[Movies] Offbeat

I buy dvd's, and yes, some are good, whilst others are bad!! I dont read ahead of the shopping expedition... Infact,very rarely do i know what i am going to Buy..

I BUY ---

If the name looks interesting

If the cover is appealing

If i like one of the actors

If i get a gut feel about the movie

If  its a movie someone has reccomended [ these are few and far between] :)

In the latest batch, i had bought this movie called Funny Games... and went on to watch the movie,..

 Director: Michael Haneke

Writer: Michael Haneke (written by)

Cast
    * Naomi Watts as Ann
    * Tim Roth as George
    * Michael Pitt as Paul
    * Brady Corbet as Peter
    * Devon Gearhart as Georgie
    * Boyd Gaines as Fred

 The movie opens with George, his wife Anna, their son Georgie and  dog Lucky arriving at their lake house. Their next-door neighbor pays a visit, accompanied by two young men, Peter and Paul, whom he introduces as friends. The two men begin imposing themselves by coming over asking for eggs, breaking batch after batch, eventually a frustrated Anna demands that the men leave, asking George to get them out. What happens next is what baffled me... Peter breaks George's leg with George's golf club and the two men take the family hostage. 

They force the family to participate in a number of ugly sadistic games in order to stay alive. When some of the other neighbors arrive for a visit, Anna passes the men off as friends until the visitors leave. How they torture the couple, playing mind games with them has us cringing, wondering what is going to happen next!!! One by one, they kill the members of the family, starting with the dog, the last victim being Anna!!! 

It's a thriller movie but very different from the run of the mill ones. Sort of satire, I think. If you're sick and tired of de'ja`vu film-making this one is just for you. 

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The 2nd movie- Ghosts of Girlfriends Past we saw at my friend Anita's place post the yummy Potluck lunch.... 

Director: Mark Waters

Cast:
    * Matthew McConaughey as Connor Mead

    * Jennifer Garner as Jenny Perotti

    * Michael Douglas as Wayne Mead aka Uncle Wayne

    * Emma Stone as Allison Vandermeersh, the Ghost of Girlfriends Past

    * Daniel Sunjata as Brad

    * Noureen DeWulf as Melanie, the Ghost of Girlfriends Present and Connor's assistant

    * Breckin Meyer as Paul Mead
    * Lacey Chabert as Sandra Volkom
    * Anne Archer as Vonda Volkom

    * Amanda Walsh as Denice
    * Camille Guaty as Donna

I wouldnt call it a Chick flick.

Nor a romcom.. romantic comedy flick

hmmm.. what can we call it??? i dunno!!! 

Connor Mead, the playboy hops from one woman to the other, leaving behind quite a trail of unhappy women... The day he goes to attend his brother Paul's wedding rehearsal dinner , the complete world comes toppling down... Meeting Jenny [the one woman in his life who has always seemed immune to his considerable charm.] after all this time, trying to keep his lusting thots to himself, he finds he is given one last chance by his late Uncle Wayne [who tells him its not too late to change]... He meets one Ghost after another, who take him thru his life, starting with childhood to the future.... 

Through the journey, Connor realises this is the only chance he is going to get, and finally decides to confess his love to Jenny ... The world is then set right and all are happy!!! 

A movie that would have been fun had it not been stretched so much.. it just goes on and on and on and on............................ watch it if you have NOTHING else to do!!!  :)

[Movie] Masilamani

Maasilamani by RNR Manohar

Starring- : Nakul, Sunaina, Pavan, Karunas, Santhanam, M S Bhaskar, Raj Kapoor, Santhana Bharathi, Delhi Ganesh and many others.

Music: Imman

The movie opens with Nakul chasing a man down the streets and getting sentenced to fine or term in jail. Masilamani [Nakul], living in Rani Anna Nagar is not the usual romeo or run of the mill hero. He is a social activist goes after anyone who does wrong, be it a case of eve teasing on the bus, cheating an old couple in a property sale or chain snatching. One day, he catches sight of Divya [Sunaina] confronting some guys who tease her students, and in the process he falls head over heels in love with her.

However, the hunky dory romance hits a dead end the day he causes mayhem at her dance concert, when all he wanted was to meet their area MLA requesting for assistance in clearing up a sewage problem. One look at his angry face and Divya lables him "Rowdy" . She mistakes his character and assumes he is a crook, despising him from that minute on!

Invariably from thereon, everytime their paths cross it is when he is beating someone up or chasing a thief. He even jokes to her about this. Knowing there is no way Divya will love Masi, he adorns the role of Mani, a soft spoken sophisticated guy.

With the help of his two friends, he stages the whole drama and wins over Divya's family and subsequently her as well. This is where,Bhupathi [Pavan] comes into town taking over as the Sub Inspector of Ashok nagar police station. After a run in with Masi, he vows revenge, but is left confused whenever he tries to prove Masi and Mani are one! Infact, the residents of Rani Anna Nagar, where Masi resides come together to establish that Mani is different from Masi. The day Divya decides to test him, a simple text message has his friends jumping into action and helping him strengthen ties with Divya!! It is one amazing scene that leaves us all stumped. So, is the one at the hospital when Bhupathi brings in the Masi's sister's daughter, while Masi is pretending to be Mani and the way the situation is handled deserves a lot of praise.

As the movie progresses, Divya comes to know that indeed Masi and Mani are one. She must now decide who she loves and if she will marry Masilamani!

Laced with sharp dialogues, plenty of action, and romance, the movie goes on tell the tale of how Masi as Mani convinces Divya he is a good samaritan and truly loves her. The entire plot has been beautiful crafted by the director and executed very well by Nakul and rest of the Rani Anna Nagar residents!

With every scene, Nakul has proved that he can act, dance, do comedy and is good at it. Suniana looks beautiful, and there is a certain grace in her acting as well. In certain scenes, she does come acrss flat, but overall good performance. Bhaskar , Santhanam, Karnas and Srinath provide just the right amount of comedy, without going overboard!!

Music by Imman is enjoyable, especially ‘Odi Odi’ track, it is quite a peppy number. The other songs have variety and vigour to keep the audiences glued to the seats; however all of them are a tad too long. Song locations and cinematography was good.

All in all, Masilamani is a romantic thriller, filled with intense moments and rib tickling comedy!!