Gravity: Attractive, Pulling, Stunning

James Cameron introduced us to 3D with Avatar in 2009. And, he set a benchmark -- the 3D visual effects in Avatar were unimaginably mind blowing.  There have been scores of movies ever since that were released in 3D, but none were even a patch on Avatar. Four years hence, today in 2013, finally we've entered another era of scintillating 3D visual effects -- brought to us by Alfonso Cuaron through his visual masterpiece, Gravity.

Gravity is not your regular movie. It's an experience, something that has never ever been thought to be presented the way it has been, leave alone anything coming close to it. The biggest pull of gravity is how seamlessly natural it makes you feel a part of astronauts' life up in space and at the same time wondering at the stunning visuals of Earth from up above. It's difficult to imagine how a 90 minute movie can be exciting enough with just two actors. That's until you sit through marvelling the way everything has been so excitingly and grippingly woven in those 90 minutes. You actually can feel the haunting loneliness and perpetual darkness of outer space, interspersed with bright and colorful Earth.

The movie opens with a breathtaking single shot of around 10-15 minutes with astronauts aboard a US satellite working on doing the regular repair works on the satellite. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) is the Mission Specialist doing the repairs as is another Engineer, Shariff, while the mission commander, Matt Kowalski (George Clooney), while doing the rounds around the satellite, indulges funny chit chat  with the Houston Mission Control. And that's when Houston informs them to immediately abort the mission as there had been a report of a Russian Satellite being destroyed and its debris approaching towards their satellite at extremely high speeds. A slack in their response, and they pay heavily, resulting in their satellite being completely devastated. Amidst the pandemonium, Ryan is thrown away into the deep dark space, until Kowalski manages to brings her back only to find nothing remains of their satellite, with all other crew members dead. And now, they have to reach the International Space Station (ISS) if they want to return back to Earth. That's just the start of their troubles as the satellite debris keep on wreaking havoc with all their efforts. That's all I am going to reveal. The movie brings some dramatic twists and unexpected moments.

Talking about 3D, I have to admit this is the most stunning movie ever set in 3D. I'll put it this way - 3D deserves this movie. I have a simple parameter to judge how effective are 3D effects of a movie - the number of times it makes me feel something is going to pop out of screen into my face and makes me twitch back to avoid being hit by that something. The count was 2 for Avatar and about 7-8 for Gravity. It's for those very moments you go to watch a 3D movie, and gravity delivers it over and over again.

The movie belongs to Sandra Bullock - start to end. George Clooney fits the role to a Tee, and he is as charming up in space as he is when walking down on Earth. Although I felt Ryan Stone's character was a bit hurriedly taken through a rollercoaster ride of so many emotions, the length of the movie is spot on. Anything longer would have probably killed the movie. The ending too seemed deliberately set in the surroundings to evoke a certain type of emotion and give it that lonely look that has been portrayed throughout the movie. I think, a bustling backdrop would have given it a more dramatic end. But, no more nitpicking for it was the best visual cinematic treat in many years.

And yes, before I end, even as the movie is set in upper space, there is hardly any rocket science stuff that the characters talk about. It's mostly about their emotions and how to survive. So, if you go with the expectations of finding more about black holes, dark matter, and dark energy, Gravity is certainly not your Astronomy 101.

If you miss this, you don't deserve to be called a movie fan. And if you are not a movie fan, this is the only movie in 2013 I would recommend you to see. Go feast your eyes and senses.

The Avengers: Super treat from Super Heroes

Loki, the bad guy, says, “I’ve got an army” to which Tony Stark replies, “We’ve got The Hulk.” That pretty much sums up who steals the show in this ensemble of superheroes. But, only just. Hulk is numero uno here, but not overarching. The other superheroes do have their time in the spotlight and dazzling power show. With a movie featuring four superheroes (Black Widow and rest are more of sidekicks), there was every chance that The Avengers could get biased towards one superhero or the other, but not this time. Indeed, Hulk gives us the best moments, but you’ll enjoy everyone’s and sidekicks’ pyrotechnics.

Everyone’s chasing here a cryptic blue stone, Tesseract, which is the source of infinite power. That is the storyline but who cares for the story when you’ve got so many superheroes, a worthy villain, and a talented director, with the license to burn millions, to handle them. 

Sure you are expecting blistering action and mega explosions – and you do get plenty of that – but the humor is amazing and plenty, and surprise surprise, Hulk is our man here again, having us in splits. There was one particular place where I could not stop myself clapping while laughing out my lungs out. And, in fact, the whole audi was doing that. I sure wasn’t expecting Hulk to do that to me. 

And then there is a scene where after together taking down an alien spaceship, Hulk and Thor and standing next to each other, admiring their kill with triumphant visage, Hulk does something to Thor. What does he do? Go watch it, and you’ll be in splits.

There is another one that comes to my mind right now. Everybody is recounting how evil Loki has been and has to be punished for his deeds. Thor protest saying Loki is his brother. As soon as he is told that Loki has killed 80 people in 2 days, Thor immediately and subtly does a volte face saying, “He is adopted.” This God of lightning sure has another asset apart from his pet hammer – a great sense of humor.

And of course, when the game is about smart one-liners, Iron Man can never be behind. Kick-ass action with plenty of funny lines is what Iron Man brings to the table. Even Black Widow, with a real-hot bod in tights, has her moments.  

The interplay between the heroes is amazing. The first showdown between Iron Man, Thor and Captain America really sets the pace of things to come later. 

And the real mega moment in the movie comes in the last action sequence, when Hulk takes down a massive, flying-crocodile-shaped alien ship (you’ll immediately recall Transformers here) with a full-blast smash of his pounding green iron fist.

A word about the sole villain, Loki, played by Tom Hiddleston. He holds his own against the whole army of superheroes, and every bit exudes evil. And not to be outdone by superheroes in the humor department, lends himself to some lashing from Hulk to tickle your funny bone. 

Now, for some of the negatives. The last action sequence, although quite power-packed, still lacked a good ending. And we surely could have done with some more of the menacing alien spaceships doing something more menacing. The ending, too, was a bit hackneyed and a bit too simplistic. A nuclear missile is all that is required to blow away the grandest alien attack. Really?

The real, edge-of-the-seat, nail-biting moments are missing. Also, in the beginning, when the humungous ship sailing in the sea takes the wings could have been better shown, especially in 3D, displaying the real  enormity of a sea vessel flying in the air. Again, the 3D effects should have been better utilized. Apart from a moment or two, there is no real 3D stinger anywhere. However, to its credit, in spite of being in 3D, the movie looks quite bright and not the usual dark-and-dim-screen effect that plagues 3D movies.

So, all in all, this is not your archetypal superhero movie. Expect a great ensemble of superheroes having a jolly good time fighting the aliens. Go, have a blaaaast!

As for me, I just can't wait for all the baddies to gang up now against the superheroes. Anybody at Marvel listening?

Avatar: Well Done, Mr. Cameron! Doff Your Hat and Take a Bow!

Well...this review comes a bit late in the day -- actually in the eleventh hour, to be honest -- but then I had to make Avatar go through the rigors of my test. And what was the test? I am back after watching the 3D version for the third time, shelling out obscene amounts for the tickets each time...and, does the movie still amazes me enough to go for a fourth time? Does it pass the test? With flying colors, mate! Damn! I cannot get past that shell plunking right into my face. Okay, for the first time, it was a surprise, and as that third shell in the first of the two major fight sequences in the movie is fired from the screen towards the audience, I coudn't help but take an evasive action...BUT...man, I was prepared the second and third time, and still that shell got me every single time. Huh! Such is the charm of the movie, with so many sequences of sheer directorial brilliance and striking the right chord with the audience that you can't help but stand up and applaud James Cameron.

Everyone's aware of the plot...actually quite straight-forward, with a tribe called Navi on a planet called Pandora in danger of being run over by the greedy and inhumane humans from Earth. And what do the humans want? Ubtonium...a super-precious reserve. Natuarally, there has to be two camps of good guys and bad guys. And Good guys mix with the original inhabitants as their avatars to get to know them better, while the bad ones want to obliterate the entire race with their massive holocaustic weapons. The good guys, lead by Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) ultimately win and bad guys are sent back to Earth! That's the whole plot...but boy! With James Cameron at the helm of affairs, be prepared to be transcended to a different world altogether. And mind you...it's just not the special effects that make this movie so special, but the sensitivity and effortlessness with which the emotions are brought that makes this one an outstanding piece of art. You can't help but fall for the pugnacious yet charming Neytiri (Zoe Saldana). Watch her hiss at the enemy and then watch her kiss her man...and you know what I mean here!

Cameron, with a history of best-of-the-generation action sequences what with The Terminator, Aliens, True Lies and much more, does it in a grand manner once again with Avatar. With monster bazookas and frighteningly humongous gunships, there is simple no other option but to be in awe of the grand spectacle. The action sequences are absolutely delectable and in-your-face, literally.

A word about the performances. Both Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana have given a good performance...nothing outstanding, but yes, impressive, nonetheless. Sigourney Weaver, too is in good form.

Any weak points? Well...you might argue about the length a bit, but for me it was not an issue at all! I thoroughly enjoyed every single moment!

This is one of those movies that change the course of movie making and inspire a whole new generation to think beyond the ordinary when it comes to moviemaking. Thanks Mr. Cameron for your most sincere efforts, and yes...I am gonna test your that damn shell for the fourth time as well! Easy...isn't it...for you to make people reach out to their pockets so easily. But then you deserve it. So Well Done, Mr. Cameron! Doff Your Hat and Take a Bow!

The Taking of Pelham 123

Folks...you have to excuse me, but this review is gonna be biased. Heck, what else you expect when you have a movie with Trovolta playing the bad guy. Add to it Denzel Washington...and the movie becomes a scorcher no matter how deadpan is the storyline. These are two iconic stars of our generation who make screen come alive with their mere presence.

It's not an action movie, so don't go expecting huge explosions and flying daggers and bullets. Rather, for a good part, the movie is merely a conversation between our two leading men, Garber (Denzel Washington) and Ryder (John Trovolta). But just listen to it and it's trillion tons more enjoyable than exploding screens. Garber, a regular railway employee who directs subway trains, is caught in an awkward situation to talk to Ryder who has taken hostage a subway train with passengers in it. Ryder wants $10 million only to reveal later that the stakes are much high than that amount.

Garber becomes the chief negotiator and has to also hand over money to Ryder in the train, and also drive the train to take Ryder to safety. However, Garber decides to play supercop and chases down Ryder and ends up face to face in a do-or-die situation.

The plot has some serious loopholes and the direction too is not enigmatic. Tony Scott is definitely not the greatest director ever. However, the mere presence of Trovolta and Washnigton lifts the movie several notches higher than the regular crap Hollywood spews these days.

Watch it and enjoy you two hours.

The International: A superb thriller with the one of the best gunfight scenes ever shot

Just go for it. Period. The International is the best thriller of the year so far. And to top it all -- it has got one of the best ever gunfight scenes...gripping, gruelling and gross!

The plot of the movie is quite topical. With the whole ready to crucify bankers for being those who brought the recession, the movie suggest that it is the bankers who hold the whole world to ransom and are the real evil of this world.

The International starts with the Interpol agent Louis Salinger's (Clive Owen) colleague getting killed. He tracks all this fishy business to IBBC bank, which is involved in a multi-million dollar arms deal. Throughout sporting a dishevelled look, which quite suits him, Clive Own, aided by the beautiful Eleanor Whitman (Naomi Watts), chases the killer from Berlin to Paris to Milan to New York, where eventually the epic gunfight happens. But tracking down the killer is just revealing the tip of the iceberg. It's the powerful people at IBBC who make the shady deals that involve everyone in the system. I won't reveal the final plot as to how Clive Owen brings the bank down...or does he?

The International is a gripping tale of international conspiracy and murder. The cinematography is absolutely marvellous, with fantastic overhead shots of various locations in Europe and smart camera angles during the gunfight. It's a movie with lots of brains also...there are times in The International when you gasp and say...that's bloody smart!

The only sore spots with The International is editing and dialogues. With smarter editing and dialogues, it could have been in the same league as the Bourne series. Still, The International makes a spectacular watch. An absolute fun, you'll come out fully entertained...the reason you go to movies!

Seven Pounds: A tale that'll touch your heart

Two movies in two days - well that's exactly what I've done in a long time this weekend. The first one, which I had reviewed yesterday was Tom Cruise's Valkyrie, a racy thriller. Today, was exact opposite - Seven Pounds, an emotional drama with a lumbering pace.

So, getting down to the verdict - well if you can sit through the whole movie, you'll come out with a lump in your threat. The movie, running around two hours, is, for most of the part very slow, and only picks up in last 20-25 minutes. The team of "The Pursuit of Happyness" gets together to tell another touching tale. However, the second act isn't as good as the first one. For first hour, it's just various things happening in patches and you can't really connect to the whole plot. Even with the iconic Will Smith present, the film almost manages you to put to sleep in this first hour, and you might as well be tempted to leave the theater. But...only if...you hang for few more minutes the movie comes into its own and makes you crouch for all the incidents start to connect and brings out a remarkable story.

The film starts with Ben Thomas (Will Smith) blasting the blind customer care person, Ezra Turner(Woody Harrelson) and saying the meanest things about him being blind. Ben tries to contact a number of people - Emily Posa (Rosario Dawson), who is running a huge debt; Connie Tepos (Elpidia Carello), who is regularly abused by her boyfriend; Holly (Judyann Elder) who needs a liver. And Ben is trying to help these complete strangers, going out of his way to do so. Things keep happening, with Ben never revealing much about himself to anyone, including Emily, who he falls in love with. Ben keeps getting nightmares about a car crash, which killed seven people, including his family. It's only in the last 20-25 minutes that you get to see all the pieces weave together to spin a touching, heart-wrenching tale.

It's definitely not something that'll cheer you up much, so I'll say keep the movie to some time when you are feeling a bit low, a bit philosophical about life and just wanna be alone. It'll warm your heart.

And the title, Seven Pounds? Well, I still can't figure out why did they name the film so. My guesses include It's seven people whom Ben tries to help, as he was responsible for death of seven people. May it's because...well, that'll be revealing the plot too much. The performances are okay. Both Will Smith and Rosario Dawson have given superb performances. However, there isn't much to do for masters like Woody Harrelson.

So, sombre down a bit, relax and don't get out in the middle...it's worth watching the complete movie.

Valkyrie: An edge-of-the seat thriller

First the correct pronunciation - it's wall curry. I didn't get it until i went to see the movie; so, relax if u are still twisting your tongue around it. Now the verdict - fantastic fare that deserves your two hours of the busy weekend.

As a director, what would you do if you get a fairly straight plot, not the glittering line up of stars, and same-old, hackneyed World War II plot to set your movie in. Well, you direct your movie bloody well. And that's what Valkyrie comes out - a bloody well directed movie. With Tom Cruise as the one-eyed, Colonel Clauss von Stauffenberg, who plots to kill history's one-of-the-most hated dictators and destiny's favorite child, Adolf Hitler - the Fuhrer, and save his country from going down the drain, the film revolved around the plot to kill. With tight and nail-biting plots where the protagonist comes close to being caught, the film is backed by a smart script and solid screenplay. As Colonel Stauffenberg resolutely goes about executing the plan, the first few hours after the assassination attempt are such tense and edge-of-the-seat affairs, it draws oohs-and-aahs from the audience, acknowledging how some of the decisions made in pressure went on to change history; how a simple Yes instead of No could have changes the world forever. The film is able to fully capture the viewers' mindspace and makes you glued to your seat till the very end.

To accompany Tom Cruise, there are old warhorses like Tom Wilkinson and Bill Nighy (seen as Captain Devy Jones in Pirates of the Caribbean). Director, Bryan Singer, who gave us Oscar winners like Usual Suspects is in great form and delivers a great effort. It's hard to say if it'll be in Oscar's race but it can certainly come close to nominations.

The movie has not been publicized much, and there were hardly 40 people in the theater we went to watch it. However, everyone was left mesmerized by the movie. So my advice would be -- Go watch it, it's worth it!