Never the bride: Why is Bridesmaids not getting any awards season love?

One of the most popular and most talked about American comedies of 2011, Bridesmaids was the type of commercial and critical hit that Hollywood loves to celebrate. Which is exactly why its lack of recognition during this year’s American awards season is so puzzling.

It is safe to assume that Bridesmaids’ lasting success probably surprised a lot of people. Here was an adult comedy led by an all-female cast – with a lack of star power – that ended up grossing almost $300 million worldwide. Over half of that stellar figure, $169 million, was earned domestically in the US.

Of the highest grossing films at the US box office last year Bridesmaids is listed at number 15. What is even more impressive, however, is that the film is one of just three releases in the top 15 that was not a sequel, further evidence that these ladies can hold their own against the big boys.

Add to that the good reviews, the film’s fresh rating of 90% made it the tenth best reviewed film of the year according to Rotten Tomatoes. Additionally, the film’s cultural impact was also widely discussed in both the print and web media.

Although star-making turns from the likes of Kristen Wiig, Mellisa McCarthy and Rose McGowan were initially what audiences picked up on, there was also a notable female presence behind the camera. Saturday Night Live veteran Wiig, who plays down-on-her-luck protagonist Annie, co-wrote Bridesmaids alongside Annie Mumolo. Wiig and Mumolo also co-produced Bridesmaids along with long-time Judd Apatow collaborator Lisa Yadavaia.

However, the film’s nominations during awards season have focused on acting – with McCarthy and Wiig getting some well-deserved nods. Elsewhere Bridesmaids remains unacknowledged. Most notably it has not won a single award for its screenplay which, as noted by most reviewers, contains a range of complex female characters along with some wickedly funny storylines.

Most awards ceremonies have also refrained from nominating it for best picture. Consequently its selection in the Best Picture Musical/Comedy category by the Golden Globes was a welcomed decision. No matter what your opinion of the Globes – and the awards ceremony has attracted its fair share of criticism in the past – its large number of categories provides representation for often overlooked genre films, in particular comedies.

Therefore it’s a shame that in the end Bridesmaids didn’t win. But, to be frank, it never really stood a chance this year. The main obstacle was The Artist, which ironically due to the structure of the Globes fell in the comedy category. Michael Hazanavicius’ black and white ode to silent cinema inevitably carried on its awards season dominance by taking home the prize.

Now that most of the major awards are behind us, it is safe to predict that Bridesmaids will not win anything at the Oscars either. The incredibly poor representation of the comedy genre at the awards further cements the likelihood of this outcome.

Nonetheless it’s not all doom and gloom. Seen from a purely commercial perspective the numbers speak for themselves and that’s all that really matters in Hollywood. Any nominations and subsequent victories would have just been the icing on the (wedding) cake for Bridesmaids. The box office figures also prove that there is an audience for this type of film.

But has the success of Bridesmaids led to the production of more female-oriented comedies? In some ways it has; last year alone saw the release of a number of comedies that were fronted by women, both on and offscreen, including the Diablo Cody scripted Young Adult and the ill mannered comedy Bad Teacher. This year will also see the release of what sounds like a darker version of Bridesmaids in the form of Bachelorette – written and directed by newcomer Leslye Headland. Bridesmaids’ alumni Wiig and Maya Rudolph are also set to star in rom-com Friends with Kids, directed by Jennifer Westfeldt.

The influence of women behind the camera in regard to these films has led to the creation of a range of interesting female characters. The so-called female ‘anti-heroes’ in the likes of Young Adult and Bachelorette are helping to change the rigidly formulaic representation of women in mainstream American cinema. In hindsight this will be considered Bridesmaids’ greatest victory.

Ra.One and the changing nature of Bollywood cinema

Shah Rukh Khan has been tirelessly promoting his upcoming superhero blockbuster Ra.One. In countless interviews he has spoken of the need for more Indian superhero films and high-budget blockbusters in general. These films, according to Khan, are integral to the progress and success of Indian cinema.


"This film is one of its kind and I am saying this from my 20 years of experience in Indian cinema," Khan told reporters at a press conference in September. "We...in the entertainment industry...look at it as something that will take Indian films forward."


Despite having a large stake in the film, Khan's production company Red Chillies Entertainment co-produced Ra.One, it is interesting to note why the actor thinks this film is so important. Let's face facts, Ra.One is not the first Bollywood superhero film (see The good, the bad and the ugly: a short list of Bollywood superheroes below) but the way Khan is talking about it, it can be viewed as the first Bollywood tent pole film or even franchise. This is most obvious in the scrutiny surrounding its release. Khan has stated that Ra.One should be shown at a larger number of cinemas, its current scheduled run includes 3,200 screens - India's largest ever opening for a film. However, for Khan, this simply isn't enough.


"There are about 14,000 theatres in the cities, 8,000 in southern India and 7,000 in the north," Khan said to The Economic Times. "Every day we hear that more theatres are being added, however, the population is also increasing . Once the retail of cinema gets more organized, people will come to the theatres."


Comparing the boom in Indian cinema to that of China, Khan claimed that the growth in population has resulted in many filmgoers not being catered to. To this extent he is correct, although it has more to do with a growing middle-class in India who have more disposable income to spend. And yes, India should aim to target this audience if it wants to generate more revenue. 

However, the actor's statements about the merits of Ra.One do not ring true. The film's storyline concerning a video game developer who is bestowed with super powers by his own virtual creation is wholly unoriginal. Additionally, the film has the same gimmicky songs - i.e. 'Chamak challo' - as any other mainstream Bollywood film. The only factor which involves a radical departure from the classic Indian cinema template is Ra.One's marketing strategy.


Ra.One is a franchise film in the Hollywood sense, in that it includes various official merchandising spin-offs such as toys, video games and even stationery. Like most contemporary Hollywood blockbusters, it will also be available in 3d at selected cinemas both domestically and overseas. This extent of marketing and promotion is a true first for a Bollywood film. Additionally, Khan's comments about giving the film an even wider release than was initially forecasted reflects the actor's opinion of the film as a tent pole release. 


In the US, tent pole films are usually the most expensive films for the studios who produce them and therefore are given the highest promotional budgets alongside their excessive production budgets. These films are also expected to make an immediate impact on the box office and are usually deemed successes or failures based on their opening weekend revenue. These films are also given the biggest openings compared to other productions in a studio's roster, which means that they open on the maximum amount of screens. 


Therefore we can deem from Khan's comments that he views this as the actual natural 'progression' for Indian cinema. The fact that an influential actor/producer such as Shah Rukh Khan is interested in emulating the American system should come as no surprise. After all the Indian cinema landscape is dominated by media conglomerates such as Reliance Entertainment and there is a lot of foreign investment, including American, currently being poured into the industry. 


Therefore, although Ra.One offers little innovation in terms of its storyline and production, its success could bring about a juggernaut of change that even the Man of Steel would have a hard time stopping.




The good, the bad and the ugly: a short list of Bollywood superheroes

There has been a distinct lack of Indian superheroes and the fantasy genre in general has had a hard time finding an audience in India. However, action hardmen like the ones epitomised by Sunny Deol and Sunil Shetty and more recently by the protagonists in films such as Bodyguard (2011) and Singham (2011) have filled that void. However, traditional Indian superheroes do exist and despite the genre producing some absolute blunders, it has also created the odd outright classic and plenty of cultural curiosities. The following is a list of some of the most notable Indian superhero films.


Shiva ka Insaaf (1985)


Guess what? Ra.One isn't even the first 3d Indian superhero film. That distinction goes to Shiva ka Insaaf, a woefully camp tale of revenge starring Jackie Shroff. Naturally, the filmgoing public saw beyond the gimmick of 3d and avoided this one in droves. Its failure didn't do much to improve the status of this ignored genre. 




Mr India (1987)


Directed by Shekhar Kapur, Mr India is the definitive Indian superhero film. The film revolves around a hapless caretaker of an orphanage and his discovery of a device that can make its wearer invisible. He uses his newfound powers to fight a megalomaniac named Mogambo who is intent on taking over India. The film is a likeable mix of childlike shenanigans, romance and action all carried out by a great cast. The special effects look dated now but add to its charm and it's still the best by far in its genre.


Superman (1987)


The first nail in the coffin for the superhero genre in India came with this take on the most successful superhero film of the time. The filmmakers kept the title and the costume but forgot to add in anything resembling a decent script and good direction. The result is an awful film that had long-term damaging effects for the genre.


Krrish (2006)


Krissh was Bollywood's first serious stab at creating a superhero film that matched Hollywood, both in its size and execution. Therefore, it can be seen as a precursor to Ra.One. Directed by Rakesh Roshan and starring his son Hrithik, it bore more than a passing resemblance to Batman. And like that film was a huge success, displaying that there was an audience for this type of film.


Drona (2008)


If Krissh breathed new life into the superhero genre, then Drona nearly managed to kill it off single-handedly. A major flop, the film was heavily criticised upon its release for lack of characterisation and poor acting from its leads, Abhishek Bachan and Priyanka Chopra.

Films about finance

Films about finance have gone from rags to riches, to rags again. With the exception of Oliver Stone’s Wall Street, films in this exclusive genre have been in a state of recession, hardly making a mark at the box office. Stone, however, is looking to boost the flagging genre with a stimulus package in the form of a sequel to his aforementioned film entitled Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps.

Therefore in conjunction with the return of Gordon Gekko here is a list comprised of some of the best financial films ever made. In this case, however, greed isn’t good as there are only five films present on the list. These films prove that this is a thriving genre which, if tackled successfully, can provide entertaining and sometimes poignant narratives on society’s relationship with money.

Wall Street (1987)

Wall Street is a must-see for anyone interested in financial films.

Charlie Sheen plays Bud Fox, a naïve, small-time stockbroker who dreams of being as successful as his idol Gordon Gekko. The latter is a ruthless market manipulator who lives by his ‘greed is good’ philosophy. Gekko mentors Fox teaching him his insider trading tactics and under his hero’s spell Fox becomes a cutthroat trader. That success, however, comes at a price.

Wall Street is a product of its environment. Its synth-drenched score by Stewart Copeland of The Police, its constant referencing of its era’s technology, for example the DynaTac cellular phone or ‘the brick’ as it is more commonly known, and its over the top portrayal of the superficial nature of the period are all firmly grounded in the eighties. Consequently the film hasn’t aged well. However, it still offers more insight into the hierarchy of stocks, from the trading room floor to the rooftop offices of the brokers, than  any other film on this list. Meanwhile Stone keeps the action fast-paced, employing rapid zoom shots and extensive tracking sequences to emphasise the velocity of his surroundings. All in all it makes for an entertaining ride.

Boiler Room (2000)

Writer-director Jim Younger’s fast-paced film is a slick yet scathing look at the unethical nature of boiler room share scams.

The film’s sharp dialogue compliments the skill of its ensemble cast which includes a host of noughties talent, including Ben Affleck, Vin Diesel and Giovanni Ribisi. The latter plays Seth, the film’s slacker protagonist. Seth’s troubled relationship with his overbearing father leads him into accepting the role of trainee broker at a small firm by the name of JT Marlin. He is our guide through this hostile environment and we learn through his voiceover of the secrets that lurk beneath JT Marlin’s successful veneer.

The film constantly acknowledges its debt to Wall Street, one scene in particular pays direct homage to that eighties classic. The brokers who are bred in this environment, however, are even more obnoxious than those encountered in that film. They are depicted as aggressive, misogynistic and homophobic but remain the most arresting characters onscreen. In fact it is when the film strays outside the office environment that it encounters stumbling blocks. The other characters in the film including the honest clients that Seth cheats and the FBI employees looking to bring down the operation are mere cardboard cut-outs.

Despite these flaws, however, Boiler Room remains a solid thriller with a brilliant script.

Trading Places (1983)

There is a social conscience at the heart of almost every film on this list. Trading Places, however, wears its issues firmly on its sleeve and pokes fun at them in the process.

Geriatric siblings Randolph and Mortimer Duke, owners of successful commodities broking firm Duke and Duke, bet that if they swap the lives of their top employee, Dan Akroyd, and a homeless beggar, Eddie Murphy, their man will take to a life of crime. Things go to plan until the unwitting individuals find out the nature of the wager and decide to turn the tables on the spoilt businessmen.

Director John Landis was riding high in the early eighties after the back to back success of his films The Blues Brothers and An American Werewolf in London. In comparison to those genre classics Trading Places seems stifled at first. With its classical soundtrack and elegant widescreen shots of Philadelphia’s business district it seems a far cry from the gross out humour that Landis built his career upon.

The third act, however, is where the director cuts loose. In a hilariously un-pc sequence the film’s ongoing theme of shifting identities is taken to new heights. The scene sees Murphy doing his now infamous impression of an African immigrant and features Akroyd in blackface as a rastifarian.

Trading Places is a classic comedy, which although it is built upon an unbelievable premise, has enough gut-busting belly laughs to keep viewers glued to their seats.

Barbarians at the Gate (1993)

The least well-known film on this list, Barbarians at the Gate is based on a fascinating true story. Glenn Jordan’s film re-enacts the events leading up to the leverage buyout of American conglomerate RJR Nabisco. 

James Garner is brilliant as Nabisco’s outspoken CEO F. Ross Johnson who decides to take the company private after learning that its latest ‘smokeless’ cigarettes are deemed a market failure. Jonathan Pryce is equally as good as Henry Kravis, Johnson’s main rival in the takeover bid. Although as a TV film it lacks the cinematic grandeur of some of the other films on this list, Barbarians remains an often funny, satirical take on one of the biggest financial events of the eighties. 

Rogue Trader (1999)

Nick Leeson was the rogue trader who brought down his employers, Barings Bank, singlehandedly with his perilous trading on the Singapore stock market. In this biopic Leeson is played by Ewan Mcgregor as a loutish Brit abroad who finds himself gambling with his employers’ money.  

Although Leeson and his cohorts are portrayed as obnoxious and aggressive, at the core of the film is a sensitive romance concerning Nick and his wife-to-be Lisa. The film is told through the aid of a voiceover and therefore gives the added sense of authenticity. This, however, is Leeson’s side of the story and therefore he is portrayed sympathetically as the unlucky individual who was thrust into a hostile environment. Meanwhile his employers are the money hungry fat cats willing to overlook his errors if he can produce the numbers. It all comes off as a tad biased but remains an interesting story nonetheless, one that effectively cranks up the tension as Leeson’s life comes crashing down around him.

Notable Mentions:

American Psycho (2000)

Christian Bale is brilliant in director Mary Harron’s adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis’s blackly comic novel. The action unfolds through the perspective of the film’s troubled protagonist Patrick Bateman, stockbroker by day and serial killer by night. Not for the faint hearted.

L’eclisse (1962)

Not necessarily a financial film, Michaelangelo Antonioni’s drama is worth tracking down for its cinematic treatment of Rome’s stock exchange. The cinematography throughout is truly breathtaking.

Bonfire of the Vanities (1990)           

Based on Tom Wolfe’s bestselling novel, adapted by critically acclaimed director Brian De Palma and starring a horde of a-list actors, including Tom Hanks and Bruce Willis, Bonfire had all the hallmarks of a sure-fire hit. However, the producers’ insistence on downplaying the darker aspects of the source material in an attempt to make the film commercially viable ultimately worked against it. Watch this if you want to witness how not to make a film about finance.

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps

Money Never Sleeps, Oliver Stone’s sequel to his hugely successful Wall Street, is steeped in nostalgia for the eighties and for the original film.

From the moment the title credits begin, audience members familiar with the original film are likely to think that they’ve been transported back in time. The title font is the same and once again New York’s skyline serves as its backdrop.

The main difference, however, is that Wall Street’s opening began at sunset with a dark orange glow eclipsing every aspect of New York’s concrete jungle. Much like the film itself, Money Never Sleeps begins in broad daylight and is generally glossier. Stone has put the emphasis on entertainment this time round and although he tries to balance it out with intellect, exemplified by a contemporary story on the financial crisis, it is a difficult juggling act for the director.

That is not to say that the original Wall Street wasn’t entertaining. That film ranks as one of Stone’s best works, one which encapsulates his aggressive, fast paced style. Therefore it is easy to see why he pays homage to the original so often. Even the best lines tend to be references to the previous film. A great early visual gag includes the DynaTac cellular phone that was synonymous with stockbrokers, and Gordon Gekko, in the eighties. Stone himself makes a cameo, as he did in the original, signifying his close attachment to the project.

What Money Never Sleeps lacks is the original film’s depth and intellect. Set in 2008 the film chronicles the economic recession through its impact on stockbroker Jake Moore, Shia La Boeuf, and his employers. The suicide of his boss and father-figure Louis Zabel, played by Frank Langella, leads Jake to question the ethics of his chosen profession.

In search of a new mentor Jake pursues Gordon Gekko, himself recently released from prison. Gekko is on a mission to warn the world of the crisis of capitalism and preach the truth about the irresponsible fat cats who ruined the banks. Conveniently Jake also happens to be in a relationship with Gekko’s estranged daughter Winnie, Carrie Mulligan. Both men play an interesting game of emotional trading as Gekko agrees to help Jake get even with the ruthless bankers who drove his boss to suicide in return for Jake reuniting him with his precious daughter.

Money Never Sleeps makes grand statements about the failure of capitalism. The subject, however, remains too complex to be accurately depicted in a film which is making a bid toward the multiplex crowd. Therefore the moments that deal with finance and globalised trading are mere distractions from the more powerfully emotional tale at the film’s core, one of family, betrayal and charity.

Stone’s glitzy aesthetic is in full swing throughout Money Never Sleeps. The film is full of extravagant parties and glamorous clubs. The director even throws in a superbike race for good measure. Nonetheless, Stone must be commended for evoking such a stunning portrait of New York, more beautiful and appealing than anything witnessed in recent Big Apple movies such as Sex and the City. At other times he overdoes it, such as the CGI overkill used to depict the viral nature of the modern technological landscape.

Although Money Never Sleeps is enthralled by the past, the best aspect of the cast are the new additions. First and foremost is Josh Brolin as James Bretton, the new villain of the tale. Bretton is a shadowy reptilian figure unwilling to let go of his lavish lifestyle and determined to make Jake his protégé. Like Gekko before him, he has all the best lines and consequently steals every scene he is in. After an invisible start, Mulligan also comes into her own during the second and third act. Her restrained performance providing an illuminating alternative to the macho posturing of the male dominated cast.

The various strands of Money Never Sleep’s bloated narrative fail to converge by the film’s conclusion. One thing the film can definitely lay stake to is being Stone’s most glossy affair. The end result is a messy yet compelling film, which is gloriously overstated throughout. Fans of the director’s filmography should agree that this is what he does best.

Shutter Island

Martin Scorsese’s latest production was the topic of intense speculation in the run up to its release. The fact that it was premiered at the Berlin Film Festival, outside of competition, in February set it aside from the prolific director’s previous efforts. The main difference being that Shutter Island’s release date fell outside the awards season calendar, whereas Gangs of New York, The Aviator and The Departed were all released towards the end of the year making them legible for awards contention. Initially the film was due to grace cinemas during the same timeframe as Scorsese’s prior features. Its delay was heralded as a sign of distribution difficulties. The consequent hype surrounding the production has inevitably worked in its favour. The film which marks Scorsese’s fourth collaboration with Leonardo Dicaprio has already crossed the $100 million mark in the US, making it Scorsese’s second highest grossing film after The Departed.

Set in 1954 the film follows U.S. marshal Teddy Daniels, Dicaprio, who is assigned the task of investigating the disappearance of a patient from Boston’s Shutter Island Ashecliffe Hospital. The negative response to his enquiries leads him to suspect the motives of the institution’s staff. Meanwhile a hurricane cuts off Teddy and his partner’s route back to the mainland. As Teddy probes the various facilities located around the grounds his paranoia increases. Haunted by the past and the increasingly eerie atmosphere of his present location, Teddy grows fearful of his surroundings and his own sanity.

Like Scorsese’s previous mainstream efforts, Shutter Island cannot maintain its grandiose ambition. The film, which could be considered the director’s first venture in to the horror genre, is an incoherent potboiler. Scorsese’s epic vision is betrayed by the opening widescreen shots of the island, accompanied by a pounding classical score which gives the impression that we are being thrust into the infamous Skull island from King Kong. The film touches upon themes of post war trauma, cold war paranoia and Nazi conspiracy theories. Scorsese’s attempts at grandeur sit uncomfortably alongside the film’s b-movie narrative. At first these clashing techniques create a delirious momentum, aided by Scorsese’s frenetic camerawork. Truth be told, the web of conspiracies concerning the House of Un-American Activities and Nazi brain experimentation initially seem like an entertaining prospect. The narrative twist in the third act introduces a manner of sensibility to the proceedings, but ultimately feels like an anti-climax.

The cast like the film itself provide a mixed bag of performances. Dicaprio retains the paranoid streak witnessed in his recent roles in The Departed and Body of Lies. The camp villains played by Ben Kingsley and Max Von Sydow are unintentionally comedic. The former seems to relish his turn as a sinister psychiatrist. The other supporting cast members such as Elias Koteas, Emily Mortimer and Michelle Williams are all unfortunately underused.

Shutter Island would have been an intriguing premise if it contained more of the stylistic flourishes associated with its director. Here, however, Scorsese uses every genre convention in the book and still cannot provide the edge of your seat thrills found in small scale horror films. In fact there are few truly startling moments in a film which borrows heavily from Hitchcock and also recalls The Shining in its depiction of ghosts and dead children. Although Dicaprio’s Teddy Daniels emphasises Scorsese’s ongoing fascination with mentally fragile characters he is not as enigmatic as his other anti-heroes such as Travis Bickle or Rupert Pupkin.

These days Scorsese seems content churning out conventional genre films, albeit with added commercial clout. Furthermore his venture into stylistic continuity with The Departed ended up resembling a pastiche of his former triumphs. The most astounding factor is that in America he is being celebrated for his efforts. Commercial viability aside, he was awarded his first Oscar for The Departed. Despite these shortcomings Scorsese remains an admirable film enthusiast. He is the ultimate fanboy who has transformed his love of film into a restless mission to celebrate world cinema and restore forgotten classics. Perhaps his barrage of side projects, including documentaries, has become more of a passion than narrative filmmaking. After viewing Shutter Island one wishes the passion that ignited his previous projects would return to his contemporary productions. A possible solution might be a complete A-list overhaul. Perhaps he needs to return to a smaller budget, cast a different leading man and work on a personal project. It would be great to see Scorsese once again venture out of his comfort zone.

3 Idiots

Loosely adapted from the Chetan Bhagat bestseller Five Point Someone, 3 Idiots tells the story of a road trip undertaken by two friends on a journey to find a long lost companion. The man Farhan and Hari seek is Ranchoddas Shamaldas Chanchad, also known as Rancho. The bond between these three men unfolds in a series of flashbacks as we learn of their time at the Imperial College of Engineering.  The enigmatic Rancho challenges the success driven ideology of the institution inspiring his friends to adopt his freethinking philosophy for themselves. He subsequently clashes with the university’s headmaster whilst romancing his daughter behind his back. The three idiots, as their teachers refer to them, disband after graduation. Whilst Farhan and Hari keep in touch their friend Rancho disappears. Ten years later they reunite amidst mysterious circumstances in an effort to track down the man who made such an impression on their lives.

3 Idiots’ biggest flaw is that Aamir Khan, now in his mid-forties, is too old to be a believable protagonist. His character Rancho is a university student who is obviously supposed to be in his mid-twenties or younger. Although his star power is an obvious commercial draw, Khan’s persona as one of the most successful Bollywood stars of the last twenty years, if not all time, detracts from the role. Therefore the film requires a suspension of belief in order for the audience to root for the protagonist. The same can also be said for the narrative as a whole, which is overly ambitious and often unbelievable, even though its slapstick comedy is not grounded in realism.

For those unfamiliar with the conventions of the Indian film industry the running time, over two and a half hours, may seem lengthy for what is essentially a campus comedy. This is not helped by a weak soundtrack, minus a couple of songs which aid the narrative instead of attempting standalone success. Being a mainstream Bollywood film, however, 3 Idiots is not as purely juvenile as the gross out films that have come to be associated with the campus comedy genre, such as its western counterparts Porky’s and American Pie. It aims a lot higher drawing comparisons to Good Will Hunting, albeit with added fart jokes.

Like any “masala” film 3 Idiots tries to please all demographics of the cinema-going audience. Its simple message of overcoming the odds and learning to be yourself is universal. There is also a strong emphasis on the family unit and an added dose of romance. The gags come hard and fast but are accentuated by the emotional weight of the sombre scenes. The fact that it actually succeeds despite all of its shortcomings is nothing short of a miracle.  In the words of the film’s protagonist Ranchoddas Shamaldas Chanchad “aal is well”.

The juvenile humour and rapid pace of 3 Idiots cloaks the ambitious and thought provoking film at its core. The self-referential idealistic romantic side-plot highlights the film’s refusal to take itself seriously. Underneath its bright and energetic surface, however, lurks a dark subtext which deals with suicide amongst India’s student population. The burgeoning pressure of economic expansion on the country’s youth population haunts the cast of self-tortured individuals. Meanwhile through Rancho the filmmakers dissect the hierarchical structure of India’s education system.

The humour remains dark throughout the course of the film with the best gags coming from the blackly comic moments. To his credit the film’s director Rajkumar Hirani uses imaginative visual gags to compliment the film’s surreal tone. The repetitive use of black and white in the scenes that take place in Hari’s house are a brilliant spoof of the sentimental portrayal of poverty in classical Bollywood cinema. Aside from the clever self-referential narrative, the film provokes gut-busting belly laughs. At times it evokes comparison to the Farelly Brothers, who mastered dark humour and gross out gags in genre classics such as Dumb and Dumber.

3 Idiots’ barrage of jokes is reminiscent of the wisecracking classic Hollywood films such as His Girl Friday and Bringing Up Baby. Unlike those golden age masterpieces, however, it does not contain a single interesting female character. Pia, as played by Kareena Kapoor, is bland to the point of nonexistence. The Female sorority found at a mixed university campus is also completely ignored. We glimpse girls onscreen in the classrooms but they remain nameless and voiceless. The focus of the film is on the male student body. Both Aamir Khan and Sharman Joshi are satisfactory in their roles. The standout performance belongs to Madhavan as the quiet conformist Farhan. He portrays the young man with reserved grace as an internally tormented individual.

The fact that 3 Idiots manages to maintain its comedic momentum whilst successfully tackling larger complex themes is what makes it a cut above the rest. Aamir Khan’s Rang de Basanti tried to achieve a similar feat. That production’s ambitious storyline, however, worked against it. The first half of the film was about male bonding while the second half concerned itself with student protests and terrorism. Consequently Rang de Basanti felt like a muddled film that had crudely been split in two. Much like the motivation behind Farhan and Hari’s nostalgic quest to find their friend Rancho, the success of 3 Idiots lies in its unity.

The Panic in Needle Park

I’d like to start by drawing attention to the awful poster. Its religious tone draws parallels to the silent propaganda films that promoted the temperance movement. Panic, however, is much more than a junkie romance or an old-fashioned moralist message on the dangers of drug use.

Panic is a film full of surprises. Most notably it is credited as Al Pacino’s breakthrough. Both Francis Ford Coppolla and Dino de Laurentis have stated that it brought the actor to their attention. Pacino was subsequently cast in both filmmakers’ respective projects, The Godfather and Serpico. Jerry Schatzberg, the film’s director, worked with Pacino again in 1974 casting him alongside Gene Hackman in Scarecrow. Although I have not seen Scarecrow the clips of it that I have watched indicate that aesthetically it contains similarities to Panic. Both films show Schatzberg to be a promising talent with a distinctive vision. The director’s career, however, sadly never progressed past his auspicious early productions. Perhaps there was no audience for his gritty, realist take on the lives of America’s displaced citizens.

As stated in the title sequence Needle Park is the name bestowed upon the junction of Sherman Square in New York by its inhabitants. In the film the area is populated with cheap hotels, diners and run-down apartment blocks. The people that dwell in this dilapidated environment include pimps, prostitutes, drug addicts and petty criminals. Bobby, Al Pacino, is both an addict and a thief. The film follows his relationship with Helen and their increasing drug use.

The environment that the film creates correlates a number of the social problems that affect Needle Park. The community of drug users, dealers and prostitutes co-exist and the boundary between their identities is blurred. Bobby, for example, starts the film as an addict who steals in order to feed his addiction. Later, however, he starts dealing and working with the substance manufacturers. His relationship with Helen and their excessive dependence on heroin leads him to use her as a sexual object when he needs his next hit. Eventually Helen herself becomes a prostitute and thief as she robs her clients. What at first seems like a food chain, a hierarchical system of corruption, ends up becoming a vicious cycle of despair.

Another component in the cycle are the cops that monitor Needle Park, who are as self-absorbed as the junkies that they detest. “They all rat” is what one of the detectives tells Helen when trying to bribe her into setting up Bobby. This only adds to the atmosphere of paranoia that governs the region. Ultimately the cops are portrayed as a deterrent to the problem rather than a solution. Their method of blackmailing criminals into betraying one another makes Needle Park an increasingly volatile place.

Schatzberg sympathetically portrays his displaced characters. Their conflicting emotions present a contrast to the cold and manipulative motives of the police force. Helen best reflects this theme. She is presented as a soft spoken, fragile and helpless female. At the beginning of the film we find her bed ridden after getting an illegal abortion. She is not, however, an addict. Her exposure to Bobby’s lifestyle subsequently leads her to start using. In the process her dependent nature is revealed. She is more reliant on men than drugs. We later learn that she ran away from home and therefore her attachment to men is almost out of necessity as she is homeless. Bobby is in the same predicament, navigating the vacant spaces he can use as shelter and stealing in order to survive.

Schatzberg’s film borrows from the neo-realist tradition by detailing the hardships of marginalised communities. The exclusion of music from the film’s soundtrack places further emphasis on its commitment to realism. Furthermore the use of handheld camera in the sequence in which Bobby overdoses, coupled with quick cuts, deliberately gives the scene a documentary style, Cinéma vérité appearance. The superb editing in the film also adds to the moments of dramatic tension. The first time Bobby gets busted is an excellent example of the film's imaginative use of the technique. The simple cut to show Bobby showering in prison, which takes place immediately after he tries to rob a truck, is a brilliant example of how to successfully build suspense and how to maintain an economically tight narrative structure.

The poor marketing that Panic received has ultimately detracted from its layered storyline, instead focusing too much on the tragedy at its core and the star-making turn of its protagonist. The open-ended conclusion, unlike so many romantic tragedies, is not about sacrifice. In fact it reinforces the film’s central theme concerning the hopeless cycle of despair faced by Needle Park’s residents, if you can call them that. Therefore Panic is a more complicated affair than the countless other independent films of its ilk.