Acclaimed Japanese director whose films radiate a definite auteurial quality, Hirokazu Kore-eda is no stranger to the domestic drama genre. The portrayal of families with parenting (including foster), inadequacies and complicated relationships in their hinge is by now a forte of the filmmaker. Akin to many of his previous films, […]
Read Time : 6 Minutes
‘Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota’ review – a whacky tribute to potboilers from the VHS era
It is a real deal when a filmmaker turns out a bigger pop culture enthusiast than all his audience members put together. Or else nothing justifies the way Vasan Bala puts together the crackling ode to modern cinema that his latest directorial venture Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota is. What hits […]
Read Time : 5 Minutes
‘The Miseducation of Cameron Post’ review – a bittersweet take on gender confusions
In one of the most powerful scenes in Desiree Akhavan’s The Miseducation of Cameron Post, a supposedly ‘reformed gay man’ breaks down before the protagonist when he is quizzed about a mishap that occurred to a homosexual teenager. A close advocate of the idea that same-sex attraction is a “sin” as opposed […]
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“Badhaai Ho” is a triumphant blend of middle-class values and progressive ideas!
When Malayalam filmmaker T. K. Rajeev Kumar explored the stigmatized subject of geriatric pregnancy in his 1994 film Pavithram, he probably didn’t think of the humour it could elicit. The leading man’s mother gets pregnant and the film takes to a mournful trajectory, making way for a highly sentimental narrative […]
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“Namaste England” is monotonous and pointless, much like its characters!
It is intriguing to observe how mediocre writers create tertiary characters. Those with a singular trait to flaunt and sans too many scenes to be a part of. In Namaste England, which is set in 2018, we hear them mouth archaic dialogues on the lines of, “London ki high society […]
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‘Helicopter Eela’ review – This inane film has no choice but to crash-land
Helicopter Eela is a bizarre film. One with a weirdly articulated and insecure-sounding title, this Pradeep Sarkar directorial takes us through a range of unwelcome emotions – cringe, disbelief, exasperation – you name it, this film has it all. Presented as a breezy (and maybe a little loud) mother-son comedy-drama, […]
Read Time : 9 Minutes
‘Kayamkulam Kochunni’ – a staid bandit drama with striking visuals and Mohanlal swagger
For the Indian state of Kerala, legend of the Good Samaritan thief Kayamkulam Kochunni is one that makes every heart beam. As I watched Rosshan Andrrews’s film based on the famed highwayman’s life, I could feel a default sense of exhilaration. In one brief moment, the lawmakers ask the village […]
Read Time : 7 Minutes
‘Andhadhun’ review – Mystery, music and masterful filmmaking
When a filmmaker of Sriram Raghavan’s caliber chooses to open his film with a random single-eyed rabbit astutely escaping a gunshot, one certainly gets a hint on what to expect. The animal munches his cabbage and also gets away unscathed. Wait before you make comparisons to the film’s blind leading […]