VOLVER

I saw this spanish film at the MAMI festival in Mumbai, just to see what was this overhyped film all about. There were lots of my friends who had seen the film before and I was kind of getting mixed response for the same. And when I finally saw the film, the first thing that came to my mind while the film entered the last act was that it has a serious twist resembling to China town. Something, which I, being in the business of writing, guessed it long time ago. Well that took away some of the excitement, but yes this dark, funny, tragic, fantasy, supernatural film has its moments which makes you laugh more than freezez you or for that matter makes you ponder over it.

Well that doesn't take the credit away from the film and from its director,Pedro Almodóvar,
for effectively creating one of the priceless relationships in the whole world, mother- daughter.

The relationship traces the two generation of people, Penelope and her mother and Penelope and her daughter. Also, Almodovor has managed to effectively create the supernatural stories which the village La mancha survives on. Penelope didnot have a great relationship with her mother.Since early childhood whe developed her own mind and became independent. Her mother and father died in a fire. Now she lived with her husband and her daughter. She struggles and fights to survive like every other person inhabiting the planet.
In a sudden twist, her husband is being killed by her own daughter. Penelope is ready to take the blame on herself.

The story then gazez towards her freezing the body in a restaurant and taking care of some catering work there. In the meantime her mothers ghost comes back[ which according to the local villagers is nothing new, ghosts keep roaming around every now and then] the ghost starts staying with Penelope's sister, running a salon in her house. With time the ghost becomes friendly to Pene's daughter too but is scared of Pene herself. Ultimately the last card is opened which says that the daughter of Rai was born out of her own father, [chinatown angle] So thats that. They are some good moments in the film..... where Penelope remembers her mother a lot without realising that she could be around...

So as a film buff, if I was to review the film I would say, 2.5 out of 5.

THE MOTOCYCLE DIARIES

DIRECTOR: WALTER SALLES
WRITER: JOSE RIVEIRA [SCREENPLAY ADAPTED FROM THE BOOK]

One of the most inspirational and touching films of 2004, the film won the oscar for the best foreign film category. Based on the life of Che Guevara, the film talks about the moment and the journey which made him the great revolutionary that he finally became.

It a travel journey of two friends, Granado and Erneto, from Argentina to peru, where they meet various kinds of people on the way, where they have no money to travel and use various methods to stay in peoples houses and eat. The film is humourous at the same time, touching.
When they finally reach their destination, they have lost everything they had including their bike they were travelling on . The film portrays the sensitivity which Erneto has and grows while this journey, he questioning the way the commuinists are treated, he going and meeting the lepers without showing any kind of malice towards them, he thinking about the way a river divides the ill from the healthy and ultimately crossing that river in the middle of the night just to be with the people on the other side of the river [ people suffering with lepracy] It a touchy and endearing character, something which will take away a part of you, or will add a part in you.