gunsnsuj

The Family Man Season2 dwells into life as it comes from 3 or 4 different angles for me -- 1. First there is the life of Srikanth Tiwari - who having just emerged from the battle scars that he and his team suffered in Season1 -- has to deal with relationship issues at home -- the harder he tries, the more harder it becomes for him to sort out issues with Suchi -- the vulnerability of such a character where one is not really made for being the ideal husband is brought out so brilliantly by Manoj that you really feel that he is better off being in TASC than doing a 9-5 job -- which eventually he also realises -- he just could not tolerate the mundaneness of a corporate life style -- infact that does more harm for him than good, 2. You have to empathize with the lives of those rebels -- All of them are fighting for a cause that you and I have never faced in our lives -- imagine if you are treated like that in your home country and the system screws you and your family and are left stranded -- all of a sudden -- living a life doe not feel important anymore -- you want to achieve a meaningful closure for so many wrongs done to you -- the focus one needs to achieve that eventual goal is stunningly brought out by Samantha -- for her living the daily life is a chore -- she will do anything to get by but will not waver even a wee bit from her eventual maksad -- The pain in her eyes and infact in her whole body is so visible all through the 9 episodes that you cannot but empathize with her and root for her 3. The 3rd angle that intrigued me was the enigma that is -- "teenage" kids in this day and age -- having a 14 year old daughter myself -- their life is fraught with so many distractions and filled with so much misinformation -- that you as a parent are always caught in the conundrum of whether to chastise them or let them be -- when they think they know everything, you as a parent have to have the heart to see them suffer and have them learn the hard way from the mis-steps they take in life.

While the series is gripping and enthralling throughout -- I did feel that they could have handled couple of items better 1, TamilNadu Police is one of the country's best police force -- Their strategic acumen I believe is one of the best -- you do not get that feeling in the way their operations is shown in the series -- it always feels like they are getting outwitted 2. The geo-politics of Srilanka/India -- bilateral relations and how Srilanka screwed their native Tamils -- I can understand why the directors shyed away from going into the details here but not providing that context may not bring the right amount of understanding for audiences who are not familiar with the conflict -- they may be left with unanswered questions on who these rebels are and what are they fighting for and why is that a big deal for them?

I have seen very few sequels surpass the initial version in terms of content and keeping viewers interest -- The Family Man 2 definitely provides entertainment of the highest order and makes you wish that it becomes an Enterprise like the Bond Enterprise -- It has me wishing that if I brush up on my Hindi skills -- I can shoot for a small role in TFM8 -- afterall the characters that suit the best in TFM are the everyday Joe's :)

What else would you call a movie that has a little bit for everyone -- Yuva is an entertainer first -- of course it has a lot of firsts as well..the structure, for example, is something that is unique...all the 3 story lines start on Howrah bridge and how the director comes back to the Howrah bridge accident to take of to one of the 3 stories is poetic.. Songs add lustre to this painting and is very inherent to the flow. Anurag's dialogues are a huge plus -- I loved Om Puri's Bengali dialogues --"paranthu lekin" As far as the cast goes -- Ajay did really well as did Abhishek -- Among the ladies, I loved Esha. The Tamil version was not as engrossing as the Hindi version was, and I think that was primarily because of the cast. Mani is Mani...awesome movie.