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Comedy, Genre, Must Watch, Rating

Cinema Donkey Review

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Cinema Donkey – Cinema Donkey is an Iranian comedy movie released in 2019. An independent film making crew is making a humanitarian movie and they need a donkey to be cast. Due to the limitations of the budget, they get a donkey roaming in the woods to be cast.

Cinema Donkey aka Cinema Khar was the opening film of the Bengaluru International Film Festival 2020. The movie has a satirical take on humanitarian preaching that goes around. The way the donkey is treated by the crew is quite opposite to what the moviemakers want to convey in their film.

The film in a way hits hard at the selfish agenda people have just appearing to look cool by promoting a social agenda while acting quite opposite to that. The film takes a dig at the propaganda surrounding animal rights, racism, gender bias and cosmetic industries.

The film script is concise and effective enough to convey the story. Right from the title sequence where the director clearly establishes the problem for the crew in getting a professional donkey. As the script progresses, there is always a conflict surrounding the donkey which the crew is trying to resolve which makes it a very interesting watch.

The movie starts with a dialogue where one of the characters tells a donkey is not connected to a human but ends in what appears to be a quite contradictory note. The script also has a subplot on the troubles of independent filmmakers and what it takes to get something on a screen. If you are to ignore the social message, you could still enjoy the process of film making and relate to the troubles they go through. In a way, I liked the fact that the movie had multiple layers.

High Points – The simple premise and the comedy has worked out very well, The climax is very impactful, The locations chosen has been very apt for the film.

Low Points – There is hardly any low points for the movie as it stays true to its genre and plot.

Overall I did enjoy watching Cinema Donkey and had a good laugh. It was even special watching with the director Shahed Ahmadlou and his crew in the theater. I would recommend this to be a must-watch for those who love satire.

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Comedy, Drama, Genre, Must Watch, Other Languages, Rating, Reviews

The Bra Review

The Bra Review – The Bra is a silent comedy-drama that is shot in Azerbaijan. Train driver Nurlan on his retirement day finds that his train has snagged a blue bra from the neighborhood. He sets on a journey to return the bra to the owner.

They say silence is golden. And it aptly fits the movie for if they have added dialgoues it would have lost its beauty and lost into either a cliched tale or become a gross comedy. People hesitate to speak about the undergarments as they are personal. So making it silent fits well with the plot.

As the movie starts we get to witness the beautiful landscape of Baku in Azerbaijan. The picturesque view of the mountains is equally matched with the sweet characters that are portrayed in the congested township through which the train travels. The boy at the tea shop who warns people every day of the train arriving steals our hearts instantly. Nurlan’s character is well established too as every day he goes back to the township to return the things that were snagged by the train. So it doesn’t come as a surprise when he sets out to return the bra that has been snagged by the train during his last ride.

The entire episode is a laughter riot as he adopts various techniques to return the bra to the owner. His obsession to find the right owner makes the tale very interesting one. The kid at the tea shop joins him in the quest and they make a great team. His efforts lead to unpredictable circumstances and how he eventually finds the owner when all odds are against him forms the rest of the story.

“Miki” Manojlović as Nurlan brings life to the character with his performance. His expressions speak a lot and you don’t feel the need for a language. Director Veit Helmer has dealt with the screenplay very well. The treatment of the movie is so artistic in nature that you don’t feel there are any obscene moments in the film. The cinematography and sound editing is amazing and adds additional charm to the visual. The scene in which Nurlans co-worker practices his musical instrument with running engine sounds is well made.

High Points – The movie being a silent is a high point, the visuals of Baku are breathtaking, performance of  “Miki” Manojlović and the little boy, enjoyable comedy

Low Points – Hardly any low point for this one

Overall, The Bra is a movie for every cinephile. Board this train that takes you through picturesque landscapes and let’s you meet those beautiful people. You will walk out of the screen with a big smile on your face.

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