shivom_oza's Timeline

Reviewed Liv and Ingmar

Cinematic Love Story

Liv & Ingmar is a documentary on the 42-year-old relationship between legendary actress Liv Ullman and the master filmmaker Ingmar Bergman. It was screened at the 14th Mumbai Film Festival as a part of The Real Reel section. It's an immensely touching documentary on the romance, separation an...Read more

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Reviewed Electrick Children

Electrifying!

The film Electrick Children, directed by Rebecca Thomas, is about Rachel, a 15-year-old girl who gets pregnant through ‘immaculate conception with music’! The film boasts of a wonderful concept, beautifully executed by the cast and the director. You cannot classify the film in one particular ...Read more

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Reviewed The Dandelions

Delightful and How!

Rachel, a shy 9-year-old-girl, befriends the over-enthusiastic Valerie from her class. Both of their families bear the brunt, at least initially, of their over-zealousness. The wondrous screenplay, sparkling subtitling (and presumably dialogue as well) and the mind-blowing performances by the...Read more

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Reviewed On The Road

Directionless

Aspiring writer Sal Paradise gets affected deeply upon the arrival of his'liberated' friend Dean Moriarty and his young wife Marylou. The trio takes a road trip across the country and meets several people who impact their journey and their lives. At the conceptual level, the film works. Howev...Read more

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Reviewed Like Someone In Love

Iranian Director Excels In Japanese

The Japanese film is a story about'true' love and missed opportunities. The story, along with the screenplay, is stupendous. Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami excels and how! The cast too, gives a wonderful performance. Wonderful cinematography and editing escalate the visual appeal of the fi...Read more

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Reviewed Stories We Tell

Stories Well Told

Filmmaker Sarah Polley, in ‘Stories We Tell’, has doubled up as a detective to discover a few untold family secrets. However, while filming the movie, she comes to terms with a few uncomfortable truths which leave her in a quandary. The Canadian film, a part of'Special Presentations' at the T...Read more

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Reviewed Blancanieves

Not A Patch On 'The Artist'

A black-and-white, silent film, from Spain, ‘Blancanieves’ is based on the Snow White and Seven Dwarfs fairy tale. The film was screened at the 14th Mumbai Film Festival as the closing film. Although the screenplay and the performances move you, the film in totality is not a patch on 2011's ‘...Read more

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Reviewed Reality

Reality Bites - Shivom Oza

The film, a French-Italian offering, is about a man Luciano and his obsession with the popular reality show Big Brother. How his want for being featured on the show turns him into a fame-hungry monster, is what ‘Reality’ focuses on. Wonderfully conceived by Matteo Garrone, ‘Reality’ comprises...Read more

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Reviewed Gebo And The Shadow

Compelling Family Saga

Before anything about this film is mentioned, it must be noted that the director of ‘Gebo And The Shadow’, Manoel de Oliveira, will turn 104 this year. The abundant experience showed in his storytelling style. The film, adapted from a play, doesn't end up seeming too different from a theatrical ...Read more

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Reviewed Holy Motors

Awe-striking, Awe-inspiring, Awesome

The film, Holy Motors, directed by Leos Carax, competed for the Palme d'Or at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival. It revolves around a day in the life of Monsier Oscar. Denis Lavant is terrific as the maverick Monsieur Oscar. Not often do you find an actor, who embodies such versatility in his ran...Read more

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Reviewed The Hunt

Wonderful Subject, Terrific Execution - Shivom Oz

The film from Denmark, directed by Thomas Vinterberg, revolves around a 40-year-old man who is wrongly accused of child molestation. The Danish film was screened at the 14th Mumbai Film Festival under the'World Cinema' category. The plot is gripping and the subjects discussed(which have been ...Read more

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Reviewed Beyond The Hills

Compelling Film On Religion - Shivom Oza

‘Beyond The Hills’ is a Romanian drama based on the lasting friendship of two girls who grew up in the same orphanage. The film has bagged the 'Best Actress' and the 'Best Screenplay' award at the Cannes Film Festival, 2012. It was screened at the 14th Mumbai Film Festival as a part of the 'Worl...Read more

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Reviewed Beasts of the Southern Wild Movie

Stunning; Visually And Emotionally - Shivom Oza

Winner at various International film festivals, notably Cannes and Sundance, Benh Zeitlin's ‘Beasts of the Southern Wild’ was screened at the 14th Mumbai Film Festival as a part of the'International Competition' Category. The film is about a six-year-old child, Hushpuppy, and the story of her co...Read more

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Reviewed Janleva 555

The Title Says It All - Shivom Oza

The film is about a group of friends who set out towards a remote area to make a film. Mysterious things start happening. There are good films, bad films and terrible films. Janleva 555 goes beyond terrible. Laughable acting, cringe-worthy dialogue and garish music notwithstanding, the camera...Read more

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Reviewed Enemmy

Not Very Viewer-'friendly' - Shivom Oza

‘Enemmy’ is a film about four buddies (do you sense irony here?). Suniel Shetty and Kay Kay Menon play foster brothers in this crime-drama, which revolves around the police-underworld-politics nexus. Mithun Chakraborty plays a senior investigator, who is looking into a robbery case. There are...Read more

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Reviewed Yamla Pagla Deewana 2

Quite A Mixed Bag - Shivom Oza

2/5 Stars Deols(Dharmendra, Sunny Deol and Bobby Deol) are back with the sequel to their 2011 hit'Yamla Pagla Deewana', 'Yamla PaglaDeewana 2'. This time, the conning game will get bigger, with the conniving father-son duo(Dharam and Gajodhar) trying to pull off a heist in UK. Notwithstand...Read more

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Reviewed Bawarchi

This Cook Did Not Spoil The Broth - Shivom Oza

Bawarchi, inspired by the Bengali film, Galpa Holeo Satyi(1966), by Tapan Sinha, revolves around the disgruntled Sharma household, who cannot retain a cook for more than a while, owing to their rude behaviour. And then, the affable Raghu enters, and overstays his welcome! The Hrishikesh Mukhe...Read more

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Reviewed Ship Of Theseus

Must, must watch

A gifted female photographer, a devout monk and a money-minded stock broker, acquire a new lease of life owing to organ transplants. The film, directed by debutante Anand Gandhi, has been screened at the Toronto International Film Festival 2012. It was also screened at the 14th Mumbai Film Festi...Read more

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Reviewed Man of Steel

Just Falls Short Of 'Super'

Every superhero franchise has gotten an overhaul ever since Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy(Batman Begins, The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises) tasted success. This time, it's Superman's turn. 300 and Watchmen director Zack Snyder is at the helm of this story, co-written by David S. Goy...Read more

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Reviewed Mere Haule Dost

Such A Howler! - Shivom Oza

I had found the premise of Mere Haule Dost was quite interesting, which is why I thought that I should review the film. It revolves around 5 friends, Mota, Bong, Dada, Bheja and Paisa(all nicknames, presumably), who want to go on a bike rally in the Himalayas but do not have the resources. Ho...Read more

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