R. I. P. Elizabeth Taylor

I wasn't a fan until I saw this movie:



A scene from "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?"

Movies I will probably end up watching even though they promise to be terrible.

New Moon

Oh my god! How bad is the book?? The first one I barely skimmed through but this one, I could not get past the first two chapters. Seriously how is it possible to make vampires boring?(I'm sure there is an army of tweens planning my destruction now).And can the heroine be more annoying? Besides her limited vocabulary in describing the apparently unearthly like features of the brooding vampire, she has to be one of the most poorly written female characters ever! I mean come on look at Hermione Granger or Luna Lovegood. JK Rowling, whatever her flaws(some more obvious now), created really strong,well defined, likable characters- even if they did wobble once in a while.And I honestly don't know know why Kristen Stewart agreed to act in this travesty of a series. I actually find her very interesting. And I'm sorry Robert Pattinson cannot act. Yes he looks bloodless and his hair is teased appropriately but please watch the scene in Twilight(vomit) where he is (apparently) resisting Bella's scent(again,vomit); his attempt at looking tortured fails miserably. The guys looks merely constipated-not attractive. I was mildly interested when I found out he played Salvador Dali in "Little Ashes". Then I watched one scene in the film and well...less said the better. Still, I'll probably watch New Moon when it comes out because I am jobless and mean. I guess that doesn't say much about me.

2012

Blah blah! Another movie about how America saves the day. Seriously Hollywood. You're an insult to your cliches. Okay truth is I haven't watched it yet. (Duh! Hence the title) But this just looks like Independence Day (another gem of course) Oh! wait. It's by the same director. Go figure. But John Cusak! I have one question for you- Why???Remember High fidelity? ? Okay that's two questions. :s Are you one of those people who really identify with a smiley and find it to be a better mirror of what you feel than in fact your own face?(pulling faces in the mirror-I invoke my inner Calvin)

But on an aside read this delicious blog by an American, 30 something woman who loves Bollywood. Makes me fall in love with the "Indian film industry"(who are we kidding??) all over again.

Love, Peace, Music

So Ang Lee's "Taking Woodstock" is releasing this week. I am (obviously) led to think about the first time I watched Wadleigh's masterpiece. The 6 hour documentary which is heady, wild, incoherent in bits, can transport you to that decade, to that field, that mud pit where love, music and feces all mixed happily together. So you may wrinkle your nose at all the dirty naked people but god! they look so happy- you want a slice of that. You even want to make a peace sign and spout cliched lines about love. There is a spirit of harmony that is palatable. Maybe it's naive to think that there were more than just drugs, music, unprotected sex and pollution happening(I was told that the field upon which they camped was so completely destroyed it took years to rejuvenate it) but it really laid the platform for some of the most important musical influences,-Crosby Stills Nash, Santana, The Who, Joe Cocker and many more.

Some of the most memorable performances for me were(Since then I've watched them many times over but these are my first and yes, lasting impressions- I can only imagine what it must have felt like to have been there to witness it in person):

Joe Cocker's spin on The Beatles hit "With a little help for my friends" is miles ahead of the original. His freakish yells coupled with the almost operatic soars provided by the backup singers(whom I thought were two black women until I watched the film and realised they were two bone thin men with long dirty hair) makes this song iconic, moves it beyond being a cutesy if tad bit melancholic song to a painful anthem on salvation. Cocker alternates between screaming this song - wrenching and twisting your gut with thorny chaotic memories, and then goes onto soothe you by crooning, tenderly, "What do I do when my love is away?", urging you to treat love as the wounded bird it is. Cocker looks out of this world(they say he was on an acid trip) with straggly bits of his hair swirling in the wind, face screwed up as he belts out note after note(oh my god those notes). And you know that when he finishes the song and looks out at the crowd to wave, to acknowledge the shared resurrection, he never expects to feel like that again. And neither should you.

Santana's "Soul Sacrifice"-Through an erotic, beautiful clash of sound a 20 something Santana (along with his other 20 something band members including the prodigious Micheal Shrive with one of the most exciting drum solos ever) sets out to tease and titillate you till you are left shattered by the unspeakable things he is doing to you through his guitar. Goosebumps rise everywhere and your head is now mindless, filled with glorious liquid sound that quivers and explodes in your head without any warning. Unlike Cocker, Santana does not let you think. All you can do is watch and listen with mouth half open, submerged, in something you will not understand.



















When Pete Townsend begins with "See Me Feel Me" it seems like he is begging for your acknowledgment. Which you're more than willing to give.Your attention (it seems ) is vital. When the songs picks up he transforms into a malevolent presence as if now having hooked you in, he no longer cares- he knows you're not going to leave. This is probably one of the most heady songs of The Who. The visual makes it all the more compelling. Pete Townsend, with his fringed white jacket shines in the darkness like some angle of deliverance. From what I have heard about the song, I know it is supposed to be about a deaf and blind child who becomes a prodigy of sorts at pinball and as a result becomes an idol for his followers.

If you haven't watched-by watched, I mean a dozen things,most importantly- submerged yourself in this film, I suggest you do. Especially if you are disillusioned, and music today has left you cold and dry. Bow your head down and listen to the masters at their moment of inception.

Must watch

*before next year*




A Clockwork Orange- N and I tried watching this years ago and after 15 minutes of cringing we switched it off. But it's supposed to be one of the greats so I want to watch it.

* Irma Vep-I LOVE Maggie Cheung and the synopsis on IMDB sounds wacky!

* The Uninvited- I really want to see if this does any justice to the original Janghwa, Hongryeon (a.k.a Tale of two Sisters)-I don't have very high hopes but I'm open to being contradicted.

* JFK-I managed to get a dvd of this film when I was in Delhi and the stupid thing didn't work.

* The 3 other documentaries on Kabir-Chalo Hamara Des, Kabira Khada Hain Bazaar Mein, Koi Sunta Hai, (as part of The Kabir Project) by Shabnam Virmani.(I loved Had-Anhad) Okay the likelihood of me getting my hands on these before the year end is unlikely. Still I'm going to put it up on my must watch just to remind me.




* 500 days of Summer- It just looks refreshing.


* Whip it- Ellen Page!

* Kaminey- Okay Shahid Kapur looks really hot. And I love Vishal Bharadwaj.

Addition: Taking Woodstock- How far will they mess this up? How much will they refer to Wadleigh's Woodstock? I am very curious.But I have faith in Ang Lee.