Zoned Out: Ideas for a film that will never be made - 1

The protagonist is not quite an adrenaline junkie in that he doesn't obsessively seek out avenues to get his fix, but someone who'll push it if the 'right' circumstances present themselves. The only things he's afraid of are being arrested by the Indian government on drug possession charges and full body paralysis. He rides his motorcycle like a maniac and has a cyanide capsule in his mouth -- the idea is that in case he crashes into something he'd bite the capsule and die rather than live through the unsavoury aftermath. And the prospect of him accidentally biting into the capsule makes his bike rides that much more maniacal. Equally terrifying is the possibility that as he's approaching certain death -- about 200 microseconds into the slide off the bike -- the cyanide capsule pops out before he could bite and he's left paralysed as result of the crash.

PS. No, this protagonist is not a woman.

Some(thing) about a dog

(Read bottum up.)

பெண்களுடைய அலறலும் குமுறலும் இல்லாமல் என்னய்யா thriller? ச்ச, இதைக்கூட புரிஞ்சுக்காம இருந்தா நானெல்லாம் படம் பாத்து என்ன புண்ணியம்?

29 Jul

..wait, it's a 'thriller' about women getting abducted in Madras? thoo! But it's true, you cannot make a thriller without victimizing women.

29 Jul

"A 90 mins thriller with no songs and background score," says Gautham Menon -- oh no, I may have to show some respect to this guy...

29 Jul

...and தொட்டி நாய்கள் (you know, from Reservoir Dogs) is still available for registration?

28 Jul

Gautam Menon's next film is titled 'Nadunisi Naaygal' (நடுநிசி நாய்கள்). I hope the story is not about the time he got bit by a bunch of...

28 Jul

ps. I might remove one of the tags later

Vetti Post - 13

a. Aishwarya Rai and Abhishek Bachan can't act.

b. Vikram hams it up.
c. The story is stale (is this the 'straight' version of Roja?)

d. Mani Ratnam's understanding of politics (or anything, for that matter) is superficial.

e. A.R. Rahman needs to update his software.

Of course, none of this matters when there are so many fan-boys in India and abroad. Too bad the film 'isn't ready' for this year's IIFA. But Ratnam doesn't have to worry. I'm sure Amitabh Bachan will find a better place, like Tel Aviv, for his next film's premiere.

Songs

Watching films on TV -- yesterday it was The Graduate and today it was Dazed and Confused, and You’ve Got Mail -- I'm reminded of the dearth of songs that's available for Tamil movie makers, for montages, cutaways, transitions etc. There have been a few other times when I've lamented the Tamil musicians' failure to branch out of the film industry's overwhelming presence and start making music that was inspired by the myriad emotions humans experience; and not just what a narrow film script 'necessitates'.

English films' use of songs does not just accentuate the scene/moment’s mood but it brings in externalities such as nostalgia. And I'm talking about an honest sense of nostalgia and not just a sophomoric allusion to an era. Some of the recent films made by those who 'come from Madurai' -- their obsession with the 80s -- is case in point. The songs invariably detract, and sometimes divorce, any connection one might have with that specific point, at least momentarily. I think Tamil film songs (not composed for the film itself) are almost incapable of doing anything other than that. The only thing they’ve been able to do, if at all, is make something look funny.

Eugenics, Karma and 'Naan Kadavul'

அதிர்ச்சியான செய்திகளை காட்சிப்படுத்துவதன் மூலமே தங்களை வித்தியாசமான படைப்பாளிகளாகக் காட்டிக்கொண்டு வரும் இலக்கியவாதி ஜெயமோகனையும், இயக்குனர் பாலாவையும் பார்த்து நெஞ்சில் ஈரமுள்ளவர் யாரும் ‘அடப் பாவிகளா’ என கத்தாமல் இருக்க முடியாது.

அறுபது லட்சம் யூதர்களைக் கொன்று குவித்த ஜெர்மன் நாஜிகள், அத்துடன் நிற்காமல் ஒரு லட்சம் உடல் ஊனமுற்றவர்களையும், மனநோயாளிகளையும் - அவர்கள் ஜெர்மானியராகவே இருந்த போதும் விஷ வாயுவைச் செலுத்திச் சாகடித்தார்கள் இரண்டாம் உலகப் போரில்!

‘இனத்தூய்மை’ இதற்கு காரணமாகச் சொல்லப்பட்டாலும், வேண்டாத சுமை ஒன்று இறக்கி வைக்கப்பட்டது என்றே அவர்கள் நிம்மதி அடைந்தார்கள்.

‘வலுத்தவன் மட்டுமே வாழ வேண்டும்’ என்ற இந்த ஆரிய வக்கிரத்தைத்தான் ‘நான் கடவுள்’ வழியாக நம்மிடம் இப்போது சுற்றுக்கு விட்டிருக்கிறார்கள.

மேலும் படிக்க

A Wednesday: A Terrible Idea

The movie's premise, leaving aside what seems obvious, hinges on the subtextual notion that Muslims in India don't say/do enough to show that they are angered by the terrorist attacks that happen in India. So the director has decided to prove their 'Indianness' through his protagonist -- the 'common man.' But he doesn't want to make it obvious. It's subtle (ok, not so). The 'common man' speaks with a vocabulary quite peculiar to a certain community (mulk being the 'give away' word). So you know that the man behind this holy mission is a Muslim. Oh how unctuous?

The 'common man' who decides to take his anger out in the form of a threat -- another series of bomb blasts -- sends a message to the ruling bureaucracy that he is 'sick and tired.' What exactly is he sick and tired of? The answer to this question and the questions that surround the answer is what makes this movie so problematic.

First, the answer: The 'common man' delivers a sermon in which he describes the afflictions of a middle class man who commutes to work every day. He's troubled by the distant probability of him getting killed by a terrorist attack. Even more so because his fellow commuter -- a youngster with his 'entire life ahead' -- is killed by one that happened 'recently.'

There are about 20 million people living in and around Mumbai. Based on the terrorist attacks that have hit the city in the last decade, the average number of people killed every year would be less than 50. The probability that our 'common man' would be one of that 50 out of the 20 million is quite negligible. Actually, it's like the same guy winning the lottery twice (given that the 'common man' just survived an attack). He's more likely to be one of the 3,500 people who get killed every year on Mumbai's suburban railway lines alone.

Of course, one might say, "terrorism kills some and terrorizes the rest." True. I'll grudgingly admit that the 'common man's anxiety -- that he cannot go to work, and make that day's wage (or more) -- is justified on more practical (and probable) grounds than the improbable death itself. But where does his paranoia and outrage fit?

In a city that is brought to a grinding halt for days, sometimes weeks, every year by the monsoon? In a city where half its population lives in slums? In a city where raging mobs have killed more people than the blasts themselves? In a city where people are mowed down in greater numbers?

No. It fits in his middle class cocoon of a mind, preserved by ignorance and hypocrisy. The same thing that informs the movie's myopic perspective. It's no coincidence that the 'common man' picks four terrorists (three Muslim) to "purify" the country from. (It's quite ironic that he lists Malegaon among the other terrorist attacks.) While he questions why these men weren't convicted (or kept alive?) yet, he doesn't mention why no one is even indicted in many cases involving Hindu mobs.

I wonder if Naseeruddin Shah realized that he has risked becoming the Muslim poster-boy who viciously condemns 'Islamic terrorism.' One that is supposed to love India. Just like Sharukh Khan did in Chak De India. It's quite messed up when you think about it. I have probably been through a lot less than an Indian Muslim has, but even I don't 'love' India. But dare not he/she say that. At least not while in India. As if Naseeruddin Shah wasn't enough, the movie also has a cardboard cutout, Muslim police officer who's ready to get shot in the arm, and perhaps sacrifice his life, for the country. He's one of the many heroes in the infallible body that works day and night to protect the people: the Mumbai police. Need I say more about them?

The truth is, there is no 'common man.' There are those who are not Dalit, not poor, not illiterate, not political, and not silenced. By virtue of not being any of them he's already immune to their social malaise. Their misery doesn't seem to trouble him. The middle class 'common man' has little in common with majority of his fellow humans. 'Common man' is the last thing he should call himself.

Note: If you have not seen the movie yet, this post may not make sense. (This is not a review.)

Feeling Good

One of the benefits of online communication with friends is that you get introduced to brilliant material once in a while:

Slumdog Millionaire is the type of film that depicts the horror of slum residents washing and drying their clothes right next to speeding trains as a kaleidoscopic, ethnic, patchwork mosaic; the scenes leading up to Jamal's mother's murder are an idyllic tableau of women doing their wash, exoticized and idealized. Boyle's visual style is all bombast and ego, zooming racks and aerial shots that minimize an audience's need to confront the realities of life in a third world ghetto. When all else fails, here comes more of the slo-mo, retard tingle attached to a long look at beautiful inamorata Latika (Frieda Pinto). Paired unhappily with dogme95 Anthony Dod Mantle's trademark ugly cinematography, the result is this jigsaw monster of a movie that seems to recognize the hideousness of its subject before forcing itself to plaster on a jester's smirk--the visual equivalent of a nice pat on the head. No doubt someone's already formulated the argument that it's just a harmless allegory of one illiterate urchin's predestined rise (Boyle reprises his own repugnant Millions in that sense), but a closing credits sequence that hijacks Bollywood's musical extravaganza with the entire cast of extras suggests otherwise. The cruellest irony of Slumdog Millionaire is that, like (wait for it) the also- impossibly-popular and instantly-dated Juno, it's an archconservative message that causes liberals to feel inordinately pleased with themselves.

PS. Congrats to AR Rahman. I am happy for him.

Montage: Dasvidaniya

This video is a montage to one of the best movies I saw in the year 2008, Dasvidaniya.

It was pretty hard to find a song that would present a complementing mood to a montage for this movie. Finding a song for such projects is the toughest, most time consuming part. But I'm more than happy with what I ended up with. It could not have been better, I think. People who have seen the movie may understand why.

Editing the video took over 6 hours for me. Others could have done it faster perhaps. Structuring a narrative within a montage is a tricky thing. You have to decide whether you want to go fully linear or fully random or quasi-linear? This video is quasi-linear. So all the time I spent thinking what a clip would mean at a certain point might not make any sense to others. What I have tried to make sure, though, is to go with the mood of the song as much as possible. After all, it is a montage.

I'm glad that I finished this project unlike my four or five others that are half or less done and kept in limbo for over a year. There are some minor editing errors that I have left out simply because I was tired of rendering 20 versions of the same song just to make little changes.

Slumdog Millionaire

This movie is so full of it. The teenage kids can't act, the stereotypes are beaten to death and the juxtapositions are ridiculous. Life in the slums could not have been exaggerated, romanticized and yet contradicted into a weird concoction worse than this movie has.

The only way to watch the movie is to not take it seriously (as Boyle does sporadically); even though it deals with communal riots, child abuse, gangsters, sexual violence, poverty, social prejudice etc. After all, it dares to break into a self-mocking song and dance in the end of it all. "Hey, they are just celebrating the spirit of the youth and the triumph of the underdog! Just chill, will ya?" Sure.

I wonder what people like Mira Nair (Salaam Bombay) and Dev Benegal (Split Wide Open) have to say about this clueless caricature that deals with topics that are too many even for a quiz-game show.

PS. I liked the background score, though.

The Movie Experience

Audience manipulation is one of the oldest tricks of the trade as far as movies are concerned. It's a complex topic that often calls for nuance when one tries to differentiate 'realistic' narrative progression from 'contrived' haul of boxed plot points. But as in many of these discussions it's always easy to point extremes to state your initial case - to say what you mean by manipulation. The underdog that emerges victorious in the end and the wronged, just man getting his revenge are some of the most common and easiest to point.

It should be noted that 'manipulative' scenes can have the effect of any 'genuinely' moving scene. While it may get some teary eyed and "heavy", the contextualization outside of the movie cannot be ignored. It is especially true with scenes that try to shock you, some quite literally. Videos like these demonstrate the point best. It sure evokes a basic human emotion - fear - but there's little that is creative or original about it. You can draw a direct parallel between such videos and typical Tamil "family drama's" climax monologues.

Here, the movie Dogville makes for interesting case study. Because it's not completely relevant to go into what the movie is about, I'll take the liberty to just link you the reviews that summarize it closely: review 1; review 2. Assuming you've either seen the movie or read at lease one of the reviews, I'll proceed further. Nicole Kidman's character Grace is subjected to all kinds of abuse and exploitation by other characters of the movie for longer than what's generally tolerable for the viewer. It's akin to those 60s Indian movies in which the woman who personifies all things "good" is tortured (read buttered) endlessly for a climactic gush of redemption. Even the apparent plot twists become rather predictable if you're conscious of the movie's length. For example, about 2 hours into the movie Grace tries to escape from the vicious town and you know it's not going to happen. Because, there's almost an hour's movie left. What are they going to show? Grace starting a new life in a new town? Of course not.

There is very little to like about what the characters do for the most part of the movie; Grace being the worst of the lot. Traditionally, this kind of character has to do something drastic, one way or the other, to vindicate herself before the movie ends. But Dogville goes far beyond manipulation, what it does is audience abuse. It literally makes you sick to the stomach through most of its playing time. Because, for whatever reason, many believe that movies and marathons "have to be finished" once begun. Grace and her gangster father's philosophical musing over power and moral relativism in the end can only be characterized as juvenile. The "illustration", as one of the characters, Tom, puts it, isn't as "vivid" as it may appear. Yet, some critics have a "was worth the torture" kind of take on it.

This is an interesting dimension in itself. There are real life examples that are somewhat along the same lines: 1. waiting hungry in a crowded restaurant for the food to arrive; 2. waiting on the queue of a roller coaster ride. Anticipation and uncertainty (or certainty) are the foremost emotions that construct the experience for us. However, generally it's the finale -- something that completes the experience -- that decides our after-thoughts on the experience. But in either scenario, I would be outraged if I realize that I've been forced to wait just so that the I'm ready to appreciate anything they offer in the end. It's even worse when it happens in movies: because, the denouement is only part of the product, not the product itself. A tricky aspect of the art -- constructing the experience -- seems to be misinterpreted often by critics and moviegoers in general. They probably fail to realize that not all share the same threshold when it comes to standing 'manipulation'. Because, "switching off" doesn't come as easily for many.

I remember reading somewhere that a "movie is not a string of interesting scenes." But the way I watch most of the movies -- at home, in my computer or TV -- I am actually fine with a movie that doesn't fit that rule. Of course, what's interesting is debatable.

Ostracized solitude (in Tamil movies)

This podcast is a general commentary on how solitude/family life etc., have been dealt with in Tamil movies over the years. It threads itself loosely around the movie Pirivom Sandhippom's theme, but it's not a review of the movie. (Download mp3.)

Apology: I realized that I had used the filler "vandhuttu" excessively throughout the podcast. Excuse me for that.

Sabapathy

It's one of the funniest movies in Tamil. Even as a kid I laughed so hard when I first saw the movie, probably around 1990. I found the movie online and started watching it again. Among a lot of new surprises from my first time viewing, I picked up some ridiculously funny expressions. It's not just the comic timing, but the use of language, acting etc from a historical perspective. The movie is over half century old, you can see that a lot of things have changed since then. But some of the 'changes' catch you off guard. One of the parts that totally cracked me up was this (In case you don't have the time to watch it yourself):

There are two Sabapathys: the young 'master' and his slightly older servant. The servant is a bit of crackpot -- a bit more than the 'master'. Sabapathy and his mother visit the 'would be' bride's place with the servant accompanying them. They reach the place and as they get down from the car they hear someone dancing upstairs (bharathnatiyam it would seem). At this point the exchange goes:

Servant: amma, edho thevudiya kacheri nadakudhu
mother: edho vishesham pola irukku, nalla sagunam dhan

The word thevudiya--which is now more than derogatory and often bleeped--is used again, rather casually, in another scene that follows immediately. If you want to watch just this part, click on this link and slide it to 35 minutes. You can watch the entire movie from here.

Aside: The link between the word thevudiya and bharathnatiyam may be understood from this interesting post on the movie Arangetram.

Jodhaa Akbar

I tried to download the movie a day after its release and much to my annoyance it turned to be a fake torrent. Well, there was another movie in its place -- Super Star. I did, however, get the actual movie yesterday. After watching it, I so wished that the second download was a fake too.

The fact that this movie has been lauded as one of the greatest in recent times just shows the perversion in the mainstream consumption of mainstream art forms, especially movies[1]. It happened among Tamil cinema viewers in the last decade. When the dearth of 'good' movies and pseudo-critiques in TV created an illusion of differentiating the 'good' from the 'bad'. Of course, the need to put down the Other -- non-Tamil movies, especially Hindi -- effectively blurred the viewers possible 'objective' assessment of a movie further. Veyyil and Paruthi Veeran are lauded ubiquitously, almost (Paruthi Veeran is also "going places")[2].

I wonder if the same phenomenon has caught up with the Hindi movie viewers as well. The need to "have something on par with Hollywood". I'm not as surprised by a few "critics" on TV because they are known to be cronies of one faction or the other. After all, they need someone for their 'Grope a star' kind of shows. But the mainstream viewer's enthusiasm to suck up, in this context, is slightly disturbing. They are either gleefully buying into the false binaries created by the TV hosts (Hrithik can act, Sunil Shetty cannot. Aishwarya Rai looks like a feathered turkey, but she looks stunning etc.) or they are caught in some kind of self imposed binary. To choose between national pride, supposedly represented by this "great Indian movie", and being an American boot-licker.

The reason one likes this movie cannot probably oversimplified like above, but who cares? When one likes an oversimplication like Jodhaa Akbar, he/she better be prepared undergo the same treatment.

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1. To quote from one of my previous posts: the perversion is not in the consumption per se, but how it's perceived. Ex: when a health expert appears on TV and starts explaining the benefits of consuming 500ml Pepsi everyday.
2. Read this interesting column by Sudhir Mishra

No Smoking

The movie was alright. Probably a bit pretentious in that Kashyap even chose to do such a film, except for that there's little in the movie that is self-indulgent (or, again, pretentious) as claimed by Rajiv Masand and a few other "critics". He even went so far to call the movie "one of the worst of the year." Some "critic" he is. Interestingly, the scenes which seemed to impress him the most were the ones I found hackneyed. (Well, he is, after all, the one who gave 4/5 for 'Black Friday.' It showed how much he loves manipulative BS.)

Given the kind of dreams I have myself I have had little trouble 'enjoying' movies like this. I just love the screenplay. But again there is a scene that was self-indulgent: the last part where Kashyap is probably trying to say "huh, you thought you figured it out?" and you feel like going "well, I don't give a damn, really!"

Vetti Post - 7

About 'Unnale Unnale:' I stopped watching the movie after some of 'those' scenes in the first 20 minutes. But one of my friends strongly recommended that I watch the whole movie, and I did. It wasn't too bad. The movie got very light towards the end. They stepped back from preaching sitcom clichés for sometime. And the ending is quite light and "new" to Tamil mainstream movies. So while I'm not surprised that this movie did well, I don't feel all that bad either. Actually, I would place it above Mozhi. This junk food's got way less calories and fat than Mozhi.
Even though the direct translation of 'American situations' is irritating on its own, it's a good cultural virus. While it lacks originality as an art form and reinforces age old gender stereotypes (and some new ones for TN) it slowly moulds the collective consciousness of scores of young people--albeit with a good dose of pretentiousness--into normalizing dating, boyfriend-girlfriend relationships and probably sex. It's the kind of movie that Ramadoss cannot protest against yet does exactly what he's supposedly opposed to. It slowly usurps "traditional" values(?) and puts in place a corporatized version of "love and affection." It is unrealistic for most of our social classes, but it will eventually percolate there as well.
If it's unclear as to what I prefer, I would always choose, as much as I hate it, the latter. Given our societal make up, I think the old stereotypes are far too dangerous in comparison with the ones highlighted in the movie.

PS. I know, it's another post based on a movie. This time it got worse: it's extension of a comment.

Vetti post - 6

For all the hype that surrounded the movie 'Puthiya Vaarpugal' it turned out to be a typical Bharathiraja's pseudo-revolutionary crap. I would have watched about an hour of the movie in all. Gave me a bad headache already. But it does seem like a trend-setter of sorts. The movie themes that dominated most part of the 80s may well have been inspired by this one. The movie hints a rape right from the beginning by building a lecherous 'oor periyavar's character(?). That in itself put me in a very uncomfortable position, because I guessed that a good part of the movie will then be spent on framing someone for the rape. Then it finally happens -- rape, murder and the protagonist is wrongly accused too. But it doesn't end there. It cannot. There is another attempt to rape in the climax. But this time the murder is redemptive (It better be, it's the climax). In between, there's juvenile 'rural romance' and sprinkling of sequences that assert "village mores". Of course, there's also a moral statement made in the end of the movie. I bought the DVD hoping that it will be worthwhile for others apart from if I released it as a torrent. But no. Well, at least now I know what the movie is. Rs. 30 for the DVD is worth that.

Songs: The songs were so bloody popular that I wondered how I missed the movie. May be I saw it in TV when I was too young and slept half way or something.

Aside: There's a long cross-dressed 'karakaatam' sequence which plays for roughly 8 minutes. The way it was played out and the apparent intention were both reminiscent of the one in 'Paruthi Veeran'.

Roast of Sivaji

I saw the movie in a theatre. Was one of the worst 3 hours of my life. (Yes, it was worse than the time I felt like my eyes were gouged and buried in sand--because I had looked directly in welding sparks for too long--and I could feel the sand in my gouged eyes.)
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Note 1: The author of this podcast claims to know everything and is a 'periya vengayam' who does not respect anyone who liked this movie. He's also scared of getting beaten by wimps who leave anonymous comments. So his address will not be revealed here.

Note 2: If you think this podcast is done to attract comments, do yourself a favour and don't leave any. Comments: If I don't like it or feel the need to reply but don't feel like because it's too immature or too smart for me to handle, I'll delete it.

Sivaji vaayila mannangatti

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Sivaji's trailer gave out everything the movie makers were trying to keep in secret for a long time. Of course, it doesn't include the fact that 'Shankar + Rajini = masala trash' was always known - not many would have guessed otherwise. It's just that more people feel shameless enough to openly admit that they are looking forward to watching Rajini's masala than Vijay or Ajith's.

Rajini is almost like religion: anything goes if he does it. Because he's been doing it for a long time, with people's apparent approval. But I, for what it's worth, will say what I feel: It's disgusting, it's irritating and it's high time idiots stopped pretending like he's got an aura. My interest in this movie is just like my interest in religion -- they both follow an inexplicable pattern of idiotic following, almost unquestioned.

Anyway, I saw the trailer and I thought of predicting how the plot is going to unravel. That's what I've done in this podcast (partly). Then there's some Rajini bashing in the end (how about that for a "commercial" podcast?).

I hate these people, kind of

Although I don't have the luxury (ability) to sit and write fresh posts as of now, I do while away doing other random things. But this post is not only an empty filler - my last few posts - it's also meant to give a brief idea about where I stand about certain movies and movie makers that I may not be able to discuss in detail anytime in the future. This is another casual conversation with a very good friend. It wasn't supposed to be intellectually stimulating or inquisitive or whatever. I think we were in the mood to bash a few people and that's we did. Nevertheless, a lot of it is academically grounded and I stand by all of what I've said. Only that I may not engage in a detailed discussion in the comments section to defend everything - mostly because it's time consuming (and yeah, "subjective"). Rest is self-explanatory.

Edit: The exchange has been removed. I didn't ask my friend before I published the conversation and I think that was a terrible mistake on my part. To an extent makes me an untrustworthy person and an asshole. For that and just that, I sincerely apologize to my friend and to my 'better side' that I didn't care to respect when I published it. Thanks.

Note: An academic critique of a movie is quite different from conventional ones, try this one to get a rough idea. From the article,

Roja is not Mani Ratnam’s best film. It is not his only film that deals with politics, it is not the only one that won many state and national awards and is not the only one that is controversial. It is as flawed and fulfilling as many of Ratnam’s other, greater, better films. It is as ambiguous and paradoxical and as simplistic and superficial as his other classics. Yet, it is his most successful film till date and his only true all- India success...It can take on many forms, champion many causes, some more sinister than the others and can still be over-analysed in many an essay, this one included.

Disclaimer: This post is not intended to draw comments or to show what's supposedly a characteristic of this blog - put down "popular figures" just for the heck of it. But you're welcome to reject this disclaimer. The exchange has been edited spatially to fit the margins better

Mozhi - meh!

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