From the title you must have guessed, correctly, that I just watched Inception.
And you must have also guessed, albeit incorrectly, that I'm going to write a review of the latest Christopher Nolan directed flick starring Leonardo Di Caprio.
Rumour has it that Caprio turned down several Nolan films before finally agreeing to don the garb of mind-hacker Cobb.
I saw Shutter Island, and loved it. But I find a lot of critics drawing parallels where there aren't any. Yes, both protagonists have a troubled past, that affects their actions in the movie, but that is where the similarities end. Teddy Daniels is living in an alternate reality, while Cobb is aware of his past. Moreover, Inception is a structured narrative where one easily follows the plotline, albeit with a few bumps along the way. It does not trick the mind, or keep the audience thrilled with the sheer maniacal machinations of Shutter Island.
Inception raises the bar, its a class apart. The ingenuity of the idea, is almost esoteric, so fleeting - but it's execution is breathtaking. If you had narrated the script, I would have called the idea far-fetched, bordering on the absurd, and certainly too difficult to make the audience comprehend. Nolan does that - and keeps them gripped for over two and a half hours.
Inception does not make you guess, it makes you gasp. It might not have the mystery or intrigue of Shutter Island, but it has the panache and flair of a brilliant story and an even better portrayal of it.
Ellen Page as Ariadne is primand apt. Ken Watanabe and Joseph Gordon-Levitt are good, but a little wasted. Tom Hardy as Eam is particularly suave. Dilip Rao as Yusuf is good. But the lead pair of Caprio and Marion Cotillard are striking, with great versatility. Leo has the range, Cotillard the looks.
Watch it. Again.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Enough is Enough!
If you've read one of my earlier posts, you'll know I'm an avid Arsenal Fan. If you didn't, well, now you do. And like any self-respecting Gooner, I have been vexed enough by the oft-quoted 'Cesc-transfer-saga'. I really liked Barcelona as a club, had respect for their players, their history.
Now I've had enough of this nonsensical 'Catalan roots' of an excuse to take Cesc to Barcelona. Our Cesc. A player who was overlooked while at the club, spotted by Wenger, nurtured and developed by the Arsenal Academy, now 'Belongs' to Barcelona.
Xavi goes as far as to say that we have 'loaned' him.
Let's put the facts straight. Arsenal bought Cesc after our scouts spotted him as a future talent. He was trained, developed and given the chance to prove himself at the highest stage. And now at 23 after becoming a world champion and our talismanic captain, we have to simply lose him?
Well, kudos to Wenger and his backroom for standing firm and not wilting under pressure. And now that Cesc himself has said that he is staying at the Emirates, the rumors are laid to rest - albeit only until the next transfer window.
I do not wish to berate Barcelona - their tapping up, players coming all out and saying Cesc was a Barca player, Puyol's jersey joke - all point to how low the Catalan hierarchy can stoop to get a player. FIFA, UEFA, the various football federations all know about this, but such is Barca's weight on the conference table, that complaining hardly matters.
For my part, I'm happy that Cesc is staying. He is a true professional. I don't know for how long we will have his services, and he ours, but for as long as that may last, he shall lead the Arsenal faithful faithfully. As my friend oft says, 'what matters is the final score'. Arsenal 1 - 0 Barcelona.
Now I've had enough of this nonsensical 'Catalan roots' of an excuse to take Cesc to Barcelona. Our Cesc. A player who was overlooked while at the club, spotted by Wenger, nurtured and developed by the Arsenal Academy, now 'Belongs' to Barcelona.
Xavi goes as far as to say that we have 'loaned' him.
Let's put the facts straight. Arsenal bought Cesc after our scouts spotted him as a future talent. He was trained, developed and given the chance to prove himself at the highest stage. And now at 23 after becoming a world champion and our talismanic captain, we have to simply lose him?
Well, kudos to Wenger and his backroom for standing firm and not wilting under pressure. And now that Cesc himself has said that he is staying at the Emirates, the rumors are laid to rest - albeit only until the next transfer window.
I do not wish to berate Barcelona - their tapping up, players coming all out and saying Cesc was a Barca player, Puyol's jersey joke - all point to how low the Catalan hierarchy can stoop to get a player. FIFA, UEFA, the various football federations all know about this, but such is Barca's weight on the conference table, that complaining hardly matters.
For my part, I'm happy that Cesc is staying. He is a true professional. I don't know for how long we will have his services, and he ours, but for as long as that may last, he shall lead the Arsenal faithful faithfully. As my friend oft says, 'what matters is the final score'. Arsenal 1 - 0 Barcelona.
Friday, July 16, 2010
Coaster Madness
Hi,
I just completed an alpha version of my First iPhone Game titled, COASTER MADNESS!!!
It was built as part of our iPhone Games class here at USC. It was great fun to build, and a great learning experience. I shall post a youtube link soon. Kudos to Rita, Antonio, Adam, Sagar, Anu, Souranshu and your's truly...
The idea of the game is simple, a family is sitting on a rollercoaster car, and the track is incomplete. You have to drag track blocks into place before the car reaches that spot, else the family falls to their death. The camera shakes, the phone vibrates, the cart gains speed as the game progresses! Also keep an eye on the happiness meter - too bored or scared, and you shall lose points - and that is ultimately what the game is about. How long will you, erm.. the Family survive? its madness, Coaster Madness!
Stay tuned for more.
I just completed an alpha version of my First iPhone Game titled, COASTER MADNESS!!!
It was built as part of our iPhone Games class here at USC. It was great fun to build, and a great learning experience. I shall post a youtube link soon. Kudos to Rita, Antonio, Adam, Sagar, Anu, Souranshu and your's truly...
The idea of the game is simple, a family is sitting on a rollercoaster car, and the track is incomplete. You have to drag track blocks into place before the car reaches that spot, else the family falls to their death. The camera shakes, the phone vibrates, the cart gains speed as the game progresses! Also keep an eye on the happiness meter - too bored or scared, and you shall lose points - and that is ultimately what the game is about. How long will you, erm.. the Family survive? its madness, Coaster Madness!
Stay tuned for more.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
One of my Favourite Poems
If
If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;
If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools;
If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on";
If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch;
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run -
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son!
-- Rudyard Kipling
If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;
If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools;
If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on";
If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch;
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run -
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son!
-- Rudyard Kipling
Nature's Rain
I am a proud Mumbaite. I do not say that it’s the best city in the world, simply that I see it that way. And I wear my heart on my sleeve. My favourite thing about Mumbai – the Rains. Oh the glorious, magnificent rain. There aren’t enough epithets in any language known to man to describe in vivid detail feeling of elation I get when I envisage myself in this epic shower of freshness.
The aroma of the first rains on the parched earth, the mud suddenly smelling like a musty perfume –can anything so banal ever smell so good. Suddenly transformed into something so beautiful.
The soft pitter patter of the raindrops on the roof, the whooshing of the monsoon wind as it billows gusts of wetness into your face, the moist damp air!
The feel of the soft globules of water on your cheeks as they slide down with a comforting caress; your hair drenched to the scalp, the slight chill that runs up your spine;
The vista – a lush, slightly haze paradise. The rains beating down on the beach, the postcard view through my kitchen window, the birds hiding under parapets, people rushing off the streets, nature’s beauty unveiled.
And Oh, Oh, Oh! The food. How about a hot cup of chai with some fresh, spicy deep-fried bhajiya’s- magnifique!
Would you have ever believed that nature’s embrace could ever be so beautiful?
I'm findin' it hard to believe
We're in heaven
It isn't too hard to see
We're in heaven
-Bryan Adams, Heaven
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