The Project Approach to Pursuing Hobbies

For the last several years, I have been repeatedly getting myself into what I call as the ‘Shallow Wells Situation’. This term originates from a story I had read about how a man wanted to dig a well to obtain water. Instead of digging one deep well where he would have likely struck water, he spends his efforts digging multiple shallow wells without encountering any water. And in the end, even though he has spent a lot of time and resources, he has nothing to show.

As far as my own hobbies go, this has manifested most evidently in my (lack of) writing production on this blog and my primary one. It has also taken a foothold in my plans to pursue a whole bunch of other hobbies which would require my creative energy or just the focus to learn something new. My default plan was to chip away at 4-5 different hobbies by spending a set amount of time on each of them every week. That clearly hasn’t worked out for me. I just kept jumping from one task to another – without actually accomplishing or learning anything in any of those. And somehow I never learnt from them at all until a couple of months ago. The reasons for the constant distractions, I have realized, are irrelevant. I just need to find a way to get something done.

So I have decided to change my general approach to how I spend my time and efforts. More specifically, I have decided to limit my focus to pursuing just one single hobby at any given time. The duration I force myself to spend on a single task is also important. I am thinking 2 weeks should provide sufficient time to delve deep into anything while still giving me sufficient ability to do other tasks. If I feel passionately enough to want to keep doing it, I can always keep doing it beyond 2 weeks. But 2 weeks of honest effort is the minimum I will have to spend on any given task.

In other words, I am essentially committing myself to a ‘Project’ for the duration of at least 2 weeks. And while this ‘Project’ is being worked on, nothing else matters. Everything else can wait till after the ‘project’ is complete.

There are a few key features to this approach. Firstly, I need to define each task very clearly for that duration. It has to be something very specific and quantifiable. Secondly, it assumes that I, in fact, do spend quality time on the task in those two weeks. (So yeah, procrastination is still an issue that will need to be addressed). And finally, I will have to really convince myself that whatever task it is I have picked up is my sole focus – regardless of whatever else might yell “Squirrel!”

I have already put this approach to test successfully in the last month or so. I will be sharing the fruits of that labor hopefully soon. So this does give me optimism that I can indeed accomplish something with the time at hand.

IIAG Movie Reviews: Superfly

I watched Superfly (2018) with absolutely no idea about it being a remake of a movie from the 70’s. So I am writing this treating Superfly as a completely independent movie made in its own right. And I totally enjoyed it.

If there is one phrase that forms the undercurrent for the whole movie, it is ‘style AND substance’ – the operative word being ‘AND’. The movie packs in organic plot line which develops out of each of the characters’ responses to the existing situation. Yes there are some external interferences and a few action sequences in favor of the protagonist, but by and large the movie is driven by each character’s idea of incentive and influence. This makes for a believable story line with enough plot twists to keep one occupied. However, it is truly all about ‘Priest’. Trevor Jackson as ‘Priest’ carries his character with a swagger that it really does feel like the character was written just for him – instead of him adapting to it. The word ‘cool’ is brandished and applied without true merit to many characters these days. But the ‘Priest’ warrants it completely.

The movie may be a tad bit too long, but that would be me just having to find fault with it.

IIAG Verdict: 4 Stars
Superfly packs in enough style and substance into the movie to keep it interesting while Trevor Jackson steals the show as ‘Priest’. This is going on my list of top movies of 2018.

IIAG Movie Review: Sicario 2 Day of the Soldado

Sicario (2015 movie) was one of the best movies I have watched in the past few years. It is one of the movies I would wholeheartedly give a 5 star rating on this blog. And so I was totally pumped up for Sicario 2 Day of the Soldado. A few days before I watched this movie, I learnt that Johann Johannsen – the man who provided the soundtrack for the first movie – had passed away earlier this year. I was heartbroken but still looking forward to the movie.

Sicario 2 has Josh Brolin and Benicio del Toro reprise their roles as the ‘working outside the law’ good guys going after drug cartels in Mexico. However, unlike the first movie, Sicario 2 does not even have a steady plot line. A promising premise is built up in the first 15-20 minutes but then the rest of the movie meanders far away from developing the plot from this premise. Essentially, we are told that the purpose of the movie is one thing at the beginning, and then the rest of the movie ends up being about something else. Sicario fans will still not be disappointed with the violence on screen. But then a lot of it is mere circumstantial instead of acting as a plot development. The soundtrack is pretty much the same score from the first movie and works in bits and pieces. I mean, it is actually the same score, not some adaptation or such.

The ending makes it clear there is one more Sicario on its way. And I am totally fine with that as long as they actually find a plot line worth adhering to.

IIAG Verdict: 3.5 Stars
Sicario 2 generates the same doom and gloom as the first one. But the movie really has no standing by itself. This sequel exists purely because of the first movie and its purpose is only to setup the third one. As much as it was disappointing, I will always enjoy watching Benicio del Toro go around shooting bad people. If you are a fan of Sicario (2015), then you must watch this as a matter of principle. But if you have not watched/dont care for Sicario, then you might as well give this a pass. But then there is Benicio del Toro, so you might still give it a try.

IIAG Movie Reviews: Book Club

Book Club is about bunch of older women going through a phase of sexual and romantic unfulfillment and trying to do something about it. It works best when it is not taking itself too seriously and provides a few good laughs along the way. There is really not much to say about this movie. It is an enjoyable movie that will satisfactorily fill in for a date night event. You will remember having a few laughs, a generally satisfying date night and then little else. But sometimes, that in itself is more than sufficient.

IIAG Verdict: 3 stars
Satisfying date night movie with a light hearted story and a few genuine laughs to keep up the spirits.

IIAG Movie Review: Beirut

Beirut belongs to that genre of movies set in the middle east and involves a clandestine military/intelligence operation with some twists and turns involved in its development (think Body of Lies, Argo). Beirut works in this genre well because of Jon Hamm’s acting skills and some tight, no-nonsense screenplay. The atmosphere generated in the movie changes between the romanticized version of Beirut from the 1970s and the war torn version that most seem familiar with nowadays. Unfortunately, the screenplay sometimes gets a little too cute (especially in the climax) when it tries to bring up plot developments out of nowhere. These under-developed twists make the resolution of the situation a little incomprehensible. But that would really be my only complaint.

Perhaps the reason why I will always remember this movie is because of the way Jon Hamm, a diplomat, explains the situation in Lebanon and the middle east in the opening scene:

If you wanna understand Lebanon, think of a boardinghouse without a landlord. The only thing the tenants have in common is their talent for betrayal. So these people have been living together, cheek by jowl, 20 centuries. 2,000 years of revenge, blood feuds, vendetta, murder. One night there’s a storm. Raining like hell. There’s a knock at the door. Who is it? It’s the Palestinians. They want in. They’ve been up and down the block. They had doors slammed in their face. They’re cold. They’re tired.

They want in and they want in now. So the house is thrown into confusion. Tenants arguing. Some of ’em violently opposed. Some think, “Let ’em in. They’ll be gone tomorrow.” Some think, “I let them in tonight, then I’ll have an ally against my enemy.” Some of ’em are terrified if they keep the door shut. So it isn’t until after the Palestinians move in that the other people in the house realize the tragedy of the situation. That the Palestinians want nothing more than to just burn down
the Israeli house next door.

Welcome to Beirut.

That is one bad ass way to sum up the state of the affairs in a region!

IIAG Verdict: 3.5 Stars
This movie gets a lot of things right when it comes to portraying the mood and dynamics of a clandestine operation in the middle east. It also gets an excellent acting cast lead by Jon Hamm. Though the screenplay is tight and very focused, it lets itself down at the end. Which is why this isn’t getting the 4 stars it would have otherwise deserved. But regardless of all that, this movie may be just worth it for the above quote on the Middle East!

IIAG Movie Review: Avengers – Infinity War

Everything in The Avengers: Infinity War is just right. It is an Avengers movie, so inevitably the fate of the universe is at stake. Everybody already knows all the main characters pretty good. The plot line develops at a good pace and there is a genuine tension mounting throughout the movie. But the movie gets truly interesting when the audience realize that this may not necessarily have a happy ending. That’s because Thanos is not your run-of-the-mill super-villain. Thanos is someone who genuinely believes in an ideal – and will do whatever it takes to see that ideal realized. He is not evil in the same sense that we all recognize and categorize ‘evil’. To Thanos, the end justifies the means, and nobody can deny that the end that he seeks is to address a valid existential threat. And that is what takes this movie to the next level – Thanos and his unwavering belief in his ideal. He is pretty much the rug that ties the room together. Without Thanos, this movie would have just been an also-ran. But with him, it is a true standout.

 IIAG Verdict: 4 Stars
A truly remarkable villain is what makes this movie worth it. And, of course, having all the superheroes in one movie helps.

IIAG Movie Review: Tully

There are a very small number of movies that actually need to be made. Tully is definitely definitely one of them – probably right on top of that list. Apart from movies like We Need to Talk About Kevin, the only portrayal of motherhood in mainstream Hollywood is that “it is the absolute best thing ever in this whole wide world and there is nothing about it that can or should ever be criticized”. And that is exactly why Tully needed to be made. When it comes to the realities of motherhood, Tully bares it all – all the stress, sleepless nights, constant nagging, lack of peace, helplessness, and exhaustion – there is very little being held back. It is just surprising that it took all the way up to 2018 for this movie to be made.

Tully is first and foremost a look at the realities of motherhood – all the aspects that never get discussed or even acknowledged. But every mother goes through that phase. It also has a nice storyline with an ending that is predictable, but still satisfying. Charlize Theron plays such a morose character with a grace that makes the character that much more believable and relatable. This is an absolute gem of a movie and is on my personal list of Top Movies of 2018.

IIAG Verdict: 4.5 Stars
This is an absolute must see movie for everyone who is willing to even remotely acknowledge that motherhood is not necessarily “the absolute best thing ever in this whole wide world” all the time. This is a movie whose time has come, and I am personally so glad it got made.

IIAG Movie Review: Life of the Party

Life of the Party is a funny movie. It is intended to be funny and its success is and should be measured by how well it makes you laugh. The answer is: sufficiently. Not all the scenes intended to be funny actually elicit laughter, but enough scenes make the cut for this movie to be a ‘funny movie’. And some sequences elicit more than just a laugh. A couple of plot twists will definitely make you burst out laughing and go “HOLYYYYYY SHIIIIIIITT!”. The movie really is worth it just for those few scenes. Melissa McCarthy pretty much is the primary focus of the entire movie, but due credit has to be given to Luke Benward for playing the sincere hunk who becomes McCarthy’s love interest on her return to school.

I just don’t understand why movie critics write a bad review on a movie because it has not done anything original. Simply put, where is the rule that says every single movie should break some new ground? Why can’t movies that tread down a familiar path be considered just as good if they are, well, good movies? And that is where this boils down to for Life of the Party. There is not much originality in this movie apart from the couple of plot twists (that you will surely remember for a long time!). But it will still make you laugh. And that makes it a funny movie. And that’s enough.

IIAG Verdict: 3 Stars
Watch it for some nice laughs and a couple of totally LOL moments. Don’t expect anything substantial in terms of depiction of mid-life crisis or college lifestyle. It has a few interesting characters that keep you engaged, but nothing original beyond that.

IIAG Movie Reviews: Blockers

Here is a sample of the kind of ‘humor’ you can expect in Blockers: teenagers throwing up on each other, an adult male chugging beer through his butt hole, full frontal nudity of an old male role playing with his wife, and a closeup of a pair of testicles being squeezed. That is not campy humor because it is not even funny to start with. If you are looking for a story, there is none here. Except, of course, if you think that a parent of each of the 3 girls who have decided to lose their virginity on prom night following them from one place to another with the objective of stopping them constitutes a satisfactory plot.

There are maybe 2 or 3 situations with laughs in them, and the rest of the movie is spent wondering if this is a comedy, or a serious coming-of-age movie (Spoilers: It is not!), or a movie that makes fun of itself. And unfortunately, there is absolutely nothing in the movie that would make it fall under any of those categories while also falling clear of any of its combinations. And for the love of God, how on earth did this shit of a movie get  83% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes? I almost walked out of the theater two or three times before it ended! What blew my mind is how the critics are calling this a ‘women empowerment’ movie! Ladies: Please tell me you are better than this! Your empowerment is the most influential when you are better than a man’s best, not when you degrade yourself down to his worst. This movie has scenes where the girls are pretty much acting like the guys – in all the aspects guys NEED TO IMPROVE!! THAT is NOT empowerment! That is degradation! Who pays these critics anyway?

There are maybe 2 or 3 worthwhile scenes in the entire movie that show the true bonding between the parent and the child that prevents it from being named the ‘Worst movie of the year’ so far. And that high point is pretty low to start with. And hence the following ratings should be sufficient:

IIAG Final Verdict: 1.5 Stars
Absolutely avoid it if possible. You would be better off watching reruns of a horrible show like Friends instead of watching this excuse for a movie. No humor, no rug to tie it together, nothing useful. Just some gross acts masquerading as humor, and a plotline that barely stays alive through the show.

IIAG Movie Review: Rampage

One good monster fighting 2 bad monsters – all of them huge – wrecking all of downtown Chicago in the process with satisfying visual and audio effects is just the kind of action movie I like to go to a theater to see. Throw in a very down-to-earth character in the form of The Rock, and Rampage becomes exactly what it claims to be: a big action movie with big visual and sound effects. Right from the very beginning, the only thing anyone (including the movie director) aims to do is just blow shit up or kill people – preferably a combination of both. The story or plot or whatever you want to call it really exists just because it has to. And nobody really cares about it anyway. All you want to see is the monster gorilla punch the shit out the monster wolf and the monster croc (I have to admit the monster croc was truly remarkable – with a bad ass entrance too!) and tear down downtown Chicago in the process. Yes we have already seen downtown Chicago go up in flames in one of the 10,000 Transformers movies, but it gets better when you see a gorilla do it instead of some machines. Plus the gorilla has a sense of humor! (I dare you to not laugh with it!)

IIAG Final Verdict: 3.5 Stars
If you want to watch a big production action movie, this is it. Don’t expect much in terms of story or plot. The Rock, of course, saves the day even if it doesn’t need saving. But the monster gorilla/wolf/croc make the action movie worth the price of the ticket. Just go, watch, laugh, enjoy, come out, forget. But you WILL enjoy it.