Movie Minute

As promised “yesterday” here is a little taste of how I’ve been entertained, in terms of movies.

First up:  “Slumdog Millionaire”

I watched this movie with Michael and Dori during our most recent sushi party.  We all agreed that it was pretty good (and apparently so do other critics, as it is up for quite a few awards this year).  The soundtrack was a source of some amusement, as it featured a few songs by M.I.A., international pop star.  Her style isn’t what I usually go for, but the humorous element is that Michael always had her hit “Paper Planes” on when he gave me rides home on drill weekends.  So that was good for a slight chuckle.  Also funny was the fact that Dori’s television didn’t display the DVD quite right, cutting off both sides.  Such is the risk you take with the off-brand electronics over here.  This was unfortunate, as the director had made the decision to make the subtitles more aesthetically pleasing by placing them in non-standard locations on the sides of the picture, instead of the usual bottom letterbox.  Anyway, on to the movie…

Rated PG13

Violence: There is a range here from children engaged in comic mischief to religious mob violence to scenes of gunplay, kidnapping, and torture.  It tends to stay away from graphic and gratuitous violence, preferring to keep the more grisly aspects muted or off-screen.  Even so, it is too much for younger children.

Language: Mild.

Sex/Nudity:  There are some implied situations, as well as a scene in the film in which the protagonists rescue their friend from a house of prostitution.  All in all, not the kind of gratuitous scenes one gets with Hollywood.

Synopsis:

The life of the protagonist, Jamal, is told through a series of flashbacks as he answers questions in an Indian version of the TV show, “Who Wants to be a Millionaire.”  The fact that he is progressing so far in the game serves to both inspire the country and rouse suspicion on the part of the police.  The film explains that the reason why Jamal knows the answer to each question is that he has had significant life experiences related strongly to each question asked.  His progress on the program mirrors his life’s story, from his beginnings in the slums of Mumbai to his current situation.  Central to the story is intertwined relationship between Jamal, his older brother Salim, and Latika, his lifelong love.  The three are orphaned by a religious riot, and lead a life of beggars, and are soon drawn into the seedy world of crime on the streets.  At times wryly humorous, at others horribly disturbing, we see the three developing their relationship through troubled times.  Salim is drawn to the life of crime and violence, and yet retains his ideals of caring for his brother.  Jamal and Latika foster their childhood and adolescent friendships, both of which are cruelly cut short.  By the end of the game, Jamal is fighting not to be the winner, but to find his criminal brother and his lost love before it is too late.

The movie had a very bittersweet tone throughout, interspersing everyday humor with the harshness of the “real” world.  There were scenes of Salim and Jamal as young rascals and later as cunning vagrants riding the rails and making their way up in the world.  Keeping the story from becoming a purely upbeat buddy movie was the abrupt end to each period of success with an appearance of some sinister plot twist.

(Update:  You are all probably pretty aware of this movie now, given all the awards it won at the Oscars.  Oh well.)

And part two of our double header:  “JCVD”

Michael had heard about this movie awhile back, to the extent that it had received some favorable reviews.  I got this DVD as part of a “best of” set from the local “retailer”.  We decided to watch it because:

a.  It was my night to pick the movie and

b.  I’m a big fan of Jean-Claude!

Of course those of you who know me well, know that I like Jean-Claude Van Damme’s movies (well, and other martial artists in general – really like Jackie Chan and Jet Li, as you same people are also quite aware).  Even his bad ones.  Nate was lucky enough to get his autograph for me when he came by the base my bro was training at in Texas (at least something good came out of that, ha ha).  In any event, this wasn’t a typical Van Damme movie, and in many ways, was quite interesting for being so different.

Rated R (I think, anyway…until I can get my hands on a more, shall we say, authentic, version of the movie, I can’t be completely sure).

Violence:  There is some “simulated” action violence from the movie that he is working on within the movie (one of those life-art connections…I’m pretty sure there’s a technical term for it, but I didn’t take enough cinema studies courses at the U).  Also, there is violence surrounding a bank robbery, with several people getting injured, and one death by gunshot.

Language:  Brief strong language.

Sex/Nudity:  None.

Synopsis:

Jean-Claude plays himself in JCVD, as the title hints at.  Of course it is a somewhat fictional version of himself.  The basic plot is that Jean-Claude is a washed-up star (some critics might say this is true to life, but I beg to differ), low on funds and fresh off losing a custody battle for his daughter.  In his desperation, he returns to his hometown in Brussels.  While attempting to withdraw some money from the local post office (I guess in Europe, they double as banks?), he accidently interrupts a heist gone wrong.  He gets taken as an additional hostage, and, to make matters worse, is mistakenly thought to be the robber by the police.  The rest of the film follows his flashbacks and the tense negotiations with both the real villains the police.

Analysis:

This film was unexpectedly quite interesting.  While it may be easy to just dismiss Van Damme as yet another no-talent action star, he turns in quite the acting performance for this role.  All the things that usually attract me to his movies (the kicks, the cheesy lines, the laughable plot intrigues, etc.) are noticeably absent in JCVD.  He does an admirable job of bringing out the human element in his character.  His openness with his own (though somewhat altered) life is quite refreshing and really makes for compelling drama.  It isn’t all heavy drama; indeed, the director intersperses light humor throughout, both ironic and slapstick, without taking away from the serious undertones of the story.  I thought it was actually the best movie I’ve seen on this deployment.  And I’d like to think I’ve seen at least a few good ones (well, and a lot of bad ones too, I suppose).