Albert Nobbs (2011) Review

"I begin with the name of Allah, the most merciful".

An amazing movie with a stellar performance by Glenn Close. Albert Nobbs is a woman who spends all her life disguised as a man. Working as a waiter she is always looking to get a shop of her own, aspiring to be a tobacconist. The movie takes us on an amazing journey through her life and death.

Acting is amazing and characters are believable. The movie might seem slow but that is the beauty of it. Even silence means something in this beautifully put film. Watch out for some Oscar results!

I rate it 4.5/5. It is worth a watch!

Black Swan (2010) Review

Article first published as Review: Black Swan (2010) on Technorati.

Movie: Black Swan (2010)

Cast: Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis and Vincent Cassel

Rating: 4/5

One of the best films of 2010 was Black Swan, starring Natalie Portman. The film is a beautifully captured story of a dancer's passion and obsession for her trait. It is a saga based on the pain of a perfectionist. Nina Sayers (Natalie Portman) is a dancer and a classical one at that. Her moves are so crisp and perfect that they left no margin for spontaneity and expression. She is so proper that she lacks the fire that comes from being erratic. She is desperate to be the best, but that desperation caused her to lack the fervor of a stage charmer. Black Swan is her story from being proper to becoming possessed and finally being consumed!

Nina is aspiring to perform in the famous musical Swan Lake. She is perfect for the role of Odette, the white swan princess, but too uptight for the erotically evil Black Swan. She is chosen by Thomas Leroy (Vincent Cassel) due to her perfection as White Swan, but soon Leroy finds her too proper for the sexy Black Swan role. With Lily (Mila Kunis) being appropriate for Black Swan, Nina is under constant pressure and Vincent's unusual tactics of intimacy and sexual fondling to make her find her inner vixen baffles her in the worst way.

The cast has performed amazingly with Portman giving an award-winning performance and Kunis at her sexual best. Cassel has grasped the role beautifully and gives a gripping performance. All in all, the cast has done a marvelous job and has taken the film from being good to great.

The movie is a psychological thriller based on a dramatic situation and is a treat to watch. Not giving the story away, I would strongly recommend everyone to watch the movie.

The King's Speech Review

Article first published as Review: The King's Speech (2010) on Technorati.

Movie: The King's Speech

Cast: Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Helena Bonham Carter

Rating: 4.5/5

Awards: Colin Firth (Best Actor, Golden Globes)

Colin Firth simply mesmerizes the audience with his supreme acting in the historical saga The King's Speech. The film revolves around changes in expectations from a king brought about by the invention of a radio. It is a story of a prince who is loyal to his father, George V, and his elder brother, the king's successor.

Prince Albert, played by Colin Firth, has a speech impediment causing him to stammer. In an age where radio has just been invented, royalty has an extended duty of communicating with the people, a task impossible for Albert.

He meets a therapist named Lionel played by Geoffrey Rush and is unsure of his ability to help. With the king's demise and his elder brother's refusal to take the throne under astonishing circumstances, Albert becomes the king!

The King's Speech is about the speech of a king in a time of war. It is about a stammerer's most important words that could mean the difference between the rise and fall of an empire. It is about a therapist who had no credentials but was confident that a man who couldn't talk could be a king and could deliver a reassuring speech to a country terrified by Hitler.

The acting is amazing. Colin Firth is outstanding and gives a great portrayal of a man who exerts control over everyone and everything in England barring his own tongue. Geoffrey Rush is outstanding with Lionel the actor/therapist who is adamant about making "Berty" (Prince Albert) a king who could deliver a speech.

All in all, anything more would be a spoiler as the film is a must-see and can only be enjoyed if interpreted by an individual in his own perspective. To me it is a masterpiece and deserves glory at the Oscars!