#janurants

I never ended up sharing a post about this. But I watched Birds of Prey (2020) recently and just wanted to say that

IT WAS AMAZING. GO WATCH IT.

Did not think I would enjoy it as much as I did. Goes to show, some times, the recipe for success includes:

 - A few badass female characters  - A visual and auditory overload  - Cannot emphasize this enough - Great Action Choreography  - And some snow to taste :P

Don’t even know what to say about this movie. 

It’s been a long time since I enjoyed a Bollywood movie so much. Being Indian doesn’t mean that Bollywood is in our blood or any such crap. Also, no I don’t really give a s*** about Slumdog Millionaire. FYI that’s not a real Bollywood movie guys. It’s as real as Emma Stone playing a Hawaiian in Aloha (2015). 

But all those people who enjoyed that so-called rags to riches story need to watch Gully Boy. Made by an Indian female director (Zoya Akthar), acted in by Indian actors, based on a real “rags to riches” story and with an Indian hip-hop/rap soundtrack that is amazing. I am not the best judge of hip-hop/rap since I don’t listen to it much. But I am surrounded by a few people who know quite a bit about it and they said the music was good too. So I don’t think it could be that bad, right?

Anyway, getting to the movie. Gully Boy is based on the real life stories of Indian street rappers Divine and Naezy of Mere Gully Mein fame.

They are played by Siddhant Chaturvedi and Ranveer Singh, respectively, in the movie.

The movie talks about their VERY humble beginnings in Dharavi, Mumbai. For those who don’t already know, Dharavi is home to the biggest slums in Asia.

It was also shot completely in this location amongst the people of the slums.

Which made for really interesting viewing. Other than the main cast, everyone was part of the regular crowd. Also, it gave a real feel to the story and it looked exactly like the original videos of the two rappers. These are rappers who started with no financial backing of any sort and just did the best they could with what they had. It also made sense since they were talking about the lives they came from. And you can definitely see the crowd enjoying it!

Okay may be not everyone...

Spot all the aunties jamming to the music!

And the really confused aunty lol!

And what else do I say. The movie is emotional, the lyrics are great, the rap battles are a lot of fun and I really enjoyed the character MC Sher. It was a strong debut performance by Siddhant Chaturvedi and I am very excited to see what this guy has in store for the future!

Stages of shiny hunting Pokémon go somewhat like this...

And meanwhile, Moltres be like...

So, like I have mentioned before, I am always a little late to the party. But, I do make it. Eventually. And then sometimes I realise it was a party not worth attending at all.

In this case, it was a party named Batman Begins (2005)

Yup, the brooding game begins.

Firstly, I understand the importance of the film. I believe that Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight Trilogy was partially responsible for the spate of great superhero films and raising the standard of these films overall. However, I didn’t think this was all that it was hyped up to be. 84% on RT? Seriously?

I have seen the other two movie before and I loved The Dark Knight (2008). But that has to do more with Heath Ledger’s performance and the character of The Joker. 

Mr. Roger Ebert really knew what he was talking about when he said:

“Each film is only as good as its villain.”

So, to quote a certain nun, let´s start at the very beginning. It is a very good place to start.

And we start with Kid Wayne. Really? That’s the best they could find? He literally had no emotion when his parents were gunned down? And don’t gimme that reasoning that he was a kid and all that. Take a cue from The Lion King, Nolan. Ask Hans Zimmer, he would’ve pointed you in the right direction.

Also, Batman’s “beginnings” are hilarious. I love that he goes through the whole cliche’d “hero-in-the-making” stages of the ski-masks and everything. 

Also, didn’t he just come back from all that super-awesome ninja training?? Ra’s Al Ghul also mentioned somewhere that he was his best student. You really had sucky students didn’t you Mr. Al Ghul? Coz this supposed “ninja” made a heck of a lot of noise running away from Sergeant Gordon.

My favourite part of the movie is Morgan Freeman’s character, who is literally every geek’s dream. Unlimited capital, he gets to work in his very own man-cave and doesn’t even need to pretend to be anyone else ‘coz he’s cool as is. Heck, even Bruce Wayne is jealous. 

Then so many other random questions....

- How does the first guy who finds the Batman shuriken know what that symbol is? 

- How does the police officer that finds Falcone know to look to the sky, ask “what is that?” and know that the shadow and light make a symbol? Like shouldn’t the bigger deal be that someone caught Falcone? For all he knows, Falcone could’ve been tied to a spotlight just to catch people’s attention. But I bet Bruce Wayne dragged that officer into a dark alley and was like “I am giving you a 100 bucks to ask ‘what is that’ when you see Falcone tied to a big light.”

- Also, I am glad Sergeant Gordon decided to not answer him. Imagine guesing the wrong animal? Like, “Maybe it’s an eagle? Looks like the eagle on the Presidential Seal”.

- How can you tell someone to keep calm and then follow up with telling them that they have been poisoned? Explain.

- Poor Alfred is left to do all the heavy lifting. He is literally a 100 years old and has to carry around unconscious damsels like a creeper.

- Does Batman have Rachel low-jacked?

- Why is Bruce just standing and chit-chatting with Ra’s Al Ghul while his minions are starting a little bonfire in his house? He knows what Al Ghul is about to do, he has the antidote and could be busy saving people or punching Al Ghul to stop him..

And last but not least, WHAT IS WITH KATIE HOLMES’S ROCK HARD NIPPLES??? I am completely with the #freethenipple movement and I understand the last scene where she is with Bruce and on her own time. But when she gets attacked by the Scarecorw, she is a professional and on the job. Was she not wearing a padded bra to work?? Or does hallucinating about guys with sack-cloth masks and maggots on their face turn her on so much, that her nipples punch a hole through the bra????

Let’s talk about this a litte. This is clear sexism and sexualization. I understand that Batman & Robin (1997) wasn’t the best Batman movie. But if Joel Schumacher got flack for sexualizing the men and giving them nipples, then shouldn’t Nolan get the same for this? Just coz some Batman fans got a hard on watching Katie Holmes, what says that some Batman fans didn’t get turned on seeing George Clooney’s nipples?

Also, for shooting such scenes, female actors have to rub ice on their nipples before every shoot? And I’ve heard some even cut out little holes in their bras to let the nipples peek out. And then they have to also deal with Reddit threads like this: 

https://www.reddit.com/r/batman/comments/wx6ge/why_i_preferred_katie_holmes_over_maggie/

Try not to puke please.. 

We should probably thank Joel Schumcher to have the presence of mind to add the hard nipples to the suit rather than have rub ice on Clooney’s tits every scene. That would have been one long shoot otherwise.

Free the male nipple too I say!

There’s so much more I want to say, but may I should leave it for a Part 2? I don’t want to be totally negative. I did like a few things. I appreciated the minimal use of effects and the way they depicted Scarecrow’s powers. And I will end this rant with one of my favourite dialogue scenes.

A really interesting story that I heard and wish was there to witness.

So my boyfriend is African-American. And he works as a counsellor at a summer camp. A large number of the kids there are African-American as well. And he was telling me about this amazing experience he had.

So he was like, “You know how you hear about black kids suddenly seeing representation of their race on the big screen and it changes their life forever?

“But I had never seen it before myself, in person.

“Until I took the kids to the movies. And before the movie, they had a preview for the new Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) movie.

“And I saw these kids’ eyes light up. It was amazing to watch. They were all like, he’s like me! Also, the movie doesn’t look like it’s going to suck! I finally saw it happen.”

I asked him, “What would you call that feeling? As a kid, watching something like that on the screen?”

And he was like, “The realisation that black people can do other things as well.”

When I’m with you, the night seems longer - Masaaki Yuasa, The Night is Short, Walk on Girl (2017)

I know I am late on the bandwagon, but I honestly don’t care that much about DC. I watch it coz I am a sucker for movies in general.

So I watched Justice League really late in life, and I think my favourite part is when Barry realises that Superman is as fast as him.

Can’t get enough of that face lol!!!

And once again! HOW DOES NOBODY REALISE CLARK KENT AND SUPERMAN ARE THE SAME PERSON???? Because, like, Clark Kent literally came back from the dead the same time as Superman and went back to the SAME BLOODY JOB! And nobody is asking questions??????

Yes. Once again, I am late for the party. But it was worth it.

I am glad that I waited so long to sit down peacefully and watch this movie.

Parasite makes me so happy on so many levels:

1. I have long appreciated Korean story telling. I am glad that this movie is making people take more notice of it.

2. Secondly, I am glad it is this movie and this director that are bringing the change. It is a great movie, with an amazing cast and a most deserving story-teller.

3. Last, but not least - Kishotenketsu. This is a term that needs to get more popular if we want to see more refreshing and different stories.

And this is what I want to rant about today.

Kishotenketsu

A 4-part story-telling structure that is commonly used in the east which can work with and without conflict in the plot. 

Read this one line and you already know that you have opened up more options in story-telling. To understand better, you can read the following articles: 

https://stilleatingoranges.tumblr.com/post/25153960313/the-significance-of-plot-without-conflict

https://mythicscribes.com/plot/kishotenketsu/

The moment you give yourself the option of not writing a story around a conflict, you open up the path to tell so many different stories. This, more than anything is what I believe allowed Parasite to grab the attention of the western world.

There have been a lot of movies talking about class divides in the past, in all genres. To name a few: The Pursuit of Happiness, Sorry To Bother You, Mad Max, The Hunger Games etc.

How do you make another one stand out? Find another way to write it.

For example, everyone knew that there is going to be a big reveal which could risk the Kim family’s cover. I was betting on the Park family returning home from their camping trip early. One character even jokes about it in the movie. But did anyone expect the old housekeeper coming back? I doubt it. And boy, does she have secrets of her own.

And that’s where you introduce a twist of a different kind. Suddenly, everything in the first two acts makes sense. The younger kid’s encounter with a “ghost” and why the old housekeeper was “eating enough for two people”.

Suddenly, the point of conflict from the first act is not the point of conflict at all! We have bigger issues, like a crazed man living in a bunker and a dead body.

So, let’s break this story into it’s 4 parts now:

1. Ki - Introduction (In this case, of both families.)

2. Sho - Development (The Kim family’s increased involvement in the Park Family’s life.)

3. Ten - Twist/Complication (There is a third family and we did not see this coming.)

4. Ketsu - Conclusion/Reconciliation (The Kim family’s desperate actions to keep their jobs results in Basement Man losing it.)

And this way we have a pretty compelling story. Makes it interesting. You have character building. And you have twice the amount of conflict - the Kim family’s and the Basement Man’s covers.

But why just stop at that? Let’s layer on the Kishotenketsu, because we have a another story brewing on the side. And that twist is even harder to see coming.

1. Ki - Introduction (The Story of The Patient Father and Ambitious Son) a. The Patient Father - He makes do with his current situation and doesn’t aspire to do much in life. He is just barely providing for his family.

Note: He does not like stink bugs.

b. The Ambitious Son - He wants more from life and believes in always having a plan. When an auspicious item is brought into his life by a friend, he believes it is a sign.

2. Sho - Two Developments  a. After getting employed by the Park family, the Father is still content with how much he has and appreciates the naive Park family's role in improving his family’s lifestyle. He doesn’t want a lot more from life.

b. The Son waiting for his Father to take action as head of the family. He wants someone to take advantage of the situation and improve his economic and social status.

3. Ten - Twist/Complication a. The Father finally snaps. After hearing Mr. and Mrs. Park’s comments on his smell, he realises that they look at him exactly like he looks at stink bugs. The last straw is when he sees Mr. Park pinch his nose when approaching the dying Basement Man to just pull out his car keys from under him. That’s when Mr. Kim knows that however much he may show respect or bend down to the upper class man, he is always going to be “the man who smells like boiled rags” and nothing else.

b. The Son finally realises that relying on his Father is taking him nowhere and he will have to take things into his own hands.

4. Ketsu - Conclusion/Reconciliation a. The Father has to now live with the consequences of not having a plan. He is going to have to use all the patience in him to live out his life in the basement and hope for the best.

b. The Son has to take on responsibility of his family, or whatever is left of it. He is going to have to work really hard on his ambitions. Plan well to rise through the economic classes to be able to save his father one day.

The first story had perceived conflict introduced in the very first act. Just that story on it’s own would’ve been similar to a few other movies and would have had less of an impact.

The second story about the father and son, however, had no point of conflict to start with. And this story interwoven with the first one is what makes this movie all the more effective and leaves as everlasting impression.