Stunningly stupid

A movie review is like asking if you like Durian. Or Ice Cream or Bacon. Very personal. In my opinion couple of films we watched this weekend fall in the bucket I will call stunningly stupid.

As in no redemption qualities whatsoever.

They cost me nothing. Borrowed from the public library. That was a plus. And one of the films had a mildly watchable Alicia Vikander. That film was titled 'Lara Cross Tomb Raider'. While some infantile curiosity made me pick up the film it did have an element of action that kept it somewhat watchable. Using the hackneyed trick of creating mythical oriental sounding names from an alphabet soup to depict long lost islands in the sea of Japan, to overusing CGI to a somewhat skimpily clad skinny woman running around falling debris the director was able to keep me watching the predictable ending.

The story lacks any originality or purpose and is stupid on many levels. I will not divulge all the nonsense save for an odd reference to the capital of Bihar used in the climax of the movie. Weird.

Then there was the husband directing his wife disaster called 'Life of the Party'. Again there was no other DVD in the checkout shelf that was relatively new and unwatched so I picked it up. Some older DVDs also come with unknown substance on its surface which makes them a biohazard I feel. So side note - always check the shiny surface for detritus.

It too lacked any meaning from beginning to end. The cast is either naturally vapid or acted it out well and had no trouble exhibiting that on screen. Melissa McCarthy is not funny and she reinforced that belief through out this monstrosity of 90 minutes. There was no message other than lot of college kids are essentially clueless and binge drink due to lack of imagination and waste their parents' money as part of growing up (physically).

Comments

On the go(zay masta) in Japan again

Cool cat the Japanese are Tokyo at dusk My second visit to this land of the rising sun after almost a decade. Back then clearly I was wet behind the ears product manager and likely didn’t pay attention to all (efficient) things Japanese. But today I did and of course continue to be impressed. It is as much the obvious stuff like on time travel that is both clean and comfortable and all that which makes it possible. The impressive landmark and landscapes that these humans have put together despite their cramped (or because of it) surroundings and precarious geological conditions could amaze a novice architect among us. But it’s also the little things that someone had to think about which have a phenomenal impact on day to day lives that make the Japanese stand apart. Below are few random examples- 1. Providing a very fine machined wooden toothpick in every packet of wooden chopsticks. The said chapsticks are simply set on the To Go counter of any food vendor/ convenience store wher...

Presumptive Society

Today's world is hyper connected. I am not so sure what it means but you hear it a lot. It is probably hyper but not sure how connected it is. Sugar (fermented or not) is available in many ways than before and so getting hyper is easy. It is probably more a threat than cocaine since it is sold legally. And what is this connected stuff? Most people I encounter seem disconnected from reality. So going back to this assumption that we are connected there are subtle and no so subtle instances of how brands and companies and middle men try to portray someone - A linkedin profile for somebody working for X years at a place advertises to the connected network that so and so is CELEBRATING X years @ Such and Such Inc. Do we know if (s)he is celebrating or cringing? Perhaps a better way to portray will be - So and So LASTED X years @ such & such inc. Then it exhorts the readership to go ahead and congratulate them for this lasting effe...

The Central State aka MP

Narmada river and site of Omkareshwar Indore Rajwada or palace of the Lady Holkar Somewhat geographically centered in India is the hot landscape of MADHYA PRADESH. A region I had a faint memory of visiting as a young lad eons ago. Now in my (along with my best half) quest to get to know lands far and wide I got an opportunity to visit Indore city and surrounding areas in MP. It begins with an evening visit to a bustling old market selling native snacks both savory and sweet. It is the realm of jewelers who run night time street side restaurants once they close their primary operations at dusk. Think of it as desi style block party that I am told goes into wee hours of the morning. My impression was it is worth one visit. The humid and hot ambience along with crush of humanity doesn’t make for a pleasant dining experience but the sheer variety of foods sort of makes up for it. From piping hot coconut filled fritters to oodles of milk based sweet confections, I gorged on item...

Brown Motion

Search This Blog