Archive for the ‘Detective’ Category
Race: Worth a one time see
On April 02, 2008 in Action, Bollywood, Crime, Detective, Family, Movie
In order to make a movie successful in today’s world, there are certain ways. One of the most important ways is for it to be a hit in the first week – with the number of shows on display during the first week, the movie can make a large amount of movie in the first week. And Race got lucky. For 2 weeks before Race, there was no movie released, generating a huge amount of pent-up demand. In addition, the school boards for 10th and 12th class had just got over, and a new movie would be totally irresistible. And of course, you had the promos promising lots of action, hot stars, plenty of skin, and songs that were played on the radio repeatedly, generating yet more demand.
With all these factors, did the movie actually cooperate ? Well, I would say that just the story and the twists and turns of the movie make it worth watching once, but after that would get difficult. But I never did understand the reason for the movie having the name of race; there are horse races, and a final race (that somehow did not really impress); the rest of the movie was about intrigue and betrayal. So this was the first question I asked my spouse after the movie – why this name ?
Murder (2004): Almost a classic movie
On November 22, 2007 in Bollywood, Crime, Detective, Family, Legal, Melody, Movie, Music, Police, Revenge, Romance, Song, Values
Murder was not the debut movie for either Mallika Sherawat or Emraan Hashmi (debut movies being Khwaish for Mallika and Footpath for Imraan Hashmi), but this was the movie that gave a big boost to their film career, and also set their reputations (something that got repeated in future films). So Mallika got the reputation of being ready to do sexy roles involving hot scenes, exposure, kissing, and similar such characteristics, and Emraan got the reputation of a serial kisser. The movie was directed by Anurag Basu under the tutelage of Mahesh Bhatt, and there are signs of the Bhatt effect showing through. The movie is based on the English movie ‘Unfaithful’. It does have some great songs and hummable music, and overall is a watch at least once. However if you are watching with family and are hesitant about bold scenes, then don’t watch. The movie has bold scenes where required, and does not hesitate to shock in the story about a neglected wife having an affair with a former lover. The movie has music by Anu Malik, and lyrics are by Sayeed Quadri and Rahat Indori.
The movie is different from the usual murder story, and also different from the run of the mill ‘B’ class movie that seek to titillate the viewer with hot and racy sex scenes. The movie is from a top banner, and presents the story of what happens in a family when a partner starts to feel neglected, and the difference being that the movie does not hesitate in showing some bold sex scenes. Hence, a number of scenes of adultery and betrayal of the marital bond of trust; but with a difference, the innate love between the husband and wife is enough to finally get them out of the mess that they land up in.
Doordarshan nostalgia: Byomkesh Bakshi
On July 09, 2007 in Detective, Doordarshan, Hindi Serial, TV
I was watching the second run of Karamchand on Sony a few weeks back, and started wondering about the other detective serials that we see. There is the strange CID, but my memories went back to that serial from long ago, Byomkesh Bakshi. It brought back a lot of nostalgia. The year was 1993, and satellite channels were just picking up. Doordarshan was still watched by a number of people, and here comes this non-flashy detective serial, starring Rajit Kapur. The director was Basu Chaterjee, which was another plus point about the serial.
The series was based on a detective created in 1932, by the Bengali author Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay. The detective was picturized in a film (Chiriyakhana or The Zoo) by Satyajit Ray, starring Uttam Kumar in 1967, and the movie is typically known as one of Satyajit Ray’s not so better movies. And then came this series, and the series was what made the character of Byomkesh Bakshi famous.
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