URI : The Surgical Strike | India's Zero Dark Thirty

Uri: The Surgical Strike. Movie Scene. 

We as a nation have been attacked so many times that one tends to forget which specific attack this movie was based on. The last chapter titled "Bleed India With A Thousand Cuts' hits hard. The ugly truth about Pakistani Army sponsored terrorism in India, not just Kashmir. Don't forget Punjab.

For a moment (at least when watching this movie), suspend your thoughts on jingoism, government propaganda, pro-Government agenda and what not. Just try and watch this movie as is. Just try.

It is a movie worth watching. Energetic, Emotional, Entertaining, well crafted and well performed. The story had its flaws. For me it was the limited depth of character development. Still, you did felt for them when the time came. You will understand what I mean when you watch it.

My first, and surprising eyebrow raiser moment was when I saw Swaroop Sampat on screen after, I don't know, how many eons. Her performance just made me realize why I loved watching her get back on screen. The sound design in this movie was damn good. This is a movie to be watched in a theater. The story telling was a mix bag as who ever wrote it was trying to compliment documentary style narration with a protagonist centered story telling. That too when the spotlight of the story is an event and there are many conjoined facets to that story.

The movie style technically is a copy of American 'Zero Dark Thirty' with sound design inspired from several sources including 'Dunkirk'. At least its implemented well.

Now for the jingoism and propaganda part ...

Why do we need movies like these?

People have short memories. Generations are unaware of what the previous ones endured. The learning are easily lost in the vastness of information. Capitalist and Socialists countries are well known in making propaganda material. Be it to justify wars or glorify achievements (sports, technology, exploration, success etc.). Of course there are manipulations and distortions in the truth, but awareness is better than non at all.

Uri reminds us how leadership, decision making, execution and logistics are applied in taking national decisions. Irrespective of which government runs this country. This is a movie for all of us, the collective. We should remember what happened to us. How we responded and endured and grew from there on, as citizens and people. Not all of them are great, not all are success, not all are good. But we should remember so that when the time comes, we are well informed before taking the next decision as a society.

Movies like Uri, Parmanu, Border etc are needed just as individual biopics are needs to tell stories. Stories that shed some more light beyond the limits of a rectangular patch of print space or the click baiting article for views. If you hunger for some  more truth, do some more reading. :)

'The True Cost' 2015 Documentary on price paid by others for the cloths we wear

The True Cost - Documentary

A documentary by Andrew Morgan exposes the reality of the fashion and cloth manufacturing business. Globalization mean low cost for manufacturing and better profits for brands. But it also meant lower salaries, long work time and inhumane work conditions for the people who sweat it out to stitch every piece of fabric that goes into your clothing.

The documentary explores the lives of the people in the sweat shops in South and South East Asia and their daily struggle to make a living under conditions with no elbow room for freedom or fundamental rights.

A must watch documentary.

Is 'Justice League: War' the plot of 'Batman vs Superman: Dawn Of Justice'?

Those who have seen the Justice League: War movie will have to hold their breath. It might be the plot that has inspired Batman vs Superman: Dawn Of Justice, the upcoming movie. 

This may or may not be a spoiler. It's a guess. And here's the reason why.

Wolverine & The X-Men

Those who watched Wolverine And The X-Men, would have realized that the 'X-Men: Day Of Future Past' was based on that plot. And I am sure comic book fan's too might have their references for the same. I saw the animated series first and hence was a bit disappointed to see the cinematic version. Not that it was a bad movie. It just didn't do justice to the original plot that well.

Coming back to the Justice League movie. The 'War' plot seems to be the inspiration for 'Superman vs Batman' because of one primary reason. The superhero's meet up for the first time. Brought together by a common enemy. An enemy they know they cannot fight alone.

It's also interesting how they have kept this as a Batman vs Superman movie when there are other superhero's also part of it. I guess DC wanted their super star hero's to be the highlight and relate-able to the general population.Who else but Superman and Batman to take the place since they have been the most successful franchise for DC universe in cinema. Personally, Flash and Spiderman (Animated) are my favorites as they are more fun superhero's. Batman and Superman come with a lot of baggage to be fun. They are the serious kind.

Check out 'Wolverine & The X-Men' animated series episodes on YouTube.

In case this video is blocked, check out episodes uploaded by other users online. This series is worth watching. The ending is a big surprise, in case you have only seen the movie.

Godzilla (2014) Movie Review

Godzilla (2014)

We all know this creature. Its beyond our comprehension and we can only relate its existance to that of a God. This is Godzilla and his stories have been told for decades though cinema.

So, Hollywood wanted to reboot the story and make it more realistic and larger than life. I frankly fell for the trailer since the day I watched the first trailer online. I wanted to watch this movie. Period!

When I walked out of the hall, all I can say is that the 3D sucked, considering it was iMax. The story fell short of excitement and Godzilla was no where to be seen for the most part of the movie. Disappointment dawned on me. I needed a drink.

The best part of the movie was the performances of Bryan Cranston, Juliette Binoche and Ken Watanabe. They and the God himself were the saving grace of the movie. Rest simple placed several questions on my mind. Why do we need to place human stories in the foreground and have the main action be part of the background? Imagine Transformers battling out in the background and the human subjects driving the plot all through. Will you like that? No!

Godzilla's enemy, the MUTO was better understood as a creature than Godzilla himself. The character who held the movie's story telling thread and who we were suppose to get attached to, simply was eliminated half way through the plot. That, for me as an audience, left me somewhat lost. Catching up with another character and his drive to do what he did, just didn't have the screen time to establish.

Military was a waste and so were the scientists. If in an age of guided inter-ballistic missiles, you need to carry payloads in a train, that's lame (I am aware of MUTO's capability). And if you are trying to kill a creature with what's his primary food source, it falls way short of being clever or well researched.

I just hope they get better script writers. Perhaps the Japanese can help with this. They know their God better.

The Greatest Speech Ever In Cinema

The Great Dictator (1940)

Charlie Chaplin made numerous silent movies and made the world laugh. Then came one movie where he spoke. And when he did, the world listened. This speech is timeless and even more relevant for out times than it had ever been. Or perhaps, we have not changed as a civilization yet to be called an evolved being at all. What ever may be the truth, the fact is that these words will echo for a long time to come.

Straight Jacket - Anime Movie

Straight Jacket is a short series by Ichirō Sakaki with illustrations by Yō Fujishiro, published by Fujimi Shobo. It was made into a three part anime series which was then released worldwide as an anime movie.

Straight Jacket - the Movie

Its based on a future world where magic and sorcery co-exist with science and technology and has been integrated into every aspect of human life. The story revolves around the protagonist Rayotte Steinberg.
[SIC: Anime]
Rayotte Steinberg, a lone wolf "tactical sorcerist", fights against monsters. They used to be human beings, but they have overused forbidden power, magic, to turn into monsters. What he wears is "mold", the straitjacket that keeps him human. He carries an explosive magic wand. If he casts magic, he moves one step closer to being a monster. If he doesn't, he will be killed. Among the harsh battles, he will face a sin he committed in the past.

Its a story of redemption, friendship and love. Although they all are layered into this fictional dark thriller involving sorcery, balck magic and demons. A good watch. Enjoy!

Asura's Wrath - The Movie (Game Play Cut Scenes)

Asura is a know character in the Indian mythology. So when i discovered this movie on YouTube, I knew that this had to be a mythology. What surprised me was the 4 and half hour length that it had. Anyways, I started off to watch this epic.

Asura's Wrath - A Game for XBox & Playstation released in 2012

Asura's Wrath is an Japanese Video game produced by Kazuhiro Tsuchiya. The movie is made from the cut scenes from the game. The game was designed episodic and was termed as a multimedia game rather than a typical game. It had opening and ending credits just like episodes of a television serial. For more you can visit the wiki page of this movie.

The begining got me hooked as Asura, a demigod, gets betrayed by other demigods and in doing so, looses his wife and child. His rage, there on, has no bound and he goes after the gods relentlessly trying to quell his inner rage, which he too seems to have lost control of.

The movie, though long, takes you through a journey and has been inspired from Hinduism and Buddhism and their mythologies in creating this epic fictional tale. It took me three sittings to complete this movie. But I did, and it was a great watch. It seemed to be focused on a single character, the protagonist Asura. But the layers and plot phases that get added along the way makes it an engaging journey. The climax is worth the long watch, in case you sat though it with interest.




On a side note - I know this is a game and general entertainment, so to speak.But, there was so much to take away from this movie for me. I guess, that is what got me to like it in the first place.  

Non-Stop - Movie Trailer (Action Thriller)

This is one of the few movies that has got me excited for a couple of reasons. One, its got Liam Nesson, an excellent actor who gives great performances, and second, its a good old fashion action thriller from the looks of the trailer. Have a look.



I just hope this movie does not end up becoming a disappointment due to a weak premise or end-plot. It seems to look and feel like the die hard generation movies which I grew up with. Hoping this one is a fun watch.

Non-Stop (2014)
Non-Stop is an upcoming American-British action film 

Starring: Liam Neeson, Julianne Moore, Michelle Dockery, Anson Mount and Scoot McNairy. 

Director:Jaume Collet-Serra.

Release Date: 21 February, 2014   

Batman, Arkham Asylum - The Movie

Batman, Arkham Asylum - The Movie

Just finished watching Arkham Asylum movie comprising gameplay and cut scenes from the game of the same title. It was a exciting watch. Its amazing to see how games have evolved into gripping and exciting story telling. Watch it this week-end. It will be fun.

A big thanks to SimaParks for uploading this on YouTube.

Space Pirate Captain Harlock (2013) Trailer

Very excited about this movie, which will coming out this year. Its based on a manga series written and illustrated by Leiji Matsumoto. And its in 3D too. Try and get you hands on the anime series if you can. A few episodes are there on YouTube, but not in English subtitles unfortunately.




I doubt this movie will ever get released in theaters across India. So, its DVD or BlueRay viewing for me. That's ok. I just hope I get to grab the 3D version of it.

Five Reasons Why Iron Man 3 Sucks As A Superhero Movie

Iron Man 3 - This Saga finally ends.

Let me start by saying that this is my personal take on Iron Man 3 and I am not a critic. Just a comic/superhero fan with no favorites. Well, I like Hulk the most. But then who doesn't.

Most superhero movies, now a days, have a lot of action, special effects and 3D tossed in to save it from a bad plot. That was not the case for iron man 3. Not for I-3, for sure. Here are 5 reasons I could come up with, which I felt were responsible for the mess that I experienced. And a total disappointment the say the least. Even the charisma of Robert Downey Jr. could not help salvage the repeat view for this movie.

So, here goes ...

No. 5: Am I watching a Disney movie?
The movie starts off at such a promising note with chaos and danger engulfing the world with the Mandrin on the loose. Iron man seems to be having his own problems. You expect thing to trun worst. Just when you are bracing for the impact, the movie changes gear to something else. When you get a kid to help Iron man to get on his feet, you know where the plot if heading. The second half was so damn clear that making a prediction was like giving direction for something in your line of sight.

No. 4: Non of the characters were well-established
A superhero movie should have the main character's personality explored. Its a great opportunity to start liking the character or at least understanding them so that you have the ability to react to or feel for them. But nothing of that sort happened in this movie. It was designed around an event and all characters played for that event. There is nothing wrong in doing that. Even situations can reveal human personalities, context and past. But here, that was not the case. Mandarin had that potential, but they blew it.

Injustice, Gods Among Us - The Movie

This movie has been made by combining the all cut scenes from the 2013 Game by the same name. The movie is in Cinematic HD. So sit back and enjoy!

Credit: @Izuniy (YouTube)