Movies and TV shows!

Friday, January 25, 2013

MODERN FAMILY (SEASON 2)

Creators:
Steven Levitan
Christopher Lloyd

Starring:
Ed O Neil
Sofia Vergara
Julie Bowen
Ty Burrell
Jesse Tyler Ferguson
Eric Stonestreet and others

The second season of this show is good (I preferred the first one). This season has plenty of jokes and fun but the amount of jokes present in the episodes significantly reduce towards the latter half of the season. Ty Burrell is his usual fantastic self and probably has the best dialogues. The chemistry between Mitch and Cam (Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Eric Stonestreet respectively) is a significant improvement on the first season.

One of my favourite opening sequence was in the second episode of this season in which Claire (Julie Bowen) asks Phil as to why the number of lids and containers are never the same, to which he replies that maybe heblew his lid when she tried to contain him. This made me reminisce about the times my mother faced the same problem and how she would also get frustrated.

The characters are much better written and the emotions are well captured in this season. This family is a perfect example of how families are never perfect but each person makes up for the deficiencies of the other.

PS: My favourite episode of this season was the thirteenth one. Its a laugh riot.

Pranit's Rating: 8/10

Thursday, January 24, 2013

PRIMER (2004)

Director:

Shane Carruth

Writer:

Shane Carruth

Starring:

Shane Carruth
David Sullivan
Casey Gooden and others

Firstly let me start by saying that I don't consider myself to be a smart ass but I ain't dumb either. Very rarely (if ever!) do movies come along which lead me to stare at the screen with admiration at the sheer incongruity the writer infuses into the screenplay. Well this is one of them. Primer makes essentially complex and ambiguous movies (read Inception and Shutter Island) seem like the creations of two year old's. This movie is geek and nerd nirvana as it is highly improbable that normal people actually understood as to what Carruth is trying to show. I do not know whether this movie requires multiple viewings or is just frankly above my level of understanding. I enjoyed the movie without really understanding the small nuances of the film. Watch it because a movie made on a 7000 dollar budget, winning the grand jury prize of Sundance 2004 definitely is a movie worth your time.

Pranit’s Rating: 6/10

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

GAME OF THRONES (SEASON 1)

Creators:
David Benioff
D.B. Weiss

Starring:
Lena Headey
Peter Dinklage
Michelle Fairley
Sean Bean and many many many more

Game of Thrones is not bad but labeling it as the best ever seems over than mildly overrating this series.

The top three things about this season:
1. The Characterisation: Even though the characters are adapted from the book, the writers have remained true to the original story-line and thus it has lead to believable characters and dirty politics even though the dialogue writing is not memorable.

2. The Direction: Each episode is directed with panache and charm which makes this show interesting.

3. PETER DINKLAGE: He is truly mesmerising in this show. I am pretty positive that I would not have been able to sit through the show without him.

The unbearable parts about this show:
1. The Writing: Okay this show maybe true to the book but the writers fascination with showing every character in each episode is irritating and unnecessary as some of them don't have anything to contribute to that particular episode.

2. The actors other than Dinklage, Lena Headey and Sean Bean (to some extent): It is a multicast show but the acting of some of the actors is amateurish. I personally don't like Kit Harington (John Snow) and John Bradley (Sam) one bit. The actors who are not amateurish are forgettable.

Well I am not a big fan of medieval fantasy adaptions so my review might be a little biased. This is a good show (I especially enjoyed the twist towards the end of the season!), there is no denying that but there are far better shows available as well.

Pranit's Rating: 6.5/10

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

MODERN FAMILY (SEASON 1)

Creators:
Steven Levitan
Christopher Lloyd

Starring:
Ed O Neil
Sofia Vergara
Julie Bowen
Ty Burrell
Jesse Tyler Ferguson
Eric Stonestreet and others

Modern Family is a charming show that shows the problems faced by a family. Now one would wonder as to why this age old, tried and tested formula works out here. Well it is not only the exceptional performances of the cast but the sensational characterisation as well.

The main characters include Ed O'Neil playing Jay Pritchett a man in his early sixties married to Gloria Delgado-Pritchett (Sofia Vergara) who is much younger to him. Jay has two kids from a previous marriage Claire(Julie Bowen) and Mitchel(Jesse Tyler Ferguson). Claire is married to Phil Dunphy (Ty Burrell) and they have 3 kids namely Luke, Haley and Alex. Mitchel is gay and adopts a Vietnamese baby along with his partner Cameroon (Eric Stonestreet). Gloria has Manny from a previous marriage.

The thing that makes this show an entertainer are the dialogues and its different direction (it is known as mockumentory style where the actors speak into the camera). The narrative is brisk and is filled with truckloads of humour. Even though I would love to mention some of my favourite moments from the first season, I won't do that because I would end up writing down about the whole episodes. Watch this whimsical show about the values of family and accepting them for who they really are.

Pranit's Rating: 8.5/10

Monday, January 21, 2013

ANGER MANAGEMENT (SEASON 1)

Creator:

Bruce Helford

Starring:

Charlie Sheen
Selma Blair
Shawnee Smith
Daniela Bobadilla
Noureen DeWolf and others

Anger Management is the show Charlie Sheen joined after being booted out of Two and A Half Men. First things first, I maybe one of the very few people in this planet who preferred this over Two and A Half Men. The first episode was kind of a shock because after playing Uncle Charlie, in this show he is a smart and well informed psychologist. That takes a little getting used to but once you do, a laugh riot follows.

The first season is short and sweet and the characters are likable. The stand out performer is Daniela Bobadilla who is very good as Charlie Sheen's(who plays Charlie Goodson) daughter Sam, who is suffering from OCD. Selma Blair is decent but one person whose performance didn't impress me was Shawnee Smith as Jennifer Goodson (Charlie Goodson's ex-wife).

The jokes are good though the making is a little monotonous but still the overall effect is there and the show is worth a look. The second season has just started.

Pranit’s Rating: 7/10

Sunday, January 20, 2013

WAR WITCH (2012)

Director:

Kim Nguyen

Writer:

Kim Nguyen

Starring:

Rachael Mwanza
Serge Kanyinda
Ralph Prosper and others

War Witch is a brutal and saddening tale of a young 12 year old who is forced to go to war against the government by joining the rebel forces. It is a touching story because the main character Komona is telling her story for struggle over two years to her unborn child.

With this being said War Witch promises to be great but ends up somewhere in the middle ground. Rachael Mwanza is very good as Komona but the movie somehow didn't completely grip me. The parts in which she sees ghosts is tastefully done but other than that nothing in this movie kept me totally interested till the end. Still not a bad attempt but not Oscar nomination worthy according to me.

Pranit’s Rating: 6/10