Monday, June 4, 2012
Friday, October 7, 2011
My Five
Hamlet
Laurence Oliver
"To be or not to be”, a popular quotation used widely by all is taken from the play ‘Hamlet’ written by William Shakespeare. People who patronize literature know the value of this play and it is undoubtedly one of the best plays of Shakespeare. Hamlet (1948), movie adopted from the play was directed and acted by one of the best known actors of British Cinema Laurence Oliver. Hamlet, Prince of Denmark finds out that his own Uncle Claudius has killed his father and takes revenge upon his uncle who has been throned as the new king of Denmark. Realising the fact that his own mother Gertrude has been involved in this mysterious murder, Hamlet is pushed into procrastination. The movie received several accolades including the honour of being the first British movie to win the Academy Awards for Best Picture. The casting in the movie had been praised by critics and till now amidst numerous screen adoptions of this play, Hamlet directed by Laurence Oliver stands out as the best.
J.Lee Thompson
I was never a big fan of Western movies but after watching Mackenna’s Gold, Western genres invaded my Heart and that is mainly because of the stupendous acting shown by both actors Greogory Peck and Omar Sharif. Greogory Peck who belongs to the school of method acting once again proved why he was one of the most wanted actors during his times through his flawless acting. Mackenna’s Gold is about an expedition by a group who goes in search of the Mountain of Gold which is believed to be protected by the Apache spirits. The movie was hailed for Thompson’s narrative technique and also for its cinematography. Quincy Jones who composed the soundtrack for this movie was widely appreciated for his efforts.
Vittorio De Sica
Bicycle Thieves (1948), is one of the best movies ever made should I say. Directed by noted Italian director Vittoria De Sica,’ Bicycle thieves’ centres around a cycle interesting woven well with the political situation in Europe. A poor unemployed man’s attempt to search his lost bicycle for survival is what the movie tells us. The movie was an exact portrayal of economic instability in Italy during the time of World War and it also identifies the poor people as the victims of Wars. Lead actors have shown some tremendous amount of acting to elevate the plot.
The Passion of the Christ
Mel Gibson
Rear Window
Alfred Hitchcock
Rear Window directed by the prominent director Hitchcock, and acted out by the admirable actor James Stewart became a huge hit in 1950’s. ‘Rear Window’ is about a professional photographer who broke his leg in an accident is confined in an apartment and also bound by a wheel chair investigates a murder in his apartment by observing the events through his lenses. James Stewart’s brilliant acting skills help the movie to travel in steady pace without any interruption. It is definitely one of the best suspense films from the master of suspense. Grace Kelly plays the love interest of James Stewart also helps to unravel the mystery towards the end.
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Quotes on Women
The other day I was browsing through few interesting quotes and I just want it to be posted on my blog and here they are:
"All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages."
-William Shakespeare
Women are made to be loved, not understood.
-Oscar Wilde
"I see when men love women. They give them but a little of their lives. But women when they love give everything." -Oscar Wilde
"I have thought a sufficient measure of civilization is the influence of good women."
-R.W.Emerson
"A cigarette is the only consumer product which when used as directed kills its consumer."
-Unknown
"To win in life,don't fear in life" -Unknown
Superstar India- Shobhaa De
Book Title: Superstar India
Author : Shobhaa De
(Non-Fiction )
Shobhaa De’s ‘Superstar India’, is a book which can be or rather ‘should’ be read by all Indians at all times, it is more than a book about India. For some of them out there who still think it is a fiction let me ignite a fact that it ain’t any fiction. It is about India, it’s about ‘us; ‘Superstar India’ takes a dig at everything about our ‘Indianess’. The book simply questions our age old traditions and questions our own commitment and sincerity towards our customs and traditions which we have been preserving for centuries.
Narrative Style:
It is really nice to read Shoba’s free flow of thoughts being poured in the pages in a unique narrative style. She touches about everything which is bothering our society and she also tells how our India’s newly acquired status is creating vibes in the Western world. What she constantly mentions in this book is about the reluctant younger generation, unwilling to learn anything from our tradition but instead mindlessly follow the Western culture and their way of living. The fact of the matter is we are still obsessed with the Westernized lifestyle.
What is so surprising in the book is that the writer unhesitatingly has touched upon certain controversial ideologies, sensitive matters and of course lots of minuscule things, for example in the book she talks about how she hates to be addressed as ‘Mrs’. She hates men introducing their wives as ’My Mrs’ instead of their names, she calls it that embarrassing.
She talks about how a middle class family had to shed out a lump amount in cine multiplexes, few bold statements about UP Chief Minister Mayawati is more than enough how well the writer is well-versed in political theories. Generally, in India age old traditions, customs and rituals are passed over to the children from the parents, so that it never dies but Shoabhaa confesses her failure to learn anything from her parents and its dead and gone with them. I sincerely do not know what to talk and what not to talk about this book because it has so many issues Shobha has meticulously covered; in fact some of the stories are really astonishing and can be enjoyed only when it is read rather than it is told.
This is one of the very few books we have seen in recent times that analyses our deepest sentiments in a much broader way. It’s a great book to read, I strongly recommend everybody to get hold of this wonderful book and plunge into this priceless adventure.
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