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johnthomas123
Reviews
Finding Fanny (2014)
A movie worth watching!
Finding Fanny is a good movie. Brings out well the pace of life in a typical Goan village. Good acting by all. However, the audience feels some confusion over what genre the movie belongs to. There are many incidents throughout the movie which suggest that the Director wanted it to be a laugh riot. To name a few:-
- the groom dying on his wedding night due to getting choked by a large piece of cake. - Rosie howling like a dog at night. - the cat creating problems, its sudden death and the carcass accompanying them. - Rosie throwing up tantrums. - Pedro's obsession with Rosie's derrière. - Ferdie howling at midnight. - the car experiencing a brake failure. - the painter getting shot dead in the car, and nobody noticing it or missing him thereafter. - the funeral procession.
But instead of making it an out-and-out laugh-a-minute comedy (similar to the good old hits "It's a mad,mad,mad world", "Jaane bi do yaaro", etc), the Director tries to weave in some philosophical message in to the movie, viz. "when you lose your love, don't lose yourself, but keep seeking new loves in your life",or "when love does not knock at your door, you knock at love's door".
Very thought provoking messages! but that slightly changes the mood of the audience. The viewer sits up to appreciate the movie more seriously!
The narrative style of story telling ( in Angelina's voice), the tearful scenes, the melancholy, all make the mood even more solemn, and the viewer involuntarily anticipates a serious thought-provoking story to unfold. As a result, at times, the viewer tends to sympathise with the characters, when he is supposed to laugh out loud at their quirkiness! Mixing slapstick humour, sadness and philosophy is not a wise move.
Despite this confusion, it is a very enjoyable movie, and a brave attempt at doing something different. And the happy ending drives home the lofty message (knocking at love's door) in to the hearts of viewers, especially those who are loveless or lonely.
The Lunchbox (2013)
'The Lunchbox' - a whiff of fresh air from Bollywood!
'The Lunchbox' (Warning: contains spoilers)
'The Lunch Box' is a Superb movie! Great performances by all!
I give below some thoughts on areas where a little refinement would have been welcome:
The end could have been a bit more defined. They could have shown the couple walking towards each other; and left the rest to our imagination.
Secondly, the Director could have introduced a few more shots depicting the dull married life of Ila, in between the repeated episodes of the lunch box journeying from home to office and back.
Thirdly, it is highly improbable that a husband who used to get regular tasty food made by his caring wife, does not notice anything amiss when he now starts getting drab food in someone else's container everyday. Some correction required here.
The movie has just missed the selection as India's entry for the Oscars. I feel that even if it had been selected, it might not have clicked at the Oscars, because the movie essentially portrays the Mumbai ethos - the life and values of a typical middle class family in a Mumbai suburb, the 'Dabbawala' phenomenon, travails of commuting to workplace on Mumbai suburban railway, etc. Leave alone Western audiences, these subtle aspects would have been lost even on a non-Mumbai audience.
The West, in any case, would have wondered why Ila had to continue suffering a dull life with an indifferent husband; women out there wouldn't have given a second thought on deserting such a husband and finding a new one!
Having said all these, I still consider 'The Lunchbox' as an outstanding movie, in comparison to the usual formula-based blockbusters from Bollywood.
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