The Blind Side: Review

In 2006 Michael Lewis released a book entitled, The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game that told the tough story of professional football player Michael Oher and his journey to the NFL. The book was adapted into a feature, and centers on a young and homeless Oher (Quinton Aaron) who is taken in by the affluent Tuohy family in Memphis, Tennessee. He isn’t so much a delinquent as he is misguided, and the film highlights how they gave him the direction to reach his full potential in sports and in life.

Plot

The Blind Side is based on the humble beginnings of Michael Oher, an abandoned inner city kid who’s mother is a drug addict and father is no where to be found. A family friend finds a way to enter him into an upscale private school due to his size and athletic ability. While there he struggles with his grades, sleeps in the gym, and wears the same outfit on a daily basis. During a rainy walk from school, he’s discovered by the Tuohy family and slowly becomes a permanent staple in their lives. Throughout his stay, he’s given a tutor to help with his studies, a shot at college education, and a chance to play professional football in the NFL.

What Worked

Ray McKinnon: This Oscar winner (Best Short Film, The Accountant) stars as Coach Cotton, one of the driving forces behind Michael’s football success. McKinnon pulls off the right balance of sincerity and selfishness in his role. Initially, Cotton sees Oher as an amazing career opportunity, but he eventually sheds that desire to put the player’s future in front of his own.

Humor: This movie is a lot more lighthearted than one would expect. Going off the trailer, you get the impression that this will be a tear jerker along the lines of Rudy or even Friday Night Lights, but it’s not. There are a lot of comedic moments especially between the family that make this film refreshing but not depressing.

Closing Credit Sequence: This may seem like an odd thing to point out, but after the film comes to an end, the closing credit sequence is the cherry on top. It features photos of the real life Tuohy clan, along with Michael throughout the years. There’s even footage from Oher’s drafting ceremony into the NFL, which is beyond priceless.

What Didn't

The Screenplay: There’s nothing about this story that makes it stand out amongst other films that have similar premises. It follows a formula that we’ve seen time and time again in not only the sports genre, but drama, comedy and everywhere in between.

The Supporting Actors: For the most part, the main cast did decent work, but everyone around them appeared to be phoning in their performances. In particular, the group of “street thugs” from Oher’s old neighborhood were cast very badly. You could tell that these were professionally trained actors trying to do their best thug impressions. Their dialogue was stereotypical, and you could actually see the disbelief on their faces as they delivered each line.

Overall, The Blind Side is not your typical, sappy drama. It has plenty of lighthearted moments to keep you on the up and up, in an otherwise generic sports tale. The story isn’t terrible, but leaves much room for improvement. Don’t go into this movie thinking that you’ll see a lot of football action, because you won’t. This film concentrates more on Oher’s family and school life than the actual sport. This may be something that appeals to those who aren’t fans of the game, but may turn off those who are.

Click here to Download The Blind Side Wallpapers

Road To Sangam: Review

A simple yet a powerful docu-feature, Road to Sangam is a gentle and heartwarming journey that takes you through the forgotten Gandhian values and principles. Like the khadi that Gandhiji interlaced, Road to Sangam is simple and uncomplicated.

Plot

Road to Sangam is a story of a devout Muslim car mechanic, Hasmatullah (Paresh Rawal), who runs a workshop in one of the prominent Muslim localities of Allahabad. He is also the secretary of the local mosque committee but doesn’t share a cordial rapport with the president Nawab Kasuri (Om Puri).

Things start to take a turn when one day he is entrusted with the job of restoring an old V8 Ford Engine within a week’s time. Hasmatullah is elated to take on the vintage machine, completely oblivious to the fact that it was the same engine that carried the ashes of Mahatma Gandhi to be immersed at the Sangam. As Hasmat works on his new assignment, a powerful bomb explodes in his town leading to the arrest of innocent Muslim youths.

Kasuri along with Maulana Qureshi (Pawan Malhotra) calls for a strike and orders the businesses to be shut as means of protest against the government. Hasmat joins the boycott only to realize the importance of work at hand. The vehicle is now being repaired to immerse a part of Gandhiji's ashes forgotten in a bank vault. It is now the wish of Gandhiji's surviving successor Tushar Gandhi that the last of the great man's ashes be immersed in the Sangam of Ganga, Yamuna and Saraswati.

Hasmat is in a fix. Will he support the protest and abandon the repair of the engine or go against the wishes of his community. Thus begins the journey of a true Muslim with a real Gandhian spirit.

Performance

Paresh Rawal as Hasmatullah is very convincing. As an obstinate motor mechanic, with a gentle soul driven by clarity of purpose steams no hindrance from religious extremism. Paresh as Hasmatullah is simply outstanding.

Om Puri’s portrayal as Mohammed Ali Kasuri is well-defined. Pawan Malhotra as the Maulavi who keeps provoking the committee in the name of religion deserves a special mention.

Debutant director Amit Rai’s effort in making a thought provoking film that simply carts the message of equality and humanity without getting clichéd is laudable. The story is gripping but the at times the pace is slow that gives the film a docu-feature feel.

The makers couldn’t have asked for a better time to release the film than a day before Gandhiji's death anniversary. If your platter is some meaningful cinema and not just sheer entertainment then, Road to Sangam is highly recommendable.

Click here to Download Road to Sangam Wallpapers

Paathshaala Wallpapers

For more Click here

Karthik Calling Karthik Wallpapers

For more click here

The Blind Side Wallpapers

For more Click here

Ishqiya: Review

After Classic Westerns and Curry Westerns, the likes of Vishal Bharadwaj seem to have designed a desi sub-genre where the bucolic Bihar backdrops are credibly carried off by the rural realms of Maharashtra’s Wai village. Call it ‘Wai-stern’ or whatever, but from Omkara to Ishqiya this rough-and-tough sub-genre has often been an antidote to candyfloss cinema, while still having a heart and in the right place.

Plot

Two petty thieves, uncle Khalujan, played by Naseeruddin Shan and his nephew Babban, played by Arshad Warsi, are on the run after double-crossing their boss. When all other avenues for shelter dry up, they land up at the house of a friend only to be told that he is dead. His widow Krishna, played by Vidya Balan, takes them in. What follows is an incredibly tangled tale of love and longing, guns and deceit.

Both uncle and nephew fall inexorably in love with her. Khalujan conducts an old-world romance, listening to her sing and in a lovely scene, even peeling garlic in her kitchen. Babban is aggressively sexual but the poetry of their love is underlined with danger. You are always aware that nothing is quite what it seems.

What Worked

Abhishek Chaubey keeps the pacing brisk and the humor, crisp. He skillfully shifts notes going from suspense to laughter in a blink. And the dialogue, by Vishal, is pitch perfect.

Ishqiya would have faltered if the performances had not matched the writing but all three leads are absolutely terrific.

What Didn't

In the second half, there are stretches in which the plot starts to blur and the end-twist is less than convincing.

Performances

Vidya Balan’s smoldering looks scorch the screen even as her eyes hint at tragedy. She proves that she is miles ahead of the cookie cutter Barbie dolls that clutter Bollywood and that sensuality has very little to do with showing skin.

Arshad Warsi is feral as Babban and Naseeruddin Shah, heart-achingly vulnerable as an old man giddy with love. Watch his smiling eyes in Bharadwaj’s lilting composition Dil Toh Bachcha Hai Ji. Salman Shahid (last seen in Kabul Express) is an interesting character and Adil Hussain makes for a strong negative lead.

If you have the patience and the willingness to savor an edgier, less populist popular Hindi cinema, you will be amply rewarded. Highly recommended.

Click here to Download Ishqiya Wallpapers

Avatar steals Titanic’s thunder

Epic action adventure Avatar sunk the global box office record set in 1997 by Titanic to become the highest grossing film of all time.
On Monday, January 25th, Avatar touched USD 1.859 billion, officially passing Titanic (USD 1.843 billion) to become the Industry's Biggest Film in history at the Worldwide Box Office.
The milestone cements the place of Cameron, who produced, directed and wrote both Titanic and Avatar as the most successful moviemaker of all time.
With the movie still going strong in cinemas worldwide, industry observers say it is likely to touch USD 2 billion.
In India, the film has done a business of Rs 105 crores so far, making it the biggest ever Hollywood film in India and 2nd biggest film in India after 3 Idiots for 2009. The film has earned record collections at Imax, 3D and single screens across the country.
The theatrical run of Avatar continues in 122 countries around the world on over 16,000 screens with a whopping 72 percent of WW GBO or USD 1.35B coming from 3D screens thus far.

Rani Mukerji walks out of Deepa Mehta’s next

Rani Mukerji has walked out of Deepa Mehta’s film, an adaptation of Salman Rushdie’s masterpiece novel Midnight’s Children, because she apparently didn’t want to play the mother of a 14-year-old. That she happily played a mother of two kids in Yash Raj Films’ Ta Ra Rum Pum almost three years ago is another matter.
A source said, “She asked Mehta that how she can play the mother of a 14-year old when she herself is just 30? She preferred to leave the film instead.”
Initially, Rani was quite excited about the idea of working with Mehta as it would have been the first time in her 13-year career that she would have worked with a female director. Reportedly, she had even met Rushdie and Mehta in Toronto for the same.
Equally Deepa Mehta was also excited at the prospect of working with Rani. Mehta confirmed that Rani is no longer in her film. She also said that Rani had informed her about the same. “Rani was required to play a mother in a section of the film, but there is no kid in the film who is 14 years old,” said the filmmaker.
However, Mehta dismissed the buzz that Rani turned her down because she didn’t want to play a teenager’s mother. She said, “Rani had some personal reasons for not doing the film. I cannot disclose the reasons because there are some things, which are confidential between a director and an actor. I have great regard for Rani and total respect for why she is not working with me in this film.”
Mehta’s film was planned for a September 2010 release but with this unexpected roadblock it seems that Mehta is now racing against time.

Rambha engaged to Indran

High spirits and revelry filled the air as celebrities glittered at one of the most anticipated engagement ceremonies of K’town.
Yes, it was glam girl Rambha’s engagement to businessman Indran Padmanathan. The actress looked like a million bucks in her off-white jewel-encrusted designer wear and was all smiles.
The grand ceremony was held at the Park Sheraton Hotel, Chennai.
While the couple coyly posed for shutterbugs, Rambha’s brother Vasu played perfect host to the occasion by making sure that the guests enjoyed the evening to the hilt. The ceremony had it all — good food, stars, glitz and glamour.
Indran has also presented a brand new BMW car to Rambha as an engagement gift.
If reports are to be believed then the marriage of Rambha will be held on March 27, 2010 in Tirupathi.