The International [2009] (English): The difference between truth and fiction - fiction has to make sense

"This is the very essence of the banking industry... to make us all, whether we be nations or individuals... slaves to debt."

Words of wisdom. Uttered by a man in high places, a man who has inside knowledge of the machinations of big financial institutions... Soon after uttering these words, the man, an Italian presidential candidate dies. He is assassinated in broad daylight, in front of hundreds of people, while giving a speech.

He is not the first casualty in the movie The International. And he won't be the last...

The first casualty takes places five minutes into the movie - right in front of the eyes of the lead protagonist. And the movie never looses its grip from that point on...

The lead protagonist mentioned above is one Louis Salinger, an Interpol agent, who is assisting Eleanor Whitman, an Assistant District Attorney from Manhattan, in investigating money laundering and malpractice done by the International Bank of Business and Credit (IBBC). But they lose their lead witness, and the death toll rises, and soon they realize that they are up against a very formidable foe. A big international corporation with access to virtually unlimited funds wields power enough to twist any evidence, make witnesses disappear and "buy" friends at the highest places. As they try to uncover more and more evidence, their investigation keeps hitting inaccessible walls. Will they succeed in pinning down the corrupt bank and its unscrupulous officials?

The well-edited story moves at a break-neck pace. The action and the chase sequences are very well-executed. Kudos to the director and the photography crew for depicting some pretty cool action scenes. Instead of the shaky blurred camerawork used to depict intense action, they employ well placed cameras and aerial views to depict much of the actions scenes, making them look quite elegant. The shootout scene that takes place within the Guggenheim museum, (though preposterous) is especially breath-taking. (It is claimed that they built a life-size replica of the actual museum for this.) The film does not flinch from showing blood and violence wherever necessary. The story threatens to take a decidedly vigilante turn at the end, but fortunately wraps up well. The climax is unexpected but realistic, though its a bit of a letdown after the pretty impressive built-up of the entire story...

The basic premise of the story may sound a bit preposterous, but the related Wikipedia article claims that "the film draws on a number of macabre incidents from international banking". It successfully depicts the ugly underbelly of the big financial corporations and how they manipulate governments, facts and situations to suit their own needs.

Some of the dialogues are quite well-scripted. One of my most favourites is this one: "We cannot control the things Life does to us. They are done before you know it, and once they are done... they make you do other things... until at last, everything comes between you... and the man you wanted to be."

Clive Owen plays the disillusioned, disgruntled protagonist quite well - especially with his impassive face, vacant eyes and his almost perpetual part-confused, part-contemptuous expression (Though his acting is not really that good, such roles do suit him quite well I think). Others have acted okay too. Most of the characters a shallow and two-dimensional, but they suit the story well. Any attempt to sketch the characters further would have made this essentially action flick cumbersome and slow. But there is one character I found most interesting - that of an antagonist - a former stasi colonel named Wexler, who has been depicted pretty nicely, and well-performed by the German actor Armin Mueller-Stahl.

There are some negative reviews for this movie, some of which claim that it "is undone by its preposterous plot"... I find that statement preposterous. For the film's plot is certainly less preposterous than so many other commercial action movies out there that receive such great accolades from the reviewers... And I do agree, that to a certain extent, certain aspects of the plot are a bit preposterous. (For instance the sequence where Whitman slips Salinger out of police custody undetected is utterly naive) Yet, the real value of this movie lies in its attempt to convey the idea that it is not the politicians, the world leaders, the governments and armies that move the world. It is the big financial corporations, working silently at the backstage, that unscrupulously manipulate the world we live in - for their own benefit... This does sound a bit farfetched and paranoid. But then, it is after all merely a work of fiction, isn't it?...

There is one more dialogue in the movie which I liked a lot: "This is the difference between truth and fiction... Fiction has to make sense."... Hmm, I wonder...

My Ratings: 3

Exam [2009] (English) - an intricate puzzle and a psychological thriller

8 candidates prepare for the final round of an extremely lucrative job opportunity. The recruitment is supposed to be for a very high post in a very big company. An opportunity worth dying for. An opportunity worth killing for.

The exam hall is a single closed room, with no windows, a single door, a guard besides it, 8 desks and chairs and 8 question papers, one for each candidate. The invigilator sets forth a set of rules: they cannot communicate with the guard or the invigilator at any time. They cannot leave the room for any reason. And they should not spoil their own question paper. There is one question. And one answer is required. The invigilator starts a timer. They have 80 minutes to give the correct answer. Then the invigilator leaves the room. Each candidate opens the question paper. Each of the paper is blank...

So starts the quest for the question. And the correct answer. At first its a very intriguing puzzle. But as the time begins to run out, the pressure increases. Which candidates will snap under pressure? Which ones will manage to find the right answer? What is the right answer? But before that, what is the question? This is what forms the heart of the movie. This is what fuels it, grabs the audience by the collar and hardly ever lets go...

What I liked about this movie was its entirely original premise. The idea is unique. Who would have thought of making a movie based on a recruitment process for a big job opportunity? It thankfully refrains from using the age old spices of love, action, romance, murder, etc. Which makes it a refreshing watch. There is mystery and suspense. Its a puzzler, which reminds me of movies like Cube and Fermat's Room. Just like the Cube, it not only entertains by making the audience use their grey cells as they get absorbed in the puzzle, but also explores the human psyche.

Somewhere in between the movie seems to veer off from the path that one might have expects. For, it starts off as an intriguing and intricate puzzle and then turns into a psychological thriller where it explores the impact of pressure on human psyche. How a situation of stress and pressure can bring out the best or the worst in people. And how some people would go to any lengths when the stakes are high enough for them.

And the climax comes with a twist that you would never have anticipated. Some of the ideas in the movie, like how each of the candidates came to know about the job opening, may sound a bit half-baked. And some of them, for example the explanations at the end, may sound a bit far fetched and fantastic. And yet it manages to keep it all as realistic as possible, refraining from taking unnecessary leaps of fantasy.

The movie is a single room drama, where the entire story takes place within a single room. Which shows the talent of the co-writer and director Stuart Hazeldine, to be able to make the entire story work within such a limited location / set.

The camera work is pretty impressive too. Many aspects of the story are narrated very well by intuitive visuals. It exemplifies the rule that visuals can express better and are more powerful than words.

The acting ranges from very good to mediocre. I especially liked the acting of the candidates who are referred to as "white", and "dark" in the movie.

The characters are neither too shallow, nor too intricately sketched. But each character's personality is portrayed with enough details to fit the requirements of the story.

The movie will not afford you easy entertainment. It will demand your brain power. It will make you think. If you don't mind that, then its certainly worth watching at least once.

My Ratings: 3.5

T3I: Secret of Terror Castle - A better sequel

Not many movie series can boast of sequel that's better than the original. But this is one of them. The second movie in The 3 Investigators series, is certainly better than the first one. If you are a hard-core fan of the T3I, or if you have read the book The Secret of the Terror Castle, then please don't expect the same story from the movie. The book was one of my favourites and I was quite disappointed to know the kind of liberties the movie makers have taken to almost completely change the original story... Though it was to be expected, considering the first movie which was completely different from the original book (except for the title, the central characters and a few little details here and there). The same can be said about this movie.

And yet, the movie has a charm of its own. The direction is ok again, but better than the first part. The story, though quite different from the original book, is better too. More complex than the first movie's story, it also boasts more puzzles, thrills, humour and action.

Lets look at the central theme of the movie. The Terror Castle itself. From the day I read the book, I have always been fascinated about the Terror Castle. Time and again, I have tried to imagine how it would look like. The Terror Castle portrayed in the movie does not necessarily match the one in my imagination. But it certainly is worth appreciating. The setting, design and portrayal of an old abandoned castle full of mysterious devices and an unsettling brooding atmosphere has been done quite nicely. The story about who built the terror castle and why is entirely different from the original one. And though it is not as good as the original (may be that's my personal prejudice), it certainly is complex, plausible (within fictional limits) and quite interesting.

As for the central characters, the three kid artist portraying the Three Investigators have played their part pretty well, as in the previous movie. Jupiter Jones is smarter than before. We get to know some more about his personal life in the movie (which as far as I remember, has not been explored much in the books). Pete and Bob both add a nice touch of humour. Apart from these famous trio, we get to meet some other characters famous in the original book series. For instance, we get to meet Uncle Titus Jones and Aunt Mathilda (but only for a minute or two). And we get to see the great Rolls Royce, and its chauffeur, the famous Worthington, whose short role has been well-portrayed in the movie. And we also get to meet some other characters, like the eccentric sheriff, an equally eccentric girl who falls for Bob, and the spectre of Steven Terrill, the century old creator of the Terror Castle.

Rational explanations of almost supernatural mysteries and almost impossible puzzles has always been a hallmark of the original T3I series. The movie-makers have tried to keep this in mind as Jupiter his pals try to figure out some almost seemingly inexplicable events and occurrences in the story. There are some obviously glaring holes in the story. But one can always ignore them as the story hurtles along with a steady pace.

The T3I have been known to be tech-savvy for their time. But time and technology has changed a lot. And the arsenal of tricks up the sleeves of these new 3 investigators looks like some stolen props from the Spy-Kids movie. But the movie-makers have tried to keep the use of these hi-tech devices to a minimum, and rely on the cranial abilities of Jupe in order to solve the major puzzles in the story.

If you are a die-hard fan of the T3I, and can still manage to forgive the movie-makers for not being faithful to the original story, then this movie is worth watching at least once. Certainly a welcome addition to the Kids Movies genre...

My Ratings: 3

T3I: Skeleton Island - Finally some one made a T3I movie

At first there were the fairies and the giants, magicians and evil witches, magic and myth that made up the major mass of kid stories for ages. Then they became a bit more sensible when mystery and adventure were used to make these stories entertaining. But this era of relatively rational kid stories did not last long. The kid story genre was thrust into the Dark Ages as once more the crutches of magic and fantasy were used to entertain kids, instead of real-life down to earth adventures. But before the rise of this Dark Age, there were the Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, Famous Five... and the Three Investigators...

As a kid, I stumbled upon T3I while reading a Hardy Boys book. At the back was a full list of titles. Mystery of the Terror Castle, Haunted Mirror, Moaning Caves, Talking Skull. The titles captured my imagination. Soon I had my first T3I book in my hands and I was hooked. For the longest time, I trawled the net in search of any TV serial, any movie, animated or otherwise, about the T3I. After reading the books, staring at the covers and the illustrations for long wistful moments, I was eager to see the terror castle, the haunted mirror, the Jones Salvage yard, the T3I headquarters. But alas! No one seemed to be interested in making a TV series or a movie on such an awesome series. Sad...

And then, a few days back, I stumbled upon this movie. The Three Investigators - Secret of Skeleton Island. Someone had finally made a movie out of one of the T3I books! I had to watch it! And I did.

The story is nice. It has its usual set of ups and downs. Suspense and Puzzles. Humour and action. But as far as I remember, it is not faithful to the actual story in the book. There are quite a few differences. But that does not make it in any way boring or uninteresting.
The cinematography is quite nice. The shots of some of the natural beauty of South Africa are quite breath-taking. So much so, that it looks more like an advertisement for SA Tourism rather than a T3I movie.

The direction is OK - your standard one for Kids movies. But some of the sets and props are quite nice. The Jones Salvage Yard and the T3I headquarters are quite nicely and imaginatively portrayed in the movie.

The actors have acted well. Especially the kids playing the three investigators kind of fit their roles quite well. Jupiter's acting was good, and so was Pete's. Bob's was a bit over-done, but it was charming in its own way.

Frankly speaking, I was a bit disappointed. Being a die-hard hard-core fan of T3I, I find it disappointing that the movie-makers took the liberty to change the actual story to such an extent. Agreed, it was targeted at South African audience. Yet, for me it was disappointing. Moreover, I have always thought, that the T3I would make a great animated TV series. It they would stick to the original story-line, it would make a great series. So the portrayal of T3I as a real-life movie was a bit disappointing to me, personally.

And yet, the try was worth it. Our generation of kids enjoyed the T3I books so much. And I wish that the kids nowadays, who are so enamored to Harry Potter and similar new-age stuff, should be introduced to the T3I universe. And I hope that this movie (and its companion "Secret of Terror Castle" - which I plan to watch soon) would prove an ideal platform for doing just that.

My Ratings: 2.5