Category: Films

  • 350 Film Reviews and 30 Indian Film Reviews Later~

    I just posted my 350th review, Jigarthanda [also in Español], which happens to be my 30th (sorta) Indian film review. So~ commemorating! Here’s a list of my first 30 Indian film reviews. You can actually see how my journey [1][2][3][4][5] has shaped up from DDLJ, KKHH and K3G YRF, SRK (and Kajol, though I posted her reviews later on) and Karan Johar-centric to Bhansali, Rani, Vidya, Madhuri, alternative Hindi cinema to regional stuff.

    my-30-indian-film-reviews

    Here we go (in order of posting date):

    1. Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge [tmb en Español]
    2. Kuch Kuch Hota Hai
    3. Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham
    4. Chennai Express [tmb en Español]
    5. Black
    6. Khamoshi: The Musical
    7. Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
    8. Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani
    9. Kahaani
    10. U Me Aur Hum
    11. Bombay Talkies [tmb en Español]
    12. Hey Ram
    13. Fanaa
      But honestly~ these photo recaps are best [Part 1][Part 2]
    14. Hasee Toh Phasee
    15. Gulaab Gang
    16. Moondram Pirai/Sadma
    17. Shaadi Ke Side Effects
    18. Aiyyaa
    19. Dedh Ishqiya [tmb en Español]
    20. Siddharth
    21. Goynar Baksho [tmb en Español]
    22. CityLights
    23. Kadal
    24. Bangalore Days [tmb en Español]
    25. The Hundred-Foot Journey [tmb en Español]
      (I know, I know. Not strictly Indian but was produced by Reliance~)
    26. Mardaani [tmb en Español]
    27. Lucia [tmb en Español]
    28. Happy New Year [tmb en Español]
    29. Haider [tmb en Español]
    30. Jigarthanda

    And if you want to keep track of my reviewed Indian films, go here: English, Español.

  • Mandatory Oscar Watchlist

    Except for the mandatory appreciation for Boyhood (the Patricia Arquette show) and Whiplash, which had me contorting from all the conflictive feelings, I’m feeling rather lukewarm with this year’s award season as you can see from my 2014 Films Ranked compared to my Academy Award Watchlist.

    oscars-2014-2015-nominations-watchlist

    Hot pink is watched, light blue on to-watched queue, highlighted in green haven’t been found yet. My excuse for lack of documentaries and shorts is because of access. I find them extra difficult to get. Also, any respectable award show needs the presence of Haider. LOL And I could do a LOT LESS from Clint Eastwood. I’m not even one of those complaining for lack of women behind/in front of the camera, the nominees are just so damn BLAH! except for the few couple of surprises- some spice with Marion Cotillard (even though I don’t feel strongly about the movie), Ida and Mr. Turner in cinematography… and The Tale of Princess Kaguya.

  • Happy New Year Goes VOD or DTF!

    Farah Khan’s and Shahrukh Khan’s latest Happy New Year [Español] just hit the market officially with VOD… or as they’re calling it DTF (Direct to Fans), which is less technical and much more personal. It’s also way cheaper than regular VOD too, which usually charges $5USD per one-time stream or 4-5-day rental. You basically get to download the movie for that price. I’m just supposing it’s subtitled (being aimed at all markets except India and China), but I could be supposing erroneously [1].

    happy-new-year-vod-dtf

    No cons, just pros really. It would have been much cooler and much more trailblazing if this had happened on opening week (or the week later), but it’s something. I’m just hoping UTV (EROSNOW had its one moment with the pretty horrible Lekar Hum Deewana Dil) gets their shit together with the distribution of films like Haider and PK, really because those two are my bias at the moment. Imagine if more European and other big Asian movies did the same. Isn’t THAT what they want? Piece of the Hollywood pie? You need to indoctrinate people first, get them on the habit of watching you. Hollywood’s been doing this to us for the past 70 years.

    Here’s the link.

  • Girls Who (Punk) Rock: Vi Är Bäst!

    A double feature with Lukas Moodysson’s Vi Är Bäst! (We Are the Best!) and Nobuhiro Yamashita’s Linda Linda Linda. Because~ Why not? RIGHT?

    vi-ar-bast-we-are-the-best

  • It’s End of the Year Voting Season!

    Oh, who am I kidding. What I love about the end of the year is all the Best Of lists, rankings and voting. Expect my annual Top50 Songs of 2014, My fave movies of the year, and My fave local 2014 releases. I might even have enough material for a 2014 Music Highlights.

    We started voting early on the YAM Magazine lounge because we are all lobbying for our favorite films, and prepping our personal End of the Year lists. I’m the most serious of all because lists can only matter when you grab the biggest possible sample. Not watching Indian movies meant that I wasn’t watching roughly 30-35% of the worldwide output.

    So this is my first year online voting for Indian movies! I actually kinda like how MANY categories there are for actors to get a nod. LOL They don’t always make sense (Superstar of Tomorrow, hahahahaha and the Male Thriller/Action is quite rubbish), but I’m generally happy when I get to vote for Tabu, Madhuri and Rani without much conflict. So~ YEAH!

    stardust-votes

    You can vote here.

  • Currently Obsessed with Last Night, Good Night~

    I never thought that I would actually, you know, really like a Hatsune Miku song. I had listened to a couple livetune tracks, but left them at bay until I saw Takashi Murakami’s Jellyfish Eyes where he used the song Last Night, Good Night to great effects during the ending credits. It was around 3-4am, so the effects of the song was perfect.

    Too bad the only version available on my iTunes is the one done with Pharrell to promote the movie somehow, and nothing prior to 2012 is on.

    On the topic of Miku, such a hybrid. I don’t know what to tag this post.

  • Guan Hu + Huang Bo’s Winning Cow Combo

    A country bumpkin (with a heavy Shandong accent, I suppose… with my level of Chinese, I can’t tell.) and a cow are the only survivors of a terrible Japanese airstrike during the Sino-Japanese War. I never thought I would ever say this, but that’s the best damn cow performance I’ve ever seen in my life. Alongside Dolly (the dog performance in Korean film Blind), it might be one of my favorite animal performances on film.

    guan-hu-cow-2009-huang-bo

    Even though it didn’t slay in any categories in my Best of 2013 post, The Chef, The Actor, The Scoundrel (厨子‧戏子‧痞子) was one of my favorite movies last year. After Cow (斗牛, Dou Niu), I’ve become a Guan Hu and Huang Bo fan.

  • Dusting Off my Chinese Skills for Faye~

    … or dusting off my lacking Chinese skills xP, so I ask anyone reading this to 1. Take these with a big grain of salt… and 2. If you’ve got a better translation/tips/corrections/etc. let me know. But… in the age of the internet, where fandoms translate songs en masse, I felt a little “left hanging” with Faye Wong lyrics.

    So here are my tries. My mother tried to help, but she gave up. LOL

    After much deliberation, I think I like Cong Cong Na Nian (匆匆那年) a bit more, though I didn’t like Ai Bu Ke Ji (爱不可及) on the first go, it’s really grown on me as a song.

    Common courtesy for credits and/or link-ups, please.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcVZ4jVile8
    (more…)

  • Experiment Awards: Best of 2013

    I’m terrible with timing, aren’t I?

    I’m always dissatisfied with my end of the year lists, but I supposed a WHOLE year of catching up is good enough for me to have a proper idea of what I like, right? I managed to squeeze in 227 movies, the rest is history. I hope you like it, that you don’t hate on me for not including some of your faves, that you celebrate that we loved some of others, and that you love me for introducing you to one title you missed.

    experiment-awards-2013

    Do your thing.

  • Filhaal: That’s Not Subtext at All~

    filhaal-sushmita-sen-tabu-010

    I remember I was watching Filhaal… and thinking to myself that I obviously didn’t have any amazing great female friendships -despite my support for female friendships on film- because I didn’t know anyone that I would mother a baby for nor be comfortable enough to ask to mother one for me. When Sushmita Sen’s character tells Tabu’s that she’ll mother her baby, I was saying “oh, girl~ you’re just asking for trouble.” xD However, through all the complications in their relationship and interaction, I kept saying “I gotta admit, that’s pretty gay.” LOL

    Though Wikipedia or IMDb don’t list it as a connection, according to this (sometimes grasping-at-straws) list of 100 Queer Films of India [Part 1][Part 2][Part 3][Part 4] calls it a -sorta- adaptation of Chutney Popcorn, except Filhaal… takes (or tries to take) the gayness out of it. It’s like Pre-Code films all over again, but I gotta admit- kinda fun. Plus, Tabu looks really REALLY good on the Le Chalen Doliyon [clip] number, which also features pretty flashy cinematography even if it doesn’t reach Meenaxi levels.

    And despite not warming to Sushmita Sen over Main Hoon Na or Biwi No. 1 (come on, you can’t expect me to fall for that, right?), I did enjoy her chemistry with Tabu here enough to watch her episode on Comedy Nights with Kapil and actually get to like her.

    Looking at these captures, you’d think Tabu just fathered this child, LOL and they’re all playing Hebe Tien’s Love! [MV]:

    I love you
    You love her
    She loves her
    She loves him

    [1]