Movie Junction

World War II movies can be classified into many categories, but the most-prominent Word War movies may fall into three categories:   stories from the battlefront with the Nazis (“Saving Private Ryan,” “The Guns of Navarone”); stories about the Holocaust (“Schlinder’s List”); and stories about the Resistance movements (“Sophie’s Scholl,” “Max Manus”). Of course, we get a mixture of these themes in many World War II movies that might make them distinctive in the genre. These stories are mostly told from the heroes’ perspective, where many lives are lost on battlefields. The enemy in the form of the Nazis is pretty clear, and their crimes against humanity are well known. Always seen as the ultimate evil, the Nazis have never received any empathy in films, and rightly so. But there have been a number of World War II movies that played from a German perspective, telling the stories of how Germans planned and fought. A few notable movies in this category are “The Reade...

Back in 2001, Farhan Akthar’s “Dil Chahta Hai” surprised audiences with its complex, overarching themes associated with friendship, love, and life. The film became a trendsetter for future ultra-modern, urban, coming-of-age movies in Bollywood. Ten years since its release, the film’s framework has been copied numerous times. Indeed, it is impossible not to compare any new movie about a group of friends embarking on a life-changing journey to “Dil Chahta Hai.” Among many other movies based on the same theme, “Rang De Basanti” (2006), “Rock On!” (2008), and “ 3 Idiots ” (2009) have successfully implemented Farhan Akthar’s formula by bringing together unique characters and stories. Almost a decade later, Akthar’s sister, Zoya Akthar, directs another movie on this theme: 2011’s “Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara,” (“Won’t Get Life Back Again” in Hindi). The film stars Hrithik Roshan (“Kites,” “Jodhaa Akbar”), Abhay Deol (“ Road, Movie ,” “Dev. D”), Farhan Akhtar (“Rock On!,” “Luck by Chance”), a...

“You vultures…circling the city…tearing off the flesh from everything that is innocent.” --Hobo Directors Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino reignited the horror-exploitation genre with their double-bill offering “Grindhouse” (2007) that was composed of two films, “Planet Terror” and “Death Proof.” It was a thudding reminder of underground cinema normally shown in cable TV during midnight or during matinee shows in theaters.   Violence, sex, guns, and gore were all packed into one movie. Rarely do these types of movies have a mainstream following, but there is a solid cult base for movies like this. The “Grindhouse” movies generated enough revenue to break even at the box office. But the exploitation cinema didn’t stop with the arrival of the “Grindhouse” movies. Rodriguez soon followed up with “Machete” (2010), but this time with an added mainstream formula, touching a sensitive issue concerning illegal immigration. Now, we have another entry in the exploitation-cinema gen...

What is the difference between a Ninja and a Samurai? It is something that I have never clearly understood. If we backtrack through the last few years, several Hollywood and Japanese movies have presented Ninjas and Samurai as members of the warrior class. But so much has been lost in creating style on the screen that the difference between the two is still unclear. Still, at the basic level, Ninjas are traditionally seen as assassins coming from the lower class, probably working for a Samurai. Samurai, on the other hand, come from the upper class, and possess amazing swordplay skills. But recently, filmmakers have heavily romanticized the Ninjas (“Ninja Assassin,” 2009, “Ninja,” 2009). I don’t know the reason for their love of Ninjas, but it probably has something to do with their fighting skills:   They use bombs, they are extremely acrobatic, they can often fly, and they kill with no mercy. It’s the kill factor and violence that is possibly so fascinating to viewers. Plus, who...

“My country was stolen from me and I want it back.” – Max Manus For nearly six decades, World War II movies have formed an important part of American and European cinema. If we consider the last two decades, barring Steven Spielberg’s two masterpieces, “Saving Private Ryan” (1998) and “Schindler’s List” (1993), and Terrence Malick’s “The Thin Red Line” (1998), Hollywood has scaled back in producing war movies. Yes, once in a while, we see war movies released from Hollywood, but in terms of quality, they are pretty soon forgotten. Insipid affairs like “Pearl Harbor” (2001), “Windtalkers” (2002), “Enemy at the Gates” (2001), and “Hart’s War” (2002) ensured that the war genre in Hollywood receives little attention from prospective producers. Surprisingly, during the same time, European cinema produced a few quality films: “Life is Beautiful” (1997), “Downfall” (2004), “Days of Glory” (2006), “Black Book” (2006), “Katyñ” (2007), and the list goes on. But in 2008, two war movies were rel...

Sometimes reviewing a catalogue title brings an interesting perspective on the careers of the actors involved, especially when the actors are acting currently. The timeline becomes an important factor in evaluating the progression of an actor’s career. This is true for “ Bridget Jones’s Diary ” (2001). The careers of the three leads in the film-- Renée Zellweger , Hugh Grant, and Colin Firth--started with a bang. Zellweger starred in the critically acclaimed film “Jerry Maguire” (1996); Firth’s performance in a BBC TV series, “Pride & Prejudice” (1995) garnered positive responses from critics; and Grant became an international star after a breakthrough performance in “Four Weddings and a Funeral” (1994).   As such, these actors became celebrity figures pretty much at the same time in their acting careers.   But almost a decade has passed since the release of “Bridget Jones’s Diary,” and during this time, Zellweger and Firth won Oscars for their performance in recent fil...

Hollywood continues its tradition of adapting screenplays from books. “The Lincoln Lawyer” (2011) is a recent movie adapted from the book of the same name, written by Michael Connelly. Connelly is a prolific writer who has won numerous awards for his fiction writing, notably grabbing an Edgar Award for the Best Debut Novel, “The Black Echo” (1993). I haven’t read Connelly’s book, so I cannot comment on how well “The Lincoln Lawyer” translates to the screen. But I can say this: the film is a well-crafted crime drama that is surprisingly entertaining and packed with fine performances from its leads. On the revenue front, the film grossed over $90 million at the box office, and critics were generally positive in their assessment of the film. The movie’s title has a significant meaning in relation to its main character. Looking at the movie’s poster, one would guess the story revolves around a lawyer in a small American town called Lincoln. Wrong. Instead, Connelly uses the name as a met...