The Brothers Bloom

When a movie is based on a curiosity enthralling plot, has talented lead actors, big-budget and production value, exotic locations you would expect it to be good. The Brothers Bloom has all that but lamentably is still a pretty miserable movie. The storytelling is extremely frustrating and even an absorbing setting and idea fails to create enough captivating scenes. Dialogues and character writing are average at best  and you through the second half you keep waiting for it to get good and it doesn't until the ending

Highs: Ends really well and brings closure to its fairish characters. Location and production value feel of good quality and adds value to the project.

Lows: Acting does not impress from the entire team which is a shame for a talented cast. Scene sequencing and pacing are impeding and lack of energy throughout is evident. The first half feels very confusing and you can tell really early that this is going to be a bumpy ride.

Rating: 2**

Juno

Juno was an impressive movie all in all. The actors have worked really hard to portray some rare human emotions that you don't often see in films. Surrounded by the tensions of a pregnant teen the girl the script manages to keep things light yet illustrates some serious thoughtful moments. However, from an experience standpoint, it does not manage to be an extraordinary film. Certain aspects of the story feel pensive and downbeat. Characters feel out of sync with one another and that really halts to bring the best out of this otherwise excellent movie.

Highs: Writing is a beautiful work of craft. Acting by lead actor Ellen Macguff is a spectacle and she drives this with a lot of clarity, creed, and principle. The heartwarming moments are captured in a non-cringy, subtle way and that is one of the toughest acts to achieve in filmmaking.

Lows: Certain characters and angels are gloomy and lack approval. The ending even with all its sweetness feels predictable and could have been much better.

Rating: 3 ***

Selma

Very few scripts have stayed so true and loyal to its striking and shocking real history than Selma's. Its a movie about authentic original events that will not only give you an epic showing of antiquity but also teach you a solid lesson on human behavior, passion, honor, and devotion. Character writing and adaption are of regal standards. Dialogues are extremely touching and generate warmth, agitation, rage, and remorse. First half and second half blends simultaneously and the splendid ending compliments this extraordinary saga of de facto.

Highs: Almost every minute of the movie are highs. Presentation and adaption to real events are very distinguished and rarely done this perfectly. David Oyelowo's performance as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is hands downs the best adaption of a character I have ever witnessed in a visual media.

Lows: Pacing is slightly slow in the first half.

Rating: 5 *****

#Selma

Conviction

Conviction is a movie about one of the most persistent characters I have ever seen in a motion picture. Played by a brilliant Hilary Swank the character drives the script on her own and quality writing helps her end things without dropping any of the palatial standards. This approach of relying too heavily on one character backfires in the second half and even though the film ends on a high it loses points for under using the strength of the script, storytelling, and other effulgent personalities.

Highs: First half has tons of craft and allows the audience enough breathing space to have a grasp of the seemingly complicated plot. The screenplay does a magnificent job of bringing the best of the main lead and that is most definitely the film's strength.

Lows: The storytelling part feels week and emotions are not enough organized. The presentation and ambiance feel dull and low. 

Rating: 4 ****

#Conviction

Joker

Very few movies have made me feel how Joker did. Rarely a tale of an unorthodox personality has been told this graphically, accurately, and uniquely. The film making team deserves full marks for being brave and attempting to portray what an anti-hero is all about through slick and stylish storytelling. Leadman Joaquin Phoenix gets under the skin of his character like a very few actors can. Having said all that it's nowhere near a perfect movie. Its dark, sickening at times, and the screenplay and script is something most people will not appreciate. 

Highs: Acting is extraordinary especially form the lead. Dialogues are heavy and hit with real depth while trying to cover many different aspects. Music and screenplay add slyness to the film's arsenal and deserve a lot of credence.

Lows: The dark ambiance is really too much and even for the genre lovers this will feel extreme. The ending builds up well and explodes but sadly that feels more like a crash.

Rating: 4 ****

#Joker

Motherless Brooklyn

Make sure you have a lot of diligence and spare time before you start watching 'Motherless Brooklyn' because it will test every bit of your composure. But if you are patient enough the movie will reward you. By the time you'd wanna praise the script, the film will tire and drain you with overbearing dialogues and a prosaic trip through the hard-hitting streets of New York City in the '50s. Heavily populated with a lot of different storylines the film demands so much of your attention and focus that it forgets to create an enjoyable experience for the audience.

Highs: Casting and acting is top-notch and even with the crowded line up of stories the film manages good sequencing between scenes. Starts off the bat with a motive and sets up a good pace. The ending is also solid and earns points on its own.

Lows: Scriptwriting is tangling. Throws overmuch and tries way too hard to become an acceptable film. The ambiance is also dull and doesn't help the fulfillment process.

Rating: 2.5 **/*

#MotherlessBrooklyn

Moon

A solid film about survival, craftmanship, endurance, and conspiracy 'Moon' is impressive at every level it appears. The first half is slightly delusional but once it settles in it creates intrigue and mystic. It also makes you ask a lot of questions. The second half does a good job of answering those questions but again plays a little too much with phantasm which is either a hit or miss. Lead (and only) actor Sam Rockwell delivers an Oscar-worthy performance and is really the heart and soul of the film from every aspect. Kevin Spacey also produces a thankless but highly impressive performance.

Highs: The ambiance, mysticness, set pieces, and CGI are extremely good and deserve a lot of praise for making 'Moon' a must-watch space odyssey. The ending is sumptuous and adds a satisfying feeling. The science behind the sci-fi is very gravitating and well portrayed through the script.

Lows: Lack of clarity in dialogues makes the film more abstruse than it should have been.

Rating: 4 ****

#Moon

Passengers

Don't watch Passengers with the mindset of a science fiction film and you'll be fine. It's highly pleasurable and congenial. Offers enough suspense, drama, and harmless fun. Fatal flaws stars to appear when it tries to wear a science fiction mask and it's utter nonsense from that aspect. Other than that fundamental part it deserves merit for its efforts to please.

Highs: Atmosphere creation is the top class. The story is easy to recognize and has a lot of punch. Dialogues are written simplistically and it reflects. As a whole the film is naive and under driven approach works mostly in its favor.

Lows: Makes no sense at all from the sci-fi angle which it attempts to portray. Characters are written poorly and you barely feel the emotion. Acting is nothing special either. The ending is dull and foreseeable. A noncontender for a genuine space odyssey if you have seen the good ones.

Rating: 3.5 ***/*

#Passengers

The Lovebirds

A fun romantic comedy-drama that gets points for being a light-hearted harmless movie. Great chemistry by the two leads makes this an enjoyable affair. The problem is the movie is discouragingly unambitious. It never wants to achieve anything more than what it is and the production value feels cheap and unwilling to commit to bigger things.

Highs: Lead actors have done a scintillating job to make sure you enjoy this movie and watch till the end. Dialogues are quick-witted and sparkling. The story is light and agile and scores easy points on the likeability scale.

Lows: Never achieve anything extraordinary. Most things in the script to direction is decent but not great. The ending is meh and does not provide a punch or surprise. Overall the entire film suffers from mediocrity syndrome.

Rating: 3 ***

#TheLoveBirds

The High Note

An exceptional modern film about successful celebrity life and how people who live around fame are affected by it. The High Note deserves a lot of praise for the fresh, crispy idea behind its scrip and how it manages to handle the emotion it produces. Background music is of top caliber and adds a lot of credibilities. Lead Dakota John and main supporting actor Tracee Ellis Ross have electric chemistry between them and even though their scenes together are limited they manage to produce memorable experiences whenever given the chance.

Highs: Direction has style and conviction from beginning to end. Excellent music adds punch and boosts the ambiance. One twist in particular towards the end is subtle, sweet, and surprisingly welcoming.

Lows: Acting except for the lead and main supporting actors don't impress in particular which adds discredit to the character and dialogue writing team somewhat.

Rating: 4 ****

#TheHighNote

The Florida Project

The story of 6-year-old Moonee and her mother is a tale of pain, suffering and above all harsh reality. It's a unique indie movie that pursues top quality presentation. Acted magnificently by the lead and the supporting characters the film tells a very material story. However, it's a genre of movie that is not my cup of tea and I ended up not enjoying the straight forward style of storytelling.

Highs: Dialogue and presentation are of the highest quality. Each character serves a purpose and its screen played wonderfully.

Lows; Sadly the film lacks motive and x-factor. The script is way too laggy and the film misses out on many opportunities on bringing in some punch and interests.

Rating: 2.5 **/*

#TheFloridaPorject

Gurgaon

A dark thriller Gurgaon is far from your average Bollywood movie. The film has a lot of brawn in its core. It has deep cataclysmic secrets that are revealed in a very unconventional way. However, the plot moves in a way that is extremely puzzling and lacks an explanation for a lot of its characters. Ambiance and pacing suffer from a lack of quality and fail miserably at times.

Highs: The ending is surprising and adds punch to the plot. Certain scenes are extremely deep and carry a lot of emotion. Decently acted.

Lows: Characters are confusingly written and major frustration is produced throughout because of that. Sequencing of scenes is bemusing. The overall atmosphere is really dark and that fails to play to the film's strength.

Rating: 2.5 **/*

#Gurgaon

Widows

An emotional thriller that packs enough punch to keep you gripped for most of its course. The film has its strengths and when it plays by it you will be excited Nevertheless it fails to play by those strengths more often than it should and makes its audience lost. The story lacks diligence and stops caring through the middle and becomes frustrating for a pretty formidable chunk of its length which is unforgiving.

Highs: Appreciable acting by lead lady Viola Davis. Most characters have been given a strong motive and well portrayed. Action and torture scenes are a seamless and leading example for its class. The ending has a massive contort in it which is a distinctly pleasant affair.

Lows: Story lacks connection. Dialogues are unimpressive and the script fails to produce enough memorable experiences even with a high budget and a star-studded cast.

Rating: 3 ***

#Widows

Marley & Me

In the mood for a movie, you can watch with your family and feel stronger together? Look no far then. Marley & Me is built around a pet dog and his life but the process portrays strong human emotions and generates significant moments. The script does a really good job of sticking to its solidity and screens some real, vivid, and true to life scenes. Towards the end, things scramble a little bit but it does recover well.

Highs: The writing team emphasized quite a lot to make sure that this becomes an emotional family-friendly affair and they have perfectly nailed it. Characters have a lot of drama, laughs, frustrations and emotions in them and it's an enjoyable experience to see it unveil. The ending is also solid.

Lows: Editing is a bit unpleasant overall. The second half processes too much in too little time and that gives a bad aftertaste.

Rating: 4 ****

#Marley&Me

You're Next

A Bona-Fide action horror movie that with a lead more powerful, persistent and bad ass than any marvel superhero. 'You're Next' is a celebration of kicking ass of the evil. Its chilling at times and a vastly enjoyable experience. Supporting act serves their purpose but is weak at best since the script doesn't license them to do much.

Highs Things move with urgency at all times and it's very fun to see hard-hitting combination of action and thriller. Some Jaw-dropping moments blended with gore is also the film's strength. The lead character is written with conviction and it shows. The ending is also witty and fun.

Lows: Focuses too much on glorifying the lead and makes everything else feeble. The story misses out on some humorous opportunity which would have made it an even greater motion capture experience.

Rating: 4 ****

#YoureNext

I am Legend

A classic and well-grounded movie made with humility and does a great job of nailing the basics. Will Smith produces some phenomenal performances even with very little to work with. However, the film has very perceptible flaws all over. Atmosphere creation and dialogue delivery are average to poor. As a result, a mix of ebb and flow lingers consistently until the credits roll.

Highs: Character writing is good You feel the struggle of the lead very vividly and that's a feat. The supporting act played by a dog is a noticeable technical feat.

Lows: Misses out big time on a more emotional touch in the story. The theme of the movie as a whole feels misty. Overlooks the dramatic side of the plot by some distance; therefore never hits the extra special mark.

Rating: 3.5 ***/*

#IamLegend

This is 40

By the name, it will probably be justified to assume that this movie is going to give you a real look into how '40s are like. Well, it starts on that note for sure. Some solid laughs in the first half along with a very real feeling of the '40s. But then the movie stars getting tangled into a ton of nonsensual drama. Part of the script is poorly written and feels stubborn. It assumes that the IQ of its audience is really low and just wanna spoon feed you.

Highs: The first half is great. Authentic scenes and indelible laughs. Paul Rudd is his own known self and he does a great job of sticking to his strengths.

Lows; Dialogues are bad. A ton of repetition in the script and some scenes are plain unnecessary. Some characters are pointless and do not help the story at all.

Rating: 2.5 **/*

#Thisis40

The Hunt

One well-grounded and congealed movie that is definitely worth your time. It's action-packed enough to wanna make you feel pumped and sarcastic enough to produce some real laughter. However, the film suffers from untimely finishing. Unfortunately, it takes way too long to reveal all its secrets which do not work in favor of strengthening the plot.

Highs: Build up is cleverly executed. Solid action and slash scenes. Acting by the lead ladies are praiseworthy. Dialogues are a combination of witty and grounded which is a difficult thing to pull off and pumps heavy energy into the film.

Lows: The screenplay of the script is poorly implemented. The twists are not played with conviction and the timing is way off. The film manages to generate solid build-up and then doesn't know how to handle it.

Rating: 3.5 ***/*

The Edge of Seventeen

A bizarre, crazy, delusional, and overdoing teen-drama film is what I can say, to sum up, "The Edge of Seventeen". This is a shame cause it is unique, crisp, and a very real plot about a troubling teenage girl played wonderfully by an enthralling lead. However, a stubborn, reluctant, and indocile plot produces an unparalleled amount of cringe. The script, editing, and screenplay are extremely frustrating and it's one of the worst films I have seen in a long time.

Highs: Lead actor Hailee Steinfeld is a breath of fresh air and understands her character well.

Lows: The story, the plot, the twists all made me quiver on more than one occasion. It is not an enjoyable experience to see the on-screen struggles of the lead character. Dialogues are not good enough. The script is over ambitious and comes off arrogant.

Rating: 0

#TheEdgeofSeventeen

Ford vs Ferrari

Once every often you'll see a film and feel like no superlatives will do justice to describe how good it really is. I felt that way about Ford vs Ferrari. A crafted masterpiece and a genuine piece of art the film is awe-inspiring and deserves every plaudit it has received thus far. Every single aspect is made with gentle care, tons of craftsmanship, and elevated rectitude. Based on a true story this is a must-watch.

Highs: From the story to the plot, the writing to acting, from screenplay to special effects everything is exquisite. You will be dragged to the middle of the plot and feel everything the movie intends to do; It is that good.

Lows: The first half takes a little longer to kick off and that can be testing.

Rating: 5 *****

#FordvsFerrari