Ulidavaru Kandante

Perspective:

South Indian cinema industry has given a lot of jewels to the world cinema as well as India. Concepts have evolved, along with the techniques. But somewhere down the line the aspect of movie making in the south region, especially in the Sandalwood, has clotted to one style of cinema narrative. We find the same story running over and again with repeated concepts, or remaking of other language movies. Yes, there are experimental movies, which have showed a lot of expectations as well as paved the way for the new gen directors and actors, but there is a mixed ratio of audience as well as opinions on such movies. Contrasting to it, here is one movie in Sandalwood, which has changed the definition of cinema making as well as redefined “Concepts”.

“Ulidavaru Kandante” movie conceptualized and directed by Rakshith Shetty, is a movie with non linear story telling. The movie is well developed along with introducing to each of its characters with good character building. The movie however is divided into 5 parts as “Chapters”, to clearly narrate the instances. The movie starts of with the fisherman and boat craftsmen repairing the boat and cleaning the boats and gearing up for fishing. The movie then moves on with the narration from a reporter who works for a newspaper reporter named Regina(Sheetal Shetty). At first it introduces to a boy who is being caught guilty in killing a boy in the town and the police catches him and they drag him to the police jeep. A girls takes the picture of his. The story then develops and Regina is found interviewing a man who knows Raghu(Rishab Shetty) and Richi(Rakshith Shetty). After 15 years Raghu comes down to his town at Malpe. He wants to see his mother and also has earned a lot of money from his business at Bombay. He comes along with a sinister looking red bag with a mysterious object in it. Shankar Poojary(Dinesh Mangalore), mafia in the town has Richi working under him and his legal and illegal business is managed by him. Richi is a bully and brutally beats and kills people who insults him or his boss. On the other hand we see a love story between Munna(Kishore) and Sharada(Yagna Shetty). The same mysterious object was once seen by Sharada’s brother while they were fishing. The same bag is now hunted by Richi. Richi eventually meets Raghu and acquires the bag from him. During the day of Janmasthami, Richi slams Sharada’s brother and beats him up in the boat. At the same time kills Raghu for betraying him in his childhood. We must also notice that the mom and son sentiments between Raghu and his mother Ratnaka(Tara), is so beautifully painted on screen with pure emotions. The mysterious bag is achieved by Richi and handed over to his boss. But due to misconceptions, Munna kills Richi and Richi’s friend kills Munna. Ultimately the story revolves round the mysterious bag and no one knows what it is.

The movie sketches out the perspectives of each character on the mystery without a conclusion. The movie plays round your mind and makes you think about it. The screenplay has been outstanding, which brings in the element of mystery and provides answers for certain circumstances. Editing by Sachin and screenplay by Rakshith Shetty himself has created a magic. Cinematography by Karm Chawla is exceptional. The lighting has made a huge difference in bringing out the intensity and feel of the circumstances. Music by Ajaneesh Loknath, has set a benchmark and a trend with foot tapping music as well as sinister background score.

Misc-En-Scene:

The costume along with the props being used depicts the olden days of Malpe and Udupi district. The lifestyle of 80’s and 90’s has being meticulously brought out. The Phone, the trunk calls, the town setup, the ambassador, lights, clocks, lanterns etc., Even the ex-voto concept also brings in the traditional feel and rural touch to the movie.

I would rate this movie a 

Director: Rakshith Shetty                                                        Length: 2hr. 34 min

Producer: Hemanth, Suni, Abhi

Genre: Action, Mystery

 

The Silence of the Lamb

I’ve reviewed the rest of the movies according to the story and the technical aspects. I’ve decided to go off track and break the chronology. I would like to speak on the important elements of the film.This movie has a lot of things to speak about regardless of the story.

The character development in the movie is very naturally and constructively brought up. The conflicts faced by Jodie Foster in her childhood and the essence of it still haunting her. The movie sketches the ideological satire of women in administration. The movie also provides hints through the narrative and visually, that there is something unusual that had happened in Jodie’s life in the movie as well as something mysterious. Jodi Foster is a trainee in FBI and in the meantime she’s given a mission by her senior officer Scott Glen, to interview the psychopath, psychiatrist Dr. Hanibal Lecter, played by Anthony Hopkins. He’s know for flesh eating. He has the power of hypnotism and easily traps his prey and eats the flesh out of them. Very interestingly the director Johnathan Demme hints that Hanibal is not a normal man and when a doctor at prison shows the devastation that he has done and the obscenity of the crime. Red light is being used to show the danger persona of Hanibal. Similarly, male dominant administration is depicted. The male police officers stare at her with an attitude of what a lady has to do with FBI. Jodie also has hallucination of her father playing with her at the same time being laid in the coffin.

The movie eventually goes on to show hoe Jodie Foster tracks Buffalo Bill and enters into his house and save the girl that was captivated. Also the night vision camera usage when Buffalo Bill tries to attack Jodie from behind is brilliantly shot. The great escape of Hanibal from the ambulance where he wears the skin of a police officer and reveals his identity when the doctor is busy on phone line. the body language of Anthony Hopkins, is the key factor that makes you feel uncertain. He’s seen wearing the dress neatly like a suite and also the way he speaks, the gestures as well as his captivating eyes. Baroque lighting is used to show Buffalo Bill at the beginning when he tries and and abduct a girl into the van. Also very low key light as well as light spotted from the top of Anthony Hopkins shows that the circumstances are revolving round him. The end scene, where Hanibal calls Jodie, is shot meticulously, by changing the overall attire of Hanibal and showing that he’s following someone, for his next target.

Overall this movie will captivate you by the narrative and the screenplay. The sinister music at the end sets your mind into another sequel, making you think on your feet if there is something going to happen next.

I would rate this movie a 

Director: Jonathan Demme                                         Length: 2 hr. 18 min

Producer: Edward Saxon, Kenneth Utt, Ron Bozman

Genre: Mystery

The Matrix

Review:

Digital world is so fun. Experiencing it is another level. But experiencing it virtually is even more amusing. The movie “The Matrix”takes you to the world virtual ride packed with action and thrills. The movie is so imaginative, you feel the world actually exists.

The movie according to me takes us to the world of metamorphosis. You feel it is there but its not. It is the war between the trapped and the rebels. Neo(Keanu Reeves) is taken to Morpheus(Laurence Fishburne) by Trinity(Carrie-Ann Moss). There Neo is explained about what is going to happen and make a decision. He’s given a red and a blue pill and asked to make a choice. Morpheus gives him an option to consume the blue pill and go back to his dreams and fulfill what he wants or have the red pill and get deep into the rabbit hole and explore Matrix. Neo consumes red pill and is then being taken to the lab where he is being fixed to a computer program which shows him the world which is actually not and also makes him decide what is real and not. Neo experiences the first virtual combat and feels unusual. The team of Matrix then meets Oracle(Gloria Foster), who says Neo is not the one and will say that he will have to soon choose between his life and Morpheus. With combat training from Morpheus in the virtual world, Neo tries to learn. But on the other hand, Cypher(Joe Pantaliano), betrays Morpheus and his team with Agent Smith to have a comfortable life. He tries and kills Morpheus’s team. Tank(Marcus Chong) the programmer in Morpheus’s team fights back after a brutal attack by Cypher and kills Cypher inorder to protect Neo and Morpheus.

Misc-En-Scene:

The lighting and the instruments created to show the technological advancement is brilliant. The background score drives the movie with the original Matrix Theme, all thanks to Don Davis. The visual effects is a genius piece of work. It’s said that the bullet scene in the matrix  and the rest of the slow motion 360 degree still shots would take 800 years to render in one system. The stopmotion scenes are captured by placing camera per frame and rendered it in 24 frames per second. Each camera takes the shot simultaneously and then the shots are put together to achieve such a effect.

I would rate this movie a 

Director: The Wachowski Brothers                                           Length: 2hr. 30 min

Producer: Joel Silver

Genre: Sci-Fic

God Father

God Father is the movie which is derived from the novel by Mario Puzo “The Godfather”. But the movie is a little changed for the purpose of movie making. This movie is a total drama, highlighting the family principles, practices, and the conflicts within the family.. The family is governed and held together by the power of Godfather Don Vito Corleone(Marlon Brando). Sonny Corleone(James Caan), who is the elder son of Don Vito, seems to be a aggressive and ruthless. He is the older brother of Michael Corleone(Al Pacino). Tom Hagen(Robert Duvall) is a legal advisor to Don and is very close to Don.

Don Vitto, has a lot of business going on and also has rivals who aren’t in good terms with him or his family. There are 5 divisions in his family and all of them are seen in the wedding of Don Vitto’s daughter Connie Rizzi(Talia Shire). The real conflict in the movie begins when Sonny gets to know that she is being assaulted by her husband. Sonny betas him on the street to teach him a lesson and warns him. Simultaneously Don’s business will be into family enterpise and at a point Don is gunned down after the gunning down of the police in an restaurant. Michael leaves the town and settles in a far off place. He marries to a beautiful girl there but she does in a blast which is supposed to be set by the rivals. Sonny also is brutally murdered, and there is a crisis in the family for power and the war is between the families for a reason to sell the drugs for which Don Vitto’s influence was required and he refuses. The movie interestingly moves towards finding a successor for the Godfather title and that is the interesting scenario of the movie and how he ends all the clashes and animosities within the family and outside.

The most important feature of the movie is the character development where, the director, Francis Ford Coppola has critically portrayed and made the character of each evolve very meticulously. The cinematography too gives the feel of the revenge, warlike atmosphere along with feel of atrocity and a sense of therapeutic feel. Thanks to Gordon Willis. Also the screenplay by Mario Puzo, Robert Town and Francis Ford, takes us through the journey of devastating scenario and the tragic incident a family experiences.

I would rate this movie a 

Director: Francis Ford Coppola                                         Length: 2 hr. 58 min

Producer: Albert S Ruddy

Genre: Drama

 

LAKSHYA

Everyone born has a sense of responsibility in oneself, which needs to be introspected and thought about. Each individual has the ability and capacity achieving heights, achieving impossible, thinking out of the box ability. If you have a goal set and have determination to achieve it, then definitely there is nothing to stop one from accomplishing it. This movie too gives out a call to every youth on being firm, hard working and determined.

The movie begins with the Indian Air force flight landing on the airbase at Kashmir. It sends a message that it has something to do with accomplishment of war situation with Pakistan. The story switches to the young college going boy named Karan(Hrithik Roshan), where is found to be a boy with no goals and ambitions. He has a girl named Romi(Preity Zinta), who is an activist along with the reporter in the Global News channel. Karan lives a lives life as his dad is a businessman. He gets to know that his friend is about to write an entrance test for the Indian Army. He too writes and gets selected, but his dad gets enraged by this. Romi also tell him that he must some goal and that eventually makes him join IMA. He escapes in the mid process of training and observes a emotional breakdown with family as well as his girlfriend. He rejoins and gets into rigorous training . He meets Col. Sunil Damle of the Punjab Regiment. They get a task to find out the range of the Pak military intruded into the borders and bunkers and makes a plan after testing the ground reality. They setout to a mission at LOC ad clear the rivals from the border. The authenticity of the war base is brought out very naturally. It evokes a strong sense of patriotism. At the end they get to climb the 800 feet steep rocky cliff and attack the rival from the unknown side. Karan succeeds in nailing down all the militants of Pak and nails the Indian flag firmly at the peak of the cliff and symbolizes to the regiment miles away, as they will be having a pressure to complete the operation within 48 hours as Col. Damle will be given a last chance by Brigadier Puri. Ultimately it’s how Karan determinedly completes the operation and succeeds in achieving what he wanted.

Misc-En-Scene:

The music by Shankar -Ehsaan-Loy, builds a patriotic aggression and provokes the audience to do something for India. Javed Akthar along with Karan Kashyap, has collaborated the scenes and placed it in a right way to have a good understanding between the college going boy without an aim and the responsible captain in the army.

I would rate this movie a 

Director: Farhan Akhtar                                           Length: 3 hr 7 min

Producer: Farhan Akhtar, Ritesh Sidhwani

Genre: War, Drama

HALLOWEEN

Horror movies are said to challenge our senses and will power. It sort of engulfs a curtain of darkness and unusual feel with the visual experience. 1970’s experienced such psychological experience, through,  John Carpenter, playing with sounds, lights and shadows.

This movie doesn’t portray a creepy looking, horrifying made-up ghost like character, nor it visualizes any paranormal aura, but yes it brilliantly captures the feel of “Horror”, by just brilliant traits by Jon Carpenter. The movie begins with an intimate scene between Judith Meyers and his love. Michael Meyers keeps observing it from out of the house and slowly enters the house from the back yard door. While Judith is dressing up, he gets into the room and brutally slashes her with the knife. After the incident Michael was put into police custody for a period of 15 years. The house where Judith was killed looks mysterious everytime shown and it’s shown in such a way that the persona of the house is creepy and something fishy. There is a car moving along the city after couple of years and there is something suspicious about it. Brackettt (Charles Cyphers), police and father of Annie(Nancy Loomis), along with Dr. Loomis(Donald Pleasence), suspects something going strange in the  city of Illinois. There is a suspicious looking car with a heavy breathing person wearing a garage suit, strangely looks at kids playing at school with Jack O’ Lantern. The whole city is preparing for the Halloween night . Laurie(Jamie Lee Curtis) finds a strange looking man in his car taking rounds. Annie on the other hand doesn’t give much attention to it. Jamie’s son speaks about a bogeyman and she tries and neglect it. Annie leaves her daughter at Jamie’s place. She seems to be speaking to her love on phone and decides to meet him that night, eventually she gets killed in her car in her parking shed. The same continues with Lynda and her love. Eventually Jamie senses something going wrong and goes into Annie’s house and she gets a horrific shocks by looking at all of them getting killed and eventually she discovers that the strange looking man is trying to kill her too.She calls out for help and Dr. Loomis comes into the rescue and shots at the suspicious killer. The end is interesting.

Misc-En-Scene:

The light and shadows play a very important role in the movie. Dean Cundey has explicitly used the low key lighting to give a more of suspicious look. The shadows portrays a meaning that Jamie is trapped in the killers trap and also the lighting aspect is being brilliantly used when Lynda’s lover is being killed in the kitchen. Acoording to me 3 point lighting is used to sketch out the silhouette of the killer and the knife that is nailed to the person dead. Also it highlights that the killed person is nailed abve the ground to a wooden shelf. The scene also shows that the opportunity to escape was close enough, but merely missed it. The movie horrifies you only through the background score, which is magnificently used by John Carpenter himself. “The Shape Stalks”, “Lauries Theme”captivates the viewers and keeps the momentum of suspense going throughout. Silence also plays a important role and from nowhere according to the situation the silence is broken, which makes the visual and audio experience even more horrifying.

I would rate this movie a  

Director: John Carpenter                                       Length: 1 hr. 33 min

Producer: John Carpenter and Debra Hill

Genre: Slasher, Suspense, Thriller