Taut screenplay, simple dialogues, excellent characterisation, admirable performances and perfect execution make Mysskin's Pisaasu a must watch, says S Saraswathi.
'The supernatural always trumps the natural,' notes Amulya Ganguli.
Every film that Sriram Raghavan makes is a compendium of ideas and sensations that tickle him. Trying to remake a Sriram Raghavan film is like getting excited by somebody else's goosebumps, observes Sreehari Nair.
Bollywood has given us quite a few suspense tales before, and many of them have done well at the box office.
'There is no way you can view the movie from a distance, from a moral high ground, and get to its core.' 'To truly appreciate what Anurag Kashyap is trying to do here, you may have to lose a part of yourself to it, first,' says Sreehari Nair.
Remembering an incomparable actor by re-visiting his finest films.
'What Super 30 really wants to say is Hrithik Roshan can be an action hero without showing off his sculpted torso,' says Sukanya Verma.
If you think the film is gutsy, you are simply being blind to the truth that the whole men-are-worthless slant is saleable right now, argues Sreehari Nair.
Rajiv Raj tells you why a store credit card is not a good idea, even though you are tempted with extra 'savings' of 10 per cent on your purchase or a 5 per cent cash back or a 'sign on bonus'.
'If questioning and dethroning hierarchies is your primary motive, why not put an end to the practice of announcing your shining star, your box office draw, in big flaming letters and mentioning everyone else's name in small font at the bottom of the screen?' asks Sreehari Nair.
Don't bother with 47 Ronin if you've already seen the 2:31 minute trailer, the rest of the 116.69 minutes can be ignored, writes Paloma Sharma.
Major parties and leaders strongly condemned the terrorist attack in Uri.
Saluting Amjad Khan on his death anniversary on July 27.
A mostly watchable thriller, Jazbaa is marred by its director Sanjay Gupta's penchant for excesses, feels Sukanya Verma.
'The similarities between the blockbusting Avengers: Endgame and Election 2019 cannot be starker. So who plays who?' asks Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
Malayalam film audiences, who had spent close to two decades waiting for something truly interesting to watch at the movies, seem to be finally getting their due.
'Ludicrous they might be, but they are not without threats -- much like letters that appear suddenly in homes of those opposing the government.' 'One must exercise some caution before believing in them,' says Uttaran Das Gupta.
The greatest progress on civil rights in the United States since Abraham Lincoln was under the Southern Democrat Lyndon Johnson, the past master of wheeling and dealing in Congress.
Bajatey Raho had a whole lot of potential but failed to realise it, writes Paloma Sharma.
Bajaatey Raho had a whole lot of potential but failed to realise it, writes Paloma Sharma.
'We are completely engaged in fighting poverty; alas, our neighbour Pakistan seems only engaged in fighting us.'
Whether we flew aircraft or mastered plastic surgery is immaterial for modern India, what matters is if ancient Indians understood the science and art of settlement planning, architecture and governance of natural resources. This is the history we need to learn, says Sunita Narain
'The people of India have not only challenged the ruling dispensation with the constitution, they have also opened the eyes of the leadership that sits in the Opposition.'
We celebrate the brilliant actor by looking back at his classic works.
Things are off to a good start when a lead movie character appears for the first time against strategic music or swaggering drama and the audience bursts into wholehearted whistles and applause.
'As the film progresses, you tire of the been-there seen-that spectacle.' 'You want a story. You want good dialogue, not the corny words you are hearing.' 'You want an emotional connect. You want a tighter film.' 'Sadly, with Padmaavat, that's not what you get,' says Savera R Someshwar.
Every time a filmmaker wishes to explore history or religion on his or her terms, self-appointed experts and limelight-seeking zealots swoop in to protest, says Sukanya Verma.
Hindi cinema seems readier than society to focus on women. It is not just rape one is talking about, though an act of rape and its consequent injustice unfolds most narratives. Suddenly women are central not just as problematic but as possibility, as agency, as alternative, feels Shiv Visvanathan.
'What has hit me between the eyes is Modi's seeming utter contempt for public perception of the yogi being an unrepentant bigot who also carries the baggage of many criminal cases against him,' says B S Raghavan, the distinguished civil servant.
Siva Sankar looks at S P Balasubrahmanyam's fantastic repertoire.
20 years ago this week, India and Australia played one of the greatest Test matches in cricket history. Sreehari Nair relives the sound and the fury of that unforgettable game at the Eden Gardens.
'She preserved national unity against great odds.'
Ever thought if Bollywood actors are capable of playing these roles?
A round-up of our favourite photographs from the week gone by.
'Love Sonia is a motion picture with the ambitions of a novel.' 'When I walked out of Love Sonia this Monday night, I walked out with a hushed audience that seemed too overcome by the raw power of the film to even pause for applause,' notes Sreehari Nair.
'Kader Khan could be horribly intimidating, impossibly silly, achingly human and, sometimes, all at once.' 'I was drawn to his magic and magnetism even when I didn't know he was behind it,' recalls Sukanya Verma.
On Ramesh Sippy's 70th birthday, we celebrate the man and his milestones.
'This is a movie made with this gaze fixed on its immediate well-wishers, while at the same time it squints hard looking for those swaying back and forth on the fence,' notes Rohit Sathish Nair.
Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens 'can be likened, in essence, to a new Salman Khan actioner where the core audience goes in with a checklist knowing they'll get some cheeky dialogue, some trite punchlines, an item song and one eventually shirtless fight scene,' says Raja Sen.
