Friday 9/21: Sarkar
Sunday 9/23: Jodha Akbar
Monday 9/24: City of God
Friday 9/28: Piku
Sunday 9/30: Sadak
Upcoming Movie Reviews! In Case You Want To Watch the Film in Advance
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Saturday Small Talk: Chat the Day Away About Kiara Advani, Abhishek Bachchan, and Pumpkins
Hindi Film 101: Trolling and Censorship and Bystanders
Ugh, sometimes India makes me really angry. Two absolutely ridiculous charges of offending sensibility just succeeded in forcing films to alter themselves, because no one (and I’m not saying filmmakers, I am saying the courts and media and public) is willing to stand up and say “This is ridiculous”.
TGIF: For the Birthday Girl, Kareena Versus Kareena Versus Kareena!!!
Usually I do birthday versus birthday, but Kareena has had a long enough career, I think she can be a challenge all in herself.
Thugs Motion Posters! What Do We All Think?
Well, the opening salvo of Thugs promotions has been fired. It’s no longer just the ramp up news stories teasing things, it’s the actual official motion posters. To be followed by teasers and then song teasers and then a trailer and then a barrage of interviews, and finally the film just as we become completely sick of hearing about it.
Friday Classics: Sarkar, When is the Moment to Stop Watching and Start Acting
Such a good movie! I always forget, and then I watch it again and it is even better than I remembered. Abhishek is perfect, Amitabh is perfect, Katrina is dubbed, it’s just what you want!
Happy Birthday Kareena!!!! 38 Reasons I Love You
Happy Birthday Bebo! Let’s see if I can come up with a full 36 reasons to love you! I think I probably can.
Random non-Hindi One-Off: Enough About The Godfather So We Can Better Appreciate Sarkar, Raajneeti, Chekka Chivantha Vaanam and All the Other Remakes
Well, this is awkward. I have almost no qualifications to write this post. But on the other hand, I started writing about Sarkar and realized half that post was just a discussion of the film that RGV used as a jumping off point. And I already dumped paragraphs and paragraphs on it before I could start talking about Raajneeti. And I can feel the same thing coming with Chekka Chivantha Vaanam. So, I guess I have to do this. Write a post just so I have something I can refer back to in all those other posts rather than starting from scratch each time. Even though I am far from the best person to write about this film.
Next Sunday 9/30 ReRun Announcement!!! Sadak, in Honor of Sadak 2 Being Announced
This is SO EXCITING. Mahesh Bhatt returning to directing, Pooja Bhatt returning to acting, Alia Bhatt working with her father for the first time and Sanjay working with Mahesh for the first time in years. But mostly, a return to a true film classic.
Hindi Film 101: Kangana’s Coup D’Etat and Why Closed Doors Increase Creativity
I finally found out how to spell “coup d’etat”! Thanks to a comment, because spellcheck and google certainly weren’t going to help me. As my German teacher used to tell me, French is a silly language where nothing is spelled the way it sounds. To the degree that I can’t even get close enough to google it.
Did You Know There is a Cricket Match Going On Right Now?
My views took a sudden dive and I couldn’t figure out why. And then I got an alert from HotStar about an Indo-Pak cricket game, and I am thinking these things are probably related.
Friday Classics Announcement! Next Week, 9/28, Piku!
This is a request from Emily, but also a film it feels like I should write about. And it’s on Netflix now, so it’s easy to watch. If you want to join the discussion, next Friday 9/28 the movie will be Piku.
Wednesday Watching Post: What Are We Reading and Watching and Thinking This Week?
Happy Wednesday! Halfway through the week. It feels like a short one to me, but maybe that’s just me.
Hindi Film 101: The 6 Kinds of Film Songs
Procrastinatrix just mentioned a helpful post I wrote on this, and I looked and looked and I don’t think it was a post, I think it was actually in my book. So if I were mean, I would make this headline and then the post would just be “ha ha, buy my book!” But now I kind of want to write the post! And it will be better than the book (although you should still buy the book) because I can use video link examples.
News Round-Up: Kangana Loses a Movie, PC Gains an Ad Campaign, Ajay and Varun Get New Images
Have I mentioned before how HORRIBLE the Indian press is? It’s HORRIBLE!!!!! And now I have to do an Priyanka story AGAIN just because I seem to be the only one doing the 10 seconds of research required to present it accurately. Why do you make me do this, Bollywoodhungama “reporters”??????? (and now you are thinking “why is Margaret complaining? it’s her own fault for reading BH.” And I know, you’re right.)
Tuesday Tamil ReRun: Kabali, Learn About Malaysia and Get Angry with Rajinikanth
I saw Kabali! It was SO GOOD! Okay, the second half lost track of itself a little bit, and there were some character bits that could have been better, but overall it just had so much more depth and excitement and energy than the other movies I have seen lately!
The Most Imaginative Song Sequences in Hindi Film in Recent Years
Well, I’m having a rumpled start to the week! Karan sent out an embarrassingly sycophantic tweet this morning, there’s a final warm spell hitting Chicago which is making me not able to sleep, the elevator is broken (again) at work so I have to keep running up and down the really abnormally steep stairs, and my boss gave Dog Hazel some food she shouldn’t eat which wasn’t a big deal except that I had to tell my boss not to do that, which was an awkward upturning of our usual power structure (he’s in charge of me, but I’m in charge of Dog Hazel). Anyway, time for a soothing interesting post with a lot of great things to watch in it.
Monday Malayalam: Ranam Review (SPOILERS), Just Barely Misses the Mark
I already did my No Spoilers review, you can read that if you have any hope of seeing the movie in theaters. But if you are stuck waiting for streaming that may never come and want to learn more about it, you can read this one.
Monday Morning Questions: What Do You Want to Ask Me This Week?
Happy Monday! I survived the weekend! It was very hot and I saw two movies and taught Sunday School and lead a meeting and met up with my parents and my uncle who was in town. And now I’m back at work and the week is all downhill from here.
Monday Malayalam: Ranam Review (No Spoilers), a Malayalam Take on Detroit
A special treat! I saw a Malayalam film in theaters! So there will be two Malayalam reviews today, first this No Spoilers one, and then a SPOILERS one later. Fun fun!
Help Promote the Blog So I Can Put Dog Hazel To Bed at a Reasonable Hour
Dog Hazel wants to go to sleep
But she can’t because I am up late again trying to think of clever tweets
Help Dog Hazel (and me) go to bed early! Promote the blog with your own clever tweets and my links embedded.
Thank you!!!! Now Dog Hazel is Having Happy Dreams
Sunday ReRun: Befikre, A Light Happy French Romance With an Indian Accent
No big massive full summary coming for Befikre! Partly because Dear Zindagi exhausted me, partly because my sense is that my commentators aren’t as interested in a massive discussion of this movie, as they are of other movies. But mostly because I don’t think it is analyzable, to take it apart would be to destroy it.
Monday Malayalam Film School ReRun Announcement! CITY OF GOD!!!! The Review That Prithviraj Retweeted
Another Malayalam rerun next week! And another Pellisary film. Because he is very very good, and not enough people watch him, and his films are easily available.
Silly Sunday Quickie: Recasting/Writing of Stuff Only I Care About, Murder She Wrote, Terry Pratchett and Shahrukh Khan, and Mad Miss Manton
I put up a nice rerun post with all kinds of stories you should actually care about, so now I am going to be indulgent and put up a quick post with only things I care about.
Next Sunday Re-Run Announcement: Jodhaa-Akbar!
We were just talking about it and I’d love more discussion on my review. So, I’m reposting! In a week on 9/23. Which gives you all time to watch or rewatch the film and prepare for discussion.
