New world beckons. A Hero is reluctant. A Journey begins.
‘Panchayat’
is a modern day ‘Malgudi Days’ and ‘Yeh jo hai zindagi’ kind of fare with
endearing characters and no nonsense storytelling. The key feature of this web
series how economically the director narrates the story with absolutely no
frills (other than the intermittent drone shots). As the main character
Abhishek Tripathi adjusts to the new world, the audience get to know the village
and its people. Each episode is short and sweet, with a physical element
(chair, tree, flag etc) intertwining with a person’s struggle to overcome a
negative emotion (ego, fear, regret etc) and is perfect for binge watching.
‘The Wizard of Lies’, is a sad and dreary account of how karma pays back almost instantly in this case where a stinking rich man is left to rot in a prison cell, while his family and the people who invested in his firm, are destroyed in the outside world.
‘The Wizard of Lies’, a Barry Levinson’s TV movie, set around financial crimes amidst economic crisis, engages you for the most part with the ever cryptic Robert De Niro, keeps you guessing till the last frame. Understandably, portraying a character of a man who made a few billions by cheating people a lot more than that, he keeps his cards to his chest. In all the scenes where is with someone he has to be on guard like the scenes with the lady who interviews him in the prison, or the scene where he is desperate to raise a few hundred million in a party, or the scene towards to the end in the prison, where his calls go unanswered, and he is all alone…Robert De Niro does not flinch from the character.
At the same time his enacting throws many questions back to us…as to how does it could have felt like to make money at other’s expense, build a phoney world and when all that…that huge edifice starts crumbling, he is left for gasping beneath it. We get a taste (just a taste) of the vintage (and obsessive) De Niro, in two scenes—one with the waiter about a dirty plate (like the berries scene in ‘Casino’) and soon after insisting his son to sample the lobster above everything else. Infact, one can spot a few similarities between ‘Casino’ and this movie. In the former, he ends up where he started and here, the prison, he should have ended up with.
This movie is a good watch for anyone who is a fan of Robert De Niro and don’t mind a bit of financial mumbo jumbo.
In the end credits of ‘The Irishman’, Robert De Niro shares the ‘Produced By’ credit with Martin Scorsese. A good producer typically relegates himself to the background once his duties are finished or when the spotlights are on, and resurfaces whenever required, in whichever role that is required. (Great producers don’t even mind to fill in for a light boy if need be, to avoid the meter ticking in idly.) Robert De Niro does the same to the proceedings on the screen. As Frank Sheeran aka The Irishman, he holds the story together, does his bit in every scene he is put in and plays his part to perfection. Let it be the hitman and his gusto, or the father painfully aware of his growing estrangement with his daughter Peggy (Anna Paquin) or as the loyal follower to his mentor Russell Bufalino (Joe Pesci) who takes care of him like a kid or as the frustrated henchman who tries and fails to convince his union boss Jimmy Hoffa (Al Pacino) to mend his ways or that older self with simple (yet so near impossible for any other actor) forlorn look in the car wash, hoping to find something similar to cleanse his sins…it is vintage Robert De Niro all the way. And he shows one can still be a boss, even while staying quietly in the background, even when playing a side kick the other two great actors- Pesci and Pacino.
Martin Scorsese brings these three great actors together and yet makes sure that each one of them gets their due. Not just them, but many others like the veteran Harvey Kietel (who chides Frank about his first side job that involves ‘his’ laundry store), Ray Romano (as attorney Bil Bufalino who helps Frank understand what legal offence is all about), Jesse Plemons (as Chuckie O’Brien and his car seat-fish episode) and several others like the friendly associate of Jimmy who asks what candy is just before Frank blew away a few taxis. Like a true stalwart, director Martin Scorsese puts the film above everyone else, allows everyone to shoulder the weight, and shine in every scene they are in.
Great actors rule with or without dialogues. Sometimes, just their presence is enough. Joe Pesci doesn’t have a ‘funny guy’ routine from ‘The Goodfellas’ or ‘the tough guy’ bashing from ‘The Casino’. But he does enough in the two scenes just before Frank leaves for his final meeting with Jimmy. He exudes affection and power at the same time, and Frank has to no choice but to comply.
Same with Al Pacino, who plays the boisterous and very warm Jimmy Hoffa. His contrasting scenes with Robert De Niro and the others, where his ego comes into full play, are a treat to watch. And the final scene before the fateful meeting as he looks on at his foster son and then at Frank (Robert De Niro is terrific here) for assurance, Al Pacino is at his understated best.
Performances wise, nothing a movie buff can ask for more…that too from the best in the business. For this reason, Martin Scorsese deserves singular credit and makes ‘The Irishman’ a must watch.
Tailpiece: Movies to revisit-->The Goodfellas, Casino, The Scent of a Woman, The Godfather-II, A Bronx Tale, Road to Perdition, Donnie Brasco.
