Section: Movies

Teddy Review: A Terrible Gag of a Film

BY Aditya Shrikrishna On

Director: Shakti Soundar Rajan

Cast: Arya, Sayyeshaa, Magizh Thirumeni, Masoom Shankar, Yogi Babu, Sakshi Agarwal

The funniest gag in Shakti Soundar Rajan‘s Teddy is something of an unironic accomplishment. Its log line is based on Seth Macfarlane’s Ted, which had a talking teddy bear as Mark Wahlberg’s buddy, its disposition somewhat at odds with its adult character.

In Teddy, the writer-director does away with the heroine’s character and transfers it to the talking teddy bear. This is not only funny but also revitalises the Tamil cinema trend of having a cutesy, saccharine woman lead who has earned the tag of loosu ponnu, present in the film solely as the romantic interest with no connect to the larger plot or the male lead’s main purpose.

In Teddy, Shri (Sayyeshaa) is kidnapped in a hospital and a bunch of doctors who speak in WhatsApp forward language get her into medically-induced coma when her soul is transferred into a teddy bear. The teddy finds its (her?) way to our hero Shiva, (Arya, whose muscles we can see but they don’t twitch even a little?), who is given a superpower. Scratch that, several superpowers. Apparently he has photographic memory and can finish whole degrees in months and is obsessive about cleanliness and time. He knows the stock market in and out, claims to be a psychiatrist without the degrees and certificates, dives for fun and trained in martial arts, rifle shooting and can even work the crossbow.  He dresses in plain colours with matching handkerchiefs. The word that came to my mind is “incel” but let’s not go there.

The superhero is established as the saviour and the teddy looks cute, acts cute and speaks cute. It’s the perfect solution to every male Tamil cinema director sitting with a script and thinking long and hard about the romantic interest and how to write her into the film. Shakti strikes gold. He removes her completely, uses her as plot device and transfers her soul into the teddy bear, someone the superhero can both make use of and save in the end. Genius! The woman actor now gets the same screen time as before but there is something unique about the “idea” of her. She’s actually instrumental to the whole plot. But that’s as interesting (or uninteresting, discouraging even, depending on how you want to look at it) as Teddy gets.

The rest of the film overuses Shiva’s superpowers without any of the thrill associated with a superhero film. Shiva reads Bharathiyar, Hitler, Ayn Rand and Paulo Coelho. He seems to have taught some to Shri, the teddy quotes both Bharathiyar and Vadivelu.

Everything in Teddy takes the easy route, like instead of a script, the filmmaker wanted to create a decent meme. There are jokes about Arya and Sayyeshaa – who are married to each other in real life and a comment on Arya’s stint in Enga Veetu Mapillai, the Tamil version of The Bachelor. I wondered if Shakti exchanged any notes with director Magizh Thirumeni – making his acting debut here – who knows a thing or two about crafting an effective thriller. A fight and parkour scene could have been staged far better and though things happen in second half, nothing unpredictable crops up.

At one point, Shiva talks about “out of body experience”. I hope Shakti didn’t have any such misconceptions about this film.

Teddy had an OTT release on Hotstar but if these were normal times, an out of theatre experience could have been a real possibility.

****

The Teddy review is a Silverscreen original article. It was not paid for or commissioned by anyone associated with the film. Silverscreenindia.com and its writers do not have any commercial relationship with movies that are reviewed on the site.

Snoop Dogg, La La Anthony and Serayah Join Cast of ‘Black Mafia Family’

BY Shrija Ganguly On

Snoop Dogg, La La Anthony, and Serayah have joined the cast of Curtis ’50 Cent’ Jackson’s Starz drama Black Mafia Family, Deadline reported on Thursday. While the American rapper will be seen playing the role of a pastor, the two actors will be seen in recurring guest roles.

Black Mafia Family is produced through Jackson’s G-Unit Film and Television in association with Starz and Lionsgate Television. The series, that has been in the pipeline since 2018 and was signed as a multi-series deal, began filming in Atlanta and Detroit in January.

According to Deadline, the series is inspired by the true story of two brothers who rose from the decaying streets of southwest Detroit in the late 1980’s and gave birth to one of the most influential crime families in this country. Demetrius “Big Meech” Flenory’s (Flenory Jr) charismatic leadership, Terry “Southwest T” Flenory’s (Da’Vinchi) business acumen and the fraternal partnership’s vision beyond the drug trade and into the world of Hip Hop would render the brothers iconic on a global level.

The series is about love, kinship and capitalism in the pursuit of the American dream.

Snoop Dogg will play Pastor Swift, the Flenory family’s spiritual advisor. La La Anthony will play Markaisha Taylor, the wife of a flamboyant drug dealer that Meech and Terry befriend. Serayah will play Demetrius Flenory’s girlfriend, Lori Walker, a college athlete who is also the mother of his child, Neeka.

Apart from being the writer, Randy Huggins will also serve as the executive producer along with Jackson. Directors who will helm different episodes include Tasha Smith, Terri Kopp, Anthony Wilson, and Anne Clements.

Deadline had earlier reported that Michole Briana White, Ajiona Alexus, Eric Kofi-Abrefa, and Myles Truitt will also feature in the series. While White plays the mother of Demetrius and Terry, Alexis will play the corner girl in their crew. Abrefa will be seen as one of the threats to the brothers and Truitt will be another source of friction.

‘Laabam’ Director SP Jananathan Falls Ill at Home, Admitted to ICU in Critical Condition

BY Anusha Sundar On

SP Jananathan, the Tamil filmmaker whose directorial debut Iyarkai (2003) won a National Film Award, was admitted to the ICU ward in Apollo Hospital in Chennai after he became unwell at his residence on Thursday evening.

Jananathan had been working on the post-production of his Tamil film Laabam, starring Vijay Sethupathi and Shruti Haasan.

The film’s assistant director Balaji told Silverscreen India that Jananathan was working on editing at his office near his home.

“After finishing the editing work, he had gone to his home for a lunch break. Sometime later, one of the assistants at the office got a call from him, asking him to come immediately. When we reached there, he was vomiting and sweating. He later fell unconscious. We called the ambulance and took him to his doctor at the BSS hospital in Mandaveli [Chennai]. This was around 4 pm to 5 pm,” he said.

Balaji said that Janathan was taken to Apollo Hospital on his doctor’s advice.

“He is in a critical condition, a few specialised doctors are expected to attend to him. Blood circulation to the brain has stopped. He is still unconscious, but has not slipped into a coma. We are expecting neuro specialists to come anytime soon,” he said.

Balaji said that the post-production works of Laabam were in the final stages when the filmmaker fell ill.

Sethupathy, and filmmakers Ameer and Karu Palaniappan visited the hospital, while several people wished Janathan a speedy recovery on social media.

The 61-year-old filmmaker has also directed the 2009 Tamil action-drama Peranmai and the 2015 sports action Tamil film Bhooloham, both starring Jayam Ravi.

The Priest Review: Mammootty’s Thriller is Partly Effective Despite the Clichés

BY Aswathy Gopalakrishnan On

Director: Jofin T Chacko

Cast:Mammootty, Manju Warrier, Baby Monica, Nikhila Vimal, Saniya Iyappan

Warning: There are spoilers

The protagonist of debut director Jofin T Chacko’s The Priest is a psychic, Carmen Benedict (Mammootty), who solves crimes as a pastime. Dressed in black robes and a chic hat, the man, along with his canine companion, visits crime scenes with a friend, a top police official. It must be an unusual sight, but in the film’s universe, nobody bats an eyelid. He speaks to prime witnesses and kin of the dead. He combs through the murdered person’s house and the compound for clues. Nobody questions his credentials.

Inserting the psychic who’s a Christian priest by profession liberally into the legal fold is the film’s way of validating him. The guy isn’t a looney who claims to speak to spirits but a learned individual who can be relied on. The first case that comes to the priest, a series of mysterious suicides in a wealthy family, acts as a frame to hold the next, a bigger and more challenging one that involves an angry spirit and exorcism.

Although The Priest isn’t a genre-bending work like Hereditary or Get Out, Jofin deserves a pat on the back for doing an impressive job of blending the elements of a conventional crime drama and a supernatural thriller. He creates a texture of brooding quite early on, through which the narrative slides from one genre to another.

There are cinematic cliches, the usual horror gimmicks aplenty. When the camera starts to track a character, you know the shot will end in a jump scare. In the latter half,  the characters move into a sprawling colonial mansion in a hill station reminiscent of the Western horror thrillers from where the film draws inspiration. Interiors are always dimly lit, often unreasonably so, to evoke a sense of distress. At critical moments, a vulnerable character is left alone in the house to be spooked out by the supernatural presence. One might wonder why, despite the long history of horror literature and cinema, people continue to make that mistake. There is no sign of human settlement anywhere around the house. So, the SOS calls are always made to the priest and not to the police.

Jofin, nevertheless, applies the cliches with a firm hand, never going over the top with them. Despite the scene of exorcism, religion isn’t a prominent element in the film. It isn’t about God and the devil, but human beings and the dead who aren’t ready to abandon their human self.

The film’s central conflict arises from Ameya (Baby Monica), a little girl who lives in an orphanage run by a Christian nunnery. A lot of the film’s suspense elements is attached to the child’s ambiguous parentage. Posing an abandoned child as an instrument of horror is another cinematic cliche, a critically problematic one. Ameya is strange-mannered and anti-social that has earned her a bad reputation among her school teachers. When she accidentally becomes the prime witness in a high-profile murder case, Benedict’s eyes fall on her, and he spots what no one else could ﹣an evil shadow lurking beneath her exterior.

The tale of two sisters narrated in the film’s most pivotal flashback is a pile of familiar elements, devoid of depth or novelty. Although it is hinted in the final scene that it was the elder sister’s compulsive urge to act as a guardian to the little one that caused the havoc, the film fails to delve deeper into her inner conflicts. The movie’s finale is a slew of twists set up to grab eyeballs, none of them powerful enough to shake up the viewer.

Monica is a fine actor who switches from controlled acting to being over-the-top (as required) seamlessly. Nikhila Vimal delivers a strong performance as Jessie, a kind young woman who takes Ameya under her wings.

In his last theatrical release Shylock (2020), Mammootty delivered a grotesquely theatrical performance as a loan shark. In The Priest, his second film in the horror genre, the actor keeps everything toned down. In crucial scenes, he lets his co-stars take over and resigns to the role of a spectator. This artistic choice or the result of the actor’s passive approach to the film produces mixed results. On the one hand, his performance helps bring the spooks close to the real world. And the megastar gets no self-referential lines or an action scene forced into the narrative.

One the other hand, thanks to the screenplay that gives him no persuasive moment or a behavioural feature, Mammootty’s Benedict is prone to be forgotten. One could say the same about the film too. The chills are short-lived. The subtext too bland. What is a horror drama worth if it offers the viewers nothing to take home?

****

The Priest review is a Silverscreen original article. It was not paid for or commissioned by anyone associated with the film. Silverscreenindia.com and its writers do not have any commercial relationship with movies that are reviewed on the site.

Academy Museum to be Inaugurated on September 30, Virtual Programs to be Held from April

BY Shrija Ganguly On

The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles will be inaugurated on September 30, it announced, and added that virtual programs will start from April 22, from around the time of the Oscars.

Jacqueline Stewart, chief artistic and programming officer of the Academy Museum, said, “We have been hard at work preparing the Academy Museum and are ready to welcome visitors first virtually and then in person in September.”

The virtual programs will include panel discussions with film industry leaders, gallery tours, screenings, workshops, and educational offerings for families and students will illuminate the world of the movies to people of all ages, backgrounds, and areas of interest. The reach of programs will be extended worldwide through the Academy Museum’s website and social media channels, as per the Academy’s statement.

“The programs we are rolling out for our opening are dynamic, diverse, and deeply grounded in the history and artistry of filmmaking. Whether they are recognising Hollywood legends, delving into the working process of film professionals, or addressing issues of race, gender, sexuality and inequity that run through film history, these programs will use the power of movies and stories of filmmakers to open eyes and minds,” Stewart said.

The pre-opening program ‘Breaking the Oscars Ceiling’, will be a conversation hosted by Academy Museum trustee Diane von Furstenberg and moderated by Stewart, who will be speaking with women like Whoopi Goldberg, Sophia Loren, Marlee Matlin, and Buffy Sainte Marie, who achieved historic Oscars milestones.

Additional pre-opening virtual programs include conversations with the cast and crew of certain films to relive the production, with filmmakers and artists like Spike Lee, discussions on activism and films and so on.

These will be carried out through screenings such as ‘Oscar Sundays’, galleries and exhibitions like ‘Branch Selects’, ‘Filmmakers Inspiration’, ‘Preservation Spotlights’, ‘Retrospectives’, and ‘Shorts in the Geffen’.

The educational programs will include sessions on films as a medium of discussion, the work of Black VFX artists, and introducing families to Japanese animation director Hayao Miyazaki’s works.

“The museum will present all of Miyazaki’s features in both Japanese with English subtitles and with English dubbing, as well as additional series exploring the worlds, ideas and stories created by this master filmmaker,” the statement read.

The screenings will be held at the 1,000-seat David Geffen Theater and 288-seat Ted Mann Theater.

To celebrate film history, studio activities, community programs, and guided-tours will be conducted for families offering insights on the core collection, exhibitions, art installations, and the Academy Museum’s architectural design.

The museum website will be activated on April 22 where all the information regarding the screenings and the accommodative tours will be available.

Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Nick Jonas will be announcing the Oscar nominations for all categories on March 15. The Academy Award is scheduled to be held on April 26.

Bhramam: Ahaana Krishna Not Part of the Film, Makers Say Issue Not Political

BY Namrata Ganguly On

Ahaana Krishna, the Malayalam actor known for Luca and Pathinettam Padi and daughter of Malayalam actor and BJP leader Krishna Kumar, is not a part of the upcoming Malayalam film Bhramam starring Prithviraj Sukumaran. The makers clarified on Tuesday that the issue was not political.

Bhramam, starring Sukumaran and Raashi Khanna in the lead roles along with  Mamta Mohandas, is the Malayalam remake for the 2018 Hindi black comedy crime thriller film Andhadhun. The film wrapped up shooting on March 6.

Following rumours of Krishna not being a part of the film because of political reasons, the makers of Bhramam, Open Book Productions issued a statement clarifying the same on Tuesday.

The executive producers of the film said that they “categorically deny political affiliations or any other considerations had anything to do with the casting and choice of technicians of the film”.

The makers mentioned in the statement that the decision of casting and selection of the crew members are taken by the creative team of directors, DOP, writers and producers.

“Any changes were as per the demand of the script and also with the consent of Team Bhramam,” the statement read.

Affirming the fact that Krishna was initially considered for the film, they said that they had mentioned that the final decision will be taken after the costume trial and look-test.

The Bhramam makers stated that they had clearly mentioned that despite making advanced payments, she was forbidden from announcing that she might be a part of the film. But there were news articles regarding the same which the makers clarified was not from their side.

Eventually, the camera testing got delayed, which the makers claimed that Krishna was working on another film and post that she had tested positive for Covid-19. Later, when they performed the photo shoot, the creative team “felt she won’t fit the character which we communicated to her and even apologised for the inconvenience and assured her we would work together again”.

Ahaana Krishna Photoshoot Stills

Ahaana Krishna Photoshoot Stills

The makers claimed that Krishna was informed and aware of all the steps involved and expected that she “won’t blame us for there being any politics in this”.

“As professionals with more than a combined experience of 100 years in cinema we believe and take all precautions that the art of cinema should be untouched by discrimination based on cast, creed, colour, gender, religion or politics,” the makers clarified.

Open Book Productions expressed “deep pain” regarding the assumptions made about Bhramam and expressed “regret” about the crew members and lead actors being drawn into the issue.

Clarifying that the crew members or the actors had “absolutely nothing to do with casting decisions of Bhramam”, the makers categorically emphasised that Sukumaran was not involved in any of the decision or process.

“Keep me out of it, I am not even in the picture. I have not blamed anyone; whatever is being said in this drama is some other people’s opinion,” Ahaana wrote on her Instagram story on Tuesday.

Andhadhun starred Ayushmann Khurrana, Radhika Apte, Tabu in the lead roles, along with Anil Dhawan in a pivotal role. Andhadhun was adapted from a 2010 French short film L’Accordeur (The Piano Tuner).

Khurrana played the role of Aakash, a pianist, who faked being blind to improve his piano skills, while Apte played the role of Sophie, his love interest. In a strange twist of events, Aakash witnesses a crime and soon gets further entangled in a bizarre series of problems.

In Bhramam, Prithviraj will be stepping into the role of Khurrana, while Khanna will be playing the role of Apte. Mohandas will be playing Tabu’s role.

Amitabh Bachchan to be Conferred With International Federation of Film Archives Award

BY Anindita Banerjee On

Amitabh Bachchan, the veteran Hindi actor, will be honoured with an award by the International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF), the organisation announced on Thursday.

Bachchan will be the first Indian actor to be bestowed with the FIAF Award for his “dedication and contribution to the preservation of, and access to, the world’s film heritage for the benefit of present and future generations” the press release noted.

Hollywood filmmakers and previous recipients of the FIAF Award — Martin Scorsese and Christopher Nolan — will present the award to Bachchan during a virtual showcase scheduled to take place on March 19.

Frederic Maire, FIAF president, said in the statement that this year the organisation is celebrating the 20th anniversary of its annual award, and thus to mark this milestone, “there could be no better recipient than one of the world’s greatest movie stars”.

“By presenting our prestigious FIAF Award to Amitabh Bachchan, we want to show the world how rich and diverse, but also how fragile, this unique film heritage is, and we want to publicly thank Mr. Bachchan for his role as a high-profile advocate for the rescue of this heritage, in India and beyond,” he added.

Bachchan’s name was nominated by the FIAF affiliate Film Heritage Foundation, a non-profit organisation founded by filmmaker and archivist Shivendra Singh Dungarpur. The organisation is dedicated to the preservation, restoration, documentation, exhibition, and study of India’s film heritage.

Talking about the award, Bachchan said that he is honoured to receive the award for a cause he is “deeply committed to”.

“It was when I became the ambassador of Film Heritage Foundation in 2015, that I realised the extent of the neglect and colossal loss of our precious film heritage and how we continue to lose more of our legacy every day. Recognising the urgency of the situation, I have been working closely with Film Heritage Foundation since its inception to do everything in our power to save our films and to build a movement for film preservation in our part of the world,” he added in the statement.

Photo Credit – FIAF website

The Film Foundation, set up in 1990, has helped to restore over 900 films from 25 countries, which are available to the public once again through festivals, museums, and educational institutions.

Scorsese, one of the Film Foundation’s board of directors, said in the statement that Bachchan’s “advocacy for preserving India’s film legacy has been exceptional”.

Nolan, who is a member of the American National Film Preservation Board, said it is imperative that representatives of the film industry come together to ensure the preservation of film heritage. “I want to congratulate Amitabh Bachchan on receiving the 2021 honour. As the ambassador for Film Heritage Foundation, he has played an essential role in putting the cause of film preservation on the map in India and the subcontinent,” he said.

The statement mentioned that Bachchan has helped in preserving celluloid prints of his own productions and the ones he has acted in “immaculately in an air-conditioned vault at his residence over the years to frequently appealing to the government and film fraternity to come forward to contribute in saving India’s film legacy”.

Previous recipients include legends of world cinema such as Scorsese (2001), Manoel de Oliveira (2002), Ingmar Bergman (2003), Geraldine Chaplin (2004), Mike Leigh (2005), Hou Hsiao-hsien (2006), Peter Bogdanovich (2007), Nelson Pereira dos Santos (2008), Rithy Panh (2009), Liv Ullmann (2010), Kyoko Kagawa (2011), Agnès Varda (2013), Jan Švankmajer (2014), Yervant Gianikian and Angela Ricci Lucchi (2015), Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne (2016), Christopher Nolan (2017), Apichatpong Weerasethakul (2018), Jean-Luc Godard (2019), and Walter Salles (2020).

Chehre Teaser Starring Amitabh Bachchan, Emraan Hashmi

Chehre also stars Annu Kapoor, Krystle D’Souza, Drithiman Chatterjee, Raghubir Yadav and Siddhanth Kapoor.

The film is set to release in cinemas on 9th April 2021.
Co-Producers – WG CDR Ramesh Pulapaka, Vaishal Shah, Kumar Mangat Pathak, Romanchak Arora
Written by – Ranjit Kapoor
Screenplay & Dialogues – Ranjit Kapoor & Rumy Jafry
DOP – Binod Pradhan
Editor – Bodhaditya Banerjee
Music – Gourov Dasgupta
Associate Producer – Aish Pandit
Executive Producer – Dharmendra Rawal
Sound Designer – Resul Pookutty (CAS, MPSE)
Publicity Design – Marching Ants
Production Designer – Priya Suhass
Action Director – Abbas Ali Moghul
Costume Designer – Shivank Vikram Kapoor
Casting Director – Mukesh Chabbra. CSA
DI – Prime Focus
VFX – Redefine
Media Consustant – Parag Desai
Visual Promotion – Siddharth Pande
Marketing – Neeta Shah
Digital Marketing Agency – Unimedia

Kuthiraivaal Review: Down the Rabbit Hole

BY Aditya Shrikrishna On

Director: Manoj Leonel Jahson, Shyam Sunder

Cast: Kalaiyarasan, Anjali Patil, Chetan

You simply cannot slot Kuthiraivaal. The Tamil film directed by Manoj Leonel Jahson and Shyam Sunder and produced by Pa Ranjith’s Neelam Productions and Yaazhi Films, screened at Berlin Critics’ Week after its premiere at IFFK. Written by G Rajesh and starring Kalaiyarasan, Anjali Patil and Chetan, the film takes us on a journey.

We hear water dripping over the opening credits. We are inside Saravanan’s (or is he Freud?) – Kalaiyarasan is wonderfully stumped throughout – dream. And then there is a splash (someone jumped into a pool?) and he wakes up. He squirms only to find out that he has a horse tail. Saravanan squirms a lot. The tail makes him squirm when he thinks, he claims. Is that what we feel too? Every time we try to guess what the film is about, we fidget in our seats trying to make sense of the film. We reach a dreamland where a soothsaying grandmother tells Saravanan that he needs to get back into the dream to figure out the meaning of the tail.

So, we dive into Kuthiraivaal. This is the most audacious debut in Tamil cinema since Thiagarajan Kumararaja’s Aaranya Kandam. And like Thiagarajan’s films, Kuthiraivaal too contains vivid colours and imaginative framing.

Manoj and Shyam are similarly ultra-concerned about the spatial detailing in their shots (Karthik Muthukumar’s cinematography evokes the phantasmagoria they go for). Stained glass and wavy figures define Saravanan’s flat and even the world outside the window with trains screeching on the tracks (sound design by Anthony Ruban; background score by Pradeep Kumar and Maarten Visser) and a subway passing look two dimensional, as if they were painted on. This is really a dream-like universe (but it is also only West Mambalam; maybe the joke is you cannot find a more vanilla part of Chennai). A moon shines larger than the sun and a medieval sculpture of a woman in trance sits next to his bed, a spot Vaanavil/van Gogh (Anjali Patil) – or is she Irusaayi – occupies later in the film.

At least you could fit Thiagarajan’s films into a popular genre, while Kuthiraivaal plays fast and loose with its form and structural integrity. It never settles into a coherent narrative, Saravanan’s thoughts literalised can be a bother and this is by design. In many sequences, it recalls a low-key brand of Jodorowsky surrealism. Jodorowsky in a Tamil film? “Get outta here!” is an appropriate reaction.

The camera pans and we move from Mambalam to somewhere deep in the woods. A single take in Saravanan’s home tracks Saravanan and Babu (Chetan) drinking and not conversing. Saravanan is sitting on a stool, turned sideways. Babu is in front of him and talking to Saravanan as if he is looking straight into Babu’s eyes. The mirrors are playful, they show a vast expanse of Saravanan’s flat, disproportionate to its tiny measurements. Dutch angles give us a slanted scene of the world, where reality and illusion intermingle. But that’s how it is beginning to end.

The name drops span the gamut – Jacques Lacan to Barry Fitzgerald. Saravanan’s former professor is so obsessed with mathematics that he refuses to share his name at the bank where Saravanan is a teller. “Isn’t it all numbers now, PAN card to account number, what’s in a name?”, he questions. But Saravanan drops his name. And what names! Stuart Koteeswaran and Kowski Krupakaran. The tellers of this story give us no details, the characters talk in non sequitur. The professor works out of a decrepit basement that contains what looks like Penrose stairs. One moment Saravanan is slowly climbing up to get out of the dungeon and in the very next he is back inside.

All of this doesn’t make Kuthiraivaal inaccessible. The film is replete with the Tamil cinema references that keep you guessing about the time, place and the question – which is the illusion? We hear snatches from Parasakthi court scene, dialogs from Ratha Kanneer, music from Anbe Vaa. MGR’s aura looms over the film like a tsunami about to make landfall – there is even a reference to MR Radha and MGR shooting incident. How is MGR connected to Saravanan? Where is Saravanan from and why is the film full of incomplete treatises on Hinduism, virgin birth, not to mention the prayers from a mosque in one scene. Or the Buddha on the bedside table. Is the film about identity? Gender? Religion?

The film is within reach but the closer we get, farther it moves away from us. Not that all of it comes together neatly but Manoj, Shyam and Rajesh have enough astonishing elements packed. Sometimes, it is not about how good or bad the film is. Kuthiraivaal takes wild swings, gambling with the audience. What’s not to like?

****

The Kuthiraivaal review is a Silverscreen original article. It was not paid for or commissioned by anyone associated with the film. Silverscreenindia.com and its writers do not have any commercial relationship with movies that are reviewed on the site.

Toofaan: Farhan Akhtar Starrer Sports Drama to Premiere on Amazon Prime Video on May 21

BY Anusha Sundar On

Toofaan, the upcoming Hindi sports drama film starring actor Farhan Akhtar as a national-level boxer, will premiere on Amazon Prime Video on May 21, the streaming platform announced in a press release on Wednesday.

Toofan is directed by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra. 

The film is produced by Akhtar and producer Ritesh Sidhwani under the banner Excel Entertainment in association with Mehra’s ROMP Pictures banner.

Apart from Akhtar, the film also features actors Mrunal Thakur, Paresh Rawal, Supriya Pathak Kapur, and Hussain Dalal.

Sidhwani said Toofaan will be “inspirational” and said that the film presents “the story of a goon from the streets of Dongri [port area in Mumbai’s Thane] set against the backdrop of boxing, his fall and triumphant comeback against all odds in life.”

Vijay Subramaniam, director and head content, Amazon Prime Video, said in a press release, “The film is an engaging and inspiring tale of the power of perseverance and following ones’ passions against all odds.”

The film marks the second collaboration between Akhtar and Mehra. Their previous outing, biographical drama Bhaag Milkha Bhaag (2013), was also a sports-based drama where Akhtar essayed the role of former field sprinter Milkha Singh. The film was critically acclaimed and performed well at the box office.

Speaking about the collaboration, Mehra said that their previous collaboration helped him to ascertain Akhtar as Toofaan’s protagonist. “The best thing about him is that he does not act the part, but lives it completely. Toofaan is a story that will motivate and inspire all of us to get out of comfort zones and fight towards achieving our dreams.”

Toofaan started its shooting in August 2019 and it was wrapped up before the Covid-19 pandemic-induced lockdown was imposed in India from March 2020.

‘Black Widow’ to Release in Theatres on May 7, Announces Walt Disney

BY Namrata Ganguly On

Black Widow, Marvel Studios’ upcoming American superhero film starring Scarlett Johansson, will release in theatres on May 7, announced Walt Disney during its annual shareholder’s meeting held virtually on Tuesday.

The announcement came along with the news of Disney+ surpassing 100 million subscribers since its launch in November 2019.

“The enormous success of Disney+, which has now surpassed 100 million subscribers, has inspired us to be even more ambitious, and to significantly increase our investment in the development of high-quality content. In fact, we set a target of 100+ new titles per year, and this includes Disney Animation, Disney Live-Action, Marvel, Star Wars, and National Geographic. Our direct-to-consumer business is the company’s top priority, and our robust pipeline of content will continue to fuel its growth,” Bob Chapek, Walt Disney’s chief executive officer said in the meeting.

Black Widow, the spy-thriller film, is one of the major films among several others slated to release this year. Black Widow is the 24th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) which is based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Directed by Cate Shortland and written by Eric Pearson from a story by Jac Schaeffer and Ned Benson, the film is set after the 2016 feature film Captain America: Civil War where Natasha Romanoff aka Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) “quests between the films Civil War and Infinity War“.

Another upcoming American romantic musical drama film West Side Story, directed and co-produced by Steven Spielberg, an adaptation of the 1957 Broadway musical of the same name is also set to have a theatrical release on December 10. The film was initially supposed to release on December 18, 2020, but due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Disney had delayed the release to December 10 2021, the 60th anniversary of the release of the first adaptation film in 1961.

Photo Source: Star Wars Official Poster, Loki Official Look

Since the launch of Disney+ in November 2020, the platform has premiered several series such as The Mandalorian, WandaVision, Raya and the Last Dragon, Muppets Now, Marvel’s 616.

During the 2021 Television Critics Association Winter Press Tour, Disney+ announced the premiere dates of several new series and new seasons, including Marvel Studios’ Loki, Star Wars: The Bad Batch, and the second season of the High School Musical: The Musical series.

On the occasion of Walt Disney’s Investor Day in December 2020, Disney+ announced plans to release approximately 10 Star Wars series and 10 Marvel series, along with 15 Disney live-action, Disney Animation, and Pixar series. It had also announced that the subscription fee for Disney+ will be increased by a dollar from $6.99 to $7.99 per month from March 26, 2021. With Disney+ planning to release more than 100 titles per year, the company said that the Disney Bundle (with Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+) would be priced at $13.99 per month, up from its current price of $12.99 per month.

During the shareholders meeting, Chapek also mentioned that the Walt Disney Company won five Golden Globe Awards 2021— Nomadland (Hulu) won Best Motion Picture Award for Drama while Chloe Zhao won the Best Director Award, animated film Soul (Disney+) won the Best Animated Film Award and the Best Original Score, Andra Day won the Best Actress Award for her film The United States vs Billie Holiday (Hulu).

Director Karthik Subbaraj’s Next Film with Chiyaan Vikram and Dhruv Vikram Goes on Floors

BY Anindita Banerjee On

Director Karthik Subbaraj announced on Twitter on Wednesday that his upcoming film starring Vikram and his son Dhruv Vikram has started shooting. The director also announced that the latest person to join this film was music director Santhosh Narayanan.

Earlier, music composer Anirudh Ravichander was brought on board for the film’s music, but has now been replaced by Narayanan. In his tweet, Subbaraj thanked Ravichander for his understanding and support.

Narayanan has previously worked with Subbaraj in Pizza, Jigarthanda, Iraivi, and the upcoming Jagame Thandhiram.

The film is temporarily titled Chiyaan 60 and is being produced by Lalit Kumar of Seven Screen Studio. Announced in June 2020, the film’s first look poster showed a man’s hand handing over a gun to a child.

While not much has been announced about the cast and crew of Chiyaan 60, Simran announced on Twitter that she was a part of this project. Sharing some pictures, she wrote that she was “super glad to join the dynamic father-son duo”.

It is also being said that Vani Bhojan will be seen playing the other female lead. Reported to be a gangster drama, Chiyaan 60 is expected to release later this year or early next year.

This film will also mark the first time on-screen collaboration of the real-life father-son duo, Chiyaan Vikram and Dhruv Vikram.

Dhruv Vikram was earlier seen in his debut film Adithya Varma (2019). The film, which was a remake of the Telugu film Arjun Reddy, didn’t do very well at the box office. The actor also has a Tamil film in the pipeline with filmmaker Mari Selvaraj.

Chiyaan was last seen in Kadaram Kondan. He also has Ajay Gnanamuthu’s Cobra and he is also working on RS Vimal’s Mahavir Karna and Mani Rathnam’s Ponniyin Selvan. 

Subbaraj is currently awaiting the release of Jagame Thandhiram, starring Dhanush in the lead role.

BAFTA 2021 Nominations: ‘The White Tiger’s Adarsh Gourav Nominated for Best Actor

BY Shrija Ganguly On

The British Academy Film and Television Awards (BAFTA) on Tuesday released the list of nominations for its 74th edition of film awards scheduled to be held in April. Priyanka Chopra Jonas‘s The White Tiger received two nominations, including in the leading actor category for Adarsh Gourav, and for best adapted screenplay.

The White Tiger, directed by Ramin Bahrani, is the only Indian film to have received a nomination. Both Chopra Jonas and Gourav took to social media to announce the same.

Gourav is nominated alongside Riz Ahmed (Sound Of Metal), late Chadwick Boseman (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom) who posthumously received both the Golden Globe Award and the Critics Choice Award, Anthony Hopkins (The Father), Mads Mikkelsen, (Another Round) and Tahar Rahim (The Mauritanian).

Chloe Zhao’s Nomadland that has made a mark with two Golden Globe Awards, for best picture and best director, is leading at BAFTAs as well along with Sarah Gavron’s Rocks, with seven nominations each. Both Zhao and Gavron are in the run for the best director award. Bukky Bakray, the 18-year-old actor of Rocks, earned her very first nomination in the best actress category.

They are followed by The Father, Mank, Minari, and Promising Young Woman, which got six nominations each. The Dig and The Mauritanian received five nominations each, while Another Round, Calm With Horses, Judas and the Black Messiah, News of the World and Sound of Metal got four each. His House, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Soul and The Trial of the Chicago 7 saw three nominations each, while films like Borat Subsequent Moviefilm were nominated in only one category.

A year after receiving flak for not nominating non-white actors, the BAFTAs saw the most diverse nominations. The awards committee claimed so in its press release that read, “In a first for BAFTA, four women have been nominated in the Director category. Three of the nominated directors are also nominated for Film Not in the English Language.”

A total of 21 of the total 24 names in the performance categories are first time nominees.

Krishnendu Majumdar, chair of BAFTA, said: “After last year’s nominations, we started the BAFTA review process with the intention of levelling the playing field and introduced​ a range of measures to ensure that all entered films were seen by our members and judged on merit. We hope today you can see some of those changes reflected in the breadth and depth of those nominated and we congratulate all our nominees.”

These changes are the beginning of a significant cultural shift within the organisation and is the first phase in what the statement called an “on-going process”.

BAFTAs will be held on April 10 and 11. Both shows will be broadcast virtually from Royal Albert Hall in London, BAFTA’s home since 2017, on BBC channels.

Doctor: Sivakarthikeyan’s Film Release Postponed Over Tamil Nadu Assembly Polls

BY Anusha Sundar On

Doctor, the upcoming Tamil film starring Sivakarthikeyan that was scheduled to release on March 26, will be postponing its release due to the upcoming Tamil Nadu Assembly elections that will take place on April 6, the film’s makers announced in a statement on Tuesday.

The makers, however, have not announced the new release date.

“We were excited about bringing you the film on 26th of March, 2021. Owing to the elections, we will be postponing the release to a later, more suitable date. We’re taking this call keeping the best interests of our film, the upcoming elections, and most importantly the fans in mind,” the press release said. 

The statement said that a “better release date” will be announced in a few days after discussing with the “core members of the project”.

The film co-stars Priyanka Arul Mohan, Vinay, Yogi Babu, Ilavarasu, and Archana in pivotal roles. It is directed by Nelson Dilipkumar. Doctor is Nelson’s second directorial after the 2018 Tamil black comedy film Kolamavu Kokila.

Sivakarthikeyan will also be producing Doctor under his home banner Sivakarthikeyan Productions along with Kalai Arasu under the KJR Studios banner. While Anirudh Ravichander is composing the music, Vijay Kartik Kannan is the cinematographer. Nirmal is the editor.

Doctor wrapped up its shooting in January and Sivakarthikeyan announced in February that he has completed dubbing for the film.

Tamil Nadu is gearing up for its upcoming 16th Legislative Assembly election for 234 constituencies across 38 districts that will be held in a single phase. The polls, whose results will be declared on May 2, will be the first Legislative Assembly election that is conducted in the state after the demises of late politicians M Karunanidhi and J Jayalalithaa. It is also the first legislative election for Tamil actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan and his party Makkal Needhi Maaim.

Ranbir Kapoor Tests Positive for Covid-19, Recovering Well in Home Quarantine, Says Mother Neetu Kapoor

BY Shrija Ganguly On

Ranbir Kapoor, the Hindi actor whose last release was Sanju in 2018, has tested positive for Covid-19, actor and mother Neetu Kapoor announced on social media on Tuesday.

She said that the actor was on medication and “recovering well” in home quarantine.

“Thank you for your concern and your good wishes. Ranbir has tested positive for Covid-19. He is on medication and recovering well. He is in self quarantine at home and following all precautions,” she wrote.

Ranbir Kapoor had been shooting for director Ayan Mukherjee‘s Brahmastra with Alia Bhatt. On March 4, Bhatt had posted photos from the set of the film. In January, he was shooting for director Luv Ranjan’s next film opposite Shraddha Kapoor in New Delhi. He was expected to begin shooting for director Sandeep Vanga‘s Hindi film Animal alongside Parineeti Chopra later in the year.

In December 2020, Neetu Kapoor had tested positive for Covid-19, along with co-star Varun Dhavan and director Raj Mehta while shooting for their upcoming film Jug Jugg Jeeyo.

Since the Covid-19 restrictions were eased and studios and transportation opened up, several actors contracted the virus while shooting for their upcoming films. This includes actors Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai Bahchchan, Rakulpreet Singh, Banita Sandhu, Varun Tej, Prithviraj Sukumaran, Tamannah Bhatia, among others.

Rajinikanth‘s Annaatthe shooting was halted and the actor had to be flown down from Hyderabad to Chennai after four crew members tested positive for the virus in December 2020.

Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions, which is producing Brahmastra, has not released a statement regarding the shooting schedule after the actor tested positive.

Ranbir Kapoor’s upcoming releases include Karan Malhotra’s Shamshera, featuring Sanjay Dutt and Vaani Kapoor, scheduled for a June 25 release. The makers of Brahmastra, however, haven’t set a release date yet. The film’s release, initially slated for December 4, 2020, was put on hold due to the ongoing pandemic.

Gangubai Kathiawadi: Maharashtra Congress MLA Wants Film’s Title to be Changed

BY Anindita Banerjee On

Gangubai Kathiawadi, the upcoming Hindi film directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali starring Alia Bhatt, ran into trouble after Maharashtra Congress MLA Amin Patel demanded on Monday that the film’s title be changed as it maligns the name of Kathiawadi city, a PTI report said.

The film is based on one of the chapters of Hussain Zaidi and Jane Borges’ book, Mafia Queens of Mumbai, a collection of stories of women who were part of Mumbai’s underworld. Bhatt features as Gangubai Kathiawadi, who was one of the most influential women in Kamathipura and owner of many brothels in the area, a red-light district in Mumbai.

According to PTI, speaking in the state Assembly, Patel, who represents south Mumbai’s Mumbadevi constituency, said that the Kamathipura area has undergone several changes over the years. “It is not the same as it was in the 1950s. Women there are excelling in different professions. The film’s title also maligns the name of Kathiawad city. The name of the film should be changed.”

He urged the state government to look into the matter and intervene.

Recent reports suggested that the film’s teaser was not well appreciated by the residents of Kamathipura. According to a report in India.com, an official statement released by the residents said that the film “is a blatant misrepresentation and an attempt to malign the 200 years of the actual history of Kamathipura”.

“The residents have worked hard to erase the social stigma attached to the name of Kamathipura, and this movie is extremely damaging to the current and future generations of Kamathipura. Once again a few people are looking to monetize from the suffering of others and this time the residents of Kamathipura are choosing to not suffer in silence. Hundreds of residents of Kamathipura (youth, women, children, etc) will be gathering at the center of Kamathipura to protest against the release of Gangubai Kathiawadi. They have also previously met with various decision-makers and registered their complaint on the same,” the statement read.

Earlier, the film courted controversy when a case was filed by Kathiawadi’s adopted son Babuji Rawji Shah, stating the book and film were defamatory. However, a Mumbai City Civil Court dismissed the suit seeking a restraining order against Bhansali Productions, Bhatt, and Zaidi.

Gangubai Kathiawadi marks Bhatt’s first collaboration with Bhansali. The film will release in theatres on July 30.

This Beast: Kurt Sutter, Creator of ‘Sons of Anarchy’, to Write and Direct Film for Netflix

BY Shrija Ganguly On

Kurt Sutter, the creator of Sons of Anarchy and writer of The Shield, will be writing, directing and producing This Beast, announced Netflix.

This will be Sutter’s directorial debut.

The film’s idea was inspired by the Beast of Gévaudan, a true story about a mysterious beast that terrorised a French village in the 1760s.

The feature film will be produced by Jason Blum and Carla Hacken under the banners Blumhouse and Paper Pictures.

“Bringing my disturbing, familial story sensibility into the Blumhouse world just seemed like something that had to happen. And This Beast is the perfect project for that marriage. And Netflix is the perfect venue for that bloody ceremony,” Sutter said in a statement.

As per Netflix, the story revolves around an 18th century English village that is besieged by a mysterious and elusive beast. Dozens of innocents are slaughtered and the mayhem is driven to puritanical heights by religious fanaticism. The impossible task of killing the beast falls on a lowly trapper who promises that he can stop the carnage. But for him this hunt is not a professional mission, it’s a deeply personal one.

“We’ve long been fans of Kurt and his unparalleled storytelling — that’s both visceral and packs an emotional punch. We’re excited that Blumhouse is producing his first feature for Netflix,” said Jason Blum, CEO and founder of Blumhouse in a statement.

Sutter also holds credits as an actor, having appeared in his curated Sons of Anarchy, and will be seen next in the science fiction film, Chaos Walking that would mark his first feature film acting role.

While Sutter has been brought on board for one film, Netflix has signed multi film deals with filmmakers like Noam Baumbach who will be writing and directing Netflix’s adaptation of White Noise, Don DeLillo’s novel of the same.

The Priest: Mammootty’s Film to Release in Theatres on March 11 After Kerala Allows Cinema Halls to Screen More Shows

BY Anusha Sundar On

The Priest, the upcoming Malayalam film starring Mammootty, will release in theatres on Thursday, the makers of the film announced on social media on Monday.

The film’s revised release date comes after the Kerala government’s order on Monday allowing theatres to function from 12 pm to 12 am, thereby allowing second and late-night shows.

The Priest was supposed to hit the screens on March 4 but was postponed due to the Kerala government’s previous instructions to theatres and cinema halls to run shows only between 9 am and 9 pm. The makers had cited the lack of second shows and postponed the film’s release.

The Priest is Jofin T Chacko’s directorial debut. He has also written the film, which is produced by Anto Joseph, Unnikrishnan B, and VN Babu. The film co-stars Manju Warrier and marks her maiden collaboration with Mammootty.

According to the government order, it read, “The currently permitted time of operations for theatres is from 9 am to 9 pm. This timing does not permit the screening of second shows and this is making it impossible for theatres to run their business successfully. The Kerala Film Exhibitor’s United Organisation of Kerala had requested that this may be taken into consideration and the timings may be revised to permit screening of second shows like in other states. After due consideration of this matter in the State Covid Core Group Meeting, the government is issuing the order to change the permitted working timings of theatres to 12 noon to 12 midnight under the condition that all Covid protocols will be adhered to without fail.” (Translated from Malayalam)

Speaking to Silverscreen India, Suresh Shenoy, the owner of Shenoys Theatre in Kochi and Film Exhibitors United Organisation of Kerala treasurer, said, “The timings earlier given was 9 am to 9 pm which was ineffective. We lost the time between 9 am-12 pm to run a show. Now, this new 12 am to 12 pm is very good and ideal timing. We would not be missing on second or late-night shows. The new timings will bring family audience too. We will be able to screen four shows and will increase the theatre collection.”

He said that the timings will be implemented from Tuesday. However, Shenoy pointed out that the theatre occupancy is still capped at 50%.

Speaking about the relief measures and waiving off the Entertainment Tax and Fixed Electricity Charges that theatre owners had previously requested from the state government, Shenoy said, “The request was for total waiver of Entertainment Tax. They have waived it only till March 31, 2021. Along with the request for second shows, we had made two more requests. We wanted Entertainment Tax to be waived up to March 31, 2022, and increase occupancy to 100%.”

Asked if the other requests were being considered by the Kerala government, Shenoy said, “I strongly believe that they will consider it. So far, there have been no announcements regarding it. But we are in constant touch with the government to get these two requests also to be implemented.”

Shenoy said that the meeting, that was held between the government and theatre owners on March 6, happened after a request was sent to the Chief Minister and Chief Secretary to consider changing the timings.

“Other concerns were also raised when the Chief Secretary said that they are under consideration and that only the issue of timings will be implemented this time,” he said.

The Priest poster

The Priest is one of the first big-budget Malayalam films to release in theatres in Kerala after the Covid-19 induced lockdown. The film’s technical crew consists of screenplay and dialogues written by Deepu Pradeep and Shyam Menon. The cinematographer is Akhil George and the editor is Shameer Muhammed. Rahul Raj has composed the music and Hari Narayanan is the lyricist.