The Great Gatsby

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 5/18/2013 1:21:00 AM

'This one can be easily termed as a classic. And it shows under classics on Amazon.  I tried to download and speed-read but I guess there wasn’t enough time.  I was expecting The Great Gatsby to release only next week.  I guess I need to be a bit more cued in.  But I must say that, 10 minutes into the movie, I thought it was actually true to the book – because that is all I could read before walking into the movie.One thing that all of you must keep yourself awar(...)'

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Epic

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 5/17/2013 6:36:00 PM

'Those familiar with my writing, would know that I have the softest of spots for this genre of cinema.  It takes a lot to make a quality animation movie.  And the least obvious aspect is probably the quality of animation.  I say that because in this day and age, with the amount of technology that one has access to, anyone can come up with animation of reasonable quality.Maybe that’s what disappointed me about Epic.  I was really looking forward to some really hig(...)'

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Aurangzeb

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 5/17/2013 8:20:00 AM

'Aurangzeb was known for his resoluteness towards one goal and one goal only – that of taking the empire from his father.  He went to the extent of jailing his own father for no apparent reason other than greed for the throne.  That, is the apparent logic for this thriller based out of Gurgaon that shows the deep rooted nexus between politicians, gang lords (mafia) and cops.Ajay (Arjun Kapoor) is the spoilt rich kid of the Yashwardhan (Jackie Shroff) family.  His fath(...)'

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The Reluctant Fundamentalist

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 5/17/2013 3:36:00 AM

'Remember what I always say about reading the book before you watch the movie? Well this time around, turns out, it doesn’t matter.  Because the book is ever so slightly evolved and leaves a little too much to your imagination.  The movie on the other hand actually unravels the mystery of the book into a simpler, understandable version to us.I am not saying at any point of time that the book was better or the movie.  Both are equally good in their own right.  It (...)'

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Gippi

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 5/10/2013 2:15:00 PM

'“Everyone gets big.  Only a few grow up”.  If you think that there is any pun intended in this line that is part of the trailer, wait till you watch Gippi.  The movie starts off with a 14 year old girl who says, “Tere aur bhi bade ho gaye? Mere toh ab tak chhote chhote samose jaise hain” (Yours have grown bigger? Mine are still small like little samosas) – I am sure that you know what “yours and mine” mean.Gippi is the story of Gurpreet Kaur (Riya Vij) who is all of 1(...)'

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Star Trek – Into Darkness

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 5/10/2013 1:39:00 PM

'If it weren’t for Star Trek – Into Darkness, my entire weekend would have been gipped (all pun intended).  I am only sorry that I saw Star Trek first and then landed up ruining the rest of my day with some crap that Bollywood decided to dish out as its summer bonanza of sorts.But the Star Trek fan in me (and the conveniently placed 9 am show) ensured that I watch this movie.  Something that I cannot with conviction ask the readers of this blog to do because there are two (...)'

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Go Goa Gone

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 5/10/2013 1:22:00 PM

'Predictably, the page for Go Goa Gone (GGG) on www.bollywoodhungama.comrefers to the genre of this movie as Zom-Com.  It was obviously intended to be funny – the term that is – and does strike as funny for a bit.  Say it in your head a couple of times.  There were RomComs and now there are ZomComs.  Funny no? What you will soon realize that the funny feeling lasts only upto the time that you walk into the cinema hall.  After that, it will dawn upon you(...)'

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Shootout at Wadala

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 5/3/2013 3:01:00 PM

'Manohar Arjun Surve (John Abraham) scored 78% in his graduation exams in 1970.  At that point in time, it would have been stunning and would have put him at the top of his class.  But the Mumbai police had slightly different plans for the body builder from Dadar thanks to his involvement in a murder that his brother committed.And so, one of the chessier dialogues in the movie goes, “Mujrim Maa ke pet mein kam, jail ke gate pe zyada bante hain” (Criminals are not born off a(...)'

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Bombay Talkies

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 5/3/2013 1:56:00 PM

'Last Friday (26thApril 2013), I was watching The Front Row with Anupama Chopra.  It was the 1st anniversary edition and the one that previewed Bombay Talkies with its four directors.  During the show, Anurag Kashyap and Dibakar Banerjee were waxing eloquent about Karan Johar.Yes, you heard me right.  Two of the finest directors that Indian cinema has ever seen were raving about probably the most commercial director this country has ever seen.  One, whose movies (...)'

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Aashiqui 2

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 4/28/2013 7:23:00 AM

'First of all, why is it that movie makers these days resort to using the name of a movie that is over 20 years old to mislead the audience? Is it because they know that their movie is so bad that if not for these cheap efforts, no one will come to see it? Can you think of any other reason for them to do this?I can tell you that the method works.  But leaves a very bad taste with the audiences.  Especially when the similarity ends with the name of the movie.  Unfortuna(...)'

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Iron Man 3

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 4/26/2013 1:52:00 PM

'You remember what I always say about sequels and their directors.  I keep insisting that sequels should be directed by the same director.  So in this case it should have been Jon Favreau.  But believe me when I say this.  Moving to Shane Black for Iron Man 3 was probably the best thing that has ever happened to this franchise. Shane Black has one major movie to his credit prior to Iron Man 3.  It is a Brad Pitt starrer called Kiss Kiss Bang Bang that (...)'

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Scary MoVie

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 4/19/2013 3:20:00 PM

'Lets use this opportunity to run a survey.  You have to be absolutely true to yourself in this survey.  Remember there are no right answers or no wrong ones.  There are just answers that you have given to yourself. This survey will not be recorded or shared with anyone.  There can only be 2 answers – Yes or No.  Are you ready? Here goes.Have you seen any of the following movies?InceptionParanormal ActivityThe Cabin in The WoodsMamaPlanet of the ApesBlack Sw(...)'

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The Host (2013)

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 4/19/2013 2:53:00 PM

'How many of you are fans of Stephenie Meyer? The same person who tortured us with the Twilight series and the movies that came in after that.  Even if you are a fan, you will find The Host to be one of the biggest drags that has ever graced cinema – one that will challenge every single muscle in your eyelids from not dropping off. Firstly she has moved from Fantasia to science fiction – a genre that she should keep away from for the rest of her life.  Because there i(...)'

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The Croods

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 4/19/2013 9:16:00 AM

'The most surprising part that I found about The Croods in my research is that the story is co-written by John Cleese.  The John Cleese from Fish Called Wanda? I beg the makers to clarify.  The imdb link indicates that.  Either ways, it will not impact my rating of the movie because it turns out to be one that is slightly above average at best.Grug (Nicholas Cage – Voice) is the leader of his family.  As is the case with most cave men that we have been exposed to(...)'

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Ek Thi Daayan

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 4/19/2013 8:06:00 AM

'Most of you are familiar that I have been making reasonable attempts over the past year or so, to overcome my morbid fear of Horror.  And most of you are also aware that I have done a good job out of it.  I am still a “fattu” (scaredy cat) but it takes more than what it used to, to scare me.  There are enough and more instances in Ek Thi Daayan that scared me and will scare quite a few of you as well.What I liked a lot about the way Kannan Iyer has directed the movie(...)'

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The Place Beyond The Pines

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 4/13/2013 11:44:00 AM

'I had seen Blue Valentine when it released a couple of years back and was quite wary about The Place Beyond The Pines.  Derek Cianfrance gave me the impression of being an arty farty director in his previous outing.  Michelle Williams of course did a fine job in that movie one and earned herself a nomination.Cianfrance on the other hand showed potential but I thought was a little all over the place. And then there were the advertisements and some reviews which had indicat(...)'

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Nautanki Saala!

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 4/13/2013 11:34:00 AM

'My favourite Rohan Sippy movie was Bluff Master.  I really liked it.  I wonder why he made Kuch Na Kaho in the first place.  And with Dum Maro Dum I was a tad disappointed with the eventual execution of an otherwise good storyline.  But everything said and done, BM and DMD were very slickly made.One thing about Rohan Sippy is his inclination towards being inspired. Bluff Master was picked up from Matchstick Men.  This time, he has come towards this side of (...)'

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Love Actually

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 4/12/2013 3:47:00 PM

'How many of you guys remember this sequence from Love Actually where Mark (Andrew Lincoln) tells Juliet (Keira Knightley) what he truly feels about her.  It is titled – To Me You Are Perfect - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7u6bMBlCXw.  If you haven’t seen the movie, watch the clip and you will rush to the nearest store to get your hands on the DVD.Love Actually, can easily make its way into the top 5 RomComs of all time.  It is the debut directorial effort of Richa(...)'

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Angels and Demons

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 4/12/2013 3:16:00 PM

'Most people in Hollywood state that if there was a contest for the most effective combinations between director and actor – Ron Howard with Tom Hanks would be right up there with the best.  They had 2 movies under their belt before Angels and Demons.  The Da Vinci Code & that classic called Apollo 13.  Both extremely well made.Dan Brown books are basic fodder for movies.  The story lines are always very interesting with the right mix of history, action and my(...)'

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The Call

Author : Kartik Ramaswamy      Blog : RandomReviews      Date : 4/12/2013 3:07:00 PM

'Apologies in advance for the delay in posting this review.  I should have done so earlier. Would have managed to push at least a few of you to see a movie that I personally thought was well made and edge of the seat.  A good serial killer movie after quite a while.  Regretably out of the theatres already.  Look for the DVD if you can.The Call is the story of Jordan Turner (Halle Berry) who is a 911 operator.  The one who picks up the call and says, “911 what(...)'

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