Lucy (August 2014) - 6/10

Lucy, directed by Luc Besson (critically acclaimed for directing La Femme Nikita and Leon – The Professional), has not been very highly praised internationally but apparently turns out to be a good entertainer, especially given the dry spell at bollywood since last 3-4 months. The story is about a young girl Lucy who accidentally becomes part of a dark drug deal in Taipei. She is then put on a high-power trial drug by cutting her stomach wide open; the drug has ability to increase human’s brain usage capability significantly. An average human uses 10% of its brain but with the help of this drug, humans can use almost 100% of its brains. Lucy is transformed into a super-power warrior followed by a series of merciless encounters with her captors. Medical conditions makes Lucy fixated to the drug-use and eventually her brain usage starts increasing from 10% to 100% over a week’s time.

This 89 minutes runtime movie is fast paced and filled with action, suspense and science fiction. Many of us would disagree with the movie's science fiction/ backdrop if we go by textbook, but then this is a work of fiction and not science.

The Fault in Our Stars (July 2014) - 7/ 10

Based on a 2012 novel by the same name by John Green, The fault in our stars is a romantic splendor sure to make your tear ducts work. This is a story of Hazel Grace (played by  Shailene Woodley), a cancer diagnosed girl breathing with the help of a nose cannula, and her “the world is not a wish-granting factory” experience and moments. Hazel meets an impossibly charming boy next door, Augustus Walters (played by Ansel Elgort) suffering from a prosthetic leg, at a cancer support group and gradually starts liking him. She is moved by a book she reads, An Imperial Affliction, which ends mid-sentence, and she is very animated to know what happens later to the protagonist. Augustus helps her in meeting the author by travelling to Amsterdam (under critical medical condition), but poor Hazel has to return disappointed as the author behaves scornfully with the young couple. The story further continues with Augustus showering magic in Hazel’s life and mesmerizing her, and finally ends on a forlorn note.

Sadly, book readers have not found the movie as delightful as the novel (which is a case with any novel based movie), however the movie stands beautifully as a pure romantic piece in recent times. Set in Indiana, the movie has been neatly shot with delicate art designing and editing. The fault in our stars is about love, pain and memories & is highly recommended for a young adult audience.