Three 'superheroes' to look out for

I put the word "superheroes" in quotes, because well, Iron Man this year, would have put in a lot of definitions of such in perspective. These are the three most exciting ones that I am looking out for in the next two months. Hellboy II would have been a part of a this list as well, but I am queasy about what Del Toro is biting off with his script this time. It would be a must see yes, but I shall be wary.

1. The Incredible Hulk
Release Date: June 13th, 2008

Post the extremely disappointing 2003 Ang Lee - Eric Bana portrayal of Hulk, most fans had wrung their hands off seeing a more true adaptation of comics to film of this franchise. The premise of Hulk is not unlike Dr. Jekyll/Mr.Hyde but the proper exploration of the murkier side of Dr. Banner himself had not been done at all. It ended up being a kids' movie, that too . The newer adaptation has something though that makes it far more mouth watering - Edward Norton! From the wiki page,

Edward Norton as Dr. Bruce Banner / The Hulk: A genius scientist who, because of exposure to gamma radiation coupled with childhood trauma, transforms into the Hulk when stressed or enraged. Eric Bana turned down reprising the role, as he viewed the first film as a one time opportunity.^[6] Gale Ann Hurd recalled Norton's portrayals of duality in Primal Fear and Fight Club,^[7] while Norton reminded Kevin Feige of Bill Bixby, who played Banner in the TV series.^[8] Lou Ferrigno, who played the Hulk with Bixby, remarked Norton "has a similar physique [and a] similar personality".^[9]

Norton was a Hulk fan, citing his first comic book appearances, the Bixby TV show and Bruce Jones' run on the comic as his favorite depictions of the character.^[10] He had expressed interest in the role for the first film.^[11] He initially turned down the part for this film, recalling "there [was] the wince factor or the defensive part of you that recoils at what the bad version of what that would be," as he felt the previous film "strayed far afield from a story that was familiar to people, [...] which is a fugitive story". When he met Letterier and Marvel though, he liked their vision, and believed they were looking to him to guide the project too. Thus, Norton rewrote the script.^[12] "Norton's script has given Bruce's story real gravitas," Letterier said. "Admittedly I'm not the most adult director, but just because we're making a superhero movie it doesn't have to just appeal to 13-year old boys. Ed and I both see superheroes as the new Greek gods."^[1

2. Hancock
Release Date: July 2, 2008. India release date: July 4, 2008


I dare say, with a name like that, Will Smith already has a winner. And hell, Will Smith as a bad wasted superhero! That is a script nailed to the T. Just the premise from the wiki page seems enough,

Will Smith portrays an alcoholic superhero despised by everyone. A publicist (Jason Bateman) helps rehabilitate him, and the superhero eventually begins an affair with the publicist's wife (Charlize Theron).

3. The Dark Knight

Release date: July 18th, 2008

This is the big mummy of all "superhero" movies this year, or hell, any year. Even before the release, it has already been billed to break into the 5 top grossing movies of all time, the marketing effort, though a bit sane now post the death of Ledger, already sounds like the tom tom of distant drums before a war begins. Coz hell, I know this is a Batman movie, and yes, I might be unfair to Harvey Dent/ Two Face, but w hat everyone is building up that ache in their stomach to see is the new, improved, scruffier, manic, not-so-serious Joker!

Heath Ledger as The Joker: Heath Ledger described the Joker as a "psychopathic, mass murdering, schizophrenic clown with zero empathy".^[12] Director Christopher Nolan had wanted to work with Ledger on a number of projects

in the past, but had been unable to do so.^[13] When Ledger saw Batman Begins, he realized a way to make the character work in that film's tone,^[14] and Nolan agreed with his anarchic interpretation.^[13] To prepare for the role, Ledger lived alone in a hotel room for a month, formulating the character's posture, voice and psychology.^[15][11] While he initially found it difficult, Ledger was eventually able to generate a voice that did not sound like Jack Nicholson's take on the character in Tim Burton's 1989 Batman film.^[16] He started a diary, in which he wrote the Joker's thoughts and feelings to guide himself during his performance.^[12] He was also given Batman: The Killing Joke and Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth to read, which he "really tried to read [...] and put it down".^[14] Ledger also cited inspirations such as A Clockwork Orange and Sid Vicious, which were "a very early starting point for Christian [Bale] and I. But we kind of flew far away from that pretty quickly and into another world altogether.”^[17][18] "There’s a bit of everything in him. There’s nothing that consistent," Ledger said, adding that "There are a few more surprises to him."^[17]

Bringing the Joker back to the big screen invited a wave of speculation over his depiction. Before Ledger was confirmed in July 2006,^[19] Paul Bettany,^[20] Lachy Hulme,^[21] Adrien Brody,^[22] Steve Carell,^[23] and Robin Williams^[24] publicly expressed interest in the role. Jack Nicholson jokingly expressed anger at not being invited to reprise the part: "You can't believe the reasons things do or don't happen. Not asking me how to do the sequel is that kind of thing," he said. "Maybe it's not a mistake. Maybe it was the right thing, but to be candid, I'm furious."^[25] After the trailer was released, director Guillermo del Toro and comic book writer Jeph Loeb lavished praise upon Ledger, while Batman: The Animated Series co-creator Paul Dini said, "He seems more street than any other version of the Joker [...] His attitude is mordant and sardonic as opposed to manic [...] No goofy gags or puns for him. This Joker doesn't split sides: he splits skulls."^[26] Mark Hamill, who voiced the part on The Animated Series, said "The balls-out debauched psycho approach seems like a great way of reinventing everyone’s favorite scary (and scar-y) clown."^[27]

Post-Script: I saw Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, and was terribly disappointed, not only at the dumbassed MacGuffin of a story, but most surprisingly by the extreme poor quality of the Computer Graphics generated, especially during the chase scenes on the army trucks, and the ants. Geez, is this the famed Steven Speilberg and George Lucas duo, who had to wait 18 years for another go at this legendary franchise. Ford saves this one from complete disaster, but I was shaking my head through out the movie. And I paid a god-awful 270 bucks for it. If the movie studios had any chance at ever trying to guilt induce me away from piracy, they blew it by this one.

Banking on SBI

Full marks to the State Bank of India. I had an excellent, and I mean a truly excellent experience opening a salary bank account with SBI today. What I considered at the start as overbearing attachment of one person you ask for help, was in fact genuine want to help. The personal touch that they hold on to as a USP for their banks is credible in these times. Everyone on their bank premises "knows" about banking, not essentially from a two week quick to boot course after some fucked up course in management, but by having done banking all their lives, right from the bottom up.
It was heartening how indulgently I was asked to bring the documents, and once I had submitted them, was asked to get back in an hour. Within the hour, the bank account was opened, the pass book was in my hands, the ATM cum debit card, as well as the password for the account was hand delivered to me (instead of waiting on for a week or two, everything being sent over from their Bombay office, the ATM card reaching you after ages, I still haven't received internet banking account and password from two other banks in which I have accounts). The best part? I came back after an hour, and they didn't even ask me for the slip. The teller recognized me by face. And handed over everything to me. I know the same would be difficult in a bank that sees a hundred customers walk in everyday, and have employees quitting every other day, which is why this is something no other bank can replicate.
I have been loving that I have ATMs everywhere that I go! Also, an ingenious invention! Most of the customers of SBI are elders as well as rural folk or first time bank account holders. In order to access the ATM, you have to swipe your card in and pull it out (not leave it inside!). That makes sure that you cannot forget it inside!
I suggest you try the experience. Most in our generation have thought of it as a foregone conclusion that institutions of an older time are begone and painful. This is a welcome change.

Educating Movie Goers

Education time, boys and girls. I got into these while reading about Indi 4, the crystal skull movie. The wiki page on Indiana Jones said George Lucas had initially intended to make 5 films in the Indiana Jones franchise, but The Last Crusade ended up being the last for over 18 years, as Lucas could not think of a good MacGuffin to drive the next installment. Ahem, I said. And got to work. Read the original pages.

1. Macguffin.:

Interviewed in 1966 by François Truffaut, Alfred Hitchcock illustrated the term "MacGuffin" with this story:

"It might be a Scottish name, taken from a story about two men in a train. One man says, 'What's that package up there in the baggage rack?' And the other answers, 'Oh that's a McGuffin.' The first one asks 'What's a McGuffin?' 'Well' the other man says, 'It's an apparatus for trapping lions in the Scottish Highlands.' The first man says, 'But there are no lions in the Scottish Highlands,' and the other one answers 'Well, then that's no McGuffin!' So you see, a McGuffin is nothing at all."

Hitchcock related this anecdote in a television interview for Richard Schickel's documentary The Men Who Made the Movies. Hitchcock's verbal delivery made it clear that the second man has thought up the MacGuffin explanation as a roundabout method of telling the first man to mind his own business.

2. Chekhov's Gun

The name, Chekhov's gun, comes from Anton Chekhov himself, who stated that any object introduced in a story must be used later on, else it ought not to feature in the first place:

"One must not put a loaded rifle on the stage if no one is thinking of firing it."

3. Foreshadowing

Foreshadowing is a literary device in which an author drops subtle hints about plot developments to come later in the story. An example of foreshadowing might be when a character displays a gun or knife early in the story. Merely the appearance of a deadly weapon, even though it is used for an innocuous purpose — such as being cleaned or whittling wood — suggests terrible consequences later on.

If foreshadowing is done in a skillful or "honest" way in a mystery, however, many events which foreshadow the truth also work naturally at the same time as red-herrings at a more simple level, to lead the audience to a false conclusion. An example occurs in the film The Sixth Sense, in which scenes depicting the estrangement and lack of communication which occurs in the psychologist's marriage, and his alienation from the world because of his problems, are later seen as clues of much darker significance (so much so, that some viewers were led to see the film twice, in disbelief at how effectively they were misled by character interactions which could be interpreted in two completely different ways).

Where there's smoke, there is a fire!

I had an interesting conversation with a much older gentleman, who was kind heartedly dropping me to office (more, I guess, out of a need to get someone to talk to rather than a streak of benevolence). In the middle of it, he asked the driver to stop at a Paan shop to get a pack of cigarettes. Then he turns to me and asks, "Do you smoke?" I do not know why that question almost always ignites a sense of holier than thou in me, even when I didn't smoke, more so now when I have quit. I use a deferring tone, slightly sheepish, when I say, " I have quite recently quit". It is most often replied with words of encouragement from the smoker, about me having quit the habit and how that is such a great thing.
Today however, the other guy looks at me and says, "Is that a temporary thing or permanent?". That is quite a rude, almost mocking thing to say, if you look at it, but that brought another sheepish smile to my face. I said, "Well, I have tried to quit once before and I stayed off for three months. This time I hope I do the whole hog." To which the guy replies, "Well, this is the start. Let us see how many days you can stay off. Your social circle will increase, more friends would smoke around you, pressures at the job would increase, you would also be traveling to godforsaken places since you are in marketing. Sooner or later, a cigarette would appear in your fingers" (The conversation was in hindi, and it sounded much more dramatic in it).

People have stopped regarding me as a younger guy. Quite a shock.

The city of Joy

(and Chatterjees and Bannerjees and Ghoshes and Sirkars and so on and so forth)

I have arrived. Reached would be more appropriate, but with all the pomp and the pompadour, arrived seems more proper. If it had been a bit more pleasant weather wise, I would have been tempted to arrivez amour propre. I am talking about, of course Calcutta. I have changed jobs, cities, lifestyle, and more importantly and hopefully attitude. Though it has kept me pleasant company for this period, I am essentially bored of 20-20 cricket. Test cricket is enchanting, and a long innings is hopefully what I am rooting for.

Have spent the last 20 days roaming across India, from Bangalore to Jamshedpur. On and forth to Jamadoba mines, up in north Jharkhand, visits to XLRI, attending Safety seminars, and finally a long arduous rocky journey from Jamshedpur to Calcutta. I was chronicling a diary, yes the "I did this and then went there, and he saw me staring" kind, mainly because I didn't have access to a computer. Having laid in comfortable surroundings with most often, nothing to do (seems to me, the story of my life for quite some time now. Go 2008!) for quite some time now,
have realized that a few things about this blog need to change as well.

1. I shall not call the city Kolkata. The name feels an admission that the city is crass, and confused. Calcutta it is, and that is how it shall be referred to in here, even if that makes me a raving dumbass.
2. This blog shall soon move from a "I thought this, and my opinions amount to this" perspective once in a blue moon to a hopefully more regular "Dear Diary" approach. Well, I shall still think, and I hope that shall be reflected, but I intend to make this more approachable. I do not have any regular readers, so I do not think I shall be disappointing any.

This is a new lease of life, a hopefully different perspective for me. That is all I am trying to extend to my blog as well. Hopefully, it catches on. Amen.