The Descendants (2011)

Seen on 26-2-2013 on HBO
A land baron, a scion of an old Hawaiin royalty, has to deal with a dying wife who, he discovers, has been having an affair a little before being hospitalized after a fatal boat accident.  And he has to cope with two daughters.  He loves his wife, but is pained by his discovery of her adultery.  The movie intricately weaves the web of strong mixed emotions of the man caught in these conflicting emotions and show us the most graceful thing to do under the circumstances. THE DETAILS OF THIS COMPLICATED MIXED BAG OF FEELINGS ARE BEAUTIFULLY DRAMATIZED.  Basically, the protagonist here ends up displaying what Hemingway called "grace under pressure"  in all the decisions he makes in his crisis in spite of his conflicting emotions, and this is admirable.
    This movie won one 2011 Oscar for Best adapted screenplay and 4 Oscar Nominations for Best film, actor, direction, editing.  GEORGE Clooney's action stands out.

Our Idiot Brother (2011)

Seen on 26-2-2013 on HBO
The protagonist (played by Paul Rudd) is a typical Dostoevskian "Idiot" who embodies goodness, innocence and ingenuousness, completely untouched by worldliness and tact.  With all his good intentions and unbeknownst to himself he disturbs the lives of his three sisters and land in trouble himself.  Although people take advantage of his innocence and goodness, he bears no grudge or bitterness.  His sisters understand him but can't abide by him; no one can. But he is finally accepted by his family for what he is and all ends well.  WE ENJOYED THIS MOVIE.

Rumor of Angels (2000)***

Seen on 4-10-2009 - A Zee Studio movie
Cast: Vanessa Redgrave (Maddy, the old woman), Trevor Morgan--writing today (25-2-13) I vaguely recollect that it was about a solitary old woman and neighbourhoos young boy drawn together and bonding!

Silver Linings Playbook (2012)

Seen on 24-2-2013 at GVK INOX
This  movie attracted our attention esp  bec it is loudly advertised as having won 8 Oscar nominations and is reported to be in line for several wins at the Oscar Awards ceremony the following day.  Incidentally, for us it was a kind of an adventure to go alone to see this in Inox GVK Mall bec we were going to this maze of a mall for the first time.
Whatever, as it turned out this movie did win  one Oscar at least--if not several--for Best Actress (Jennifer Lawrence WHO WAS KNOWN TO US FROM HER "WINTER'S BONE"), although this movie did not excite us much.  It is basically about a man fresh out of a mental institution (Bipolar Disorder) falling in love and overcoming his sickness when he begins to bond and love a neighborhood girl. True, Bradley Cooper was good, but the theme itself, much less its treatment by the director David O. Russell, did not appeal to us.

The Comforts of Strangers (1990)

Seen on 23-2-2013 --  STRANGE INTRIGUING MOVIE (WILL someone help us understand this)

Based on Ian McEwan's novel of the same title this is about pathological strangers in Venice (Christopher Walker and Helen Mirren) who befriend a visiting couple (Rupert Everett and Natasha Richardson) from England and bring the man to an end at the end!!  The screenplay is by Harold Pinter who  has actually beguiled us with his intellectual reputation into watching this movie but we have yet to understand the pathology of this grisly ending.  Also we have yet to understand the strange relationship of this English couple who have been seeing each other for seven years without committing to marriage and have come to Venice to sort out their confusion in relationship.  THIS IS A MOVIE THAT NEEDS TO BE UNDERSTOOD WITH HELP FROM REAL SOURCES.  ROGER EBERT'S REVIEW IS EQUALLY EVASIVE AND IS TOTALLY UNHELPFUL.
We were mystified by the strange theme of the movie and the mystification is not least to the lack of subtitles for one and we started watching it after 40 minutes of the run.
The movie is directed by Paul Schrader.

Films Seen in Jan 2013 - 4 films

--Jack Reacher (SEEN WITH ASHU)
--Midnight's Children
--Lincoln (slated for several Oscars) -- a Spielberg film starring Day Lewis
--Viswarupam,  a Kamal Hassan movie
--The Artist, the Oscar winning movie abt silent film era artist struggling to find his moorings after the arrival of talkies.
--The Inglorious Basterds(2009), a Holocaust movie that is chiefly concerned with the last days of the Third Reich.  Here it is about a plot to kill all the important Nazi Generals in one place.  The unique thing abt this movie is that Christophe Waltz who plays the Nazi General responsible to search and kill Jews in occupied France has received Oscar (for supporting role) in this 2009 film; ALSO, HE RECEIVED A SECOND 2013 OSCAR FOR SUPPORTING  ROLE (in the film Django Unchained).

Two Weeks Notice (2002)

Seen on 21-2-13
Starring Sandra Bullock and Hugh Grant, this movie is engaging, in spite of being just another love story, because of superb script and fine acting.  A highly gifted lawyer working for a billionaire construction tycoon puts her boss on two weeks notice because she thinks she is being used more as a nanny than a secretary.  This results in a lot of sparring on her part while she seriously prepares to leave him.  Eventually she realizes that neither of them can leave the other because they are in love.  

The Kids are Alright (2010)

Seen on 19-2-13 - offbeat relationships
This an unusual story about a lesbian couple with two teenager children born to them from an anonymous sperm donor from a sperm bank.  When the children locate the biological father, bonding takes place at first bec he is quite a like-able person.  The liberal lesbian parents allow this, but when one of the mothers (Julianne Moore) impulsively begins to sleep with him, complications arise: like in a normal household this new relationship starts a triangular conflict with children disliking it and with the other partner (the one who played "man of the house" role by Annette Bening) regarding him as an "interloper."  Normalcy is restored when the "interloper" is removed from this small closely knit family.  Like in in any normal household!!!
The strange situation is interesting.

Outrageous Fortune (1987)

Seen on 19-2-13 - a hilarious comedy and a spoof to boot
Hilarious movie with Bette Midler and Shelley Long in the lead roles.  To jog my memory of other films I had seen of especially Bette Midler, I searched her filmography but didn't succeed in locating even one.  But I am sure the face is familiar and we both felt the same way.  However, it is a non-stop comedy and regales with its imaginative story and script.  Yet another important aspect of the film is that it could be regarded as a spoof because all through it mocks the high octane action movies with CIA and KGB spies chasing the same target and caught in the crossfire are the villains and good guys (here it is two helpless women comically trying and getting lucky to find a single lover-villain they quarrel over but agree on nailing!!)