Astronauts Wife - Movie Review

ASTRONAUTS WIFE - MOVIE REVIEW

HE SAID:

Am I the only one seeing this or what? Does anyone else find that the weirdest dude in Hollywood is Johnny Depp? The moment you find out that he is in a film, you can immediately expect things to get strange. Charlize Theron is increasingly becoming the female Johnny Depp. So what do you get when you put them both together? One weird movie.

While the story of an astronaut picking up an alien life form in space, is not new, this movie handles this theme very well with good special effects thrown in. There are quite a few sequences that run as if the cameraman was on an acid trip.

Definitely worth watching once.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I give this movie a 6.

SHE SAID:

While I like Johnny Depp very much, I do not like the weirdness of his roles. That goes for this movie too. Charlize Theron was ok.

Overall, a very forgettable movie.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I give this movie a 3.

Cheaper by the Dozen - Movie Review

CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN - MOVIE REVIEW

HE SAID:

A romp in the park! Funny while tackling a serious issue affecting all of us. It is about work-life balance, in a family where both the parents are working. Ultimately it is about a question of what is important, money or family. How much money is enough?

Steve Martin is one of my favourites. He can play just about any part and make it look effortless. This movie is a walk in the park for him. Numerous directors have used his comedy to display weighty issues.

Bonnie Hunt is excellent. She has always been under rated. She is a very good actress who can prove herself given half the chance. The kids are numerous and quite good.

A very interesting sidebar. The main actor who plays Superman in the TV series Smallville - Tom Welling, is the eldest son of the Bakers in this movie. To make a ever bigger coincidence, on of the brothers, who are the heros in the hit TV series Supernatural - Jared Padalecki, is the kid in school, giving Superman a hard time. Talk about coincidences.

Definitely worth a look. A light breezy look at a big emotional issue.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I give this movie a 7.

SHE SAID:

A good family movie. Other than that I am not too sure that they are dealing with any issue in the movie. Most of the time it is a big confused mess of kids running in and out of frames.

Steve Martin has class. This is as clear as daylight.

A good movie to watch if you had no other choice.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I give this movie a 5.

Bruce Almighty - Movie Review

BRUCE ALMIGHTY - MOVIE REVIEW

HE SAID:

What an absolutely delightful movie with a powerful message. Even God himself cannot mess with man's free will. Even He cannot make somebody fall in love.

Opens up a whole new can of worms. What is free will? Is there really such an animal? It really goes back to the existence of God.

Anyway, a highly entertaining movie with a very amusing what if. Jim Carrey has out done himself. Morgan Freeman is a very convincing God with a quirky sense of humour. Jennifer Anniston is vapid and not fully there in her role.

I would almost say that this is one for the collection.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I give this movie a 8.

SHE SAID:

A very entertaining movie that can be enjoyed by the entire family. This type of movie is getting to a rarity these days with movies targeting niche audiences.

I would say don't over think the movie but just go along for the ride. Jim Carrey makes the movie very funny and pretty much carries it on his shoulders.

Worth a watch.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I give this movie a 6.

Stitch the Movie - Movie Review

STITCH THE MOVIE - MOVIE REVIEW

HE SAID:

An absolute blast! What fun! I love cartoons and I just can't get enough of Lilo & Stitch. The zany humour is absolutely great. Disney has done it again! The thing about Lilo & Stitch is that adults have as many delights as kids.

This movie continues the adventures of Lilo and Stitch as they try to get Stitch to connect with all his cousins - the other 625 experiments.

This is one for the collection.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I give this movie a 8.

SHE SAID:

I hate cartoons. I think they are bad even for kids let alone for adults. So I did not fancy this movie much.

I would not give this one even a look.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I give this movie a 1.

Thambi - Movie review

THAMBI - MOVIE REVIEW

HE SAID:

This movie is a perfect example of the premise that, even if the message is good, if it is presented badly, it will not get through to the audience. The message is a perfectly good one, but the poor handling of the movie leaves one doubting that there ever was a point to this movie.

The message is, that the pointless vendetta and revenge have to stop some where and that the most effective way to deal with an enemy is by being kind to him.

Madhavan has shot himself in the foot with this role. He has made such a fool of himself with his antics that there is no need for Vadivel. Too bad that his efforts at building a good physique and performing the action sequences very well have been overshadowed by his mannerisms.

His dialogue delivery is horrible. One can hardly understand his speech. Our advice to Madhavan is "Stick to the kadhal hero roles, leave the action roles to others better suited for it".

Pooja does a good job, although her diction leaves a lot to be desired. The rest of the cast is adequate.

Worth seeing once.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I give this movie a 4.

SHE SAID:

Madhavan has acted very well. He is very effective in getting the message across. Although initially, his mannerisms are a bit funny, as the movie progresses, he gets better. Pooja has done well.

What really got me was, that I had read somewhere that this movie was advertised as a family movie. Nothing could be further from the truth. The sheer violence will scar any children viewing this movie.

Definitely worth seeing.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I give this movie a 7.

Fida - Movie Review

FIDA - MOVIE REVIEW

HE SAID:

A really slick movie, which plays out like a Hollywood action blockbuster. However there is something missing. The movie is soul less. The actors perform very well. Fardeen Khan, Shahid Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor all redeem themselves well.

The locales are exotic. At an instinctual level, the film fall way short of being a good movie.

Worth watching once.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I give this movie a 6.

SHE SAID:

A very enjoyable movie, although I did not fancy the heroine being one of the bad guys. Something about that portrayal rubs me the wrong way.

Otherwise worth watching once.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I give this movie a 7.

Madrasi - Movie review

MADRASI - MOVIE REVIEW

HE SAID:

Here is the surprising thing about this movie. One would normally dismiss an Arjun movie as action masala. But stop! This one is actually good. Is it because of Jegapathy Babu? Or is it because maybe this movie is a remake? Whatever the reason, Arjun has woken up and finally given us a good quality action movie.

It looks like Arjun has joined the long line of actors who want to make it big in politics. It is fairly evident in the dialogue and in aping MGR in a song.

The story is crisp and evokes anticipation in the viewer as to what will occur next. Jegapathy Babu is fantastic! He demonstrates the reason why he is a top hero in Telugu movies. The villains are more than caricatures and actually display normal human tendencies.

All in all a good action flick, definitely worth watching.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I give this movie a 5.

SHE SAID:

I like Arjun quite a bit. So I enjoyed this movie. The added bonus was Jegapathy Babu, who has spoken the Tamil dialogues very well. The new heroine looks pretty. Gajala has improved her acting.

A good movie definitely worth watching.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I give this movie a 7.

June R - Movie review

JUNE R - MOVIE REVIEW

HE SAID:

Hmmmmm. With Saritha, Khushboo and Jyotika in the movie one would expect it to be a feminist propaganda vehicle. However, it turns out to be low on propaganda and high on entertainment. It is a good story although a bit predictable. If Saritha was any fatter, she would be a hot-air balloon. Khushboo looks all lawerly and in command. Maybe she is the next person to start running for the Chief Ministership of tamil Nadu after Arjun. Jyotika is bubbly and emotional when called for. It is amazing how she continues to do well, when she is not beautiful in the conventional sense.

What is the big deal with Surya doing a guest appearance? Once his name appears in the titles as a guest role, it does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that he is the mysterious suitor of Jyotika.

Not bad. Worth a look.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I give this movie a 5.

SHE SAID:

I loved the movie. It was totally enjoyable. A very emotional story of an orphan finding a mother who is ignored by her own son.

I have always been a big fan of Khushboo. So I thoroughly enjoyed her masterly performance. Saritha is excellent in her role as the long suffering mother. Jyothika is absolutely fabulous.

This movie is a definite must see, maybe even a keeper for the home movie collection.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I give this movie a 9.

Kalvanin Kadhali - Movie review

KALVANIN KADHALI - MOVIE REVIEW

HE SAID:

How can someone so ugly be a hero in Tamil cinema? Are there no minimum standards? How do persons like Dhanush, S.J. Surya and so on become heros? And worse how do they get a fan following? Just goes to show that the population in India, especially in Tamil Nadu is large enough that any entertainer no matter how good or bad they are can get a fan following. The Tamil people are that hard up for entertainment. At the same time they will stay away from movies that have a different formula from the usual. It is very difficult to gauge the likes and dislikes of the Tamil cinema going public.

To be fair to SJ Surya, he was not a bad director. His "Khushi" was quite good. Why did he not stick to doing what he was good at instead of being something he could never hope to be? This seems to be the trend these days in Tamil cinema. Producers wanting to act, actors wanting to sing or direct and so on.

What is up with Vivek. He too tried to change from a comedian to a hero and did not do too well. Although he has great potential as a comedian, he wastes his time in bashing a particular community all the time. Wake up Vivek! Whatever injustices done by that community were a long time ago and they have paid for them many times over. Focus on what is holding the nation back from achieving its potential.

Finally coming to the movie itself, it is a piece of crap. No matter who the heroine is, or how glamorous the songs are, the bottom line is that the story is worthless. Nayanthara is wasting her time. Given time she can be a good actor, but the funny thing is that given time a donkey can be a good actor too.

I would give this movie a complete miss.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I give this movie a 1.

SHE SAID:

I enjoyed the movie. SJ Surya is continuing to make vulgar movies. Nayanthara is quite good. Vivek is not bad.

Definitely worth seeing once.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I give this movie a 5.