Assault on Precinct 13 (1976)

STORY – 1
DIRECTOR – 1
ACTOR – 1
MUSIC – 1
CULT – 1

VERDICT – 5/5

 
PROS –
1) A soon-to-be-closed precinct became the target of a massive gun-battle by an army of street-gang members hell-bent for revenge.
2) An unusual partnership between a cop and a prisoner. A cop releasing 2 prisoners to save the precinct is very similar to Sholay (1975) train-scene.
3) A definitive John Carpenter’s cult-action movie with 91 minutes running time.
4) Darwin Joston’s intriguing character [Napoleon Wilson] with an unusually calm demeanor.

 

CONS –
N/A

 
QUOTE –
Leigh: The very least of our problems is that we’re out of time.
Wilson: It’s an old story with me. I was born out of time.

Death on the Nile (1978)

STORY – 1
DIRECTOR – 1
ACTOR – 1
MUSIC – 0
CULT – 0

 

VERDICT – 3/5

 

PROS –
1) All the heavy-lifting is mainly done by Peter Ustinov as Hercule Poirot. He’s truly an actor’s actor.
2) The movie came into life after the 3rd murder.
3) Another Agatha Christie’s murder-mystery with a pan-European ensemble.
4) The scene at Temple of Amun with all the possible future suspects got to be the best scene of the movie.

 

CONS –
1) Quite a generic whodunit plot very similar to Murder on the Orient Express (1974)

 

QUOTE –
Hercule Poirot: “The great ambition of women is to inspire love.”

Unknown (2011)

STORY – 1
DIRECTOR – 1
ACTOR – 1
MUSIC – 0
CULT – 1

VERDICT – 4/5

 
PROS –
1) A fast-paced and gripping thriller from the first to the last minute.
2) An assassin who mistakes his fake identity to be his reality because of a freak accident.
3) Great supporting cast with legends like Frank Langella and Bruno Ganz

 

CONS –
N/A

 

QUOTE –
Ernst Jürgen: In the Stasi, we had a basic principle: ask enough questions and a man who is lying will eventually change his story. But the man who tells the truth cannot change his, however unlikely his story sounds.

Downfall (2004)

STORY – 1
DIRECTOR – 1
ACTOR – 1
MUSIC – 0
CULT – 1

 

VERDICT – 4/5

 
PROS –
1) A rather sympathetic view on Hitler’s final days in the Führerbunker from the German POV.
2) Corinna Harfouch [as Magda Goebbels] executing her 6 children was an extremely disturbing scene.
3) Bruno Ganz’s portrayal of Hitler is possibly the best by any actor.
4) A superb ensemble of actors.

 
CONS –
N/A

 

QUOTE –
Joseph Goebbels: I feel no sympathy. I repeat, I feel no sympathy! The German people chose their fate. That may surprise some people. Don’t fool yourself. We didn’t force the German people. They gave us a mandate, and now their little throats are being cut!

Judgementall Hai Kya (2019)

STORY – 0
DIRECTOR – 0
ACTOR – 0
MUSIC – 0
CULT – 0

 

VERDICT – 0/5

 
PROS –
1) The movie is watchable only when Satish Kaushik and Brijendra Kala were on the screen in their respective minor roles.

 

CONS –
1) Ekta Kapoor was trying to make a Sriram Raghavan thriller. But this mediocre adventure of her is as generic as it can be with the plot-twist that anyone can guess it from a mile.
2) Balaji Motion Pictures spent the entire budget on Kangana Ranaut’s costumes.

 
QUOTE –
“aaj kal normal logon se darro”

Death Warrant (1990)

STORY – 1
DIRECTOR – 0
ACTOR – 1
MUSIC – 0
CULT – 0

 

VERDICT – 2/5

 
PROS –
1) The entire movie was built-up for that boss-fight with The Sandman
2) A prison with illegal organ harvesting. The plot is promising with colorful characters like Sandman, Priest, Hawkins, etc.

 
CONS –
1) Mediocre screenplay ruining a good plot.

 
QUOTE –
Priest: You Make A Deal With The Priest… It’s for keeps!

Ramy (Season 1)

STORY – 1
DIRECTOR – 1
ACTOR – 1
MUSIC – 0
CULT – 0

 

VERDICT – 3/5

 
PROS –
1) I’ll rank this show almost equivalent to “Master of None”. And for the same reason, this series is redundant as Aziz Ansari already did it.
2) “Ne Me Quitte Pas” is the Emmy worth episode of this series.
3) Stephen Way as Stevie. The best thing in Hollywood for the disability community.

 
CONS –
1) Nothing new for the audiences of “Master of None” or even “Citizen Khan”.

 

QUOTE –
“Uncle Naseem: We protect women because we don’t trust men.”

Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957)

STORY – 0
DIRECTOR – 1
ACTOR – 1
MUSIC – 1
CULT – 0

 

VERDICT – 3/5

 
PROS –
1) Presence of two stalwarts – Burt Lancaster & Kirk Douglas.
2) Cinematography and overall direction make this movie a good hang-out movie like Rio Bravo (1959).
3) “Gunfight at the O.K. Corral”, sung by Frankie Laine

 

CONS –
1) Slow-paced screenplay with mediocre climactic gun-fight.

 
QUOTE –
Dr. John ‘Doc’ Holliday: I’m a gambler. Money’s just a tool of my trade.
Wyatt Earp: Of course, you will guarantee you won’t lose.
Dr. John ‘Doc’ Holliday: I never lose. You see, poker’s played by desperate men who cherish money. I don’t lose because I have nothing to lose, including my life.

The Road (2009)

STORY – 0
DIRECTOR – 1
ACTOR – 1
MUSIC – 0
CULT – 0

 

VERDICT – 2/5

 
PROS –
1) A poignant father-son survival story in a post-apocalyptic world battling nuclear winter, hunger, and cannibals.
2) Intriguing cinematography.

 
CONS –
1) It’s a drama with familiar elements of a survival film without action and zombies.

 
QUOTE –
The Man: Do you ever wish you would die?
Old Man: No. It’s foolish to ask for luxuries in times like these.

Pata Nahi Par Bolna Hai (2019)

CONTENT – 0
EXECUTION – 1
CULT – 0

VERDICT – 1/3

PROS –
1) Karunesh Talwar is one of the few genuinely funny artists in the Indian stand-up scene. His bits on Indian-rapper and arrange marriage were funny.

 

CONS –
1) His YouTube channel’s uploads are better than this special.

 

QUOTE –
“The motion has been passed. The bill had become a law.”