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The Descendants (2011)
A simple, understated delight.
The Oscar buzz was the primary reason that made me excited to see this film, but the fact that Alexander Payne who had made the brilliant "About Schmidt" had directed it made me even more eager to see it. And was I impressed.
"The Descendants" is a simple film, telling a simple story of a father trying to deal with way too much and all at the same time. We all face situations in real life when we need to confront our emotions no matter how much we chose to ignore it. What do we do then? This is where the soul of the film belongs.
Clooney does a fantastic job as Matt King, a father, torn apart by the plethora of emotions that surround him. He is so wonderfully understated that you don't even feel that he is acting. He totally deserves all the accolades he is currently receiving. Among the supporting cast, Shailene Woodley is a revelation. Its a difficult character to play and she is stunning in it.
Overall, "The Descendants" tugs at your heartstrings, minus cheap frills and melodrama. As for Payne, he doesn't really bring anything new here. He has done full justice to this genre before (Sideways, About Schmidt). Maybe he should try something new now.
No One Killed Jessica (2011)
Brilliant effort; Vidya deserves a standing ovation.
It had great potential. It started well, but somewhere in the middle it falls short of delivering the kind of impact that was expected from a film like "No One Killed Jessica". But that in no way takes away the effort that has been put in to make a film like this; something that requires a lot of balls. The screenplay gets a bit overstretched in the second half which becomes the weakest point of the film. Talking of strengths, Vidya Balan steals the show (literally) with a performance that is understated, uninhibited and totally spontaneous. She deserves a standing ovation. Newcomer Myra shows tremendous potential, while Rani as the sour-tongued journalist is delightful but by far not her best. Amit Trivedi's music too is the highlight of the film. Hats off to the entire team for making the movie that deserves to be made, and passing a message that deserves to be passed.