The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)

Director: Peter Jackson

Summary: A definite improvement on its predecessor, falling only slightly short of an ardent fan’s sky-high expectation—nonetheless, an entertainer that is bound to grow on you with repeated viewings. 

Plus Points:

Good to see Jackson venturing into the relatively uncharted sections of the book, things that J.R.R. Tolkien left to reader’s imagination or just briefly mentioned, for example: 

• Expulsion of Sauron from Dol Guldur by Gandalf and co.

Jackson also gives some identity to the otherwise generalized evil characters in the novel, like, Azog the Defiler, Bolg. This does give 'evil-side' some heavyweight counterparts to match against the plenty of known good characters. 

Addition of Tauriel and Legolas in the film was a masterstroke too, and will work really well when film reaches the crescendo in the Battle of Five Armies. Inclusion of Legolas in the ‘Hobbit’ storyline is actually quite a shrewd move, since there in nothing in Tolkien’s writings that denies it. However, it means Legolas and Bilbo were acquainted to one another prior to the fellowship’s meet at Rivendale (in LOTR)—there is nothing in LOTR film that indicates this or otherwise!  

Open barrel ride was another great modification; the low-key and secretive barrel-escape of the novel, wouldn’t have worked with the audience not familiar with Tolkien's work.  

Some Drawbacks:

In Hobbit 1, exclusion of Gwaihir the Windlord—the king of magnificent talking eagles—was the one of the biggest disappointment for me, personally (totally empathize this omission, though). In this film, it is the mistreatment of Beorn’s character; got his grandiose represented horribly wrong. To rub salt to the wound, script completely abridges Beorn’s role to a meager sneak peek. There is so much potential to tap in and Jackson knows it better than most. Hope they redeem Beorn's to its deserving glory in the final battle.

Length of the film is not an issue here; it is the improper utilization of length that makes the film drag at times. Could have invested more time on Beorn, of course.

Visuals and special effects are undoubtedly brilliant...just like all the previous films. Hence, 'humdrumness' of  visuals work well for someone new to the franchise, whereas, for someone who has followed it all through, film's special effects offer nothing new. It wouldn't be counted as a drawback for any lesser director...but from Jackson we expect magic every time! 

Overall, a good film that seems more of a stepping stone to the grand final, or so I hope!

8.3/10

Pacific Rim (2013)

Director: Guillermo Del Toro

Cast: Idris Elba, Charlie Hunnam, Rinko Kikuchi

The real summer blockbuster of 2013, and when it comes to the “big and monstrous” Pacific Rim dwarfs anything ever produced by the likes of “The Avengers” or any other big-budget extravaganza.

Film uses a very basic plot—heroes defending the planet against invading aliens coming through an undersea portal between our world and another dimension. Del Toro reintroduces Kaiju—monolithic monsters (such as Godzilla) wrecking havoc on the planet, and mankind’s only defense against them, Jaeger—kind of ostentatiously large version of Iron Man armor controlled neutrally by a human pilot, the evolved versions use two pilots sharing the neural load by psychically bridging their minds through a technique called “drifting”.

Loaded with some ultra-cool weaponry (like Plasma gun, Rocket Elbow, Missile Launcher, Hammer) Jaeger’s best was indeed the good, old Sword--only a tad bigger! The two scenes with swordplay—one mid-air, one underwater—simply blow you away, would have loved seeing more of it—hopefully in the upcoming sequel!

 

A lot of films tried capturing the ‘grandiose’ of comics or graphic novels—especially the colossal alien villains—but it is Del Toro who has hit the mark closest, yet. Jaeger’s designs, including its gait, movement and fights were perfect in all its grandeur. Kaiju could use little more refinement/clarity when it comes to dark and shady underwater scenes.      

In all, Pacific Rim has raised the bar very high when it comes to spectacularly grand designs and visual effects—Del Toro accomplished his vision onscreen by collaborating with some proven artists of the field.

His coterie included: robot and monster designers Wayne Barlowe, Oscar Chichoni, David Meng and Simon

Lee, and Francisco Ruiz Velasco, famed for Hellboy II and The Hobbit. Special effects were handled by John Knoll and Hal T. Hickel ( Star Wars and Pirates of the Caribbean), Shane Mahan (Iron Man), John Rosengrant (Real Steel) and Clay Pinney (Independence Day, Star Trek). No wonders the awesomeness that transpired on onscreen was a visual treat like never before.

Even though a second fiddle, the star cast delivers as it was expected to. Idris Elba was impressive as a hard-boiled leader, Charlie Day and Ron Perlman provide the much needed gags at the right moments and Charlie Hunnam looked good too (perhaps his meatiest role since Green Street Hooligans).      

      

Calls for a definite theater watch!

8.1/10

Delicatessen (1991, French)

Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Marc Caro

Genre: Black Comedy

Plot: A dystopian future where people aren’t evil as such, instead, they are what circumstances make them. The good still prevails, though.

French do know how to make engrossing films on a shoe string budget. Innovative set design and coloring—with a slight orangish tinge—does give it a very rare post apocalyptic look and feel. 

Delicatessen is indeed a cult film—actually, homage to Terry Gilliam! So, if you enjoyed Monty Python’s satire you’ll enjoy this too.  

7.4/10

John Carter (2012)

Director: Andrew Stanton

Genre: Fantasy, Adventure

Cast: Taylor Kitsch, Willam Dafoe, Mark Strong

Plot: John Carter is "telegraphed" from Earth to Mars.

With so many larger-than-life movies slated for release in coming months, John Carter commences 2012 in a grand style! It is worth all your money and is entertaining enough.

Stanton, the storyteller, has ensured John Carter (the character) will stay with us for long and we will want more of him soon.

The special effects are state of the art. Alien landscapes filmed at Big Water, Utah are brilliantly captured--take you to the heady days of original 'Planet of the Apes'.

Film also moves at a good pace, at the same time there is a definite feel of stability in the script. It is a larger-than-life, action-adventure epic that not necessarily needs to make room for display of emotions, yet these have been subtly interwoven amongst all the chaos. 

There is nothing new in the movie itself, however, it does give you the feel of "Star Wars" and some fight sequences (especially the chase outside Goddess's abode) and their settings also remind you of old west scenes from "Back to the Future".

I haven't read much work of Edgar Rice Burroughs but was aware of the character John Carter as it has appeared a few times in both Marvel and DC. If you are not familiar with the Burroughs' writings then initially it could be little troubling to decipher what is going on much of the time but that is also something which keeps you glued-on and by the time movie ends everything is crystal clear.

There are a few things I feel should have been included and some scenes should have been cut short as it is a 2 hours+ movie:

• Display of excessive emotions by Princess of Mars 'Dejah' was unnecessary and seemed bogus, instead, some overall character development would have fared better for the movie. 
• 3D was decent but again unnecessary, would have done equally well--or probably better--in 2D.
• Action sequences (apart from Carter's legendary high jump) are good but nothing outstanding. 
• Stanton looked more focused in creating a fantastic world with state of the art sets and lags behind a bit in direction part. 
• You expect much and more from the storyteller who gave us the likes of Toy Story, Finding Nemo, Wall-E. Clearly, directing a live action for the first time has slightly affected Stanton's actual strength.

At last, no spoilers ahead, what an ending! Perfect climax makes up for anything that was lacking and makes you crave for a sequel.

7.5/10

P.S., you'll fall in love with Wulla (Calot): a 'frog-dog'-like creature!

Immortals (2011)

Director: Tarsem Singh
Cast: Henry Cavill, Luke Evans, Mickey Rourke, John Hurt
Genre: Fantasy, Action

Plot: One man alone must carry the burden of God's trust.

This again is a movie involving Greek mythology. If you already haven't seen "Clash of the Titans" then let me tell you it is quite similar in terms of three primary groups involved--mortal men, Gods, and a mad King. Of course, King wants to rule the World and free the Titans that were once defeated and imprisoned under Maount Tartaros by Gods. As a rule, God don't meddle in the business of mortals. Amidst all this is a coveted weapon 'Epirus bow' created by Ares, the God of War.

 

The action sequences are good, though nothing over-the-top. There are some moments that do rush your adrenaline. Like the fight scene where Theseus's mother is slain by mad King Hyperion (Rourke), and final battle scene involving all the Gods--kind of uber-cool battle sequence!

Indian connection: if only Frieda Pinto had a substantial role, though she does make her presence felt in this short role.

The entire movie is good to look at...very creative in terms of picturization and set design. 3d effects are perfect too.

One weakness: It doesn't make much use of Henry Cavill's full potential and the most-wanted bow is merely a showpiece. What you do see of Cavill is quite promising. Thumbs-up from me for upcoming Superman :) 

One plus point: Look of Zeus/Gods. Gods don't age or get sick. They are immortal. So, why shouldn't they look younger? This look of Zeus (Luke Evans) is best ever by me. And Atehna (Isabel Lucas) is seething hot! And this 'younger look' makes the already impressive final battle even more attractive.

Sadly, this again leaves a lot to an upcoming sequel and promises to reach the level next in that! Gods will battle the Titans and that is supposed to be huge.

You might have already seen whatever has been shown in this movie (read 300, Alexander, Troy etc) but it shows all that again pretty spectacularly.

Better made than Clash of Titans.

6.5/10

Troll Hunter (2010, Norwegian - Trolljegeren)

Director: André Øvredal

Genre: Fantasy, Mockumentary

Scottish had their mystic Loch Ness Monster 'Nessie' so why can't Norwegians have their very own Trolls!

Please don't judge by the name, it's surprisingly well made and mostly gripping!

Ever since "Blair Witch Project" started the trend for horror mockumentaries we have seen plenty similar ones: Paranormal Activity, Rec, The Fourth Kind (one of the best in my opinion), and now, Troll Hunter is one more addition to the list.

Those into the genre have always enjoyed the antics of mythical Nessie. So many stories and movies have come out based on this character. Somehow, people have moved on from mythical film—Bigfoot never quite captured the imagination on big-screen as Nessie did, and "Bermuda Triangle" has been decoded. So, "Troll Hunter" is what you watch when you crave for something similar and peculiar! 

It is a low budget movie but the camera work simply astonishes you, and the CGI is commendable too—the trolls look very convincing!

The story revolves around a group of students trying to figure out the depths of a governmental cover-up. These students assume they are only after some bear poachers, however, they didn’t bargain for a Troll hunter! The movie maintains a good pace all through and there are exciting /comic incidents every now and then. The explanation given for the high altitude Norwegian power grids is very amusing :)

In the climax they do go a bit over the top for a mockumentary but it’s something you want and enjoy—a guilty pleasure!

7.5/10

Stranger Than Fiction (2006)

Director: Marc Forster

Cast: Will Ferrell, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Emma Thompson, Dustin Hoffman, Queen Latifah

Genre: Drama-Comedy

Writer: Zach Helm

Plot: Stranger than fiction—indeed!

A delightful movie that exemplifies top notch direction and a perfect script. Zach Helm's writing is the real showstopper; he conceived a brilliantly writing film. "Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium" would be the obvious next choice for me where he directs too—it’s already tempting with Portman in it!

Marc Forster is another young director to look out for. He already boasts of successful films like Monster's Ball, Finding Neverland, The Kite Runner (need to watch this beauty asap!), Quantum of Solace and none of them are similar. Even his latest “Machine Gun Preacher” has a very strong plot. 

What can be said of Ferrell? Not surprisingly, he wasn’t even nominated for any major awards. It’s is high time these Awards recognize comedians—in addition to perfect timing, maintaining the same intensity with multiple retakes is more difficult in a comic act—and give them their dues. Actors like Ferrell, Jim Carrey, etc have been branded as comedian and anything they are associated with, is branded as comedy—doesn’t matter how meaningful and deep it is. Almost same is the case with negative roles.I just hope awards grow up soon and stupendous acts like “Joker/Ledger”—arguably the best ever—don’t have to settle down with “Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role”!!

As for the movie, I’ll just quote Forster: “It's not the exact accurate story, but for me the film really isn't about reality. It's about the transformation of imagination, about creativity, about belief. That basically, if you believe, you can make anything happen.” 

This was his take on “Finding Neverland” which, for me, holds true for Stranger than Fiction!

 8.3/10

P.S., loved Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium too! 

Red Riding Hood (2011)

Director: Catherine Hardwicke

Cast: Amanda Seyfried, Gary Oldman, Billy Burke

Genre: Fantasy

Plot: The big, bad wolf is back to haunt an all grown up Red Riding Hood.

High point of the movie is its commendable set design against a beautiful backdrop.The opening panoramic scene capturing winter clad mountains, frozen lakes, deep valleys, never-ending waterfalls, castle, etc. is breathtakingly beautiful. 

It is shot in a medieval village, constructed entirely of wood, surrounded by snow covered peaks and dense oak forest. You so want to 'be' in the movie to experience this splendor of nature! Otherwise, it is the same old fairy tale with a slight twist.

Sadly, these are the only good things that can be said of the movie. Acting is mediocre, Gary Oldman is completely wasted. Amanda Seyfried has shown vast improvement from her last role in “Chloe.” Unlike artificial Chloe, she looks beautiful here.

The movie had a substantial enough plot to engage the popcorn-cinema-going audience, plus there was the general curiosity factor for others too. Some sincere effort in the scripting/directing part would have made it a sure winner. But that wasn’t to be. So a mere:

6/10

Alice in Wonderland (2010)

Director: Tim Burton

Cast:  Johnny Depp, Mia Wasikowska, Helena Bonham Carter

Genre: Animation, Fantasy

Plot: A nineteen year old Alice is back in the Wonderland.

There is nothing over the top about this movie. Johnny Depp is his usual-strangely charming-self, Helena Bonham Carter was...well, ok. Could have easily replaced her with a completely animated character! 

Anne Hathway has nothing much to do as she anyways looks like a gracious fairy. Alice (Mia) was pretty and did a fair job. 

I did hope Alice’s return to the Wonderland would have been a more full of grandeur.  

Watch it if you have time to kill.

6.2/10