Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Bongo Shhongo :)

Today, post work I took off to PVR to catch ‘The Bong Connection’. Like many times before, I watched it alone. Again, not for lack of company but more out of impulse. And after many such experiences, I like watching movies alone. Yes, you can call me selfish. I really cannot go through the rigmarole of planning and coordinating everyone’s schedules. Too many logistical issues to tackle. It used to be fun but back then a large part of the movie experience was the company. Not any more.
Today the theater was practically empty and for me it was an entirely enjoyable experience. No crying kids. No obscenely ringing cell phones. No hyperactive folks in front row. Infact, I had the entire row to myself, which in itself was a luxury.
Now, did I like the movie? Yes. Will I watch it again? Maybe. Will I watch it a third time? No.
What I liked:
Ensemble casting is very good. (It's a different matter that many veterans were wasted!)
Loved the music. Good stuff there.
Shyan is really cute and so is Peeya (and not because she shares my name!)
Humor is well timed.
SPE (Some Place Else for the uninitiated) brought a load of nostalgia.
The shot in Flurys made me hungry :)
The pace of the movie is good and doesn’t slag.
The ‘typical’ bangla-induced English accents....and there are many variants...trust me! :)
Room for improvement:
Param is stilted in some scenes.
Victor’s character is very uni-dimensional.
Mir’s character disappears abruptly.
Raima should get rid of those dreadful curls!
Dialogue I liked:
Shiela(Raima) tells Andy(Shyan), ‘Music er ki kono desh hoye naki…’ (Is music limited to a region) Andy says, ‘Haan hoye…’(Yes, it is) (Sorry. Tried translating, but realized it lost the essence of the meaning and without the context it is misleading)
And being a crossover film, about 70% of the dialogues are in English (all kinds of accents though!). Plus the bangla dialogues have subtitles. So go Enjoy!

7 comments:

Moushumi said...

Wow nice, wish I could view it here..........sigh

Rambler said...

Oh!, watched the movie alone???, Have been trying to do this from such a long time. This has inspired me more towards doing that.
BTW weekday PVR afternoon, lucky you :).
Bong connection, kind of like the title, though I have nothing to do with Bongs, for me only connection is , for a non sweet lover, only sweets i like are bengali.
Oh I forgot one more connection my new found blog friends, SD and you...

DreamCatcher said...

M: come down to B'lore over the weekend :)

Rambler: Yeah. I am impulsive :) But don't gather that I am a complete anti-social, just a little self indulgent :)And it was the 6PM show, post work...that way by the time the movie gets over, I get to drive in less-mad traffic..and you don't LIKE sweets??? How do you LIVE with yourself???...hehehe!

Shreyasi Deb said...

awww...good concise take! And lot of things I thought but missed out on because of too many thoughts and a conscious attempt to keep the length, are here with you :-)

M,
can you download? i guess that should be up on the Net!

Shreyasi Deb said...

Rambler,
Thanks for calling me a "blog friend"...had missed it during the previous comment!

Hanedin said...

The band they came to delhi to perform, chitto park e eshe perform kore chilo, kintu beshi impressive laage ni?
Is the movie worth watching?

DreamCatcher said...

Hanedin: The movie is watchable...whether it's worthy depends on what you are looking for. For me it was partly nostalgia. I liked the music score. I like it when someone tries a different format or explores a new idiom irrespective of the ultimate outcome. I respect their attitude...willingness to break new ground. As for the movie, why don't you watch it and see :)