GBUF - 31 Oct 2021

Hello all, good day!

Here is the weekly roundup of Good/Bad/Ugly/Fun of what happened.

#GBUF #sriGINthoughts

CYA: Views are mine. 

#Fun

• Cristiano Ronaldo is going to become a father of twins. Now #GGMU fans are already worried and wringing their hands: “We spent so much money on this man to produce magic on the pitch. Not only has the magic not happened but also, now he will go on paternity leave! #CR7x2

• Singapore’s Health Promotion Board (HPB) seems to have taken the unwanted sobriquet of Singapore being the ‘World’s most fatigued country’ to its heart. It is giving away $30 vouchers for those who register for a Sleep Challenge. Minimum 7 hours of sleep required. Along with that you must have move the butt to add steps to the count. Who says sleep doesn’t pay? Take those #40Winks!

#Ugly

• This year, at least one cyclist per day has been arrested by the police in Singapore for riding on the expressways!! With speeding vehicles at 90 kmph, these lightweight velocipedes will just fly off in the draught! I think in their eagerness to enhance their fitness, the cyclists seem to have left their brains at home! #MenacingPedals

• Covid has seen 5m deaths across the world. To put it in context, that is 90% of Singapore’s population. So much of waste – economic, opportunities, growth and above all human! The way we humans handled the pandemic was simply not good enough. We yoyoed from one end to the other; blamed and continue to blame; stumbled and continue to stumble. What is the use of all the education and growth? #BackToSquare1

#Bad

• You worked hard to become famous. Millions follow you. Then an anonymous post flames you. Fans leave in flocks. You become an outcast overnight. Then it is found that the post was false. Welcome to ‘Cancel Culture’, a herd mentality facilitated by that omnipresent phone you are holding now! South Korea leads the pack on this; but it is as much a pandemic as Covid! #ShootFirstAskLater

• Sometime back Sellur Raju, a minister in Tamil Nadu was ridiculed for trying to cover Vaigai river with Styrofoam sheets to prevent evaporation. Well, they are trying that in Switzerland to stop glaciers from melting. The world is definitely becoming hotter by the day. Carbon emissions will double in less than two decades & most of us will live to feel it then! So, take that small step. Switch that aircon off. Follow #ReduceReuseRecycle

#Good

• Some good things are happening in Rome G-20. They are shaking hands on Climate, Covid and Economy – notwithstanding the usual saber-rattling by the usual suspects. They also endorsed the common tax regimes to prevent rich getting richer – hopefully it does that! There is #COP26 in Glasgow which wants to get some agreement solidified among all the parties. Tough. But must proceed boldly. #HotHotterHottest

• As the delta variant rages through Singapore (number of cases are as consistent as Pakistan is in #T20WorldCup), what is heartening is to note the planning and the coping up of the health infra in Singapore. ICU facilities we/are beefed up, more nurses trained and deployed and private hospitals roped in. It is a positive spin alright; but it is needed for us to know and recognise the great work that frontliners are doing! #SaluteFront

Sources: The Straits Times, Tamil Murasu, Bloomberg, CR’s Instapage, SG HPB

PS: If you are interested in taking part in #GQ2021 related to #T20WorldCup, please let me know.

No. 2: How to be one?

This article was written for Volume 6 e-journal of www.arbharconsulting.com

3 Chicken-Soup-For-The-Soul Movies

Three life-is-crap-but-there-is-always-a-good-bidet-around movies on #Netflix…

1. 42

Those who have read Douglas Adams’ Hitchhiker trilogy (with 4 books!) would remember that the answer to ‘What is Life?’ Is 42. Perhaps Mr Adams got it after the shirt No. 42 'owned' by Jackie Roosevelt Robinson, the first African-American to play Major League Baseball for Brooklyn Dodgers. Harrison Ford is delightful as the cigar-smoking version of Krishna Paramatma. Key message: A hero doesn’t fight to burn down but to fight and keep the fire on. One hit at a time. One run at a time. #PitchPerfect (4/5)

2. Green Book

What if a black pianist, Dr Dominic Shirley sophisticated to the core, wants to travel Deep South in the US during early ‘60s on a concert tour? Mad, you would say. What if the same pianist (Mahershala Ali in an Oscar-winning performance) employs a white, racist Italian (Viggo Mortensen) to be his driver-cum-valet for the trip? Possible and the inevitable happens. Both grow up during the long drives experiencing, by now familiar, situations of how segregation was so deep-rooted. There was this poignant scene where the negro farmers look at their ‘brother’ pianist with awe, respect, disbelief and a bit of pride when they see him being served by a white man. Key message: The best way to fight bigotry is through dignity. #TunedPerfect (3.5/5)

3. Yesterday

It’s a hard day’s life. Jack can’t Let It Be. His manager who yearns to be his lover, Wants to Hold his Hand. But Jack is still stuck in Yesterday In His Life. Then miracle happens. Whole world forgets that Beatles ever existed except Jack. Promptly whips out the songs and becomes an overnight star. Did the star become a black hole or a true polar one? Danny Boyle casts yet another Brit-Indian to play the struggling musician. Oh, Ed Sheeran is in it too! Key Message: Character is doing the right thing even when no one knows that your are cheating. #JudePerfect (3/5)

#sriGINthoughts #reviews #fortytwo #greenbook #yesterday

Drishyam 2: The Resumption - Knight Vision

If a man could commit a perfect crime in six hours, what can he do to hide it, if he is given six years?

Ladies and Gentlemen, Welcome to #Drishyam2, technically the second half of the #DrishyamWhole!

If Drishyam1 (D1 for short) showed how far a man will go to hide a crime, D2 shows how far the same man will go to escape the eventuality!

D2 follows the same template. Leisurely setting of the context for the first one hour! (so much so that I even nodded off a couple of times!) Then a roller-coaster ride for the next 90 mins to leave you breathless.

If D1 was all about emotions (parental, lust, power, remorse, the absolutism of family-first...), D2 is about survival. How does a cornered family, nay, a man comes through the pangs of guilt and fear to survive?

Years ago, read an abridged version of Crime and Punishment by Dostoyevsky, which had crime, morality and redemption as central themes. The two Drishyams have packaged it colourfully to cater to the modern audience, though I have to say that redemption is a bit of a rare commodity in the movie as everyone seems to be yearning for it.

I did feel that GeorgeKutty was more ruthless and even calculative here. His movie-in-a-movie meta-touch was interesting, though Vellithirai had it better. There were a lot of emotional connects in D1 which helped people to identify themselves with both the pro/antagonists; but D2 is all about a super-intelligent man who would go to any lengths to protect his family including himself.

There were no red herrings. All actions were Newtonian. Cinematic licences were taken (court hearings, medical tests, convenient acquaintances etc.) Thankfully, this movie was not done by any of the Tamil/Telugu superstars, else the BGM would have been Anirudhesque!

I wanted to write a comparative note on how the ending of D1 was treated across the various languages. Lalettan, Kamal, Venkatesh, Ravichandran, Ajay Devgan etc. showed different colours to practically the same scenario. Such was the climax's power. However, D2, though adorned with a oh-so-clever denouement did not tug your heartstrings as the former did. Maybe it is because we are talking about the Punishment part, rather than the Crime here?

A word about the scripting in recent Malayalam movies. They are simply awesome. Sujatha (and many other great writers) used to say:

 ‘Write. Scrap. Rinse. Write. Scrap. Rinse. Write. Scrap. Rinse. By doing this, you might get something worthwhile in the end.' 

Mallu movies seem to have taken this to their heart. One can see the effort that has gone into chiselling the script to such an extent that it coruscates from any angle that you see!

D1 and D2 are the two perfect halves of the same apple. One can binge-watch them over five hours and not find a missing step or a jarring note. That is the true #crownjewel example of nuanced yet powerful writing. 

Watch it for sure. Then you can have your own opinion on which one is better. 🤩

PS1: Not sure whether #Papanasam2 will happen or not. After all, Kamal has done the Crime and Punishment routine in Virumandi! 😛

PS2: Will there be a #Drishyam3? There is enough of an opening left in the movie. Only Jeetu knows though! But I would say, stop it here when the going is good.

#SriGINthoughts

Parasite Pandemic

 #Parasite #ஒட்டுண்ணி #English_and_Tamil

(mild spoilers ahead)

Got to watch Parasite yesterday (22-02-2020). After having watched a zillion remakes of Korean movies in Tamil, it was decided that we shall subject ourselves to the original this time. Brilliant decision, I should say.

After finishing the movie with great subtitle help, one was left with a heavy heart – although with a ray of hope.

A struggling family replete in the underbelly of Korea (South, I mean!), finds its way through skulduggery into the mansion of a super-rich family, masquerading as an English Teacher (Son), Art Therapist/Teacher (Daughter), Mercedes Driver (Dad) and Housekeeper (Mother). But when the previous housekeeper returns during a weekend, their lives go for a complete toss. What happens thereafter leads to a riveting climax that leaves us with all the familiar questions about class-divide and more!

The story is straightforward; the acting is quite subdued; hardly a note of jarring music. But what stole the show was the fantastic treatment of the story through an exotic weaving of a screenplay filled with subtle layering and subtexts.

Some samples that are still with me are…

The below-poverty-level subsistence of the family being shown through their residence which is neither above nor below the street-level; yet scrounging for free wifi #dungeonlife

The various ugly fights that the residents of the tenement have in between them taking out their frustrations on their fellow low-classes

The subtle humour of the have-nots – ‘My daughter should get a degree in Forgery from Oxford!?’ (note that the ‘haves’ only crack condescending jokes!) #PoorHumour

The matter-of-fact reference to the fried-chicken joints & the Taiwanese Cake fad that is/was so prevalent in Korea (after the 2008 Great Financial Crisis) where the hero’s dad probably lost his shirt! #EconomyStupid

The subtle and not-so-subtle ways that the workers/servants are put in place – ‘You are being paid for this, aren’t you?’ with the unsaid portion of ‘So, better work for it!’ #NegativeDignity

People have been discriminated through seeing/hearing/feeling/tasting their poverty. But for the first time, the sense of smell has been used overpoweringly to raise the stench of persisting the divide! #MoneyCanIronAllWrinkles

I always say that making movies is a seriously serious business. It has the infinite capacity to make the world to look into the mirror and see its ugly side. Director #Bong_Joon_ho has managed to polish that mirror so very well, that the images that you see are crystal clear and disturbing.

PS: Aren’t there such movies in Tamil and Malayalam (I can’t look beyond these to go to Oscars!). Definitely. #Aadukalam was one such case. Even the movie #Maayaanadhi that I watched on Vasantham had incredible shoots of promise. So, it is possible and definitely doable. What is needed is for Shri Modi to talk to Mr Trump (who is reportedly cross about a Korean movie getting an Oscar – did someone tell him that it is a South Korean movie?) and make sure that the next Oscar is for an Indian movie

**** Tamil Below ****

சில நாட்களுக்கு முன் Parasite பற்றி சில வரிகள் எழுதியிருந்தேன். அப்போது படம் பார்க்கவில்லை. ஆஸ்கர் வேறு கிடைத்துவிடவே பார்க்க வேண்டிய கட்டாயம் வந்துவிட்டது. எப்போதும் கொரியப் படங்களின் காப்பியைத் தமிழில் பார்த்து போர் அடித்துவிட்டதால் இம்முறை நேராகவே பார்க்க வீட்டில் முடிவு எடுக்கப்பட்டது.

சப்டைட்டில் உதவியுடன் படம் பார்த்து முடித்தவுடன் கனத்த மனம்.

கொரியாவில் வறுமையில் வாழு(டு)ம் ஒரு குடும்பத்தைப் பற்றிய கதை இது. ஒரு பணக்காரப் பெண்ணுக்கு ஆங்கிலம் சொல்லிக் கொடுக்கச் செல்லும் ஒரு இளைஞன் சிலபல தகிடுதத்தம் செய்து தன் தங்கையை ஒரு ஓவிய ஆசிரியையாகவும், தந்தையை கார் ஓட்டுனராகவும், அம்மாவை வீட்டைப் பார்த்துக் கொள்ளும் பணிப்பெண்ணாகவும் அதே வீட்டில்

நுழைத்துவிடுகிறான். சிங்கிள் டீக்கே சிங்கி அடித்துக் கொண்டிருந்த குடும்பம் சிறிது சிறிதாக நிம்மதிப் பெருமூச்சு விட, விதி பழைய பணிப்பெண்ணின் ரூபத்தில் வந்து, ஒரு வார இறுதியில் அனைத்தையும் புரட்டிப் போட்டுவிடுகிறது. மீதி என்னாயிற்று என்பதைக் கண்டிப்பாக வெள்ளித்திரையில் காண்க.

கதையைக் காட்டிலும் (மின்சாரக் கண்ணாவுடன் தயவு செய்து தயவு செய்து ஒப்பிட வேண்டா!),

நடிப்பைக் காட்டிலும் (ஓவர் ஆக்டிங் என்றால் கிலோ என்ன விலை?),

கதை கூறப்பட்ட விதமும், திரைக்கதைக் களனும், உறுத்தாத குறியீடுகளும் இரண்டேகால் மணி நேரம் நம்மைக் கட்டிப் போட்டன.

கொரியாவில் இருக்கும் ஏழை-பணக்கார ஏற்ற தாழ்வுகளை மெல்லிழையாகப் படம் முழுக்க நெளியவிட்டு, கடைசியில் பளீரென அடிக்கும்போது வலிக்கிறது.

வறுமைக் கோட்டின் கீழ் இருக்கும் குடும்பத்தினர் இருக்கும் அந்த தெருவுக்குக் கீழான டஞ்சன் போன்ற வீடு…

அதற்குள் ஓசி வைஃபை கிடைக்க அவர்கள் படும் அவஸ்தை…

அம்மாவின் குண்டு எறிதலுக்கான (எதற்கும் உதவாத) வெள்ளிப் பதக்கம்…

போகிற போக்கில் கொரியாவில் 1998க்குப்பின் காளான்களாக முளைத்த வறுத்த கோழிக்கடை, கேக் கடை போன்றவற்றில் நாயகனின் தந்தை பணம் விட்டது பற்றிய கேஷுவலான வசனங்கள்…

எவ்வளவுதான் சுதந்திரம் கொடுத்தாலும் வேலைக்காரர்கள் கோட்டைத் தாண்டி வருவதைச் சிறிதும் விரும்பாத பணக்கார வர்க்கம்…

ஐம்புலன்களில் ஒருவரின் ஏற்ற தாழ்வை - நாம் #பார்க்கலாம்; அவர் பேசும் பேச்சைக் #கேட்டு எடை போடலாம்; கை குலுக்கும்போது #தொட்டு உணரலாம்; அவர்களின் உணவைச் #சுவைத்துக் குறைத்து மதிப்பிடலாம். ஆனால் அவர்களின் #வாசனையைக் (துர்நாற்றம் பழகிப் போச்சுங்க!) கொண்டே அவர்கள் தனிமைப்படுத்தப்படும் போது, பிரித்துக் காட்டப்படும் போது, அதன் தாக்கத்தை திரையைத் தாண்டி நம்மாலேயே உணர முடிவது அற்புதம்.

சினிமா என்பது ஒரு அதீதக் கலை. அது புண்ணாகிக் கிடக்கும் கலாச்சாரத்தை வெளிச்சமிட முடியும் ஒரு சீரிய ஆடி. இப்படத்தின் மூலம் இயக்குனர் #பாங்_ஜூன்_ஹோ அதை அழகாகப் பாதரசமிட்டு நம்மையே அதில் பார்க்கச் செய்துள்ளார். #ManInTheMirror

படத்தில் ஒரு வசனம் வரும்.

’அந்த அம்மா பணக்காரியாக இருந்தாலும், ரொம்ப நல்லவங்க!’

‘இல்லை! அவங்க பணக்காரி. அதனாலதான் நல்லவங்க! பணம் ஒரு இஸ்திரி பொட்டி மாதிரி! எல்லா கசங்கலையும் நேராக்கிடும்!’

ஒரு ஏழையின் பார்வையில் இருசாராரின் வாழ்வும் எப்படி மதிப்பீடு செய்யப்படுகிறது என்பதை இதற்கும் மேல் சொல்ல முடியாது!

பி.கு.: தமிழில்/மலையாளத்தில் இது போன்ற படங்கள் இல்லையா? கண்டிப்பாக இருக்கின்றன. #ஆடுகளம் என்னைப் பொறுத்தவரையில் கண்டிப்பாகத் தகுதி பெற்ற ஒன்று. இன்று வசந்தம் ஒளிவழியில் பார்த்த மலையாளப் படமான #மாயாநதி ’அட!’ என்று நிமிர்ந்து உட்கார வைத்தது. தொட்டுவிடும் தூரம் தான்! இதோ ட்ரம்ப் வந்துவிட்டார். மோடி அவரிடம் பேசி அடுத்த வருடம் இந்தியப் படம் ஒன்றுக்கு ஆஸ்கார் வாங்கிக் கொடுப்பார் என நம்பிக் கொண்டு…

Darbar - Draw Bore!

Seven things that felled me after almost freezing in the igloo of The Cathay while watching #Darbar:

1. Rajini says that he would leave the beard as it is until he cleans up the baddies. But after many months of countering and encountering, the beard stays only about 1 cm long. #harmoneproblems

2. Staying on the pilose matter, where did they get that wig for Rajini? Despite many situations where he had to literally pull his hair, it stayed on. Either the glue is excellent or clever CGI 🤔#SuperWig

3. Rajini clears the physical and intelligence tests in less than four days. While he does some weightlifting and such under the watchful eyes of Nayan, couldn’t see him prepare for any intellectual challenges. Taking a leaf out of this, Hardik Pandya should have asked Natasa’s help on this to pass the yo-yo test #Unfit

4. Somewhere along the line, ARM must have realised that this wouldn’t work. So to salvage what he can, indulges in jokes on Rajini’s age and mental stability etc., to show us that he is a fearless director! 😆#DarbarDarr

5. Almost all the top-secret police discussions happen either in the presence of civilians or over phone on speaker-mode. Welcome to the age of open governance. #LoudDemocracy

6. ARM (and his protégés as well, did you say?) and ‘copying’ go hand in hand. I was kinda pleasantly surprised by the treatment of the Nayan/Rajini get-to-know-each-other scene; only to be brought to ground when it was a poor lift from Dil Dhadakne Do Priyanka-Ranveer delightful scene. #SpotCopy

7. While marveling a German-made knife, Suniel Shetty wastes a perfect sofa. I felt the same - wasted - as we walked out of the theatre. #ShreddedSupport

Dear Superstar:

Yes, you looked dashing for a septuagenarian. Yes, you still have a bit of style left.
But, enough!
Please ishtaaap this charade. 🙏

Petta: Rajinism Unplugged

(Mild Spoilers ahead)

For a schizophrenic view of this movie in Tamil - read this.

8 reasons why Petta was less powerful than what it could have been...

1. How much have we missed 'that' Rajini who showed what 'Maaasss' can be and what 'tough' means? #NostalgiaPower

2. How is it possible that we are still able to lap up mashed up 'Main Hoon Na', 'Aegan', 'Baadsha' & even 'Lingaa' (in certain places) as a new dish? #RehashPower

3. How is it that a downright ruffian/rowdy/Robinhood/Misa_detainee from boondocks, gets access to the Prime Minister of India (well, his secretary at least!)? #InvisiblePower

4. How is it that despite a star-cast worthy of three movies still rides on one man - Rajini? Vijay Sethupathy is an exception 😉 #ThalaivaPower

5. How is it that the innocuous nunchaku can take such a lethal avatar? That interval action block was a scream! (And is it true that Rajini taught Kung Fu to Bruce Lee?😂)  #MartialPower

6. By showing Uttar Pradesh as a lawless land, is Karthik Subbaraj (and Rajini) sending a not-so-subtle message to the Yogi and BJP? #BrutePower

7. How is it that the mandatory Karthik Subbaraj twist-of-twist at the end is still fresh? #FreshPower

8. Is the message of the movie: "Don't leave accounts unsettled." OR "Keep Calm. Rajini will save you."? #ConfusedPower

Usually tributes are paid to people who are retiring. Here KS seems to have done it to Rajini even when he is active. A clear case of wonder-struck #FanBoy dedication. So much so, even the make-up artist is credited as 'Bhanu (for Rajini Sir)'!!

Rajini carries the movie oh so, nonchalantly. For his millions of fans, this will be the nostalgia trip that they had missed in the last few offerings. Therefore it will be a hit.

Vijay Sethupathy manages to eke out some screen space in the melee. Rest follow the pattern of recent Rajini movies - just caricatures.

KS has a few good touches (having the intro fight in the chapel/prayer hall with the candelabra & blowing off the candles; வீழ்வேனென்று நினைத்தாயோ as opening dialogue of Rajini; the clear professional skill & expertise being displayed by the Pranic healer, the warden and even the rowdies; subtle touches of cow-slaughter; Valentine's day atrocities, the neat chess game in the end...) 

But he has failed in the character mapping - even Rajini's Petta Velan/Kaali fails to evoke sympathy/antipathy, let alone others.

Music - Ullaala worked for me. Otherwise, it was a noisy 'Marana Maas' all the way through!

Surelly, 'Kolai Gaandu' (கொலை காண்டு) & 'Sweet Saapida Porom' (ஸ்வீட் சாப்பிடப் போறோம்) will become the next set of punch dialogues among the aficionados. 👍

So there it goes. One-and-a-half time watch. (One time in theatre & when it happens on any of the pay-tv channels, fast forward the slow portions!)

Definitely, you do not have to call PETA complaining that PETTA is torturing poor animals i.e. human beings!

No change to my Top-5 Rajini movies.

#PettaParaak #RajinismUnplugged

PS1: Children went for #Viswasam & the #ThalaFan of our household is all teary-eyed - So much of granny/mother/father/daughter sentiment I believe. Even the villain gets sentimental... #meh 😳
Well, that is for another day!

PS2: You think that I was writing the review? Nah, I was playing #CandyCrush! :))