Friday, October 1, 2010

Time for Shawshank

If you haven't watched one of the most famous heart-warming movies of all time, then well, what're you waiting for?


"Hope is a good thing." That was my highlight of the movie. What do you mean by hope? Is it just feeling good or is it just about saying it just for the sake of it? That's the thing nowadays, we are all fueled with hope. But hope, little did we know, must be understood to be felt. And that was another highlight of the movie, Andy spoke hope, because he knew the measure of it, that nothing could touch it. And let us be reminded of it over and over again.


To say why we need hope would be blatantly stupid. So, what is it that fuels hope? Do we mean things like music, sports, relationships? Technically, when we feel good while doing something, we are having hope. Hope that wants everything else would be calm and carefree for the rest of our lives.


Do we actually need to start feeling hope? Are we not already so messed up(by this, I mean busy, of course) that we are not entitled to search for this great feeling of hope? Well, it's up for us to decide, definitely. Simply nodding your head to your colleagues or wishing a happy, "Hey, man." can inject that sense of temporary happiness. And to all of us, that can certainly be considered as hope. HOPE.


I guess, as life goes on, we lose track of what we can actually achieve. But it doesn't hurt to hope.


"I hope" - Red (The Shawshank Redemption, 1994) Email me, adler_ng@hotmail.com

Review of The Week!

Movie : The Avengers (2012)

Awe-inducing, funny and action-packed, this could be the superhero movie of the year (not that there are many).



It is unusual for directors to modify the genre of superhero movies. To be precise, if we are looking for some popcorn entertainment, Joss Whedon could have easily turned this into a full-blown alien-versus-superhero affair (that actually would not be too bad). Interestingly to note however, he does not. With an affinity to blend action scenes with tongue-in-cheek humor, he balances the tone of the movie to be both rewarding and most definitely, superhero-themed.

There are plenty of noteworthy things you can brag about this movie. The cinematography, the script, the visuals, the cast, the production design. Surely though, there would be one or two flaws, but they are not really meant to be called 'flaws' per se. Bending the laws of physics, 'saving the world' is saving the US and how Hulk manages to comply to orders are just some of the minor 'flaws'. These are probably things that you would just like to ignore for the sake of giving the director the benefit of the doubt.

It is quite evident that Whedon has made this film his own. He incorporates humor into almost every scene, as if things are not to be taken too seriously in the world of The Avengers. And it should be like that. Again, the emphasis on superhero movies usually lie on destruction, life-saving and personalization of characters. But here, there is some of that, but not completely. No chessy lines. No rushed pacing. No cliche-ridden narrative. (Just Loki speaking in a not-so-sharp English accent.)

The movie can also be likened to last year's Deathly Hallows (Part 2); a lot of hype, and duly delivered. At least we could expect how the last Harry Potter movie was meant to be : an emotional, epic battle. The Avengers did deliver but there is something different to the whole theme that somehow manages to change our view on how superhero movies should be in the future. Is it Robert Downey Junior's Shakespearean jab at Thor? Or is the excellent cinematography of sticking to single shots instead of quick-fire editing? Heck, it could even be Scarlett Johansson's semi-obscene display of bust. Anyhow the movie is a success, most definitely.


Unprecedented, now that is one word to decribe Joss Whedon's take on a superhero movie.


Personally*... Stay in your seats till the end; there are rumors that an extra scene is added to the US version of The Avengers, for compensation of the late release.

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/user/894039/reviews/

Spark of inspiration?