jayantmahadevan

"To Bombay, my muse, my whore, my beloved", quips the painter Arun (Aamir Khan)at an exhibition of his celebrating the great city. One more in a line of films that have sought to depict the many faces of Bombay,Kiran Rao's directorial debut seeks to check all the appropriate boxes by attempting to walk the fine line between art house and commercial cinema. Although it is certainly a commendable effort to intertwine the stories of 4 people from different class and religious backgrounds to sing this ode to the city, one gets the impression that the heavy atmospherics instead of lending a sense of warmth tends to alienate the characters from their surroundings. This is where I feel Dhobi Ghat fails, because it doesn't quite know where it wants to be in the spectrum of Bollywood cinema today. The characters are not sufficiently fleshed out and the dialogue appears stilted and forced at several junctures and this leads to us not being able to open our hearts to the stories of the city quite so readily. Surprisingly it is the veteran in Aamir Khan, who looks the most uncomfortable and his take on the loner artist just doesn't seem to work. Its the new stars Monica Dogra,Prateik and Kriti Malhotra (the latter two particularly) who undoubtedly steal the show with their honest natural and innocent portrayals, despite less than ideal scripting. On the upside the photography and cinematography especially those of the night scenes and the sea shore are quite brilliant and the relaxed pace of the narrative under-toned by Gustavo Santaolala's haunting yet understated music really gives the audience time to sink into the movie. However I do look forward to more stories from Kiran Rao's clipboard, she's definitely on the right road, albeit not quite in top gear.

Tarantino is a genius. I think one can assume that beyond a shadow of doubt. For it is only a man like him who can make an English movie which is in French, German and Italian for more than half of its running time. One who can discover a Christopher Waltz and draw him out to flesh out a gruesomely suave character like Colonel Hans Landa with Oscar winning aplomb. One who has the audacity, as on previous occasions, to take a leading actor, in this case Brad Pitt, and effectively transforming him into the caricature of the redneck farm boy leader of the Basterds, Aldo Raine. This film is a welcome return to his signature style of pathos fueled humour. The ironic deprecatory dialogue and the casual use of gore and expletives wouldn't fail to bring a smile to even the most prudish ones. Replete with references and homages to his many influences, and cameos by veteran "Tarantino men", the film also offers sufficient trivia for the obsessive ones amongst us, who revel in these small joys. The use of the soundtrack to reflect the mood of a scene and alter our visual perception of its import is another classic Tarantino strategy which is employed effectively yet again. Right from the opening strains of Fur Elise with the flamenco guitar, to Ennio Morricone's mid western style shootout theme employed during the ambush of a German platoon, or David Bowie's Cat People when Shoshanna gets 'dressed to kill', the music plays the role of romanticizing the scenes and adding texture and depth to it. The trademark long panning camera shot is well used on a few occasions and the editing makes sure that you are gripped despite the length. Hence technically one could certainly not fault this movie in any way. The acting is in most cases adequate, but never takes precedence over the film. The obvious stand out of course is Christoph Waltz, whom we hope to be seeing a lot more of. Why is it then that I have given it a rating of 8 and not more? Well the answer to that lies in my repeated use in this article of signature, trademark and classic. This is evidently attributable to directorial style and method, however therein lies the pickle. This is very much a 'Tarantino comfort zone' movie that has merely undergone a frame-shift mutation and is thus the only reason it will not become as much of a cult classic as say, Pulp Fiction. Regardless, I'm personally a fan of his style and he yet again pulls off what he's a master at, making movies which ooze a sense of cool.

Music speaks a universal language and is one that cannot be chained by any form of oppression. It is this fact that is highlighted ever so poignantly by Bahman Ghobadi, in this heart breaking story of the travails of the aspiring independent musicians of Iran. Effortlessly encompassing various genres like rock, jazz, metal and rap into its soundtrack, neatly blended in with breathtakingly beautiful camera-work of the many worlds in Tehran, it gives us a glimpse into the struggle of the youth seeking the freedom of expression. There is also a sense of frustration and anguish while watching the lengths to which the characters have to go to be able to pursue their passion, and that is sensitively captured in a way, that makes your heart go out for them. The performances are natural and unencumbered by the demands of formal acting, and the songs and lyrics are delightfully fresh and evocative. The story which though narrated in the documentary style, is never taxing at any point, and would transport even the most cynical of viewers on a journey of hope and a quest for freedom and release. But in the end, it is the elegant simplicity with which the director deals with a serious, complex issue that really makes this film stand out. This is truly good cinema at many levels and is certainly worth every minute of the time you spend with it.