By: Jeff Ching Are we seeing the genesis of Dev Patel as Hollywood’s next big action star? Will Monkey Man become a colossal action movie franchise similar to John Wick? Monkey Man is certainly in the running for this year’s best action movie.
With Netflix’s Extraction, Marvel filmmakers Anthony and Joe Russo continue to produce thrilling action fodder while taking fairly green directors under their wings.
Are you still thirsty for crime movies after soaking in The Irishman? You might want to give Line of Descent a shot. In no way is Line of Descent in the same league as Martin Scorsese’s masterpiece, but it’s a solid pick for people looking for to be entertained by lighter popcorn fare after watching Netflix’s consequential epic.
First, the good news: India In a Day moves quickly. As a fan of 2011’s Life In a Day (also co-produced by Ridley Scott), I can admit that Kevin MacDonald’s doc had sagging stretches of unhelpful video. The filmmaker and his editor were too comfortable, which meant they often forgo their timeline.
Sami Khan’s indie drama Khoya is a captivating cascading trip through India as Indo-Canadian Roger (Rupak Ginn of TV’s Royal Pains) embarks on a quest to restore his birth history. But, when the film isn’t washing over the audience, the movie falters and indulges in its own mystery and melodrama.
By: Shannon Page Sibling filmmakers Ravi and Geeta Patel’s Meet the Patels is a feel-good documentary/romantic comedy hybrid that achieves everything that it sets out to do. The film, which began as a home video of a trip that the Patel family took to India, follows Ravi’s journey to find the woman of his dreams while navigating the expectations of his Indian-American family as well as his own connection to his cultural and heritage. It…
By: Mark Barber Chaitanya Tamhane’s courtroom drama, aptly titled Court, has received broad international acclaim for its compelling minimalism and intelligent use of realism, but also deserves praise for its insightful analysis on the lingering effects of colonialism on India’s legal system. Understated and distanced, Court eschews the familiar Hollywood-style intensity of John Grisham adaptations. A procedural take on the Indian legal systems and the personal lives related to one case, Court examines its postcolonial…
By: Addison Wylie The Market offers a rare look at an issue through generic eyes. Filmmaker Rama Rau shouldn’t worry though. I’m still recommending her transfixing film about kidney trafficking and the butterfly effect these risky surgeries cause. Rau’s doc handles two different perspectives: life in an Indian slum, and the apprehensive idling of someone awaiting a kidney transplant in Canada. Both views are packed with a lot of emotion as well as unforgettable talks…
By: Addison Wylie What partly hurts Bird Co. Media is its insistence to make people believe it’s a documentary. Actions in the movie may have been inspired by real life events, but once you see how the film is formatted, you’ll have all the reason to doubt. For instance, cameras follow our leads and then freely cut around them – including on the other sides of doors. Those are some nimble cameramen. Bird Co. Media…