourite movies of the year I am going to watch it again

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Delightful moments at the movies – Feb 2010 Edition – Part 1 (Oscar Special)

Here is the first part of the February 2010 edition of ‘Delightful moments at the movies

Present nominees (all kinds!)

(1) Up in the Air – Directed by Jason Reitman – Lead Actors and Actresses : George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Anna Kendrick – Story about a chap who is a ‘corporate downsizer’ and whose job it is to tell people they are fired. A new greenhorn who joins his company tries to save travel costs by trying to do this highly personal and sensitive activity over video conference. This affects our hero who is having an affair with someone whom he meets at airports. George Clooney does well in the main role, while Vera Farmiga as the fellow frequent flyer and his romantic interest and Anna Kendrick as his new team member with innovative ideas do well. There are shades of ‘Intolerable Cruelty’ in this movie (a chap cynical about relationships but who becomes a romantic later), but I liked this movie more. My most favourite scene in the movie was when George Clooney’s character convinces his sister’s boyfriend, who has developed cold feet, to proceed with the marriage. I wasn’t sure how it would go, but the scene went off well and it was quite convincing.

(2) Invictus – Directed by Clint Eastwood – Lead Actors and Actresses : Morgan Freeman, Matt Damon, Adjoa Andoh – Inspiring  movie. I didn’t know a lot about the history of the 1995 Rugby world cup and so it was nice to know that through this movie. Freeman is perfect in his role as Mandela. It was interesting to see Matt Damon speak in a South African accent. I also liked the character of Mandela’s chief of staff played by Adjoa Andoh.

(3) District 9 – Directed by Neill Blomkamp – Lead Actors and Actresses : Sharlto Copley, Jason Copes, David James – Movie about aliens landing in South Africa and how the South African government handles it. The movie is made like a fictional documentary. There are shades of ‘Avatar’ and ‘Dances with Wolves’ in the movie, but the details are different. Liked the character played by Sharlto Copley (as the official incharge of evicting the alients) and one of the aliens, Christopher Johnson (played by Jason Copes). Found the movie a bit difficult to watch.

(4) Sherlock Holmes – Directed by Guy Ritchie – Lead Actors and Actresses : Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Rachel McAdams, Mark Strong – Interesting interpretation of the Sherlock Holmes stories. Robert Downey Jr. does well as Holmes and Jude Law plays an interesting version of Dr.Watson. I liked Jude Law’s performance very much. The version of Sherlock Holmes and James Watson of the movie combine both detection and action and are ready to fight with the bad guys when needed. Sometimes Watson proves his deductive skills too by making inferences as fast as Holmes. The character of Irene Adler is portrayed well by Rachel McAdams – mysterious and mischievous. Loved the references to different characters and events in Sherlock Holmes stories.

Past nominees (all kinds!)

(5) My Cousin Vinny – Directed by Jonathan Lynn – Lead Actors and Actresses : Joe Pesci, Marisa Tomei, Fred Gwynne – Saw this movie for the Nth time Joe Pesci is nice in the role of a budding lawyer and Maris Tomei as Pesci’s girlfriend is brilliant (she won a best supporting Oscar for her role in this movie). Fred Gwynne as the Judge is wonderful! I don’t know why I haven’t seen any movies of his, before – he is really good.

(6) Chocolat – Directed by Lasse Hallstrom – Lead Actresses and Actors : Juliette Binoche, Johnny Depp, Judi Dench, Alfred Molina, Leslie Caron, Victoire Thivisol, Carrie-Ann Moss – Saw this movie many years back in the theatre and saw it again on TV. The freshness of the movie is still intact and Juliette Binoche is as wonderful as ever. It is sad that she is not getting the kind of opportunities she deserves for her talent. Johnny Depp is cool in his role.

Part 2 follows soon

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Delightful moments at the movies – Jan 2010 edition

My book reading is going slow and steady and as I haven’t read enough to write my second book post of the year, I thought instead of waiting till I complete my first book (the mammoth ‘War and Peace’) I will write about another thing which is dear to my heart – movies So, here is the list of some interesting movies that I saw last month and what I think about them.

(1) Rettai Vaal Kuruvi (Two-tailed Sparrow) – Directed by Balumahendra - Lead Actors and Actresses : Mohan, Archana, Radhika – This is a Tamil movie which came many years back. It is a story of a man who has two wives and loves them both. Intimate and affectionate scenes between Mohan and Archana on one hand and Radhika on the other are portrayed quite well. The plot is weak and takes on a predictable path after sometime.

(2) Transporter (Part 3) – Directed by Oliver Megaton – Lead Actors and Actresses : Jason Statham, Francois Berleand, Natalya Rudakova – I saw the first part of the ‘Transporter’ series before and liked it. It was a movie which didn’t make one think but was fun to watch. It also had an interesting character of a French police inspector played by Francois Berleand, who quoted Marcel Proust. Thought I will watch the third part and see what Francois Berleand says now. The third part was quite average and the premise behind the movie is starting to jade a little bit. Also Hong Kong actress Shu Qi who played the heroine’s role is the first part was way better than Natalya Rudakova. The saving grace is Francois Berleand. He does what is expected of him, and quotes Dostoevsky this time But even there, his quoting of Proust was better

(3) Being There - Directed by Hal Ashby – Lead Actors and Actresses : Peter Sellers, Shirley MacLaine, Melvyn Douglas, Richard Dysart – Beautiful movie about a gardener who doesn’t know to read and write but who likes watching TV and who gets ejected out of his employer’s home after his employer dies. He accidentally ends up in a millionaire’s house and gets exposed to the high and the mighty and soon becomes famous and the toast of the town. Peter Sellers’ performance as the innocent gardener is wonderful. I liked Shirley MacLaine’s performance too. Film Critic Roger Ebert has rated this as one of the great movies. This is my first ‘good’ movie of the year

(4) Vicky Cristina Barcelona – Directed by Woody Allen – Lead Actresses and Actors : Scarlett Johansson, Rebecca Hall, Javier Bardem, Penelope Cruz – Woody Allen leaves his imprint in the movie. However out of his recent movies, I liked ‘Scoop’ and ‘Matchpoint’ more. Scarlett Johansson seems to be his favourite actress now. I like Rebecca Hall’s acting and she has done well in this movie too. Liked Javier Bardem’s role in this movie – very different from his role in ‘No Country for Old Men’. The role played by the father of Javier Bardem’s character was also quite nice – he writes poetry but refuses to publish it. Reminded me of Roberto Bolano and Arthur Rimbaud. Penelope Cruz was good in her Oscar winning role.

(5) The Hurt Locker – Directed by Kathryn Bigelow – Lead Actors : Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty – Excellent movie and a potential Oscar winner. Set in Iraq during the American occupation. Jeremy Renner as the team leader of a bomb disposal squad has acted wonderfully. No major women characters in the movie except for a professor’s wife who comes in a scene and Jeremy Renner’s character’s wife who comes at the end for a few minutes. It was interesting to discover that Kathryn Bigelow is the ex-wife of James Cameron. Both of them are competing for the Best Picture Oscar this year. Will be interesting to see what happens during the awards ceremony.

(6) Julie and Julia - Directed by Nora Ephron – Lead Actresses and Actors : Meryl Streep, Amy Adams, Chris Messina, Stanley Tucci - Nice movie about food and cooking and life. Loved the concept and the way the movie evokes delicious sensations and the aroma of food. Also liked the way the movie depicted the relationship between Julie and her husband Eric. Meryl Streep is good as Julia Child. It was interesting to see Stanley Tucci in a role different from his usual comic ones.

(7) Doubt - Directed by John Patrick Shanley – Lead Actresses and Actors : Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams, Viola Davis – Beautiful story which leaves the viewer with questions in the end. Meryl Streep’s performance is awesome – an amazing contrast when compared to her performance in ‘Julie and Julia’. Such an unbelievable actress! Hoffman is awesome as usual! Amy Adams does well as a junior nun. Viola Davis gives a powerful performance in a one-scene role. Interesting thing about the movie was that all the main actors and actresses were nominated for an Oscar but none of them won. Someone should have – their performances were so good.

(8) Avatar – Directed by James Cameron – Lead Actors and Actresses : Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Laz Alonso, Sigourney Weaver, Michelle Rodriguez, Stephen Lang – Old story, which is very similar to that of Kevin Costner’s ‘Dances with Wolves’. Some ideas in the movie also seem to be inspired by ‘The Matrix‘. But the depiction of the planet Pandora – the flora, the fauna, the landscape and the people – is really wonderful. The environmental message that the film carries is also nice. I liked the alien heroine very much! I also loved the scene where the hero and a strange animal roar at each other and the animal beats a retreat and the hero thinks he has won the territory fight, but then discovers that there is a bigger and more wilder animal behind him (My friend tells me that even this scene is there in Jurassic Park. James Cameron seems to have been inspired by different things while writing the story for this movie). As a movie with artistic merit, I wouldn’t rate it high (‘Dances with Wolves’ tells a similar story in a more beautiful way), but as a pathbreaker and trendsetter in terms of blending real action with lifelike animation, I would rate it quite high. Must see movie.

(9) Finding Neverland – Directed by Mark Foster – Lead Actors and Actresses : Kate Winslet, Johnny Depp, Julie Christie, Radha Mitchell, Dustin Hoffman – Nice movie which has one of my favourite actresses Kate Winslet. Movie depicts the life of J.M.Barrie, who wrote ‘Peter Pan’ and his inspiration behind it and his platonic love for Sylvia Llewellyn Davis. Liked the roles played by Johnny Depp (as J.M.Barrie) and Kate Winslet (as Sylvia Davis) very much.

(10) The Blind Side - Directed by John Lee Hancock – Lead Actresses and Actors : Sandra Bullock, Quinton Aaron, Tim McGraw, Kathy Bates, Lily Collins, Jae Head – Interesting movie. But I found the topic a bit cliched. Sandra Bullock is good but this is not my favourite movie of hers. I liked her performance more in ‘Crash’ and in ‘While You Were Sleeping’. Among sports movies I saw recently, I liked ‘Pride’ more. Sandra Bullock has been nominated for an Oscar for her performance in this movie – I think her role is a ‘feel-good’ one but not really an Oscar winning one. But looking at the way the Academy has given awards recently, I wouldn’t be surprised if she wins the Oscar.

(11) A Very Long Engagement - Directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet – Lead Actresses and Actors : Audrey Tautou, Gaspard Ulliel, Jean-Pierre Becker, Jodie Foster, Marion Cotillard – Good movie. Love Audrey Tautou’s performances and so enjoyed this movie of hers too. French movies have this light-hearted and humorous way of telling a serious story and sometimes the sadness too is there in the humour. This movie has all that. Saw Jodie Foster in a movie after a long time. I thought it was her, but wasn’t sure, because I haven’t seen American actresses acting in movies in other languages and so checked the credits in the end and discovered that it was indeed her. It was nice to see Jodie Foster speak in French and see her doing it well too.

(12) Atonement – Directed by Joe Wright - Lead Actresses and Actors : Keira Knightley, James McAvoy, Saoirse Ronan, Romola Garai, Vanessa Redgrave – Beautiful movie with a sad ending, which is based on Ian McEwan’s novel. Nominated for the Oscars in 2008. It is a shame that it didn’t win the Best Picture Award (‘No Country for Old Men‘ did). I have seen Keira Knightley only in ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ before – she acts quite well too, in addition to being beautiful. Saoirse Ronan does quite well as Briony. My favourite scene is when Briony, when she is a nurse, talks to a soldier in French and comforts him, when he is close to his final moments. I haven’t read Ian McEwan’s books before, but going by the evidence of this movie, I think he must be quite an interesting writer. Will try to get my hand on some of his books.

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‘Crimson Tide’ and Lippizaner stallions

I was watching the movie ‘Crimson Tide’ for the nth time today. It is one of my favourite movies and has Gene Hackman and Denzel Washington playing leading roles. Hackman plays the role of Captain Ramsey, the captain of an American nuclear submarine and Washington plays the role of Hunter, Captain Ramsey’s deputy. The sparks fly between these two – because Ramsey is a chap who has been at sea for a few decades, while Hunter is one of the younger breed of officers, who has sophisticated degrees in his resume but hasn’t seen active service. In one particular tense situation, where Captain Ramsey is holding Hunter nearly under arrest (I won’t reveal more of the story here. You have to watch the movie, if you haven’t already), Ramsey suddenly starts talking about horses. I am giving below a snippet of the dialogue that follows.  

Capt. Ramsey: Speaking of horses did you ever see those Lipizzaner stallions.

Hunter: What?

Capt. Ramsey: From Portugal. The Lipizzaner stallions. The most highly trained horses in the world. They’re all white?

Hunter: Yes, sir.

Capt. Ramsey: “Yes, sir” you’re aware they’re all white or “Yes, sir” you’ve seen them?

Hunter: Yes, sir I’ve seen them. Yes, sir I was aware that they’re are all white. They are not from Portugal; they’re from Spain and at birth, they’re not white; they’re black. Sir.

Capt. Ramsey: I didn’t know that. But they are from Portugal.

[Chuckling]

Capt. Ramsey: Some of the things they do, uh, defy belief. Their training program is simplicity itself. You just stick a cattle prod up their ass and you can get a horse to deal cards.

[Chuckles]

Capt. Ramsey: Simple matter of voltage.

To see the full effect of the scene, you can watch the video here.

 

 

The conversation made me smile. It is totally unrelated to the tense situation on board the submarine  It also brings out different facets of the personalities of two people who don’t agree on many things. The lines are also open to other interpretations. (Some of my former bosses and former customers will chuckle after reading the last two lines of Captain Ramsey! Because that is what they practised everyday ) After watching this scene again today, I did what I had wanted to do before – do some research on Lippizaner stallions In addition to the above interesting facts, this is what I found.

 

Facts

• The Lippizaner horse’s place of origin is believed to be in modern day Slovenia (though they are believed to have descended from Spain in the distant past). Lippizan is Slovenia’s national symbol
• Modern day Lippizans are believed to have descended from eight stallions – Pluto, Conversano, Maestoso, Favory, Neapolitano, Siglavy, Tulipan, Incitato (interestingly, all look like Italian names!)
• Lippizans are associated with the ‘Spanish Riding school’ but the ‘Spanish Riding School’ is situated in Vienna, Austria
• Some movies which are based on Lippizaner horses are Florian (about two Lippizaner horses), Miracle of the White Stallions (about the rescue of Lippizaner stallions during World War II), The White Horses (Yugoslavian TV series about the adventures of a teenage girl who visits a Lippizaner farm)
• Some stories which are based on Lippizaner horses are ‘The Star of Kazan’ by Eva Ibbotson and ‘Airs above the ground’ by Mary Stewart

Videos

A Lippizaner Show

 

 

 A Lippizan playing with another horse 

 

There is more, but I think it might be too long and boring for you If you want to read more about Lippizans, you can find more information at http://www.lipizzaner.com/home.asp and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lipizzan.

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