Jaat
Action, Drama (Hindi)
In a remote coastal village, ruthless criminal Ranatunga terrorizes the locals. A traveling stranger’s chance encounter with his men uncovers the villagers' suffering. Realizing the deep-rooted corruption, he takes matters into his own hands. Armed with truth and justice, he (more…)
Housefull 5
Comedy, Crime, Mystery (Hindi)
A father writes his will — his son "Jolly" is going to get it all. But who is Jolly? The comedy unfolds as different people pose as the "real" Jolly on a cruise celebrating the father's birthday — where a (more…)
Guild Reviews
How to Train Your Dragon
Action, Family, Fantasy (English)
On the rugged isle of Berk, where Vikings and dragons have been bitter enemies for generations, Hiccup stands apart, defying centuries of tradition when he befriends Toothless, a feared Night Fury dragon. Their unlikely bond reveals the true nature of dragons, challenging the very foundations of Viking society.
Cast:
Mason Thames, Nico Parker, Gerard Butler, Nick Frost, Julian Dennison, Gabriel Howell, Bronwyn James, Harry Trevaldwyn, Ruth Codd, Peter Serafinowicz
Director:
Dean DeBlois
Writer:
Dean DeBlois
Dean DeBlois's Fantasy Drama Is Redundant Yet Thoroughly Enjoyable
Sat, June 14 2025
Some tales are beyond redundancy. Despite the utmost familiarity and success, they get retold again and again throughout history, and we call them classics. Hence, a question about the purpose of a new iteration of an age-old classic is unnecessary, to an extent, absurd. How To Train Your Dragon, written by Cressida Cowell, is one such story. Hence, despite the tremendous success of its animated adaptation of the same name that was released in 2010, we now have a live-action version. However, DreamWorks Studio’s decision to do a live-action remake has more to do with easy profit than anything else. Following Disney’s route, the studio has ventured into this new space, and one should say they have hit a jackpot. Despite being a faithful remake of the original, the live-action remake retains the joy and visual spectacle that is a treat to both sets of audience: those who are and are not aware of this delectable world of dragons and Vikings.
Live Action Is Just As Fun And Emotional
Fri, June 13 2025
The film is being raved for one of the best adaptations in the recent years, and for good measure. Even with the additional content added to the runtime, great VFX/CGI, and the impeccable IMAX transitions, the film still have much more to offer. The live action does not stray from the original in terms on concept, context or plot, but it adds more to the lore and the emotional range of the characters, including the dragons. Toothless and the other four legged stars all get moments to shine, but the musical score, not so much. How To Train Your Dragon begins with its iconic monologue about Berk and its perks. Hiccup leads his way to the swordsmith’s store right after a Dragon attack on the village. In his path he leaves behind a lot of destruction not for the dragons but his own people. Despite everyone warning him to get inside, Hiccup takes his design to catch a Night Fury all by himself, but again ends up with destruction in his path. While he does hit something in the dark of the night, body is ready to belive him that its a Night Fury, even worse his father, the Chief of the village completely gives up on him and gets out to find the dragon’s nest with the rest of the village.
The Traitors
Reality (English)
Here 20 players will openly betray each other for daily eliminations to compete for a grand prize. Hidden amongst the innocent players are the traitors who are out to murder each night. In this ruthless game, trust is rare and betrayal everywhere
Cast:
Karan Johar, Karan Kundra, Jannat Jubair, Mukesh Chhabra, Jasmin Bhasin, Raj Kundra, Raftaar, Harsh Gujral, Uorfi Javed, Sahil Salathia
(Writing for M9 News)
Bigg Boss Meets Roadies
Sat, June 14 2025
Based on the popular Dutch reality show De Verraders, The Traitors is hosted by filmmaker Karan Johar. In this psychological game, 20 players are stationed at the grand Suryagarh Palace in Rajasthan, openly betraying each other to compete for a prize of ₹1 crore. Hidden among the innocents are the traitors, who secretly ‘murder’ players. The contestant line-up includes Karan Kundrra, Anshula Kapoor, Sudhanshu Pandey, Jasmine Bhasin, Ashish Vidyarthi, Mukesh Chhabra, Raftaar, Jannat Zubair, Sahil Salathia, Uorfi Javed, Harsh Gujral, Maheep Kapoor, and Raj Kundra. The Traitors, in its Indian debut, could be labelled a social deduction game – a classier hybrid of Bigg Boss and Roadies, where players are housed in a royal mansion, pitted against each other, guarding their true identities and undertaking adventurous tasks that lead to eliminations every episode.
Gamerlog
Comedy, Drama, Family (Hindi)
A teen gaming prodigy joins an underdog Mumbai esports team challenging the champion Wolfclan. As they pursue glory, Raghu seeks Joanna's love while hiding secrets from his past.
Cast:
Kunal Bhan, Anjali Sivaraman, Darsheel Safary
(Writing for Binged)
A Light-Hearted Ode to Game Freaks
Sat, June 14 2025
Raghu, a Surat boy, flees home to join a Mumbai esports team for the Tournament of Champions, where they’ll challenge the elite Wolf Clan. The team faces internal struggles, including Joanna’s mounting debt and the shocking revelation of Raghu’s minor status, which leads to her arrest. Despite multiple setbacks, Gamerlog overcomes adversity, ultimately reaching the finals to face their formidable rivals. Darsheel Safary makes a convincing return to the screen as an adult, playing a confused yet passionate kid, eager to prove himself, yet unsure of how to connect with his gaming peers. But the real standout is Anjali Sivaraman as Joanna. She’s the emotional core of the show, essaying a layered character whose inner conflicts never overshadow her fierce loyalty to her team.
Echo Valley
Thriller, Drama (English)
Kate lives a secluded life—until her troubled daughter shows up, frightened and covered in someone else's blood. As Kate unravels the shocking truth, she learns just how far a mother will go to try to save her child.
Cast:
Julianne Moore, Sydney Sweeney, Domhnall Gleeson, Kyle MacLachlan, Fiona Shaw, Edmund Donovan, Rebecca Creskoff, Audrey Grace Marshall, Stella Chivee, Albert Jones
Director:
Michael Pearce
Writer:
Brad Ingelsby
Sydney Sweeney is squandered in Hollywood’s dopey Drishyam dupe that can only be saved by Ajay Devgn
Fri, June 13 2025
The central thrust of the Drishyam movies relies on one basic truth: Ajay Devgn’s character will do just about anything to protect his family. Not only does he cover up a murder, he also concocts an intricate scheme to keep the cops off his scent. The Drishyam movies don’t realise this, but the protagonist is actually a psychopath in the guise of a protective family man. In the second movie, he even allows his teenage daughter to be manhandled by the police in order to keep up the charade. The Drishyam franchise holds some sort of record for having inspired the most remakes. And although it isn’t an official adaptation, the new Apple movie Echo Valley follows the exact same beats. It would’ve been one of the rare examples of Hollywood ripping off an Indian project had Drishyam itself not been a rip-off of a Japanese novel.
Julianne Moore, Sydney Sweeney's Strong Performances Salvage Uneven Thriller
Fri, June 13 2025
At the heart of Echo Valley is the mother-daughter relationship between Julianne Moore’s Kate and Sydney Sweeney’s Claire that gets strained beyond belief. Writer Brad Ingelsby and director Michael Pearce throw the impossible at them, and viewers watch the chaos unfold. At times, the feature stretches incredulity. However, the one-hour and 45-minute film is saved by its clever and twisty ending that manages to tie up everything nearly into place. To say Kate (Moore) is having a hard time is an understatement. She is barely able to keep the farm where she boards horses afloat and needs to borrow money from her ex-husband Richard (Kyle MacLachlan). On top of that, she is grieving the loss of her wife, who died in an accident. Her daughter Claire (Sweeney), who struggles with drug addiction, adds to her worries. When Claire shows up at her door one night covered in someone else’s blood, Kate decides to get into action. However, the mother’s love for her child is tested when Claire’s dealer, Jackie Lyman (Domhnall Gleeson), pushes her to the limits.
Housefull 5
Comedy, Crime, Mystery (Hindi)
A father writes his will — his son "Jolly" is going to get it all. But who is Jolly? The comedy unfolds as different people pose as the "real" Jolly on a cruise celebrating the father's birthday — where a murder takes place.
Cast:
Akshay Kumar, Ritesh Deshmukh, Abhishek Bachchan, Nargis Fakhri, Chitrangda Singh, Sonam Bajwa, Jacqueline Fernandez, Chunky Pandey, Shreyas Talpade, Sanjay Dutt
Director:
Tarun Mansukhani
Comedy@Housefull 5: The more the painful
Fri, June 13 2025
The more the merrier’ goes the saying. In the case of Housefull 5, a comedy franchise that refuses to end, it’s more the painful. The parrot shtick returns and it’s still agonisingly bad and unfunny. So is the gag with Akshay Kumar and monkeys indulging in a slapfest. The most distasteful bits though are when women’s bodies are fetishised upon—again and again—for cheap jokes. Again more embarrassing than rib-tickling. This time the gang of ludicrous men is on a cruise and there’s a killer on the loose. It’s dressed up in a silver Squid Game-like mask and has the slasher skills of the Scream killer. That alone, it appears, is reason enough to give the fifth instalment of Housefull a blood-soaked scary font. But Sajid Nadiadwala, who here apart from producer also gets story and screenplay credit, forgets the killer for significant chunks of this comedy, which runs far too long. The plot’s to do with who’s the real Jolly, the heir to a throne of billions. Is it Akshay Kumar’s Julius, Riteish Deshmukh’s Jallabuddin or Abhishek Bachchan’s Jalbhushan? The three men come aboard with their partners (Nargis Fakhri, Jacqueline Fernandez and Sonam Bajwa) in tow. It doesn’t take too long before there’s infidelity and lying and some old-fashioned tomfoolery.
Housefull 5 isn’t a film, it’s a scam
Mon, June 9 2025
A star-studded shipwreck
Sat, June 7 2025
Fifteen years after the first Housefull movie hit screens in 2010, Housefull 5 arrives with the usual bluster and baloney—big stars, bigger sets, and a plot that makes no sense. In an unusual twist, the climax and the revelation of the killer aboard a luxury cruise liner differ depending on which version of director Tarun Mansukhani’s slapstick comedy you’re watching. But no matter which route you take, the destination remains the same: this film is a colossal waste of time and resources. This fifth instalment of the famously chaotic comedy franchise is louder, glossier, and stacked with an even larger ensemble. You might struggle to name or remember the female characters, but the men are hard to miss. Franchise regulars like Akshay Kumar, Riteish Deshmukh, Chunky Panday (as Aakhri Pasta), Johnny Lever (Batuk Patel), and Ranjeet return, joined by new entrants Fardeen Khan, Jackie Shroff, Nana Patekar, Abhishek Bachchan (previously in Housefull 3), and Sanjay Dutt.
The Prosecutor
Action, Drama, Crime, Thriller (Cantonese)
A poor young man is wrongly charged with drug trafficking after being deceived. An ex-prosecutor investigates the case, uncovers a corrupt lawyer team's scheme, and restores justice despite obstruction from evil forces.
Cast:
Donnie Yen, Francis Ng Chun-Yu, Julian Cheung Chi-Lam, Kent Cheng Jak-Si, Michael Hui Koon-Man, Lau Kong, Mason Fung Ho-Yeung, MC Cheung, Yu Kang, Adam Pak Tin-Nam
Director:
Donnie Yen
Writer:
Edmond Wong Chi-Mun, Cheung Chun-Ho
The John Wick Vibes For Justice Are Real
Fri, June 13 2025
Directed and acted in by Donnie Yen as the lead, the film explores the story based on real events. It follows a former cop who joins the department of justice (law) to ensure the criminals pay for their crimes and innocents walks free. His first case as a prosecutor tests him and the people around him as he goes against the department and he sets out to prove the accused in not guilty. The film begins with a celebrated cop on a trial with the state trying to prove the man they caught is the leader of a drug mafia. However, after several attempts and risking the lives of his own team, the criminal walks free. The incident leads him to retire as cop and put his next three years into becoming a lawyer and joining the department of justice. His experience as a celebrated cop does garner him much love and respect in the department, but it also adds to his loyalty for the job. In turn helping the people around him also learning about the same and dedicating their lives to the work and the wellbeing of the public.
Jaat
Action, Drama (Hindi)
In a remote coastal village, ruthless criminal Ranatunga terrorizes the locals. A traveling stranger’s chance encounter with his men uncovers the villagers' suffering. Realizing the deep-rooted corruption, he takes matters into his own hands. Armed with truth and justice, he sets out for a final confrontation with Ranatunga.
Cast:
Sunny Deol, Randeep Hooda, Saiyami Kher, Regina Cassandra, Vineet Kumar Singh, Ramya Krishnan, Jagapati Babu, Vinay Varma, Zarina Wahab, Upendra Limaye
Director:
Gopichand Malineni
Bollywood stars are incapable of laughing at themselves; if Himesh Reshammiya can do it, why can’t Sunny Deol?
Thu, June 12 2025
The smartest thing that Himesh Reshammiya has probably done in his professional life, besides transitioning from composer to singer, is to embrace the inherent ridiculousness of his stage persona. For the longest time, he seemed entirely unaware. He’d perform bicep curls to his own love songs on Instagram, seemingly oblivious to how meme pages were responding. But something changed after Janhvi Kapoor went on Koffee with Karan and essentially pulled the curtain on what was maybe the greatest inside-joke of our times. Two years down the line, Reshammiya is starring in a movie called Badass Ravikumar and going on a ‘Cap Tour’ of sold-out live shows. It’s genius. If only Sunny Deol had the same self-awareness in Jaat.
Sunny Side Up, Punches & Punchlines
Sat, April 12 2025
“Yeh dhai kilo ka haath hai, is ki taakat North dekh chuka hai, ab South bhi dekhega.” The reference to Sunny Deol’s iconic dialogue is more than obvious, as is the North-South alchemy. ‘Jaat’ marks the Hindi film debut of Telugu director Gopichand Malineni and encashes upon Deol’s stardom in its inimitable southern style. Only, the actioner that builds on Deol’s ‘post Gadar 2’ starry status amplifies it many times over. Undeniably, Sunny Bhaji is once again a one-man army who can stop a vehicle with one hand and bash up dozens and dozens of muscle men; in short, do all things unimaginable, but very much possible in this Dharam-putar line of action. Instead of uprooting a hand-pump, pillars and fans become his weapons of mass destruction.
Sat, April 12 2025
Thudarum
Drama (Malayalam)
A taxi driver finds himself embroiled in a dangerous conspiracy after his car is confiscated by a corrupt police officer.
Cast:
Mohanlal, Shobana, Prakash Varma, Maniyanpilla Raju, Farhaan Faasil, Binu Pappu, Arsha Baiju, Irshad, Thomas Mathew, Krishna Prabha
Director:
Tharun Moorthy
Writer:
Tharun Moorthy, KR Sunil
Works because it's essentially Mohanlal creating his own subgenre
Thu, June 12 2025
Fri, May 2 2025
Why did George kill Pavi?
Tue, April 29 2025
Thudarum is a new Malayalam action thriller that starts off innocently enough, almost as a family dramedy, but soon becomes much, much darker. The film is a wild ride and throws surprises every now and then. Let’s explore in detail the plot of Thudarum, its ending, which is explained here, its cast, and more. The film features Malayalam superstar Mohanlal in the main role of Shanmugham, who is better known as Benz. The reason? It’s his car, and no, it’s not a Mercedes. In fact, it is a vintage Mark-I Ambassador that he loves more than anyone. Well, not really, as he also has a wife and two children, but you get the point. Until close to halfway mark, Thudarum remains the family movie that the director promised. After that… well, let’s leave for that later. This Malayalam thriller movie also features Shobhna as Shanmugham’s wife Lalitha. The plot kicks off when the said car is seized by the cops. It was at a mechanic’s workshop after being crashed by the friend of Shanmugham and Lalitha’s son, Pavi (Thomas Mathew). The mechanic was charged with possession of marijuana.
Straw
Thriller, Drama (English)
What will be her last straw? A devastatingly bad day pushes a hardworking single mother to the breaking point — and into a shocking act of desperation.
Cast:
Taraji P. Henson, Sherri Shepherd, Teyana Taylor, Sinbad, Rockmond Dunbar, Ashley Versher, Mike Merrill, Glynn Turman, Shalet Monique, Diva Tyler
Director:
Tyler Perry
Writer:
Tyler Perry
Heavy-handed and manipulative, redeemed largely by Taraji P. Henson's performance
Thu, June 12 2025
Set in the same twisty world of the M. Night Shyamalan classic Sixth Sense and Gothika, starring Halle Berry, but far inferior in terms of storytelling and character-building, Tyler Perry’s Straw, nevertheless, makes for a semi-engaging watch. Powered by a central act from Taraji P. Henson, whose character of an underprivileged single mother struggling to stay afloat in a world that is insensitive — and, more pathetically, blind — to her pain and plight, the 105-minute film touches upon some pertinent issues, even as it shows Janiyah’s (Henson) world unravelling in the course of a single day. Those familiar with Perry’s style of filmmaking would know that everything that the actor-director says is always on the nose. Racial discrimination, the trials of the working class, the problems that those who are failed by the system face on a daily basis… Straw touches upon all of them, but with the kind of heavy-handed treatment and dense literal rather than metaphorical depiction that we have seen in Perry’s previous overwrought dramas.
Jarann
Drama, Horror (Marathi)
A family faces supernatural chaos when witchcraft and ancient beliefs invade their remote village. A woman must uncover the truth about dark rituals and herself as fear and madness grow.
Cast:
Amruta Subhash, Rajan Bhise, Seema Deshmukh, Vikram Gaikwad, Kishore Kadam, Jyoti Malshe, Anita Date-Kelkar
Director:
Rushikesh Gupte
Writer:
Rushikesh Gupte
(Writing for The Common Man Speaks)
Finely crafted psychological cum supernatural thriller
Mon, June 9 2025
Writer and director Rushikesh Gupte made his feature film debut with the Marathi film Dil Dimaag Aur Batti, which was a spoof of the formulaic commercial Hindi films of the yesteryears. But his next release titled Jarann (his second movie Hazaar Vela Sholay Pahilela Manus hasn’t released yet) falls in the diametrically opposite genre of a psychological cum supernatural thriller. Jarann revolves around Radha (Amruta Subhash), who stays with her daughter Saie (Avanee Joshi) in a bungalow in a city in Maharashtra. Her husband Shekhar (Vikram Gaikwad) is abroad for work since a year. Radha and Saie once visit the former’s family’s wada (ancestral house) in a village in the state. The house is about to be sold, so this is Radha’s last chance to visit it and enjoy a get together with her parents and relatives.
Aabhyanthara Kuttavaali
Drama (Malayalam)
A man in a troubled second marriage faces divorce complications when legal battles spiral with false domestic violence and dowry claims, turning the justice system itself into a form of punishment.
Cast:
Asif Ali, Harisree Ashokan, Jagadish, Shreya Rukmini, Rini Udayakumar, Balachandran Chullikkadu, Azees Nedumangad, Neeraja Rajendran, Anand Manmadhan, Sidharth Bharathan
Director:
Sethu Nath Padmakumar
Writer:
Sethu Nath Padmakumar
A one-sided pamphlet against Section 498A
Sat, June 7 2025
The way a filmmaker conceives a single sequence can sometimes reveal the entire thought process behind the film. This is especially true of single-agenda films like Aabhyanthara Kuttavaali, the debut directorial of Sethunath Padmakumar. Sahadevan (Asif Ali), the protagonist who is facing a case under Section 498A over dowry harassment and domestic abuse, is shown returning to his wife’s family the 100 sovereigns of gold that he got as a “gift”, a modern-day euphemism for dowry. A sentimental background score accompanies this sequence which is framed fully from the man’s perspective, although he was earlier shown to have denied his wife’s demand for a part of the gold to fund her higher education. Even this demand on her part appears unjust by the way the film looks at it.
Mountainhead
Drama, Comedy (English)
A group of billionaire friends get together against the backdrop of a rolling international crisis.
Cast:
Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman, Cory Michael Smith, Ramy Youssef, Daniel Oreskes, Hadley Robinson, David Thompson, Ali Kinkade, Ava Kostia, Alex Peña
Director:
Jesse Armstrong
Writer:
Jesse Armstrong
Like watching the BTS of a Nikhil Kamath podcast, HBO’s Succession successor punches up at plutocracy
Sat, June 7 2025
When Nikhil Kamath interviewed Ranbir Kapoor on his podcast, he admitted that he hasn’t quite figured out the art of detachment like Marcus Aurelius. “You like Marcus’ writing?” Kapoor asked. “Yes, I like a couple of his books,” Kamath said. This bizarre exchange deserves to be unpacked in a separate article, but, for the purposes of this one, let’s focus on two things. One, the Zerodha founder reads the work of a Roman emperor in his spare time, and two, the star of Jagga Jasoos probably thinks they were talking about someone who wrote a self-help bestseller. Several conversations of this nature unfold in Mountainhead, the new film from Jesse Armstrong, creator of HBO’s Succession. Marcus Aurelius is invoked as well; in fact, so are Mark Antony and other great historical figures. Streaming in India on JioHotstar, the movie follows four men — three billionaires and one millionaire — who get together in a snowy mountain retreat for a weekend getaway, while the ‘outside world’ descends into chaos. “No deals, no meals, no women in heels,” is the motto of the get-together, which seems like something of a tradition. Steve Carell plays a veteran named Randall, who has just received a disheartening cancer diagnosis. Corey Michael Smith, who was so good in May December and Saturday Night, plays Ven, the owner of a Twitter-like social media app. He’s the richest man in the room. Ramy Youssef plays Jeff, whose company is making waves in the field of artificial intelligence, and Jason Schwartzman plays Souper, who feels insecure about being the only person whose net worth hasn’t hit a billion yet.