Minia's Mundane Musings

  A Suitable Boy It is when ex-pats miss home terribly, that they end up unearthing gems of Indian literature and resurrecting them as entertaining buffets. This is one such, done by Mira Nair and it wows completely! Walk in and feast on whatever you want. Be it the searing voice of Kavita Seth, which forms a part of an amazing background score, or the vivid and dynamic cinematography, or simply the charm of Tanya Maniktala's smile or the way Tabu seduces an audience- men and women alike! I am sure each one of us will find something to relish in this one. What to say of the cast! It is an ensemble cast, but there is also a swarming bee-hive of brilliant cameos; Vijay Raaz, Randeep Hooda, Sheeba Chaddha and Mansi Multani to name a few. In fact, we have Shimit Amin pitching in, and directing an episode too.   The main cast is too good, and I have heard complaints about their performance being OTT and a bit loud, but then why watch a Mira Nair production and t...

This is such a good movie. I truly enjoyed watching it. It is Aaron Sorkin at his best.  Excellent conversations pepper the movie and the non-linear narrative that is used, keeps the material from being too heavyweight. It swings from the events of the actual night to the ongoing courtroom drama with aplomb.  In all his writing, be it The West Wing or even The Social Network, there has always been some ambiguity as to whose side the writer is on. This one however is crystal clear! The villain is established within minutes of the film commencing and one tends to kind of agree. There is an ensemble cast, and much of it is British - Mark Rylance, Sacha Baron Cohen and Eddie Redmayne. And all of them are a perfect fit. Michael Keaton does a cameo nearly at the end and wins the cup! He is just too good! I was a little sceptical as to the entertainment value of this one, given that it deals with such a sensitive and heavy subject but the dialogues and script just do not let it becom...

This movie totally dismantles the thought that sci-fi has to be loud and full of over-the -top drama and SFX to tell a good story. This story tells of an astronaut who helps souls to transition from one life to the other. He is by race a demon, who has been stationed there as part of the peace treaty between the humans and the asuras. It is a slow progressing movie which makes a powerful commentary on the various ills that plague the world as we know it today. It is crisp and clean and makes lucid statements that set us thinking but do not actually take a side themselves. Morality is woven in too, without the exponent coming off as a preachy goody two-bits. The dialogue is very good and although the movie has varying paces pf story-telling, it certainly doesn’t lose you anywhere. Consider Prahasth, played by Vikrant Massey castigating his subordinate, Yuvishka for keeping some objects from a transiting body. It is done with total elan, and does not feel preachy at all. Also do not miss...

  I had somewhat, though not wholeheartedly liked Alankrita Shrivastava’s previous movie – Lipstick Under my Burkha. But I was sorely disappointed in this venture of hers. In this one it seems as if she had a checklist at the ready, and was hellbent on ticking off one by one, all the elements that she had decided had to populate the screen with in Dolly-Kitty. So, Feminism – done Sexual Freedom – done Equality for Women – done Being cheated on – done  So, on and so forth, till I was cringing within myself and had a feeling of been there and done that! If you aren’t of the mind to stomach the pseudo-liberalism, let this one go. The poor writing got the better of even Konkona Sen Sharma, so that is saying a lot. Bhumi Pednekar seems to have been saddled for posterity with that faux accent, she has put in almost every movie I have seen her in.  Total waste of talent. #MiniasReviews #AllLivesMatter

Such a strange thing, that predominantly Brit actors play out this movie based a much lauded American novel. The rest of the ensemble is dotted with Europeans and Aussies. If you were to go by the reviews, that the critics have bestowed upon this movie, you will probably never watch this one. But trust me, it is a must watch and you will spend a good evening, if you line this up today.  It is story of a father and son and how they struggle with their lot and have only one mission that is to protect the lives of their lives ones. It is liberally peppered with doses of spirituality, but it is not the kind of spirituality which is in your face or overwhelms you. Instead it is each character's own interpretation of his/her relationship with God that kind of, makes you understand why the character is doing - whatever it is they are doing. In fact the only person having no direct line to his Maker is the creepy Preacher, very strikingly played out by Robert Pattinson. He is so cree...

 Gran Torino, LA Confidential, Pushing Tin, Law Abiding Citizen and Aarya. This is grouped review, coz its been a crazy few days and I just don't have the bandwidth to do individual reviews. So here goes: 1- Gran Torino This one helped me come out of the doldrums that The Line of Fire sent me into. The movie is directed by Clint Eastwood and stars him too. The sub-text of the entire movie is oppression and slowly but surely it starts to overwhelm you, until one isn't quite sure whether or not you are liking the movie. It was at the very end that I realized I did like it. In this one Walt's kids feel oppressed by him, Walt feels oppressed by the world and a baby faced priest who keeps popping up all the time.The truly oppressed au contraire do not feel oppressed at all! These are the Hmong community who have fled to the United States of America to escape oppression. (Are you keeping count of how many times I have used that word? 🙂  Are you feeling oppressed as yet? There! I...

  The first round of this anthology series spanned four countries and had stories set in England, Germany, France and Spain. Each country gets its own series with 3- 4 episodes each. It is a very unusual format and utilises a closed room technique in a linear format. The viewer gets to see only the room with the accused in it and the room where the investigating team is stationed. A glimpse of the corridor connecting these two rooms is also there, other than that it all happens here. The accused is interrogated sometimes by a single detective and at other times they tag-team each other. It is all done to elicit a confession. The story progresses only with conversations and body language and it is superb! I enjoyed the first round very very much and was all set for the second one. The standout for me in Season One was David Tennant – the accused. It was perfect for him, as it was far away from his portrayal of Detective Alec Hardy in the seminal series Broadchurch, it was a fine...