Bollywoodhungama is just the best. They just posted the best of the box office 2015 list, broken down by territories. I already talked about how Bajirao stacked the deck by focusing on the Bombay audience, and how Dilwale suffered by losing market share to protests. And how Salman is consistently the all India winner. But this makes it even more apparent.
Alan Rickman is dead! I am very upset. Not personally and emotionally, like I will be if Anil Kapoor or Jackie Shroff or Anupum Kehr dies. Or like I was, when Amrish Puri dead (I was in college, and the news spread through the dorms like wildfire). But as a film watcher, I am upset. Because he was really good, and really eclectic, in his film choices. He challenged himself, and worked with interesting people on interesting projects. If Alan Rickman was in a film, you know that you could expect a certain level of quality and originality.
More importantly, he was where multiple worlds of film met…
You know the movie Moneyball? Which talked about the sabarmetric approach to baseball, that allowed every player to be a quantifiable element in a team’s success? So, there is a constant effort to figure out a formula in Indian film that will, somehow, allow filmmakers to predict which stars will give them a hit.
Bollywoodhungama came out with a score card for 2015 for actors based on box office. Which is always hard to balance. They tried using two different scores, but ended up with completely contradictory results.
What is the best way to measure the star power of a Shahrukh Khan versus an Akshay Kumar? And who really won 2015?
After a New Years vacation in Dubai with his family, SRK is back to work on Raees. And I am excited! My theory is, this is the movie that Dilwale was pro-actively making up for. That is, Dilwale has just the right amount of stupid romantic fun to balance the amount of deep thoughtful seriousness that will be in Raees.
Also, Raees is being directed by Rahul Dholakia, who’s previous film, Parzania, sounds so politically hard-hitting and emotionally draining that I have never even seen it. Both Parzania and (supposedly) Raees will be set in Gujurat, which is another political statement. Could this be Shahrukh’s artistic follow-up to his birthday “Intolerance” broadside attacks?
It’s out! As always, launched with a big party at a gallery. Full pictures available here (well, full pictures of the photos in frames at the gallery. Not the actual photos. As will be discussed below). I will definitely be updating my computer wallpaper to the image above when I get home.
And as always I wonder, what the heck is the deal with this “calendar”?!?!?
Inspired by Dilwale, I am going through all previous SRKajol films in exhaustive detail! Karan-Arjun turns out to not be that Kajol-y, but it makes up for it by being super Salman-y. And super Amrish Puri-y. And super 90s-y.
(also, SPOILER, in this section Amrish Puri wears a Lavender Jacket! Just like Salman in the header image!)
(bullet point version of synopsis, for full film, available here. Part 2 here. Part 3 here. Part 4 here. Final part here.)
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So, everyone calls the FilmFares “India’s Oscars.” But they’re not, really. They are awards given by a filmi magazine to people who they want to feature in their magazine, or otherwise make nice with. And they are given to people who still care about being featured in a filmi magazine and will show up to the awards ceremony. So it is a popularity/power contest on one hand, and a test of your commitment to nurturing your career on the other.
Which is why I am hoping I can actually predict at least one winner! (Last year, I won a “special” award from my class as the only person who managed to predict every single Oscar category wrong. I am terrible with Hollywood, except in very certain areas. But maybe the FilmFare’s will be my game!)
Okay, left off at Interval! Going to plough through and get to the end of the film and the surprise mystery twist ending that I totally saw coming a mile away. And then the sincerely emotionally affecting moment that I did not see coming AT ALL! And then the little girl who waved at me on the way out and made me feel all better
Read on to find out everything about everything!
(Part 1 of summary here, regular review here, bullet point version here)
So I have a friend who is much more hooked into the Hollywood news scene than I am just sent me this still from a new musical with Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone that is filming now, possibly set in the 1930s?
Anyway, I immediately went “Hey! I’ve seen that before!” Hop skip dance apart, hop skip dance together, arms sway back and forth, and then clinch and spin together. And I knew it was a Fred and Ginger number, but I couldn’t remember which one. Because I have of course seen them all many many times (yes, even Barkleys of Broadway and The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle). Come, follow me on my journey to an answer!
So, Bollywoodhungama posted the weekend overseas box office figures, broken down by country, with screen counts included as well. Some interesting things in there.
(also, admire my pun in the header image! “Two days, two players, one game.” How perfect is that for another Bajirao vs Dilwale weekend report!)
So, there are two interesting news stories making the rounds. One is an important sign of shifting industrial desires and policies. And the other is a sign that I WAS RIGHT! Ha-HA! HahahahahahaHA!
So, I put up a bullet point version of this already (the notes I dashed off as soon as I got home so I wouldn’t forget), and a quick spoiler-less review. And the second half of the recap is now up also, it is here. And now, it is time for me to give a complete detailed summary! For those of you unable, or unwilling, to see it in theaters! Or if you want to see it, but to have my in your head with you whispering opinions the whole time.
I can tell you, without spoilers, that the best part of the whole experience was the truly tiny little girl with an itsy-bitsy little pink coat and bitty-baby pink boots who waved her microscopic little hand at me in the hall on the way out. If possible, try to recreate that when you go.
And now, on with the show!
So, quick review: Catnip for Farhan fans (I know you are out there), Hollywood style/quality camerawork and directing, great songs, script needs a couple more twists to really send it over the top.
Longer review, see below. And I will probably also be posting a synopsis in the next few days, it’s only an hour forty, I can totally knock that out in just one part.
So, I just got Salman’s new biography (released in honor of his 50th birthday!) from India. I am SO EXCITED. I should have it all read and be ready to report back on the most exciting tidbits sometime next week.
But in the meantime, here is a quick preview.
So, I found out through Amitji’s twitter that yesterday was Farah Khan’s birthday! And I MISSED IT!!! This is horrible! I feel like I should airmail her a birthday cake or something.
Well, instead, I will write an article about why she is so awesome. Not 50 reasons, like I did for Salman, but just 21. So she can pretend she is still younger than Shahrukh. (Apparently, it is also her cousin Farhan’s birthday, and all I have to say to him is WHERE IS DON 3?!?!?!?)
Just announced, Anushka’s going to be opposite Salman in Sultan! Which means, she will be opposite all 3 Khans within 3 years (Jab Tak with SRK, PK with Aamir, and now Sultan). Not as impressive as when Kat hit them all within 15 months (Ek Tha Tiger, Jab Tak, Dhoom 3), and she got to kiss two of them onscreen (and presumably the other in real life), but still pretty awesome!
So, how does this change my prediction for the Raees/Sultan Eid Box Office clash?
So, part one had babies, part two had Kajol, part 3 had “Jaati Hoon Main”, what do we have in this part? Well, lots of cool violence! That’s nice, right? Plus, one very very short SRKajol scene that, frankly, doesn’t even work that well. Really, come for the SRKajol, stay for the bodies flung through car windows.
(bullet point version of synopsis, for full film, available here. Part 2 here. Part 3 here. Part 4 here. Final part here.)
Which of these stories is most important? Duh! Amitabh! I mean, politically and an actual effect on the world, probably Aamir. But as to cosmic importance, it’s Amitabh. It’s always Amitabh.
So, #AamirOut was trending in India, because Aamir was just fired as the tourist Ambassador for the “Incredible India” campaign. Because he apparently no longer thinks India is that incredible. And vice versa.
(bullet point version of synopsis, for full film, available here. Part 2 here. Part 3 here. Part 4 here. Final part here.)
Okay, the last section was AMAZING and had the first onscreen meeting of SRKajol, and basically was the high point of the entire movie. But the rest of it is okay too, and they do have a few more scenes coming up as well, plus a song (yes, the header image tells the truth, it is time for “Jaati Hoon Main”), so it is worth reading! And worth my writing it!
UPDATE: I just want to clarify, this is not an article that gives a full overview of the situation, or that tries terribly hard to address alternative perspectives. It’s just trying to explain my perspective on it. So, if you already dislike Priyanka and are looking for a better way to articulate your argument, READ ON. Or, if you know someone who dislikes her and you can’t understand why, READ ON. But, if you like her, DON’T BOTHER. I’m not going to give you any new information, or an argument that will convince you. And if you know nothing about her past or personal life, DON’T BOTHER, I assume you have some basic background and I don’t include a lot of details. It really is an article that is just about why I, personally, dislike her. And unless you also dislike her, or know someone who does and want to understand them, it probably won’t make sense or interest you.
UPDATE 2: Okay, apparently UPDATE 1 didn’t work, and there are all sorts of people reading this who very much do not agree with it. I have learned my lesson! I will keep my biased personal opinions for my living room, not the internet!
I’ve left the comments up, because a lot of people made really good points. If you read the article yesterday and have something else to say, feel free to comment. And if you are curious about my other writing, which is much much more boring (mostly box office analysis, birthday posts, and detailed film summaries), feel free to check out the homepage of the site to see the latest posts.
(No, that header image isn’t a mistake, read on to find out why)
Oh my goodness, I haven’t even gotten to Kajol yet! I do in this section, and she is WONDERFUL. And, if you find yourself wondering, “was the SRKajol magic there from the beginning?”, the answer is yes, absolutely, from the very first time they shared a frame together.
(bullet point version of synopsis, for full film, available here. Part 2 here. Part 3 here. Part 4 here. Final part here.)
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