More movies

The best film of the last few weeks has been Les Meilleurs Amis du Monde (The Best Friends in the World). I loved this one so much. It made me cry big fat tears; the guy sitting across the aisle from me in the flight was most amused. It was funny, and sad and sweet. This one is about two sets of married-couple friends: one couple+son is visiting the other(+son) in their shiny new holiday home. While on the way the visitiing couple accidentally hear what their hosts really think about them when one of their phones redials by mistake. The weekend is a series of plotted and then later un-planned disasters. I would definitely watch this one again. Plus it had a llama. I like movies with llamas.

Last week I watched Phas Gaya re Obama. Which I'm glad I went to, despite my misgivings. Except for the female-Gabbar Singh gang bits, where all these women had sex with men to torment them (where do I even begin to talk about how annoying this was) the movie was pretty funny. It could have been a bit shorter. But the end was great. And I haven't enjoyed the second half of a Hindi film as much as I enjoyed the latter part of this, in a really long time.

In comparison Band Baaja Baaraat had much less going for it- one very pretty girl, with lots of pretty clothes, a very attractive scruffy boy, lots of Delhi-city references and one catchy song are more than other people are peddling these days (Tees Maar Khan?!)- but it could have been a much much better movie. I am partial to movies that reference Delhi University. I could also watch a whole movie about DU hostels and faffing about north camous; and this movie started off with this which is why I have decided to like it, despite being most annoyed with the patchy end. And the heroine's propensity to try and solve all her problems by calling the hero an ass. I oculd also have done without the overlong body-glitter song shot against the Jodhpur Palace. Jodhpur and Delhi are my two favourite movie locations, and I love it when they get worked into the story in the way this film did. For this I will overlook the boring yellow-flower petalled song. But there are only so many trades that one can make before categorising a film as vaguely disappointing- which is what this one was.

In Transit

It took me 34 hours to get home- from Geneva to Bangalore. 22 of these were in Doha- at a most pleasant hotel not far from the airport. Exhausted from two weeks of exams and two days, post exams, of drunken revelry I decided to stay in the hotel room for most of the day.

Enid- which I saw just before leaving for my Bangalore bound flight was very good. It made me detest Enid Blyton, and want to punish her for being evil to her children. But me enjoyment of the Faraway Tree tales, and the rest is quite secure- as the books have magically remained perfect in my head despite their author's apparent evilness.

On the flight from Geneva to Doha I watched three movies. Usually I like to eat and fall asleep but as I was stuck between two very twitchy men sleeping was impossible.

Weddings and Other Disasters was alright. Nothing special, but I don't watcha lot of Italian film- specially not recent stuff.

Heartbreakers- with Vanessa Paradis was very entertaining. It was a bit of a French lesson, which was good, and the dance bit was fun. I would recommend this one.

I also saw all but the end of Step Up 3- which I would not recommend to anyone. It was a foolish movie. And even though I love So You Think You Can Dance, there was no getting beyond how ghastly this movie was.

On Christmas morning I watched The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Why does Brad Pitt make these slow and tragic movies- where everything seems to be on an epic scale- but is just - ... movies like a River Runs Through it; or the other where he plays the guy who steals is brother's wife- the woman who makes with all the men in the family. That particular kind of Brad Pitt movie I am getting very tired of. Maybe he's just so beautiful that they don't know what to do with him, except stick him in these frames with the endless sea, or grass, or mountains. (Is it showing that I don't like him much? I don't.)

And then theres all the stuff I watched this week- while at home- which I shall do a separate post about.

Happy New Year everyone