Miss and the Doctors (Dir. Axelle Ropert, 2013)

(Reviewed 4.5/5 on letterboxd in March 2017)


One of those heartwarming films that make you wish you could inhabit some of the places on screen or could have simply known some of the characters ala a Yasujiro Ozu film.

The Quince Tree Sun (Dir. Victor Erice, 1992)

(Reviewed 4.5/5 on letterboxd in February 2017)


"I too work with intensity. Time is precious. I work non stop now" - Enrique, the painter.

Erice reflects on the vanity of much of human endeavor, especially that of the artistic nature. In this film, the masons and the artist begin their work around the same time. While the masons will finish their task and leave, the artist's painting never gets finished. Somehow this film reminds me of an oft quoted philosophy from the Bhagvad Geeta: "To work is in our hands, attaining the fruits of labor is not". That's pretty much what most characters in this film do, continue to work as they race against their own mortality. Even so, there will always be another spring and new fruits for humanity to attain.

The Last of the Fast Guns (Dir. George Sherman, 1958)

(Reviewed 4.5/5 on letterboxd in Jan 2017)


Another gem discovered thanks to the letterboxd community. This was my first Sherman so came to this without any expectation. As others have remarked, I was impressed by the austere screenplay, great cinematography (the Mexican milieu is very convincing) and sparse but effective dialogues. The highlight of this film is definitely the great homo-erotic chemistry or male bonding between Bradley and Miles. Definitely a film I would like to re-watch in the future.

Dangal (Dir. Nitesh Tiwari, 2016)

(Reviewed 4/5 on letterboxd in Dec 2016)

Bollywood has clearly found a liking for sport biopics. Ever since Chak De India (2007), there have been a spate of films on this theme. I haven't watched all of them but I will not be surprised if Dangal is perhaps the only worthy successor to Chak De.

Now, Bollywood loves melodrama and jingoism, so much so that it will turn to these emotions even if not intended at the beginning. SRK's Kabir Khan, who at the beginning of Chak De is shown driven to take revenge against the ignominy suffered during his playing days, finally gets his ambition reduced to ultra-patriotism. Similarly in Dangal, we have Aamir's Mahavir Phogat determined to have his daughters fulfill his ambition of winning a gold medal, not as a personal ambition but for the country. He even tries to explain the importance of winning gold to his daughter on the eve of the final of the Commonwealth games, explaining the influence she would have on the condition of women in India. He says this after making the more important point of striving for the best and not settling for the second best as is often observed in Indian sports. The prior dialogue is an unrealistic moment in the screenplay, typically introduced in Bollywood films to give a social message. It is a peculiarity of Bollywood films that I have learnt to ignore over the years.

What is it then that works in this fim; first of all the depiction of the trials and tribulations of the Phogat girls, fighting all patriarchal prejudices and inculcating extreme self-discipline as they develop into national level wrestlers. This was an aspect that we did not get to see in detail in Chak De.

The fight against the personal demons of the principal characters is perhaps better delineated in Chak De compared to Dangal. SRK's Kabir Khan is clearly better fleshed out compared to Aamir's Phogat who relies more on his physical transformation than his acting prowess. The other principal characters, especially the girls, are competent enough in their portrayals and evoke strong reactions through their performances.
The wrestling sequences are well shot, making the sport of women's wrestling appear as tough as it actually is. The fight scene between the wrestler father and daughter is devastating to say the least. The scenes often give you a real time ringside view of the action, making your back twitch with anticipation.

The film to a great extent remains understated and focussed. The moments of comic relief are typical Bollywood but do not distract significantly from the plot. The songs are again similar; apart from the wedding song, none feels totally unnecessary to the narrative. The title track has this "Omkara" vibe to it which, to music director Pritam's credit, is a good song and works well for this movie. Case in comparison, it's way better than the annoyingly jingoistic Chak De India track.

Finally, Dangal like Chak De India has a strong connect to the audience due to the real life significance that these stories had on women's sport in India. I expect this film, like Chak De India, to be a landmark film for Bollywood.

The Searchers (Dir. John Ford, 1956)

Never understood why I keep coming back to this film. Maybe it's the last scene or maybe I just like seeing John Wayne's racist confederate soldier getting deconstructed and finally outcast; maybe I like Ward Bond showing Wayne his place time and again and yet respecting him at the same time; maybe I just love the way Vera Miles carries herself in this film or maybe it's just the photography and the colors. On second thoughts, I think it's just the last scene and everything else.

Doomed Love (Dir. Manoel de Oliveira , 1978)

(Reviewed 5/5 on letterboxd in Nov 2016)

The novel as a living and breathing organism. Doomed Love appears to be the culmination of the quest for the greatest adaptation of a novel on film. This is perhaps the only film that manages to accentuate the text without sacrificing the intangible emotions behind it. It makes use of cinematic techniques that are nothing short of genius. No mean task considering how many film makers tried but just fell short, including Oliveira himself.

On Dangerous Ground (Dir. Nicholas Ray, 1951)

(Reviewed 5/5 on letterboxd in Nov 2016)

"There was theatre (Griffith), poetry (Murnau), painting (Rossellini), dance (Eisenstein), music (Renoir). Henceforth there is cinema. And the cinema is Nicholas Ray." - Jean Luc Godard

I reached Godard's moment of enlightenment today. He reached it with Bitter Victory, an amazing movie in its own right. I reached it on this unassuming noir that I didn't bother visiting until I had checked out most of Ray's filmography. I am glad I finally watched it.

I will try to describe three scenes in this movie which underline the genius that is Nicholas Ray.

1. The film opens as we see a wife helping put the gun holster on her husband, a cop leaving on night duty. She puts her sleepy head on his back, rubs his shoulders lovingly and tells him how much she hates being left alone at night. The husband bound by his sense of duty gently brushes her aside as he prepares to leave.

2. Ward Bond in a mixture of satisfaction and embarrassment looks upon the face of the body and remarks, "He's just a kid. That's all he is, just a kid". Ryan, frustrated tells Ward that they must take him down to the house as he prepares to pick the body. Ward brushes Ryan aside, picks up the body as if it was an infant and walks through the snow.

3. Ryan and Ida gently clasp each others hands as they meet over the stairs, nothing needs to be said, they kiss each other, camera pans over the scenery, we know both have found peace within themselves. They are not lonely anymore.

Nicholas Ray worked in various genres but always rose above its conventions to tell us something about ourselves. He showed people vulnerable to both love and hatred. In the end however, you will always come out of a Nicholas Ray film satisfied. You know he has put his heart into it.

"To get anything out of this life, you got to put something in it. From the heart!" - Pop Daily.