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James M. Cain’s classic Depression-Era tale was turned into a film noir by Michael Curtiz in 1945. Todd Haynes decided to readapt Mildred Pierce, and turned it into a 5-part HBO miniseries. In this current rendition of the book, the luscious Kate Winslet has played the role of the titular character, made famous by Joan Crawford in the Curtiz version. She is an independent-minded lady, she throws out her philandering, albeit good-natured husband, and takes the job of a waitress to support her daughters. The movie goes on to follow her eventful life over the next few years, as she loses her younger daughter, gets into a tumultuous relationship with a dapper upper-class fellow (Guy Pierce), becomes a successful entrepreneur by opening her own chain of restaurants only to eventually lose them, so on and so forth. However, at the heart of the movie lies the complex relationship she shares with her pretentious elder daughter Veda who grows into an exceptionally gorgeous young girl (Evan Rachel Wood) but one of the vilest characters one could think of. The more Mildred tries to bestow her love on her, the more she is hurt by the monstrous prima donna. The film boasts of an exceptionally well-rounded turn by Winslet and superb art direction recreating those times. Unfortunately, it seems a tad hollow in its soul, and filled with a lot of implausible character dynamics. Why Veda behaves the way she behaves throughout the storyline in fact remains its most disappointing mystery.
Director: Todd Haynes
Genre: Drama
Language: English
Country: US
Created by David E. Kelly, The Practice surely ranks among the finest TV series of our times. The series, that lasted 8 seasons, chronicles the journey of a legal practice based in Boston that starts small, and through various events – both good and bad, grows into a criminal defense firm to reckon with. At the heart of the series are a series of exceptionally well-etched characters – Bobby Donnel (Dylan McDermott), the founder of the practice, a terrific lawyer and a loner by choice, who often finds himself grappling with his conscience; Eugene Young (Steve Harris), a brilliant street-smart lawyer with an almost implacable demeanour and a strong believer in the role of a defense attorney; Linsday Dole (Kelli Williams), a Harvard Law School graduate and an emotionally fragile person who gets married to Bobby with not-so-good consequences; Helen Gamble (Lisa Flynn Boyle), a sexy Assistant District Attorney, Lindsay’s college-buddy, and a relentless criminal prosecutor with a knack for cynical wisecracks, Jimmy Berluti (Michael Badalucco), an Italian-American who grows as a lawyer after his joining the practice, Ellenor Frutt (Camryn Manheim), a competent lawyer with a distinct apathy towards death sentences et al. The last season introduced us to the characters of Alan Shore (James Spader) and Danny Crane (William Shatner), unscrupulous lawyer but exceptional lawyers, who would head the cast of Boston Legal, the spin-off to this series. The best part of the series, apart from the immensely captivating legal cases, arresting opening and closing arguments and cross-examinations, and plot twists, was the way the characters were developed into real people of flesh and blood. Bobby and Eugene remain two of the most unforgettable characters, and though the acting was great by everyone involved, McDermott and Harris were especially amazing in their respective roles. The series has explored various themes including guilt and retribution, personal demons and redemption, legal ethics versus moral ethics, to name a few.
Directors: Miscellaneous
Genre: Drama/Legal Drama/TV Series
Language: English
Country: US
To call the acclaimed French filmmaker Oliver Assayas’ Carlos an epic would be an understatement because, its 5 ½ hours length might seem formidable even to those accustomed to watching epic films regularly. The film deals with the rise and fall of the infamous political assassin Carlos who, as we all know, is now languishing in prison. Employing incredible research work, the film has pieced together the life of one of the most enigmatic persons of the last century through terrific storytelling. The director has resorted to cinema-verite, giving the film the feel of a documentary. Thus, by being ripped off of any unnecessary melodrama and by being a fiercely honest portrayal of the man without any ounce of judging him, the film has succeeded in making Carlos seem like a frighteningly real man of flesh and blood. Divided into three parts, this episodic portrayal of the infamous terrorist’s rise through the ranks, his attempts (which often are successful) at some outrageous and spectacular acts of violence, his pop-culture celebrity-hood, his comparative stagnation after being ousted from the Palestinian group he was part of, and finally his slow decline after massive changes took place in the world order post the collapse of Soviet empire. Edgar Ramirez has given a tour-de-force performance as Carlos in this visceral, violent, anarchic and thoroughly outstanding piece of work.
Director: Oliver Assayas
Genre: Drama/Crime Drama/Epic/Biopic/TV Miniseries
Languages: French/German/Arabic
Country: France/Germany
24 has been ranked as one of the greatest television series ever made, and why not? The adrenaline-fuelled thrill-a-minute, err, thrill-a-second ride, where lone ranger and one-man-army Jack Bauer, for whom ends justify the means, works against the ethical and administrative purview of CTU (Counter-Terrorist Unit), and the American government at times, to bring people, corporations and even Heads of State to justice, had me glued to my chair from start to finish every single season. Even when the show veered towards ludicrosity and been-there-seen-that territory, it never slackened pace or went easy on violence for once, or for that matter, shied from throwing pointed jabs at everything from excess bureaucracy and corrupt corporations to political conspiracies and government cover-ups. Real politic has often been the dominant theme of the series, where each season showed the events of a single day in real-time. The show also gave us a host of memorable characters – the ever reliable and neurotic Chloe O’Brian, expert fellow agents Tony Almeida and Cole Ortiz who aren’t very different from Bauer, Jack’s attractive nemesis in the first few seasons – Nina Myers, Tony’s wife Michelle Dessler, the soft-spoken Bill Buchanan, Jack’s one-time fiancé Audrey Reines, his daughter Kim with whom he shares an on-off relationship, and of course the beautiful but fragile Renee Walker who triggers Jack into ultra revenge-mode going into the exceptional finale of Season 8, the last in the series. We’ve also had a number of memorable US Presidents, from the commanding David Palmer to the self-serving Charles Logan and the upright Alison Taylor. And in Kiefer Sutherland’s Jack Bauer we’ve had a flawed but imperious protagonist worthy of being included in the elite group of indestructible action-heroes populated by the likes of Sly Stallone’s Rambo, Bruce Willis’ John McClane, Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt, Schwarzenegger's John Matrix et al.
Directors: Miscellaneous
Genre: Thriller/Political Thriller/Action/TV Series
Language: English
Country: US
Polish master’s Krzysztof Kieslowski’s Dekalog, one of the most staggering masterpieces ever brought to screen, would rank, along with the likes of R. W. Fassbinder’s Berlin Alexanderplatz, among the most ambitious cinematic achievements. Comprising of ten one-hour films made for television, each representing a pronouncement from the Ten Commandments, Dekalog paints intimate, richly layered and thoroughly enriching portraits of Polish society through the microcosm of an apartment block which forms the backdrop for the stories. The series encompasses themes ranging from personal crises, ethical dilemmas and the political history of Poland to even the role of filmmakers, and covers such topics as technology, parent-child complex, infidelity, voyeurism, new found wealth, etc. In fact love, or lack thereof, human loneliness, cosmic conundrums and ironies of everyday life are some of the recurring as well as underlying motifs of the deeply philosophical project. Since Kieslowski was an agnostic himself, religious symbolisms never take the front seat; rather, they are subtly alluded to at most, as the various devastatingly human stories unfold before us. Music forms a vital aspect of the series, and has been used with astounding effect to create and accentuate the moods and tones specific to each parts. Hauntingly beautiful, profoundly moving and brilliantly enacted, Dekalog is cinema of the very highest order. Dekalog 5 & 6 were later expanded into A Short Film About Love and the A Short Film About Killing, respectively.
Director: Krzysztof Kieslowski
Genre: Drama/Psychological Drama/Existential Drama/Romance/Black Comedy/TV Series/Omnibus Film
Language: Polish
Country: Poland
