The Bridges of Madison County

Finally, after a real long time I watched a movie that made me think a lot of things. Have a brief synopsis of the film before I pour out my feelings!

The beautiful Meryl and Clint

Micheal and Carolyn find out the closely guarded secret of their mother. She had been in love with a man following a passionate 4-day affair after which the two of them never saw each other and lived only with the bittersweet memories. The siblings come to know the whole story after discovering the will and diaries of their mother.

A nice shot!

The Bridges of Madison County is the story of almost every woman. Giving up dreams for love, giving up a career for family and giving up one's self for others is something most of the women go through. We live for people around us. We live for our parents' hopes, our husband's choices and our children's needs. We are lost somewhere in this journey of life. If you think about it, itc could be the most painful feeling in the world.

Who are we in the end? Pobably a nobody or in favorable circumstances, we survive in those we love!

Pramface: The Most Hilarious of 2012

I am always on the hunt for romantic comedies because they make me laugh and I love them. I try to watch dramas but cant stick to many past the first episode because I don't get the comedy of most of them but there are some of the dramas that make me watch the whole series in a couple of days because they are so good and addictive.

Laura and Jamie; quite pregnant and worried!

Such a series is Pramface; I don't know what the name means and interestingly I don't know how I came across it because the name sounds ridiculous. Anyway, this drama had 6 half-an-hour episodes and I watched the whole series in 2 days despite my approaching exams.
The series is about Jamie, 16, recently done with his GCSEs. There is Laura, 18, very pretty and about to go to college.They face an unwanted pregnancy after an encounter on a party and sadly Laura remembers nothing as she was too drunk.
The drama focuses on the events that this young couple have. They discover a lot of new things and among them is love.
The drama is not only focused on teen audience but on adults too as it shows how their parents deal with this unexpected situation. There is a lesson in there too; our careless deeds can make us face the harsh consequences as Laura puts her college on hold and Jamie gives up his savings to provide for the mommy and baby.
Well, this all sounds too serious, but believe me this is the funniest series of 2012!
Pramface II coming up!

Sean seems as excited as me!!!

I am too happy and anxious as the second season is under production and will be aired in January 2013! Seriously, cant wait!!!

An Infographic: Elizabeth (1998)

The era of the Tudors has become my favorite of the British History. It has all the elements: drama, romance, subversiveness and mystery.
I watched the BBC series The Tudors and then I automatically became interested in everything Tudor!
The most famous Tudor king Henry VIII of England is famous for his six disastrous marriages. He went out of the way to get rid of older wives and get new ones! All this craving was to get a male heir which he eventually got from the third marriage. But the irony in this situation is that the son he longed for so desperately was no good and ruled for a very short time! And the actual Tudor ruler who made a mark was a daughter. Elizabeth ruled for 44 years in the male dominated world! An even funnier thing is that the father (Henry VIII) spent a lustful life and put his kingdom in an upheaval(the religious turmoil) just to get his marriage annulled but his daughter(Elizabeth I) gave up personal life, never married and died a maid for the sake of her throne, power and kingdom! There is a drastic contrast and that makes this era so interesting!

Anyway, the movies and dramas are most inaccurate and have been heavily criticized for this. The producers claim that they are for the purpose of entertainment and not a history lecture. Well, they serve the purpose well and are quite entertaining!

The movie starts with young pretty Lady Elizabeth, she has been deprived of her title of Princess as she is considered illegitimate.

Elizabeth is childhood friends with Lord Robert Dudley. With the passage of time, they become quite close.

Elizabeth is coronated Queen after the death of her half-sister Queen Mary. She is 25 and quite clueless!

Elizabeth is devastated as a military encounter has resulted in massacre and deaths of many innocent citizens.

Elizabeth is working hard; here she rehearses the speech she is going to deliver to the Parliament.

A warm moment between the Queen and Lord Dudley. Elizabeth cannot marry him as he is already married. Some people consider them lovers but there is no proof till this date. When she comes to know of his marriage, she banishes him from court and her life.

Elizabeth is never without a danger. Here she closely misses death!

Here Elizabeth decides to take charge of her life and her rule.

I loved her dress, take a look in detail!

Elizabeth understands that she needs the heart of a MAN to become a great ruler. She gives up being a woman and that includes her illustrious hair!

And hence the great Elizabeth I of England, that we know today, is born!

"Everyone must watch this movie or die instead"

The title of this post is actually a comment on the YouTube trailer of the movie I am going to talk about today. The movie is called "Children of Heaven". I will not be writing a synopsis because I strongly recommend watching it and I believe that it is one of those movies that will touch everybody's heart no matter what!

The Promotional poster

Unfortunately, it is an Iranian movie. Dont want to sound racist, I just mean that movies from this part of the world do not reach the kind of audience and applause they deserve. I can confidently claim that this movie is better than most of the Hollywood movies we see everyday. Btw, I am highly impressed by the Cinema of Iran. I wish they get more recognition and acclaim from the rest of the world.

The film is about two siblings who come from a less privileged home. They lose a pair of shoes and then comes a series of heart touching moments. It is the importance of family and the tender love between them that makes the movie seem alien!

The very young yet amazing actor

The most important thing that this movie teaches is to be thankful for the blessings that we have. Something that we deem useless might mean a whole world to some other poor being. Never keep piles of stuff in your possession if you don't use them, give them away, they might be deployed to better use then just keeping in a wardrobe!

The movie is a tearjerker...and you might end up falling in love with the "Children of Heaven!".

Hats off to Majeed Majidi for such astounding piece of Art. 

The Exquisite Beauty of Midnight in Paris

Once in a while you see movies as gorgeous as The Devil Wears Prada. But I am happy to say that Midnight in Paris was even more gorgeous.
I have never been to Paris but now it is on the top of my hit list. The beautiful architectural wonders from the past will keep on inspiring artists in the future. No wonder, Paris gives birth to so many wonderful artists and is a hub of fashion; with such beauty in the air, everyone can feel like an artist. The movie also tells that many artists from the past century made the city their home, and one of the most obvious reasons is the inspiring beauty.
My favorite about Paris is the amazing and diverse fountains that are their in the city. Today, they serve the purpose of beautifying the city, but they were actually built to provide water to the citizens. Parisians were truly blessed with the artistic qualities!
Talking about the movie, I must say, Woody Allen has made a movie than is dripping with beauty. You name it and it is there:
Beautiful Faces: Gorgeous Rachel McAdams,ravishing Owen Wilson (At least his crooked nose does not disturb me!) , the exotic french Marion Cotillard among others.
Beautiful Minds: Pablo Picasso, Earnest and Zelda Hemingway, TS Eliot among others.
Beautiful City: Paris Of course. In day and night and keeping in mind the goal of pleasing eyes!
Beautiful Hotels: The restaurants of 1920s, 1890 and 2011. And I love the suite of Wilson, quite lavish!

Overall: A beautiful movie, even with a not-so-pleasing story-line, you would not regret spending two hours at it!

Lessons from: The Painted Veil

I don't know how I came across the movie but I would not forget the lessons it has taught me. Sometimes, movies become much more that just an entertaining venture, they stir the feelings we might have buried deep down inside in our hearts.
The movie was quite perfect. I loved they way it was executed. Edward Norton is one of my favorite actors and I was not familiar with Naomi Watts until I saw this one. She certainly is a good actress and a charming one.
Things I learnt:

• We should give people a chance, we should never jump on conclusions immediately. It takes time to understand people, they are certainly more complex than simple microbes.
• Making serious mistakes in relationships hurts. Their might not be flaming feelings but there always exists hope and expectation. Ruining them hurts very much.
• Human beings are prone to make mistakes. The wisdom lies in forgiving, forgetting and moving on. Lingering upon misapprehensions gives nothing.
• Helping humanity gives the greatest pleasure. The smile upon a helpless face can lessen the fear of death.
• Some things are better buried in the heart and unsaid.
• China is a remarkably beautiful country.

What do you think, anything I missed?

Cant wait for Downton Abbey III

I was introduced to Downton Abbey by my friend. The first episode seemed a bit boring but after the shocking and dramatic death of Mr. Kamal Pamuk (God! he was HOT), I fell in love with the drama. I loved the amazingly gorgeous women, the lavish Downton Hall and above all the ever twisted story! First Season was divine. I jumped towards the Second but was not too happy with it.
For me the Second Season was a bit slow and nothing significant was really happening. And most importantly it was sad due to Mr. Bates and the death of the sweet William. But I drifted towards the end only hoping to see the Christmas Special.
The Christmas Special made me happy. I was great and much more happening than the second season. I think more significant incidents happened in the 2-hour Christmas special as compared to the whole Second Season. My favorite scenes were the unruly fight between Matthew and Sir Richard (seriously! I saw it quite a few times!) and obviously the proposal. It looked just perfect, the snow fall, the red dress and the kiss. Finally, it was a relief to see love finding a happy start (not the end, as it is just the start!).

Well, I am living (not dying!) to see the Third Season. I wish to see a wedding, I think Mary will look heavenly as a bride. And not to forget the baby of Sybil! What do you want to see the most?