The Da Vinci Code

The Da Vinci Code is finally here. After getting a green signal post a special screening from the I&B ministry, it was finally released last week in India with a disclaimer and an Adults only tag.

I saw the movie on Saturday nite, thanks to a friend who booked the tickets in advanced. The pre-release hype and the contraversy surrounding the movie ensured lots of eager audeience and a full house. Those who had read the book wanted to see if the director Ron Howard has done justice or not. Those who had not read the book were simply waiting to discover what the hype was all about. I started the book last week but was unable to finish it before I actually saw the movie. However, by then I had a fair idea of what the story was all about.

I liked the movie. I would give it 4 stars out of 5. Except for sometime in between, where it appears slow, the pace is good and keeps you captivated. I liked the cast, all of them did a good job. Not very impressed with Tom Hanks as Robert Langdon, as we are all used to seeing him in complex character roles. Hence this one really did not bring out the best in him. I especially like the characters of Sophie Neveu(Audrey Tautou) , Silas(Paul Bettany) and Leigh Tibing(Ian McKellen).

After reading the description of the Louvre museum in the book, I found the actual museum a bit too modern to my taste in the movie. However, the shots of the museum, Saint Sulpice church, Eiffel tower and the rest of Paris was a delight to watch. Also, the paintings and the hidden meanings were explained well.

I am still reading the book. Would want to see the movie again once I finish it. Maybe I would feel differently about the movie then :)).

Would like to know views on the movie from people who have read the book. Any comments ??

Life line......

Ayn Rand says....

"My philosophy, in essence, is the concept of man as a heroic being, with his own happiness as the moral purpose of his life, with productive achievement as his noblest activity, and reason as his only absolute."

Life cannot be simpilfied better.....

Dhoni and the soap ad

You just cannot miss the Mysore Sandal Soap hoardings all over Bangalore featuring the newest cricket star M S Dhoni. Agreed that Dhoni is any eye-catcher...but puhleeez...how can he be signed for a soap ad? His skin is definitely not one of his best assets. His wavy streaked tresses are what he is known for, and talked about, especially in feminine circles. To make things worse, the photographer who shot the ad seems to have forgotten that the shoot was for a soap ad and not for a shampoo ad. His liking for Dhoni's hair, more than his skin..is clearly visible in the ad.

Seems one of the reasons for choosing Dhoni as the brand ambassador for this product was that his initials M S match the soap initals. I personally feel Yuvraj Singh would have been a better choice :))

Here is a sincere request to all the ad makers of the world. Next time, please put some thought before signing up your models. Else your ad is nothing but a mockery of your product as well as the model!!!

"Being Cyrus"....could have been more..

If I were asked to summarize the movie "Being Cyrus" in a few words, I would say it is different okay kind of movie. Part of the reason for going for the movie was that the promos projected it as what is called "parallel cinema".....it certainly is....but when you walk out of the theatre, you realise you do not carry much with you.

The story revolves around a Parsi family......the Sethna family....Dinshaw(Naseeruddin) and his wife Katie(Dimple) stay in Panchgani, in a huge dilapilated bungalow. Dinshaw is a famed potter whose best days are clearly past and who now spends his life in a mostly delirious state due to the dope he smokes. Katie is his wife....who is clearly unsatisfied with life and her husband. She wants much more from life than Dinshaw can offer her with his limited means in the small town.

This is where Cyrus(Saif) lands up for a one year stint as Dinshaw's apprentice. Katie welcomes him into the household with open arms and makes no bones about her sexual advances to Cyrus.

The cast is good. Nasseruddin Shah does not quite make an impression, maybe because we are too used to good performances from him by now. Saif is good but not outstanding...his role really does not offer him much variations in terms of acting, inspite of him being the main character of the movie. Dimple's role is clearly different from what she has ever done before. She does justice to her role as the frustrated wife who simply cannot bear her half-deaf husband and who does not think twice before expressing her sexual needs to a man probably her son's age. Boman Irani as the elder Sethna son is very good.....he plays the angry sceaming son, the irritatred neighbour, the uncaring husband and the flirtatious lover....all to near perfection. Simone Singh is the young pretty demure bride married to Boman Irani....who casts away her inhibitions and smokes her days away to glory the moment her husband leaves for work. The cast to actually watch out for is the old Mr Sethna(Honey Chhaya). He does an amazing job as the harassed father. His expressions are something to watch out for.....whether it is when his eyes light up at the sight of food....or when he reminisces his old days during the British Raj or when he is in one of his delirious states where he simply does not recognise anybody. An ace actor I must say !!! Manoj Pahwa as the violent police inspector does a good job too.

The movie does not have any songs. Though in English, the movie has a generous spattering of Gujarati...Gujarati being the language spoken by Parsis. This makes it difficult to understand parts of the movie.

The script is weak....and maybe that is the reason....it does not have such a powerful impact on the audience. The so-called mystery is cliched and not thrilling enough.

A lot of hype but not much substance :((

The "year end" syndrome

Its that time of the year again....Christmas is around the corner....there is the spirit of Christmas in the air....be it the RJ on Radio City who keeps reminding you at least once every half an hour...or the boys selling red Santa caps at each trafiic signal....the year's crescendo is builing up, it will peak up at New Year's and then fall flat with the start of 2006.

This is the time when all of us get a bit philosophical, as we look back on the year which just sped by. We analyse the highs and lows of the year, realising in the process how much we have matured in the last 365 days. Things which were terribly important to us one year back now seem meaningless, while some matters to which we never gave a second thought have taken new dimensions in our lives.

At this time of the year, all of us, even the most incurable pessimist, looks forward to the coming year and hopes for good things to happen. We somehow beleive that our unfulfilled wishes will become true in the new year. We might not be able to figure out at this point how or why it will happen....its just the magical and unknown quality of the new year ahead which makes us beleive and hope for whatever we want in life.

These last few days of the year carry with them a sense of restlessness and urgency......there is this last minute rush to get things done....be it at office or home...so that we enter the year with a sense of mental peace and acheivement. The feeling of entering the new year without any baggage from the past year prevails in everybody's mind. Life takes on a new meaning with each new year, there is happiness, and above all hope in everybody's mind.

Someone has truly said...."Life is Hope, Hope is Life".....

Here's wishing and hoping for everybody...all things bright and beautiful in the coming year...

Happy New Year !!!!

My dream car

No better way to start my blog than to talk about my latest passion....Honda City !!! I am totally flipped over by the new Honda City model, and sigh everytime I see one on the road. Unfortunately that ends up in me sighing a bit too much since lots of people seem to share my passion !!!

I never knew before this that I could be so fascinated by a car...I think its the looks...the devilish look...which appeals to me....I know there are lots of people out there who do not like how the new Honda City looks....but for me, the looks holds the main attraction. I think its drop dead gorgeous. There are bigger and better cars in the market, but none has caught my fancy like this one has. Added to this, I have also got very good first hand reviews from a colleague who owns it, which justifies my choice.

http://www.hondacarindia.com has all what you want to know about the car. It also has the price list and EMI calculator, the different colors in which the car is available (you can actually see all the shades) and the dealer locations.

The EMI of course made me realise again how very unaffordable it is for me...:((...Maybe that is what it will always remain...my dream car.....