One-line review: Engagements are meant to be broken, but not homes. Thinkalazhcha nischayam (The engagement’s on Monday) proudly proclaims it’s made in Kanjanghad, a small town in north Kerala, India. Kanjanghad has a distinct dialect and very few actors working in the Malayalam film industry. The film is an original Kanjhangad product because of its […]
THINKALAZHCHA NISHCHAYAM (2021) (MALAYALAM) Read More »
Effective persuasion is passive-aggressive. “Please adjust” is India’s infallible persuasion mantra. In a country of over a billion people, scarcity is a way of life, and you must give and take to keep things on an even keel. Please adjust is a polite request to someone to make some space; wait a little longer or
Please kiss but don’t tell. Mary Oliver’s blisteringly beautiful poem, “Someone I know,” ticked me off. Please read the poem before I explain why. I know someone who kisses the way a flower opens but more rapidly. Flowers are sweet. They have short, beatific lives. They offer much pleasure. There is nothing in the world
One-line review: Wuthering Heights emerged from Emily Brontë’s lows. How did the three corseted Brontë sisters, mostly homeschooled and isolated, each write a masterpiece? It cannot just be genes because their brother Branwell didn’t make it despite being ambitious and having all the opportunities. The movie is a mostly fictional account of how and why
One-line review: Woody Allen’s bloodless coup with laughter. When I rewatched Bananas, I was surprised at how good Woody Allen is with physical comedy, an underutilized part of his acting prowess. Bananas is one of those rare films (Sleeper is another) where we see Allen at his peak with verbal and physical comedy. It may
Everybody needs a place. The above quote, the motto of St Bart’s Church in midtown NYC, captures the angst of homelessness. In NYC, there is no avoiding the homeless. In the city that never sleeps, the visible inequality is between those outdoors by choice and those without. The sheer number of homeless people in NYC also
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One-line review: An abandoned baby rescues many adults. The film has you at hello; I am referring to Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-ada’s charming greeting before the movie begins thanking the audience and the actors. Broker is his first South Korean movie (he also wrote it). After his acclaimed “Shoplifters,” Kore-ada revisits the theme of families
(SRK thanking his fans for Pathaan’s success). India’s superstar, Shahrukh Khan (SRK), after lying low for four years following a spectacular flop, is back with a bang with his new film, Pathaan. The film’s record-breaking journey worldwide cements his status as probably the last of India’s superstars. I say last because, with the multitudes of
NEVER WRITE OFF INTELLIGENCE: SRK’S BACK Read More »
Stop thoughtlessly undercutting thoughtfulness. At a recent Thanksgiving, my thoughtful friend, who always hosts dinner, outdid herself. There were almost twenty-five guests, including several kids. Not only did she organize games for the kids, but she also gifted them personalized mugs with their names stenciled on them. Then, to ensure they could use their mugs
UNDERCUTTING THOUGHTFULNESS Read More »
One-line review: Your heart is the only compass you need to navigate through life. The audience broke into spontaneous applause both times I watched The Fabelmans. And they couldn’t have been more different each time; senior citizens the first time and young New Yorkers the second time. That’s the beauty of Steven Speilberg’s autobiographical film,
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