Movies on my mind

With the development of the kinetoscope and its innovation on to cinematography; the moving picture came to occupy human imagination. This created the endless allure of cinema, from the silent era to the era of black and white cinema, from colour cinema to surround sound, and on to the modern era of animation and gaming, and now into the era of AI.

Movie-making is now a big industry. The top five nations in the sphere of cinema are USA, China, India, Japan, and Nigeria. It is a mass entertainment industry, and it is a reflection of society of the times and at times, of earlier times. While most scripts are borrowed from literature, script writing for a movie is an art in itself.

Films are a medium of communicating to the audience. A film has many parts – the theme, the characters, the plot, the cinematography, the sound, the editing. It is only when we look at the parts, and assemble the whole, that we come to appreciate it. Why a film clicks and what makes them great is a heady cocktail. Let us try and understand what scholars have to say. Present here are the views of a critic of Bollywood, and two from Hollywood.

Entertainment is a big motivator for viewing films. Movies give an escape from reality as well as relaxation and enjoyment. Films have the power to elicit a wide range of emotions, from laughter and pleasure to grief and fear, offering spectators with cathartic experience. Cinema business has grown to accommodate a wide range of interests and inclinations.

These famous films have not only provided us with moments of escapism but have also influenced our culture and influenced future filmmakers and created a lasting legacy. They continue to be celebrated and referenced, proving their timeless appeal. (Swarnakar, 2023).

Film, which is a medium for visually telling stories, continues to play an important part in the culture of modern day. Hollywood has influenced the culture of United States. A complex relationship exists between films and culture. There are a few well known films that are notorious for having violent sequences in them. These-kind of films include but are not limited to: The Godfather Trilogy (1972, 1974, and 1990), Goodfellas (1990), The Departed (2006), and Starface (1983). It is largely agreed upon that Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather Trilogy is one of the greatest film series that has ever been made. The Corleone Family, which is notorious for its connections to organized crime, serves as the primary subject of this three-part work. (Lynn, 2023).

Disruptive shifts in the current environment are engendering uncertainty, radically changing market relationships and consumer priorities. This challenging-the-boundaries introduces a new marketing paradigm. “Godfather Marketing”, according to which firms evolve into organizations reminiscent of ‘mafia families’, yet completely devoid of criminal connotations. Godfather marketing offers a distinct perspective, giving marketers a competitive edge for fostering customer loyalty and local policymakers a potential tool for community governance, within a shared framework of careful controls ensuring the protection of individual freedoms. (Guido, 2025).

I am a movie buff. My choice of five films are – The Godfather, Roman Holiday, Casino Royale, Chhoti si Baat, and Thillana Mohanambal.

THE GODFATHER (1972): The Godfather based on Mario Puzo’s novel of the same name, made into a movie by Francis Ford Coppola is considered a film classic. It is an American gangster movie set in the 1920s. Violence always attracts audiences. The performances of Marlon Brando [Vito Corleone] and Al Pacino [Michael Corleone] was outstanding. They do full justice to the epithet “The Don”. The movie explores many themes – power dynamics, family loyalty, and organizational structure. Two lines from the movie remain etched in my memory: “I’m going to make him an offer he can’t refuse” (Don Vito Corleone); and “Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer” (Michael Corleone). It is a movie for compelling reasons – a great story line with focus on the Sicilian families and their interconnectedness, iconic characters, masterful direction, stellar performances, memorable quotes, technical excellence in cinematography, and its cultural impact on the audience.

ROMAN HOLIDAY (1953): It has a simple story line – a princess (in disguise) meets a press reporter on the lookout for a good and exclusive coverage. Audrey Hepburn (essaying the role of the Princess) in her debut role in American cinema is charming, and Gregory Peck (as the Reporter), an established star has a magnetic screen presence. The princess breaks free from her royal duties as she goes around Rome. Unrecognized and as a commoner who falls asleep on a park bench, she is taken home by the kind hearted press reporter, who missed a press conference. In a twist of tale, the reporter realizes that the commoner in his home is a princess. They travel on a Vespa Scooter all around Rome – the Eternal City, with the princess in front and the reporter as the pillion rider. Their fleeting moments of romance, is a big draw. It – the scooter ride, gives full expression to the spirit of freedom; yet, the princess overcomes it, to fulfil her responsibilities, to her people. The Gregory Peck- Audrey Hepburn on-screen chemistry is nothing short of magical. In real life, Gregory Peck always addressed Audrey Hepburn as “Princess”. The movie is considered as one of the most romantic films in cinema history.

CASINO ROYALE (2006): My favourite Bond movie. The entry of Daniel Craig as James Bond resurrects the Bond brand. Love and betrayal form the central theme in this movie. The vulnerability of Bond comes to the fore. And there is lot of violence to pump up the adrenaline. Daniel Craig is considered the best James Bond ever. He was a revelation in the very first essaying of the role of Bond in this movie. Bond and Vesper Lynd (Eva Green) have a complex romantic relationship. She is no ordinary Bond Girl. She has a mind of her own. Her statement as they enter the lift “There is no room for me and your ego” is a classic. Casino Royale by all accounts is a great movie.

CHHOTI SI BAAT (1976): A diffident boy struggling to say “I love you” to the girl he is obsessed with, is the simple story line of this Basu Chatterjee classic. Amol Palekar is the shy boy and Vidya Sinha the winsome girl. Enter Ashok Kumar (Julius Nagendranath Wilfred Singh), who mentors the shy boy to enter the ring with confidence. The song “Jaaneman, jaaaneman, tere do nayan” stayed on every film goer’s lips. Silence speaks in this film.

THILLANA MOHANAMBAL (1968): It is a Tamil romantic musical dance film. It was critically acclaimed for portraying the socio-cultural environment and Thanjavur culture of music and dance in the 1950s. Shanmugasundaram (Sivaji Ganesan) a Nadaswaram player and Mohanambal (Padmini) a Bharatanatyam dancer have two things in common – they are egoistic by nature, and they respect the artistic talent of each other. Their romance has many impediments. The dialogues are sterling, the songs lilting, and the performances truly lifting. The film is a masterpiece of Sivaji-Padmini pairing. Excellence in all aspects of film making. Four famous Tamil film directors, named this movie, as their all-time favourite Tamil film. A timeless classic in the history of Tamil cinema.