David Fincher’s Netflix adaptation is based on Joe Penhall’s seminal true-crime book Mindhunter: Inside FBI’s Elite Serial Crime Unit which provided a never-before-seen insight into the creation of FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit (BSU) in the 70s. This was a time when psychological profiling of criminals was unheard of and the concept of “serial killers” was…
Patriotism in Bollywood
It was 6 months after Mahatma Gandhi had started the Quit India Movement and promulgated a nation wide non-violent campaign against the Britishers. In Bombay, lyricist Kavi Pradeep was working on a song for the new movie “Kismet” which was to star Ashok Kumar. Although the movie was about a small time pick pocket and…
The Dil Chahta Hai generation | 18 years of Akash, Sameer & Sid
“The only time a group of friends successfully executed a Goa plan without anyone backing out was in Dil Chahta Hai” — Anonymous Indian (unconfirmed) On August 10, 2001 Farhan Akhtar presented us with a cult classic about bromance, complicated relationships and the undefiled freshness of three disparate characters whose camaraderie binds them together. When…
Whitney Cummings : Can I touch it? | Netflix
It is not everyday that you see a Sex Robot on stage. In hindsight though, we should have seen that cumming (I just had to 😉 ). In her fourth taping for Netflix, Whitney Cummings touches upon all topics considered tendentious these days and uses her acuity and sharp comic timing to deliver a taut…
Subliminal Symbolism in Bollywood | Kanika Dhillon | Judgementall Hai Kya | Manmarziyaan
Subliminal symbolism and understated allegories in Bollywood are rare and hardly ever utilised. We still mollycoddle the audience with too much information and in the process stretch out the narrative. Sriram Raghavan who gave us the masterpiece ‘Andhadhun’ last year, says,” I trust my movie grammar and understanding. That ‘ok, this is obvious. We don’t…
The Boys – Season 1 : Subverting the Superhero Myth | Review
If you looked at the etymology of the word ‘hero’, you’d be hard-pressed to find even a single negative attribute that would define the word. Heroes are supposed to be these unnatural humans who were outliers, incorruptible and essentially good. Superheroes, all the more so. Even with powers with which they can clutch the world…
Virus and the art of Medical Thrillers | Review
Even as Greta Thunberg, a 15-year-old Environmental Activist, warns us about our foreboding future – “But I don’t want your hope, I don’t want you to be hopeful. I want you to panic, I want you to feel the fear I feel every day. And then I want you to act, I want you to…
What else am I bingeing on | Netflix, MX Player, Hoichoi, Voot
Secret Obsession : (Streaming on Netflix) The movie’s fate and eventual likeability hinges on the climatic reveal. For obvious reasons we will abstain from divulging any details, but let me tell you this, the title is a giveaway. Secret Obsession has nothing noteworthy in terms of plot buildout. It takes a beaten to death route…
Super Deluxe is not just a story-telling masterpiece but a visual treat as well
It unsettles me to think that had Anurag Kashyap not tweeted about Super Deluxe, many of us would have averted our gaze and it would flown under our snob-nosed glares that has been conditioned to disavow regional cinema. Before you take offence, I do know that there is still a faction of cinephiles who are…
Comicstaan Season 2 | Episode 1-3 | Review
Comicstaan Season 2 returned this Friday with 3 episodes releasing together while the rest of the 5 episodes will release every subsequent Friday. The familiar stand up stars take the judge’s seats with a few returning from Season 1 while some, like Zakir Khan take the mantle of judging for the first time. Amazon Prime…
Indie Film of the Month : Paudha | Review
In the 2019 Budget reveal, the cabinet put forward a vision for India to become a $ 5 trillion dollar economy. Despite the economic juggernaut that we are, the heart of India still resides in its small towns. This diaspora of people often carries its belief systems with it into the metros where they create…
I want to like the Indian version of ‘The Office’ but it’s hard | Opinion
While watching the American version of The Office, I have often wondered how Greg Daniels managed to adapt a hit TV show and still create such iconic characters that have become a cult phenomenon. Wasn’t there that ‘whatchamacallit curse’ which created convoluted, lesser versions of great originals when repackaged for a different audience ? Although…
