When was the last time one saw a film where tears of sorrow turned to sporadic laughter and the other way around? The third film of playwright-turned-director Martin McDonagh (screenplay too), ‘Three Billboards…’ narrates the story of Mildred Hayes (Frances McDormand), a grief-stricken mother whose daughter was raped and burnt to death and is seeking justice […]
Imagine the plight of this planet a couple of decades hence — overpopulated to the extent of being almost uninhabitable, with dwindling resources and unmanageable waste. Scientists have been confounded. But not Hollywood’s filmmakers. Director Alexander Payne and co-writer Jim Taylor seem to have found the ultimate remedy. The film opens somewhere in the future […]
The film was almost ready for release when news of Kevin Spacey’s alleged sexual misconduct hit headlines and prompted the studio to beckon the 88-year-old Christopher Plummer – the oldest to win an Academy Award, at 82. The 80-year-old Ridley Scott pulled off a near miracle by refilming Spacey’s scenes (as the multi-billionaire John Paul […]
Science-fiction and fantasy films come with their own baggage – they are over-reliant on SFX, the plot is rather predictable, the climax is left open-ended for the studios to cash in on the franchise’s popularity and leaves little scope for an actor to display his/her acting abilities; unless of course, you are a fan of […]
Directed by Bhargav Saikia and officially adapted from a short story by Ruskin Bond, The Black Cat is a quaint 20-minute short children’s fantasy film. Tom Alter, in his last screen appearance, plays the author Ruskin Bond who buys a broomstick from a curio shop. On returning home he experiences strange happenings including a neighbour […]
There’s no doubt that Vidya Balan is one of our most accomplished performers, who can emote with her eyes alone. Sulochana (Vidya Balan) affectionately called Sulu by all at home—is a housewife with a basic education. Her domineering elder twin sisters miss no opportunity to berate her, while hubby Ashok Dubey (Manav Kaul) has a […]
Generally speaking, iconic films are not to be tampered with. The 1969 ‘Ittefaq’ ( Rajesh Khanna was still a couple of months away from being christened the new superstar) was collaborated upon by the two titans of Hindi cinema — Baldev Raj Chopra and younger brother Yash Raj. The former’s grandson Abhay Chopra has drawn […]
Aamir Khan’s films have always delivered a social message. Here, in SS, there’s more than one-domestic violence not paying in the long run, empowerment of the girl child and the bonding between a Muslim girl and a Gujarati boy with their naivety and innocent ‘I love you’. Insiya Malik (Zaira Wasim), a school-going girl with […]
If ever there was a female-centric film, Kangana brings it to life in ‘Simran’. A collaboration between a National award-winning director and a National award-winning actress is bound to create more than just a flutter. Well, it does – till you realise that the writing could have had more credibility than it does. A 30-year-old […]
‘Sing’, also released as ‘Mindenki’, is a Hungarian short film which opened at the 14th Asiana International Short Film Festival in Seoul, and has bagged 13 awards, including the coveted Oscar for Best ‘Live Action’ Short Film this year. Written and directed by Kristof Deak and shot in six days, it has the 10-year-old Zsofi […]
Take an eerie-looking spacecraft (Covenant) hurtling through space towards planet Oregai–6, 15 crew aboard in hyper-sleep along with the 2000 passengers out to colonize a planet, add some of the ghastliest, bloodthirsty creatures — with bloodcurdling screams — designed by VFX specialists, and you have Alien: Covenant. Five years after the prequel Prometheus and almost […]