Tag Archives: Oscars 2013

The Good Road Movie Review: Bad Movie

Director: Gyan Correa

Rating: **

Gujarati cinema. What’s that? For most, Gujarati cinema begins and ends with Ketan Mehta’s Bhavni Bhavai. Otherwise, it’s a black hole for those who do not speak the language. So when a Gujarati film comes out of left field to become India’s official entry at the Oscars beating the hot favorite The Lunchbox, its bound to attract some curiosity. Now I haven’t yet seen The Lunchbox; so this is not going to be a comparison between the two films to adjudge a personal winner. Rather it’s a stand alone review of the film on individual merit.

As a kid I remember watching films starring Naresh Kanodia which were embarrassing even then. The men mostly wore a kediyu and the women a chaniya choli. They spoke in exaggerated Kathiwari accents and the film was replete with stock characters. Of late, things have changed and we have seen films like Kevi Rite Jaish and Saptapadii which are huge improvements over the kediyu-chaniya cholis but yet far from Bollywood standards (if at all there is one).Continue reading “The Good Road Movie Review: Bad Movie”

Beyond The Hills: A Rant!

This is a rant. Read if you have time. Otherwise skip it.

It was anyway not meant for you if you read and watch things based on their length.

To proceed,

I saw a movie this week. It was called ‘Beyond The Hills‘.

It didn’t win the ‘Best Foreign Language Film’ Oscar this year. Instead, like we all knew it would, ‘Amour‘ did. I mean it won the Palme d’Or at Cannes already and and that in its self was halfway to O in Oscar. Screw Haneke – this one time, please.Continue reading “Beyond The Hills: A Rant!”

Oscars 2013 -Full List of Winners

The 85th Academy Awards are being held at Hollywood now.The Opening lines by  Host Seth MacFarlane was “Ladies and Gentlemen, Welcome to the Oscars, and And the quest to make Tommy Lee Jones laugh begins here.”.This is the first Time Seth MacFarlane is hosting the Show. The Awards Announced so far are as follows.Continue reading “Oscars 2013 -Full List of Winners”

"Death of a Shadow" Oscar Nominated Short Film 2103

 “Death of a Shadow” A film by Tom Van Avermaet was Nominated in Short Film Category for Oscars 2013.

An intriguing title for a film, and not knowing the synopsis could make you ponder on some interesting possibilities.

Soldier Nathan died during World War I. A strange collector imprisoned his shadow and gave him a new chance: a second life against 10,000 captured shadows…Continue reading “"Death of a Shadow" Oscar Nominated Short Film 2103”

The Road To Oscars 2013 : The Predictions

This year, there isn’t one single movie like Titanic that’s going to bulldoze itself through all categories in which it has been nominated. Putting your neck on the line by predicting winners in major categories is risky, yet I’ll do it here. In fact I would encourage others to do the same by using the comments section at the bottom. Then maybe we’ll exchange notes on February 25th. Each category also includes a name who would get an Oscar if I was the lone jury member.Continue reading “The Road To Oscars 2013 : The Predictions”

The Road To Oscars 2013 : The Nominees

Like every year, the nominations for this year in major categories are filled with a mixed bag of movies. Some excellent, some mediocre and some that make you wonder what made the Academy vote for them.  Here is a low down on this year’s nominees in no particular order: 

Life of Pi

Is this another case like Slumdog Millionaire where Indian exotica is enamoring a Western audience but not finding much favour within India itself? Probably. For those who have read Yann Martel’s Booker Prize winning book, the movie is several shades paler. It’s hokey views on religion take away a lot from the film. What redeems it is the effectual use of 3D and special effects. Ang Lee films a book which I never imagined would see the dark of a cinema hall. A boy and his tiger are stranded on a lifeboat in the middle of the sea. How the tiger plays the central character forms the highlight of the film. It may not win in major categories but Oscars for visual effects are beckoning.Continue reading “The Road To Oscars 2013 : The Nominees”