Arb ‘em all

 

 

 

Everyone can cut a deal. Well, at least everyone who lives to see the end of the tale. Robert Miller (Richard Gere) is selling his self-made top-of-the-line hedge fund empire. A few hundred million dollars of accounting jugglery owing to some badly placed bets notwithstanding. Robert takes a late-night jaunt with mistress Julie (Laeticia Casta) – and a terrible road accident ensues, leading to Julie’s demise. The rest of the movie is about Robert holding on to the increasingly shaky prospects of keeping his family as well as the proposed sale on course, as the skeletons threaten to tumble out from the cupboard one after another. Arbitrage is an amoral story, perhaps intended to extract some modicum of sympathy for a profession much-maligned of late, in particular for one of its stereotypical New York protagonists

 

12/20  

 

Tell me no Lies

The irrepressible and egoistical Cal Lightman (Tim Roth) challenges the world at large to Lie to Me (TV Series), as the Lightman Group uses visual clues to uncover human deception. With a team consisting of partner Gillian Foster (Kelli Williams), Eli Loker (Brendan Hines), Ria Torres (Monica Raymund), and the occasional appearances of Lightman’s ex-wife Zoe (Jennifer Beals), Lightman uses natural talent at interpreting microexpressions, and applied psychology, to solve anything from hostage situations and other national crises, to marital disputes. Cal’s character is loosely based upon the character of pre-eminent applied psychologist Paul Ekman, and the series widely uses the Facial Action Coding System and other branches of applied psychology. I was hooked by the first few episodes – which was the general reaction to the series, as well. On the other hand, Lie to Me does begin to flag into the third season, with a marked paucity of ideas for underlying cases, and a hackneyed cast

16/20

Cant believe I Watched This

If I were to sum up Funny Games in two words it would be unmitigatedly negative. Terrifying in its casual malice, the sequence of events shocks beyond the expectations of a rational audience. In some odd way this movie reminded me of Apocalypto – whatever can go wrong does – except that Apocalypto ends on a redemptive note while this movie simply leaves you staring and the credits and wondering what just happened. A blend of gorno (Saw, Hostel etc) and the traditional horror movie elements of isolation will leave you gasping at the end. If you know how this movie ends, you probably would not want to watch it. Naomi Watts anchors a difficult role, while Brady Corbet (Peter) and Michael Pitt (Paul) are creepy. Definitely not one for casual family viewing.

How not to do a Heist

Watching Quentin Tarantino movies in reverse has serious drawbacks. The template of quotable quotes, asynchronous retro music, and chapters in movies – it probably all started here. And what a start. A heist is committed. It goes all wrong. The men, none of whom are known to each other by their true identities, are looking for the mole in their midst. You can look at Reservoir Dogs as sheer human cruelty – a man bleeds to death, a policeman is almost set alight and eventually killed almost as an afterthought. In the end, there is a Western-style showdown, out of acrimony, and the movie is over. Another experiential Tarantino tale – over the top, mindblowing, unforgettable. A classic.

Pretty, Quirky

Many of the elements of Quentin Tarantino's cult classic Pulp Fiction are to be found in say Kill Bill. The retro music, the quirky character portraits and disjointed engagements, the engaging dialogues - all combine to give a disengaged portrayal of a loosely connected sequence of events, acted out by unforgettable characters. The movie is a difficult one to judge, inasmuch as it probably defined a (limited) genre in itself. What makes it particularly stand out is the performances of the entire star cast - especially the (questionable) redemption of Samuel L Jackson, the "day in the life" of Bruce Willis, the chemistry between John Travolta and Uma Thurman, and the righteous anger of Ving Rhames. Does it all collectively make sense in the end? No, but that is not quite the point.