Blogs

Hollywood’s love affair with franchises is very much alive and ongoing as the sequels of Hunger Games and Paranormal Activity stage a comeback this weekend.               First up is The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part...

I was talking with some of my friends and family recently about movies (obviously), and Marvel came up in the discussion (as it should). Marvel Studios has been doing a wonderful job with their property, at least with the ones...

As the concept of a ‘Fortress Europe’ is being challenged by hundreds of thousands of migrants knocking down barriers in Hungary and Slovenia, one wonders how little has been written in literature or portrayed in films regarding this great human...

Going to see "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" on December 18th will likely involve a commitment of a few hours. You'll have to get to theater early unless you want to be stuck in the first row, or along the...

The most eagerly-anticipated release this weekend is Prem Ratan Dhan Payo, a treat for Salman Khan fans as it features the actor in not one, but two different avatars. The film, a throwback to Sooraj Barjatya’s OTT family sagas on...

He passed away more than 20 years ago but Rahul Dev Burman’s rise and fall as music composer par excellence remains a mystery. His songs have stood the test of time and are still popular in India and abroad at...

The Wrap Charlie Brown doesn’t seem like a classic James Bond villain at first glance. But maybe that bald, round head, not unlike that of 007’s arch-villain Ernest Stavro Blofeld, is telling. The Peanuts Movie is going to put a...

Aisha Khan’s transition from television to the silver screen has been a particularly charmed one. When her debut film Waar released in 2013, it smashed box office records to become the highest grossing Pakistani film of all time. Set to...

Ridley Scott’s last few movies (Exodus: Gods And Kings, Prometheus, The Counselor, Robin Hood) have been disappointing coming as they did from the director of Alien, Blade Runner, The Gladiator, and Black Hawk Down). But with The Martian Scott appears...

As a humanitarian and actor, Angelina Jolie, 40, is remarkable. For several years now, Angelina has used her celebrity status to highlight important issues that affect people across the globe. From sexual violence in war zones to the refugee crisis...

Sandra Bullock can’t get away from slapstick comedy. “Our Brand Is Crisis,” based on a documentary of the same name, attempts to be a comedy drama that plays out mainly as farce. Campaign guru Jane (Sandra Bullock) is recruited to take over...

While promoting her latest film, Macbeth, actress Marion Cotillard came out with a salvo denying the existence of sexism in Hollywood and the need for feminism in an interview with Porter magazine. Cottilard stated: “Film-making is not about gender. You...

Cinema and democracy in Pakistan have uncanny parallels. Both appear like a fluttering bird in a cage with a deep rage to fly. For too long have we been hearing the refrain of cinema’s revival. About 13 years ago, when...

In a country where no one feels safe, a place where children are blown up to pieces in their schools, where mothers are forced to kill children because they can’t watch their own babies starve to death, it is rare,...

The announcement that water has been found on the Red Planet just happens to have emerged at the same time as the Matt Damon film, with Nasa branding all over it, is released. Spooky, or what? It could hardly have...