The Truman Show: More Than Just a Movie, It's Like... Religion?

Have you ever sat down and thought about that old gem "The Truman Show"? You know, the one where Jim Carrey realizes his whole life is a TV show? Yeah, that one. At first glance, it's all about the dangers of reality TV gone mad, but let's take off our 3D glasses and dive deeper, shall we?

So, Truman lives in this perfect bubble called Seahaven, and everything's just peachy until things get weird. It's like how some of us are told that if we follow specific rules, everything will be all sunshine and rainbows, like how many religions describe the ideal life.

Now, the big boss of this TV world is a dude named Christof. Sound a bit like 'Christ'? Coincidence? I think not! He's pulling all the strings, ensuring Truman's life is all kinds of perfect. It's like how many see God: an unseen force making things happen. But here's the thing: by keeping Truman in this bubble, Christof's actually stopping him from experiencing real life with all its ups and downs. It's like saying, "Hey, why bother with life's messy bits when you can have a 24/7 party?" And isn't that what some people think religion does? Gives you a set of rules to live by and promises an extraordinary afterlife if you follow them.

As Truman becomes more curious (and who can blame him?), he starts to see the glitches in his "perfect" world. This is like when we start questioning things we've always been told are true. Be it about religion, Santa Claus, or why dogs can't eat chocolate. We all have our "Wait, what?" moments.

Despite everything going haywire, Truman's decision to sail away is pretty darn brave. It's like when we decide to ask the big questions or go against the norm. When he finally gets to the edge of his world, he finds a door. Could it be an exit? A new start? It's like when we start questioning our beliefs and looking for answers. It's scary but also kinda exciting, right?

So, wrapping things up, "The Truman Show" isn't just a cool flick about a guy on TV. It's a mirror, showing us how sometimes we live in our Seahavens, whether built by media, society, or religion. It makes you wonder, what's outside YOUR dome?

In short, if you remove one thing from this, let it be this: always stay curious and never stop questioning. Who knows? You might find your door to a whole new world. Peace out, and happy watching! 🍿📺🚪

Rashomon

Rashomon, directed by Akira Kurosawa, has been hailed as a classic of cinema by numerous reviewers and historians for quite some time. Rashomon is widely regarded as one of the finest films of all time, and this spot in the top is due to a multitude of factors.

The film's original and ground-breaking narrative structure is often cited as a basis for Rashomon's high critical acclaim. Four people, including the victim, the accused killer, a woodcutter, and a bandit, all give their perspectives on a murder and rape that occur in the film. The audience is left to decide which version of events is most likely to be accurate after hearing each character's account. With this novel approach to storytelling, Kurosawa was able to probe deeper into the nuances of human perception and the relative nature of truth than had ever been done before.

The breathtaking visual style is another reason why Rashomon is regarded as a superb film. Kurosawa was an expert at using imagery to convey ideas, and Rashomon is full of stunning visuals that contribute to the film's emotional impact. The forest location of the picture serves as a metaphor for the shadows and ambiguity that surround the people and their actions, and the use of light and shadow is particularly excellent.

Every one of Rashomon's four lead actors delivers a performance that will stay with you long after you've finished the film. Toshiro Mifune, who plays the alleged killer, provides an outstanding performance that is both scary and riveting in its depiction of the character's spiral into lunacy. All of the actors are terrific, and their work is essential to fully realising the characters' rich complexity.

The film Rashomon is renowned for its investigation of the connections between reality and individual experience. The film raises the topic of whether or not there is such a thing as objective truth, and if so, whether or not the truth is, in fact, relative to the viewpoint of the beholder. It's a great way to give the movie some extra layers and depth, and it's a timely and thought-provoking theme as well.

As a film, Rashomon also explores questions of fairness and moral ambiguity. Questions regarding what defines justice and how it should be delivered are raised by the film's protagonists, many of whom are fundamentally flawed and whose acts are often questionable. The film is elevated from its status as a straightforward criminal drama by the incorporation of these topics.

Rashomon, directed by Akira Kurosawa, is widely regarded as one of the greatest movies of all time because of its groundbreaking storyline, magnificent visual style, stellar performances, and examination of weighty topics like the nature of truth, justice, and moral ambiguity. It's a timeless classic that reviewers and audiences both still love.

Wild Wild Country

I first discovered Osho when someone mentioned him being a provocative guru in India. I am a little skeptical when I hear “Guru”, too many people are called that hence I did not pay much attention. I was later told that followers included many prominent film personalities such as "Vinod Mehra" and "Mahesh bhatt" so It got little more interesting. I never dug anything beyond but, I did come across a few meditation centers in Hyderabad.

When I discovered the documentary “Wild Wild Country” on Netflix, I wondered what 6 hours of tv would reveal about him. There is always a healthy debate at home (with wife and the little one) on the opportunity cost(time is money) of watching these long series. However, I was wonderfully surprised by the narrative brilliance of the story and the magnitude of the events. I felt a little ashamed I never knew something like this had happened.

The 6 part series has a wonderful narrative talking about events that unfolded when the Rajnish movement was at its peak. I was fascinated by Ma Anand Sheela, her boldness in taking the bull by the horn and defending herself 30 years since, shows her state of mind then and now. The documentary does not take sides making it even more interesting as the story unfolds. 

It would have been hard, not to get sucked into the philosophy if you were born during those times. Rajnish just unshackled the mysticism in Indian spirituality and sprinkled it with capitalism and sex. All in all the ingredients were a perfect recipe for the times and people just got sucked into it.

Newton’s law did catch up ultimately and the reaction to the actions taken by the new age sanyasin’s unfolded in epic proportions. Towards the end, you feel for both the sides and wonder where the experiment would have lead if it was allowed to go in its ideal state. 

A must watch for any one interested in history.

Annayum Rasoolum

You feel happy when you discover a gem of a movie randomly among countless available to watch on Netflix. At the surface the movie looked like a love story of a common man stuck in everyday life but, like an onion, the more you peel the more you find and by the time you get to the core, it leaves you with tears rolling down your cheek.

What I am amazed when I see Malayalam movies is how deeply rooted they are in the culture of Kerala. The only state where I feel Muslims, Christians and Hindus are equally represented in the movie industry. This mixture leads to a great recipe where the cultural nuances of people are shown vividly. This movie is a lesson on the color, costumes and smell of land. The two things that stood out in my view were

The struggle of a common Muslim family in today’s overly sensitive and largely divided society. The elder bother of the protagonist wants to get a passport to travel abroad for livelihood but, he struggles to get the police to sign off as he has been involved with some questionable situations earlier in his life. On the contrary, nowhere in the movie, the police are shown to be illogical or cruel. The story never takes sides which is the norm in most one dimensional stuff dished out.

A funny sequence is when, to be married couple are shown attending sex education class (it starts that way in the scene) in a church. I never knew how these small christian customs are embedded into our mainstream Indian society where sex is generally considered taboo particularly when it comes to a place of worship. I wish more cultures practicied this.

Annayum Rasoolum is about how these two people from different religious backgrounds fall in love. The beauty is, this is more than a simple love story, it is a chronicle of the struggle to survive  in this complex muti-dimensional world

The Return (2003)

Sometimes I wonder how we discover anything in life, it is a big puzzle! I usually find some of the most interesting movies of the year by looking through the foreign language nomination list during the awards season. 

I found this interesting movie Loveless this year by a Russian filmmaker Andrey Zvyaginstev. I often think a movie at an award ceremony is a result of lot of previous work by the film maker  so, I started peeping into his films where I discovered "The Return,  his feature film debut. 

I rented the movie on Amazon and started without reading anything about it, it is hard to do that in today's times as I often feel I should not waste my time. I am usually tempted to read what others feel rather than keeping the curiosity going. 

The movie starts out with a haunting score and two bothers struggling to come to grips with sudden return of their father, someone they have never seen in flesh and blood. The boys are left wondering about his mysterious appearance, the director smartly puts us at the centre of the family like we are the third invisible brother.

The father decides to take them out on a vacation and every interaction they have together is strange and difficult to make sense of. He is trying to teach them about life in his own way. The brothers react differently to their father thus creating a very interesting piece of drama.

The movie kept me on the edge until the final act which felt like pulling the rug under my feet. I ended up with disbelief on what was happening and if the father was preparing the kids and the audience for this kind of eventuality.

I had a great time watching it.

Baran

BARAN (Iran)

Another classic from Majid Majidi. I am a big fan of his work. He writes stories which are simple, believable and heart felt. This is the third movie after Children of heaven and Color of Paradise from majidi I have seen and felt really good about.

There are a few people who are born to make big budget movies on a large canvas like Ridley Scott and there are movie makers like Majidi who just blow you away with simplicity. The good thing about movies is that it gives a scope for all these people to show what they are best at.

Baran is the only film I have seen where there isn't a single word of dialogue for the main protagonist in the film. Baran never utters a single word. The director shows how being in love transforms a tough guy into some one who is willing to give away everything.

Baran touches people because we usually forget how simple love is. I have seen a lot of love stories and often felt

What is left in making a new movie about love? 

How do i write something that people like yet get surprised? 

The two love stories I remember, that have touched me or surprised me have been 

Kadhal (Tamil)

New York Waiting (English)

Contrasting in their own way they tell the story of love and surprise it brings to life.

Coming to Baran, it tells the story of a young boy who hates his co-worker because he has taken away his position at a construction site. The boy finds new ways to trouble this young new worker.

Accidentally one day while looking to find new ways to bully this young boy he discovers the shocking truth that the young boy is actually a beautiful girl. The Young man's life changes for ever. He is desperate to show his love for the beautiful girl. The movie then becomes the journey of this young man trying to find ways to reach out to her. 

The movie is set in the times when a lot of people from Afghanistan come to Iran to survive the brutal Russian war. Baran- the girl, happens to be an Afghan whose father works at the construction site. Afghan's were paid low wages and made to work on tough jobs. I think every big county has a small country to get its illegal immigrants (they themselves allow) to do the low payed jobs. US gets its share of people from Mexico and India from Bangladesh.

This movie certainly will bring back memories to all those people who silently fell in love with a beautiful girl in thier class or a stunning neighbour but never got her attention.

A fantastic movie from a great director.

Matrubhoomi

A friend of mine recently asked me to share a list of best Indian films I have seen. It is usually a tricky question to answer, because the best is always based on my mood when I saw the film but, this one has stood the test of time.

"Matrubhoomi" is just gut wrenching to watch. The movie starts with a scene showing female infanticide, and takes us not too far into the future without women, staying true to its tagline "a nation without women". This is definitely not fiction for large parts of India which still thinks a girl child is a curse.

The land without a Women, premise sets up the films narrative dealing with frustrated young men. There are several funny situations up until they find the only women alive. What happens to a world when one women becomes the last of her kind, is what unfolds next.

The movie is not for the fainthearted, It is a tough film to watch but, it reflects and resonates the kind of thinking in our country. Thoughts that does not just belong to the older generation or the their fathers or forefathers, this is very much still hidden inside the bedrooms of the affluent and poor alike.

This was Manish Jha's first feature film and he has come up with a winner all the way. To be able to write something like this and get it made itself deservers kudos. How a film like this has escaped the mainstream cinema is not a surprise.

The only way film makers can dare to create such cinema is when, we watch and spread the word. 

Game of Thrones

Yes, I know this is not cinema but who cares. This drama is as precious as anything that has been created off late. I have just finished the first season on my Blue Ray collection. The show is riveting, bringing together some of the best writing, production values & top quality acting.

The show has just recently finished its fourth season and hailed as one of the most pirated pieces of entertainment on the internet. Luckily, amazon uk was able to ship a blue ray collection right to my doorstep.

In the first season, as the episodes went by the central theme of greed for the throne is well established. The sub plots of jealousy, friendship, lust, hatred, animosity, love, honour, revenge are all brought together to form a very interesting recipe. I started feeling bad as the character experience pain and I cheered for the underdog to succeed.

The essence of a good drama has always been well etched out characters with a lot of motivation to get what they want. In each episode there are multiple storylines and all of them are balanced very well to retain the suspense. I hope it continues into season 2 which I will begin viewing shortly.

I am proud that this quality of entertainment is being produced in my times. Go watch Game Of Thrones on HBO if you have never heard about it. It is pleasure beyond words.