Finally watched Special Chabbis. Good work on the props & effects to get the 1987 look:
– Old currency notes
– Old vehicles including the old ambassador models and Maruti 800
– Got the number plate colours right – white on black for private & black on white for commercial
– Getting the old look of Delhi, Kolkata & Mumbai, especially of the airports and the skyline
– Old ad hoardings
– Old telephone sets
– Indian Airlines logo along with the food trolley in cabin
However, a couple of goof ups that I noticed:
– Showing a blue coach at the railway station when they were all brown in that era
– A Maruti 1000/Esteem (launched in the 90s) parked on the road
The background score has an uncanny resemblance to the Batman score
Follows the Madhur Bhandarkar movie template to a t, and makes it extra boring and predictable.
On the subject of predictability, no surprises whatsoever in the plot, except the ending. Probably shows how desensitized I’ve become to all the drama (have you?).
Talking of endings, that’s another uncanny resemblance to the Batman series – The Dark Knight Rises this time.
People seem to be finding solace in European countries these days, though the film doesn’t disclose the exact one (unlike ZNMD)
Lead character is slightly less demented than the Rockstar counterpart, though not by much. I’m beginning to wonder you need to be bipolar to become a star.
The story is by Aditya Chopra, and there’s a DDLJ tribute(?) in the climax. Imagine the climax train sequence of DDLJ & replace the platform with an airfield, the train with a plane, SRK with Katrina Kaif, Amrish Puri with Ranvir Shorey & Kajol with Salman Khan. (yes, like for like)
The Indian govt. probably had a stronger reason than the Pakistan to ban the movie, but they didn’t. If you are used to the Sunny Deol brand of spy games, prepare to be surprised.
And finally, I’m not sure what happened to the special anti missile tech that Salman was trying to protect. I can only assume that the hard disk with the RAW sealed the deal.
Managed to watch Ra.One this evening on the IMAX screen (the picture was quite grainy at times, so not sure if it was actually meant for IMAX), and it was definitely a unique experience for a Bollywood movie in terms of the special effects. There are plot holes aplenty in the movie, but if you go in without bias then it can be pretty entertaining (if you managed to sit through TMK, then this one’s a breeze). There are however quite a few other interesting things, including my customary tech observations about the movie:
This movie probably has the maximum density of Apple products, given the number of iMacs we are shown, along with the customary iPhone (3 GS though)
Which brings me to the second point that it is really peculiar that the game is being developed on iMacs…
The PS3 is probably the only product shown in the movie that uses an NVidia GPU, unless you consider the Alienware laptop & MacBook Pro used in the beginning of the movie for the demo.
On the topic of gaming consoles, Microsoft definitely missed out a golden opportunity to showcase Kinect’s motion sensing capabilities.
The comic book (Superman – he was a jumper initially), video game (Crysis for the suit design, and action games like Mortal Kombat, Tekken etc. for the general concept) and Hollywood (Terminator, Iron Man, Matrix) influences are very apparent.
Talking of video games, Bollywood is definitely getting more serious about them. Even the recent flop Toonpur Ka Super Hero had a climax involving video game concepts.
Coming to the non-technical aspects, the movie creators seem to have done quite a bit of Market Research to target the youth segment. The way they have researched action video games is pretty evident. The elite gadgets like the PSP & PS3 are also thrown in for good measure. Besides that, the impact of Japanese animes (just try switching to the Animax channel) is also pretty visible – the first action dream sequence for one. Even the soundtrack is not left alone.
The car number plates were pretty interesting, particularly for the VWs owned by SRK – they all had featured IO (Aiyo?) in them. Rajnikanth’s was of course SUPERSTAR.
Have you found it odd that the first book (The Lightning Thief) in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series is bereft of cell phone references? I certainly did, and found a likely explanation in the series’ wikipedia page – the book was written in the mid 1990s (Rick Riordan completed the manuscript in 1994), but published only in 2005. Those were the days when cell phones were a lot less commonplace, and kids certainly did not carry them around. In fact, it was probably not that common among adults either. However, the remaining books more than make up for this technology gap (and even offer a post facto explanation for demi-gods not carrying cell phones).
Coming to the series itself, Percy Jackson and the Olympians was one of the first series that I have read from start to end after the Harry Potter series ended. Incidentally, I also happened to buy all of the books from the Kindle Store and read it across 3-4 devices (on my Samsung Galaxy S & iPod Touch using the Kindle Apps, and my laptop using Amazon’s Cloud Reader – the furthest read location sync is really handy). This was one of the rare times that I also happened to watch the movie before reading the book (unlike Harry Potter, LOTR etc.). I did like the movie when I saw it – quite entertaining with a bunch of special effects.
However, after reading the book and the entire series, the differences stand out and makes me wonder if they even intend to make movies from the remaining books. And the differences run far deeper than Percy’s pen-sword being a click type vs. a capped one. They’ll really need to rewrite the entire series if they want to bring out sequels, particularly because the main characters are a lot older (already look to be past their 16th birthdays), there’s no Oracle to give out prophecies and the key antagonist – Kronos – is not featured in any way (the latter two could be retrofitted I suppose). I also wonder how Percy is going to take the dip in River Styx when Charon seems to be ferrying people across thin air. The movie however went all out on the tech front with Percy using an iPod Touch as a mirror to defeat Medusa.
Getting back to the books, there’s another bit that seemed a bit forced and that was the reference to 9/11 and Ground Zero in the later parts (Annabeth’s dream of building a structure on Ground Zero) while it doesn’t come up in the Lightning Thief. This is another piece that gives away the fact that the first part was completed much before the others, and might have even had a reference to the Twin Towers in it which was subsequently edited out.
All said and done, the series did make me interested in Greek mythology and had me return to playing Titan Quest (Steam had a sale which coincided with my book reading, and I got Titan Quest & its expansion for $5) and long for Age of Mythology. Now, if only there were some Percy Jackson mods for these games…
Might as well post about the movie that I ended up watching 3 times in the absence of better alternatives:
“Bagwati” actually is credited on screen – it’s the last one in the actor list and credited to Hermes (wikipedia explains how the bags are made & the extensive service network).
A superb showcase for Spanish tourism, albeit for the ultra rich. TOI seems to have taken a sudden liking to covering the festivals shown in the movie (check out their mobile apps in particular for the coverage)
Farhan Akhtar continues his track record of having his hand in some of the better movies in the last decade. He also has something about father-son relationships (remember Dil Chahta Hai, Lakshya?).
It was a nice showcase for Javed Akhtar’s poetry
Pretty sad usage of a Canon EOS 550D by Abhay Deol throughout the movie. Firstly, he was using it as a Point & Shoot (even had the flash up during some daytime shots!). Secondly, he seemed to be still using the kit lens (EFS 18-55mm IS). Last but not the least, given the way they splurged money throughout the movie, he should have been using a higher end DSLR model (the 7D at the minimum, if not as full frame like the 5D).
One of the better, or at least entertaining yrf movies in recent times (watching a movie in the night show definitely lets you gauge its entertainment value)
It has the usual references to previous yrf movies, plus a bunch of old hit songs being used throughout the movie
It could have done with fewer songs
The movie turned out to be quite different from the impression made by the trailer, and for the better
Imran Khan is getting stereotyped, but then again these types of roles seem to be the one that make his movies click
Regarding the gadgets:
Apple continues to feature in the movies – this time with an iMac (for video chatting through a matrimony site, no less) & iPhone
They showed a bunch of different phones being used in the movie – iPhone, Blackberry (used to take a crucial video at that)
They finally showed a photographer who was serious about his equipment – Imran carries a Canon EOS 1D with an L series lens – which is quite unlike Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, where a zillionaire like Abhay Deol carries around a Canon EOS 550D and uses it like a Point & Shoot
I had the fortune to get hold of a couple of free ticket vouchers (3+1 offer) when a bunch of us went for the Avatar 3D show at IMAX (Wadala, Mumbai) in December. They were valid till 31st March 2010 & so 3 of us thought why not catch up on Alice in Wonderland 3D using those. Unfortunately, we chose to go to the R-City multiplex this time & here’s a summary of what happened:
I go to the counter & ask for 3 tickets & give the person the two vouchers & the cash for the remainder ticket.
He looks at the vouchers & informs me that they’re not valid in here as they don’t contain the R-City stamp & he shows me a sample voucher with such a stamp.
I then ask to speak to the manager as the voucher seems to suggest that it should be valid at any BIG Cinemas.
We speak to the manager & he kindly informs us that:
Sorry, but the vouchers are valid only at the branch where they were issued. So, our barcode readers here won’t be able to process those vouchers. (So much for integrated systems & CRM)
It was mainly a promotional strategy to increase the audience in each branch separately. (Duh!)
We decide to watch it anyway & pay the sum for all the 3 tickets.
Lessons learnt
Have a look at the voucher first, interpret the barcode & the fine print too:
The clauses 1, 14 & 15 are particularly interesting. 1 is as vague as can be. Moreover clause 14 pretty much ensures that they can give you the boot any time. As for the movie, it was pretty decent, though the 3D effects were nowhere close to Avatar (sitting in the last row probably didn’t help, which was in spite of me asking for tickets towards the front – that’s another story).
All said & done, I do regret not having learnt to read barcode in my 18 years of education (school + engineering + management).
It’s not everyday that I board a moving bus to reach the movie theatre. Then again, neither do I get to watch movies like 3 Idiots daily. Ever since I watched the movie on 29th Dec, there’s been something about the movie that’s been bothering me. It’s not that I had any kind of expectation from the movie to feel disappointed although it had been getting rave reviews from many avenues. While the movie seems to have tickled the funny bones of the masses, it seemed to hit upon a raw nerve in me. And this has been manifesting itself in the numerous facebook status messages [1] I’ve left on the movie since watching it.
I read a few reviews and articles [2] on the movie that seemed to be consistent with my feelings of the movie being overhyped. But they too seemed to miss some points. So, here I have an entire post lined up taking on the movie.
When you have to mock, mock. Don’t preach.
A funny movie is fine and 3 Idiots definitely scored in that respect. However, it did cross the limit in my books on some respects, particularly on the poverty front (Raju’s family) and treatment of the elderly (Raju’s father and yes, even Virus). All this is fine if you are making a mindless comedy like numerous ones before. But, when you tread into the message giving territory, it just doesn’t go down well. A few explicit examples:
The 3 happily trespass upon the director’s property, one of them into his daughter’s bedroom while the other two deface his property. The director sees the face of only one, and is actually truthful about it. Anyway, this act which would’ve landed them in jail is conveniently brushed aside and totally forgotten by making Raju jump out of the window. “Truth alone triumphs” is not the message from episode I suppose.
And on the topic of truth, lying brazenly to your paralyzed best friend and playing with his emotions may not exactly be the best way to cure him. As far as I remember, even Munnabhai did a better job in such cases. Raju once again saves the day here by a prompt jump back to action and showing that he does see through Rancho’s tricks.
As if one trespass was not good enough, Rancho and Farhan break into the director’s office to steal a question paper, all in the name of friendship. Raju once again saves the day morally here by sticking to his new way of life and tossing away the paper (how one can set an engineering paper that will fail only a select student and how actually getting hold of that paper will help anyone {as people who’ve written open book engineering exams will attest} is another mystery best left unanswered). Of course, the director rushes to the hideout of the gang and tosses them out. This is where mother nature, the Delhi electricity supply and the good old vacuum cleaner come to the rescue adding insult to injury to who knows what.
Oh well, at least they didn’t shoot some Indian minister dead and try to awaken the public. Oh wait….
To me, Calvin did a much better job at taking on the education system and I’d gladly stick to Calvinisms than Baba Rancho’s verses any day. I also couldn’t resist the urge to put this in:
Vintery, mintery, cutery, corn,
Apple seed and apple thorn,
Wire, briar, limber lock
Three geese in a flock
One flew East
One flew West
And one flew over the cuckoo’s nest.
That’s the source of the title of the movie “One flew over the cuckoo’s nest”, which is definitely a no holds barred take on authority and systems. Watch it if you can and don’t expect to feel anything remotely close to the way you felt after watching 3 Idiots (I wonder how you’d relate the 3 geese to the 3 idiots)
Also, on the topic of following your dreams, here are a couple of gems:
How old are they and what period are we looking at? They still blog in 2020? No new iPhone version in 10 years! I’m confused.
This was one of the aspects of the movie that really confused me and the engineer in me had a field day putting together the timelines and ages. One thing I’m sure of is that the movie starts off in the future, somewhere around 2020. This follows from the fact that in the flashback people are seen using mobile phones, youtube, wireless internet etc and that would set the flashback in the present period. Ok, granted that this is not a sci-fi movie, but still, Rancho did file those 400 patents…
As for the characters ages, nothing out of the ordinary, but a couple of characters come of as oldies, notably Suhas and Pia. As per the flashback, Pia’s supposed to be a doctor engaged to Suhas. That would put her in the mid 20’s and Suhas in the mid to late 20’s given his Management degree and foreign work location (he must have worked abroad for a while or inherited a fortune, otherwise I don’t see anyone gifting their fiancee’s watches worth Rs 4 lakhs). So, this means the following:
An 18 year old was romancing a woman in her mid 20’s. In fact by the time Rancho graduated, she’d be nearing 30 at least.
The doctor and the manager, i.e., Pia and Suhas waited till they were over 40 (or at least Suhas was) to tie the knot. Now that’s dedication for you. I think the director missed a trick here, and the love story plot should have been on these 2…
That was quite a trip
Yes, I know, it leads up to Leh and not Ladakh. Still, that was quite an impromptu trip – over 1000 km lasting at least 18 hours.
And no geeky post can be complete without an xkcd reference. Too bad the characters in 3 Idiots didn’t have this kind of an attitude:
Notes:
[1] A list of all the 3 Idiots related facebook status updates in reverse chronological order:
Did Chetan Bhagat do to the 3 Idiots with his blog post what Rancho did to Suhas with the green chutney?
3 Idiots is a case of bad credit… or is it credit risk gone wrong?
Some 3 Idiots Math: P (5% < Length of 3 Idiots taken from FPS < 70%) = 99.9966%
More 3 Idiots: Always nice to have a simmering reality show to go with a movie… That too for free.
ICE:IIT::Ladakh:USA
3 Idiots had its heart in the right place no doubt. Too bad I couldn’t trace its brain…
Avatar appealed a lot more to the engineer in me than 3 Idiots
Lessons from 3 Idiots: 1. Directors should have their offices on the ground floor. 2. Engineers are in serious need of a suicide hotline. 3. Doctors should always carry a vacuum cleaner with them. 4. If you are an MBA grad working abroad, then don’t wait till mid to late 30s to get married, or else your bride may run away to Ladakh to ride a scooter. 5. The Airtel network is better around a remote bridge up north than in the IITB campus & at home in Bangalore.
6. Pencil wood is also flammable in high oxygen environments & so that’s another factor to worry about – http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=fact-or-fiction-nasa-spen
[2] Excerpts from the reviews and articles on 3 Idiots:
Going home after watching 3 Idiots I felt like I’d just been to my favorite restaurant only to be a tad under-whelmed by their signature dish. It was a satisfying meal, don’t get me wrong, but not the best meal I’d been expecting.
…
The film, in the end, is a broad entertainer that plays to the gallery, well-intentioned but sadly muddled.
I wish life was as simple as Rancho made out. I wish it was as easy to top an engineering college, life’s issues resolved themselves as easily as shown in the film. The second half, which had a surprise identity crisis thrown in, raised some problems which it was implausible that were not discovered / resolved earlier. But the humour / fun keeps you going through it all.
…
My father said after watching it that if you’re willing to suspend disbelief, its an enjoyable film. That’s a pretty fair way of putting it, after all, we do the same for Bond films and a lot of action thrillers. Its just that I didn’t expect to be doing it for a rom com set in an engineering college….
Yet a film whose central message is “the education system sucks”, “we learn nothing at our centres of excellence” and “teachers are unable to teach and only want to ruin students lives,” is a rather dangerous film. Three Idiots disdains the rigour of study, pours scorn on wanting to better oneself through the sadhna of learning and instead seems to suggest that to be happy in life we all need to drop out, sing songs under the night sky and not bother with studying hard because studying hard is a waste of time. As a former IITian has pointed out Rancho, in the film mocks Laplace Transform, the equation written on the blackboard, as an example of rote learning. Yet without Laplace Transform, Hirani’s computer would not boot up! This former IITian says he has never come across a teacher like Prof Virus, and believes that in its fashionable disdain for education, the film is dangerously juvenile.
Yes, our education system needs urgent reform. Yes, we need to relook at our exam system. Yes, we need to ensure that parents do not pressurize children. But in the pursuit of educational reform, we cannot allow standards of excellence to be lowered. India’s IITs and IIMs must be applauded for the world-class minds they have thrown up, these are institutions that are respected the world over. Lets not start lampooning Indian engineers by showing them as students who deliver babies with vacuum cleaners. Let’s get real about higher education, not engage in an escapist fantasy and convince ourselves that education does not matter. After all, Rancho could be a subversive because he was a genius student. For those who are not geniuses, alas, there are no short cuts.
Update (12/1): Just came across this fantastic contraption that is bound to bring back memories of our dear friend Lobo from the movie. Too bad he didn’t have an iPhone, otherwise even Virus might have been persuaded. Anyway, check out the video of this iPhone controlled wi-fi quadricopter.
