Seems HBO is airing these Japanese horror movies every wednesday this month. One of them happens to be Hideo Nakata’s Ringu in its original Japanese version. The other ones – Dark Water( also by HN), Ju-On: The Grudge, The Ring O Birthday – I haven’t heard of. I came to know of this yesterday, when I was randomly switching channels at Mons’ place.
Definitely one of the times I regret not having a TV at home. And the patience to sit through a movie on TV, even if it were there.
I still wait for the day they ( either Star Movies or HBO) screen Ghost in the Shell or Ninja Scroll. Which reminds me, I still have to see Nausicaa:Valley of the Wind and Laputa: Castle in the Sky. Got both videos in IIM Calcutta.
I am still undecided about whether to go for a second viewing of The Matrix:Revolutions. The first time was in the multiplex screen, and I would definitely like to go for the Imax version. It’s the 180-rupees tag that gives me pause. is it worth 180 rupees and three more hours of my time?
Been doing quite a bit of celeb-spotting recently. After the show of Revolutions, we were about to cross the road and board an auto when Sni points out that the guy standing behind us is Nagesh Kukunoor. The Man himself, trying hard to cover his face! Talked for sometime, almost invited him to Trivium. He said he was shooting in Hyd for two weeks, presumably the sequel to Hyderabad Blues. Nice chap. Brushed away my ahem-ahem compliments ( “I think you are God” etc ) very modestly. Am proud of my self-control, I didn’t ask him for a piece of his shirt or anything.
Then, Sunday evening, we come back from Warangal and decide to have dinner at the Shoppers’ Stop food-court. I was ordering pizza, and Mons, who went off to get the drinks comes close and says “mumble mumble Ramgopal Verma mumble mumble.” What??? “Pssst. Look behind you.” D-uh. It was him. RGV. Sitting and eating at a table. Tried very hard for the next fifteen minutes not to look. ( I mean, it’s got to be irritating, being stared at when you’re eating ) and then he left.
Started two books yesterday, one being William Buck, and the other The Complete Maus by Art Spiegelman. Coincidence of the week: vrikodhara had very graciously flicked the first volume of Maus for me from @bleep@ three years ago. This monday morning, he asks me if I had the second volume yet. “No”, I replied. Two hours later, we were at MR Book stall, where I saw The Complete Maus. Scary!
Also bought a hardcover edition of First Blood by David Morrell.
Trivium (and some of my juniors) got a mention in the Hindu.
This is a great site for Japanese movie reviews.
This is where the early draft of Kill Bill can be found.
PS: Mons insists that it was she who identified Kukunoor and not Sni. Who be I to take rightful credit away from where it’s due? ;-)
PPS: The post-script was a little flippant. I did some research, and it was Mons who had identified NK, and not Sni, so full points to you, Mons.
Maus is really really good.
It is. I finished it last night ( or rather, 3 am today morning). Gave me goosepimples.
Sweeet…the Kill Bill draft is awesome…
The Ring (jap version) is scary..my hall mates (guys) started going to the loo in twos for a while..
In truth, Kill Bill is not quite as violent as this other Jap pic called Battle Royale.. true carnage. QT actually cast one of the girls in it as GoGo in Kill Bill..
Jap moviegoers are actually used to so much more violence than their Western counterparts, that that entire section in the sushi restaurant with the Bride and O-renishi’s men which suddenly went into black and white, is actually kept in colour in the Jap release.
(It went B/W in US and UK to beat the censors/rating board)
I saw the Hollywood version The Ring, and it was one of the few terrifying movies I had seen. Can’t wait to see the Original version.
Battle Royale, eh? *Wishlist update*
Actually the Jap version is very very different from the English remake. Scary at a psychological level. You should also read the book(s), they are a cult in Tokyo-land. I’m a gonna get my hands on The Ring and The Ring : 0 soon.
I say no on Matrix Revolutions at IMAX. Crap in giant form is still crap. Or — skip the boring first part, watch the second part (the fight for the dock), leave before the gibberish of the third part.
I still have never read the second part of Maus. I have the first part, and I love it. But for some reason never got around to buying the second part (maybe because it was years before it came out). I should get it today.
I say no on Matrix Revolutions at IMAX.
Agreed. Am not seeing Revolutions on IMAX.
Buy and read the 2nd Maus volume. I finished both volumes today morning, and it was an incredible read.
You will not be the same after watching Ringu!!!
The Voice of God. ;-)
Celeb Spotting!
I remember 2-3 weeks back, I was coming back home from a late night party incident and was waiting at a red light. And next to my phatphatiya, in a taxi was guess who! Tarun Tejpal. He was riding in a Maruti Omni Taxi. How modest for a guy who shook the entire parliament whose tremors can be felt even now :).
I tried to confirm with the driver who presumably was not much excited. Tarun saw me getting a bit excited, nodded at me (ensuring me that he was the guy who I was thinking he was). I shook his hand and told him, “Sir, It’s a pleasure meeting you”. All this on a Delhi red light. Dunno whether he heard it or not. But it was a pretty big moment for me. In Delhi, its rare spotting celebs let alone modest ones as the only major celebs are the one who causes road blocks and traffic jams :).
Whoa, cool!
My celeb-spotting frequency has increased the past year, maybe because Hyderabad just doesn’t seem to care too much about anyone other than cricketers and movie stars. :)
this may seem blasphemous to some, but i think that the hollywood version of “ringu” was much better.
and nausicaa is one of my favorite movies. the whole film is like a dream. but i guess all of miyazaki’s movies are like dreams…
the whole film is like a dream
that’s what everybody seems to be saying about Miyazaki and his work. Interesting!
Well, the HOllywood version scared me alright. I just have to find out how much more the Jap version freaks me out.
“I am Buck. And I’m here to fuck.”
“You’re Buck, right? And you’re here to fuck. Right?”
Mwwaaaahhaaaaaaaahaaaaaaaaaaa.
Don’t u just love that giggly, bouncy feeling of all Tarantino dialogues?
Yayy!
Oh yes sir!
Fuck you, bitch, I know he didn’t qualify it, so you can just kiss my motherfuckin ass, Black Mamba.
Black Mamba, I shoulda been motherfuckin Black Mamba.
Oh hahahahaha.
“I need Japanese steel.”
“Why do you need Japanese steel?”
“I have vermin to kill.”
“You must have big rats you need Hattori Hanzo steel.”
“Huge.”
ooooooooh momma. :D
Its still flippant. But of course i can afford to brush it away because Am happy as i bought some good books today. Your opinions & grades somehow appear unimportant.
P.S: Just a demo of how flippant i can be. >X-(
-Mons.
Your opinions & grades somehow appear unimportant.
Whaddya mean somehow?
If I were you, i would substitute “somehow” with “always”.
quick question: what do u call mons when she is giving beatzo a demo?
quick answer to quick question: demons.
:-))
Sigh!!!
Silly, i am not you and vice versa. And its just today that your opinion didnot matter, it generally does. Such a donkey you are.
-(de)mons la femme la french
celeb spotting
Reminds me of that Saturday in Pune. After our usual saturday quizclub-followed-bydiscussion-on-movies-cricket-books-more-trivia-etc-etc, as a ritual, some of us go to Shabri, this place renowned for its “maharashtrian fast food”. As Harish, Ramanand and I were climbing up the stairs, we saw a girl of about 6 crying, and her mom coaxing her to move and make way for us. We wauted for about 20 seconds as the negotiations between the mom and daughter to fructify, and made our irritation quite apparent. As the mother finally picked up the daughter and moved ahead, her husband swam into the view. Wearing a pair of bermudas and a french beard, it was Amol Palekar, one of the favourites in our Saturday Quiz Club discussions (in fact we once had a golmaal quiz).
All of us were stunned, not knowing how to react when we bump into a celebrity. As he was walking away, harish and I wondered what to do and decided to run after him and just try talking to him. We said “sir sir, we really like your movie…” etc, but he was in a hurry and said “yes? thank you”.
maybe on one of his friendlier and our luckier days, he would’ve invited us to be spot boys while Sonali Bendre’s bedroom scenes for Anahit were being shot. :-P
Gaurav
http://gauravsabnis.blogspot.com
I have still to figure out the perfect way to approach a celeb without appearing like a starstruck moron, or pissing him/her off, and minimising the privacy-violation factor. any tips/thoughts? :-)