Moulin Rouge: Spectacular, spectacular

1899, Paris. Christian, an impoverished writer takes to the streets of London and lands at Montmartre, where he finds himself mingling with the creatures of the underworld. Far from being repulsed, however, he enjoys the environment, associating with the Bohemian revolutionaries and embracing their dogma of freedom, truth, beauty and love. It happens that these Bohemians are in the middle of writing a play for Moulin Rouge, a famous club in the centre of the underworld. Fortunately, or unfortunately, for Christian, he stands-in for a character played by a narcoleptic. Putting his talent and passion to good use, he suggests something which bode well with the group’s leader, Toulouse Lautrec. Lautrec then arranges for Christian to have a one-on-one meeting with Satine, Moulin Rouges’ star and the city’s most famous and most beautiful courtesan. On that same night of the would-be meeting between Christian and Satine, the club’s owner, Harold Zidler, likewise arranged a one-on-one meeting between the club’s soon-to-be benefactor, the Duke, and Satine. Events lead to Satine mistaking Christian as the Duke, and fortunately, or unfortunately, for the two, they fall in love. When the Duke finally appears, a dangerous love triangle ensues. But Christian and Satine hold on to the strength of their love, gallantly fighting the odds, until Satine discovers a shocking truth. Will love conquer?

One word, repeated twice: spectacular. The amazing production deserved the Oscars for Art Direction-Set Decoration and Costume Design. It’s a pity Nicole Kidman, who smoldered in her portrayal of Satine, did not bring home the bald man. Nevertheless, her superb acting in this film, pitted against the innocent and likeable performance of Ewan McGregor as Christian, is going to be talked about for ages. Adding to the spice is the brilliant performances of Jim Broadbent as Zidler, Richard Roxburgh as the Duke and John Leguizamo as Lautrec. Visually stunning, the film revolutionizes musicals in a way that only director Baz Luhrmann can. And if you aren’t blown away with the montage of songs, wait until you hear Zidler’s rendition of ‘Like a Virgin’.

My personal favourite was Roxanne, with its dark and sexy production number.

Random Images

I pray always for

Strength;

 Humility;

Wisdom.

Fight Club: Violent, yet exhilarating

On top of leading a boring, normal life, Jack suffers from chronic insomnia. To ‘cure’ himself from the ‘disease’, he goes to a doctor who refuses to prescribe him a pill; instead, he suggests to Jack to attend a support group for testicular cancer victims for the latter to experience what real pain is. Jack takes the doctor up on his suggestion, and he gets hooked. Soon, he books every support group there is, finding catharsis in their sufferings, and he’s able to sleep well. Until he encounters another ‘tourist’ in the person of Marla Singer. Jack’s concentration at support groups ebbs at the sight of Marla, and his insomnia returns.

On a business trip, he meets Tyler Durden, an intriguing character and a soap salesman. The two hit it off, and when Jack finds his unit blown up, he immediately calls Tyler for shelter. Out of the blue, Tyler asks Jack to hit him, which the latter did. Soon, the two release their pent-up emotions through a slugfest; Fight Club is thus born. Under Tyler’s leadership, the Club expands into ‘Project Mayhem’, with the sole purpose of creating mischief and anti-capitalist vandalism in the city. When one of the members of the Project dies, Jack desperately tries to put a stop to the chaos. He finds it too late. Tyler has moved the Project into major cities around the United States in a sort of franchise. He has penetrated even the law enforcement. As Jack traces Tyler’s footsteps after his sudden disappearance, he is confronted with a shocking surprise: he is Tyler Durden.

Is Tyler my bad dream? Or am I Tyler’s?

It’s split personality at its best, and performances at their most superb. The movie was done MTV-style and this kept it from sinking into the bowels of boredom. Some may see it as too violent for their tastes; in fact, I had, on some occasions, cringed at the sight of blood and gore. But for all the hostility the movie seemed to have depicted, we did not lose sight of the central theme: the members of the club have become victims of the drudgery of day-to-day activities, and the only way in which they can break free from this is to get in touch with their instinct for pain and violence.

I am Jack’s admirer of this movie.

And so is my quill.