My New Taste In Movies
I am going through a phase right now. Most psychiatrists would call it normal and blame it on 'age', but they would probably expect me to want to dye my hair purple, get piercings, wear 8 kilos of make-up and listen to angst-y rock music. but that's not happening. Instead of trying to desperately keep up with my peers, I am turning- at least culturally- to the past. All of a sudden, I have started enjoying movies from the 70s and music by R.D. Burman. In the wake of the development of my new interests, I have made a list of great movies I have seen or would like to see at some point. Here is the list, in no particular order:
1) The Graduate
As the opening credits roll Bejamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman) comes down a conveyor belt wearing a deadpan expression with 'Sound of Silence' playing in the background. In the next shot, a briefcase comes down a similar belt and passes by a sign which says 'Do they match?' Then, we see him emerging from the airport with a smile on his face, but we don't see who he is smiling at or who has come to receive it. The smile is just him following social custom which demands pleasant expressions. The first scene itself, although simple, is rich with symbolism and it intoduces the stroyline- Benjamin wants to break free from the his society and wants his life to be 'different'. Throughout the movie, scenes which actually don't depict anything out of the ordinary carry extra meaning because of the lack of wide shots that convey Benjamin's sense of confinement. This could have been a bad movie. It could have been one of those movies with 'adult'/'serious' storylines and almost no sense of artistry. But instead, it is a sweet (big shock, right?) movie about how Benjamin, after rebelling in the worst of ways, finds happiness in a plan that is similar to the one his parents always meant for him. A little trivia- when director Mike Nichols was asked what happen to Benjamin and his love, Elaine, he replied, "They become their parents"!
2) Do Aankhein, Barah Haath
I haven't seen it yet, but I know it's about a jail warden who transforms six inhuman convicts, a task that is described as 'turning an animal into a human being'. He employs them in agricultural activities and together they produce a fantastic yield. The ironic ending has the hero being killed by one of his enemies and not any of the convicts.
3) Pyaasa
I haven't seen this one yet either. It's about a poet in post-Independence India, Vijay, who struggles to make people take his poetry seriosly. Through a series of events, he is exposed to the corruption which prevails in the world. When his own blood brothers identify another man as Vijay to bank upon his poems, he is heartbroken. The movie ends with him denying his own identity, letting the impersonator take his place, saying, "I'm not Vijay".
4) Stepford Wives
I hate horror movies. I don't like useless gore or cheap thrills. But this is one of those rare pieces where horror doesn't man ghosts, ghouls, vampires and psychopaths who go around killing people mercillesly. A young woman, Joanna, moves into the town of Stepford with her husband and children. Slowly, she begins to realize that the women in the town are not normal- they live to serve their husbands, they look like Barbie dolls and are obsessed with cleaning. It turns out that the men who are threatened by their wives' independence kill the women and using their collective technological expertise, replace them with robots with the same face and name but different bodies and demeanours. The first step in this is making a potrait of the womenin which they appear more beautiful than they are, something Joanna thinks is not right. Then, a language specialist makes her record her voice so they have a limited vocabulary devoid of dangerous words like 'archaic', 'sexist' and 'feminist'. The third step is to take them away for a 'romantic weekend' from which they will return as their duplicates. A truly original storyline with great performances from the actors. Plus, it's a rare combinatio of horror, sophistication and social commentary.
5) Bawarchi
I have seen this millions of times with my parents. It's about a mysterious cook which comes to serve a warring household. Slowly and almost magically, his presence resolves all issues of the house and gives rise to a loving and caring family. Then, he just disappears one day. The girl of the family catches up with him and he tells her his mission in life- to make every family as beautiful as possible so the world wll one day become a more beautiful place.
1) The Graduate
As the opening credits roll Bejamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman) comes down a conveyor belt wearing a deadpan expression with 'Sound of Silence' playing in the background. In the next shot, a briefcase comes down a similar belt and passes by a sign which says 'Do they match?' Then, we see him emerging from the airport with a smile on his face, but we don't see who he is smiling at or who has come to receive it. The smile is just him following social custom which demands pleasant expressions. The first scene itself, although simple, is rich with symbolism and it intoduces the stroyline- Benjamin wants to break free from the his society and wants his life to be 'different'. Throughout the movie, scenes which actually don't depict anything out of the ordinary carry extra meaning because of the lack of wide shots that convey Benjamin's sense of confinement. This could have been a bad movie. It could have been one of those movies with 'adult'/'serious' storylines and almost no sense of artistry. But instead, it is a sweet (big shock, right?) movie about how Benjamin, after rebelling in the worst of ways, finds happiness in a plan that is similar to the one his parents always meant for him. A little trivia- when director Mike Nichols was asked what happen to Benjamin and his love, Elaine, he replied, "They become their parents"!
2) Do Aankhein, Barah Haath
I haven't seen it yet, but I know it's about a jail warden who transforms six inhuman convicts, a task that is described as 'turning an animal into a human being'. He employs them in agricultural activities and together they produce a fantastic yield. The ironic ending has the hero being killed by one of his enemies and not any of the convicts.
3) Pyaasa
I haven't seen this one yet either. It's about a poet in post-Independence India, Vijay, who struggles to make people take his poetry seriosly. Through a series of events, he is exposed to the corruption which prevails in the world. When his own blood brothers identify another man as Vijay to bank upon his poems, he is heartbroken. The movie ends with him denying his own identity, letting the impersonator take his place, saying, "I'm not Vijay".
4) Stepford Wives
I hate horror movies. I don't like useless gore or cheap thrills. But this is one of those rare pieces where horror doesn't man ghosts, ghouls, vampires and psychopaths who go around killing people mercillesly. A young woman, Joanna, moves into the town of Stepford with her husband and children. Slowly, she begins to realize that the women in the town are not normal- they live to serve their husbands, they look like Barbie dolls and are obsessed with cleaning. It turns out that the men who are threatened by their wives' independence kill the women and using their collective technological expertise, replace them with robots with the same face and name but different bodies and demeanours. The first step in this is making a potrait of the womenin which they appear more beautiful than they are, something Joanna thinks is not right. Then, a language specialist makes her record her voice so they have a limited vocabulary devoid of dangerous words like 'archaic', 'sexist' and 'feminist'. The third step is to take them away for a 'romantic weekend' from which they will return as their duplicates. A truly original storyline with great performances from the actors. Plus, it's a rare combinatio of horror, sophistication and social commentary.
5) Bawarchi
I have seen this millions of times with my parents. It's about a mysterious cook which comes to serve a warring household. Slowly and almost magically, his presence resolves all issues of the house and gives rise to a loving and caring family. Then, he just disappears one day. The girl of the family catches up with him and he tells her his mission in life- to make every family as beautiful as possible so the world wll one day become a more beautiful place.
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