Tag Archives: salvation

Ronggeng Kematian

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Vampire Owl: Do you remember the first Indonesian movie which we watched?

Vampire Bat: Yes, before that, most of the reviews were Korean and Chinese.

Vampire Owl: Yes, and now, most reviews remain Korean, Spanish, Russian and French.

Vampire Bat: The Spanish also had risen in numbers very soon.

Vampire Owl: Well, there are thirty-one languages, so a few will surely have more numbers.

Vampire Bat: Well, all of a sudden, Filippino movies came to the list when it seemed to end with thirty languages of movies.

Vampire Owl: Among Indonesian movies are a few classic ones, right?

Vampire Bat: Yes, one classic horror and one classic superhero, for sure.

Vampire Owl: It is also the one country we have visited.

Vampire Bat: We did not think about watching when we were there in Bali.

[Gets an onion uthappam and three cups of Munnar tea].

What is the movie about? :: In the remote Magunsari village of Central Java in Indonesia, a young man named Imam (Elang El Gibran) is in love with Sulastri (Cindy Nirmala), a charming and beautiful ronggeng dancer, the village’s only true expert in the dance form, and the one who represents the local culture and traditions through her moves, with the woods making sure that the place maintains its cultural heritage separate from the rest of the island. That night, Sulastri is entertaining a number of men in the guest house with her tradition dance. A local man with a mental disease, Akhsan (Allan Dastan), also comes there to propose her while Imam gets there with the ring to provide his proposal to her. When the lights go out all of a sudden, Imam investigates place while Akhsan runs off, only to be attacked from behind and murdered. Later, Sulastri is also not found with her missing, and both her and Imam are never heard of. The village keep searching for her, but with no results, and there is nobody to keep the traditional dancing going on either, with the assigned girls never being as good as her.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: Seven years have passed since the incident, and still nothing is found. During this time, a young woman named Larasati (Claresta Taufan Kusumarina) and her boyfriend Hadi (Chicco Kurniawan) makes their usual journey through the woods, and parts ways. Larasati who keeps on walking through the forest on the way home finds a red scarf and an old radio near an old and ruined well which is not in use. When she finds the scarf to be lovely and puts it on, she suddenly is able to dance in the traditional form of ronggeng with so much perfection as if it was done by Sulastri. Larasati seems to be acting under the guidance of Sulastri’s spirit, sometimes seeming to be fully possessed. It is then that four men led by Adit (Revaldo) arrives in the village for a ceremony. They stay in the same guesthouse where the tragedy occurred seven years ago, and there are more sinister events to follow. What could be triggering these events, and what might have happened to the dancer and her lover?

The defence of Ronggeng Kematian :: This movie’s arrival in Amazon Prime Video once again takes us back to the folklore as well as culture and traditions of the lesser-known areas of Indonesia, in the island of Java itself, setting the world to the villages. The movie seems to have realized that the past will remain significant and therefore any folklore can further strengthen a movie. Therefore, the layering seems to be nicely implemented, as we often get a look into the past as much as the present. This does make the mystery more interesting, and it nicely keeps the narrative going. There is also the reality and the magical coming and going. The tension is nicely built not just by the atmosphere, but also through the actions of the characters and the influence of the supernatural. There is that journey to that twist, of which part we will know after some time, but the rest is revealed nicely, and then there is that ending which solves them all. The characters nicely fit into the cultural flavours and situations. Scares do work with the fine visuals that gives a nice touch at all times, for the settings are such boost.

The claws of flaw :: The movie could have always been capable of more, as the premise seems to have already set foot strongly. There are moments which keep pulling it back as we sometimes wonder if there was the attempt to keep the whole thing on the safe zone without going that much into the details. The jump between the timelines might not satisfy everyone, and those who are looking for the usual horror might not get the usual here. The antagonists are also not given much to do in the later part of the film, as they can only act helpless. A few things just seem to happen with the flow and as if they happen because they need to. There is no grand scare, except for the fear added due to mystery and atmosphere; maybe budget constraints were there. There could have been a fine legend being talked about based on the happenings. The early pacing also did have some struggle and confusion, with fear elements holding back for some time. The elements of guilt do not work that strongly around here either.

The performers of the soul :: Claresta Taufan Kusumarina leads the way here with a fantastic performance as the possessed dancer as much as the girl next door who is in love with the boy whom he has always known. The different layers of the character are displayed well by her, even at a time when demonic possession could go so wrong, given the circumstances of the return of the spirit from the other world and its motives. Her body movement during the dance also feels every elegant, even though we are not qualified enough to talk about the dance form. Cindy Nirmala’s dancing skills are also on display very well, and the return from the grave works really well for her. She has her own moments outside the dancing too. Revaldo comes in really well and is well supported by those playing his friends. Chicco Kurniawan makes the viewer feel the terror that is hidden beneath the happy village and its culture and traditions. The roles played by these characters despite not seeming that relevant, are all significant to the overall movie.

How it finishes :: There is something about the Indonesian folklore and ancient beliefs that keeps us interested at all times. Indonesian movies have surely kept us interested, especially the one superhero movie which made us wish that we had our own – Gundala; post which we had Minnal Murali and Lokah Chapter One: Chandra. Then there was the classic horror in the form of Impetigore and a twisted thriller in the form of Photocopier. Ivanna and Grave Torture also had moments which made them work. The movie does not lag behind, even though there are moments when it could have raised the level. We do see that the movie mostly does its job very well. With cultural flavour and scares, along with being a tale of vengeance, this one run strong without deviating from its purpose, a quality that many horror movies have ceased to have. We are brought close to the Indonesian horror yet again with this one, and we hope that there will be many more horror based on folklore, as we remember Stree from around here too.

Release date: 28th March 2024
Running time: 98 minutes
Directed by: Verdi Solaiman
Starring: Cindy Nirmala, Claresta Taufan Kusumarina, Chicco Kurniawan, Krisjiana Baharuddin, Dito Darmawan, Allan Dastan, Elang El Gibran, Nungki Kusumastuti

<<< Click here to go to the previous review.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Shaitaan

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Vampire Owl: So, is the movie really about the devil?

Vampire Bat: There are many demons who identify as the devil.

Vampire Owl: Is there anyone whom you know?

Vampire Bat: We do not make acquaintances with the shadow world.

Vampire Owl: We are also nocturnal creatures of the shadows.

Vampire Bat: We are the shadow warriors, but we are not shadows.

Vampire Owl: Shadows are still our allies, and they even provide warnings.

Vampire Bat: Allies do not make us. We are better than that.

Vampire Owl: The shadows will keep us safe.

Vampire Bat: Not just the shadows, we shall stay in the dark forever.

[Gets a masala bonda and three cups of mint tea].

What is the movie about? :: Kabir Rishi (Ajay Devgn), a chartered accountant, his wife Jyoti Rishi (Jyothika), daughter Jahnvi Rishi (Janki Bodiwala) and son Dhruv Rishi (Anngad Raaj) decides to take a break from their busy routine, and spend some time at their farmhouse in the outskirts of Dehradun, Uttarakhand. Jahnvi is hoping to end this trip as soon as possible, and go on her on tour with friends, especially her boyfriend. On the way, at a dhaba, they come across a man named Vanraj Kashyap (R Madhavan), who offers them tea when they do not have change. He seems to be a nice person who shows the photo of his daughter and gives friendly advice. He also gives Jahnvi who does not want to have roti and tea, a laddu which she accepts happily. He also leaves her with a few biscuits, much to the dismay of Jyoti. As they reach the farmhouse, they are surprised to find Vanraj following them there. They also find out that Jahnvi had invited him inside the house, and he sits there on the couch as a guest.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: He only asks for a cup of tea and charger for the phone, but soon, Janhvi ends up threatening her brother under his influence, which makes Kabir and Jyoti ask him to leave immediately, to which he disagrees. Before Kabir can push him out, Janhvi under Vanraj’s command stops him. Vanraj says that he has hypnotized Janhvi using black magic, and that she will obey every instruction he gives. To prove his control, he orders her to repeatedly stand and sit, and she does the same robotically. To make them believe in the extremes of his power, he makes her take a tea packet and eat raw tea leaves. He also makes Janhvi slap her father and make her laugh and cry. As she is asked to jump into the swimming pool and stay underwater until he tells her, the parents understand the grave situation. As the frightened family gives him the mobile phones as told, he makes Janhvi destroy all the phones in the house, cutting off their communication with the outside world. Now the question remains about what does he plan to do, and what does he want from the family.

The defence of Shaitaan :: The movie rests on the shoulders of Janki Bodiwala who brings a performance that nobody would ever forget, as she alternates between her character’s own personality and that of a hypnotized mind, as we see her helplessness and determination to commit a task according to an order at the same time, and moving between the two. Madhavan’s alternation between the gentleman and pure evil entity is not that far behind either, as his evolution as an actor is seen again, but we know that he could have also done the father-figure to perfection if given that role. The movie keeps us closer to the situation, because we know that it is indeed a usual family in trouble, even though a little bit too bourgeoisie for many, with the main character driving a Benz Car and owning a huge farmhouse in a hill station besides his original home in the city. The feelings that we have for the family is much more as we can relate to them, at least most of us. The danger is always there, with the younger child closest to death than any other, even though I would consider all lives as equal whether that of children or the elders – I am not a robot to calculate how much more they will live and be useful to society or turn into murderous psychopaths.

Positives and negatives :: The movie might not be appreciated as doing as good as the original, but we know that it is true for all Bollywood adaptations, a case which is best depicted in the works od Priyadarshan, as the original Malayalam movies were all classics which can have no match, certainly none with nepotism factor taking around, like in the case of that remake of Helen. The idea of the original version would always stay strong, and with this one made on a bigger budget and made to suit the spoon-fed and feel-good-seeking audience, some of the soul of a dark movie would be left out – we know what the Bollywood have been involved in making big blockbusters, and so the taste difference would be looked at by the makers who remake works. But the movie has its tension perfectly built and the danger felt from within, with no exaggeration. Each and every moment in the house seems to be perfectly created, and the cast nicely adapts to the same. The satanic touch brings the terror as the movie shifts its world by the end really well.

The performers of the soul :: Janki Bodiwala is the one person who steals the show, long above the veteran stars who surrounds her, and it is no surprise as her character stays at the centre and decides too many outcomes. She had also played the same character in the original movie, and that experience seems to count. This work will establish her as one of the best among the future stars of Bollywood, and maybe could have a hand in another regional cinema too. She has the biggest moments of the film to perform, like the one where sits on the gas cylinder, dancing without end and those smiles and laughs for no reason which are truly spooky. Madhavan might have played the best villain in a horror movie, and let us hope that the ending of Hindi version does not spoil his chance to bring a sequel with him in it. The way in which he gives instructions and talks about his own greatness provides us with the chills. Ajay Devgn and Jyothika plays the helpless parents who still struggle to make things happen and save their family quite well. As the former nicely manages to bring the heroic father to the scene, let’s see what the next sequel of Drishyam brings, as Bollywood is ready take the script from the Malayalam version, and Tamil, Telugu and other versions would be waiting.

How it finishes :: Shaitaan, as a remake of the 2023 Gujarati film Vash, makes a fine impact, even though most of us have not watched the original. But from what has been heard, the original is more of the classic, but as we only have this one around here, and it is very well-made, despite the ending seemingly not that special compared to the original. There is a haunting and satisfying feeling about it, with that strength which is rarely seen in pure horror movies of Bollywood, even though movies like Stree and its sequel had made horror comedy working better. The best horror of pure seriousness was done well by Bollywood quite long ago, and most of the time there were only movies like 3G and Murder which only partially did the job. But this one will surely achieve a legendary status, despite being an adaptation of an older film. Remakes will work very well if done in the right manner, and this one proves it. This is also a proof for the fact that you do not need to keep looking at Hollywood for horror every time, and basic elements for the same working out is right here, with us.

Release date: 8th March 2024
Running time: 132 minutes
Directed by: Vikas Bahl
Starring: Janki Bodiwala, Ajay Devgn, R Madhavan, Jyothika, Anngad Raaj

<<< Click here to go to the previous review.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Nosferatu

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Vampire Owl: Finally, our Count is coming back to the big screen.

Vampire Bat: This one is not really the true Dracula Uncle.

Vampire Owl: Well, Count Orlok is not lesser than Count Dracula.

Vampire Bat: I have heard from humans that this Orlok is an illegal version.

Vampire Owl: Well, there are no such rules in vampire kingdom, right?

Vampire Bat: Human rules need not apply here, but we should know.

Vampire Owl: We will never really know the humans.

Vampire Bat: We will know everything except their inherent evil.

Vampire Owl: Well, which is why we do not transform humans into vampires anymore.

Vampire Bat: I am sure that they want to; the greed for eternal life and perpetual youth.

[Gets a tea cake and three cups of Ooty tea].

What is the movie about? :: Ellen Hutter (Lily-Rose Depp) is a recently married young woman who has had too many nightmares in her life in the past, and it is revealed that her recent bad dream about being married to death and everyone around her dead. It is revealed that while looking for consolation from her loneliness and depression in life, during her random chants and prayers, she had ended up creating a psychic link with Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård), or what they villagers of Romania used to call Nosferatu, with Romanian roots. The nocturnal creature of pure evil had marked Ellen from thousands of kilometres away, and this connection often led her into situations of seizures and sleepwalking. She keeps having hallucinations and a feeling of being with death, from which escape seems almost impossible. She has been living in the German town of Wisborg with her husband Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult) and is irreversibly in love with him as it seems, but this connection seems to have journeyed through the unimaginable, the darkest of the woods and deepest of the rivers and lakes.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: It is then that Thomas accepts the offer to sell the partially ruined Grünewald Manor to a reclusive lord named Count Orlok located somewhere in Romania. Ellen talks about her nightmares and pleads Thomas not to leave for those unknown lands where a certain cursed evil lurks, but the offer from his employer is too much for him not to accept this opportunity of a life time. He leaves her in the care of his wealthy friend and famous shipbuilder Friedrich Harding (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and his wife Anna Harding (Emma Corrin) who lives with their two little daughters. As he arrives at the Carpathians in the Transylvanian area of Romania, Thomas is warned not to wander around during the nights and not to visit Orlok. During the same night, he still wanders around and witnesses a group of gypsies running a ritual with a fully naked woman on a horse which ends with the exhuming and impaling a vampire’s corpse with a wooden stake, ending the undead life with a lot of blood coming out of its mouth. The next morning, he finds no help or support, and leaves for the count’s castle alone and on foot.

And what is to follow as the Count maintains all the control over the world known to him? :: In his castle, Count Orlok welcomed Thomas as the aristocrat that required respect at all times. But soon, his existence as something more than human is revealed to Thomas, who hopes to escape, but the paths of the castle only lead to the crypt where the count is sleeping in his coffin, and he is not able to attack him as the vampire awakens, and so do his demonic hounds. He understands that he will have to remain a prisoner in the castle forever, as the document which the count made him sign might not be the Romanian version of the deal concerning the property, but a document dissolving his marriage to Ellen and the vampire had also taken his locket, containing a lock of her hair. He understands the vampire is going after his wife, and jumps into the river below the castle to escape. But the count has already started his journey and has infested a ship which is on its way to Germany. He will not stop at anything unless he becomes together with Ellen. Can anyone stop this evil from embracing her and also spread through the whole of Western Europe? Or will the blood-seeking demon have a blood feast that will last forever?

The defence of Nosferatu :: The movie achieves atmospheric horror and thrives with the sound effects as much as the visuals. There is fear running through the air, as we rarely see a world thriving on light here. The psychological side very strong here, and the performance of Lily-Rose Depp is truly magical here, with so many moments to remember, and the final few moments of her is out of this world. I cannot stop myself from not being the new admirer of Johnny Depp’s daughter as I have been a fan of him. I can say that I have never seen the main female character of any version of Bram Stoker’s work getting such attention which is supported by a performance of grandeur. The connection to the demonic creature and talk about all of this terror has never been so perfectly detailed and connected to the female lead. Nicholas Hoult and Willem Dafoe works the roles just as expected, while Bill Skarsgård’s demon is something we have not seen before, well divergent in looks and actions to create more terror. Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Emma Corin move through expected paths. These are not just characters, but people who immerse us in their wisely created world with fine performances.

Positives and negatives :: It can be said that there is no movie based on Bram Stoker’s work that has provided an emotional and haunting touch like this one, and a terrifying vampire movie becoming an emotional tale of love and selflessness keeps us rooting for the film even more, like never before. The movie basically like music which strives for a fight against the most terrifying form of evil with love. By the end, here we know that as evil always finds a way, so does goodness and self-sacrifice. Finally, we know that the melancholy of the main character is not hers alone, but of all of us. It is a poetry on what it takes to thrive against the most ancient forms of evil. The sequence in the forest makes a fine reflection which is to come, and there are some classic shots in the castle that elevates this movie to a psychic-psychological mood which is rarely seen in the adaptations. The final image from where the camera zooms out reflects the same, and that too with a melancholic beauty. There is also some work with demonic possession, which is actually shown without any overdose. This is indeed a fine Gothic work that reflects the Victorian Age even when not in Britain. The one thing that we might really be missing is the Brides of Dracula.

How it finishes :: This is the one movie which becomes a fine divergent tribute to both the 1922 version of Nosferatu and the many later versions of Dracula as well as the original book, along with being a different entity in itself. There seems to be so many inspirations, and many creative ideas placed around here. This version is sure to be remembered as a classic in future, no matter problems critics would find, which would be lost in the process. This version might be the one which needs even more attention than what it has managed. This is that version of the vampire that maintains all kinds of feeling which are related to a vampire as a nocturnal creature that feeds from the lifeforce of humans. There are not many movies which can pay homage to so many of its predecessors and still remain something new. This one, with some fantastic performance and an atmosphere which would put even the high-budget movies to shame, manages to rise and seek theatre experience – it is quite depressing that the movie was not really found in theatres when it released.

Release date: 25th December 2024
Running time: 132 minutes
Directed by: Robert Eggers
Starring: Bill Skarsgård, Nicholas Hoult, Lily-Rose Depp, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Emma Corrin, Willem Dafoe, Katerina Bila

<<< Click here to go to the previous review.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Falimy

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Vampire Owl: I think that humans no longer have the concept of ideal family.

Vampire Bat: Are you referring to the change of spelling here?

Vampire Owl: I am referring to the idea of a perfect family.

Vampire Bat: Humans have never been family-oriented by nature.

Vampire Owl: So, the human nature has been missing for long?

Vampire Bat: They are moving away from families as it is not in their nature.

Vampire Owl: So, there are no families anymore?

Vampire Bat: Almost all families of humans are broken now.

Vampire Owl: So, there is no more hope for them?

Vampire Bat: Hope is now a thing of the undead, not of the living.

[Gets a vancho cake and three cups of Darjeeling tea].

What is the movie about? :: Janardhanan (Meenaraj Palluruthy) is an 82 year old man, the eldest person in the family who keeps trying to travel to Varanasi, but every time someone from his family finds him on the way and brings him back. But that does not stop him from trying again and again. On one occasion, he had almost boarded the train itself. His son Chandran (Jagadish) does not go for any job, and had ended up shutting down the printing press owned by the family. He spends most of his time doing nothing except watching television. He has a lack of interest in family matters, and becomes more and more alcoholic as time progresses. Chandran’s wife Rema (Manju Pillai) is working at a press, and tries to keep her family running without problems. She keeps the family together after giving her best efforts. The elder son of Chandran and Rema, Anoop (Basil Joseph) works as a dubbing artist in a nearby studio. Abhijith (Sandeep Pradeep), the younger child spends his time doing nothing, and dreaming about getting out of India, preferably the United Kingdom.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: Things seem to get better when Anoop gets an alliance from Anagha (Raina Radhakrishnan), a school teacher who had earlier rejected the idea of marriage itself. The engagement gets into trouble as a man named Robin (Joemon Jyothir) disrupts the ceremony, claiming to be her lover. Abhijith beats him up, only to be chased by the goons regularly. Anoop who feels cheated decides to go to Varanasi for a change, accompanying his grandfather, and a frightened Abhijith also decides to go with them. Chandran and Rema also decide to go and according to the plan, they get into the train. On the way, at a railway station at night, Chandran finds himself tricked by a tea-selling boy at a railway station, and he is stranded at the station with his wife and two sons. The grandfather is also forced to get out of the train, and the whole family is forced to continue the journey by road. But with tension building between them, can they finally finish the journey? How far will they travel?

The defence of Falimy :: There is a pretty good attempt to display a middle class family with all the small problems that become inflated as members do not understand each other too well. The realizations that come across them are nicely shown here. Having Basil Joseph at the centre surely has worked in favour of the movie, and Antony Varghese withdrawing from the project did not do that much of a damage. The message about importance of being one family and providing values to the desires of the elders could get the attention here. The frustrations in the movie do feel real, as the meaningless existence of a few and the inability to find meaning for others do get some presence here. Living through some habits which lead nowhere would not feel strange to our people, as doing nothing itself has become a habit due to the rise of Youtube – people these days know nothing other than to make videos which are watched by more jobless people, and it is one reason why we need the Terminator-type apocalypse to come and internet to go down. The visuals outside Kerala makes an impact, especially as we get closer to Varanasi with the characters.

The claws of flaw :: The movie does go through its struggles just like the characters within it. There seems to be the feeling that there is comedy when there is none. The comic side often losses its charm as it is lost between reality and the need to add something extra. In the name of showing middle class families, the movie also shows too many brainless people – in a society, we would expect at least one person to have some brain, but this locality and extended family seems to be different, and it is to be noted that this is not a Kuniramayanam or Adi Kapyare Koottamani type of film to move that way. The poverty here seems to be that of intellect rather than anything else. The movie could have used its spirituality at the end to its advantage, or bring back the wedding element to create the feel-good, but this one is caught between the feel-good and the dumb comedy which often prevents film from making the best out of the available potential. There was so much to be done, but this family takes the easy path, and that might have felt like the safer one for them. This is where the struggle feels more real for the movie than the characters.

The performers of the soul :: Basil Joseph remains the major protagonist here, and he adds more to the existing factors like in Enkilum Chandrike. He makes this character so good with the frustration, helplessness and meaningless existence which becomes him – you know that it is very difficult for a young man to get married in this part of the world if you do not have a government job. At the same time, Jagadish and Manju Pillai makes a fine combination and adds to some situational and realistic humour, but the latter do not have a Home-like platform here to get to serious mode. Sandeep Pradeep also comes up with some fine performance in a new generation realistic mode here. Meenaraj Palluruthy has a fine performance which would be remembered for long, and the emotional touch remains strong. Boloram Das who plays the main character outside Kerala also leaves us with some fine moments to cherish, filled with funny elements. Raina Radhakrishnan who is like the main female lead for a few minutes also leaves a mark – the moments have a cute side as well as a tragic one, which sets the world moving forward. It could have been good to have her back at the end of the movie, but it was not to be.

How it finishes :: Falimy is a movie which could have surely been much better, and there could have been better quality associated with different elements present here. The attempts to create comedy out of nowhere do not work at all times, but the simplicity and the plan to remain close to reality would keep it going and gain the positive appreciation that it required. The journey still does not become a Kumbalangi Nights kind of adventure which we could cherish for a longer period of time. It has been strange throughout the movie to see so many opportunities to be wasted. You cannot keep asking the ordinary space to create something special out of situations, and that is where the problem lies. Consistency has not been a quality of this film from the beginning itself. Yet, we watch this one for those moments, the comic ones that work here and there and the emotional ones that struggle even further to create impact. The movie surely manages to be at a higher level than the rubbish that is provided to us in the form of realism, like Angamaly Diaries and Annayum Rasoolum, two of the most miserable nothingness movies in the history of Malayalam cinema.

Release date: 15th December 2023 (Hotstar); 17th November 2023 (Theatre)
Running time: 127 minutes
Directed by: Nithish Sahadev
Starring: Basil Joseph, Jagadish, Manju Pillai, Abhiram Radhakrishnan, Raina Radhakrishna, Joemon Jyothir, Boloram Das, Amith Mohan, Meenaraj Palluruthy, Sandeep Pradeep

<<< Click here to go to the previous review.

<<< Click here to go to the previous movie with a trip.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

God’s Own Cleetus

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cleetus (3)

I have taken the liberty to anglicize Daivathinte Swantham Cleetus into God’s Own Cleetus just like how Daivathinte Swantham Naadu becomes God’s Own Country. No, this is not that much of a lovable character to be baptised twice, but it is the effort of the actor behind the character and the way in which he has done justice to that character which makes Cleetus our own. Yes, you might find the world of this movie asking for a better treatment, but for a debutant director and the background which has been used, this is a very good recovery for a movie which didn’t impress the audience by its trailer nor with the brief storyline which was shared. Let me be clear about one thing; this movie could have gone either way, to the depths of abyss or to the heights of the lost paradise regained. If there is a question about where it stands at the moment, it is a long way from that abyss. Yes, Daivathinte Swantham Cleetus has survived, and did use its survival instincts well enough to add on to that survival guide new stories of goodness and faith. If you don’t like this movie, that is still understandable, but it can never stoop low enough to deserve hatred, that is where this movie plays safe, and it is how this movie shall hold on to its audience during this Onam vacation.

It will be facing a tough competition from the most awaited movie of the Onam, Dileep’s Sringaravelan, a possible surprise in the form of Indrajith Sukumaran’s Ezhamathe Varavu, and an interest-seeking Fahadh flick North 24 Kaatham, as we leave D Company out of that list. The Hollywood’s challenge in the form of Grown Ups 2 has self-destructed, and Bollywood’s John Day along with Horror Story are too much limited in shows with an adult-rated Grand Masti not to be an Onam favourite for sure. With pretty much a good competition in store, Daivathinte Swantham Cleetus might not be expected to do that good, but the verdict for the other Malayalam movies are not really out yet. Why would we still need movies like this to survive? Because it has tried its luck in an unfamiliar territory even if the fuel is a familiar one. It has a little bit of Chamayam, Pranchiyettan and The Saint and Amen in it, hidden well, but not from the eyes of experienced movie watchers. But, has the movie relentlessly tried to dig these movies out? The answer is no. There is nothing in common as a whole, and our movie has successfully brought out a legacy of its own, not from the ashes, but out of the most valuable sparks which could give rise to a phoenix.

The story tells the story of Cleetus (Mammootty), a feared criminal who causes problems wherever he goes. He is an alcoholic and always ready to do anything for money. As a parish priest Sunny Vadakkumthala (Siddique) chooses him to act as Jesus Christ in a drama as part of a church programme without knowing his true identity, something he does after rejecting a lot of people, chaos breaks loose among the theatre artists. The priest decides to persist with him and his sidekick (Aju Varghese) despite knowing his true identity, in the belief that the experience of being a character such as Jesus Christ might reform him, thus taking a huge risk considering the massive show which is going to happen and the audience expected. If Cleetus changes or makes the people around him change, whether the drama happens or Cleetus makes a clear mess out of it is left to be seen. Will Jesus Christ’s life change Cleetus or will his life change the fate of the drama in a horrible way? The movie answers the question very late, as every time, he would seem to get a little better, the world around him changes needing him to make those adjustments he is not used to make.

The whole movie undoubtedly rests on Mammootty, and as once again he rises to occasion, it is a treat to all the fans and neutral audience alike. No, Cleetus is not Immanuel, Kunjananthan, Bavutty or Mathukkutty, for he is a gunda, and he is surely nowhere near Pranchiyettan. A long list of characters of goodness is teared apart here, as our protagonist starts as the sinner who is not even set on the path to redemption. Unlike the others, Cleetus is a man who rises and takes the chalice of goodness, finishing it with relative ease. There is no denying that the image gets some self-imposed backlashes, but nothing that will not contribute to Cleetus being more and more human, with the shades of grey rather than pitch black – after all who can deny some mood-swings? Do we love Cleetus? The answer would be no. But he gets as close to being lovable as possible for a man seeking redemption, and he seemed to have attained some of it by the end. He comes that far by keeping himself far away from a superhuman image which could come across this time, even as there is no denying the fact that our protagonist beats up a lot of people, something which was expected right from the beginning.

Even as the movie belongs to Mammootty in an undisputed manner, Aju Varghese, Suraj Venjaramoodu and Thesni Khan handles the humour department quite effectively. Suraj remains the strong link of humour in this flick. Rejith Menon has made his presence felt, as the one and only Romeo character in the movie. Honey Rose is very good in her role, and it a matured character that we see this time. Sanam Shetty has that beautiful presence, something which she carries over from what we saw in Cinema Company, that grace and beauty which was talked about as that of a Greek goddess in that movie; for there is no denying who is the Aphrodite as well as the Juliet in this movie. Vijayaraghavan leaves a mark as one of the villain characters, and so does Kailash. Siddique was at his best, doing a character which he seemed to perfect. It is impossible to keep him out of this world where he once again does a fantastic job. There is a tremendous energy in his character, and also that much needed serenity, the two things which seemed to suit each other very well. One of our favourite comedy stars on television, Ullas Pandalam also makes good mark in the movie.

So, can the worst of people change and go back to God? Daivathinte Swantham Cleetus shows us that all hope is not lost. As the character goes through playing the life of Jesus Christ, his attitude towards life changes too, as a lot of the events in the life of Christ seems to be reflecting in his own world in a small and slightly similar manner. We have a man who has no previous acting experience, like Manoj K. Jayan in Chamayam. No, I am not really comparing, for that one would make it to my all-time favourite list, or may be more than one list. As that monologue in William Shakespeare’s As You Like It, “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts” – here Cleetus plays one, and plays it fine and it replaces his real life as his new role, and it didn’t just go away as one of the parts which he played, as it stayed on with him. It is “Quod fere totus mundus exerceat histrionem” (Because almost the whole world are actors) as Petronius is supposed to have given us. Some of us live our part and others play our roles, and in both cases, the path is similar and leading to the same destination.

Well, we know that it is never late to turn to God. It is the faith, belief and hope that is supposed to guide us rather than materialism. Daivathinte Swantham Cleetus comes up with a great spectacle of divinity by the end, something which is comparable to Amen’s final battle of music, even as this one is less about music and more about the scenes. Is there a hidden magic realism in it? Does it have the magic touch of Pranchiyettan and The Saint helping the movie on moving forward? These are questions which can have more than one answers. But for now, this movie has done its part, but not living upto its potential. The life of Cleetus and his transformation could have been a lot more interesting. It was so close to achieving that balance that a little Icarus-sun battle might have brought it closer to its current rating. It is still your choice if you are to choose one man, who is both the saint and the sinner, saviour and the punisher, redeemer and the destroyer, moving from the path of evil to the way of goodness paved by angels and showered by blessings. This is another Pilgrim’s Progress from the City of Destruction to the Celestial City. The destiny of Cleetus now stands in the hands of the viewers, and its final fate is yet to be decided.

Release date: 12th September 2013
Running time: 140 minutes (estimate)
Directed by: Marthandan
Starring: Mammootty, Honey Rose, Aju Varghese, Sanam Shetty, Rejith Menon, Kailash, Siddique, Suraj Venjaramoodu, Thesni Khan, Vinayakan, Vijayaraghavan, Anoop Chandran, P. Balachandran, Ullas Pandalam

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@ Cemetery Watch
✠The Vampire Bat.

Diamond Necklace

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As they say in the movie Neram, there are two types of time, the good time and the bad time, and the good time of Fahadh Faasil had started from Chaappa Kurishu, with no disasters at the box office moving on to Immanuel. I didn’t really like what came later though, but as we know already, another thing about our versatile actor is that we can often identify his career with the quote from Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities too; “it was the best of times, it was the worst of times” and I would identify the same with his other movies, Annayum Rasoolum and Natholi Oru Cheriya Meenalla. Yes, Diamond Necklace was part of the good time, or the best of times, and it was the best from Lal Jose, no real doubt about that unless you bring Achanurangatha Veedu, Classmates or Arabikkatha into the picture with a handful of logic. Does any of these movies have this simple a plot set in too simple a world, and still come up with such an intriguing situation on screen? No, they were movies of incidents, revolving around one major incident or decision which set the events running while Diamond Necklace belongs to everyday life, and a collection of life; its celebration as the worlds of ups and downs which flows through our life, supported by beautiful songs, “Nilamalare”, “Thottu Thottu” and “Nenjinullil”.

Arun Kumar (Fahadh Faasil) is a docor who lives in Dubai and leads a life of luxury, supported by his wallet full of credit cards. He has no regret about the past or worries about the future, as he lives in the present, spending money lavishly with nobody to stop him from doing the same. His friends belong to higher league, and he shares apartment with his friend in the tallest buildig in the middle east and the world, Burj Khalifa. Savithri (Rohini), his boss in the hospital also seems to spoil him with her sisterly affection, but she is also unaware of how much of a debt Arun is putting himself into. He has acquaintances with labourers from Kerala, especially Venu (Sreenivasan) whom he tries to avoid in his stylish, high quality life which has no place for the lesser people of lower social status, even as he is still friendly with all on the outside. Driving the latest cars and enjoying life to the maximum, he meets Lakshmi(Gauthami Nair), a newly recruited Tamil nurse in his department. She is the first girl to whom he is seriously attracted. She had come to the middle east with a dream of making enough money for building a hospital in their village, so that no more people have to die there for having no facilities or money. Arun is impressed by her wits, attitude and dedication towards work.

Even as their relation blossoms, his chances of going through with it receives a serious blow, as he runs out of money and his car is towed away by the creditors. He is left with no way to go home and see his sick mother as the credits keep him in the country. He is helped by an influential man, Narayana Menon (Maniyanpilla Raju) who makes it possible for him to go back to Kerala, but at the same time, he is tricked into marriage with Narayanan’s niece, Rajasree (Anusree) who is a simple village girl who has absolutely no clue about city life nor life outside Kerala. Even as they are thought to be a rich family, Rajasree’s world is later known to be a small and simple one, not enough to pay back even a percent of Arun’s credits. When he comes back to Dubai, he is left with no place to stay, and as he doesn’t have enough advance to pay for any place, he stays in the labor camp with Venu. Lakshmi who comes to know about his marriage, ends their relationship and refuses to talk to him. Maya (Samvrutha Sunil), a relative of Savithri, is a fashion designer who was diagnosed with cancer, with a wish to start a boutique in Dubai. Her fiancee had left her due to her illness which had left her highly depressed. Arun ends up sharing her apartment and becomes very close to her.

Later, when she sees Rajasree with him, she is shocked as she didn’t know that he was married, and is admitted in the hospital. It leaves Savithri with lesser affection towards him. As he gathers her possessions, he notices a diamond necklace that she keeps with her, something which can save him from his problems. He decides to replace it with a fake one and does the same successfully. This is where the whole situation revolving around a necklace arises, as his wife finds the original necklace and wears it thinking that it is a birthday gift from him. Meanwhile, Maya almost dies due to an overdose of medicine. He is unable to get the necklace back from his wife who has shown the same to almost everyone including her foul-mouthed relatives of vanity. He often feels that he should return it to Maya and he can’t, and neither can he sell it. Caught between the worlds of greed, remorse and helpless, the only people who are with him consists of the simple labourers whom he once avoided. So, the plot still revolves around the ladies in his life, and how Arun comes out of this problem, not with any deus ex machina or a huge twist of fate, but rather with the simple things being the result of everyday happenings and common feelings makes the whole of the story. The artificial stuff has been kept out for good.

So, here is Fahadh Faasil showing his abilities as a versatile actor, moving away from the new generation trends of Chaappa Kurishu and 22 Female Kottayam, but coming up strong as an energetic youth who symbolizes the common young man of the century, with the usual attitude of “I will drink Life to the lees” which was said by the protagonist, the Ithacan king and the Greek hero, in the poem titled with his own name, Ulysses, by Alfred Lord Tennyson. That suspected hedonism in the face of our inescapable mortality found in The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám, the Edward FitzGerald translation, going back to the eleventh and the twelfth centuries has found ever increasing rhythm in this generation, but without the octopus hand of death and the ultimate end. “Carpe diem” as they can still say, from our own most mentioned ancient poet, Quintus Horatius Flaccus, known to most of us as Horace – “Seize the Day, putting as little trust as possible in the next day”, an idea which has developed into a liefstyle with loose morals leading to a life of unimaginable pleasure among the new generation. Epicureanism has made a more powerful entry to the new world, and as a kind of hedonism finding pleasure as the only intrinsic good, there is a new environment which is powerful and fast spreading. These, as I have already mentioned in my review of Spring Breakers, symbolizes the character Fahadh is playing in this movie.

But what does this hedonism, the power of “Carpe diem” bring to him? Does this help him to seize the day? Yes it does, but those days become long gone. I agree to the fact that we are all kind of hedonists in one way or the other, varying only in the degree. But considering the current world and the environment to which we are exposed, something which stays within the limits can rarely be interpreted as hedonism. But our protagonist belongs to the higher degree of “Carpe diem” as he puts as little trust as possible in the next day, as a man who is exposed to all the luxuries of the magical world of the city of Dubai, powered by oil, and highly influenced by modernity and science rather than antiquity, history or literature. For a man who comes the humble backgrounds of a small village, this might have been a big moment for him, being in Dubai and earning so much. It is evident in his relations with the labourers whom he consider as lesser people. But soon he realizes that they are the ones who are there to help him without asking anything in return, and it is his time to live like a common man rather than a hedonist, and live his life of responsibilities. Such a realization is supported by a beautiful ending which makes sure that his world remains one of beauty and goodness rather than crookedness and money. The movie itself is a message against irresponsible hedonism, and a support for unconditional love, responsibility and equality.

Once again, Fahadh Faasil is the man to watch out for, and I guess there is not much need to talk about the same, as it nothing unexpected. Samvrutha Sunil has a powerful role and she has done it with lots of life. Gauthami Nair makes a strong impact as the determined, powerful character. Anusree’s role is worth a lot of acclaim, and the funny moments come from her character’s stupidity, and still the goodness and love that the character exhibits makes this one quite a beautiful portrayal. Rohini and Sreenivasan have to play the roles of two seniors in the life of the protagonist who lends him advice and helping hand, and they form the world of light and goodness in his life. Diamond Necklace relates to its viewer with its tenderness and its high dose of objective correlative; with a reigning simplicity and reflections of the common incidents and random life events. It is the Malayalam movie of the year 2012, no matter how much anybody tries to prove that it isn’t. Also look out for the cinematography by Sameer Thahir; about our director Lal Jose, there is nothing more to say other than making a call to watch the movie. This was a movie which came into the theatres, disappeared, and came back again; such is awesomeness of this movie, even as only a few people recognized it during its first run, and myself came across the same during its comeback run in the local theatre.

Release date: 4th May 2012
Running time: 157 minutes
Directed by: Lal Jose
Starring: Fahadh Faasil, Samvrutha Sunil, Gauthami Nair, Anusree, Rohini, Sreenivasan, Maniyanpilla Raju, Kailash, Sukumari, Thesni Khan

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@ Cemetery Watch
✠The Vampire Bat.

The Wolverine

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The sixth movie of the X-Men film series has been released on that day on which I had to submit my thesis, which I found to be a reason to identify myself with the Wolverine; with immortality reigning both in my that thesis of mine and also through the blood of our leading character in this movie. The fact that this movie follows the events of the 2006 movie and the worst one of the series, X-Men: The Last Stand was depressing, but not many people can deny Wolverine a.k.a Logan a visit after how well X-Men Origins: Wolverine turned out to be. It was when X-Men: First Class released, that the realization about how much we miss this character flashed through the mind which was full of absurdity. The movie was still good, and if we think about how much bigger that movie would have become with this character, there might be shocking box-office figures expected. This is the impact Wolverine brings with him, and he is that character who has the status that almost rivals most of the individual heroes like Spider-Man, Superman and Batman, and clearly makes an impression which none of the X-Men can make alone. This is that movie which can take all the other English movies out of the theatres here, and from the bookings happening right now, that is quite likely.

So, this installment of the movie series comes up without the X-Men tag added to its title, and it is clear that this is more about Wolverine than anything else, and there is enough power in it to survive without that tag. Chronologically, this is to be considered X-Men 4 though, as this doesn’t follow X-Men Origins: Wolverine as some had thought it would. Logan (Hugh Jackman) has been living the life of a recluse after the death of Jean Grey which was a major part of the events of X-Men: The Last Stand which practically ended the need for the existence of X-Men as there was a period of relative peace which followed. But there is no peace of mind for Logan as is frequently troubled by hallucinations nightmares about Jean, whom he was forced to kill, and a lesser memory from the Nagasaki bombing of 1945 where he saved the life of a Japanese soldier. He maintains very less contact with the human world, and stays in the wilderness most of the time. One day, during a fight with a group of hunters in a bar, he is found by Yukio (Rila Fukushima), another mutant, representing Ichirō Yashida, the man whom Logan had saved earlier. He is asked to go to Tokyo so that the dying man can possibly thank him and bid adieu, to which Logan reluctantly agrees.

After reaching Japan, Logan comes across Yashida’s son Shingen (Hiroyuki Sanada)and his grand daughter, Mariko (Tao Okamoto), both seemingly having problems with the relationship with eachother. Yashida offers Logan the opportunity of a transfer of mutant powers to get rid of his immortality and die in peace instead of living in nightmares and pain. Logan refuses to transfer his powers to the dying man, and is later informed that Yashida has died. During the funeral, he saves Mariko from the assassins of an enemy clan with help from Kenuichio Harada (Will Yun Lee), an archer and Mariko’s lover. They get onboard a train and more opponents are encountered in a fighting sequence which involves combat even on the top of the train. While fighting, Logan is shot multiple times and finds out that he is not healing instantly as he used to, and has to be taken care of by a doctor. With another mutant, Viper (Svetlana Khodchenkova) chasing him for his powers, and Mariko being hunted by her own father for the control of the family business empire, Logan has more to deal with this time, at a time when he is losing his powers and has become incredibly close to mortality. But this would lead to that moment which he needs to get rid of the psychotic monster that his lover was, from his head. It might be worth fighting for.

It is fair to say that Hugh Jackman controls this movie and makes the whole thing work as if he is playing that much of a superhero as Spider-man, Superman or Batman. Wolverine has turned out to be the one mutant who can work out alone and be the saviour of the world alone. Hugh Jackman has achieved all these alone, and from what it seems, this could get a better box-office collection that X-Men: First Class which had so many more mutants with interesting powers. I would consider that one the better movie, but this one has Hugh Jackman and he has done magic with his character, something which would depress the audience if someone else was to play the Wolverine, from what it seems right now. The possibility of a stand-alone expansion to X-Men has been wonderfully done through his character. X-Men: The Last Stand might have dminished the scope of the whole franchise, and had made X-Men: First Class suffer; but the case of the movies featuring Wolverine as the hero would be different, and Hugh Jackman scores again and again right there. He was there as Leopold in Kate & Leopold, as Gabriel Van Helsing in Van Helsing, and as our favourite robot-controlling boxer in Real Steel. But what Wolverine does, stays not only with one movie, as the man has made the character bigger than what one mutant could ever be, and that is worth all the respect.

Haruhiko Yamanouchi as Ichirō Yashida brings surprises, and be ready for it. Tao Okamoto as Mariko Yashida brings a kind of serenity to the world which is otherwise full of heavy action and hidden evil. Rila Fukushima as Yukio adds to the martial arts segment of the movie, and as a mutant, she is one of the main three gifted people in the movie, and may be the more physically trained and skilled one among them. Will Yun Lee as Kenuichio Harada and Hiroyuki Sanada as Shingen Yashida also adds to the martial arts powered action sequences. Meanwhile, Svetlana Khodchenkova makes an entrance as Viper, a poisonous mutant immune to toxins, resembling a snake in many ways. She is seen as the most powerful and the most vigorous enemy of Wolverine and Mariko until the Silver Samurai finally shows up covered in adamantium armour and holding an adamantium sword of immense power. Famke Janssen is also there as Jean Grey, but more as a hallucination or nightmare for the protagonist, but still the character portrayed better than X-Men: The Last Stand. This is hundred percent a better Jean Grey than that of the third movie of the X-Men franchise. It is a vital presence, even as it is not real. There is also a post-credits scene involing Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen as Professor Charles Xavier and Magneto respectively.

Even in the presence of the psychological elements, the movie runs on its action sequences, and some of the one-liners as the others lack innovation. The battle of the claws against the swords of the samurai makes an impact, but I would still prefer the usual mutant battles, or the Wolverine v/s Sabretooth head-to-head combats. The action sequence on the bullet train came as no surprise, and it was indeed powerful. The most interesting thing is that all these action sequences and interesting dialogues happen around Wolverine, and the whole situation is about him, just like the title suggests. Everyone else just revolves around the character, and with Hugh Jackman holding one end strongly, there is no need for anything spectacular. There was always the need for balance, and it is attained by the Wolverine suffering from that pain which Louis de Pointe du Lac seemed to suffer in Interview with the Vampire, the only difference being the lack of need for blood which is replaced by the need for combat. As Louis wished for death as he hated his inability to act, Wolverine hated his life as he had acted in such a way that he lost control of his world even as he saved the same. Both were reborn as hunters, weren’t they? Both were seemingly indestructible, and both were clear misfits in a world which had no place for them.

There are a few things one has to be aware of; this one is not an origin story, but still it moves on like one, with a good amount of slower moments. The 3D was almost unnecessary. It also has a predictable climax and not too surprising twist which supports it. There is the absence of an imposing villain, as the one expected challenge for Wolverine is unleashed only the end, but that too within limitations. There is so much left on the shoulders of Hugh Jackman. But still the man with the claws cannot be resisted. X2: X-Men United would still be the best of the franchise, followed by X-Men: First Class, the first entry of the series, and X-Men Origins: Wolverine. But there will be more hope about X-Men: Days of Future Past which combines the cast of all these movies. For now, The Wolverine will do just fine at the box-office, as this week doesn’t have many powerful competitors around here, which has caused Pacific Rim to bounce back. Turbo, Despicable Me 2 and Man of Steel hasn’t left the theatres too, but they should worry this one less. We need X-Men, and we need Wolverine, and therefore we will need to watch this movie – even with varying thoughts about the X-Men movies which we can agree to disagree on. I would still miss Nightcrawler and Shadowcat, and that fact diminishes this X-Men world.

Release date: 26th July 2013
Running time: 126 minutes
Directed by: James Mangold
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Svetlana Khodchenkova, Hiroyuki Sanada, Tao Okamoto, Rila Fukushima, Famke Janssen, Will Yun Lee, Brian Tee, Patrick Stewart (cameo), Ian McKellen (cameo)

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✠ The Vampire Bat.

Oblivion

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It was about six or seven years ago, that the Vampire Bat landed on a game, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, and he landed on his broken tooth which made him as addicted to it, as Count Dracula is to his coffin. This sequel to The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind and the predecessor of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim had shocked him in a good way, like no other game had before, and his wish was to write a review on it, giving it 100/100 along with Mass Effect, for providing him with that world, his second life where he actually lived, died, resurrected and got beheaded/shot on the head – well, he loved these two games so much that he finished it, as he wanted to that right from the beginning with no rest. For years, the Vampire Bat wished for the movie adaptations of these two, especially of the first one which was his mythical/fantasy world of chivalry compared to the inter-star battles and interactions of the second. But he has been disappointed for long, and here what he get is a movie of the same name as the Oblivion game, with a setting similar to the Mass Effect game. No, the movie doesn’t resemble both of these in story or theme; but this coming together of the elements of these two games is what came to the mind of this nocturnal soul when the first time he saw the movie poster, and he wouldn’t have dared not to share it.

The awesomeness of these two games are clearly visible in this movie though, but not in a way which has similarities. In those games, we could travel anywhere, but coming into the movie, it is a limited world which follows an alien invasion which nearly destroyed the Earth. After the devastation of moon which caused horrible natural disasters including earthquakes, tsunamis and terrible climatic variations. The land is left uninhabitable with the mankind being transported to their new habitat. Former Marine commander Jack Harper (Tom Cruise) is a drone mechanic who repairs flying machines with advanced weaponry used for defence against alien lifeforms, and is also one of the last few humans stationed on the dying planet with his co-worker Victoria (Andrea Riseborough) living in a baseless tower-like structure thousands of feet above the Earth, but she is still no Rapunzel, and neither is he her prince or adventurer, something which shall be revealed later. Most of their memories are erased, and the knowledge about their past stays locked at the moment. For now, their relationship would seem to reveal that they are in love and might have been even married.

They are part of an operation to clean up the remaining forces of the alien invasion who are referred to as scavengers and also extract the planet’s remaining resources and are due to join the rest of humanity on Saturn’s moon Titan. Jack and Victoria maintain contact with civilization through a video link with their commander, whom they recognize as Sally (Melissa Leo) who is their symbol of hope and salvation, an escape from a world which is almost a wasteland and surrounded by radio active areas. Jack suffers from dreams which are more like flashbacks, having images of New York before the alien invasion and an unknown beautiful woman (Olga Kurylenko). Meanwhile, Jack rescues an unknown woman from a crashed spaceship as she was encased in a sleeping capsule, in a state of hibernation/hypersleep, and she turns out as the woman from his dreams. But they are captured by a group of humans led by Malcolm Beech (Morgan Freeman) who reveals to him that there are no aliens on the planet and it is the humans who are hunted by the drones. He requests Jack to reprogram one of the captured drones. But Jack refuses. Malcolm then tells Jack to visit the radio active areas which are restricted to him, and there all his doubts will be cleared.

With a spoiler alert, this paragraph shall proceed. It is revealed that the mystery woman is Jack’s wife, Julia who was with Jack and Victoria when they approached the alien ship, before Jack sending her and the other crew of the ship who are in hypersleep, into the space by detaching the backside of the ship, keeping them away from the aliens. Later it is found out that Jack and Victoria are cloned and there is a large number of clones of both, and they were not born, but grown – a reminder of The Matrix and The Daybreakers, I guess. Their supposed to be passionate relationship is also a product of these alien method of growth and one photo of them together. The alien shown here is more of a super computer, may be sent by the possible original aliens, masters of technology. This monolithic structure is clearly logical in its talks and even uses the images known to the originals of the clones so that they could be made to believe and obey. It creates a little dystopia to the group of two, or the groups of two to be exact. They are actually oppressed and are made to fight against their own race by naming them scavenger aliens. But, thanks to the imperfection of the humans, the imperfect cloning technology of the aliens and also a possible divine providence, Jack becomes somewhat the original again and leads the fight against his former employers. The solution would surely be much better than using a computer virus in Independence Day style.

The mystery starts and ends with Tom Cruise’s Jack – may be brings something from Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Total Recall. We have had so many Jacks, from Jack Reacher to Jack the Giant Slayer, Jack Frost, Jack Sparrow, Jack and Jill etc. Here, this one is more of a thinker and a lover of nature, which makes Thomas Babington Macaulay’s Lays of Ancient Rome catch his attention, and he has quite a good collection of books including Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities, which he has kept in a small house in the middle of greenery unaffected by the destruction that has gone around for years. He is no parrot and this poetic imagination and love for literature makes him different, and may be he evolved thus after his cloning and erasing of memory. How can one not remember what happened in the movie The Island? Such a thing is perfectly applicable to an alien technology. Well, there is no limit for fiction, and if too many limits are placed, it would lose its right to be called fiction. It would become closer to reality, which would still spawn the question, who’s reality? Now that would be something better left untouched. This is another one of Tom Cruise’s memorable characters for sure, even as he may not be the perfect protagonist, and even if he may be many, numbering in millions. He seems to have fitted into the character with ease.

Jack’s should be existential. He should have been that confused in that wasteland, and also when he had realized that he was just a clone or a copy of someone else. There was that redundant identity crisis and those dreams which seemed to perpetuate nothing. His life gets more and more absurd every time he tries to get answers, as all the answers lead to him finally being a random copy. He had waited for salvation, the firmament which awaited him in the moon of Saturn, but that too is crushed. Now what would remain for him to end as a nihilist, but he has the last fight on his list, as he decides to help the human rebels, and in that process, even sacrifice himself. It is through that loss of life, that the Earth could be redeemed. But who needs an alien invasion to destroy the planet, and considering what is done to it, who might be the aliens? Some are alien to the planet and also to their fellow human beings, and in that case, aren’t these aliens with a powerful inverted pyramid computer better as they keep the human race alive? There is the oppression factor, but is that so much of an oppression considering what humans have done to their own kind for centuries and still continue to do the same in a worse manner even while calling themselves modern and technologically advanced?

Morgan Freeman is as solid as ever, and the two women, Olga Kurylenko and Andrea Riseborough goes through their sequences as the characters themselves. The former is the emotional lover and the latter the passionate lover. Still, their roles are limited despite the screen presence. Another thing is that the CGI and the special effects out-did the beautiful women. As Jack “wandered lonely as a cloud that floats on high o’er vales and hills” in his mosquito-like helicopter (like that futuristic helicopter they called Raptor in Unreal Tournament 2004), the visually stunning world is brought to light. There is destruction clearly visible, and the signs of the civilization included destroyed buildings, ships and bridges half submerged in sand, never-ceasing smoke from some areas and so on. There are gaps leading to somewhat an abyss between a group of buildings held together by soil or may be in their own centre – a path to Hades and Persephone, half-destroyed structures which look like different things all together, as well as whatever is underground and underwater. To add to it, there is the beautiful area of nature with the small house. Oblivion is an experience, and a lesson to mankind, as well as a reminder of the power of art and literature – rooted on that creativity which is more important than logic, for science can win brutal battles, but to win the war, you need art and literature, as they heal the soul better and people need their wounds to heal and their scars to fade after a major disaster.

Release date: 13th April 2013
Running time: 124 minutes
Directed by: Joseph Kosinski
Starring: Tom Cruise, Olga Kurylenko, Andrea Riseborough, Morgan Freeman, Melissa Leo, Zoë Bell, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau

oblivion copy

@ Cemetery Watch
✠The Vampire Bat.