Edition 88

The Non-English Movie of The Week

In the Fade (Germany, 2018) [IMDB: 7.1, Rotten Tomatoes: 75%, My Rating: 7.0]

Trailer

From acclaimed director Fatih Akin comes an avenge drama which gives a glimpse of the struggles of the delicately balanced identity politics in Germany. Diane Kruger plays a mother caught in the crossfire of neo-Nazi extremism and an inept judicial system. It is with great horror that she sees the tables turned on her when the neo-Nazis who show no remorse for their actions get away scot-free. She decides to take matters into her own hands. The film which plays out as a thriller has a lot going for it but the highlight of the movie is the sterling performance by Diane Kruger who scooped up many awards, including one at Cannes, for her theatrics. For all the drama that unfolds during the course of the movie, it is the denouement which leaves much food for thought.

Movies I Saw This Week

Thoroughbreds (2018) [IMDB: 6.9, Rotten Tomatoes: 86%, My Rating: 7.5]

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Cory Finley is a director who offers copious amounts of promise in this stylish take on entitled millennials who cannot take no for an answer. Two friends reunite and in their cold emotionless thoughts develop a plan to kill. For them everything is dispensable and there is no concept of what is right or wrong. One of them revels in silence and the other reveals her inane thoughts by opening her mouth. They are always impeccably turned out. The director never lets the pace drop and shrewdly writes the dialogues which take the story forward without upsetting the tempo of the movie. The product is as high class as the the background of the protagonists of the movie.

Ali’s Wedding (2017) [IMDB: 6.8, Rotten Tomatoes: 91%, My Rating: 7.0]

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This Australian feature is a delight to watch. It is that rare cross between a colourful Bollywood flick and a thoughtful Hollywood drama. The movie tells the life of Ali whose one lie spirals out of control. Though ‘Ali’s Wedding’ does paper over some medieval practices vis-a-vis the treatment of women in Islam, it does not hold back when it shows the intricacies of the life in the Muslim community in Australia. Mostly, the results are hilarious and when they are not, they still do not bore you. A breezy watch with heart warming performances and an engaging screenplay, Ali is worth your time.

The Death of Stalin (2018) [IMDB: 7.2, Rotten Tomatoes: 96%, My Rating: 7.5]

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This biting political satire is an unvarnished look at the fictional politics during the death of Stalin. There are two ways to look at the movie. The favourable way is to see it as an attempt at farce to bring out some key ideas relating to politics and power play in the erstwhile Soviet Union. The slightly less favourable way is to read it with the present animosity between Russia and Britain and a British filmmaker’s attempt to paint the Russians as scoundrels. Apparently, the Russian government agrees with the latter evaluation as it has banned the movie in Russia. From a neutral perspective, the setting and shenanigans of the movie could fit into any autocracy in the world. The viewer may watch the proceedings with slight bemusement. There are enough colourful characters in this movie to keep you engaged and their unpredictability brings enough twists and turns to keep you guessing. Recommended.

A Quiet Place (2018) [IMDB: 7.9, Rotten Tomatoes: 95%, My Rating: 7.5]

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‘A Quiet Place’ is set in a post apocalyptic world where aliens who respond to sound, kill and silence is golden. A corollary from the plot is that the movie has minimal dialogues. A family tries to survive and care for itself in seclusion. Their griefs and joys interspersed with violence form the crux of the movie. Though the film borrows heavily from other ventures which had sound in them, it finds its own place as one of the most well written movies to have come out in recent times. On a lighter note, the film shows you how to keep infants silent and how steaming or grilling is the best way to cook. Recommended.

The Mercy (2018) [IMDB: 6.1, Rotten Tomatoes: 71%, My Rating: 6.0]

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The good thing with the movie is that it is based on a true event which had captured the imagination of the people for its scandalous nature. The bad thing about the movie is that there is no anticipation or excitement as the story is well known. To add to this, the director does not delve much into the character study and lets the events play out. The film which tells the story of amateur sailor Donald Crowhurst who went for broke as he decided to take up the challenge to be the first person to circumnavigate the earth non-stop. The performances of Colin Firth and Rachel Weisz add respectability to the movie. Ultimately, the movie is about a man who did not know what he was getting into and could never utter the word ‘no’ with conviction.

Revenge (2018) [IMDB: 6.3, Rotten Tomatoes: 91%, My Rating: 7.5]

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With with the ‘Me Too’ and ‘Time’s Up’ movements in the vogue, ‘Revenge’ is a timely movie which may at many levels be the defining movie of  the aforementioned movements. Sophisticated and chic, ‘Revenge’ is a revenge drama with blood splashed all over it. For the ones who enjoy gore and violence, this movie may be music to ears and poetry in motion. With great performances and outstanding music complemented by beautiful cinematography which captures the brutal landscape, ‘Revenge’ does not fall into the trap of slasher films. It is often meditative and makes the audience root for the wronged heroine. ‘Revenge’ is not for the weak of heart and if you watch it you will understand that it was never meant to be.

Lust Stories (2018) [IMDB: 7.0, Rotten Tomatoes: 77%, My Rating: 5.0]

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An anthology directed by four respectable filmmakers, ‘Lust Stories’ stays true to its title. Probably that is the best thing I can say about it. Many of them play out like short films made by film students to complete their coursework. Somehow, it is the final piece of the quartet directed by Karan Johar which gets naughty. Karan Johar has no qualms about ruining one of his popular songs and he relishes the chance to do something different from the syrupy brainless movies he normally dishes out. It is in this setting that the high brow directors like Anurag Basu, Zoya Akhtar and Dibankar Banerjee fail to get out of their comfort zone. The pieces by the Basu and Akhtar are particularly tedious. The low cost of production is also evident in their work. Overall, the lust part is strong but the story part is particularly weak in ‘Lust Stories’.

The Kissing Booth (2018) [IMDB: 6.4, Rotten Tomatoes: 70%, My Rating: 5.5]

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Some movies question your judgment as you watch them. In this case, my judgement of having chosen to watch ‘The Kissing Booth’. Based on a book developed on Wattpad (the warning signs were there, you see) and apparently loved by the millennials, the movie does justice to its source material. That’s not saying much though. The story is about a girl who falls for her friend’s brother but that is a taboo as per the regulations and rules governing their friendship. There are decidedly positive outcomes in this bleak scenario. For one, the movie works if you have are not bothered too much by the concept of logic and sense. ‘The Kissing Booth’ in fact, gives a good name to chick flicks.

The Week Of (2018) [IMDB: 5.0, Rotten Tomatoes: 36%, My Rating: 5.5]

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The problem with ‘The Week Of’ is that I enjoyed it for a large part of its running time. Even when I was laughing at an outrageous joke or set piece. Even when I knew that what I saw did not make sense. Some of the jokes are so bad that they are good. As the setting of two families getting together for a wedding played out, one could not miss the fact that Adam Sandler was now the father of the bride. Adam Sandler is also one of the writers of the script. That is when I realized that Sandler is not going to go away anytime soon. Maybe it is a good thing. Maybe not.

Documentary of the Week

Faces Places (2017) [IMDB: 7.9, Rotten Tomatoes: 99% , My Rating: 8.0]

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A quirky duo set off on a road trip. They bring joy to people in small towns in France. An uplifting documentary which was crowdfunded.

Eagerly waiting for: ‘BlacKkKlansaman’ directed by Spike Lee

Did you know: ‘In the Fade’ is only the second time in her 47 acting credits where Diane Kruger speaks German.

Edition 81

The Non-English Movie of The Week

The Eagle Huntress (Mongolia, 2017) [IMDB: 7.6 , Rotten Tomatoes: 92%, My Rating:7.5]

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A cross between a movie and a documentary, Eagle Huntress tells the tale of a girl and her attempt to break the glass ceiling in the wilderness of Mongolia. The Eagle Huntress is an ode to women and all those who want to take a shot at changing the status quo. The film soars as it progresses and takes the viewer on an unforgettable journey with the stunning Mongolian landscape adding to the ethereal beauty of the proceedings. The movie is certainly one of the better photographed ones in recent times but all the credit must go the protagonist who keeps it engaging throughout the 87 minutes. Those 87 minutes just fly away. Highly recommended.

Movies I Saw This Week

Get Out (2017) [IMDB:7.8 , Rotten Tomatoes: 99%, My Rating: 8.0]

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There is a lot of mischief in ‘Get Out’. It is subversive, suggestive and sufficiently subtle. At the same time it does not hold back its punches. At its core, it remains a thriller but the racial dimension elevates the movie to another level. ‘Get Out’ is undeniably one of the best movies of the year and it earns its stripes with the solid screenplay and unconventional plot. A black man with a white girlfriend visits her parents for the first time. He gets more than what he bargained for and then he must get out or be killed. Expect no mercy from the director or any show of overt sentimentality. Fasten your seat belts for en edge of the seat thriller worth every penny that you will pay for.

War Machine (2017) [IMDB:6.2 , Rotten Tomatoes: 55%, My Rating: 6.0]

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Based on a Rolling Stone article which led to the resignation of a top General in the US army, ‘War Machine’ is a commentary on the triumphs and trials, more so of the latter, of USA in the Afghan war. A workaholic General is put in charge of salvaging the Afghan operations of the ‘Coalition of the Willing’. He believes that he can turnaround the situation by makes the locals allies in the war on the Taliban. His simplistic approach does not cut much ice and he then enters into a game of chess, bordering on the silly, with the US administration. The movie meanders a lot and is akin to a documentary puzzled together by a crew. There is no plot and when the finale occurs, the viewer is bewildered by the sequence of events. The saving grace is that the events are relatively engaging but the question of what was all that about is the one that lingers as the final credits roll.

Miss Sloane (2017) [IMDB:7.4 , Rotten Tomatoes: 74%, My Rating: 8.5]

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Miss Sloane is the best movie I have seen in 2017. It is also the best thriller I have seen in years. It is the most slick and well written movie I have seen in years. It is a cat and mouse game and even the veteran film-goers will find it difficult to guess the twists and turns the movie offers. Jessica Chastain plays the title role of a lobbyist with panache. She is a force of nature in her best performance after Zero Dark Thirty. The best thing about the movie is that it has a logical and coherent script which requires your full attention. If you blink during the movie, you may miss something vital onscreen. I am already a fan. Must watch.

Split (2017) [IMDB:7.3 , Rotten Tomatoes: 79%, My Rating: 7.0]

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After being pilloried by critics (and deservedly so) for many of his last few movies, Manoj Night Shyamalan returns to form in ‘Split’. With the use of some pseudo psychology, Shyamalan conjures up a story of a man who has close to two dozen personalities. James McAvoy seems to relish the role offered to him and plays it to perfection. Besides being a thriller, ‘Split’ brings in a considerable amount of philosophy and innocence into its theme. To the director’s credit, it never gets preachy. The box office numbers also vouch for its entertainment value. Made with a budget of less than a million, ‘Split’ grossed close to 140 million dollars.

Sandy Wexler (2017) [IMDB:5.1 , Rotten Tomatoes: 43%, My Rating: 6.0]

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Love him or hate him, Adam Sandler is the darling of  Netflix. His viewers could not be bothered with the critical reception of Sandler’s movies. He is one of the most watched stars on the Netflix platform. So he goes ahead and writes a story based on his long time manager. That movie is Sandy Wexler. Nothing great but mildly amusing with two or three funny scenes. That is enough for Sandler fans. If you are a Adam Sandler fan you may enjoy it. Better still, you can watch it on your next flight when you have nothing much to do other than inhale the recycled air. Even if you fall asleep doing it, you would not miss anything.

John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017) [IMDB:7.9 , Rotten Tomatoes: 89%, My Rating: 7.5]

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Keanu Reeves has a dead emotionless face. Or a hit man face, if you prefer. He fits the profile of the cold and efficient hit man in search of a reason to kill. The sequel to John Wick scores high again in the choreographed action sequences where flying bullets seem to have poetry writ on them. The setting is Rome and that does not hurt. If you liked the original, you will love the sequel. In case you missed the sleeper hit original, the sequel may be a good way to catch up on a movie which is as much fun as it is mindless.

Mindhorn (2017) [IMDB: 6.4, Rotten Tomatoes: 90%, My Rating: 6.0]

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Mindhorn is the typical British comedy filled with irreverence and a bonkers plot. A yesteryear star is called upon to aid the police in murder mystery. With the dual mission of resurrecting his career and finding some reason to be alive, Mindhorn accepts the invitation which is a convenient excuse for him to go on a nostalgia trip. Filled with characters who have that one Achilles heel in their personalities which make them in turns endearing and unreasonable, the movie delivers some genuine moments of humour. Those moments are not frequent enough and the movie sometimes descends into a charade.

Gifted (2017) [IMDB:7.7 , Rotten Tomatoes: 86%, My Rating: 7.0]

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The story of a child genius whose deceased mother shared the same description. The child who is in the custody of her uncle faces a legal quagmire when her grandmother enters her life. Though the plot has some loopholes, it is a generally satisfying movie to watch. The peripheral characters like the teacher at the school are forced into the screenplay and probably should not have had the screen time provided to her. Nonetheless, a decent one time watch for the thematic elements.

Documentary of the Week

O.J.: Made in America (2017) [IMDB:9.0 , Rotten Tomatoes: 100%, My Rating: 9.0]

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Although this documentary is close to eight hours long, it never gets boring or tedious. In fact, it is as good as reading an expert commentary on the saga of O J Simpson with a running thread of racial tensions in the US in the decades leading up to the infamous double murders. More than the fall from grace of an all American hero, it is the race relations and the justice system which are under the microscope. An illuminating documentary and worth the effort.

Eagerly waiting for: ‘An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power’ because Al Gore can tell the truth on climate change, once again.

Did you know: ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ is the first documentary to win two Academy awards.