October 28, 2004

FILM

It’ll be hard to talk about The Forgotten without giving too much away but I’ll give it a try. The wonderful Julianne Moore plays Telly, a woman grieving for her nine-year-old son, who died in a plane crash 14 months ago. She sees his photo albums everyday, watches his videos, thinks constantly of him and basically has retreated from the outside world in her grief much to the chagrin of her husband (Anthony Edwards). Trying to help her cope is her psychiatrist, Dr Jack Munce (Gary Sinise). Then she is told that her son never really existed, that she lost him in childbirth and that all her “memories” are figments of her imagination. Is this really possible? But what about the pictures and the video tapes? But these start to disappear as well. What’s going on and who is the kind but mysterious man (Linus Roache), who seems to show up everywhere?

Ash (Dominic West), an alcoholic ex-ice hockey player, also lost his daughter in the same plane crash that Telly lost her son but he doesn’t remember his child. Still, while trying to solve the mysteries that surround her, Telly hangs on to her conviction that her son really did exist and manages to recruit Ash to her cause. But now they not only have the police chasing them but also the FBI. What is going on?

So far so good and intriguing enough. But from here the movie turns into only an average episode of The X-Files — I can say no more. There was an intriguing premise here but it never got turned into a real movie, though Moore tries her best to hold it together.—Khushro Mumtaz

 

OR

Take a healthy dash of “The Fast And The Furious”, mix with a liberal sprinkling of Torque, add some Hong Kong cinema-inspired wire-work, multiple camera angles, jump cuts and slow motion photography, marinate in sex-laden sauce, bring to a boil with some amped-up music and stir it well and the result is a Mollywood masala mix called Dhoom which turns out to be surprisingly slick and watchable.

A criminal gang riding souped-up motor bikes is pulling off one daring heist after another, so super-cop Jai (Abhishek Bachchan) is called in on the job. With the help of a petty thief and street-racing bike rider, the wise-cracking Ali (Uday Chopra), Jai attempts to bring down the thieves who are led by Kabir (John Abraham) and a game of cat-and-mouse begins.

Most Mollywood action flicks — no matter how big budget — are pretty laughable but director Sanjay Gadhvi (Meray Yaar Ki Shaadi Hai) has put together a sleek little movie which has just about the right amounts of action and stunts (done quite well overall), comedy (Uday Chopra is fairly good) and sex (Esha Deol and Rimii Sen providing plenty of cleavage and oomph). Thai-American pop star Tata Young provides the English-language version of the title song and also shows up in the closing credits for an “item” number.—K.M.

 

CLASSIC FILM

The gently uplifting and touching Il Postino (1994) was the first foreign film to be nominated for the Best Picture Oscar in 1995 since Ingmar Bergman’s Cries And Whispers in 1973. While directed by Michael Radford, the soul of this remake of Antonio Skarmeta’s Ardiente Paciencia (1983) was the leading actor and co-screenwriter Massimo Troisi, who was also nominated for his performance. Suffering from a heart ailment during the making of the movie, Troisi died at age 41 the day after filming of Il Postino was completed.

His real-life story adds an extra element of melancholy to the movie which tells the tale of a simple Italian postman (Troisi) who tries to convince the world-famous Chilean poet Pablo Neruda (Philippe Noiret) to help him win the hand of Beatrice (Maria Grazia Cucinotta). The movie then becomes an ode to love, to lovers and to poetry, the language of lovers. This lyrical movie will have you rushing out to buy a volume of Neruda’s poetry as soon as it is over. In Italian with English subtitles. Available on DVD in Pakistan.—K.M.

 

TV

A programme that is being presented specially for this month by PTV every night is Live Ramazan Transmission, aired from 9.30 to 12pm in the night. The hosts Muneera Nadeem, Farhan Ali Agha, Ali Afzal and Sara Rahid invite religious scholars and showbiz personalities and discuss topics pertaining to Ramazan and its requirements. This programme is popular with all the generations as it has people from all ages participating.—A.S.

 

QAWWALI

Qawwali has always been popular in the subcontinent. The Pakistan National Council of the Arts is holding a qawwali in which Maqbool Sabri Qawwal and his team will be performing. The programme will take place on October 30, at 9 in the evening, followed by dinner. PNCA, Karachi, has become quite active since its new director Amin-e-Ajam has taken over.—A.S.

 

SINGLE

It’s no surprise that Britney Spears has titled her upcoming greatest hits album My Prerogative. It features a remake of the Bobby Brown classic by the same name that is the first release of the CD. Her version of My Prerogative is already on heavy rotational play. Although this is an apt song for the Diva to cover, the single is getting far less attention than her recent marriage to back-up dancer Kevin Federline. Her dress, her brunette hair and their new home have got far more interest than this latest remake.

Still, Spears has gone all out on this new release. The action-packed video features a wedding, a car crash and her then fiance, now husband. Although the single is a fair try, it’s very bad in comparison to the spot-on, hard-hitting original that was absolutely irresistible. The theme of pleasing oneself may suit Spears as much as it did Brown, but the diva lacks Brown’s absolute edge. With Spears, her occasional outrageous attitude seems at odds with her Southern belle upbringing, while it seems second nature to Brown and even Spears’s ideal, Madonna.

As the tabloid favourite is all set to release her perfume and body line Curious, and diversify her empire in the spirit of Jennifer Lopez, it’s unclear whether her musical career will take a backseat to her new interests and new marriage.—T.U. Dawood

 

ALBUM

Two years ago it was Norah Jones. Last year, Diana Krall. This year, the queen of soul and the songstress taking the music industry and critics by storm is Joss Stone. You can’t help but notice her sensuous, confident voice. Her command of her vocals is noteworthy, whether the soulful notes or the soaring crescendos. What’s amazing is that the diva is only 17 years old.

A blonde-haired Brit, Stone is actually shy and speaks with a charming lilt to her voice that is not perceivable in her music. However, it is her gifted pipes that have taken her to a record contract and now on tour. Her first CD, 2003’s The Soul Sessions got her some media and critical attention, but it is her latest disc Mind, Body & Soul that is simply exploding. Featuring such memorable tracks as the decadent gospel number Security, the kickin’ Right to Be Wrong and of course, the lead single You Had Me, this disc is full of great potential releases and is sure to only solidify the young starlet’s place on the charts.—T. U. D

 

WEBSITE

Here is an awesome music site. It is dedicated to promote Pakistani music throughout the world, and gives recognition and exposure to little-known Pakistani music bands as well. One can safely say that ‘www.pakmusic.com’ is achieving its goal of bringing Pakistan music bands into the mainstream and making Pakistani music available overseas.

Introduced and managed by three foreign-based Pakistanis along with their team, the site provides the latest in music. It includes songs, videos, news about all the top artists and newcomers. It covers interviews of the artists, concert reviews, autographs of the stars and also provides exclusive releases. It also has a discussion forum and the biggest Pakistani music library available for downloading. ‘The Hideout of Pakistan Music Lovers’, the title they have designated their site, is a must-visit for all music lovers.—Tahir Khan

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