Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure

A simple kiddo movie about value of friendship. Too many things happen in this movie but most of them seem to be futile! Story-line is very simple but means of achieving is way, way long. But good thing about these kiddo animation movies is that they all end happily.
Rating: Average

Spellbound

A real-life documentary on 8 participants of 1999 National Spelling Bee participants and their families, and what they all go through to win this ultimate competition. It is shocking that amongst over 10 million participants, only one person gets the crown. This documentary is as good as any Hollywood thriller movie.
Rating: Good

Nearlyweds

First thing that struck me while watching this movie was the amateurish acting, which is not so obvious to see in any other movies. Story-line is average, some very good dialog and real-life scenarios that can make relationships go sour. Good time pass for a lazy Sunday.
Rating: Average

The Pianist

The unbelievable true story about Szpilman who escaped death by Nazis by sheer luck so many times - it was as if God paves his way of Life through the River of Death wherever he went and lived during World War II. The novel was sometimes hard to understand but the movie makes completes justice to the novel. It is a stunning story that should not be missed. The most touching part for me, as an irony, was the death of the German Officer Captain Wilm Hosenfeld despite seeing so many Jews dying.
Rating: Good

We Bought A Zoo

A remarkable true story about an adventurer Benjamin Mee who decides to buy a zoo, in the hope of owning a dream-come-true-home. A gripping story albeit it being on the family-side. The '20-second insane bravery' theory is very motivational. Good casting, good direction and good acting makes this one almost a must-see.
Rating: Good

ABCD

A very dark movie about the status of American Born Confused Desi (Indian) - Indians being in America not really sure which tradition and custom to follow. By 'dark', I mean both literally and figuratively. The movie could have ended wherever and it still would not have mattered. It neither has a happy ending or a sad ending. Very amateurish, all in all. But, very much the truth of ABCD lives.
Rating: Average

Hachi: A Dog's Tale

A very moving true story about a dog's loyalty to it's owner, that took place in Japan almost a century ago. Despite a thin storyline, the movie is very well picturized. 
Rating: Good

Pancharangi

A comical Kannada movie with good dialog, nice and simple story line. Some scenes really make you laugh, some are ok-ok. Total reality of current times nicely depicted. Setting is very nice - in a quaint village near Mangalore. Although it is still a simple love story, it has a different texture to it. Watchable.
Rating: Good

The Lost Valentine

A nice movie about an old woman and her romance. On similar lines of Titanic but not so grand. Much more simplistic and that much more hard hitting, especially for those who lost their men in the World War. A parallel budding romance story is the only that stops from making it a tearjerker.
Rating: Good

Lucia

UN-BEL-IEV-ABLE!!
This one is a corker of a movie. It has been ages since I had seen a Kannada movie. And then I heard about this movie being one of a kind because of it's funding coming from public. From the start till the finish, it was tightly taut and it had all the right elements - mystery, suspense, romance, humor, with the right touch too. And then, at the end, the movie tipped over and then, I was like, WOW!! Like Barfi, like many other 'WOW' movies I had seen, I started it all over again immediately after it ended to fully soak in each scene with the new understanding. There are some traces of Inception but while Inception gets very complicated, this remains at a human level - and brings joy and sadness and all the emotions out, as should a movie. Then I saw about the director Pawan Kumar and read his blog. The fact that he is a college drop out and that the music director is a software engineer, I was very, very impressed. The music and songs (esp this one) is just mind-blowing! Overall, a FANTASTIC movie, and it made my day!!
Rating: Must-See!!

A Perfect Murder

A weekend with no movie at home. So started searching for some movie available on the cable network given as freebies, and came across this movie. I remember how my friend and I had seen this in a CD about 15 years ago with crappy quality (perhaps copied from a theatre) where we could hardly see nor hear and yet got the content of the movie and how we were impressed by just the story line, and Douglas acting. So just started it again, to experience it and got hooked onto it till the end, although I remembered most of the scenes. The story line and Douglas acting was just as impressive as ever.
Rating: Good

Rangeela

The only movie I have seen twice in a theatre. Wanted to show this movie to wifey. Hence booked the DVD and ended up seeing the movie along with her. As always, enjoyed it thoroughly. This time around though, didn't get that impressed with Urmila's acting but Aamir was as best as the first time I saw him. One of my all time fav Hindi movies.
Rating: Good

The King's Speech

A very good movie about the King and his stuttering problem. The acting is brilliant from the main protagonists. The fact that it was a true story makes it more enthralling. 
Rating: Good

Its a Wonderful Life

Wow! What a movie!
Unbelievable! 2 back-to-back 'must-see' movie weekends! This one is a corker, and I didn't even have to go back and see the movie from the beginning. It is a simple yet profoundly powerful and moving movie about the value of 'being good' and 'leading a valuable life'. A definite must-see!

Talaash

Wow! What a movie! 
Finally, after almost 1.5 years I could say those 4 words! It has been such a long time to have found such a corker of a movie. But I must say it has been a long time since I saw (what seemed to be) a murder mystery movie too. This movie runs on a serious note from the very first scene and it is totally gripping. Aamir's acting is as superb as ever (especially his crying scenes!). Like the last one which made me go like this, even this movie made me see it again (immediately after the first run) from the beginning to fully comprehend the story in its entirety. The dialog is a winner and each of Kareena's words are full of dual meaning that can only be understood if seen the second time around. A winner all-around!

Housefull 2

Considering that the first part had not impressed me much, I had very low expectations from this movie. But it impressed me in few ways. Especially the complicated story line and the catchy dialog going with lies spun all around the story. The movie didn't get boring but the casting could have been better. Some of the scenes were very amateurish and not humorous albeit intended so. The fight scenes could easily be identified that they were staged. Still, a light hearted comedy that can be seen on a light hearted day!
Rating: Good

A Separation

This blog desperately needs a 'Wow! What a movie!' starting line. It has been so long! So, searched for top movies in IMDB and even Oscar winner list. Result? This Persian movie. Alas, it could not provide the 'Wow' factor although it came very close to it. The acting, some of the scenes, the story, the narration, the direction are all supreme but in the end, the audience is left wanting to know more. Becomes more of an anti-climax. A very good movie, though.
Rating: Good

Hasee Toh Phasee

For some reason, I thought this movie to be on similar lines to Shuddh Desi Romance. Unfortunately it was not. It seemed to have a lot of potential at different times throughout the movie but none of them clicked to provide a 'wow' effect. During last stages, it even got to 'When will this end?' thoughts. 
Rating: Average

Grand Masti

"Adult" written all over the movie. Only one (and one only) thing is the main point in the movie. It truly amazes me about Man's creativity and expertise in everything -  in picturization, in 'double-meaning' humor-filled dialog, in 'sizzling' scenes, in acting by the protagonists. Reminded me of the Rani Mukherjee Dreamum song. Worth the watch. Nothing great but nevertheless a no-brainer laugh riot, if seen with the right temperament and ambience.
Rating: Good

Into the Wild

The novel did not evoke much thought in me but the movie really moved me. Much credit goes to Sean Penn's style of direction. He weaves the story from Chris's days in the 'Magic Bus' to how he ended up coming there - back and forth, with sister Carine's further insights in the background. Excellently dramatized, great casting and beautiful cinematography. Much of the movie is based on the novel (which is based on the true story) - sometimes more than what is in the novel (like how he suffered in the bed during his last days) and sometimes lesser than what is documented (like how he hiked through the Yukon territory). Either ways - it is a definite must-see.
Rating: Good