In Vinod Kamble’s ‘Kastoori’, A Dalit Boy Yearns To Free Himself Of The Smells That Cling To Him
At the Dharamsala International Film Festival, a powerful drama about a boy who cleans toilets and performs post-mortems in order to pay for school.
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Baradwaj Rangan
459 posts
Kamal Haasan At 65: The Forgotten Phase
The ‘Great Phase’ of the actor’s career, post ‘Pushpak’ and ‘Nayakan’, is well documented. But here’s a jumble of memories from the preceding phase, the early to mid-1980s, which had just as many misses as hits.
Terminator: Dark Fate Movie Review: Arnold Schwarzenegger And Linda Hamilton Try In Vain To Recreate The Magic
Watching this utterly generic film leads you to wonder why some franchises keep going on, without fatigue, while others, like the ‘Terminator’ films seem like empty cash-grab exercises.
Kaithi Movie Review: Lokesh Kanagaraj Crafts A Sturdy (But Generic) Star Vehicle For Karthi
There’s a fantastic “mass” scene, set around a swimming pool, where the protagonist stuffs himself with biriyani — it’s a stunning few minutes of a purely physical performance.
Bigil Movie Review: The Vijay-Atlee Combo Finally Gets It Right In A Solid “Mass” Movie With Serious Undertones
The screenplay could have been tighter, but it’s still a model of how we can get serious even in the overblown world of a “mass” movie, and yet not forget to have fun.
Gantumoote Movie Review: Roopa Rao’s Drama About A Sensitive Schoolgirl Is Exquisitely Directed And Enacted
The director is more interested in character than event, and she practically holds up an X-ray of her heroine’s soul.
Moothon Movie Review: Geetu Mohandas’ Drama Is Bumpy And Overstuffed, But With Passages Of Great Beauty And A Superb Nivin Pauly
One part of me wished this ambitious film had stuck to one story in one timeline, but in a strange way, this in-between mood is what makes the events stand out.
Maadathy Movie Review: Leena Manimekalai’s ‘Unfairy Tale’ About A Dalit Girl Is A Powerful Social-Horror Story
This folkloric drama about the consequences of injustice was world-premiered in ‘A Window on Asian Cinema’ at the Busan International Film Festival.
Jallikattu Movie Review: Lijo Jose Pellissery Gives A Masterclass On How To Make A Movie That’s Both Experimental And Entertaining
The invention, the joyous energy in the filmmaking left me with such a high that I didn’t particularly care that it all has to ‘mean’ something.
Asuran Movie Review: Not Up To Vetri Maaran/Dhanush’s Earlier Work, But Still Quite Good
Violence is practically a rite of passage. The screenwriting is cyclical, too — whatever happened in one generation finds echoes in the next.
War Movie Review: Hrithik Roshan And Tiger Shroff Face Off In A Beautifully-Written Action Entertainer
Dig beyond the surface pleasures, and you’ll see how the film marries our masala sensibilities to the Bond/Bourne action spectacles.
Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy Movie Review: Chiranjeevi Is Rousing In A Weakly Written Historical Drama
Even the biggest star needs the gravity of a strong screenplay, and that’s where the film falters, and ultimately fails.
