PIFF

Yes, I have seen 13 films over the last three days, in the PIFF; the most amongst our group, which consists of the usual VIT gang, the lone FC fellow (his quiz partner does not come and he knows that), and the enthusiastic lone PIET guy. If you want a more in-depth view and a more formal description of the PIFF films check out salil's blog.
I don't know the exact reason(my best guess is the large number of films seen), but i have such haphazard thoughts coming to mind right now that I am writing as they come. to make it simple, and I really suck as a writer(/blogger) anyway, I will just list out the films I managed to see till now i.e. till the end of 16th jan 2005.

Day One:

1.A Journey Up the San Fransisco River (Brazil): Great start to the fest. Loved the photography, the
shooting locations, the cast, and the music. Great scenery shown in the film; typical brazilian settlements on the banks of this river. The story is very simple and similar have been used many times, but the movie is beautiful in the way it gets you involved in the characters; one really starts liking brazil and their way of life after seeing the film.

2.The Man Who Knew too Much (USA): Typical Alfred Hitchcock story; very old film. I got pretty bored
seeing the film, one reason for which was the poor audio quality, and the heavy lunch that I had just bfore the movie. I actually slept for about 15 mins during the film because of the food and the AC. Kunal T will tell you more about this though.

3.Sky Hook (Yugoslavia): Fantastic film, set in war torn yugoslavia. It tells the story of a few young people in yugoslavia who live in an area frequently bombed by NATO aircraft, who inspite of the difficult times manage to keep playing basketball which is their passion and which finally helps them get over their differences and come together as a community. Very touching movie. It also has great music.

4.If I Were Rich (France): A light French romance comedy. Very nice film; has an entertaining plot and a predictable ending. Has many hillarious moments. Its the kind of movie that we might probably see after a few years on ZMZ after they have cut out the steamy sex scenes.

5.RAN (japanese setting and caste, dialogue in french): This is a Akira Kurosova film, which is why i left the above mentioned french film halfway through(inspite of the uncensored nature:-)) and went to see this RAN. The film has typical old Japan setting and a typical Jataka tales type story. Also it was very long. But still a decent film.

Day Two:

6.Crying Ladies(chinese): Didn't want to see this one because of the name, but it turnd out to be a very refreshing comedy set in the Phillipines. I had the honour of having the now very busy (i don't know why, he studies arts), kunal S for company for this one.

7.Ring Of fire (French dialogue): Set in Lebanon where a civil was is on. The story of a professor who is seriously obsessed by the thoughts of a female student whom he does not know, with whom he spent an intimate night during an air raid.

8.Butterfly (China): A very bold film on lesbians and the social problems they face. A pretty boring film though because of a poor story, in which there is more sex and less substance.

Day Three:

9.Days Of Santiago (Peru): A moving film on the life of Santiago who is a retired marine of the peruvian navy. Santiago tries to find a meaningful life in the presence of many disturbing elements like his old navy friends who rob a bank; his family where his brother continually beats up his wife, his dad harasses his sister; the college to which he goes paying fees by driving a taxi and the new female friends that he makes there who only like to party the whole day.

10.The Rose Seller (Columbia): A film about the shocking lives of small children who live on the streets. I did not see this movie whole but did get the gist of it. Kunal T will be able to tell better; he saw it whole.

11.Kontroll (Hungary): Ties in first place with "Together" for the best film I have seen during these three days. The movie is about a ticket collector guy doing his job in the underground. It is a very tough and unrewarding job where people completely flaunt the system and don't buy tickets. The movie is about how our hero conquers these elements and solves the mystrey of people being pushed onto the track. The movie is fast paced, slick and has excellent music that keeps you riveted to the chair.

12.Swimming Pool (French; dialogue in english): It would be cut for about a quarter of its length if shown as a commercial film in India because of all the nudity and sex. An enjoyable flick nonetheless, decent plot, and an ending that sets the hall buzzing with discussion. The end is left to us for figuring out.

13.Together (China): A great great film about a father, his love for his adopted son, and his singleminded effort in making his son a great violinist. A touching film.