The Kon -Tiki Expedition

I came to know about the legendary Kon-Tiki expedition when I was in middle school. There was a chapter in the English Main Course Book about the mystery of the Easter Islands. And in that chapter, there was a brief mention about how the Norwegian ethnographer Thor Heyerdahl and five other colleagues managed to reach Polynesia from Peru aboard a plain old wooden raft. Madness! Why would anyone do that? I had wondered. For about 8 years, the legend of Kon-Tiki lingered faintly somewhere in the deep recesses of my head. A couple of months ago, while I was aimlessly wandering around the humanities library at Purdue, I came across Thor Heyerdahl's travelogue and that English textbook chapter came rushing back into my mind :)

The book that I am talking about is called, "The Kon-Tiki Expedition". Translated from Norwegian, the book is a narrative travelogue written in first person by Heyerdahl himself. It talks about how and why he was driven on this insane and life threatening journey (fueled by the desire to prove his theory that the Polynesians were descendents of the Incas), and details his remarkable adventures on the high seas.



(Yes, they traveled more than 8000 kilometers non-stop on the Pacific Ocean aboard this raft, with no contact with the outside world except through a small wireless transmitter and receiver)


The book is a wonderful read with delightful anecdotes, insightful theory and splendid description.

If you like reading adventure books, you should definitely read this one. If you've never tried the narrative non-fiction genre, then this book is a good place to start.

And if you've read other books from this genre, I'd be glad if you could share them with me!

Bua

This is my first post on music and its been inspired by a riveting performance by a Celtic band named 'Bua' at the Taste of Chicago (a week-long carnival that takes place in downtown chicago, every year).

Bua is a quartet that plays traditional Irish music - an eclectic blend of Fiddles (Violins), Pipes, Flutes, Guitars and Accordions. Most of their songs are in Irish Gaelic and generally talk about Irish sea-farers and their love stories! The music is upbeat and instantly lifts your mood. While sitting there enjoying their music, I felt as if I was transported to the lochs and hills of Scotland and Ireland, tap-dancing with Leprechauns to the merry jingles, while taking a swig of the sweet scented Irish beer!

Check out one of their songs on Youtube :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8JnvjbJu0E&feature=related

If you love their music, you can visit their website : http://www.buamusic.com/index.html and enjoy more of their songs on their myspace page : http://www.myspace.com/ganbua

Why am I doing so much publicity? Well, I simply loved their music. And since I had no intention of buying their CDs, this is the least that I could do! :P

Ka-Chow!

What could be better than a world full of cars, and that too cars that can talk, laugh, cry and live! Being a huge fan of cars and Cars (the movie), I was eagerly looking forward to the much awaited sequel. And thankfully the second edition of Lightning McQueen and Tow Mater's adventures proved to be as exciting as the first, if not more!

Stuff I liked about Cars 2

1. The world of cars. It was fascinating to see how John Lasseter and co, created car-world equivalents of what we see in our day to day lives - the car toilets, the airport security check, the public sleeping bunks of Tokyo, to name a few!

2. The storyline. Now who would've thought of applying the tried and tested spy movie concept into the car-universe! Some might say that the storyline is cliched, but I found it quite entertaining.

3. The 3D Animation. Need I say more? :)

4. The dialogues are simply superb. There are some that are super funny and witty, especially those of Michael Caine aka Finn McMissile!


Stuff I didn't like about Cars 2 :

Probably the only thing I didn't like about the movie was the lack of 'Ka-Chow' action. The movie is all about Tow Mater and Lightning McQueen happens to be just a side-character.

As far as I remember, there hasn't been a single animation movie that I have not liked. But yeah, some are better than others. I would say that Cars2 is amongst those better ones (the IMDB rating does not do it enough justice.), but perhaps not in the 'best' league.

It's a movie that will be loved and enjoyed by all! So, if you haven't seen it, then its time to grab those 3-D glasses and hit the cinemas! :)

Hara Lalten

In the brightest day and the darkest hour, the only thing I experienced was sheer disappointment. I think I was wrong when I said in my previous post that the superhero movie genre had 'matured'. Because, Green Lantern is now a striking example of the superheroes 'goofing around in their silly tights' genre. The movie was not entirely horrendous, though. Had it not been hyped so much, I would have said that it was a pretty decent movie, something that is worth watching.

Stuff I liked about Green Lantern :

1. The concept - intergalactic peacekeepers, the concept of hope and fear etc. Well, I guess it is unfair to attribute this to the movie, because the movie owes its back-story to the concepts in the legendary DC comics series.
2. The special effects are really good, especially the rich intergalactic worlds and Green Lantern's powers, which are a treat to the eyes!
3. Blake Lively is another treat to the eyes :). Perhaps, the awesomeness of the comics and the cuteness of Blake is what is driving movie goers to watch this one!
4. Comic Relief. There are a few funny scenes in the movie, which will give you a decent laugh or two.

Stuff I didn't like about Green Lantern :

1. Movie or Spoof? The Green Lantern looks more like a superhero spoof movie than an actual superhero movie. That is perhaps because of the shallowness of the plot, the over-abused funny sequences and the unrealistic acting.

2. If you've seen the trailer, you've seen the movie. Period.

3. Ryan Reynolds shows some sparks of playing a decent role, but more than often than not, he looks like a Joker in a silly green costume.

4. The thing that I found ridiculously funny was how the villain dies in the movie. I'm sorry if this sounds like a spoiler, but a villain who is powerful enough to destroy the whole universe (even the greatest warriors of the universe have lost hope), barely manages to destroy a few buildings in a tiny city in a tiny planet called Earth, before getting ridiculously killed.

This movie is like one of those science fiction books that have a fancy cover and an intriguing synopsis, but when you read the first 10 pages or so, you're like WTF!

I doubt if anyone would love this movie, but if you are a Green Lantern fan like me, you may find it worthwhile. It's an 'ok' movie which will give you an 'ok' feeling after you watch it with absolutely zero expectations.

A Class Apart

It seems as if the genius of Christopher Nolan has transformed the way hollywood now makes its superhero movies. Ever since the inception of batman begins, superhero movies have begun to have more substance, a deeper plot and a richer characterization, unlike the George Clooney and Val Kilmer era, when superheroes did nothing but parade around in their silly tights. The X-Men franchise has also got a serious makeover with X-Men First Class, a movie that is significant improvement over the days of the bald headed Patrick Stewart and helmet headed Ian McKellen.

After a long time, I was really 'affected' by this movie. (The last movie that really 'affected' me was 'The Fighter' and before that it was Inception, I guess :) )

Stuff that I liked about the movie :

1. The acting and character portrayal is truly remarkable. This is one of those rare movies where you get instantly hooked onto the story and begin to feel what the characters feel! I have no words to say how good Michael Fassbender, James McAvoy and Kevin Bacon played the roles of Magneto, Professor Xavier and Sebastian Shaw, respectively. You just have to watch it to experience it!

2. There are certain scenes of the movie that would join my all time favorite scenes list -> (i) Sebastian Shaw and young Eric's face-off (reminded me of opening scene of Inglorious Basterds...Sebastian Shaw seemed quite similar to Hans Landa :) ).
(ii) Wolverine's 2 second Cameo (that was legendary!)
(iii) The chemistry between Charles Xavier and Eric Lehnsherr (especially the scene where Charles and Eric contemplate about the future of their race while playing chess on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial).
(iv) The Professor's mind blowing dialogues.
(v) Magneto lifting a submarine from the sea
(vi) The final few scenes where the two protagonists go their separate ways.

3. The background score - truly amazing!

Stuff I didn't like about the movie :

The only thing that I didn't like about the movie was that it ended :P. I just wanted it to go on and on!

If you like action movies and superhero movies (or rather, if you like to watch really good movies), then you shouldn't miss this one. The movie demands no pre-requisites. You need not have a single idea of who or what X-Men are, to watch this movie. So, what are you waiting for! Go watch the movie! If you've already seen it, go watch it again! :P

"They don’t make movies like this these days!"

When I read the critic reviews about Super 8, I was surprised at the number of positive comments about this movie. Some critics even went on to say that Super 8 was the best of the year and perhaps the best for many years to come. There were big banners outside cinema halls with that beautiful photographic sideways shot of a solitary water tower standing amidst the rolling countryside. Spielberg’s name was being spammed like hell, and of course those critic reviews were pasted everywhere.

The reviews were too good to be true and I chose not to believe them. But my profound respect for Steven Spielberg is what forced me to watch the movie.

And when I came out of the cinema hall, my first words were, “Wow! They don’t make movies like this these days!”

Yes, Super 8 is a 'beautiful' movie and would join the list of other beautiful movies like Pursuit of Happiness, The Cinderella Man and Finding Neverland to name a few.

Stuff that I liked about Super 8 :

1. The plot has all the ingredients that go into the making of a best-selling science fiction novel. (What else do you expect from the creator of ‘Lost’!) It is strong, has a proper flow, neat little sub-plots and most important of them all, ‘real’ characters.

2. Yes, the characters are real and natural. I don’t know how to explain this, but all I can say is that you form an instant connection with them. (It helps that the main characters are kids!)

3. The movie has that eerie mysterious atmosphere that one often associates with supernatural and alien movies.

4. The credits! DO NOT MISS them! :)

Stuff that I didn’t like about Super 8 :

1. Although the movie leaves you with a feel good factor at the end, it would have been better if culminating conflict had been dramatic. I will not go into the nitty gritties of this one, ‘coz that would bring in the spoilers! :P

2. Cut copy paste scenes from Jurassic Park. Come on Mr. Abrams and Mr. Spielberg, you could have done better than that!

Super 8 is a movie that most people would like but not everyone would love. As of this moment I can actually think of people who will adore this movie, people who will be bored and people who will think of it as a waste of time. But if you are science fiction enthusiast, you’d better not miss this one!

Bangkok Had Them!

It’s a well established fact in Hollywood that sequels never fail to disappoint. Perhaps it is in the very nature of a sequel that it can never outperform its former version owing to the burden of expectation that weighs heavy on its shoulders. Hangover : Part 2 was no different.

Stuff that I liked about Hangover 2 :

1. The delightful characters. Put in Stu, Alan, Phil and Doug in any godforsaken situation and in any darn plot, they will still manage to make audiences laugh. Go ahead and put them in a silent movie where they do nothing but stare at each other for two hours. Even then they will manage to bring a smile on your face. These four characters with a few additional colorful ones really carry the movie.

2. All the crazy shit they get themselves into (yet again!).

3. The music. The background songs that appear every now and again nicely complement the visuals. Pay close attention to the lyrics…you’ll know what I mean!

Stuff I didn’t like about Hangover 2 :

1. It’s the same plot. A wedding, the protagonists forget everything, a guy goes missing, a wild animal winds up in their room, a crazy foreign guy almost kills them…In a way it tries to retain the charm of the original movie by keeping the same entities. But there is a thin line of difference between repetition and consistency.

2. Weaker plot compared to the first movie. Although the acts and the events are as crazy as its prequel (if not more), the plot seems to lack depth (as compared to its prequel). As a result when you are watching the movie, you sink back into your seats and say, “Haha! He’s in a deep shithole now! Oopsie Daisee!” instead of sitting on the edge of your seats and screaming out, “Holy shit! What the f*ck is happening!”

The thing I like about the Hangover series is that it is not like those typical R rated adult comedies, which are nothing but trash and sell due to the 'animalistic' appeal of nudity and abusive language. Although this movie has its fair share of gross scenes (and for once, I missed the Indian censor board), it has a level of sophistication (owing to the plots, sub-plots and character portrayal) that most movies in this genre lack.

So, if you are fine with vulgarity and profanity, and wish to be entertained for 2 hours, then definitely go for the movie. You will be entertained yes…but I doubt if you’d ever laugh so much so as to hurt your tummy (I almost had stomach cramps after watching Hangover 1! )