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Movie memories, by Siraj Syed—Bowling for Columbine (2002): Gun lobbies and gun hobbies
America has the highest rate of gun-related deaths and some critics of the gun culture refer to the gun lobby as gun nuts. Michael Moore (Fahrenheit 9/11) pegs this docu-feature as an investigative, analytical account of the Columbine school massacre and derives its title from the story that Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold—the two students responsible for the Columbine High School massacre—...
Mantostaan, Review by Siraj Syed: Quadruple fiction, laboured narration
Mantostaan is a parallel compilation of four short stories by outstanding writer, late Saadat Hassan Manto. Manto was a short story writer who wrote in the Urdu language, in addition to being a film and radio scriptwriter, and a journalist. For a brief period in the late forties, he worked in the script department of the legendary studio, Bombay Talkies. Born in undivided India, he returned to what was now Pakistan, and d...
The Guardians of the Galaxy-Vol. 2, Review by Siraj Syed: Turn-up the volume
TGOTG goes back to 1980, when Peter’s father was courting his mother, and then comes to present day, when he s about 35. Like Vol. 1, the film is a riot of colour, sci-fi (visuals) and hi-fi (sounds), even celebrating its own prowess in painting the screen with an explosion of VFX hues, like a futurist child’s dream display of fire-works. It also taps upon latest sound techniques to run music, SFX and dia...
Movie memories, by Siraj Syed—Fahrenheit 9/11(2004): Burning topics
Fahrenheit 9/11 was released on DVD and VHS videotape on October 5, 2004, which is when I must have acquired my copy. Within a few days, the film broke records for the highest-selling documentary ever. About two million copies were sold/rented on the first day.
A companion book too was released, The Official Fahrenheit 9/11 Reader, containing the complete screenplay, maker Michael Moore's sources, audience e-mails ...
Movie memories, by Siraj Syed--The Bourne Supremacy (2004): Supreme racy
As I write this flashback review, five Jason Bourne films have been released, of which The Bourne Supremacy was the second. The lead character and plot premises are all based on the milieu created by Robert Ludlum’s action-thriller novels about CIA agent Jason Bourne and the Agency’s use of his skills in executing murderous missions, after subjecting him to drug-induced psychogenic amnesia.
This one begins t...
Maatr (The Mother) uncensored, Review by Siraj Syed: She will kill at will
Lead actress Raveena Tandon told the media that, in Maatr, “We have just shown 10 percent of what a woman has to deal with when such a thing happens with her.” ‘Such a thing’ that she was referring to is gang rape. Sure enough, the film landed in trouble before the Central Board of Film Certification (CFBC), the Indian body that has to approve every film before it is released. I have had privile...
Félicité, Review by Siraj Syed: Cinema réalité
Challenging forms and formats, genres and categories, Félicité agitates your mind by showing too much of some things and too little of other elements. It begins as an indictment of the colonial legacy in Congo but ends up becoming a slave to its repetitive shot-taking and sombre imagery. Too much is promised and just about much is delivered. Nevertheless, Félicité is going to be talked about...
Siraj Syed conducts the first ever interview of writer-director Hank Orion (Despair, 2017)
Hank Orion migrated to Italy from Ukraine with his mother, at the age of 9. He had been showing interest in cinema since a very early age, and wrote his first ‘screenplay’ at the age of 12.There, Hank focussed on writing, primarily, and by the age of 16, he had written several feature film screenplays and short stories.
Later, Hank studied painting at the Liceo Artistico Statale ‘Fois...
Despair, Exclusive first-ever review, by Siraj Syed: Performances dispel the gloom in this psycho thriller
Being humane can cost you dear could be one take away from the indie psychological thriller, Despair. Disjointed families and obsession can kill, as had been demonstrated by so many films of yore, and this could have been one more for the record, had it not been for the other take away: sympathy and empathy are the cornerstones of love, and even if you have to pay a heavy price for nurtu...
Zikr Tera, CD Album review, by Siraj Syed: Cadence and decadence, allusion and illusion
Film playback singer, musician and ghazal exponent RoopKumar Rathod partners life -partner Sunali on an eight-track journey that is full of lament and pathos, allusion and illusion, called Zikr Tera (‘your mention’, in Urdu). More ethereal than earthy, it caters to an elite audience, and the senior citizens among them, at that. There are things to admire and things to comment upon, along the wa...
Smurfs-The Lost Village, Review by Siraj Syed: Tidal waves and tiny caves
Smurfy’s Law: The Forbidden Forest is the forbidden forest, and there’s good reason for the entry ban—you might not come back alive. After watching the latest Smurf movie, you will not only get back alive, but happy and bemused. If you belong to the under 12 age-group, you might even enjoy the thrills and frills much more than your older brethren.
The Lost Village (third in the Smurfs franchise) is ne...
The Zookeeper’s Wife, Review by Siraj Syed: Of animals, animal instincts and humanity above all
A wife, a husband their zoo and the Jews. Unlikely ingredients of a film seen by us critics on the eve of Hitler’s birthday. And yet, The Zookeeper’s Wife movie survives some uneven narrative and unimaginative camerawork to settle down into a compelling, if understated, holocaust tale that more than deserves a cursory viewing. It begins as The Life of Pi, moves on to join Schindle...
Siraj Syed talks to film-maker, cinematographer Chanda Gauranga, about indie LIF
What is your family back-ground and how did the idea of LIF germinate?
I was born and brought up in Chennai along with my three siblings. My mother is a story-teller and a writer. I grew up listening to and being amazed by my mother's tales and in a way wanted to spread the same awe and amazement I felt when listening to her stories. Moreover, my father and his father have always been very camera passionate....
Siraj Syed interviews Mumbai-based, under 23, prolific, short film-maker, S. Ashwin
*You have been prolific in output. How many films have you made since you completed your studies a couple of years ago, and what/who made it possible to make so many?
I have made 29 short films till now. My love for film-making and the conviction I have to keep making them has made it possible for me to have a large number of films to my credit today. Apart from that, my parents have been a great support--the...
Siraj Syed covers CommunicAsia 2017, Singapore: Pre-event, 03: Rohit Talwar and FastFuture
Rohit Talwar, Owner and CEO, Fast Future Research, since 1999, will be delivering this year’s CommunicAsia2017 Summit Visionary Address titled “Artificial Intelligence vs. Genuine Stupidity – Navigating Exponential Technologies to Create a Very Human Future”. The event will he held this year from the 23rd to the 25th of May, and will host key speakers and exhibitors featuring the...
Aamir, Nasir, Tahir, Tariq, Mansoor, Amjad: Movies, Masti, Modernity, Flashback 10: Aamir
To remind you, Aamir is indeed Aamir Khan, Amjad is definitely Gabbar Singh, and the triple M above is to acknowledge that it was Akshay Manwani’s biographical book on the cinema of Nasir Hussain that got me delving into the period of about 15 years, when I interacted with the Hussain Khans (first five) and the bare Khan (last, but the most imposing personality). Actually, Mansoor did not use his m...
Aamir, Nasir, Tahir, Tariq, Mansoor, Amjad: Movies, Masti, Modernity, Flashback 9
To remind you, Aamir is indeed Aamir Khan, Amjad is definitely Gabbar Singh, and the triple M above is to acknowledge that it was Akshay Manwani’s biographical book on the cinema of Nasir Hussain that got me delving into the period of about 15 years, when I interacted with the Hussain Khans (first five) and the bare Khan (last, but the most imposing personality). Actually, Mansoor did not use his middle na...
Mirza Juuliet, Review by Siraj Syed: ‘Sex peer’ or Shakespeare
Six timeless tales of doomed love continue to enjoy tremendous popularity in India, even in the 21st century: Laila-Majnu, Shirin-Farhad, Sohni-Mahiwal, Heer-Ranjha, Mirza-Sahibaa and Romeo and Juliet. Of these, five are Indian or from the sub-continent and only Shakespeare’s R&J makes it from the foreign category.
India had its own Shakespeare, named Agha Hashr Kashmiri, who in the period 1920s-50s, transla...
Blue Mountains, Review by Siraj Syed: Colourless Molehills
Used as a metaphor for distance, apparently unattainable goals, the Blue Mountains of the title prove as elusive and illusory as the real ones the makers project on screen. Lots of colour, lots of singing, lots of dancing, lots of melodrama, and lots of snow do not help Blue Mountains attain any height. Instead, we find ourselves in a cave, at best, or, rather, a gorge.
Som (Yatharth Rastogi), a hill-town boy, and part of a gang of f...
Colossal, Review by Siraj Syed: Loss all
Colossal loses big on two counts: It appears to have several allegorical, illusionary hidden agendas, and it goes about framing them in minimalistic, over-simplified montage. There is always a grave risk in making a socio-political commentary using metaphors like video games and giant monsters/robots, and the risk involves alienating (pun intended) both classes of audiences—the superhero aficionados, and the intelligentsia film-goers. Colossal no...
Mukti Bhawan review, by Siraj Syed: Pulsating, Soulful, Lively tale, of Death
Mukti is Hindi for release or detachment, and Bhawan is home or mansion. Don’t wait too long after Mukti Bhawan is released in the nearest mansion (cinema hall). And do yourself a favour: Don’t die till you have seen this film about death.
A sublime blend of realism and metaphor, Mukti Bhawan is ostensibly the tale of an old man who wants to move to the ‘dying quarters’ in the city of Banara...
Siraj Syed interviews young film-maker Pratik Rajen Kothari
*How many films have you made since your student days and what/who made it possible to make them?
I have made three short films plus co-directed one before Hell O Hello. I also made some music videos. Almost all of these are zero/extremely low budget. At the start, people who are instrumental in making it possible are your like-minded friends. I have a very co-operative core team, without whom, I just wouldn't have had the coura...
Aamir, Nasir, Tahir, Tariq, Mansoor, Amjad: Movies, Masti, Modernity, Flashback 8
To remind you, Aamir is indeed Aamir Khan, Amjad is definitely Gabbar Singh, and the triple M above is to acknowledge that it was Akshay Manwani’s biographical book on the cinema of Nasir Hussain that got me delving into the period of about 15 years, when I interacted with the Hussain Khans (first five) and the bare Khan (last, but the most imposing personality). Actually, Mansoor did not use his middle na...
BroadcastAsia 2017, I
At BroadcastAsia 2017, May 23-25, Singapore, major brands and solution providers will be showcasing their latest products in the fields of cinematography and film production. Among the products to be showcased are:
G-TECHNOLOGY
A transportable, hardware RAID, 8-Bay Thunderbolt™ 2 solution, offering content creators colossal capacity and high definition performance. Designed to support multi-stream 4K workflows and beyond, the G-SPEED Shuttle XL can be confi...
The Boss Baby review by Siraj Syed: These guys sure have bawls!
Cutie cutie. Coochie coochie. Cooey cooey. Too muchy muchy! Fun, funny. Listen, honey, it’s ‘Big brother’ v/s Baby brother. Baby Corp v/s Puppy Corp. It’s a gooey gooey, gagaey gagaey mess of gawpaw, but so adorable, aw. Aw-struck. Amazing animation. Hilarious declamation. A good outing for the vacation.
Calling all babies, baby brothers and sisters, parents, baby-sitters, corporate ladder-climbers, carto...
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About Siraj Syed
 Syed Siraj
(Siraj Associates)
Siraj Syed is a film-critic since 1970 and a Former President of the Freelance Film Journalists' Combine of India.
He is the India Correspondent of FilmFestivals.com and a member of FIPRESCI, the international Federation of Film Critics, Munich, Germany
Siraj Syed has contributed over 1,015 articles on cinema, international film festivals, conventions, exhibitions, etc., most recently, at IFFI (Goa), MIFF (Mumbai), MFF/MAMI (Mumbai) and CommunicAsia (Singapore). He often edits film festival daily bulletins.
He is also an actor and a dubbing artiste. Further, he has been teaching media, acting and dubbing at over 30 institutes in India and Singapore, since 1984.
Bandra West, Mumbai India View my profileSend me a message
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