Click on the play button and enjoy! Or for a better view, click here and watch it on the vimeo page. You can also get more info about the film on that page.
via Ted Hope
Author Archive
VOTD : Out Of A Forest
Posted: January 8, 2012 by moifightclub in short film, video, VOTDTags: Out Of A Forest, Short, VOTD
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The Capra Hyperbole : One Man, One Film
Posted: January 6, 2012 by moifightclub in cinema, writingTags: Frank Capra, It Happened One Night, Lost Horizon, Meet John Doe, Mr Deeds Goes to Town, Mr Smith Goes to Washington, Robert Riskin, Salik Shah
Salik Shah on filmmaker Frank Capra’s relationship with screenwriter Robert Riskin.
The last day of December demands introspection, and I sense a now all-too-familiar pressure to choose the right words for this end note. The year on the calendar upsets my plans. These plans have now become ‘old plans’; plans that stopped my time a long ago. And to watch Frank Capra now means to freeze this time even further.
Capra’s world is the one of hope—often, the oldest hopes of man. There’s a childlike simplicity that characterizes these men. His women are strong-willed and independent. In this world the greatest villain is self-centeredness. Honesty and kindness come across as something worth striving for, and because you want to believe so. ‘Be nice.’ ‘Be good.’ That seems to be at the heart of his best-known films: It Happened One Night (1934), Mr Deeds Goes to Town (1936), Lost Horizon (1937), Mr Smith Goes to Washington (1939) and Meet John Doe (1941), among others.
It’s a shocking discovery then: the voice in these films doesn’t belong to its director Frank Capra. This voice that we admire so much belongs to the writer of his films who could sympathize with the underdogs, who sailed the boats for Columbus but never got their due share of credit or recognition. Sadly, his partnership with the writer of his best films, Robert Riskin, can be described as the relationship that D.B. Norton had with John Doe in Meet John Doe.
Even the choice of the title of Frank Capra’s autobiography, The Name Above The Title, clearly propels his reckless attitude. The star director refused to visit the lowly writer who was slowly dying in a hospital. Throughout his life, Capra attempted to shroud the genius of the great scenarist. The truth is that Capra eschewed the funeral of a man whose creative vision and distinct voice was widely mistaken to be Capra’s own. Nothing could be more ironical for the man who reaffirms the Christian doctrine of forgiveness in his works.
Robert Riskin seems to have no problem with accepting the true nature of the director-writer relationship in the studio era. Riskin helped to set up the Screen Writers’ Guild and fought as a screenwriter for the screenwriters, and the fight still continues. Riskin needed Capra as much as Capra needed him, or any writer needs a director unless they are both one. The collaboration, between the man with an idea and the man with the means to sustain it, couldn’t be less lopsided:
JOHN DOE
Do you mean to tell me you’d try to kill the John Doe movement if you can’t use it to get what you want?
D.B. NORTON
You bet your bottom dollar we would!
Such a reading of Meet John Doe’s text then adds an autobiographical quality, on Riskin’s part, to this last collaboration. And it seems Meet John Doe is nothing short of a triumph of Riskin the individual over Capra the institution. Yet it cannot be denied that the brief marriage between Riskin’s idealism and Capra’s pragmatism was responsible for the birth of some of the finest classics in Hollywood.
In the beginning of the last year or was it the year before that, I left the oblivion of a film that I had co-written to return to the oblivion of advertising. The oblivion grows on you, no matter whether you’re a director-in-the-making or a director who’s made many films. Capra did his best films with Riskin, and Riskin did his with Capra. On the first viewing, a Capra film is a dialog film—hence a Riskin film. It’s all drama, and then when you keep playing back your favorite scenes over and again, you begin to notice the mise-en-scène. Capra clearly knew how to translate the text on to the silver screen, and all so well. Only if he were less ‘mean.’
***
Postscript from In Capra’s Shadow: The Life and Career of Screenwriter Robert Riskin by Ion Scott:
Jo Swerling, a mutual friend and colleague of Riskin and Capra, and himself a wonderful Hollywood screenwriter, once paced around Riskin’s wheelchair while he was ill, complaining that Capra’s reluctance to visit his old friend was just not right. In the end, however, Riskin lost his temper with Swerling and revealed a deep-seated loyalty to his former partner by dismissing what seemed to be a reasonable claim with the comment, “You’re talking about my best friend.”
First Look : Gurvinder Singh’s Anhey Ghorhey Da Daan (2 Trailers)
Posted: January 5, 2012 by moifightclub in cinema, Film Festival, first look, Indie, TrailerTags: Alms For The Blind Horse, Anhey ghorhey da daan, first look, Gurdial Singh, Gurvinder Singh, National Film Development Corporation, NFDC, trailer, Venice Film Festival
Gurvinder Singh’s debut feature Anhey Ghorhey Da Daan (Alms For The Blind Horse) came into the limelight when it was selected for the prestigious Venice Film Festival last year. It premiered in the Orizzonti section of the festival which is presented as an exploration of the modes of contemporary cinema.
And now, almost after a year, two trailers of the film are finally out. Have a look.
The film has been produced by National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) and is based on Gurdial Singh’s novel of the same name.
To know more about the film, click here to read an interview of Gurvinder Singh.
First Look : Sujoy Ghosh’s Kahaani (Trailer + Official synopsis)
Posted: January 5, 2012 by moifightclub in bollywood, cast & crew, film, first look, Story / Plot / Synopsis, Trailer, videoTags: Advaita Kala, first look, Kahaani, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Nikhil Vyas, Parambrata Chattopadhyay, Ritesh Shah, Sujoy Ghost, Suresh nair, Sutapa Sikdar, synopsis, trailer, Vidya Balan
It’s raining trailers and how! The theatrical trailer of Sujoy Ghosh’s Kahaani is finally out. Have a look.
Balan seems to be on Bull run and in this one she doesn’t even have a hero opposite her.
The film stars Vidya Balan, Parambrata Chattopadhyay and Nawazuddin Siddiqui. And the writing credits include Sujoy Ghosh (story/screenplay/dialogues), Advaita Kala (story), Suresh Nair/Nikhil Vyas (Additional screenplay), Ritesh Shah (Dialogues) and Sutapa Sikdar (Dialogues) . The film has music by Vishal-Shekhar.
Here’s the official synopsis..
Vidya Bagchi arrives in Kolkata from London to find her missing husband. Seven month pregnant and alone in a festive city, she begins a relentless search for her husband. With nothing to rely on except fragment from her memories about him, all clues seem to reach a dead end when everyone tries to convince Vidya that her husband does not exist. She slowly realizes that nothing is what it seems. In a city soaked in lies, Vidya is determined to unravel the truth about her husband – for herself and her unborn child even at the cost her own life.
An Open letter to Gautham Vasudev Menon – by Mrs Mumble Kaur Iyer
Posted: January 4, 2012 by moifightclub in cinema, Open Letter, Simbly South, Special, WTFTags: Amy Jackson, Ek Deewana Tha, Gautham Vasudev Menon, Miss Mumble Kaur Iyer, Prateik, Vinaithandi Varuvaya
Among the many love-hate mails that we get everyday, only few stand out. This one came from an anonymous account. From someone who likes to call herself Mrs Mumble Kaur Iyer (Is she watching our films?). Or simply a Madrasan from North. And this madrasan seems to be angry. Or is she drunk? Are ‘madrasans‘ allowed to drink? Ok, leave everything, drop everything, and read on. Not everyday you get to read an angry madrasan’s open letter.
Ek Deewani Thi
Dear Sir,
First and foremost, I’ve been a fan of you since the Minnale/ RHTDM days. I confess that every guy in my college hostel used to swear by your film (before Pyaar ka Punchnama swept through like a Tsunami). This despite the chubby chubby R Madhavan and woody woody Sunsilk commercial Diya Mirza. Saif Ali Khan and the music was reason enough for me and my sahelis to swoon over. Many nights have been spent looping Bombay Jayshree’s Zara Zara (and not just Vaseeghara).
Mildly curious and true to my Tamil roots, I followed up on your films – the force-ful Kaakha Kaakha, “Raghavan Instinct” Vettayiadu Villayidu (which again had you revelling in the misogynistic torture sequences that Daniel Balaji unleashed on his victims), and Varnam Aaiyaram (firmly entrenched in Tam cinema love stories, where the hero is ALWAYS a stalker, and heroine is ALWAYS someone from North – Sameera Reddy’s last name is a technical detail I deign to ignore). And I don’t even want to talk about the trying too hard to shock Nadunisi Nayagal.
But my faith in you was reassured after watching the deeply personal and meta-filmy Vinaithandi Varuvaya. I was pleasantly surprised to find a guy next door falling in love with a girl next door. And NOTHING HAPPENING. The guy and the girl meet, there are problems, and like life, love doesn’t conquer. To be or not to Be. “Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, she walks into mine”. What a pleasure to see Simbu behave “normally”, and the gorgeous Trisha, who surely was responsible for an increased sale of cotton printed saris at the Malai Mandir Pongal Fare.
Not to say that the film is without flaws (my mention of Cascablanca might have some film buffs snigger) but let that go for some other post. This post is not just about VTV (Translation – Will you cross the skies for me?)
This post is about every guy/girl from some small town in Bihar who are embarassed to see some fake “Bhaiyya lingo” mouthing character pass off as a Bihari/UP-ite (they’re very different I assure you) in a Hindi film.
About every Masters student studying in America, moon lighting as a McDonalds waiter to make ends meet, who sees that all NRIs lives in Hindi films are rose tinted.
About every girl who smokes a ciggerette and is offended at the potrayl of female smokers in Hindi films as either Powerful foul mouthed women or loose characters.
About every muslim who sees muslim characters in hindi films as either terrorists, or supporting character who has to give a kurbaan(i).
About every sardar who is almost always a Santa-Banta joke in a Hindi film.
About ….. you get the picture.
About why I will not watch Ek Deewana Tha having seen VTV. And I will go in true bullet point style like my compatriot Mr Rangan. I saw the trailer and was once again incensed.
At the evidence aplenty, that a nice Tamil picture has been massacred and gang raped – by the director himself.
- By a Diya Mirza-ish Prateik Babbar, who CANNOT say a line properly. A guy who has serious diction issues, who has lost out on the naivete of Karthik.
“Mujhe lagta hai ki main tumse pyaar karta hoon”.
Oh Really, sir ? You expect me to believe you ?
“Feel toh tum bhi karti ho par bolti nahi ho?”
Sir, pehle aap khud feel karke bolo na please.
- By a firang bad actress again. (From the Kaifs, Fakhris to Sunny Leones – surely we have better actresses in India sir) who will hem, haw, pout, make faces, eat up her lines, and do anything and everything under the sun except look believable as Jessi.
- It is telling that in the entire 2.21 min long trailer sir, there is not a single stay on either of your Romeo-Juliets. Not a single shot which lingers on them as they talk. All voice over. Or them mumbling the lines. As if they are scared their lies will be caught. Is it because you probably realised what fuck all actors they are on the edit ? That you made this wise decision ? That you will expect the audience to be drawn in, and inevitably feel cheated ? Is it a con that you are pulling off sir ? But why didn’t you notice that when you met them for the first time over that lovely Irish Coffee in Gloria Jeans? Because you were too desperate to make that film that you ignored you had to make it?
- By another legend Javed Akhtar, who matches the poetry of the original songs with as much sincerity as he did while writing songs for Jeans. The effect is in the same ball park as a PK Mishra (“Ungli jaisi dubli ko nahi chahiye Pharmacy“). How I missed Mehboob-ARR combo (Kehna hi kya, Rangeela). And, no, even a Gulzar has written a meter-less “Hansti rahe tu hansti rahe … Geeli geeli hansi” and killed Vairamuthu’s classic Pachchai Nirame. Sometimes I really wonder what happens to lyricists when they remake a superb tamil song ?
“Dost hai hum toh yeh bahana kyun ? Pyaar hai humko yeh chupana kyun?”
Seriously, sir ? Is there not a single hindi speaking AD you hired to make sure these “greats” got away with such expositional shit ? And to think Javed Akhtar criticized Kolaveri Di? A song which has more heart than surely the whole album of Ek Deewana Tha.
- And heck heck heck. How they have raped the gem of a song called Aaromale (Click here for the full song with English lyrics)
“Shubh Shubh ghadhi subah lagan…Som som hai tera darpan.. ..Shubh shubh sajni ka jeevan“
WOW. Sir issey achcha toh original mallu lyrics hi daal dete. Jaisa “Maangalyam” mein already kiya tha. I thought the the word “sajni” should have been retired from hindy lyricsdom after the brilliant Ae Sajni from Hazaroon Khwashein Aisi.
- Carter Road and Kozhikode alone don’t make an authentic film sir.
- Did K Balachander’s open letter to you after watching the tamil version spur you to make your own version of Ek Duje ke liye. At least that film had an Agnihotri and a Kamal Hassan sir. Yours ?
- Which is why nobody, nobody raises a finger on a poorly dubbed film like Roja in which the village is apparently set somewhere in UP. Because the performances are so effing engrossing, that we ignore the Baba Sehgalisms like “Chachi tujhe pyaar se chedha hoga chacha ne“.
And that is why I will not watch Ek Deewana Tha. Because it will embarass me as much as a Humse Hai Mukabla did. Waiting for your next and praying it doesn’t look like a bastardised “madrasi” film in hindi.
(P.S – The whole film with English Subs is on youtube here. Please do yourself a favour and watch it before you do plan to catch Ek Deewana Tha.
(P.P.S – Who is Mrs Mumble Kaur Iyer, you ask ? A. Doesn’t matter. Just a “madrasan” from the North of India.)
And here are the Kolaveri di crappy copycats
Posted: January 4, 2012 by moifightclub in bollywood, songs & videos, video, WTFTags: Abhishek Bachchan, Bappi Lahiri, Boka Chor, Jodi Breakers, Kolaveri Di, Players, Salim Suleiman, SaReGaMa, T Series, Why This Kolaveri Di
If you still haven’t heard why this kolaveri di, am guessing you belong to a completely different planet. If you search for the song on youtube, there are some hundred versions of it – male, female, cat, mouse, chipmunks, bong, punjabi and so on. And since everyone was baffled by its instant success and nobody could explain the reason for it, now it’s the time for the bad copycats to try their luck. If only someone could explain to them that you can’t plan a viral success, it just happens because it’s so good. And if you plan a campaign, at least don’t be a copycat.
The first one is a song called Boka Chor – a desperate attempt by Bappi Lahiri and SaReGaMa. The entire video has been shot like the Kolaveri di video with some bad acting thrown in here and there. What’s worse is this info attached to the video – Bappi Lahiri is combining the Indian languages in the song Boka Chor. Enjoy this slang song in different Languages with Bappi Daa.
Combining Indian languages? Aha, where have i heard that before? Forget the video, even the idea of the song is not new. Lets’ go to the second one.
This one is by T-Series and for the promotion of Players. With Abhishek Bachchan behind the mic, it’s again the same style, same shots, same almost everything. If you want to copy the idea, that’s fine. But why can’t you add something new to it? Why it has to be a brain-dead one? Control + C —> Control +V. Done.
And the latest one is from a film called Jodi Breakers. Strangely, the makers haven’t released a teaser or a trailer of the film but are hoping for a viral magic with this one.
Am i the only who can’t see anything magical in these three videos? If no, i hope we don’t get any more of such tacky stuff.
Can you recreate a film in just 60 seconds?
Posted: January 4, 2012 by moifightclub in Awards, cinema, Contests, short filmTags: Done In 60 Seconds, Empire Jameson
If yes, read on to know more about Jameson Empire’s Done In 60 seconds.
To quote from the official release, Yes, you must take a piece of cinematic genius (or not-so-genius if you prefer), distill it to its very essence and cram it all into a time frame shorter than the life expectancy of the comedy sidekick in a slasher movie. After all, 90% of most movies is just time-wasting anyway. There are easily enough seconds in a minute to defeat the bad guy, get the girl and ride off into the sunset.
To take part in this year’s competition and be in with a chance of winning a Jameson Empire Award and attending the star-studded and glittering Jameson Empire Awards ceremony in March 2012, grab some mates, blag a camera from somewhere and get shooting. To 60 seconds and not beyond!
How to be the 2012 Done in 60 Seconds Winner?
Step 1: Make a Film of a Film in 60 Seconds.
The idea is simple: take any movie of your choice, grab a bunch of friends and remake it in a form no longer than one minute!
Step 2: Check the Competition Rules and the T&C’s before you Submit your entry.
Before submitting your entry (via the upload section) make sure your entry satisfies all the competition rules and that you have read through the Terms & Conditions.
Step 3: Your Entry goes Live
Once your entry has been successfully submitted and approved it will go live on www.jamesonempirediss.com and on the Jameson Empire Done in 60 Seconds You Tube Channel. You are now officially a Done in 60 Seconds nominee!
Step 4: Get Voting!
Get your friends and family online. Once your entry is live on the Jameson Empire Done in 60 Seconds YouTube Channel it is open for votes, so get everyone to vote for your efforts!
Step 5: Nominees Chosen at Local Level
Once the closing date has passed on the 20th of January 2012, all entrants will be judged by our panel from the Film/Entertainment industry. This expert panel is composed of Jim Sheridan, John Maguire, Lisa Cannon, Gordon Hayden and Eoin Macken. A shortlist of nominees will be invited to a local final event in February where one lucky entrant will be selected to represent India at the Done in Sixty Seconds Global Final in London.
Step 6: Done in 60 Seconds Global Final
The successful nominee(s) ( plus guest) from India will jet off to London for the Done in 60 Seconds Global Final on March 23rd to compete against nominees from all over the world. An international judging panel will choose the 5 Done in 60 Seconds Nominees who will then attend the Jameson Empire Awards on Sunday March 25th 2012.
Step 7: Jameson Empire Awards
It is here, at the star-studded Awards ceremony, that the Done in 60 Seconds Winner is announced, watched and applauded by Hollywood’s finest, they’ll get to go on stage to receive their Jameson Empire Award.
Step 8: The Prize for the Done in 60 Seconds Winner
The Winner will receive a priceless and rare opportunity to spend time with an established film-maker to pick their brain on all things film! (More details to be released closer to the Awards!)
– You can see the list of previous winners and their films here.
– To know more about the contest, click here.
First Look : Bittoo Boss (Trailer)
Posted: January 4, 2012 by moifightclub in bollywood, cast & crew, film, first look, TrailerTags: Abhishek Pathak, Bittoo Boss, first look, Supavitra Babul, trailer
From the producers of Pyaar Ka Punchnama – That’s enough to make me curious. Because i have been in a weird position with regard to PKP. Have tried to defend its misogynist point of view in endless discussions about the film and on the other hand, was against the director, and was on the side of the writers when the writing credits were almost invisible on various publicity materials and they were accused of writing just few pages. Anyway, Bittoo Boss is the new film from the same producers. Have a look.
New director (Supavitra Babul), new subject, new faces (Pulkit Sharma), and a young producer (Abhishek Pathak). Great! It looks interesting for sure but what’s the point of wasting 90seconds to tell the same joke again and again and again and again. It doesn’t say anything more than that. As they say, you never get a second chance to make the first impression. And that’s gone. Hopefully the second trailer will tell us more.
Movie Recco : 10 must watch documentaries
Posted: January 3, 2012 by moifightclub in cinema, Documentary, Indie, Movie Recco, Must Watch, SpecialTags: Being Elmo, Bill Cunningham New York, Bombay Beach, Buck, Cave of Forgotten Dreams – 3D, Errol morris, George Harrison: Living in the Material World, How To Die In Oregon, Inshallah football, Into The Abyss, Knuckle, Life In A Day, Marwencol, Mihir Desai, Nostalgia For The Light, Page One: Inside The New York Times, Pina 3D, Project Nim, Public Speaking, Senna, Superheroes, Tabloid, The Arbor, The Interrupters, The Umbrella Man, Urbanized
We wrapped up the “Best Of 2011” with all kinds of posts on movies, music and moments. But we completely forgot about the docs. Also because most of us didn’t manage to watch all the best docs. Writer-filmmaker Mihir Desai saw it all and here’s his recco post on the top 10 docs of 2011 that you must watch. Click on the titles to see the trailers.
2011, like the previous year has been a brilliant year for documentaries. We’ve been exposed to some really personal and special films. These docs have dared to bend the rules and have created a sub-genre within documentary filmmaking. I saw docs that were surreal, global collaborations, re-enactments and just traditional docu-dramas. Hope this genre continues to grow and finds more audiences, after all the first few movies ever made were documentaries too!
Some obvious choices like Pina 3D, Page One: Inside The New York Times and Martin Scorsese’s Public Speaking will be missing from the list as I never got a chance to watch these. Regardless, this should make for an interesting recommendation list, as I am sure most films listed below might have gone unnoticed amidst the Tintin and Mission Impossible hype.
First up, the honorable mentions: Inshallah Football, Buck, Knuckle, George Harrison: Living in the Material World, a short documentary by Errol Morris – The Umbrella Man and Superheroes.
Now, the five runner-ups. Films that almost made it to the list:
15. Urbanized
14. Being Elmo
13. Project Nim
12. Cave of Forgotten Dreams – 3D
11. Tabloid
Finally, the top 10 documentaries of 2011:
10. The Arbor : Clio Barnard’s portrayal of the late Bradford playwright Andrea Dunbar is a brave experimental documentary. Clio uses audio from the interviews of real people and lip-syncs them to the actor’s performance. The whole film is a re-enactment but it isn’t manipulating the facts. The events and story is true, the presentation isn’t (somewhat similar to No. 8 on this list) It can be a little challenging to watch this film but once the story unfolds, you’ll be hooked!
9. Bill Cunningham New York: An 80 year old New York Times fashion photographer riding his bike around New York City to photograph fashionable citizens; the plot of this film is that simple. Director Richard Press portrays Bill Cunningham’s passion for fashion and photography in the simplest manner. The observational approach juxtaposes the glamorous fashion world to Bill’s simple and saintly way of living. Besides being a film about Bill’s photography, it is also an interesting city portrait of New York. Therefore, making New York an additional character for Bill to interact with. This is a truly inspiring documentary. When the movie ends, what stays with you is Bill’s contagious smile.
8. Bombay Beach: Director Alma Har’el comes up with the year’s most poetic, surreal, genre-defying documentary. Some might argue, this isn’t even a documentary, and that’s what makes it so fascinating to watch. The location is real, the characters are real and the story is just an observation of these characters’ lives. Alma treats her film like a narrative feature. There are beautiful musical moments choreographed to songs by Bob Dyland and Beurit that makes the experience very surreal. The irony here is that this film is vaguely about the American dream set in a poor, dying community on the shores of Salton Sea. Bombay Beach is nothing like you’ve ever seen before. Absolutely magical!
7. Senna: The year’s most popular documentary on the life of Formula One driver, Ayrton Senna, is absolutely riveting! Director Asif Kapadia makes the best of unseen archival footage to explore the struggles and achievements of an iconic sports person. It’s the editing of the film that takes it to a whole new level. Gripping!
6. Life In A Day: What. A. Movie! This is a perfect and successful example of collaboration 2.0. Co-directed by Kevin MacDonald and The World, this is a beautiful documentation of common emotions across the globe. Shot on the same day by people from around the world and interestingly woven together by editor Joe Walker, Life In A Day is as real a film can get. Brilliant and compelling! Also, you can legally watch the whole film on YouTube, for free.
5. How To Die In Oregon: Oregon was the first state in the USA to legalize physician-assisted suicide. Director Peter Richardson follows the life of cancer patient Cody, and it is through her point of view we get to learn about the pros and cons of Oregon state’s “Death with Dignity” law. Richardson handles this topic in a very sensitive manner without invading Cody’s private space. A thought-provoking documentary that some might find a little tough to watch. Yet, this is one of the most important films of the year and is sure to call for a healthy debate about the ‘death with dignity’ law and about the voyeuristic nature of documentary filmmaking.
4. Into The Abyss: Werner Herzog has his way of doing things, and no one else does it better than him. Herzog creates a moving profile of two men on death row and explores their relationship with those outside of prison. This film is not so much about capital punishment but about exploring the fear and philosophies of death. A very honest portrayal of the fine line between what is right and wrong.
3. Nostalgia For The Light: If Terrence Malick makes a documentary, this is what it will look like. With gorgeous imagery and a philosophical narrative, director Patricio Guzmán constructs a story about the fusion of past and present. In the Atacama Desert, astronomers study the boundaries of the universe while surviving families of the Chilean exiles continue to look for the remains of the loved ones. Nothing comes close to the experience of watching this movie. This is the film I would have loved to see in 3D. It’s a hypnotic film that asks complex questions about life, memory and the universe. Unique film, unique experience.
2. Marwencol: Jeff Malmberg’s documentary is about the fantasy work of Mark Hogancamp, who creates a 1/6th scale World War II ear town which helps him get away from his nightmarish past. Mark is a very complex character and this film studies him with utmost sincerity. The filmmaker never tries romanticizing Mark’s motivations. Truly an authentic character study that might just leave you shattered.
1. The Interrupters: The Academy once again snubs one of the best documentary filmmakers, Steve James. Last time it was for Hoop Dreams and this time, for the mind-blowing, The Interrupters. Set in Chicago, Steve James follows three members of the Ceaserfire program for a whole year. Also known as violence interrupters, their job is to protect their community from the urban violence of the city. This is a side of America not many are aware of. The characters are, in my opinion, real-life superheroes. Steve James and his crew fearlessly film every detail they can. They are always there in the middle of conversations, danger, and threat. The Interrupters is powerful, dark and hopeful at the same time. Without a doubt, the best documentary of 2011.
Take some time out from mainstream movies and seek out these masterful films. There’s a whole lot out there!
Happy New Year!
( PS – For more film posts by Mihir, click here.)
Good Morning – And we go trippy!
Posted: January 2, 2012 by moifightclub in cinema, Film Festival, Indie, Movie Recco, short filmTags: Emanuel Singh, Good Morning, Kabir Chowdhary, Manish Kumar, SAIFF, Sakshi Bhatia
Yes, yes, yes, we know. For a change we’re behaving like the incestous bollywoodwaalas and promoting someone who is a good friend and who also happens to be a punju 😛 (but unlike them, we know our boy man is zooper talented). Kabir Chowdhary dabbled in theater and arts in Chandigarh before making a one minute short film called Dolly (click here to see it) which won the Gold PFCOne award (passionforcinema.com one minute film festival). He was an intern on the sets of DevD, and for those who claim to have seen the film many times, let’s see if you can figure out which scene in the film gave a tribute/promotion/plugin to his short film.
He later moved on to direct more short films like Pour, this low budget spunky music video here, a black humored clay news spoof ‘Balbir News on Nithari Killings and worked on the art department for films like Wake up Sid, Aisha, and now going independent art director with Midnight’s Children.
He’s directed a 43 minute short film ‘Good morning’ which played at SAIFF film festival NY and won the grand jury award for best short. Our verdict? A trippy ride with some lovely visuals and performances. Pretty good sound design and music too. Nitpick – a few minutes long but still engaging. Do watch it if you get a chance.
Click on the play button to check out the trailer and if it looks interesting, scroll down to know more about the film. Over to Kabir.
Good morning is a psychological drama that explores the obsessions and insecurities of a married man who is completely dedicated to his wife. His world is shattered one day when he discovers his wife in bed with another man.
What happens next is diabolical, cold and shocking.
When viewing a film I have directed, my mind always wanders to what I was thinking when I was making it.
Which I guess is a very normal thing to ponder over for anyone who has been a part of a film project.
However, with Good Morning, all I can think about every time I watch it, is what an utter explosion it was for all of us working on it.
It was a guttural, visceral spewing of all our collective emotions, it was like I had lit a firecracker and burst it in my own hand.
The original script of Good Morning was 60 pages long and was written by me about 5 years ago, but we only got down to making it after I recently fractured my hand.
There was little activity in Chandigarh (my hometown), I was utterly bored, but brimming with a sense of purpose when my friend and the editor (Sakshi Bhatia) suggested, we rework the 60 page script and do a 10 minute film (which ended up to be 45 minutes running).
The 10 minute script, unlike the final film was written like an absurd comedy, it had extensive dialogue written in rhyme and was layered with a lot of nonsensical humor and a few sexually explicit scenes which were all later slashed out of the film.
Because once the casting process started it became very difficult for us to find an actress in Chandigarh who was willing to get naked! We did meet a lady who came all the way from a hill station about 3 hours away, and asked for 8000 rupees for the nudity involved. Without wanting to spend so much, we finally gave up this extensive search and decided to ask my cousin (Sukhmani, the actress in my earlier film Dolly) without giving her a copy of the script – and figured we will deal with the sex scenes when we shoot them! (we finally worked our way around the sex and made it suggestive, because we were obviously not going to shoot my sister naked!!!!)
Manish Kumar (Sunny) and Emanuel Singh (The Suit) who have both been trained at the NSD readily agreed to be a part of the film and were told that they were incharge of leading the actress (as she was unaware) and surprise her with their actions!
Our aim was to make a very small film on the I-phone, but the cast in flesh, blood and training was too exciting to keep it low quality, which is when my dear friend Rahat came down from Kashmir with his Canon 5-d and we were finally all set to start shooting.
Having been around conventional film sets with my work as an art director, I developed a sincere disdain to the long and arduous process of filmmaking, I feel boxed in and bored and genuinely feel that it drains the spontaneity out of everyone on set!
On our own film I wanted everyone to be themselves and have fun working! I also wanted to shoot without any prior rehearsal or deciding the location of the scene. And once the emotional quotient of the film was explained to the actors, they were made to let go of themselves completely as everyone was allowed only 1 take as I didn’t want anything to look remotely mechanical or well rehearsed!
Everything in this film for me was relying on the trust with the actors and the environment that the scene took place.
The actors were allowed to be themselves and bring themselves fully, without any penalty. So if our actor was a drinker or a hash smoker, within takes we would let him smoke or drink and come and get naked on a railway track, or dance wildly in the meat market with eels and a chicken!
And on the day of the climax, keeping up with our traditions, everyone got sloshed, ! (barring Rahat, the camera person, who literally had to focus!) and it was getting almost impossible to manage a room full of drunks (being a little drunk myself!)
As is, with a bunch of spontaneous crazy and creative people working together, it was four days of relentless chaos that was created and captured. The shooting process was a coming together of palpable energies stemming from being confrontational and disruptive to the real spaces and people we were around, but it seemed like everyone’s energies, even a crowd that collected(wondering what the hell was wrong with the actor and paying no attention to the camera!) was working in tandem to create this piece of work. it was a fulfilling, satisfying and mildly exhausting journey for everyone involved!
With this film, we have tried to carefully assemble a lot of nonsense, all held together by an element of no reason. There are no particular reasons why this film was made, its not trying to make any strong points, but it is more an emotional journey, a very personal piece of work that has fuelled within us the fire and the longing to stay true to ourselves and the film that is being created, we want to allow ourselves to be able to let go of ourselves and still be restrained and most of all make the experience for everyone involved, personal, therefore memorable and hopefully will be the same for the people who get to watch it!
The film is 45 minutes long and was made on a budget of Rs 25,000, with a crew of just 3 people and it was shot over a period of four days in Chandigarh.
Facebook page of the film is here.
The film also won the Grand Jury Prize for best Narrative short at SAIFF and is currently doing the festival rounds.
F.i.g.h.t C.l.u.b 