AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON: Spectacular but standard! Fun for fans!! [3/5]

If you are a hardcore comic-book fan, you would know what to expect from a specific series, and when. There will be moments of comfort shaken by the flashes of threatening situation to the very existence of mankind. Team should be intact and as any of the old-book sayings would recommend, ‘together’. Meanwhile, you can have a romantic track between the two of leading members, a sentimental family-connection, self-assured guys cooler than ice-crushes, a ‘mightier than ever’ evil force and loads of pages carrying only action-words like ‘Boom’ ‘Bang’ ‘Crash’ ‘Smack’ written all over big & bold.

Marvel’s screen-adaptation and a sequel to 2012’s super-hero flick THE AVENGERS, Joss Whedon’s AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON too doesn’t dare to rule out on the basics and tries its best to serve you ample portions of everything you read in the buffet menu. Tony Stark [Robert Downey Jr.] known for inventing witty one-liners more than scientifically viable gadgets and programs accidently brings an artificial intelligence program into life, and ‘Ultron’ is now planning to extinct human race from earth in order to save it. Initially, it [as Ultron is just another evolved operating system, works by hacking and controlling dense information freely flowing in the virtual world] gets hands of support from a speedster young kid with his twin sister- a mind-manipulating freak seeking personal revenge from Stark. She can easily invade any mind and slide them to a complete opposite track with corrupted visions in the head.

AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON gives plenty of space for an entertaining ride having your favorite superheroes by your side. In one particular ‘party’ scene, everyone else tries to lift the immovable hammer of Thor [Chris Hemsworth]. Thor looks quite confident of his caliber and the hammer’s built until Bruce Banner- the hulk [Mark Ruffalo] enters the game. Bruce couldn’t do much but succeeded in shaking Thor’s confidence for a moment. Don’t miss his face! In other, everyone in the team pulls Captain America’s leg for his one of early instructions to watch out for the ‘language’. It all starts in the beginning and keeps coming at regular interval but so incredibly, you are never done with the joke. The film also explores the softer track between Natasha [Scarlett Johansson] and the rage-driven green monster in a man’s body, Bruce [Ruffalo]. The eagerness of being alike mixed with the sadness of uncertainty in the nature of their relationship is heartbreaking. So is the sequence where Stark’s artificial intelligence program JARVIS gets terminated by the evil Ultron. After Johansson’s talking operating system in Spike Zonze’s HER, this was another heartfelt sequence involving some machine.

Whedon creates a world full of explosions, destruction and skyscrapers getting melt down to dirt. The action sequences especially the ones having all the superheroes fighting in slow-motion and in one frame are a treat to watch, but what lacks the most is the depth in the story. I wish the plot gets more thickened by some cleverness and hadn’t just decided to bigger the scale. It’s scenic. It’s thrilling. It’s pure fun. Don’t expect anything out of the box or any unpredicted surprise in the tale! AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON is the latest in a popular series and stays the same. Spectacular but standard! [3/5] 

THE JUDGE: Robert & Robert make it an interesting watch! Recommended! [4/5]

Before he excelled in charming us all as the nifty, sharp, flirtatious and witty Tony Stark in the movie-adaptations of the IRON MAN comic series, Robert Downey Jr. has managed quite well donning the cap of a serious actor [Sir Richard Attenborough’s CHAPLIN is the testimony, anyone would swear to respect] surfacing from a numerous ‘Coming of Age’ films. It’s an absolute treat to watch him returning to a plain grounded drama filled with deep dark secrets of a family, relationships holding their own share of protests, outbursts and empathy untold before. And as if one Robert was not enough, Robert Duvall also joins him for absorbingly heartwarming father-son relationship played on screen.

David Dobkin’s THE JUDGE is about Hank Palmer [Robert the junior] a sure and secured attorney finding himself mostly on the sides of the guilty as he vouches for himself, “The innocents can’t afford me”. With a marriage on the threshold of divorce and a pretty smart daughter by his side, Hank’s life takes him back to his native place where his Judge father [Robert the senior] is fighting hard with life after his wife’s death. Hank has hardly any regards for the place that doesn’t have a thing for any change but the current state of affairs leads him to the state of uncertainties, in terms of his leaving the place. The Judge is under scan by local police for murdering one of the convicts, he shares his past with.

THE JUDGE works well with characters that never shed their skin for once and still keep you engaged with a constant hint of surprise in every emotion. Hank is smart, self-assured and an everyday guy who doesn’t want to get confined into a place where his father is actually known to be firm, strict and honest about his morals. This old man has been serving the law for over 40 years now and no matter if he’s on the other side, still doesn’t want to comprise with truth and cooperate with his own son trying every trick of the trade to save his father’s life. Now, the emotions are real heavy and could have been misjudged for a melodramatic tint to it but thanks to the practically sensible approach and the clear air of the characterization, you find an invariable expression of smile on your face for the most.

Robert Downey Jr. intrigues the viewers with his charismatic and confident presence on screen and yes, the witty one-liners he mouths perfectly are worth giggling. Robert Duvall as a morally moody old man gives us a hypnotic performance you want to take away with yourself to appreciate long after leaving the theatre. The frames with both the Roberts together are the most enjoyable scenes. Be it the courtroom scene where they both bring out their deepest emotions towards each other, the bathroom sequence with son helping his aging father trying to wash him or the scenes they confront each other’s point of reference in law and life are amazing!

Vera Farmiga as Hank’s ex-girlfriend shines in a comparatively short role. Emma Themblay impresses as Hank’s daughter who very innocently informs his father, “Mothers get lonely. Fathers don’t. Fathers marry young Mommies”. Overall, THE JUDGE should find a definite viewer in you if you truly believe in emotions we hardly share with our family. As for Hank in the film, this would be a nice, feel-good, emotional homecoming to you also! What better occasion than this festive season! Go for It! [4/5]  

CHEF: Taste life like the best dish on menu! Sweat, simple and delicious! [3.5/5]

You don’t really have to be a cook yourself to like Jon Favreau’s tasteful slice-of-life drama CHEF, but if you are a life-lover you hardly can stop yourself from falling in love with it. Alike every nicely-cooked & well-presented dish in any of your favorite restaurant, life requires nothing but a demanding preparation, monumental effort and a good heart to top it all. CHEF takes its inspiration from the very same idea and turns out to be a deliciously sweat, simple and delightful film that has its heart right in the place.

Coming from the director of highly technological, imaginative and illusory IRON MAN & IRON MAN 2, comedy-drama CHEF emerges as a surprising but an appetite-full creation of Jon Favreau. Besides being the writer-director, he plays Carl Casper- a passionate chef trapped in a commercial restaurant run by the money-driven, dominating and unreasonable Riva, played by Dustin Hoffman. Life takes a drastic turn when Carl gets bashed up from left, right and center by a reputed food critic for not being innovative and imaginative in his servings. This is the time when his personal life too is on the edge. He should spare some of his life-chunks for his 10-year old son living with his divorced wife and in the meantime, also be looking for what he misses the most i.e. cooking what he likes to.

CHEF tempts you not only with the luscious, lip-smacking dishes of all kinds being grilled, baked, chopped, basted, fried and served artistically in the most enticing manner; in fact there is hardly any scene where the food is not being celebrated; but also with the heartfelt emotions in a simple yet relatable plot of human relationships. The sentiment of not being permitted to experiment and innovate for what you think is right and often surrendering yourself in the name of what your employer thinks is right, is never an extraterrestrial for any man of creative values. Chasing your dreams and following your heart may not be possible for everyone but when you see Carl getting on to it, you never feel isolated from the sense of achievement and contentment Carl is gaining gradually on screen.

Film also succeeds in throwing pleasant surprises on regular intervals with the most delectable short & sweet star appearances in recent. Scarlett Johansson woos the screen as Carl’s colleague at the café. Dustin Hoffman as a bossy owner is a luxury to have on board but leaves you unfulfilled wanting more of him. Robert Downey Jr plays a romantically witty more like his Tony Stark in IRON MAN. Russell Peters joins the cast as a selfie-lover cop who can’t stop asking for clicks to upload on social networking sites. Emjay Anthony as his son and Sofia Vergara as his ex-wife come up with endearing performances but CHEF is all about Jon Favreau. As the writer-director, he not only pushes his boundaries but also blesses the screen with a wonderful character lovable in all given situations.

Though in between courses you might notice something very regular and recurring, at the end it is a sweet, simple and delicious feast you won’t regret booking your table for! Likeability is guaranteed! [3.5/5]