About me
Name::Ahmed Arshi
From::Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
A new filmmaker rising from the edge of the horizon.
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Sensibility
Wake up!
Denys Johnson-Davies
There Will Be Blood
No Country For Old Men
When the time is Right..
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Saturday, November 24, 2007
Imperfection
Just look at their condition.. no place to sleep, still they have made some space for a cat and a dog... water pouring from the roof but still all of them have a peaceful smile on their faces.. Simply amazing!!!!!
The happiest people in the world are not those who have no problems, but those who learn to live with things that are less than perfect.
Happiness is not having a perfect life but learning to live beyond imperfections !
Keep Smiling :)
Monday, November 19, 2007
Hitler = Peace?
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Ronald Alexander, 80: Ryerson's hot dog vendor
I received an article from the Toronto Star Newspaper that Ronald, "Ernie" Had died at the age of 80. Ernie was the hot dog guy who use to have a vender at Ryerson University where I completed my post-secondary studies in Toronto. Very nice person who had a degree in Engineering and was very successful in it and changed it to be a hot dog vedor guy, which he became later on an icon for Ryerson Univesrity.
I still remember the first time I had a conversation with him, I just stepped out of a midterm exam and I was feeling down cuz I knew I failed that test and I was feeling really down. I sat at a bench and was flipping pages out of my physics book looking for the answers of certain questions and every time I find an answer and find out that what I wrote was wrong I would curse the book!! hahaha!
I was sitting right across from his vendor and he saw my behavior and walked up to me and asked me what was wrong and I told him that I have messed up with my test. He laughed and told me that this was just a midterm and that everything would be fine and he even offered me a hot dog on the house! Then he gave me an easy way of how to study for my exams and a small plan of how to calculate all those complicated equations to get directly to my final result without having to go through all that headache that the text book offers! I didn't believe him at first thinking that what can a hot dog guy know about physics or engineering, to find out later on that Ernie had a bachelor in Engineering from the University of Toronto. I tried his plan and it worked perfectly and I used it all the way till I graduated!!
Thank you Ernie and God bless your soul :)
RIP
This is the article about Ernie from the star. Click Here.
Thursday, November 15, 2007
My First Critique!I received moment ago my first critique from the "Time" Magazine for my book - Life is a Reason:
I think this is a compelling story that certainly pulls in a reader. I wasn’t sure at first, but once I began to read further, I understood that all of us could learn from the struggles and the perseverance. Outstanding!
That made my day!!!
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
The DownFall
Released 16th September, 2004One of the best war movies ever made, "Downfall" is a powerful and artistically masterful re-creation of the last days of the Third Reich. A film that will set new standards in the art of committing history to celluloid, it is sure to spark strong word-of-mouth and generate ticket sales on the art house circuit -- and could pick up major awards.
"Downfall" tells not only the historically accurate tale of the last days of Hitler and his henchmen, which they spent in a bunker under the streets of Berlin, but also, in state-of-the-art battle sequences, of the civilians and soldiers fighting and dying on the savaged streets above as the Soviet Army turned the city into a pile of rubble.
The combined power of the chamber play unraveling in the bunker and the horrible epic slaughter in the streets above (which, of course, Hitler could have stopped at any time by surrendering) elevates the film from a historical re-enactment to a full-fledged war movie, on par with "Saving Private Ryan" and "Das Boot" in every regard. With its horrific and realistic depiction of the human beings who caused all this, "Downfall" could be the most important movie ever made about World War II.
The script, written masterfully by producer Bernd Eichinger ("The Name of the Rose," "The House of the Spirits"), closely follows the definitive book "Inside Hitler's Bunker," by renowned historian Joachim Fest, as well as on the reminiscences of Hitler's secretary, Traudl Junge, whose story was turned into an excellent interview/documentary under the title "Blind Spot" (two sections of the interview frame the dramatized action of "Downfall"). Although the young Junge acts as a kind of main character, Eichinger has resisted the temptation to invent any nonhistoric characters for the viewer to sympathize with. What we get in "Downfall" is as close to what really happened as we will ever see on celluloid.
The actors are on the money, which makes Oliver Hirschbiegel's direction look nothing less than brilliant. And the same goes for An Dorthe Braker's inspired casting. Indeed, a major difference between this film and earlier depictions of Hitler is that these actors are all believably German, neither just blond and blue-eyed stereotypes nor craven caricatures of evil. It is easy to imagine any of them as the guy next door -- or even as yourself, given the circumstances. This is Hirschbiegel's artistic triumph: He makes sure we see that the "face of evil" didn't come from outer space but from among us.
Juliane Koehler plays Eva Braun with a weird, demented carelessness -- she is almost ecstatically happy to die with her Adolf (whom she marries at the very end), but at the same time she seems stupidly to have no real comprehension of the destruction going on around her. She is Marie Antoinette in a dirndl. When Magda Goebbels, played dignified and murderous by Corinna Harfouch, poisons her own children so they won't have to face the disappointment of growing up in a world without Nazism, you wonder whether the Third Reich was state or religion.
But the sensation of the film is Bruno Ganz ("Wings of Desire") in a stunning performance as Hitler. Physically, Ganz slumps, shrinks and scowls -- Hitler's health was failing at this point, and Ganz captures the sunken little man perfectly. Most importantly, not once does he slip into a caricature of evil. Ganz shows you a human being. When he refuses to leave Berlin and save himself, you can see that in his mind he is performing an act of heroism.
The perverted humanity of Hitler and his henchmen may be a problem for some reviewers and community leaders, who may fear that neo-Nazis will watch the movie and be moved, not horrified, by Hitler's last days. That's a small risk, though, for a film that succeeds on all levels in saying so much not only about the horrors of the 20th century, but about human nature as well.
5 out of 5 stars!
Friday, November 09, 2007
When Treason OccursThe betrayal of a trust or confidence; breach of faith; treachery. That’s what treason is in a dictionary, but what are the effects of a treason? Why would someone even think of committing it? Is it weakness? Is it greed? Or is it nothing?
Nothing, that’s another word, which means something that is nonexistent. Could that be morals? Self-consciousness? Being human?
I still don’t understand, but I am really trying to. I flipped every page in the dictionary looking for a word that could ease up my heavy soul. A word that could define my existence in this world. A word that could mean something, furthermore, could mean nothing.
I found myself stopped at the letter H, with the word ‘hope’ shining as if it was the only word written on that page. It read, the feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best. Did not know how much of that was true, and if it was in any way realistic.
As I was flipping the pages backwards, my eyes stopped me at the least word preferable. Hate. To dislike intensely or passionately; feel extreme aversion for or extreme hostility toward; detest. Ironically, those were true words.
That’s when it all made sense to me, the actual reason for treason. It’s in those three words. Hope, Nothing and Hate. For you always hope for the best, but you see and get nothing, so you start to hate.
That’s when treason occurs.
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
A Thousand Rooms of Dream and Fear
In his extraordinary novella "Earth and Ashes" (now a feature film), Atiq Rahimi distilled all the suffering of the Afghan people into the heart-breaking story of a grandfather seeking revenge for his daughter's death. In his new novel, he once again uses his gift for economy to send the reader deep into the fractured mind and emotions of a country caught between religion and the political machinations of the world's super powers. Farhad is a typical student, interested in wine, women and poetry, and negligent of the religious conservatism of his grandfather. But one night changes all that. It is 1979 and Afghanistan is in the early days of the pro-Soviet coup. Farhad goes out drinking with a friend who is about to flee to Pakistan. A few hours later he regains consciousness in a strange house, beaten and confused. At first he thinks he is dead. Then he begins to remember what happened. As his mind sifts through its memories, fears and hallucinations, and the outlines of reality start to harden, he realises that, if he is to escape the soldiers who wish to finish the job they started, he too must leave everything he loves behind him and find a way to get to Pakistan. Reminiscent of William Golding's Pincher Martin in its use of an intense, repetitive vocabulary of powerful images, and for its chilling twist in the tail, this is a mesmerising book. To read it is to be plunged into the Afghan imagination and soul.
Monday, November 05, 2007
A Mighty Heart
Brangelina inspired a paparazzi frenzy by decorating the red carpet at May’s Cannes Film Festival - he as one of the Ocean’s Thirteen gang, she as the star of A Mighty Heart, a devastating real-life drama that his company, Plan B, co-produced. Both stars made a pile squandering their talents on 2005’s Mr. and Mrs. Smith. But A Mighty Heart reveals and rewards their deeper ambitions. Jolie plays journalist Mariane Pearl, the widow of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl (Dan Futterman), who was kidnapped and murdered by jihadists in 2002.
Based on Mariane’s memoir, the film is given a raw and riveting docudrama treatment by the superb British director Michael Winterbottom, whose films - from Welcome to Sarajevo to 24 Hour Party People - are notable for their total absence of Hollywood bullshit. A Mighty Heart is no exception. From the moment Daniel and the pregnant Mariane arrive in Karachi, Pakistan - he wants to investigate the connection between shoe bomber Richard Reid and militant Islamic groups - Winterbottom exerts a grip that won’t let go.
Having arranged a meeting with the elusive Sheikh Gilani, Daniel is warned by Randall Bennett (Will Patton) of the U.S. consulate and the captain (Irrfan Khan) of Pakistan’s counterterrorism unit to stick to public places. Daniel calls a taxi to take him to an agreed-upon restaurant and is never heard from again. The film focuses on Mariane’s five-week search to find her husband, who is alternately accused of working for the CIA and Mossad. Headquartered in the home of Daniel’s colleague Asra (the excellent Archie Panjabi), Mariane begins an agonizing quest that only ends with the release of a video, “The Slaughter of the Spy-Journalist, the Jew Daniel Pearl,” shown on TV at the time but wisely withheld by Winterbottom.
The film’s strict avoidance of exploitation and sensationalism only adds to the film’s emotional impact. In just a few scenes, Futterman - the acclaimed screenwriter of Capote - digs deeply into Daniel as a journalist and a man. But the film belongs to Jolie. She won an Oscar for 1999’s Girl, Interrupted, but this is by far her best performance, strong and true in every detail from Mariane’s accent (her roots are Dutch and Afro-Cuban) to the strength she shows under fire. Her total immersion in the role keeps the film from getting lost in the rush of details. Even after Daniel’s death and subsequent beheading, Mariane holds Daniel’s spirit close. Jolie sees to it that the humane and haunting A Mighty Heart honors that spirit.
3 out of 5 stars!
Saturday, November 03, 2007
Death of a President
Released October 2006.
“Death of a President” is a fake documentary that looks back at the assassination of George W Bush as seen through the eyes of his old staff many years later. According to the film, Bush was assassinated in October of 2007 and that a lot of problems, conspiracies and corruption happened surrounding the event’s investigation. In a lot of ways, the death of a president is only the beginning.
It is really hard to look at this film without taking into consideration all the political themes discussed in the film. The assassination of Bush is almost a gimmick to get people in the seats so that the filmmaker can draw parallels between this event and that of 9/11, The Washington Sniper, Guantanamo and the Patriot Act.
I thought the film had some credibility until after the after the actual assassination. Then when the film showed the television coverage of the actual event I cringed. The coverage was amateur, disjointed and lacked credibility. It didn’t feature any reputable anchors, archival footage, reactions or showcase any real passion for me. It was then that the credibility and mission of the film went out the window. We live in a digital age and for this film to feel real like it so desperately tries to be you needed to have more credible media coverage of a historic event like this one. After seeing those scenes, the shock value for me turned to a feeling of being cheated.
I am not a supporter of Bush and his policies and all I could say about this film is that it felt like “amateur hour”. The most devoted Bush supporter isn’t going to be phased and that’s a shame because that is exactly what this film is trying to do.
2 out of 5 stars!
Released in 1998. Ed Zwick is taking flak from the Council on American-Islamic Relations for directing and co-writing a thriller about Arab terrorism in New York that the Council says is likely to increase hatred of Muslims. Denzel Washington as an FBI task-force head, Annette Bening as a CIA operative and Bruce Willis as an Army general each have an agenda in reacting to the bombing of a bus in Brooklyn and a dignitary-packed Broadway theater. Martial law is declared, and Arab-Americans are herded into detention camps just as Japanese-Americans were during World War II.
It's a provocative premise, and Zwick aims for fairness by casting Lebanese actor Tony Shalhoub as an Arab-American FBI agent whose family is victimized. And Zwick condemns the CIA for its blowbacks and the U.S. military for its torture tactics. Still, The Siege is not a documentary but a glossy Hollywood entertainment that is prey to all the exaggerations, simplifications and acting histrionics that come with the genre. It's difficult to sustain a responsible subtext when you're delivering the jolts required to keep butts in the seats.
It's a provocative premise, and Zwick aims for fairness by casting Lebanese actor Tony Shalhoub as an Arab-American FBI agent whose family is victimized. And Zwick condemns the CIA for its blowbacks and the U.S. military for its torture tactics. Still, The Siege is not a documentary but a glossy Hollywood entertainment that is prey to all the exaggerations, simplifications and acting histrionics that come with the genre. It's difficult to sustain a responsible subtext when you're delivering the jolts required to keep butts in the seats.
2 out of 5 stars