Movie Review: Gour Hari Dastaan - An Ode to a Freedom Fighter

This week saw the release of Ananth Mahadevan directed movie 'Gour Hari Dastaan' starring Vinay Pathak, Ranveer Shoerey and Konkona Sen Sharma. The movie is based on the real life story of Gandhian Gour Hari Das who for 30 odd years fought against the corrupt and inefficient system of India to be recognized as a freedom fighter.

The movie moves back and forth between mid 70's, mid 2000's and 1946 when he fought for India's Freedom as a member of Vanar Sena and also imprisoned by Britishers for 90 days. The story is complex but Mahadevan and co-writer CP Surendran does a brilliant job conveying it in a simple manner to the audience.

Although there are few glitches but that can be put aside when you see the effort and performances put in by each member of cast and crew. Rare are such occasions in the history of Hindi cinema where a filmmaker goes against commerce and BO results to tell a beautiful simple story.

Vinay Pathak as Gour Hari Das puts in a subtle performance that touches your heart. He has come a long way from his Bheja Fry and Chalo Dilli days. Konkona Sen Sharma puts up a brilliant act portraying the role of Das' supporting wife. Ranveer Shoeroy as a 40 plus old journalist who comes across Das's story and tries to help him, has also put in a wonderful performance.

There are few moments in the film that will make you question the bureaucracy. You will definitely feel for Das's struggle to get that alluding Freedom Fighter Certificate and when he does you want to stand up and rejoice for him.

A huge salute to Ananth Mahadevan who has come up with another heart wrenching masterpiece after Mee Sindhutai Sapkal that won four National Awards.

On the whole the movie might not cater to the masses but as content driven movies are doing well at the BO, this movie will definitely find a place in the viewers heart.

My Verdict: ****

What Does Independence Mean To Me?

Today the nation is celebrating 69 years of Independence from 150 years of British slavery. However how independent are we? Do we really feel independent in our country? What does Independence mean to everyone? This is one question I feel we should all think out loud.

For me independence means;
1) Freedom to live the way I want
2) Freedom to love / marry anyone I want
3) Freedom from corruption
4) Freedom from sexual discrimination
5) Freedom from social mindsets
6) Freedom to express
7) Freedom to make my own decisions
8) Freedom from dirt and garbage filled cities
9) Freedom from potholes
10) Freedom from racism
11) Freedom to follow any religion of my choice
12) Freedom from pollution
13) Freedom from poverty
14) Freedom to eat what I want, including beef
15) Freedom to surf any website
16) Freedom to watch any movie without the interference of censor boards / religious units
The list is endless...

So are we still independent enough to celebrate our FREEDOM today - 69 years later?

Got a 4G phone? Go for Airtel 4G!

Are you tired of lousy 2G or 3G connection? Then your dream to get uninterrupted high speed mobile broadband connection has become a reality. What? Yes and this has been made possible by the communications giant Airtel. Airtel has introduced their new 4G connection to almost 296 towns in the country. Hurrah! Yup that's what I said jumping into the air after reading the news. Move aside lousy connections and welcome high speed mobile broadband to your life! Now you can stream and upload HD videos, download music, movies and images within few minutes.

Apart from the above I have few more benefits to list;

1. Airtel offers six months of unlimited download and music streaming on Wynk Music along with free five movies per month for six months with every 4G SIM Swap on the Eros Now channel of Wynk Movies
2. Airtel has introduced a new range of Infinity Plans starting at Rs.999/- with unlimited mobile voice calls, data benefits and uninterrupted access to Wynk Movies & Music
3. If you have a 4G handset then you can get a free SIM delivered to your doorstep within 4 hours like me after tweeting #GETAIRTEL4G. How? Once you tweet, you will get a reply from @AirtelIndia handle directing you to a link where you need to enter your details for SIM delivery.

Now if you are wondering if Airtel will charge you a ‘bomb’ for their service then you will be happily surprised to know that the communications giant is offering the service at 3G data prices starting from Rs.25/-. 

Got a 4G phone? Want Airtel4G? Then what are you waiting for? Log onto your system and tweet #GetAirtel4G for a free SIM home delivery now!

Shy-way: Love it or Leave it: Bajrangi Bhaijaan - Movie Review

Shy-way: Love it or Leave it: Bajrangi Bhaijaan - Movie Review: It has been a long time that I wrote any movie reviews. However, this week's release   Bajrangi Bhaijaan   has dragged me out of m...

Bajrangi Bhaijaan - Movie Review

It has been a long time that I wrote any movie reviews. However, this week's release Bajrangi Bhaijaan has dragged me out of my hibernation to write a review.

First things first, Bajrangi Bhaijaan is not an usual Salman Khan movie. No cable hanging fights, no stripping, no popular one-liners, no Munni type item songs and no villains that we always associate his movies with. I think after Tere Naam this is one movie where Salman has actually experimented with a subject and he comes out a winner, winning not only his loyal fan's hearts but also the so called nasty reviewers.

The film starts off with a Pakistani village household cheering for Pakistan while watching its nail biting crucial cricket match with India on television. Inspired by the ace Pakistani cricketer Shahid Afridi, a to be mother from the household names her daughter as Shahida (Harshaali Malhotra). The girl despite being beautiful and expressive does not speak a word, which worries her parents day after day. On the advice of an elderly person in the family, Shahida's mother decides to take Shahida to a wish-fulfilling holy dargah in Delhi, India. On their way back to Pakistan, their train halts due to a technical failure. That's when the innocent and animal loving Shahida sees a helpless lamb fallen in a pit. She gets down from the train and just when she rescues the lamb, the train starts moving, thus leaving her behind in an unknown country all alone. She quickly boards the next immediate train and reaches Delhi. It is here when she meets the extremely God fearing and a devout Hanuman bhakt Pavan Kumar Chaturvedi aka Bajrangi (Salman Khan). With the intention of helping the little girl who cannot talk, Bajrangi takes her home, only to be ridiculed by his family members. The only person who stands by him is his to-be-wife Rasika (Kareena Kapoor). Pavan and Rasika try their level best to 'decode' the identity of the child by dropping names of almost all the Indian states, but in vain. Havoc strikes their family household when they discover that Munni (aka Shahida) not only eats meat, but is also a Muslim and above all… a Pakistani! That's when Pavan decides to brave all the odds (visa issues, passport problems etc). Despite all the odds, when Bajrangi manages to cross the Indo-Pak border, but gets caught by the Pakistan police, who label him off as an Indian spy. That's when Bajrangi encounters a freelance news reporter Chaand Nawab (Nawazuddin Siddiqui), who shoots the whole Pavan-Munni 'adventures' on his handycam, hoping this will be his big ticket to name and fame as a journalist. However, as he discovers their Pavan's good intentions, he too joins the duo in their journey and helps them out. Does Chaand Nawab manage to 'encash' on the Pavan-Munni story in order to be taken seriously as a journalist, does Pavan succeed in uniting Munni with her parents, does the ever-truthful Pavan manage to prove his innocence of him not being a spy before the Pakistani police and how does the simpleton Bajrangi gets transformed into Bajrangi Bhaijaan is what forms the rest of the story. 

Actingwise this is Salman Khan’s best performance till date. Newcomer Harshali Malhotra is a revelation. With no dialogues to mouth, she does a wonderful job with expressions. Kareena Kapoor in a cameo is okay. Nawazuddin Siddique as always is endearing.

Kabir Khan after his previous movies viz. Kabul Express, New York and Ek Tha Tiger again proves his metal. The story by V. Vijayendra Prasad and dialogues by Kausar Munir are perfect and the movie is set to motion right at the beginning with no space for boredom setting in. The visuals of POK is wonderfully captured. The music is average.

Overall it’s worth every penny you spend. Go for it!

My Verdict: *****

International Women's Day - Men's Take

On the advent of ‪‎International Women‬'s Day I along with my friends Chaya Goswami and Pranay Parekh went asking few men if they knew what International ‪Women's Day‬ was all about... watch to find out  quite hilarious...

Shy-way: Love it or Leave it: Big Eyes - Amy Adams & Christoph Waltz Rock!

Shy-way: Love it or Leave it: Big Eyes - Amy Adams & Christoph Waltz Rock!: The awards season are here and so are my reviews of the latest movies that are receiving some wonderful accolades at these functions. So...

Big Eyes - Amy Adams & Christoph Waltz Rock!

The awards season are here and so are my reviews of the latest movies that are receiving some wonderful accolades at these functions. So today I am going to start the series with Tim Burton produced and directed real life story of Margaret Keane - Big Eyes. The movie stars Amy Adams and Christoph Waltz who have been winning one award after the other.

The story tells the turbulent relationship between Walter Keane (Waltz) and Margaret Keane (Adams). Margaret is a good artist who paints children with big eyes. Her work go majorly unnoticed in the early 1950's and soon she falls in love and marries Walter Keane a fellow artist who promises to give her and her daughter Jane (Delaney Raye) security and protection from her ex-husband.

Walter soon starts showcasing her and his creations at every gallery and influential people unless a tiff in a bar makes him a national figure and mistakes Margaret's paintings to be his. Soon people start noticing his work (originally made by his wife) and he becomes a national celebrity and the big eyes kids paintings become a sensation. Using his marketing savvy, he sells the prints cheaply in hardware stores and gas stations across the United States while Margaret is relegated to the background.

Slowly the tensions between the couple heighten when an intoxicated and infuriated Walter tries to set fire Margaret and Jane who escape to Hawaii. Margaret lodges a complaint against Walter claiming the ownership of the paintings ending up in an ugly court fight.

Performances by Amy Adams and Christoph Waltz is outstanding. Both the actors fit the role to the 'T' and bring to life the celebrity couple onscreen. The story, screenplay and dialogues are quite gripping. The period setup looks authentic. Tim Burton has done justice to the subject and comes up triumphant.

On the whole its a wonderful movie and therefore every accolade coming its way is well deserved.

My Verdict: ****
Poor - *, Average - **, Good - ***, Very Good - ****, Excellent - *****

Shy-way: Love it or Leave it: Penguins of Madagascar: Cuteness Personified!

Shy-way: Love it or Leave it: Penguins of Madagascar: Cuteness Personified!: This week I got to watch Penguins of Madagascar which is a spin-off of the Madagascar film series, and takes place right after the eve...

Penguins of Madagascar: Cuteness Personified!

This week I got to watch Penguins of Madagascar which is a spin-off of the Madagascar film series, and takes place right after the events of Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted. Produced by Dreamworks and directed by Eric Darnell and Simon J. Smith, this is a cute movie and will definitely entertain the kids this holiday season.
In Antarctica, three young penguins, Skipper (Tom McGrath), Kowalski (Chris Miller), and Rico (Conrad Vernon), rescue an egg from hungry leopard seals and set themselves adrift on an iceberg. From the egg hatches Private (Christopher Knights) and the four become a team. A decade later, directly after the events of Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted, the Penguins depart from the circus and celebrate Private's birthday by breaking into Fort Knox so that Private can buy Cheesy Dibbles, a discontinued product, from their break room vending machine. However, Private begins to feel unimportant to the team. While Skipper is the leader and strategist, Kowalski is the brains, and Rico the arsenal specialist, Private is continually referred to as just being a cute face and doesn't have any remarkable skills.

The Penguins are suddenly kidnapped in the vending machine and flown to a submarine base in Venice. There, the Penguins meet Dave (John Malkovich), a villainous octopus who disguises himself under the human alias of Dr. Octavius Brine. Dave used to be adored in the Central Park Zoo, until the penguins arrived and unknowingly stole his shine. The octopus was then shipped to other zoos but his fame was stolen each time by a penguin shine. Embittered, Dave now wants revenge on the penguins. Does Dave succeed in his plan to take revenge on the penguins or does the four friend foil his plans is something that needs to be seen on the screen.

The movie starts slowly but thirty minutes through the story it gathers speed and soon you are engrossed in the adventures of the four friends on the mission to save the entire penguin population in the world. Direction by Darnell and Smith is wonderful and the screenplay is quite crisp and engrossing. The movie on the whole will appeal to the children and the message given in the movie about not judging others based on their appearance will definetly strike a chord with the audience.

Overall a nice movie for the holidays!

My Verdict: ****
Poor - *, Average - **, Good - ***, Very Good - ****, Excellent - ***** 

Shy-way: Love it or Leave it: The Interview - Too Much Hype, Delivers Nothing!

Shy-way: Love it or Leave it: The Interview - Too Much Hype, Delivers Nothing!: The Interview starring Seth Rogan and James Franco is the subject of my review this week. Directed by Seth Rogan and Evan Goldberg aft...

The Interview - Too Much Hype, Delivers Nothing!

The Interview starring Seth Rogan and James Franco is the subject of my review this week. Directed by Seth Rogan and Evan Goldberg after the disappointing 'This Is  The End" attracted a lot of hype and negative publicity when in June 2014 the North Korean government threatened of "merciless" action against the USA if the movie was released. The movie also got a lot of attention when a terrorist body the Guardians of Peace threatened terrorist attacks against every cinemas that played The Interview forcing the makers to release the movie online instead of theaters. However I felt the hype and all the negative publicity was for nothing after watching this mindless and souless comedy.
Dave Skylark (James Franco) and his producer Aaron Rapoport (Seth Rogen) run the popular celebrity tabloid TV show "Skylark Tonight." When they discover that North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un (Randall Park) is a fan of the show, they land an interview with him in an attempt to legitimize themselves as journalists. As Dave and Aaron prepare to travel to Pyongyang, their plans change when the CIA recruits them, perhaps the two least-qualified men imaginable, to assassinate Kim Jong-un.

The story and screenplay by Seth Rogan, Dan Sterling and Evan Goldberg travel on a thin plot which does not make any sense. The dialogues are crassy and the performances are bad. James Franco throughout the movie has a constipated look and expression, and tries hard not to irritate the audience. Seth Rogen tries hard to act but with no success. A bunch of Chinese looking actors do not add much value to the plot. Randall Park seems to impress a little with his dictator act.

On the whole the entire movie is just a waste of time.

My Verdict: *
Poor - *, Average - **, Good - ***, Very Good - ****, Excellent - ***** 

Shy-way: Love it or Leave it: PK Is Not A 'Bhaste' Of Time! Watch It :)

Shy-way: Love it or Leave it: PK Is Not A 'Bhaste' Of Time! Watch It :):   Rajkumar Hirani films are always celebrated equally by masses and classes as the movies come with a heart and connects with the audien...

PK Is Not A 'Bhaste' Of Time! Watch It :)

 Rajkumar Hirani films are always celebrated equally by masses and classes as the movies come with a heart and connects with the audience's hearts. This week the long in the making and the most anticipated movie of the year, with a quirky name and most popular star of the generation - PK released. Like all Raju Hirani movies PK also tackles an issue and this time it is God & Godmen - Rings a Bell? Yes but No! Although the plot has a striking resemblance to Akshay Kumar - Paresh Rawal starrer Oh My God! but it is different.

PK (Aamir Khan) is an alien who comes to Earth to study its beings. His first encounter with humans force him to stay on Earth forever until he finds the remote that gets stolen and is the only key for him to return back to his world.

In the process of his journey in getting his remote back he asks several questions and affects several people's lives, and one among them happens to be Jaggu aka Jagat Janani (Anushka Sharma) and another Bhairon Singh (Sanjay Dutt). The movie is a beautiful piece of art and as I said earlier has its heart in the right place. It questions our believes in God and Godmen and makes us laugh at our own tomfoolery that we have been practicing and following for generations.

Aamir Khan is wonderful as PK and I could not see any other actor doing it better than what Aamir has done. Anushka as usual is confident and powerful in her role as Jagat Janani. Sushant Singh Rajput in an extended cameo has done a wonderful job. Supporting cast including Saurabh Shukla and Boman Irani has done a good job however I felt Boman was quite under utilized compared to his roles in Hirani's previous movies.

Story, Screenplay and Dialogues by Raju Hirani - Abhijat Joshi combination is quite powerful. The dialogues are hilarious, the scenes are funny and during the entire run time you never feel bored or distracted. However I felt that few scenes were rushed through like the Sushant-Anushka love track and Aamir's sudden romantic feelings for Anushka which although necessary for the plot was like a hurried and sudden thing. Rest I did not find much flaws in the movie.

The songs by Shantanu Moitra, Ankit Tiwari and Ajay-Atul are simple and hummable like all previous Raju Hirani movies. In songs 'Love is a Bhaste of Time', 'Char Kadam', 'Nanga Punga Dost' and 'Tharki Chokro' stand out. Editing by Raju Hirani is quite crisp and the cinematography by C.K. Muralidharan is quite enigmatic especially the Brugges part which makes you feel as if you are being treated to a fairytale setting.

Overall the movie is quite entertaining and everyone should definitely watch it at least once and I guarantee you that you will not regret the decision.

My Verdict: ****
Poor - *, Average - **, Good - ***, Very Good - ****, Excellent - *****

Gone Girl: A Nice Thriller!

 After a long time I saw a wonderful thriller - Gone Girl, directed by David Fincher starring Ben Affleck & Rosalind Pike. The hype around the movie before it's release about the nude scenes and love making scenes does not justify when you see the entire movie as the movie so engrossing these scenes seem to be a necessary part to build up the plot.

Based on the novel written by Gillian Flynn of the same name, explores the relationship between Nick Dunne (Ben Affleck) and his wife Amy (Rosalind Pike) after she goes missing on the day of their fifth anniversary. All fingers point towards Nick after cops discover a half burnt diary written by Amy. Flashbacks reveal the tumultous relationship shared by the couple, Nick's adulturous affair with his student and Amy's psychotic side revealed through her past two relationships before meeting Nick. Has Amy really run away or was she murdered by Nick is the mystery that one has to see to discover.

Performance wise both Ben and Rosalind are top notch. Few scenes gives rise to goosebumps and the entire narrative is quite gripping leaving no room for any guess work until the interval after which the real story from Amy's side starts.

Director David Fincher has done a wonderful job and the movie has definitely done justice to the novel which one of the rarest things ever. The screenplay by Gillian Flynn is good and so is the editing and other technical departments of the movie.

Overall, I would suggest everyone to watch this interesting thriller of a movie at least once.

My Verdict: ****
Poor - *, Average - **, Good - ***, Very Good - ****, Excellent - *****

Action Jackson: Old Wine In New Bottle!

This week we have one more big budget no-brainer - Action Jackson (don't know when will people stop making such movies) directed by Prabhudheva starring Ajay Devgan in one of his most disappointing avtars along with Sonakshi Sinha, Yami Gautam and Manasvi Mamgai.

The movie tells the story (if it has one) of Vishy (Ajay Devgan) who is a happy go lucky tapori who is stalked by Khushi (Sonakshi) as he proves to be lucky for her and a bunch of gangmen. Towards the interval the mystery of the stalking gangmen is revealed when AJ (Ajay Devgan) a gangster who is also a look alike of Vishy is introduced.

AJ tells Vishy and his friend (Kunaal Roy Kapur) that the gangmen have mistaken Vishy to be him and therefore following him to kill him. On being asked the reason, AJ reveals that mafia kingpin Xavier (Anand Raj) wants him, his wife (Yami Gautam) and their new born baby dead after he refused to get married to his obsessive sister Marina (Manasvi Mamgai). AJ tells Vishy he has a plan to get rid of Xavier and Marina for which he needs his help. Then what happens is the movie all about.

Ajay Devgan has been wasted in a double role. Sonakshi has nothing new to offer. Yami Gautam is pleasant to the eyes and newcomer Manasvi seriously needs some lessons in acting. There is nothing new in the story and the screenplay dwells on a paperthin plot. The dialogues are average and sounds repeatitive after watching Wanted, Rowdy Rathore, R...Rajkumar etc which are all Prabhudheva's past attempts in movie making.

The songs by Himesh Reshammiya are average and does not help take the story ahead. Cinematography is good. Editing could have been crisper. On the whole the movie might appeal to die-hard Ajay Devgan and Prabhudheva fans, otherwise it is a pure dampner.

My Verdict: *
Poor - *, Average - **, Good - ***, Very Good - ****, Excellent - *****

Magic In The Moonlight - Leaves You With No Magic!

Woody Allen movies have always been celebrated for their stories and characters that are quirky and out of this world. Coming after last year's celebrated 'Blue Jasmine' starring Cate Blanchette, I must say, Magic In The Moonlight do not cast any magic on its viewers. I am not saying it is a bad movie however it is not up to the standards of a Woody Allen movie we always expect. Maybe we can say it is not one of his best.

Magic In The Moonlight tells the story of a Chinese conjuror Wei Ling Soo who is the most celebrated magician of his age however far from his stage persona in actual life his true identity is of Stanley Crawford (Colin Firth), a grouchy and arrogant Englishman with a sky-high opinion of himself and an aversion to phony spiritualists' claims.

One day his childhood friend and fellow magician Howard Burkan (Simon McBurney), comes to him with the proposal of pulling the mask off a spiritualist who claims to have contact with the deceased through soul connection. Initially uninterested, Stanley goes on the mission to the Côte d'Azur mansion of the Catledge family after being persuaded by Howard.

In the mansion lives Grace (Jacki Weaver) lives with her son Brice (Hamish Linklater) and daughter Caroline (Erica Leerhsen).  Grace who wants to make connection with her dead husband's soul to get answers to some of her unanswered questions invites Sophie Baker (Emma Stone) a young clairvoyant  to the mansion. Sophie arrives with her mother (Marcia Gay Harden) and soon gets engaged to Brice who is besotted with the young and beautiful clairvoyant. In comes Stanley to uncover Sophie and presents himself as a businessman named Stanley Taplinger. Soon Stanley's belief in spiritualism is tested and what follows is a series of events that are magical in every sense of the word and send the characters reeling. 

The story is not great shakes but it is still a one time watch. Allen has extracted some wonderful performances from Emma and the scenes where she gets into a trance while scanning information about a person is quite brilliantly and comically executed. Colin Firth in comparison is average and his character seems to lack wit and makes him look confused on the screen. Like Allen even Firth had a bad day with this movie.

The cinematography is top notch like any Allen movie and the locales of France has been captured in a picture postcard way. The background music is quite soothing and editing is also crisp. The mastery of Allen can be seen in every frame alas I could say the same with the story. 

Overall its a one time watch however hardcore Allen fans will be slightly disappointed.

My Verdict: **
Poor - *, Average - **, Good - ***, Very Good - ****, Excellent - *****

 

Still Alice - A Heartwarming Movie Experience!

I had the opportunity to see one of the finest movies this year - Still Alice starring the multi-talented Julianne Moore, Alec Baldwin and Kristen Stewart. Co-directed by Richard Glatzer and Wash Westmoreland, Still Alice is a movie based on Lisa Genova's 2007 bestselling novel of the same name.

Dr. Alice Howland (Julianne Moore) is a linguistic teacher in Columbia University who is detected of early onset Alzheimer's disease. Alec Baldwin plays the role of her husband John Howland while Kristen Stewart, Kate Bosworth, and Hunter Parrish play her children Lydia, Anna, and Tom.

The movie showcases how a brilliant person like Alice slowly gets sucked into the whirlpool of the disease and how her family patiently copes with her. It is a heartwrenching story that showcases Alice's struggles to manage her life while dealing with the illness and her job, marriage and children.

Alzheimer's disease is a very bad condition for any human being as slowly and steadily the memories are erased out of your mind and when you see a family member or a dear one suffering with it, it is quite heartbreaking. What one needs is to give that love, care and most importantly acknowledging their identity which they would have lost in their mind but not to the world.

Directors Richard and Wash does a fantastic job by sticking to the original storyline and showcasing Alice's condition in a very humane way. Julianne Moore has given one of the finest performances of her career which will definitely put her as the top contender for this year's upcoming awards functions.

Moore is ably supported by Alec Baldwin, Kristen Stewart, Kate Bosworth and Hunter Parrish. Although the pace of the movie is quite slow, you will not find it boring at any point of time. It is a movie one should definitely watch to understand that a person might lose his memories but he or she still remains the same and continue to be the same as they were before losing out to the deadly Alzheimer's, until the end.

A must watch!

My Verdict: ****
Poor - *, Average - **, Good - ***, Very Good - ****, Excellent - *****

Annie - A Musical Treat For Children!

The holiday seasons will kick start with Will Gluck directed musical Annie starring Jamie Foxx and Quvenzhane Wallis in the title role. Based on a 1924 comic strip Little Orphan Annie by Harold Gray, this is the third film adaptation following 1982 film starring Aileen Marie Quinn and Albert Finney and the 1999 direct-to-television movie starring Alicia Morton and Victor Garber.

The movie tells the story of a 10 year old orphan girl Annie (Wallis) who stays in a foster home run by Colleen Hannigan (Cameron Diaz) with few other orphans. Annie visits a restaurant every Friday with the hope of reuniting with her real parents who left a note for her while they abandoned her in front of the restaurant.

Colleen who used to be a performer is now living a miserable life and has turned bitter towards the girls who are in her care and make their life hell. Will Stacks (Jamie Foxx), a cell phone mogul  "Stacks Mobile" is running for mayor. He is supported by his adviser Guy (Bobby Cannavale), his assistant Grace (Rose Byrne), and bodyguard Nash (Adewale Akinnouye-Agbaje). Will is a germaphobe and not very popular with voters compared to the current favorite Harold Gray (Peter Van Wagner). Will goes to feed the homeless and tries to eat the mashed potatoes to show how much he cares, only for him to spit it out in the face of a homeless man.

Annie is unable to learn anything about her parents since she's not in the system. She walks home depressed and sees two boys annoying a dog. Annie runs, yelling at them to stop and is about to be hit by a vehicle when Will saves her. A passerby records the event on mobile and soon the video goes viral improving Will's chances. On the advice of Guy he brings Annie home for a day to have lunch with her while the media covers the event.

Soon Annie does the impossible for Will as more and more people start favoring him and soon he signs papers and adopts her for the time being. So what happens to Will and Annie? Does he exploit her for his ambition to become a Mayor or change as a human being? Would Annie find her parents and lead a normal life? These questions get answered as you watch the movie.

The movie is quite entertaining and you will definitely feel attached to Annie and Will. Wallis displays a heartfelt performance and so does Foxx. The supporting cast also provide ample support. Director Will Gluck does a wonderful job of keeping the soul of the original story intact while he puts his own twist. The songs are again a plus point apart from the other technicalities of the movie.

On the whole, go for the movie with your kids and they will definitely thank you!

My Verdict: ****
Poor - *, Average - **, Good - ***, Very Good - ****, Excellent - *****

Serena - Watch it for Jennifer Lawrence!

'Serena' directed by Susanna Bier was one of the most anticipated movies of the year starring the dream couple Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence. With every movie Jennifer at an young age is heading the Meryl Streep way. Each and every performance is praiseworthy and as an actor she has matured a lot. It's a sheer pleasure watch her enact one character after another in every movie starring her. Similarly, Serena which is a movie adaptation of Ron Rash's novel of the same name is worth watching only for Jennifer and then Bradley. Their chemistry is scorching and they compliment each other on screen.
The movie is set in 1929 during the depression era - North Carolina. George Pemberton (Cooper) is a timber merchant who is struggling to maintain the future of his timber empire. Serena (Lawrence) is married to George and she has a troubling past where her entire family perished in an accidental fire leaving her an orphan. Trouble starts in their marriage when Serena undergoes a miscarriage and is informed by the doctor that she will never be able to get pregnant. Selena suddenly becomes more possessive of George and when his secret liking towards his son born out of wedlock to a servant woman Rachel (Ana Ularu) is revealed to her she is bent on killing the child and Rachel.

The story is sluggish and falls flat however Lawrence takes the movie to another heights with her performance. This is one of the bestest performances by her and might even help her get noticed in the upcoming awards seasons. Bradley Cooper is as usual and remains true to the character. The performances by rest of the supporting actors are also good. 

The cinematography and editing is good however the screenplay could have been better. Direction by Bier is average and leaves a lot to be desired.

On the whole watch Serena only for Jennifer. It's a fiesta for Jennifer's fans.

My Verdict: **
Poor - *, Average - **, Good - ***, Very Good - ****, Excellent - *****