Bend it Like Beckham

A Gurinder Chadha film, Bend it Like Beckham was a super hit when it released in cinemas in 2002. Predominantly a movie about the Diaspora living in the UK and how they have to deal with the people out there with their culture, traditions, beliefs and values; something that is so different from our own Indian culture.

The movie also concentrates on a young girl, Jess, who’s passion is football and is struggling with her parents ideals that life is not about football but much rather about staying at home and learning to make "Aloo Gobi". She also falls in love with a Brit guy, Joe, which her family typically refuses to accept because they're not in the same cast.

Jess’s mother forms a pivotal part in the film as she is the funniest character with a lot weird mannerisms and a very backward attitude especially when it comes to women. In other words we can say that she would be the stereotypical Indian mother with all the melodrama of the world.

Also, there is a part in the movie where Jess gets mistaken for a lesbian with her best friend Jules and the hilarity that entails from both families is something that people should watch this movie for. I also love the soundtrack of the movie, especially Tere Bin Nahi Lagda.

It is very close to my heart as this is the first film that I went to watch with my girlfriends in the theater without any adult supervision around. It was awesome! We had so much fun swooning over Joe, who is extremely good looking.

Jab We Met

This was a movie which had me on the edge of my seat with laughter as well as tears. While watching the film I wondered how a person who hasn’t even met me, let alone spoken to me before in my life, could've ever known the girl deep down within me and translated it into the character Geet, played by Kareena Kapoor. The absolute genius being Imtiaz Ali, who's first attempt was the movie Jab We Met which he struck gold by hitting the hearts of millions everywhere.

The duo have recreated and brought to life a character Geet that brings us face to face with ourselves and what we could be missing out on. An unforgettable performance given by Kareena for which she received several accolades. Obviously we can’t forget the super sweet, Shahid Kapoor, who was completely overpowered by Kareena's performance but held his ground much the same.

Honestly, I don’t think that the Kareena-Shahid Jodi breaking up had any relation to this movie i.e. it was completely immaterial. It did not make the movie more or less enjoyable after knowing this fact. Still the media being the media had to blow it out of proportion making it sensational news at the time.

My favorite song from the film is definitely Mauja Hi Mauja because it’s upbeat and funky.

The movie managed to make me laugh, cry and ‘aww’ every time I watched this film and I say that after having seen it more than 10 times but guess what, I'm still not bored of it which is why this movie makes it to the list.

The Shrek Series

An entire series of animated films, Shrek, which is a Dreamworks picture, brings so much onto the screen which very few have been able to do. They are epic by themselves and I personally love all 4 movies in the entire series. The movies come alive predominantly because of its four iconic characters: Shrek whose voice is given by Mike Myers, Donkey by Eddie Murphy, Fiona by Cameron Diaz and Puss in Boots by Antonio Banderas. I cannot believe that the series is over and infact am secretly hoping that they decide to make another one. It is the fourth highest grossing film series of all times behind Harry Potter, James Bond and Star Wars.

Shrek is where it all begins. It’s where they make you believe that beauty lies skin deep and no matter if you are reading fairy tales or living a chapter in real life, true love can exist and will prevail. The lovely part about it is that it is a light spoof on most of the fairy tale movies already made. It completely revolutionizes the meaning of happily ever after. The film left me wanting more, hoping that like every other sequel the next one doesn’t disappoint me.

Shrek 2 thankfully didn’t disappoint me in the least. It was made on the pretext that true love will stand tall no matter what comes in its way and you don’t need anything more than faith in you and your soul mate to get through any problem in the world. This film further reaffirmed my belief in true love and its power. I could see some real life experiences and real people playing their roles in real life which is why for me it was entertaining as well as reinforcement in true love.

Shrek the Third, for a lot of people lost its charm after the first two movies but what I thought was that the element of friendship is what kept it going. One part that I really love is when girl power prevails in the movie and comes to the rescue of the boys. The plot slightly deviated from the Shrek theme but aspects like Fiona’s pregnancy and Shrek having to deal with fatherhood is very cute, funny and realistically shown in the film. Seeing Shrek and his friends come together again kept the screen alive and enjoyable. Personally I loved the film and the addition of more fairy tale characters made it even more fun.

Shrek Forever After is when Shrek has finally reached a point where every man has to become a family man i.e. basically equal to no more wild side. A part taken very well from real life and translated into animation yet brought closer to us in 3D. This was the film that brought back the old flavour and had me laughing happily ever after. 

I think in all of them there is one thing that I loved the most and that is the friendship between Donkey and Shrek. So improbable but yet so strong.

All in all a brilliant movie series and something that would undoubtedly make it to my list of movies I love. Shrek is that one movie that I will show my kids when they’re growing up so that it stays with them the way it stayed with me!

Chicago- the movie

Another musical that changed my life forever (figuratively speaking) is Chicago. Based on a Broadway musical, this film is fun and entertaining. It showed the good and bad, the ups and the downs and the funny as well as serious aspects. The cast consisting Renee Zellweger, Richard Gere and Catherine Zeta Jones has done some tremendous acting, amazing singing and really sexy dance moves. For me, the charm of the movie was how easily they could show the musical and then fade into reality! One second they’re all around the place dancing and singing and the next everybody is sitting down like it’s a normal everyday scene. I think this aspect is well brought out in the song Razzle Dazzle, where the scene keeps fading in and out of the musical done by lawyer Billy Flynn (Richard Gere) and the normal jury scene where Roxy (Renee Zellweger) is being tried. Richard Gere acts brilliantly and looks nothing like his age. The dancing that he does is really phenomenal. 

For a person like me who wants to make advertisements in the future, this cinematic approach was something I paid very close attention to. The way it was being shot i.e. from the various different angles and the flawless editing which made it flow so normally from one scene to another without losing its touch of being a musical. The amount of detail that has gone into writing the film is evident from the way the film moves in and out from flashbacks into every present day scene.

A song that is absolutely fantastic is the title song, All that Jazz. Infact, both the versions i.e. the one sung by Catherine Zeta Jones and the other sung by both the leading ladies which is the final sequence in the movie. It makes for a perfect end to an outstanding movie. 

There are many other songs that were really good like Cell Block Tango, which was shot and choreographed so beautifully and aesthetically, When you're Good to Mama, sung by Queen Latifah; a classic lady giving a classic performance, and We both reached for the Gun.

All in all an absolute mind-blowing cinematic experience and a film that I could never get bored seeing even a million times which is why it makes it to the top of my list. 

The Emperor’s New Groove

A movie that might be new to people’s ears is The Emperor's New Groove. A comedy about a king getting turned into a llama, the film is so good that it will guarantee you a "roll on the floor" experience. At the same time it teaches you about friendship, love and family and how all these factors are so important in a person’s life.

I had some seriously stuck up friends back in school who would brag about the clothes they wore, the kind of place they lived in or the kind of food they ate. More than jealous it used to make me feel irritable. I mean be a good person and a good friend rather than bragging!

I wanted to somehow communicate this to them so I urged them to watch the movie. I was young and so were they! Obviously it didn’t make a dent in their conscience but it kind of gave me the personal satisfaction, as their friend, that I had done whatever I could to improve them.

I think the character of the king and the llama, Kuzco, was funny, entertaining and the only reason I absolutely love this movie. 

Anastasia

A lot of people don’t really know about this movie. An animated film made by 20^th Century Fox with the voices of Meg Ryan and John Cusack as the leads. It was my favourite movie of all time. Set in the time of the 1910s, the movie revolves around the Romanov rule and how that is lost because of an evil curse. Anastasia, the smallest in the family, is left behind while the rest of her family is either killed or escaping.

As the film unfolds Anya (Anastasia), who has forgotten all about her past, is helped by Demitri and Vladimir, two conmen, to find her grandmother and re-unite the family together. Seeing that movie as an 8 year old, I remember thinking that the movie had absolutely everything, right from an amazing story, wonderful characters, beautiful songs and perfect music.

Not only that, but I had actually developed my first crush on Demitri, who was everything I had ever wanted (yes, I know! What was I thinking right! He’s animated!) Smart, funny, soft-hearted. In the movie, he was truly Anya’s perfect match. 

Songs that really caught my attention, that I know by heart even today and that I like hearing every now and then are Journey to my Past, Once Upon a December and At the Beginning! I even sung  At the Beginning With You in my school choir! It is a song that is very close to my heart.

Dil Chahta Hai

This movie definitely makes it to my list of my most favourite movies. The best Hindi movie ever made, Dil Chahta Hai formed a cult when it was released in 2001. Aamir Khan completely stole the entire act with his outstanding performance as Aakash. I have never seen an actor play the same character in two drastically different ways. One approach was the rich boy who was always annoying people and had no considerations for feelings. The other was that of a love-struck guy who didn’t know what was going on because it was a first for him having never actually fallen in love.

Although the love story between Aakash and Shalini (played by Preity Zinta) is something that is very clichéd and seen quite often---it is Aakash’s character that makes it unique and different.

There was hardly a moral or teaching that could be learnt from the movie but the reason for it’s popularity is that it radiated a sense of teen culture moving into adulthood, something that is so well brought out only because of the then debutante director, Farhan Akhtar. He is the first person after the very long line of Johar's and Chopra’s that has delivered and is still delivering quality cinema in Bollywood not just once but many times after this one as well.

The songs of the movie were trend-setters and are still popular even today. One song that I particularly like is Tanhayee that Sonu Nigam has really sung from his heart and soul. Throughout the entire song Aamir doesn’t say a word but the audience can feel what he feels just by his facial expressions. I remember bawling like a baby on this song.