Cinema, Karam, Kapi

Maia, how can I be like you? How do I build your patience, persistence and perseverance? How do I outthink a rival who plays dirty, as you did?  And how do I keep running non-stop, though I keep boasting that I own "Miles To Go" more than Robert Frost ever could have, had he been alive? These thoughts chased me through the brisk 84 minutes of Runner on Amazon Prime Video. We meet Maia Marten (Gal Gadot) , a sharp London lawyer and single mother. Her morning begins like any other, with a school drop-off and a run. Her day's work is to escort a key witness to court, someone who can finally nail the killer of two young women. Next comes her son, Noah (Rory Wilmot) , the centre of her world. He waves goodbye at the school gate. That ordinary moment is what the film later makes you ache for. Then the phone rings. The unseen voice belongs to The Caller (Damian Lewis) , who tracks her every step with chilling calm. His terms are brutal. She must cover 11 miles in 60 minutes ...

Long-haul flights within India are my personal screening rooms.  The Dubai to Boston sector on Emirates last week, all 15-odd hours of it, could have practically been a film festival in the sky for me, though I managed to catch just one movie “Up in the Air”. That is how I finally watched Michael , the long-awaited biopic on the King of Pop. I had consciously avoided reviews. Films about legends carry the weight of expectation. I went in curious, but cautious. I was not prepared for what followed. The film opens into the world of Joe Jackson (Colman Domingo) — cold, controlling, and convinced that talent is something you beat into a child. Literally.  There is a scene where young Michael gets thrashed with a belt, and I found myself gripping the armrest. It is not dramatised for shock. It is quiet, ugly, and real. I had to look away. Katherine Jackson (Nia Long) is the silent counterweight — loving, helpless, and heartbroken in equal measure. She holds the family together ...

Bank heists are a common subject when it comes to international films. Many are based on true stories, some are really well made. Over two decades back, Amitabh Bachchan’s Aankhen was all praise for it’s content and crew’s excellent acting. Thunivu is perhaps the first of its kind in its genre in Tamil cinema. After a bit of it in Billa and Mankatha, Ajith Kumar is back in his badass avatar. Spanning 145 mins, the film sets the ball rolling within the first 15 mins.  Darkdevil aka Chief (Ajith Kumar) and his smart crew are a gang of robbers with various international heists to their credit. They are much sought after, with their impeccable track record, access to the latest technology, weapons and what not. Kanmani (Manju Warrier), Amir, Pavni and Ciby are part of the gang as well.  It is interesting that the protagonist doesn’t have a defined first name all through the film! Yes, Ajith is addressed with various monikers and not really an actual name. At the end of the movie, ...

All of us want some “me time” every now and then. In the context of working men vs. stay at home women, it is almost like a privilege that is showered on the latter by the earning male member of the house. It is not just unusual but also societally inappropriate for a father to be a house husband and rear the family while the lady love gets to work and earns the dough. The film “Me Time” is a typical characterisation of one such stay-at home dad, his wife, two kids, a long lost friend and how eventually it makes sense of the much-hyped “Me Time” that many of us crave for, quite often.   Sonny Fisher (Kevin Hart) has a daily routine; get the kids ready to school, make breakfast for his wife Maya (Regina Hall), drop the kids at their school and undertake voluntary work at the same school, which he feels is a part of community service. Regina’s boss at the architecture firm Armanda Zavala (Luiz Gerard Mendez) feels very high of her and in a party, not just does he showers praises on h...

  Set in the midst of a resort in Idukki, the film is all about the 11 men and women and the 12th man who uncovers a murder mystery. Jeetu Joseph, who made the classic Drishyam (Malayalam & Hindi) and Papanasam (in Tamil) is now back with his favourite hero Mohan Lal, The crew, obviously 11 of them, have given a terrific performance with each of them playing a significant role from the word go till the end. Sidharth is engaged to Aarathy and they decide to throw a bachelor’s party to Sid’s classmates – 10 of them. Interestingly, but for one, all other are married within the group, so that makes 4 couples. Banker Sam and his wife Merin are a happy couple. Dr. Nayan and her husband Jithesh are not the perfect match, but they continue to navigate this relationship that is a marriage. Annie & Zacharia are about to become parents and decide to announce the big news at the party the next day. Shiny & Mathew are a couple who have their own excesses. Shiny borrows money from fr...

There’s nothing called the perfect match in the world – a couple in love, a geek and his device, a musician and his composition, a spin bowler and his catch and so on. But something that really pairs very well – being a foodie, I can bet you – is Wine with it’s right combo (of foods). A Perfect Pairing is not exactly a documentary on Wine tasting & pairing, rather a breezy movie about a fairly imperfect couple who eventually end up a great pair. Fairly cinematic stuff, unrealistic in life at most time. Hell yea, it’s a feel good movie after all. Lola Alvarez (Victoria Justice) is a Sales Manager at one of the top Wine Import firms in the US and is getting ready for a promotion as a Sales Director soon. After her recent divorce, she wants to take a break before another hook-up. Celebrity Chef Hamish (Nicholas Brown) loves her knowledge of wines and gets her win a big contract for her firm and she’s about to present her newest idea to her Boss Calder (Craig Horner) in the Team Meetin...

A war which is unending, sabotage by those whom one trusts, enemies within and to top it all, a biological war in the making by spreading a man-made virus stored in a vial – I am not referring to the ongoing Ukraine crisis coupled with the Covid-19 led lockdown which is celebrating (sic) its 2 nd   anniversary today in India. Operation Black Crab is a movie set somewhere in Scandinavia where a fighter reaches her destination for just one reason – Hope!   We have seen war movies and many of them. From classics like Ben Hur to the current times’ Outside the Wire, 2 Guns and so on, there has been enough and more where soldiers and fighters use various weapons, fly across regions and use sophisticated guns and revolvers among others. But Operation Black Crab is different. The soldiers use skateboards. Legends! Caroline Edh (Noomi Rapace) skates all the way across an archipelago to deliver a courier to the “base” on the other side which would perhaps end the war. Or so she thinks. ...

Betrayal is the worst outcome a human can take. It pains. It makes you feel weak. It makes you feel numb. And most importantly, makes you feel so dumb and helpless that one actually gave themself in to the plot, most often unknowingly. Jolt is all about a woman’s betrayal. Lindy Lewis (Kate Beckinsale) grows up as a normal kid. But over time, takes over her parent’s characteristics and grows up aggressive. At one stage, she is termed “harmful” for the society and is sent to a special school to tame her mind. Sadly, it doesn’t help. She goes through medical treatment, where the medics get harmed by her tantrums. She’s sent to join and train at the Forces, where she ends up hurting even the most skilled personnel. She’s put in lock and key but her aggressive nature makes her the most vulnerable at her tipping point and she gets unexpected energies which cannot be controlled by iron and chains. Finally, Dr. Ivan Munchin (Stanley Tucci) finds a solution for her sake. She’s wrapped up with ...

Huma Qureshi said in an interview to a popular publication recently that she thinks it’s a waste of time to read each comment on her social pages! Well, she may have said it in a different tone altogether but what a 180* turn this is from the days of yore when the artists of yesteryears not only read (or asked someone to read) letters sent to them by their fans, they’d also reply back to most of them, some with gifts and courtesies. I honestly wonder if Huma would have said this if she is not as big a star she is today, thanks to her fans and the fraternity. Not that she has had successful commercial hits, especially with the BO disaster that Kaala alongside Superstar Rajinikanth that was. Well, to each her own. War of Likes is a film somewhat in the same lines, focussing on the lives and mentality of the millennials who believe their social score and public visibility quotient summarise their popularity among their friends and family. The number of followers on platforms such as Inst...

I have always believed in my own coinage ‘Artificial Intelligence, Natural stupidity”. Netflix’ own production “Outside the Wire” is just that. When humans start depending more and more on machines and lesser on human values, we’re only headed for a major apocalypse. And this film once again reveals why is it so.   Harp (Damson Idris) is a drone pilot operating from a US Marine base and has a successful career as a drone pilot (the films is set in 2036). During a mission where Marines are fighting against an ambush, Harp decides by himself to strike a missile from the drone instead of listening to his superior’s order to hold back; the guys on ground want to save 2 wounded soldiers and are trying their best but Harp chooses to push the missile to save the 38 soldiers instead as there is a fully loaded van which is about to blow up. Subsequently, Harp is reprimanded; escapes a Court Martial and a jail term thanks to a benevolent boss, though he is sent to Camp Nathaniel in Ukraine t...

It has always been a point of discussion if it is ethical to double-cross a partner, whether in social life or in business or when in the Forces / Call of Duty. Well, there is not right or wrong here in my humble opinion. I guess the situation, the circumstances and the job/role that one plays decides whether he/she should deceive the other. An old adage goes thus – “The end doesn’t justify the means” cannot be more appropriate for this kind of behaviour. But then, life is not so simple and beautiful that we all don’t witness such situations. 2 Guns is just that.  A DEA cop and a Navy marine are both in disguise. While one chooses to befriend the other, the other one picks the former randomly. Bobby (Denzel Washington) and Stig (Mark Wahlber) visit a local diner to have a coffee and conversation. Bobby is waiting for his pal to arrive so he can offer some grub while Stig is giving a deep look inside the Bank which is opposite the diner. In split seconds, the Diner is set on fire fo...