Seven Pounds

You know....... the movies I actually enjoy the most are the ones where I go into the theatre having no idea of what is gonna happen, not even a vague outline of the plot, or sometimes not even knowing what genre it is. When you sit in the dark not knowing what the movie is all about, that’s when it hits you the most. Every scene is a revelation. Some movies literally blow you off your feet. But then, such an experience is a rare one. Often, the trailers just give away too much information or I just can’t stand the suspense ay more and I read the reviews. Although reviews don’t exactly carry spoilers, they still give u a sketch of the storyline and the necessary ‘punch’ when you watch the movie is lost. Still I try not to read the reviews when what I believe a ‘really good’ movie is coming, which I want to watch before somebody else watches it first and tells me the story. (But this technique has a downside, you place yourself at the risk of utterly horrible movies which you'd never have watched had you known the story beforehand. Sometimes you just can't assume that a good director or an excellent actor will deliver a great movie. Case in point:Sivaji).

One such movie I’m waiting for now is ‘seven pounds’ (though I already read half the review and now I know what it’s about………L). The trailer is perfect. It doesn’t give away too much. Even the cast are playing their cards close to the chest and not revealing too much about the movie during the promotion campaigns. The movie is releasing in India on jan 23^rd. Don’t try to google the movie (that’s the mistake I did) ‘coz the movie has already released in other parts of the world and those who have watched it already, instead of keeping their mouths shut like a good movie-goer, out almost the entire story in their reviews.  But all of them unanimously agree that the movie is awesome. Considering that the movie is from the same team who made ‘Pursuit of Happiness’, that’s not entirely surprising though ‘Pursuit…’ is a tough act to follow.

The movie is about (hey I’m not divulging anything more than Will Smith did in his interview, so you can read it without calling me a hypocrite) one man who suffers a trauma in his life and then sets out to change seven lives to make right his mistake. The name stands for the seven pounds of flesh he willingly sacrifices (think Shakespeare). And in the process, he changes his whole life as well. As Will says “Just by waking up today, you can change someone’s entire life” or something like that. That’s a nice thought to chew on........

Joy to the world, the Lord is come!
Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare Him room,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing.

yay.............its christmas. la di da di da................:)

a few questions.......

When was the last time you did something just for the heck of it? Just ‘coz u wanted to? Just because it was there and you thought it would be fun doing it? Whatever it is.When was the last time you made a decision on the spur of the moment without wondering whether it would help you in securing a good placement or if it would get you into a better college or make you more attractive to the opposite sex or whatever appeals to our ever ambitious mind?Why should we always view every new venture as a potential field in our resume?Why do we insist on taking the fun out of everything? After all as Calvin would say ‘Nothing spoils fun like finding out it builds character’.

Since when has attitude become a costume to be put on and removed as and when necessary instead of being a way of life, a state of mind?Why do we bend to the dictates of society while all the while shouting slogans like ‘I live my own life’? Ya right….Isn’t the world supposed to be accepting us as we are if all those cute, preachy movies are to be believed?Isn’t the underdog always rewarded at the end and doesn’t he then live happily ever after and walk away into the sunset with his own ‘You complete me’ better half?

Why have we turned work into something sour and bitter? If we are gonna spend three quarters of our waking life doing something we might as well enjoy doing it. Or conversely do something we enjoy.Why have we ceased selecting careers based on our own aptitude and attitude and instead make a selection based on the amount it can pay, social acceptance, security blah blah?Who were those idiots who advised me 3 years back that in the longer run only the choice of the college is important and the course does not matter? Do they expect me to spend an entire life time doing something I don’t like just because it may potentially pay well? Where were my bloody brains then when I listened to those do-gooders?

Why do we lead a life of hypocrisy? We preach one thing and follow entirely another thing.Why do we try so hard to sell a near perfect, often misleading image of ourselves to the world and then go around wearing t-shirts quoting stuff like ‘I am what I am.’ Of course you are what you are. The question is do you know it.

Night-A magical Time

People wonder why I’m a creature of the night. I wonder why they’re not.

The night is a magical time. The night is when the action begins. Just for confirmation, in case I’m sounding like a wild party animal, I’m not. I am not so much as a blip on the wild party radar.(My midnight action extends to calling friends over for a sleepover and catching a movie or talking all night. That’s the kind of wild-party-animal I am). So even if you’re not one to go club-hopping , the night still can hold a lot of potential. For one, night is when the calls begin. I mean the kinda calls that start at around 10 and last well until around 3 in the morning and which cover every conceivable topic of conversation under the sun. And then of course are the messages. And movies. And books. There’s nothing quite like curling up with a good book and reading till day break. And when I have a deadline to meet (read: record submission or a test the next day), night is when I get my work done.

But there really is something magical about this particular time of the day. Night is when a lot is said and done which wouldn’t at any other time. Night is when a lot of confessions are made. People say a lot of stuff, which they wouldn’t dare to be caught dead saying or which they would laugh away at any other time.

This is the time for proposals of undying love. This is the time for sweet nothings. This is the time for the sob stories. This is the time for apologies. This is generally the best time for utterly mindless conversations. A lot of people say stuff in the night and then wake up the next day and wonder how they could have been so stupid. And this happens to everyone, even those who are absolutely sober; so be warned.

I think it has something to do with the air which makes people sappy at night. Or rather it’s the stillness and privacy of the night which causes even tight-lipped highly unemotional people to babble. And even the ones who are not doing the talking seem to be more receptive (or defenseless) than usual. I really don’t know, I’ve given up trying to find out why. And I guess the reason really doesn’t matter. So now I just avoid phone calls in the night, especially when I’ve got something to hide or when I’m dying to say something which I know I’ll regret in the morning. Or on the other hand, I manipulate the situation when I want someone to spill the beans about something. Hehehe…………*evil grin*.

But the night can also be lonely. The silence stifling. The minutes depressing. Sometimes, even if I’ve just had a wonderful day, I still get a sudden , unexplained bout of sadness at night. A few drops of tears when you don’t even know what you are crying for. I’ve heard of lover’s pangs (of course everyone has, what with all the tamil movies with sad, sentimental songs sung at night, preferably looking at the moon. New york nagaram urangum neram.., nillave va from mouna ragam, yada yada) but do single people feel that as well??? Any other time of the day, and I can just up and leave, go for a drive or a movie until my defences are back and I feel better. But since I cant exactly do that at 2 in the morning, I’m left to wallow in my own solitude until I get so tired wallowing and fall asleepL

I guess being an insomniac has its own pros and cons just like everything else(so what else is new???) and I conclude (using my usual, standard punch dialog after every debate or essay or speech) that every thing has positives and negatives and we should only take the positives in our stride. Yaawn………gud nite.

The day is done, and the darkness

Falls from the wings of night,

As a feather is wafted downward

From an eagle in his flight.

I see the lights of the village

Gleam through the rain and the mist,

And a feeling of sadness comes o'er me

That my soul cannot resist:

A feeling of sadness and longing,

That is not akin to pain,

And resembles sorrow only

As the mist resembles the rain.

-Longfellow (one of my fave poets)

P.S. That’s another trick to use in speeches- qoute some famous guy. G’night.