As sci-fi films go, this one manages to give the genre a bad name. Vin Diesel is expressionless, the plot is threadbare and the acting is nothing to write home about. Ray Garvison (Diesel) has just won a battle freeing hostages. His plans of spending quality time with his wife Gina (Talulah Riley) goes awry […]
The text from Victor Hugo’s 1862 classic seminal novel of the same name, at the end of the film, sums it up succinctly – ‘There are no bad plants or bad men… only bad cultivators.’ The film, which opens with France celebrating its 2018 football World Cup win against the backdrop of Eiffel Tower and […]
Not all fantasy and animation films fall within the realm of mere fun and adventure. Some have elements of tenderness and sympathy woven into the script. Add a dash of oblique brotherly love, and ‘Onward’, directed and co-written by Dan Scanlon, is one such film. Ian Lightfoot (voiced by Tom Holland) is an introverted teenager […]
When it comes to honouring character actors (usually called sidekicks and junior artistes or derogatorily even ‘extras’ in this part of the world), one must hand it to Hollywood – there are numerous books and articles devoted to them. ‘Kaamyaab’ opens with a montage of hand-painted posters of (fictitious) films of the ’70s and ’80s, […]
‘A marriage is a deal’, utters a character midway through the film. That this deal does not turn out to be ideal is the focal point of Anubhav Sinha’s two-hour-plus film, co-scripted by him and Mrunmayee Lagoo, with script finishing touches by Anjum Rajabali. Amrita Sabherwal is a loving, dutiful housewife (having given up her […]
In the opening scene, reminiscent of the ’70s, a guy with a well-chiseled, gym-toned body thrashes his prison inmates, while the rest of the junior artistes stand around, feebly flailing their hands above their heads. The identity of the person is revealed soon enough, but the reason for the mayhem much […]
War films have a (c)harm of their own. New Zealander Taika Waititi’s screenplay, based on Christine Leunens’s 2004 novel ‘Caging Skies’, has an earthy kind of appeal to it. Amidst the destruction of war and comedic elements are layers of tenderness and the human touch, fringed by a 10-year-old’s understanding of what constitutes a Nazi […]
First, the title – it should give one adequate clues that it could turn out to be an autobiographical work, particularly when that film is helmed by one of the greatest filmmakers of our generation. The 70-year- old Spaniard, Almodovar, in the twilight of his illustrious career, and inspired by Fellini’s 8½, collaborates with his […]
Panga, the film, serves to highlight a few things – a family soars and thrives when duties are shared, there is no age limit for pursuing one’s dreams, and on a more pragmatic note – Indian Railways are the main job providers for state and national level sportspersons. Jaya Nigam (Kangana Ranaut) had been the […]
Early deaths of Hollywood legends (the legend status conferred posthumously at times) has always held the industry and its fans in awe. Marilyn Monroe, James Dean, Elvis Presley are just three names that come to mind. Add to that, actress-singer Judy Garland, who died 12 days after her 47th birthday, in 1969. The talented Renee Zellweger […]
“You’re guilty from the moment you’re born”, is the common refrain of African Americans, especially in the state of Alabama, where racism still persists to a horrifying degree, and where ‘Just Mercy’ is centered. Based on a true story, and adapted from noted civil rights lawyer Bryan Stevenson’s memoirs ‘Just Mercy: A Story of Justice […]