Penguin

A laughable dedication to motherhood

I shall remember Penguin, for the name of its protagonist, Rythm. what a lovely name. With a speckless face, a straightened hair, gorgeous costumes and great body language, Keerthy Suresh, reminded you of the grace and class of Audrey Hepburn.

But Alas, so much for the grace and class, the movie by itself, is crass personified, dives into an abyss, that seemed far more bottomless than the word itself.

The film takes aeons, to unfold, giving you the impression of watching the film for five hours. 

The writing is pathetic full of holes and inconsistencies

I assume that the producers have configured that they want to produce a film based on a genre and worked backwards in making the film.

There has been so much of concepts that have been borrowed and darkness itself has been force fitted into the narrative that seems not too reflective of Karthik Subbaraj'  style, who normally has a lot of fun making a movie.

Karhtik Subbaraj should be ashamed of producing this movie and so must the censors for allowing the release of the film. 

Discussion of explicit details of despicable crimes and the disgusting pleasures of perpetrating such a crime, can be avoided.

There is always the discussion that, Does art narrates stories from life or does Llfe replicates stories from Art?

However, most certainly the same story could have been narrated with a lot of fun and action, devoid of darkness, that is not necessarily needed, especially in these times.

This Penguin is a repellent.

PS:

In real life, would it be so easy to steal a Penguin's egg, without somebody else knowing it??

Choked: Paisa Bolta Hai

Attaboy Anurag!!

Choked is a clever, concerned, creative, candid, compassionate and critical  commentary laced with wit, sarcasm and black humour  and has the unmistakable stamp of Anurag Kashyap.

The reference to clogged drainage is again as much a distraction as the undercurrent of the narrative on demonetization.

Choked are the souls of protagonists trying to redeem themselves of their defeats and setbacks that seem to haunt them. 

While the narrative on demonetization is a distraction, there are a few creative liberties in the demonetization stretch, which bring a smile to your face.

The way the demonetization is announced by one of the characters is nothing short of brilliant

The positive impact of demonetization, while never explicitly discussed is so cleverly used as the movie unfolds.

The ensuing "kuthu" song in Tamil after the announcement of demonetization, is another interesting creative  liberty. The song captures the mood of ensuing confusion that kicks in after  the announcement of demonetization. It is hilarious to see some Bhangra thrown in for a fraction of a second to the "Kuthu" tunes.

As the banks open up and the Sardar comes out valiantly after getting his quota of Rs. 4,000 for the day and takes a Selfie, in true Anurag mode the scene toggles to an old lady, haggard and tired, braving the queue requesting for some additional money that will save her trouble of not needing to come again, there is a poignancy that is laced with anger.

The narrative is suspenseful and I liked a particular scene which seem to be clearly inspired from Roman Holiday. 

It is just heart warming to note that good old integrity remains the greatest virtue and hope for mankind.

P.S: 

BirdMan's backgorund score has been tweaked throughout the film. While it is fascinating, just in case the tune was not brought or permission not taken, I feel that this is blatant plagiarism. Certainly not expected from Anurag Kashyap and Amit Trivedi.