tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102948112012-02-07T03:13:50.414-08:00"In which our heroes decide that, since they discuss film so much anyway, they may as well move their debates online. At the worst, they figure, they will be able to present their sometimes-convergent, sometimes-divergent, always-independent views on the movies; at the best, perhaps some rich and kind editor will hire them to do this full-time."Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.comBlogger241100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1121743040343503422005-07-08T11:27:00.000-07:002005-07-18T20:17:20.356-07:00

I don’t know if what you’re referring to as music are just the big production numbers in our cinema or if you’re talking about any interlude in a film that has a song. If the former, I agree entirely with you when you say not every film should carry these items. But if you mean the latter, I disagree, though I do think that, in your words, “the musical format is an ‘Indian’ way of telling stories

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com33tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1120817774232810042005-07-08T02:40:00.000-07:002005-07-08T03:16:53.540-07:00

There's a real danger that I'm going to be alienating many, many readers - and possibly a co-blogger - with this subject, but it's something that should at least be worth discussing. It has been a perennial argument in Bollywood that the musical format - to put it crudely, song and dance - is an "Indian" way of telling stories, and that we shouldn't be shelving tradition by leaving out musical

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1119779675687904262005-06-21T11:25:00.000-07:002005-06-26T03:06:47.713-07:00

I haven't seen "Bose" yet, so I guess I can't respond directly to your observations about that film. But I did read your review, and I talked about "Bose" and his other movies extensively with Benegal, and one thing he said struck me particularly. I had asked him why, despite the fact that he still had as much to say and convey, he had started couching his messages in much more commercial terms

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com29tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1119335391259522512005-06-20T23:17:00.000-07:002005-06-24T00:00:14.916-07:00

After I saw "Bose," I kept thinking back to "Bharat Ek Khoj," Benegal’s epic, sprawling, yet ultimately simple and accessible take on Nehru's "Discovery of India." I remembered an argument that broke out at home after the Ramayana portions, because Salim Ghouse was chosen to play Rama. The man looked nothing like the Rama from, say, the Ravi Varma paintings that we’ve all grown up with, probably

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com36tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1118027712606548362005-05-28T11:29:00.000-07:002005-06-06T00:30:31.846-07:00

As much as I love the way Hitchcock constructed his big set pieces, or the way he so casually put on screen what were surely some of his major obsessions, what I find most fascinating is his sense of humour. It’s definitely one of a kind, and it’s there to some degree in almost all his films – at least the ones I’ve seen.I love the way the birds – in "The Birds," of course – gather in the school

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1117285173051076702005-05-28T05:02:00.000-07:002005-06-05T20:17:11.953-07:00

When the Jabberwock said that there were around a hundred scenes that one could pick out as a Hitchcock favourite, he wasn't kidding. I don't think there was ever a master of the individual scene like Hitchcock. In my movie-watching experience, nobody has quite managed to take one particular scene, make it stand out for its own qualities of drama or comedy, and yet fit it absolutely seamlessly

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1116229451006551822005-05-13T10:57:00.000-07:002005-05-16T00:44:11.013-07:00

It's funny that you - and, to a lesser extent, I - should have problems with film hype. In our line of film criticism, you'd think that we'd actually be happy that cinema saturates our society so much, that people know upcoming films almost inside out and will accordingly anticipate and read reviews with an enhanced degree of awareness. I guess, like so many things, it's a double-edged sword ...

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1115984048376794152005-05-13T04:30:00.000-07:002005-05-13T04:35:08.686-07:00

What are some of the things these days that make moviegoing less than the experience it’s meant to be? People who won’t turn off their cell phones – the ones who think they’re whispering when you can actually hear them better than whatever’s booming out of the Dolby-digital speaker above your head? Couples that won’t leave their kids behind – the ones that think it’s oh-so-cute that their little

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1115363546157565552005-04-28T11:29:00.000-07:002005-05-06T08:06:22.686-07:00

I think Kamal Haasan sold himself and his movie short with all those interviews where he said “Mumbai Xpress” was one of his patented laugh-a-thons. The only “comedy” of his that it comes close to is “Pesum Padam”, and even that wasn’t exactly a comedy – the funniest moments, like his hanging a dirty shirt out to dry and having only enough soap to clean the garment’s armpits, came from very sad

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1114678280473769202005-04-28T01:25:00.000-07:002005-04-28T01:52:22.943-07:00

When I left the theatre after watching "Mumbai Xpress," my strongest emotion was one of relief. I had heard some vile rumour that the second half of the film contained bushels of Kamal Hassan's unique brand of maudlin sentimentality, the type that so ruined "Vasool Raja MBBS" for me. So when Kamal and Manisha Koirala and the overstuffed kid started to sing about flowers blooming and so on, I

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1113805235128710892005-04-16T10:45:00.000-07:002005-04-17T23:22:09.240-07:00

It's a funny thing about "Sideways." If you'd caught me a day after I'd watched the movie, I would have agreed with everything you said. Even today, in fact, I do agree with a lot of it. I loved the characters too, and I admire how Alexander Payne can take this one little quirky story and make it so universally human. He did it in "About Schmidt" too, admittedly to a less satisfying extent than "

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1113625919800653482005-04-15T21:27:00.000-07:002005-04-15T21:34:33.586-07:00

I think it’s a good movie if it manages to make me identify with and care for one of the characters, but the beauty of “Sideways” is that it made me care about both Miles (Paul Giamatti) and Jack (Thomas Haden Church) – not just me, I think most guys will find bits of themselves in both these flawed men.I was with Jack simply because of those first few scenes of wine tasting. He has zero respect

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1111646528517509392005-03-18T09:33:00.000-08:002005-03-25T02:06:22.623-08:00

Let me begin with something of a disclaimer: I had a fine-enough, entertaining-enough time with “The Aviator”. All of Scorsese’s tricks were in full flow – the old-time Warner Bros. logo; the way the title was engraved in a diamond shape, like what you’d expect from, say, a comic book of the era; the oh-so-smooth cut from Hughes running his hands along Hepburn’s back to Hughes running his hands

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1111133020428224672005-03-17T23:35:00.000-08:002005-03-18T00:03:40.430-08:00

It is almost always impossible to say everything you want about a film in 700 words, but especially so if it is a Martin Scorsese product. So although I reviewed "The Aviator," there are a couple of points that would make for an interesting discussion.First: What is with Scorsese's newfound obsession with DiCaprio? He was in "Gangs of New York" and he will be in Scorsese's next, "The Departed" as

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1110351101188803142005-03-08T22:51:00.000-08:002005-03-08T22:52:12.830-08:00

You're right, there's very, very little I can disagree with. But as with most of our posts, there does seem to be a very fundamental, interesting disconnect at a conceptual level. Before that, though, the formalities: Yes, I didn't like the Wilkinson-Ruffalo-Dunst subplot either. It took way too much time on screen that should have been devoted to Joel and Clementine, although I suppose in the

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1110338488532702092005-03-08T19:15:00.000-08:002005-03-08T19:22:12.250-08:00

I don’t think "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" is something we’re going to differ a great deal about. Then again, maybe we are – for didn’t you tell me you agreed with slate.com (or was it salon.com?) when they said it was the best screenplay of the millennium (or some such thing)? Or were you just quoting them?Either way, I don’t think it’s what they said it is – not because it isn’t a

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1109832497487252112005-03-02T09:42:00.000-08:002005-03-02T22:48:17.493-08:00

I must say I wasn’t very surprised with the results of this year’s Academy Awards. These awards – as, indeed, those for any art – are quite subjective, and unless Eastwood made "The Aviator" or Scorsese made "Million Dollar Baby," we’re doomed to watching ceremonies where the Oscar goes to Apple ... while Orange bravely tries to put up a brave, I’m-happy-you-won face to a camera mercilessly

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1109748940980193422005-03-01T23:02:00.000-08:002005-03-02T03:13:47.293-08:00

I know we're raring to get onto "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" - I am, anyway - but we can't have Reel Two ignore the Oscars. For my part, I made a few predictions and got five out of six hopelessly, hopelessly wrong.But it isn't just the grousing of the guy who's been proven wrong when I say that I couldn't understand a couple of the winning choices at all. Cate Blanchett was very good

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1108977329466659212005-02-19T10:29:00.000-08:002005-02-21T01:25:02.696-08:00

I’m not saying that a filmmaker’s vision shouldn’t tie into the material – but who’s to say that this is the only way such material should be seen? Why shouldn’t a filmmaker be allowed to see what he chooses to see in the material?That’s the problem I have when people say "The Color Purple" is a bad movie, one of Spielberg’s failures. Some group – critics, maybe – decides that the

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1108970404351460392005-02-19T10:25:00.000-08:002005-02-20T23:22:41.403-08:00

So there's a fundamental disagreement here, then, which is quite interesting. You say: "It’s him, not the material, that dictated the filmmaking style, and rightly so." I wouldn't go with that at all. Of course a filmmaker's vision is important, but it has to be tied in very deeply with the material; style can't disconnect itself entirely and just go brazenly ahead by itself, not caring a hoot

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1108828349890193072005-02-19T07:45:00.000-08:002005-02-19T19:15:55.613-08:00

I don’t agree at all with your belief that style should be determined by the subject. In fact, style should be determined by one thing, and one thing only – how the filmmaker views the subject. Do you think anyone read Puzo’s "The Godfather" and thought it would make for anything other than a pulpy B-movie? So why didn’t Coppola end up making something like de Palma’s "Scarface," all crackling

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1108793699343375672005-02-18T21:11:00.000-08:002005-02-19T07:44:39.480-08:00

There's just been so much hype over "Black", including this piece in Outlook calling it a "redefining moment in commercial Hindi cinema," that I seriously thought I must have missed the point, or been very inattentive, or just stopped understanding film altogether.But I think back over it, and I can't see the magic at all. Granted, Sanjay Leela Bhansali has made a really radical departure for

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1108379152449869912005-02-14T02:25:00.000-08:002005-02-14T03:05:52.453-08:00

The "thing" is admittedly "Million Dollar Baby's" sucker punch, and it's a strong one. I attribute that largely to Hilary Swank's ability to make us like her so much so fast. Even more than 20 minutes into the movie, after she's said barely three sentences, we love her, we want her to win every fight there is; the sucker punch works so well because it's a fight that Swank suddenly cannot win.But

Samanth Subramanian / Baradwaj Ranganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10175670250655499134noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10294811.post-1108375958275352512005-02-14T02:11:00.000-08:002005-02-14T05:21:33.893-08:00

Since you said you'd just watched "Million Dollar Baby," I wanted to share my 2 n.p. about the movie. I started watching it, and as Clint Eastwood kept bringing in cliché after cliché, I began to squirm. I was thinking: "Do I really need to see another film about an underdog and a veteran, each with neatly-ordered life-baggage – she needs a father-figure, he’s looking to make peace with an

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