Prodigy Speaks

12 Angry Men (1957) Dir. Sidney Lumet “𝗙𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝘆 𝗯𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺.” - 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗱 𝗥𝗼𝘀𝗲 Courtroom dramas seldom grace our screens. But when they do, they make sure to leave a fierce impact on our minds. To be blunt, there haven't been many of this kind in the post-classic era; at least not as good as Sidney Lumet's first-class '12 Angry Men' of 1957. With Henry Fonda as the lead, the film exudes quality and confers a piece of art way, way ahead of its time. Be it the writing, act, or screenplay, Reginald Rose endowed us with an inch-perfect monumental classic. The story puts the center stage on the verdict of the jury comprising of 12 members having contrasting perspectives on the accusation faced by an 18-year-old boy with the charges being the murder of his father in cold blood. How it pans out throughout its short runtime of 95 minutes at the same time forcing your undivided attention is a remarkable achievement. With the story not pleading for any external brilliance apart from the characterization of Henry Fonda, the compellingly rousing script illustrated that it's plentiful for a movie to be cited as a masterpiece. The renditions of the actors are so shrewd that the notion that it's been made in 1957 blows our senses out of proportions. '12 Angry Men' is just the kind of film that has the right to demand your token of appreciation for its unsophisticated making, brilliant acting. Indeed an elegant work, frame by frame, act by act.

Squid Game (2021) Created by Hwang Dong-hyuk "𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒉 𝒊𝒔 𝒂𝒍𝒘𝒂𝒚𝒔 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒐𝒊𝒄 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒉𝒚𝒑𝒆." -𝑱𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒄𝒂 𝑳𝒚𝒏𝒄𝒉 Pandora boxes come in a multitude of shapes and sizes. Amongst them, Hype trains are one of the colossal, if not the most colossal forms prevailing around right now. There are hardly any aspects that can escape the tout blanket devised by the internet community. But, take nothing away, 'Squid Game' definitely stands out to be one of the most intricately enticing shows ever set in motion. Converging a stiffly contrasting set of genres into one, 'Squid Game' furnished a fantastic surge-filled intrigue to the global audience through out its limited run spanning just 9 episodes. One of the most striking ingredient is that the makers managed to deliver a sucker punch, should I call it rather a KO blow for the kinda impact it had. Many biggies failed in doing so in the past despite having a sizeable script and having moderate longevity. Putting forth the spotlight on the suffering and deprived class of South Korea, the show trudges on forward with copious amounts of twists and turns by pushing the 456 participants to the absolute limits of humanity and make them question the moral code more often than not. With absurdity and surrealism in substantial portions, it gave the writing a license to thrill. 'Terrific' would be an understatement as long as 'making the audience bite their nails on the edge-of-their-seats' feeling is concerned. There is scarcely any room untaken to point fingers at the acting in 'Squid Game' as every single actor on the screen have beautifully engineered and pulled off spellbinding performances; no doubt about that. In a world where the Korean culture is ravaging up the Earth through the music industry, 'Squid Game' has just become the cherry on top for the exponentially growing Korean domination. The reason I believe why 'Squid Game' rose to fame in such a quick span of time is it's atypical unconventionality in making. For the generation that's been built on fantasy, action, adventure, 'Squid Game' came in as a captivating breath of fresh air.

It's been a while since I've had the chance to experience commotion so big on the big screen. Maha Samudram provided me with just that. Where should I even start off here? Flawed script, exaggerated fights, multiple deviations from the plot and the big one, the inability to establish a subject of proper substance. While I'm not at all certain how the director actually managed to narrate and made the protagonists to accept, the director focused on making the film in a raw and rustic manner; it's nothing to be laughed at; whilst the effort of the actors is to be appreciated for the amount of work they've put in, that is no excuse for the direction and writing department's feeble effort in dishing out an exhausted story line. The positives, at times, being the fight sequences and the background score that follows. Every actor on screen have managed to do a moderately good job. Plus, it is evident that not adequate amounts of concentration was put in to make the songs stand out. The bottom line is, Maha Samudram is an exaggerated tale of misunderstood friendship and a frail revenge drama with a flawed narrative. All in all, it's a (barely) one-time watch.

American Psycho (2000) Dir. Mary Harron Based on the novel of the same name by Bret Easton Ellis (1991) There are very few works that enjoy the sophistication of being hailed as 'Best in class'. American Psycho starring Christian Bale, Jared Leto, Willem Dafoe edges 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 into that renowned bracket. I've come across very few films that delivered a solid punch without having a beefy narrative. THIS is 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 that. American Psycho features Christian Bale, (yes, The Batman from Gotham) who has a roguish inner-self kept in abeyance. The other appearing characters are also subtly written without having much of any significance of their own; yet, deliver a crucial impact on the storyline in their own peculiar ways. From being portrayed as a well established investment banker, the plot follows Patrick Bateman's horrifying spiral into uncontrolled barbarity. The 'Patrick Bateman' persona oozes narcissisism and his unquenchable thirst for bloodshed. While the film is considered to be a cult classic by many, everything comes down on to the person watching it. Because, the subject shown in the movie is unlike any of the regular movies that you'd have watched and will surely leave you gasping if you're unprepared. As long as performances are concerned, Christian Bale has completely nailed the role of the wretched Patrick Bateman. The ease with which he pulls off various shades and sides of the character is definitely something to applaud. If the film doesn't appeal you, Christian Bale's act will. The final word is, American Psycho is one of those rarest (disturbing) films that managed to balance dark humour, horror, gore, performances in equal proportions and gives you a whole new vibe as long as you're in Mr. Bateman's gore-filled shoes.