My trip to yester year films

Friday, September 26, 2008 5 Comments


Last weekend happened to be a memorable one for me.  People who are close to me know about my selective aversion to watching TV and films. Selective? My attention threshold is definitely not more than 5 minutes. If a programme catches my attention in those few minutes, then I just cannot bear to be parted from my television set.

As I was sifting through the channels, there was an ad "50 movies to see before you die", in UTV movies. Just that caption made me sit for 5 mts over some commercials and finally a film was screened in the name of "Your name is Justine" - a Polish film. Two hours flew and the film made a permanent dent in my heart. It starts with the theme of teenage love of a girl called Mariola.  Her dreams are shattered brutally, when her lover sells her to the bad guys.  She is forced in to prostitution. 



The film is shot in a condemned apartment complex.  Mariola is locked inside that apartment for days together.  How she craves for freedom and her love for her grand mother, is what the story is all about.  My heart just stopped for a moment, when she takes a piece of glass and cut her magnificient hair and let it float down from the seventh floor window.  Her face lights up when her hair flow freely.

I cannot help but compare it to our Kollywood films, where the hero somehow would climb the pipes or ropes and fight the heavily armed villains with nothing but a small string.  This small string do wonders, it even can stop a bullet from piercing through.  With triumph we can see the hero carry the plump heroine down those stairs, towards the exit.

The songs and dance are mandatory fixtures to our films. Though I enjoy songs myself, I have to agree that it stops the flow of story line. 

After this my movie spree started.  I watched films, all old ones in my DVD. Sound of music, Mary Poppins, Pride and prejudice, My fair lady.

Though, every minute there was a song, they were so sweet and soothing to the ears. Mostly these songs are dialogue themselves.

"Chim chiminey
Chim chiminey
Chim chim cher-ee!
A sweep is as lucky
As lucky can be" (Mary Poppins)




"When trying to express oneself, it's frankly quite absurd,
to leaft through lengthy lexicons to find the perfect word.
A little spontaniety keeps conversation keen,
You need to find a way to say, precisely what you mean...

Super califragilistic expialidocious!" (Mary Poppins)

"So long, farewell, auf Widersehen, goodbye
Goodbye, Goodbye, Goodbye" (Sound of music)




Ah... "The rain in spain stays mainly in the plain"....(My fair lady)



Darcy, the model hero and his soft but stubborn heroine Lizzy, came live on the screen, I cannot help but remain misty eyed.....(Pride and prejudice)



Thus my selective aversion turned to passion for films that week.....

Not to forget, my grand finale turned out to be the evergreen tamil film, "Maya bazaar". When I am little down, this film never failed to cheer me up. Who can ever compete Rangarao? the electrifying performance of NTR, the charming Savithri and the most good looking hero of those years, Gemini Ganesan, everyone were at their best.

Ghatothkach's intro scene from Maya baazar :)


Viji

Some say he’s half man half fish, others say he’s more of a seventy/thirty split. Either way he’s a fishy bastard. Google

5 Candles:

Maya Bazaar used to cheer all of us. However, Show this movie to the latest generation, they are least bothered and get bored... Only our generation enjoyed this movie. Still when ever i see lots of food... i remember "Kalyana Samayal Sadham...kai karigalum pramadham...idhu gauravar prasadham...i can smell Vatha kuzumbhu in my kitchen...tata tata...will catch after my dinner...

Viji said...

I don't agree... the mistake lies with us. we should introduce such films to our kids. Anirudh loves this film and he would have watched maya bazaar atleast 50 times. I'm trying to get him watch Mary Poppins now. Yes, I understand your point.. I have to get him watch Mary poppins, while he readily watches new films :)

Correction!! when i tried to show to ani..he told me its bore and he didn't see that movie in the first go. Might be, time must have changed and he must started enjoying now.... especially those last 1 hr or so....

Ram Kasi said...

I have read my fair lady(condensed version i think) in my school days and bought a DVD to watch that movie.. It was full of songs.. and i remember the lines u have mentioned here.. and how can i forget eliza doolitte , prof higgins.. but the sadest part is , yet to watch the last quarter of it... ;)

Viji said...

Hey Ram! U should watch this film... the final scenes are the one u should not miss.. priceless..

wisdom comes with experience

At one, I learnt crawling was fun. At forty one, I still feel crawling is fun #blamemykneesnotme