BEYOND THE CLOUDS

Descriptio

Release date: 20 November 2017 (India)

Director: Majid Majidi

Awards: Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut, Screen Award for Best Male Debut, Zee Cine Award for Best Male Debut

Producers: Shareen Mantri, Kishor Arora

Description

Aamir, a young man, tries to dodge the police after they raid one of his drug dealings. However, the situation gets complicated when Aamir's sister gets imprisoned while trying to save him.

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Beyond the Clouds is a 2017 Indian drama film written and directed by Majid Majidi, under the production banner Zee Studios. It stars debutante Ishaan Khatter as Amir, a street hustler and drug dealer in the city of Mumbai &  Malavika Mohanan as Tara, is the sister of Amir. She works for a dour merchant Akshi (Gautam Ghose). The film story is centred around bonding between the siblings, a take on human relationships in general. The sibling's bond is put to test when Tara lands in jail for a crime committed by Amir which forms the crux of the film. The film is a grown-up version of Majidi's previously directed Children of Heaven (1997). The original language of Beyond the Clouds is Hindi.

A police bust interrupts Aamir, who is chased into the laundry workplace of Aamir’s sister Taara (Malavika Mohanan). With the help of an older male colleague Akshi (Goutam Ghose), Taara conceals her brother and his stash of drugs. But in Akshi’s mind, his help means that Taara is now somehow beholden to him. He assaults her, but Taara defends herself by hitting his head with a rock.

Taara finds herself facing life in prison, unless Akshi recovers and can be persuaded to admit his role in the incident. But although he regains consciousness, Akshi is unable to talk. Both Taara and Aamir find hope in their desperate situation through connections with other children. Taara befriends Chotu, the child of an ailing prisoner, while Aamir initially considers selling Akshi's eldest daughter to a local brothel. But Aamir grudgingly warms to Akshi’s mother and two daughters. 

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The movie had a direct connection with my heart ‘cause it was about human relationships. The way the movie moved from one sequence to the other was so graphically artistic that I wondered if I would ever be able to meet Majid Majidi and have a long talk with him and ask him how he decides to create such beauty! The pain and angst for both Aamir and Taara were apparent in the discomforting facial expressions of both the siblings. The fight everyday to keep Akshi alive for the sake of his sister was something I had almost become a part of. I wanted him to stay alive too so that Taara and Aamir could be reunited. But there’s a twist in the tale and the movie doesn’t end the way I wished it to end. Human relationships can be so beautiful and painful at the same time! 

TRAPPED

Release date: 17 March 2017 (India)

Director: Vikramaditya Motwane

Box office: 2.85 crores INR

Budget: 5 crores INR

Awards: Filmfare Award for Best Editing, Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor, Filmfare Award for Best Sound Design

The story

Shaurya (Rajkummar Rao) must pluck up the ‘courage’ to stay alive after he accidentally locks himself up in his new rented apartment in a desolate Mumbai high-rise, for almost a week. To make things worse, his phone battery dies and since the building is devoid of residents, electricity and water or food supply, Shaurya must take extreme measures to survive this unexpected nightmare.


The review

Rajkumar Rao had been a fantastic actor and we, as the audience, expect a lot more from him. He did a perfect show. The movie went forth with such brilliant acting from Rao that at one point of time, it was almost as if I was part of the whole thing; the sweat, the tension, the feelings of hopelessness and fatigue. It was pretty well enacted, the director giving importance to the smallest detail. The sinking feeling of not being noticed after making all the efforts to do so was nail biting. I thought it was pretty okay but then oftentimes I am wont to the devilish thought that this idea could have been stolen from a Hollywood movie or some book that the producer might have read or heard of. But then, stories are made of these, aren’t they?

I prefer to give it a 8 out of 10. Loved it! 

EVENING SHADOWS

Initial release: 25 February 2018

Director: Sridhar Rangayan

Language: Hindi

Producers: Sridhar Rangayan, Mohammed Shaik Hussain Ali, Saagar Gupta, Karim Ladak

Screenplay: Sridhar Rangayan, Saagar Gupta

Cast. Mona Ambegaonkar as Vasudha. Ananth Narayan Mahadevan as Damodar. Devansh Doshi as Kartik. Arpit Chaudhary as Aman. Yamini Singh as Sarita. Disha Thakur as Neela. Abhay Kulkarni as Ramesh. Veena Nair as Lata.

One of my favourite movies so far. Yes, I know I have watched it a little too late but wait, isn’t it better late than never? 

It’s an amazing movie with an amazing cast. The story did it. It is difficult in real life for a parent to come to terms when their child comes up to them and confesses about being different from the rest of the crowd. It is not easy at all. Especially for a conservative family like the one they showed in the movie. 

Kartik, played by Devansh Doshi is a piece of marvel in the film. I mean, how passionate can a guy get about his role in the film. Doshi, poised and calm, showed tremendous restraint during his act. Vasudha, played by Mona Ambegaonkar, carries off the conservative mother with elan! Her extreme love for her little boy, his confessions and later coming to terms with the situation with a prowesss of a tigress, is something to look out for. 

A movie par excellence! I give it an 8 out of 10! 

ANDHADHUN

Release date: 5 October 2018 (India)

Director: Sriram Raghavan

Box office: 431.53 crores INR

Budget: 32 crores INR

I sometimes wish I could be like Ayushmann Khurana. He is one talented actor who knows his work well, despite being in an industry of dynasts, who can survive even if they did a C grade movie. Ayushmanm has grown over the years and how. Every time, he makes that extra effort to portray a character, different from his previous and taking it on so realistically that we are almost in one with his character. 

In Andhadhun, he, Akash, is a piano-player, feigning to be blind. It is only when he is deliberately made blind by Simi, played by Tabu, that things get messy. Ayushmann plays his part to perfection. These days, I am amazed at the comeback of Tabu. The gracefulness with which she does things, keeps me in awe. She is looking prettier and sexier than what she did a decade or two back, stunning everyone with her elegant screen presence. 

What I liked about the film was that some things were best left for the audience to decipher. That’s the way it should be; not feed everything and letting the movie goers to unravel on their own. Otherwise, it is much like going to kindergarten school. 

I would have really liked Radhika Apte to play a longish role. But maybe, the story-writer had other things in mind. Radhika, with looks, talents et al, is a fantastic actor. I, for one, would love to see her more often. 

706

Initial release: 11 January 2019

Director: Shravan Kumar

A riveting story. Kept me glued to the screen. Though some things were very obvious. I wish story writers wouldn’t be as predictable as they turn out to be. But somehow, I felt that none of the actors overacted or were theatrical. Bollywood is getting better with the acts, especially in horror movies. Otherwise, Hindi horror movies were all about some weird fellow feigning as the bhoot; dressed in a furry coat, and the poor thing would have long teeth like an elephant and grunt all throughout trying to scare the daylights out of us! Or else, it would be a woman possessed by an evil spirit and the rest of the story follows, predictably. 

Here, I quite liked the role of the psychiatrist and the way she handles the disturbed patient, Rahul Bora, later even going to the extent of having a relationship with him, which is quite natural. However, the story at the end where she dies just to save the little boy from the spirit was a little over the top. 

Divya Dutta has always been one of my favourite actresses and she does every role with a passion unbeknownst to others. Here too, in 706, her calm and composed acting led the story through. Mohan Agashe, one actor I like, was gone in the blink of an eye. 

I quite liked the movie, though. A good Sunday entertainment. I give it a 8 out of 10.

MISSING

Description

Release date: 6 April 2018 (India)

Director: Mukul Abhyankar

Language: Hindi

Screenplay: Mukul Abhyankar

Producers: Anand Pandit, Shital Bhatia, Vikram Malhotra, Roopa Pandit

Description

Missing is a 2018 Indian Hindi-language psychological thriller film written & directed by Mukul Abhyankar, produced by Shital Bhatia, Shabana Raza Bajpayee, Vikram Malhotra, Shri Adhikari Brothers, Anand Pandit & Roopa Pandit and starring Tabu, Manoj Bajpayee and Annu Kapoor in the lead roles. 

Some people might not like the movie because of its slow pace and notoriously cryptic twists to the tale. But if you have the patience, then go through the film to see the finesse with which it has been written and made. The writer sure did a good job in keeping the people on the edge. The direction in screenplay  deserves a standing ovation as it drives you through a thrilling experience with actors Tabu and Manoj Bajpayee in tow. 

Tabu has made a successful comeback with quite a few films in her kitty. Her calm, composed presence was more of a welcome from the usual. Manoj is always doing his best, never giving people a chance to be critical. But he could have done better, if given the scope. 

Anu Kapoor carried out his part of a police officer with elan. But I would have preferred a different name for him. ‘Buddhu’ sounds as if there was more to the story than meets the eye. But then, you realise it is nothing of the sort.  

I loved the end of the story, where this old man comes looking for his daughter, ‘Titli’. That’s when we as an audience get more warped. Was it, was it not? What happened, exactly? Where is Titli? Who is the mother? Who is Titli? Was she really a living human? 

A movie to watch! 

MANMARZIYAAN

Release date: 14 September 2018 (India)

Director: Anurag Kashyap

Box office: 40.39 crores INR

Producers: Anurag Kashyap, Aanand L. Rai, Vikramaditya Motwane, Vikas Bahl, Madhu Mantena Varma, Kishore Lulla

Description

Rummi (Pannu) is a free-spirited young woman. She lives with her extended family in Punjab state, doing her best to be a good daughter. But youthful desires have led her to Vicky (Kaushal). With his impulsive nature and shock of dyed-blue hair, he's the excitement she wants right now. How long can they keep their trysts secret from her family?

I know it’s a bit too late to give a review. But I had to. Better late than never! 

Vicky Kaushal is anyway a superb actor. Every role that he does is done with so much passion that it shows. His on-screen presence is superb and very pointed. Vicky enacts his part to perfection and makes each of the roles his own. For me, I give him a 9 out of 10 in this film.

I was never a fan of Abhishek Bachchan, more so cause I thought his actions were pretty lame and he didn’t carry his role out with elan. However, in this film, he maintained a stance, which was totally admirable. I have never ever seen Abhishek in so much control of his act. At times, he got so real that it was difficult to decipher the real from the reel. I give Abhishek a 10 out of 10 in this film and a huge shout out to him for such great screen presence. 

All in all, a movie that Tapsi Pannu kept the audience at edge. An 8 out of 10. 

AQUAMAN

Description

Release date: 14 December 2018 (India)

Director: James Wan

Box office: 114.8 crores USD

Budget: $160–200 million

Production companies: Warner Bros., DC Entertainment Inc, DC Films, The Safran Company

Description

Once home to the most advanced civilization on Earth, the city of Atlantis is now an underwater kingdom ruled by the power-hungry King Orm. With a vast army at his disposal, Orm plans to conquer the remaining oceanic people -- and then the surface world. Standing in his way is Aquaman, Orm's half-human, half-Atlantean brother and true heir to the throne. With help from royal counselor Vulko, Aquaman must retrieve the legendary Trident of Atlan and embrace his destiny as protector of the deep.

A story chronicled to perfection. There’s so much in creativity and story-telling in the Aquaman that I kept wondering if I can ever think of scripting a movie of this stature. It’s for man to create every living second of their lives. 

With a screenplay by David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick and Will Beall, Aquaman is based on a story by Geoff Johns, Wan and Beall. To write a story of this stature and present it to the world must indeed be called a magnificent piece of art. 

We are but waiting for the next episode of this terrific film!