A History of Blood it Was...

Rakht Charitra, 2010 (Telugu)
Directed by: Ram Gopal Varma

*Warning: I say a cuss word. OOOOHHH! Be scared... but you can't be offended, since I've warned you!*

Also, this has a lot of back story... but part II will have MORE!

I decided to stream the music to this film while I wrote to get me in the swing of things... it's actually making me really anxious. Point taken!

Ok. Here is the deal. I've been all sorts of excited to see this movie because during my internship I spent a good majority of my time on this film's set. Prior to the film's release I knew this much about it:
-Vivek Oberoi was starring... and wore a mustache...
-It was about something or someone political
-It was being shot (or dubbed, depending on the actor) in three languages.
-Vivek had whispered in my ear that I was NOT, on my honor, allowed to talk about anything I've seen or post the pictures that I had taken until the film was released.
-Vivek Oberoi. Whispered. In. My. Ear.

Just imagine...

When I was passively watching previews before Anjaana Anjaani the preview for this film came on. Blood was spattering everywhere and I was having a serious deja vu moment but I could not place it. THEN I saw it. IT. "IT" comprises of Vivek Oberoi walking about in said mustache and a sequence of the scenes that I sat on the sidelines for.

"HOLY SHIT!" I screamed, very loudly, grabbing the arm of the poor auntie in the seat next to me. Having attracted the attention of the packed theatre I ducked in my seat. My heart was racing a mile a minute, I was blushing, very cold and sweating.

It was so weird.

I was ready and excited to see the film when it came to New York, little did I know that while I was visiting my parents in Indiana that there was a one-night screening of the Telugu version. I booked tickets online, and somehow talked my obliging mother in to going with me.

We arrived at the theatre, and were stopped by the theatre owner when we tried to collect our tickets:
Owner: I saw your name on the credit card statement. You know this film is in Telugu, right?
Momma: Oh, yeah, we know. My daughter always watches these things. She's crazy.
Owner: Really? Well, it doesn't have subtitles. Usually the Hindi ones do... you're sure you're going to see this? It's not a mistake?
Momma: Oh no. I promise. Erin really wants to see it because she worked on the movie in Mumbai.
Owner: NO!
Me: *head bobble* Yeah, I had this internship....*mumble mumble*

And that, is how I became a pseudo-celebrity. Basically I  got the most remarkable look from the owner, like he was going to kiss me, or hug me, or make me marry his son (or all three, I'm game... and his son was hot. So was he...in the uncle way.). Next thing I know he's shouting (in Tamil) to all his employees and pointing at me. Momma and I collected our tickets and slipped into the theatre trying to avoid the mob. I was famous!

Everything I wanted in my Endhiran audience I got from this experience. The theatre was packed. To the brim. They hooted and hollered and threw popcorn and whistled and jumped and did all sorts of amazing and spectacular things. I loved them.

I can't provide a detailed plot analysis since I was suffering in the language department.... but it was pretty straight forward. It was political. And violent. And bloody. And Vivek Oberoi wore a mustache*.

There were humorous bits, and romance; and the best proposal/carrying away of a bride ever. Nothing says romance quite like showing up at your girl's house, a gang of goons toting guns behind you, and simply telling her father that you're taking her to get married, whether daddy likes it or not.

The movie went on merrily (ha!) and I was starting to get really confused as to when what I saw in India was coming into play when BAM! Credits!

It was over?

And then... there was a preview. And contained within that preview was everything I had witnessed in the filming stage.

Ok. Cool. THERE ARE TWO PARTS!? I felt so uncool. Like all that I had been bragging about was a lie. And there I sat, a cad of the first water.  I was duped. And so impatient for the second installment that I literally started pulling my hair out.

It is/was/continues to be torturous.

Aside from all of that drama...

I enjoyed this film. Not only because I saw it in its raw form but because of a variety of other things.

The filmography was stunning. It wasn't perfect and it wasn't clean but that hardly mattered. It was stylistic. Everything through the lens seemed so unstable. Given that everything as a whole was unstable it was a really nice, unconscious touch. I say "unconscious" because the stability of the camera isn't as concrete as if it were on a tripod but it's not as rocky as if it were handheld. Granted, there are uses of the upside-down shot and tilted axis and so on... but overall it is a very subtle devise used in keeping the viewer uncomfortable and a little on edge.

Couple all that anxiety with the droning music and general blood thirstiness and you've got yourself one very nervous viewer.

Or, since I don't want to generalize, one very nervous gori named Erin who couldn't watch another knee injury with a shovel (it happened A LOT) since it made  current one throb in sympathy.

From what I can surmise, Vivek's character, Paritala Ravindra has the moral high ground (in theory... what with the killing and the plotting) up until the end of the film. I could be entirely wrong, but until I have the chance to see the Hindi version with subtitles I just have to imagine.

What I liked and what I thought spoke volumes about the differences in Vivek's character and Abhimanyu Singh's** (and heaven forgive me if I have that wrong) was how they treated the women folk. VO's was a picture of respect and inclusion and AS's was a degenerate with lustful appetites and a dominance. It was interesting to see them switch back and forth between both men. It probably served in my thinking of VO's character as the moralistic one...

There was also a lot of no nonsense scenes including sex. Whether just sex or forced rape on an abducted girl it was nice to see it presented in a way that wasn't cheapened by the "OMG! LOOK! THEY'RE DOING 'IT'!" mentality or by some absurd guilt on the victim or any other such nonsense. So, just for that, Ram Gopal, thank you.

There was a female cop! And she RULED! However, her story line did not go the way I would have liked it too. I was a little sad, but overall very impressed and in love with her.

The cast for this film is huge. Everyone was slightly recognizable without me knowing exactly who they were. Granted, I am really, really, really crap with names and faces, so it's probably all my failing. I thought everyone gave spectacular performances... and, this was my first Vivek Oberoi film and I was so impressed by him that I could hardly stand it. I won't dally in the oddness of seeing him portray someone so completely opposite of who he is in person, but I will give him credit for just being a stunning actor. He employs my preferred technique of keeping everything a little restrained and behind the eyes. Wah! I'm such a fan of him now.

Overall, I adored this film... but then this sort of film is right up my alley. A little intrigue, a pinch of politics, a smattering of blood (I'm so witty), and a fancy cocktail party to stir things up and you've got me hooked.

And since I am honorable, I'm going to wait until part II releases and then I'll post all sorts of goodies from set!
...Unless Ram Gopal Varma, who is very nice, kills me.

*I'm obviously obsessed with this mustache. I am just a facial hair kind of gal. YUM!
**Forgive me for only using actors name in lieu of their character names, since without seeing the names typed below the screen I didn't ever really catch them... if you get me.

Anarkali

Anarkali, 1953
Directed by: Nandlal Jaswantlal

Quick confession, I love the 50s in Indian Cinema a million times more than I love the 70s. Ok, that may not be exactly true, since I love them for completely different reasons. The 70s for the crazy and the paisley and the bellbottoms; the 50s for the absolute art form of film making. Watching a 50s film is like watching the most exquisite poetry come to life. It's just so beautiful, the storytelling is so profound.

Anarkali is the story of the love between Emperor Akbar's son, Salim, and a poor gypsy girl. Call it an ancient Cinderella/Romeo and Juliet...etc. Apparently it really happened. Apparently it didn't really happen. No one seems to know, but I'm content enough not to quibble over such small matters, since I'm talking about a film and not ancient Indian folklore. Also, if you've seen it Anarkali is the same story and came before Mughal-e-Azam.


The plot is rather straightforward: Anar (Bina Rai) is a nomadic gypsy who meets and falls in love with Salim (Pradeep Kumar), the crown prince of the Mughal empire and under disguise as a common solider. Caught singing by Emperor, Anar wins his favor and is bestowed with the title of "Anarkali". Called away on military duties Salim deserts Anar and she is captured by enemies and enslaved. She is forced to perform songs and dances in hopes of winning a man who will buy her. She is bought by a tall and handsome stranger who keeps his face hidden (so how I know he's handsome is beyond me...). She protests his suggestion of marriage and effusions of love until he unwraps his face and is revealed to be Salim.

The lovers blissfully live for a while until Salim is injured and sent back to his palace. Distraught that his son may not recover, Emperor Akbar calls for Anar to sing at the prince's bedside in hopes of waking him from his fever? coma? something.  She does so and in the process realizes who her Salim really is.

Anarkali is made a concubine and her and Salim continue their affair until Akbar finds out and orders the lovers to death. The country revolts and disapproves of the death sentence but the Emperor remains firm, his justice is sure and will not even waver for his own son. After much waffling Akbar determines that Anar and Salim must be forgiven. Salim runs to where Anarkali is being buried alive but arrives just as the last brick seals her tomb. He collapses on her grave and dies himself.

This film is shot so beautifully. I couldn't help gasping and sighing at every turn. There is something about black and white and soft lighting that just makes things seem much more romantic and unworldly. The sets were so detailed and intricate. Every detail was meticulously set and perfected so that the picture on screen was a perfect representation of the grandeur of the Mughal rule and the richness of the love story being presented.

Anarkali as a character caught me off guard. She was so feisty! She refused to let the Emperor push her around when she first met him, was sensibly disgusted and angry at Salim when he refused to show his face after he "purchased" her and took Salim to task and verbally told him what's what when he repeatedly refused to stand up for himself and make his love for her known to his father. She rejected the idea that he could do these things to her because she was lower class, claiming that it was the same as any injustice. I loved this woman.

Bina Ria is an effortless actress. She's just one of those artists who just knows how to become a character and easily portray them on screen. She fought well, flirted spectacularly, got catty as the best of them and  stole the stage from anyone else in the scene. This might have been intentional, since all of the other characters were down played so dramatically in reference to her, even Pradeep Kumar's character was typically shown with a shadow over his face. The spotlight, quite literally, was all for Bina.

The music--and you'll be hard pressed to find someone who is going to hate on old Filmi music--was so spectacular. It was haunting and touching and soulful. The songs translated seamlessly to the action in the film and were effective in portraying the right mood and emotion for the scenes.

And in case you're wondering what a good measure for what makes love fun, look no further:

Double Double Feature

Anjaana Anjaani - Endhiran (The Robot), 2010
Directed by: Siddharth Anand - Shankar

These films have NOTHING in common with each other outside of these minute points:
-I saw them both twice
-I liked each one so much better the second time around.

I'm going to work alphabetically, so up first: Anjaana Anjaani.

The first time I saw this film I almost walked out during interval. I was not impressed by where the story was going, unconvinced by the actors and totally not onboard with the "serious" nature of the story that lacked any substance and feeling. Thankfully I stayed and was totally charmed by the second half of the film... but it was a close call.

The second time I saw this film I was a) not alone like I was the first time and b) in an audience of more drunk men children and less aunties so I was able to lighten up a bit.

Anjaana Anjaani is standard Romantic Comedy fare. All the over-used ploys that leave me bitter in Hollywood once again were melting my heart and making me all lovey-dovey through the guises of Ranbir Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra.

I'm such a conflicted individual.

The songs in this film are totally what saves it, there is something just GOOD about them. And, this film has the most seamless background score I have ever heard in an Indian Film. Ever. It was so polished and so professional and so clean and so wonderful that I can't stop adding "so..." to my description.

Priyanka Chopra is quickly becoming my go-to girl for Bolly Rom Coms. There is just something about her that makes me want to BE her. It is an essence she is acquiring with age, since her early movies leave me less than thrilled or impressed by her. She's the Julia Roberts of Indian Cinema, and since that's my opinion you can take it or leave it.

Ranbir, Ranbir. I love yo so. After Neetu Week it was so obvious to me how much of your mother is present inside you. Oh, sure you get some things from your poppa, but I think that Neetu is very much living on through her darling son. Forget that they look so much alike, but Ranbir's screen presence just comes across in the same vein that his mother's did. I could eat him up with a spoon.

Odd observations:
-The road trip sequence was filmed right outside of St. George, Utah. It is actually the highway that goes to Vegas. I have many, many, many memories on that curvy strip of land.
-"New York is the haven of single ladies". I've never laughed more bitterly in my life. It's so true.
-Now that I live in New York it is the weirdest thing to watch a movie set in it. It's almost like a film crew has run over your personal property... maybe I'm feeling especially weirded out since I work in an office that is currently being overrun with at popular TV show...
-You can't have coffee that is "black, low fat" since "black" implies there is NO MILK.

Favorite song: Tumse Hi Tumse... because there are multiple Ranbirs and I LIKED what they were trying to express; that when were crazy about someone we try to contain it, while on the inside were jumping and skipping and giggling and dressing up like Superman. ...I can so relate right now.

ROBOT.

OH SWEET MOTHER OF MERCIFUL HOLY THINGS!

Rajni is the hottest thing I've ever seen! I don't care if he's sixty. I don't care if he's petrified in plastic makeup and wigs. I don't care. I just don't.

Endhiran was my first Southie film, and while I think they're something rather different and I'm a little off put by the overt macho I have to admit that I'm wildly intrigued. I'm not making promises, but now that I know where to find them in Queens, I'll probably be going to see them more often.

Also, am I the only one who likes Aishwarya Rai better in Tamil? She seems so much younger and easy going and relaxed. I'm sure a lot of that has to do with the no-nonsense role she was given, but it was still to see her in such a refreshed being.

The songs in the film were my only repeated nuisance. They appeared out of NOWHERE and they had nothing to do with anything happening before or after the interlude. Oh, a girl almost gets raped and then we're teleported to Machu Picchu!? Okaaaaayyy... I just went with it because I figured it was like an aria in opera. The song isn't really needed for story purposes but more for emotional effusions.

I was wildly distraught by the outright carnage and overt violence... it was just a bit excessive to be killing off entire police forces, in my opinion, but like I said, I was just going with things.

One cannot take things too seriously when the hero is a 60 year old in a wig and mask.

There were a few moments that really, really concerned me but I lack both the energy and the passion to talk about them. I'll just put it simply and state that I think the blaming the victim mentality was far, far over played and incorrectly enabled since there was no need for it, that is all.

Odd observations:
-Who signs a contract when they break up?
-Watchign people write in Tamil script is something short of awe inducing.
-Is a zetabyte even a real thing?
-Aishwarya should probably refrain from trying to HipHop dance AND from becoming a "rapper girl". Just saying.
-Mosquito programming? REALLY?

Favorite song: Kilimanjaro. Because, Aishwarya has dreadlocks. And come on. It's amaaaazing. And there are llamas, that stare at the dancers like they've lost their marbles.