Movie Review: Begin Again, a must for your eyes, ears and heart

There are movies that put their message, their story, their 'drama' out there- in your face- and then there are movies that subtly express 'life' in just one scene; and that also is so subliminal that you feel it somewhere inside and little while later know you understood. All I'm trying to say, it that it's just so relatable when it's not so in any apparent way. It doesn't have to be. I'm talking about the only worthy release of the past week- Begin Again. 

Starring Kiera Knightley, Mark Ruffalo *twinkle-eyes*, and Adam Levine, Begin Again is a movie simple and sincere to music, love and relationships. In summary, it's about Dave (Adam Levine) cheating on his songwriter-partner and girlfriend since 5 years, Gretta (Keira Knightley) while on tour; Gretta ends up in a bar with a friend who forces her to sing on stage, where Dan (Mark Ruffalo), discredited record label guy falls for her talent and wants to produce her album. 

Begin Again is good because it fails to accord to a typical movie plot. I love how Dave genuinely wants to get back and isn't just another boyfriend who gets rich, cheats and doesn't regret it. I love how Gretta and Dan don't have a steamy moment which they both would regret. Theirs is a complex relationship with underlying tones of respect, appreciation, friendship and care (nothing romantic!). But what I love is the most is how each character evolves individually through the movie. 

The movie narrates the story using a series of flashbacks; which is not confusing, and very interesting! New York looks like a dream as usual and Keira's singing skills are more than a pleasant surprise. 

My favourite scene is one in the end when Gretta is at Dave's show and has a sort of epiphany of her own choices and future by looking at the audience and the effect her kind of music has on people. I realize, at the end, her earnestness in wanting to make her music reach to the audience. 

So that's why this movie isn't about romance or breakups. It's about love for life, for relationships and above all for music. Do take time out to watch it. If nothing else, it will be and hour and forty five minutes of good music to your auricular nerves. 

Let me what you think! 

Soul, Soil and Sustainable Living...

Hello!

I'm always trying to make small changes to my lifestyle to live healthier and in a more sustainable manner for the planet. I don't get too excited and make big changes because, let's face it, it's too much to do overnight and no one hardly ever can stick to it.

I've been reading and trying to follow a few things from Doreen Virtue's book called 'Angel Detox' (yes, I'm into Angel therapy). Clubbed with my reignited vigour for gardening, I found a simple yet significant change to living healthier.

In her book, Doreen talks about Bisphenol A, or BPA, which is a chemical used to make plastics stronger. This BPA is responsible for a long, long list of health issues. This material makes our water toxic especially in the heat, including leaving your bottle in the car. The bad effects of using plastic to us and the environment has only been talked about too much already.

So, the first change I made was to get stainless steel water bottles to replace all the plastic ones in my house (just in time for summer too). Then I came up with a way to make the best possible use of the bottles instead of putting them in trash.

Luckily, I used a new technique I learned at a gardening workshop by Green Souls, Mumbai. I cut off the mouths of all the bottles to use them as pots. Here's how!

To cut off the bottle-mouth, I heated a knife and used it to make the process easier. Then to make holes in the bottle for aeration (learn about it in my previous post), I used one of tools/cutlery/what's-its'name. Once again, I heated it on the stove to make the holes in the plastic easily.

Make a set of holes between the length of the bottle, or a little closer to the top to attach it to the grill. Cut the plastic ropes and put them through a set of holes. Next, fill in the bottle with mulch, cow dung, compost, soil using the 'sandwich technique' I spoke about in my previous post and plant a seed/plant in it. I simply used small bamboo branch from a huge bamboo plant my dad maintains. I'm planning to get creepers for these soon though. 

But that's all! Just tie the strings to the grill and beautify your windows and view it offers! :D 

Holes made close to the base for aeration. 

Look how well the chawli plant has grown in just a few days since my last post! 

I've recently also added Mint and Curry plants to my garden. The fragrance both these plants offer is heavenly to cure a headache. 

Do tell me what you think of this and also if you try this technique out. Looking forward to some of those comments!