It just can't get monstrous than this. This is it. The most ultimate monster movie there is , and I guess there will be ever, until and unless we have our genetic engineers creating a live King Kong who experiences the same emotions of love, anger, and pain and also is as strong enough to rip off the jaw of a T-Rex. Enough said, Peter Jackson is one of the (if not the) greatest directors of our times. Well, people do believe that whatever his ventures are, his work will always be shadowed by the LOTR trilogy. But , in King Kong, we see the imagination and the boyish fantasy of a true King Kong fan getting wings and flying high, unleashing his own vision and shades to the 1933 classic starring Fay Wray.The boy here is, director Peter Jackson.After his Lord of the Rings trilogy earned a zillion dollars, a slew of Oscars, and a place at the tip top of the Hollywood pyramid, Jackson was able to write his own ticket. As his follow-up project, Jackson chose to remake King Kong, which had industry observers scratching their heads.Historically, sequels and remakes of the original Kong ranged from bad to unwatchable, and while Jackson certainly knows effects and storytelling, Kong remakes seem to be cursed endeavors. Voodoo or no, they're probably ill-advised. 1933's Kong is one of those movie archetypes that really shouldn't be messed with.
King Kong simply isn't meant to be trifled with. Alas, some will try.With this update, Jackson has the best of intentions and the utmost reverence for the source material. The movie is chock full of homages to the original, from the opening title design to snippets of dialogue used to a scene with giant bugs that was partially shot and cut from the 1933 version. In fact, Jackson's devotion to the original is fawning to the point of obsequiousness, with one noteworthy exception: His version of the film is nearly twice as long. It runs for 187 minutes according to IMDB, but who cares.You just get so much immersed into the movie so deeply, you just do not have any track of time. From the moment the reels begin to roll, you are there, 1930s New York, depression era..people unemployed and starving, the rich getting richer and poor, poorer with no space for the middle class. The depiction of Manhattan is truly a masterpiece, the cinematography--impeccable.The movie is brilliantly divided into three basic constituents( if you may say so) -- New York and the main character build up, Skull Island, and Kong in the city.

The first part encircles around the characters and how they come together to this venture of a lifetime. Jack Black plays obsessive film maker Carl Denham who is passionate about making a movie in the locales of the far East. He gets hold of a map, which he beleives will lead to his Neverland, only that this place is actually Never-go-there-Land. Having trouble with financers , studio people and distributors Denham decides to do it on his own.We are then introduced to out of work ,theatre actress ,Ann Farrow who is trying hard to make ends meet.Denham convinces her to play the role of the actress in his movie. Naomi Watts in this immortal character of Ann Farrow is more than what you would have expected. Simply ethereal. You also come across other characters such as Kyle Chandler as Bruce Baxter, the actor , and of course Adrien Brody as scriptwriter Jack Driscoll.Other characters you see revolving around the storyline are Jimmy played by Jamie Bell of Billy Elliot fame, Preston , Denham's assistant and Captain Englehorn. Denham tricks everyone and has a narrow escape himself to set off for his journey to Skull Island ignorant of the things to come.

Eventually we arrive at Skull Island, only to be greeted by spear-wielding natives (their faces jabbed full of leftover prop piercings from Jackson's LOTR orc army) .Skull Island itself seems so scary with its foggy shoreline,jungle edge to the seaside,massive retaining wall around island, and hell like living place of the native tribe, a race of people dentally challenged covered with dirt,skulls and blood ,who promptly kidnap Ann as a sacrifice to the great ape . What you see next is simply Jaw-dropping,heart-stopping, eye-popping action sequences non-stop . Just fasten your seat belts because what you experience is nothing less than a roller-coaster ride. You just have more and more creatures invading the screen and making your adrenaline rush like you are on the driver seat of a formula-1 Ferrari taking your fastest lap at NASSCAR. The dinosaur stampedes featuring brontosauruses and little dinosauruses is simply breath-taking( not in a good way) and then you see more of it and more and more, until you start just want it to finish, but hey there's some more.We have King Kong raging against the search party, out to rescue Ann. Kong vs. the three T-Rexes is just brilliant.I am falling short of words here. The search party being bugged by some really disgusting bugs, or whatever is at its grossiest best, or worst for that matter. Amidst all this, we also get to see some original piece of Peter Jackson with Ann trying to connect to the ape, with all sorts of funny tricks and we get to know the lighter, vegetarian side of King Kong and who has a starnge sense of humour. The movie scores highly on this. The relation that Ann shares with the ape is brilliantly conveyed throught the lens of Peter Jackson and Naomi Watts' 1000 watt glittering eyes, and more than that Andy Serkis' CG portrayal of the 25 feet ape.


Denham , being the obsessed filmmaker he is, just doesn't give up even when members of his crew die and his cameras and reels are destroyed. He now instead plans to capture the beast and show it to the world. and so then , the tussle between the ape and the crew.And when Kong is displayed at Broadway as the 8th wonder of the world, he isn't happy about it. All hell breaks loose when he breaks the shackles and the beast is all let loose on the streets of Manhattan. Ann finds him, and you have a really touching scene of Kong with Ann, sliding on the ice rink. And before you get cozy, we have the US army hunting him down.The ape now takes the Empire State Building as his retreat, not until he is again hunted down by Airplanes, and he falls to his death. This entire episode on the Empire State Building is filled with so high emotions and sentiments seen in the eyes of both Kong and Ann. Peter Jackson has definitely been able to capture the essence of the story, which despite being a monster-movie filled with huge action scenes and special effects, at heart is a story of a Beast falling for Beauty. Give the man an Oscar again.

Special Credits:

The entire crew-- Cinematographer Andrew Lesnie to have given so many breath taking views of 1930s vintage New York , spell bounding natural wild side of Skull Island as well as its scary face,Production Designer Grant Major to have created New York of the 1930s down to last inch perfectly, editor Jamie Selkirk for the crispy action sequences, Make-up man Richard Taylor, this movie goes into your resume as your best freak show, Joe Letteri and his team of Special Effects, I won't say a word because you people have left me speechless.Of course, Academy Award winner pair of scriptwriters Fran Walsh and Phillipa Boyens.
The only downside of the crew is the BackGround score by James Newton Howard. I don't have any clue why Peter Jackson opted for him, even when Howard Shore scored so brilliantly for his LOTR movies, and even won the Oscars for it. I believe Howard Shore had a guest role in the movie as the symphony conductor at the Broadway scene when Kong is 'premiered' for the first time.The score is good, but just not very outstanding, like it should have been, like the other ingriedents of the movie.

Adrian Brody--as the 1930s playwright Jack Driscoll, he is out and out the man. Friend to the weird filmmaker Denham, and the man who falls in love with Ann. Thought the character is not dealt much in detail, but hey they couldn't have done more . After all, its a story about the Beauty and the Beast.

Jack Black--as Carl Denham, greedy, ambitious, never gonna stop attitude.You see it all come to life in his performance.Brilliant.The man has come a long way from his Tenacious D movies and musical comedy days. From School of Rock to King Kong, one Monster Leap.

Naomi Watts--as Ann Farrow, one of the most immortal characters of cinema, it definitely takes a lot out of ya to even bag such a role. I simply loved the way she brought back the good old classics by the way she portrayed herself, the way she moved and talked, and how she expectedly imitated the way actresses a few decades ago would act in front of the camera: too modest looking, too disciplined, too gentle, and too fluid. She was natural. No wonder, Kong fell for her..hehhe She is absolutely stunning.

Andy Serkis--as the Beast, King Kong. I wish he should have won the Best Actor in a Supporting Role as the Gollum in LOTR. He does it again, giving life this time to the 25 feet beast King Kong.I can't say anything against this, even if I wish to. Just go see it, if you haven't. Trust me, its more than worth every penny of what you spend on the ticket.

Bow to the Man: Peter Jackson
If it had been announced that a remake of the classic "King Kong" was being made without the name Peter Jackson attached to it, there is no doubt audiences would have been outraged. But after the enormous success of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, it would seem that the general public has learned to trust director Peter Jackson. After watching his remake of King Kong, I would have to say that their trust was well placed.
Jackson now firmly cements his name as a master filmmaker, the kind that all aspiring directors want to be. The attention he pays to the most minute details, the sheer class he shows in terms of production and scale, the amount of skill he has in manipulating our fragile emotions... the man is clearly one of the most talented directors in film history. And Jackson certainly brings his considerable skill and flair to show here in 'Kong'. While a different director likely would have speed up the story to the crew's arrival on Skull Island, Jackson takes his time with a nice, leisurely build up to their arrival, giving us lots of time to really get to know these characters, and also providing time for a slow and genuine romance building between the characters of Anne and Jack. This romance does lead to the very few and seldom weaknesses of the film... the romance scenes can seem a bit cheesy and contrived at times. But when that's literally the only complain I can make, it's a pretty damn good sign for the movie!And Jackson seems to have an almost uncanny skill in manipulating his audience's emotions - you will cheer, you will laugh, you will cry, you will really be on the edge of your seat and you will be truly and thoroughly disgusted in at least one part of the movie - watch out for a cave full of giant insects on Skull Island.

Last Words:
So we have the best of both worlds--the touching emotional scenes as well as the beasty, thrilling action coming live with hair-curling special effects. Peter Jackson's King Kong is the most definitive King Kong movie ever made.Though I haven't seen the 1933 original, only the 1976 version and also glimpses of the unforgettable 1986 sequel, Peter should be very happy and also proud of himself to have achieved what he had wanted at the very first place, not to outperform the original or spoof it, but to pay a sincere tribute to yesteryear's cinema in a glorious way, by not ending up just being an XBox 360 version of something on an Atari, better visuals and special effects, nothing more. Peter Jackson's King Kong is way much more. It doesn't matter if you compare it to the original or not. It bothers to some that the movie has grown to a size twice the original, that it feels like Peter Jackson adapted a 600 page novel rather than a 100 minute movie. For me,personally I would not like anything deleted from the movie. Its just so perfect. I'm still dumbstruck. Kong's awesome. Kong rules. Bravo, Peter Jackson, bravo ..!!!!!!!
To conclude, I qoute Carl Denham's last words in the movie: " No, It is not the airplanes, but Beauty which killed the Beast "..Rarely are our emotions manipulated with such ease, rarely do we find ourselves getting so engrossed in a story that a 3 hour running time seems to have gone by far too quickly and we yearn for more. King Kong is an odyssey of a movie, and the most genuine and compelling output seen since... well, the Lord of the Rings. This is classic storytelling at its peak - don't miss out on it!
Now come on..you should not be reading my blog just to get educated whether you really want to see King Kong.............

It begins: "'Long years ago we made a tryst with destiny, and now the time comes when we shall redeem our pledge, not wholly or in full measure, but very substantially. At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom.."..Pt.Nehru's famous speech on the eve of India's Independence.The scrolling words after Pt.Nehru's famous independent speech of tryst with destiny, revealing the mistake in the speech that , at the stroke of the midnight hour when the whole world was not actually not asleep, it was afternoon in New York.Never really gave it a thought , but its true.
It shows how the youth of India percieved India's independence way beyond just the win of freedom struggle from the British. We want freedom from the bad, tyrraneous system that exists.We want freedom from oppression. We want freedom of speech, freedom to live irrespective of our sex, religion, caste, creed or colour.
Have we got it? It is still a question unanswered even when India has entered the 21st century.We still have people unreached with justice, freedom and independence.So, is this cry for independence just going to remain a khwaish, one among those very thousands..which remains suppressed within us?
As the reels start rolling after the scrolling words from the narrator, we are left exposed to the jaw dropping visuals of that Summer of 69, where no one wishes to go..the corpses lying around like rotten leaves fallen from the trees, the living, no better than the corpses..all deaf, dumb to the inhuman bloodshed.The opening scene of Sudhir Mishra's "Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi" strikes you right at your core so hard, that you fall dumb and really feel the noise in that silent few minutes of the beginning.

Sudhir Mishra's Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi reflects the intensity and fate of three young characters, who start out on the same platform but choose different journeys and reach a destination of their own making. It could be the story of three ordinary, or not so ordinary, people, depending on the given circumstances, if the setting of this drama wasn't such a crucial time in history.
The late 1960s and early 1970s were turbulent times -- angst filled and revolutionary. It was the time of Vietnam, of flower power, of the Emergency and the rise of the Naxal movement in India. And a booming population of restless youth was eager to wage war against anything that curbed idealism. Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi digs into a section of this crazy chapter of history through its three protagonists – Siddharth Tyabji (Kaykay Menon), Geeta Rao (Chitrangada Singh) and Vikram Malhotra(Shiny Ahuja).

Synopsis:
Sidhharth is an idealist. Born to a Muslim lawyer father and a Hindu mother and believes in Marxism.The story traces Siddharth's journey from Marxist jargon to the Maoist (Naxalite) rebellion. His emotional attachment to Geeta does not stop him from his political pursuits.
Post-college, Geeta is married to an IAS officer but she continues to see Siddharth on the sly.
Vikram too has always nursed unconditional love in his heart for Geeta. But that's all there is to his soft side. A small town boy once, Vikram climbs the social ladder by networking in the big league unabashedly.
Geeta ends her marriage and starts living in the village with Siddharth. This is the time in the film when Geeta's character evolves. From a London-bred girl to teaching village women, or having a child out of wedlock or asking favours from Vikram in hours of need to a lot of other gruesome realities, Geeta discovers herself.
The story movies on. The characters mature and move on. They regret. They apologise. They change. Their lives are not the same.
Hazaaron Khwaishen Aisi plays like a novel spanning a decade. While Geeta is a picture of poignancy and inspires awe, Vikram's complexities leave the viewer perturbed. There is a lot to his greyness that is unsaid and yet subtly hinted through mere expressions. He is the most mysterious of them all.

The real thing:
If you've ever wondered why our nation is in such a mess, "Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi" attempts to tell you where we could have gone wrong. Mishra's most complex, ambitious film to date, "Hazaaron..." knits the major political upheavals between 1969 and 1977 into a love triangle, as he minces no words in castigating the Nehruvian "ideals" that modern India adopted as its model for governance.
Death, says one song in this remarkably dense and evocative film, is akin to love. And Vikram (Shiney Ahuja) sees death every time Geeta (Chitrangda Rao) looks at her idol-lover, the protagonist, Sidharth (Kay Kay Menon). The story weaves so beautifully the politically unstable Delhi and Calcutta of that era, and also brings out the chaotic Bhojpur District of Bihar.
The climax, should not disclose it, for the sake of the film-maker. You just have to watch it, if you haven't. And well I am going to watch it again today.

The ups:
Definitely , first of all: Kay Kay Menon, man he's so very good. Shiney Ahuja as the materialistic loser Vikram Malhotra..awesome performance. Chitrangada Singh, don't know if she does look like Smita Patil. But I do know one thing, she is one good actress. As Geeta Rao, the Uk return, Bhojpur settled struggler, she just leaves an indelible impression on your mind.
Sudhir Mishra's narrative, Shantanu Mopitra's brilliant score..Mann ye Bawra, and Bawra Mann, both surround the movie so brilliantly.

The downs:
I don't know why, but the movie set in the 1970s seemed so much bright to me. The colours and the entire setup of the movie did not seem quite 70s. Apart from that, the movie is a winner, by all means.

Last comments:
All the three protagonists seem to have understood the politics of Mishra's layered cinema, as he goes about making no bones about his contempt and cynicism for Nehruvian idealism.
This film lashes out at the Congress 'role-model' of governance almost to the point of denouncing and demolishing all that the architects of modern India dreamt of.

As a nation, where did we fail?Where did our leaders fall short? It offers no solutions, but makes you sit up and think.A lot of what you will see in "Hazaar..." will seem unreal and bizarre. But there is no exaggeration - it simply presents the politics we've been gifted with by the architects of Indian democracy

The first words when I walked out of the theatre is"Umm..that was ok.The movie wasn't bad eh! Hermione is very awesome(read beautiful), the effects are better, more real and all over the movie,the story is good,more mature, but come on why do I find Azkaban(Prisoner of Azkaban)more gripping. " I just cannot say it was a breath-taking movie experience as its predecessor. And then, they just seem so much more growing into my psyche, and definitely not in a positive way.The more I think about it, I find so many more flaws.

Okey Dokey, First things first.B'fore I had seen the movie, my friends(who had seen it, and also read the novel ) told me that they had skipped the entire Quidditch World Cup, which spans for some hundred pages in the book which speaks how vividly desriptive the event was in the book.That disturbed me a lot, and yeah probably was the key-factor in the ruining of the entire experience.Well, yes I am no big Harry Potter fan , and I admit that I haven't read any of the books.But yes, when it comes to the movies, I have watched them all.And I found this movie to be just another movie with extravagantly spent quids on special effects, and may be ignoring some technicalities on the narration. The movie just seemed to be so draggy in its narrative, may be because it didn't start for me on a right note.

Well FYI, this is the first time, the movie has been directed by a Britsh Director, and you definitely get to fell a strong British influence in the ambience of the movie, in things which can be fet during the movie and not one's that can be put into words.Confession time again: the first two Harry Potter movies , with all the young kids with Wixard and Witches robes on, or do I call them Wizard "Bling" ,left me cold.Whatever magic author J.K. Rowling worked on the page evaporated onscreen. Things improved last year with The Prisoner of Azkaban. Alfonso Cuaron, the Mexican director of the erotic road movie Y Tu Mama Tambien, let Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Hermione (Emma Watson) and Ron (Rupert Grint) show evidence of hormones in their third term at Hogwarts. Now director Mike Newell (Four Weddings and a Funeral), the first Brit to direct the Brit franchise, makes further advances. Within limits, of course. Screenwriter Steve Kloves, ever faithful to Rowling, doesn't mess with overt sex.

And if you think, I have been quite harsh with this review, well I can also name some moments that I enjoyed.Say, the very excitinf TriWizard Championship.Yeah, but the tasks, I found not quite that gripping.The one thing which I can say let me glued to my seats was of course "You know who".
According to the book, dark evil Lord, Lord Voldemort, doesn't come alive until this story and remains as a ghost for so long.There had been speculations regarding the role of the dark lord being offered to other Brit actors, including Mr.Bean, Rowan Atkinson.But , the role comes out to its scariest best in Ralph Fiennes, who does his Red Dragon stare yet again, well except for the nose this time, which i am afraid, doesn't exist.
I loved the action set pieces in this movie...the Dragon challenge was exceptional, and the underwater sequences were perfect, but the maze... (oh the horror)... what was Mike Newell thinking? It could have been so much scarier. The beasts and creatures that challenge Harry and the others....missing. You can argue that the Director stayed on course and kept the story tight, but this is the final challenge to the tournament and it felt like it was over in 5 minutes. No drama, no feeling of danger.
At the end of it all, you don't really come out feeling excited about the whole movie, well I didn't.Let me say that I fully understand that it was pretty much impossible to fit a 700+ page book into a movie. But, did they have to chop up and rearrange everything??? I guess it would have been better for me, if I had rushed to it on the DVD release whenever it did.I was hoping for something fantastic, even memorable. Book 4 is where the series really takes off, with the characters getting lifted up to their teen maturity levels and of course,Lord Voldemort appearing. However the movie leaves a lot to be desired.
And to make the long story short(as the makers did), it ain't a great movie . JK dear, how did you approve the script?This effort does not bode well for the remaining books. Are they going to ruin Order of the Phoenix too.Ralph , I am counting on you to uplift the next.Warner Bros, needs to stop while they're ahead, because if they are going to release trash like this, then they are doing a gross diservice to JK and the rest of Potter-dom.

" Unfortunately , no one can be told what the matrix is, you have to see it for yourself".
How many times have I uttered those lines, since the movie , The Matrix, hit theatre screens worldwide in 1999? Haven' counted it though, but surely some thousand times ,if not more , and its not only me, its people my age, younger or elder to me who have uttered those lines, in different parts of the world in German, Thai, French, Japanese and what not.
The point is , we are the generation of the Matrix.And you love it, you hate it, but you cannot just have enough of it, no matter what.
There are a zillion of websites in millions of languages dedicated to the Matrix, showing how huge this movie has deeply made an indelible impression in our lives and in the way we watch and experience cinema.Do you think this yet another blog on the movie makes any sense? Who cares? I don't. Its just a ventilation of my emotions attached to the movie and everything that's related to it.
So,in the words of Cypher"..fasten your seat-belts Dorothy, coz Kansus is going bye-bye" and get ready to enter the world of the Matrix...

Each and every frame of this movie is a painting which is worth selling a hundred million dollars each..u think I am exaggerating ,read on ..and I say you'll be a changed man/woman once you are done with this..
Parineeta...a tale of love, a tale of two true lovers Shekhar and Lolita, caught in the web of misunderstndings, suspicion..and winning over them..
I take this oppurtunity to write my blog on it..Because it was my movie fav of this year 2k5..because it deserved more than Paheli to go to the Oscars as India's official entry..because it showcases Saif Ali Khan at his career's best performance (arguably after Dil Chahta Hai), because it has given birth to a wonderful actress Vidya Balan..and because it takes a producer like Vidhu Vinod Chopra to believe in an ad-person Pradeep Sarkar to direct this pure magic set in the backdrop of 1960's Calcutta.
The first thing you notice about Pradeep Sarkar's portrayal of this classic Sarat Chandra's novel is the tone, the hue and the flavour of 1960's Calcutta that he brings forth with extraordinary expertise.Right when you have just settled down with your popcorn in your seats, and the title credits have started rolling in, you get immersed in the aura of 1960's Calcutta as Amitabh Bachhan narrates the lyrical description of that era....of Calcutta's "Coffee House Addas" ..of the land of football frenzy people with "Aamar Shonar Bangla" playing in the background as the 'majhi' sails over the Hoogly river..of the political aspirations of Calcutta..of the love of Shekhar and Lolita...the city plays the ethereal backdrop for the tender story to unfold..and thus Sarath Chandra's prose takes the shape of lyrical poetry in the celluloid frames of Vidhu Vinod Chopra's Parineeta...the married woman

The story... unfolds in flashback... a young orphaned girl Lolita(Vidya Balan) is sent to live with her Uncle, and as destiny has it, she meets Shekhar(Saif Ali Khan), budding musician and son of a millionaire..both share their happy and bitter moments of childhood and adolescence and as they grow together it all takes the shape of intense love ..probably unknowingly..it is all so beautifully depicted in scenes where Lolita becomes jealous when she hears of Gayatri's (Diya Mirzaa) dressing style praised by Shekhar...also Shekhar's envy at Lolita spending evenings with Girish(Sanjay Dutt) all indicate the blooming of intense love between the two..It takes the arrival of Girish(the outsider) to realise each other's feelings.
The relationship between the two goes through a maze of greed, deception,misunderstandings and suspicion..but comes through all this to conquer over all these obstacles and displays the victory of true love over all .

The music...is pure magic and I cannot find any other synonym for it.Its simply spectacular and extra-ordinary.Music scored by Shantanu Moitra is actually the Trump Card of the movie.Each and every note has been woven so beautifully with the movie that you cannot imagine Parineeta the movie, without the songs, and each song in itself is a movie having a story to tell.
So,lets deal with them one by one, shall we.

Soona Man ka Aangan..Sonu Nigam does it again with this number, reflecting the deep pain and misery of Shekhar as he remembers his love Lolita. Shantanu blends perfectly Tagore's "Phulle Phulle" with immense expertise into this one..

Piyu Bole..The track audience will be humming when they alk out of the theatre, brilliant Bengali influences being mingled with the Elvis-loving character Shekhar who plays the notes on his piano..Shreya Ghosal's youthful, fresh and effervescent voice gives life to the song, and yes I would definitely not forget Sonu Nigam. The man is a genius, sheer genius.

Kasto Mazza(Ye Hawayein)This song features on Darjeeling's famous toy train, and gives the true feeling of a train song,not like the traditional "Mere Sapnon ki Rani".Should I say even better..Needless to say, Sonu Nigam and Shreya Ghoshal render the song perfectly..I can't imagine the song to have sung by any other singers..lyrics by (not much known )Swanand Kirkire are a treat to the ears..but the show-stealer is the chorus of children singing the Nepali verses "Kasto Mazza hai Rail ei maa..Ramailo Ukaali Orali".

Kaisi Paheli (hai Zindagaani.).Rekha sizzles completely and has her screen presence felt after a long time in this song, which mingles 60's Blues and Jazz music.The song appears when Girish and his family members go to this Calcutta Night Club called Moulin Rouge.Sung by the intoxicating Sunidhi Chauhan, the song displays the versatility of Shantanu Moitra.This song has it all, saxaphones, acustics riffing, and the ooh's of Blues.

Raat Hamari Toh..the song depicts the story of a dark night ..The song steals all your concentration and is a tale by itself..Listen to the this if you are all alone and you will feel the mood of the song touching you literally..Sung by Chitra, and Swanan who does a Ustad Sultan Khan..this is definitely not a forgettble song..

The song not mentioned so far is the wedding song, which I think was meant for easing the starting credits rolling procedure. I personally feel the song to be one of the two let-downs of the movie.

The Performances..
Saif Ali Khan..to begin with, has come a long way from just being the Junior Nawab or the son of Sharmila tagore, to this great actor who is a strong contender for next year's Film Awards, and not only the Filmfares and Screens,but also the National Awards(c'mon if he can do it with Hum Tum, he can definitely win it for Parineeta).Saif comes truly alive as the guitar loving, Elvis fan,cigarette smoking and Lolita loving Shekhar..absolutely brilliant is what I say...

Vidya Balan..she is a mallu(Malayalam) is what I was told when I googled for her origins and I was taken by complete shock,..Come on..she looks so very bengali with the Sindoor, and Laal-paai Saaree..She plays the title role of Lolita brilliantly(I am running out of words)..that's it..plain and simple, she was brilliant.Give her all the awards you have.

Sanjay Dutt..he plays Girish the stranger, outsider..its actually (I think}, a take on today's Lakshmi Mittal, the steel tycoon. Girish is the man who comes to Lolita's rescue during her bad times.Nothing much revealed though about the character.He ends up marrying the bubbly Koel(Raima Sen),Lolita's friend.Not a very challenging role for Sanju Baba though, he plays it with ease.Raima sen as Koel is very brief, but has her moments in the movie.Obviously, you cannot detail each and every character. But definitely didn't see much of Raima Sen.

Other characters that you will remember are...

Gayatri Tatiya..Diya Mirza in a very brief performance of a rich girl as Shekhar's fiance'
Nabin Roy..Veteran Bengali actor Sabyasachi Chakravarthy plays the role of the greedy and bad businessman father of Shekhar
Gurucharan..played by Veteran Television actor Achyut Poddar, this is the character of Lolita's uncle, who along with his wife are Lolita's only guardians
Shekhar' mother..they never revealed her name, but the role is played by yesteryear's Punjabi actress Surinder Kaur
Also Ninad Kamat plays Shekhar's friend who is a music arranger..

The let downs..
Parineeta is no doubt a huge canvas,painted so beautifully but it has a minute portion where the brush strokes are disturbing rather than being beautiful, one I have already mentioned and that is the Wedding song(cmon, do you have Dholak and stuff happening in a Bengali Wedding, and where was the wedding happening, Shekhar's home or Gayatri's home????), and the other one is the Climax scene where the emotions of friends and family(except for shekhar's father) rise to encourage Shekhar to break the wall..too melodramatic and comes out of the film and makes me choke..come on, you were making this very beautiful movie, what happened suddenly?But you can definitely ignore this and go back home happy when Shekhar and Lolita reunite. ..for ever

Special Credits to the..
Research team ..to have depicted 1960's Calcutta perfectly to the last inch, The movie lives Bengal and breathes Calcutta .

Art Direction..Nitin Desai,Keshto Mandal,Pradeep and Tanushree Sarkar,..Nitin Desai ...he's the same guy who did the art direction for Sanjay Leela Bhansali's "Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam" and "Devdas", thank you for realistically depicting the sets, of a Bengali Zamindaar and not making them span to acres of fountains and a huge race-course as a court yard(remember Devdas)

Lights Deptt..Nights have never been so beautiful, each frame of Parineeta's night scenes (I don't know how many times I have used this)is a painting..a masterpiece, and it all stands out and blends so easily into the movie because of the Lights deptt, with all the effects of Candles,Smoke and Darkness..man , ..Darkness never felt so silky
Cinematographer :Nataraja.N.Subramaniam..if Pradeep Sarkar was the painter, he definitely drew the sketches for them..
the scenes of Hoogly,Durga Pooja,Victoria Memorial,Howrah,Darjeeling,..man I can't stop listing them..
Costumes..Subarna Ray Chaudhri..plain and simple brilliant, especially for Diya Mirza's wardrobe when Gayatri and Shekhar watch a derby, and Rekha's attire for the Moulin Rouge scene...
Of course the Editor..Hemanti Sarkar to have kept the movie so crisp..
And last but not least..the trio..
Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Pradeep Sarkar and Shantanu Moitra..

need I say more..

Last words..Parineeta belongs at last to Vidya Balan definitely.But Rekha in her just over 4 minutes performance in Kaisi Paheli Zindagaani leaves us spell-bound.she's still enchanting.
Well enough said and written,now do you feel good?And for those who haven't seen the movie as yet, I should say get up you lazy bums, buy ,borrow or steal the DVD of Parineeta and watch it..Experience the magic of Parineeta and be enthralled by it.Because the world is now divided into two parts, first belonging to those lucky ones who have seen Parineeta, and the other to those who are unfortunate enough to have not seen it.