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278 Responses to “Department, Ishaqzaade (ongoing), the rest of the box office”
Department’s reviews are anything to go by – disaster – it is written all over it – my problem with Big B is that he goes on dishing out craps with ramu – nishabd, RGV ke sholay and now this….what exactly is he trying to do???
Nishabd is one of AB’s best movies… anyone who calls that crap …. something ain’t right! AB’s performance is so natural…. the role so beautifully done…. the use of his eyes and his facial expression….. every actor can use this movie as text book in acting….!!!!
one theory would be – both ramu and big b agree to work on a project and they are somehow convinced that it will work with audience – now this is a serious error of judgement – Big B better give a flop with Amol Palekar or Ritpurno or Shyam Benegal or Mani than dish out craps like this….Satyam, Big B responds to your comments some time – why not request him to work with above mentioned directors? He can produce them or there will be n no. of producers lined up for him….he can eveb request these people to come up with scripts and then direct. Why not? Why not? Why not?
B.O. Update-‘Department’ opens to poor houses- Taran Adarsh-Despite having formidable names,the new release DEPARTMENT opened to dismal houses across the country.The opening and noon shows were in the range of 10% to 15% at most screens.Response at plexes was poor,while the start at single screens was equally discouraging.The film will have to show a big jump on Friday evening and also over the weekend if it has to sustain at the BO.http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/trade/update/id/277/date/2012-05-18
Here, most question SRK’s choice of movies but no one questions Big B choice of movies ???
He has doled out more crapfest movies in recent years than anyone… It seems its all for money, when one doesn’t think of quality and stars in every sort of pathetic movies…
Srk, Sallu and Akki are also sailing in same boat but only Srk is picked up not Big B 🙂
Well unlike your srk….taking responsibility for one’s action is important…. so he owed lots of people to pay back…see every action has a reaction….he had a debt to pay…he could have declared bankruptcy and left all those people without the money he owed…but he DIDN’T…. he paid them back, no matter what it took him. Respect to AB!
Looking at srk, and since you brought him in…he can’t handle being told what to do by a security guard coz his ego is massive and you talk of srk and Bachchan in the same breath? For all the fame he has….. and no matter how much he tries to match Bachchan… getting respect he so desperately seeks, will not happen…. he needs many lessons on humility!
“he can’t handle being told what to do by a security guard coz his ego is massive” – there seems to be an other side of story here as srk’s daughter was shoved and other kids too…..if that is true, any parent could have lost his/her temper – so lets not judge it now.
Yes Big B did pay his debts (or so we are told) when he called up
YR in the middle of one night (i read it in an interview) asking for work – YR so much touched that he immediately got him on board for Mohabbatein – and then KBC followed and many other things… Big B did pay back and also earned much much more….but where is his script-sense? Why can’t he do more films like Aarakshan?
Bliss, i am also asking u a simple question- is there anything wrong in being a fan of ‘the superstar of millenium?’ if it is, i am ready to do thia crime in every birth. But it’s not that i don’t criticise his poor choices/films. On this thread itself i have trashed department, go check it out. But comparing his choices with sallu and akki is senseless.
Its doesn’t matter to me if you are or anyone is fan or not, but don’t suspect and cast doubts if someone asks simple Q and instead of replying, ppl here start labeling and never answer the Q…
How come its senseless and i am only on choice of movies not on acting, there is no comparison on that front???
bliss, that remark was not supposed to be personal. i apologise if u thought so. and i know that as satyam said, an rgv film becomes a groud for trashing bachchan, but i am sad bcos even someone as sensible as u seems to have joined this circus. as to why did i say that comparing bachchan’s choices of films with salman and akki, it’s because the 2 of them have done so much trash that one does not know where to start from (i am being fair here, i had myself listed down bachchan’s trashy films below)
“.taking responsibility for one’s action is important…. so he owed lots of people to pay back”
What a typical reply from a Bachhan fan. He has already paid his debt long ago by hosting KBC. Bliss was talking about the quality of movies he is doing now a days…and then u suddenly jumped onto SRK’s character (i can understand this is the right time to do so)
SRK’s behavior does not answer RGV Ki Aag, Buddha, Nishabd, Alladin, Department and lot many movies…
The main topic here was why only SRK is criticized for his choice of movies and suddenly it came down to behaviors by actors…
I agree SRK should learn from BIG B and should apologize the way BIG B said sorry to Raj Thakrey for Jaya’s comments…
“Nishabd is a class act in a very good and daring film- his performance was acclaimed everywhere”
It’s just your opinion. IMO Nishabd was a bad film and don’t think any body thinks highly of it except Bachhan fans. Well they even claimed Buddha was a critical and commercial success through Andhra box office site 😉
I agree with @Bhalo_Manush here…Nishabd was a decent film performance wise; But, even though it was a daring effort, it turned out to be a below mediocre film for me!
the crapfest movie of bachchan in this decade imo r- dil jo bhi kahe, aag, kyun ho gaya na, family, god tussi great ho, ab tumhare hawale watan saathiyo and probably aetbaar and hum kaun hai- but one should not forget he has done 41 films since 2000. srk obviously has done less crap films but that’s bcos he has done very less films comparatively. and let’s not even talk abt sallu and akki- 80% of their career is crap
and as much as i hated bhrb, it was not crap (it overall got good reviews). if this is crap, then apart from 4-5 films since 2000 i find all salman films crap
aur akki ke barey me to baat bhi mat karo. btw we r talking abt bachchan giving craps- can someone tell if srk (save CDI), sallu and akki have given a single performance which iS as good as Black, khaaki, paa, aks, kaante, baghban, last lear
its unwise to ask question that seeks to compare Big B performances to the minnows.
But talking of SRK, i do think his Swades and CDI performances are overrated – films where he chose to play restrained when his strength lies in his histrionic abilities (thats another thing that he’s hardly use it in the past ten years). I think he was best in Dil Se and Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa, displayed his energy yet not being unnatural for a moment in either of these two.
kabhie haa kabhie na, baazigar and cdi remain my fav srk acts( manisha overshadowed him dil se imo)- special mention to raam jaane, swades and rnbdj- one of srk films which i like is ketan mehta’s ‘oh darling, yeh hai india’- a nice satire. but i did not like srk there
I am with you on this point..Srk need not be credited for much in Swades..infact even in Dil Se..its like mani and gowariker just tells SRK, “Do not do what you wish to do on these sets, u do it my way!!”
Reminds me of a comic strip I read spoofing Rann, where Ramu explains a black screen as ‘an aesthetically zoomed in shot of Ritesh Deshmukh’s left nostril’ !
B.O. update: ‘Department’ opens to poor houses
By Taran Adarsh, May 18, 2012 – 14:41 IST
Despite formidable names on and off screen, the new release DEPARTMENT opened to dismal houses across the country. The opening and noon shows were in the range of 10% to 15% at most screens. The response at plexes was poor, while the start at single screens was equally discouraging. The film will have to show a big jump on Friday evening and also over the weekend if it has to sustain at the BO.
I said this a week ago that there was no excitement for this and apart from Yakuza, no one was interested.
I also agree that Amitabh has been doling out a lot of shit over the years. I would loved it, if he made less films but as long as they were good. He’s already a legend but he could have used the 2nd phase of his career to enhance his legend further. However it seems to me that he doesn’t have v.good script sense, either that or he needs the money to keep doling out his son 😉
1. I am big fan of Ramu and mostly admire his work.
2. Always enjoyed Bachchan + Sanjay Dutt outings (even liked Hum Kisi Se kam nahi).
First i will explain about positives of movie :
1. Breathtaking action sequences of Sanjay dutt and Rana, that too in plenty. Movie is out an out action bonanza and brilliantly shot.
2. Bachchan performance(Though a cameo role of 3 scenes 5 minutes each).
3. Never seen before shots on silver screen, some absolutely stunning shots.
4. Climax and last 20 minutes of action is superb.
Now Negatives :
1. Screenplay and script. Both are coherent and inconsistent. There are many high points where movie can go to another level, but thanks to uninspiring writing which couldn’t induce life.
2. Absurd use of brilliant camera techniques. Basically Ram gopal verma gets it wrong. I have put this camera technique on plus side as well, but downer is that Ramu just overdone it. IMO Ramu should use such unique shots only to portions where there is no conversation. When characters are talking, Camera should be normal and capture emotions and expressions only. But here we see camera going to Tea cup and on carem board while characters are in coversation mode. I missed many dialogue exchanges because attention goes to those stunning shots rather than dialogues.
3. Story is not new, even we have witnessed such twists and turns in Ramu’s own Sarkar and Sarkar raj. But those movies also have good screenplay which this one is missing.
Overall .. A movie for Dutt and Amitabh fans(He is in short appearances of 5 minutes in 3 scenes), And those who are looking for awesome action scenes. rest can miss.
Hate to say it, but that looks amateurish beyond belief. Almost thought it was a spoof! What’s especially sad is that that the first one was one of the few (now defunct) RGV Factory films that was not marred by RGV’s aesthetic intervention. This on the other hand is wallowing in the bizarre, comical camerawork that has come to define the man’s movies.
I think Shagird was a good film until it tried to pull one twist too many- it tried to be too smart for its own good. Actually Department tried to be like Shagird but failed miserably
Subhash K. Jha speaks about Department
By Subhash K. Jha, May 18, 2012 – 01:52 IST
Shoot at sight. Pointblank. In different ways that’s exactly what Ram Gopal Varma (RGV) and his characters do in Department. While his cop heroes Sanjay Dutt, Rana Daggubati and their hazily sketched compatriots (one of whom looks like Deepak Tijori) go on a cleansing rampage against sociopaths, RGV goes on his own trip, shooting characters at angles you’ve never seen them being shot. They don’t always look fetching with their stained teeth and dirty nails showing up in embarrassing close-ups. So who said life in cinema is about postcard pictures?
Welcome to RGV’s world of muck and mayhem.
The one definite thing that must be said about RGV is that his exploration of the nexus between the law and the underworld is ceaselessly seeking new modes of storytelling. Department is one breathless surge of aggression and violence. Shot with cameras that capture the actors at their quirkiest and most candid the film is not for those who think cinema is all about style. RGV left his stylish days behind in Rangeela and Company.
Repeatedly and mercilessly RGV dismantles all conventions of pretty storytelling and aims for the jugular. The camera angles are often much too casual to be considered ‘cinematic’. But breaking rules is a given in RGV’s cinema. He breaks them in Department in a noisy rush of agitated images that go well with the edgy fidgety characters.
Not all the characters work. Vijay Raaz as a whiny dhoti-clad gangster and debutant Madhu Malini as a tartish sharp-shooter are a scream. The talented Abhimanyu Singh has a tough time trying to maintain equilibrium between the two unintentionally comical evildoers. The dialogues these gangsters exchange try so hard to be real they end up being howlers. It’s like eavesdropping on a conversation between two pathologists.
The camera, manned by no official Director Of Photography (and it shows) goes through the character’s legs, into their nostrils, over their armpits, under their thighs… Every possible orifice is officially declared public property in this film about cops who do their own thing. And a director who doesn’t mind banging the bullets in places where feelings don’t enter.
Yup, Department is a brutal film. There’s no room here for emotions. Even when Sanjay Dutt playing a senior cop goes home his wife (played by Laxmi Manchu, speaking in a strangely loud tone) he talks to her in unsentimental tones. There’s more feeling in the two cops Dutt and Rana’s buddy-buddy baatein in the line of duty.
There’s a long history in cinema of cops striking a rapport on the beat. Dutt and Rana are no Danny Glover and Mel Gibson. But then this is no Lethal Weapon.
The action here is a strange mix of street aggression and stylized stunts. While scenes of Daggubati chasing goons through claustrophobic crowded areas of Mumbai are vintage Varma the climactic fist-to-fist between Rana and Dutt proves a battle of unequal titans. One of the two actors being just too agile for the other.
What grabs your attention in this oft-told tale of the cops resorting to extra-constitutional means to ‘cleanse’ the city is the frenetic pacing. The characters are constantly on the move. Even Mr. Bachchan while taking sardonic jibes at a ‘system’ that is corroded is seen restlessly circling Dutt or Rana, depending on which of the two the wily wizened politicians is provoked into action.
Not surprisingly Mr. Bachchan’s neta-giri provides the liveliest interludes in the proceedings. He seems to be having the most fun even when saddled with dialogues that must have sounded far funnier on paper than they do in their delivery. Among the rest of the cast Rana Daggubatti with his restrained ruggedness stands tall.
What Department delivers is yet another RGV product that takes Hindi cinema’s crime genre away from conventional storytelling. There are no punctuations except exclamation marks, no speed breakers except songs (terribly screechy and grating with Nathalia Kaur’s item number hitting rock-bottom) and no way out for these restless law-enforcers than to take the law in their own hands.
The world of Department is anarchic, destructive and apocalyptic. The narrative format imposed on the world of gangsterism is freewheeling almost chaotic. Violence and death are written into the DNA of the characters. You can’t separate RGV’s people from their chaotic karma.
Department tells a virile story with no patience for sappy humbug. It’s not meant for those who think lovers laughing their way into death , as they did in Ishaqzaade, are the last words in ruinous relationships. In Department the characters share a far more intimate bonding with their guns than with their friends
bdw..guys get the trailer of ab tak chappan here…ull know what i mean by “RGV raping his own director’s minds”…i mean what brainwashing..shmit amin didnt make the first as blownout and hence the sensitive yet decent film…and now this sequel has all that RGV’s cinematography would bring in and more…cameras following people around and wobbling and making an arch is not cinematography ASS#$#!!! it pain to see a good filmmaker such as RGV bringing himself down to such levels..and this when there are brave young filmmakers who are soldiering on with films that they want to make. Why cant RGV use this new wave’s ideology to his advantage and make cinema and not his rotten sense of violence? ok what the #$#, make your own violent movies..fine..but atleast create something that deserves some credit..please help indian cinema’s cause, not against it by making garbage that he for some reason believes is “good cinema”
i dare say..even the weakest of his good films such as Company had characters that you felt for..RGV died after company!! he came back from death just to make nishabd..and then died again..
First pictures released of Ralph Fiennes as Charles Dickens :
British actor Ralph Fiennes plays Charles Dickens in The Invisible Woman, joining an illustrious list of actors who have portrayed the author, including Simon Callow, Derek Jacobi and Anthony Hopkins
Ramu has hit rock bottom with this one. And it was a pain to see Sanju in such a badly written role. The film is devoid of any story. That Bachchan, given a caricaturish character, came out of the film with his reputation unscathed isitself an example of his greatness. Avoid it
you could’ve gone for even an ishaqzaade instead (not that i liked it, im sure it must be still better than this … whateva). or the latest animation flick wassitzname
Saurabh, there was a reason why I was never excited about this. I have a rule of thumb with RGV, if Abhishek’s not in the film it’s not worth watching! At least over the number of years. The one big exception here is Rakta Charitra where I found the double film impressive at many levels. And if I were a betting man I’d say RGV would have liked Abhishek in one of those roles. The other exception for me is Nishabd. Wouldn’t put it in the RC category but this was a worthwhile effort. Rann was watchable but an insipid film.
But it is also true that RGV has become the ‘site’ on which many wage an anti-Bachchan campaign. It’s true that RGV has delivered some real turkeys over the years, in a box office sense and otherwise. But it’s hard to believe that people who routinely swallow and digest and enjoy lots of garbage out of Bollywood suddenly find these the worst films around! And yes RGV has gotten lost in many ways, a point that I remember making a long time back, but on his better days he is nonetheless someone who can still take a lot of the competition to school. For all my objections to certain aspects of the film I found SR a rather strong film and the same goes for VC.
With Department though I always had the gravest doubts about RGV venturing into rogue filmmaking. He tends to go overboard with this stuff but more importantly is often not able to find an appropriate match for his narrative intentions.
Will say this about RGV — he seems quite comfortable with what he’s doing. He’s had these low points many times over the years and he hasn’t changed course. Clearly the films are made on very small budgets so even when they fail spectacularly they don’t really bankrupt anyone.
Satyam u r very correct here. but somehow i had a belief that Dutt is combining with Ramu after yrs so there will be atleast something worthwhile but ironically it was Dutt who got the worst part here. And whatever nice moments were there, they were destroyed by RGV’s nauseating camera-work. Rana is made to dub in his own voice and his dialogue-delivery sucked big time- he seemed to be busy getting his hindi diction write and just refused to act. The only bright spots r Bachchan who is hilarious, Vijay Raaz and ANjana Sukhani in a bit role
I know but trust me, compared to this, Daud seems like an Osacr winner, atleast it was fun in parts- had great music and a nice Pinky act by Paresh Rawal. The worst thing here is that Ramu just did not his use cast properly- Abhimanyu Raj Singh, who was superb as Bukka Reddy, is made to act like a fool here. And some of the casting is horrible. Madhu Shalini palying a female gangster and Abhimanyu’s moll is an embarrassment – she does not know how to act, period.And can u imagine Deepak Tijori with a handle-bar moustache, he looked atrocious. Actually even without a storyline this could have been an enjoyable actioner but the fight choreography is pathetic- the climactic battle between Dutt and Rana looks horrible bcos Dutt is simply not agile enough. I think this film required a Sanjay Gupta as a director- I hope u r getting my point
U r so right about Dutt- this guy could have given any star any star a run for his money and he is destroying his career. And the worst part is that he is looking horrible- even the baseball cap he is wearing can’t hide his eye-bags. Anyway he has Zila Ghaziabad lined up next and then he is doing Son of Sardar (maryada ramanna remake) with Devgn – let’s see
havent seen this film nor was about to watch it
but this 10-15% opening is still surprising..
Cant believe the film will be THAT bad…
Just goes onto show how the —-
“paying public strikes back”!!!
those who think they can take em for granted, take one star and another ‘icon’ in the promos, add in a nathalia number and thats it?….
well, thats it then…lol
rgv, dutt and even bachchan here are paying for their ‘sins’ from the (recent) past….
ps–whos madhu shalini and whos the girl with the ‘thunder thighs’ in tight jeans in the promos…
the 10-15 % opening is hogwash. the theatre i went today was 70 % occupied- my friends in bombay, delhi and lucknow tell me that there was above 50% occupany everywhere. though i must tell u that i found the film shitty, there were some scenes where people were wolf-whistling
about departments ‘opening’
-btw just telling folks some inside scoop….
Amy has gone on a ‘blind date’ tonight
and imagine where? Where can peace and privacy be attained—–
in an empty hall showing ‘department’
welldone amy–do keep us ‘updated’ 🙂
ps–as u know, i shall keep it a ‘secret’ lol
well in that empty hall she had imran ‘chocoboy’ khan tied to her leash…LOL- just/kidding (actually taking revenge for ur ridiculing of my gauhat yesterday 🙂
shhhh
i shouldnt have told all about her
amy–dont worry-i wont spill the beans on what u were upto yesterday …
Ok, no blackmail as of now, provided my ‘conditions’ are met –deal done 🙂
Alex,
When you are about 70 ( roughly 20 years from now), if you come back and read your comments, your response will be -WTF was I thinking!!! About the same as what most of us are feeling right now about your comments.
Hahaha
so nice to see rajen uncle of the ‘murder2’ fame
or the “dirty picture asking for complimentary papertissue” fame is back—
am really entertained by rajen uncle—
who after using sildenafil has actually changed self-help groups!
we know what the problem was ‘BEFORE”
but now “AFTER”- he has joined the ‘priapism’ society 🙂
ps–not meant to be derogatory or judgemental on either rajen uncle or any of the other priapism sufferers. infact this takes into account their need for ‘self help’ and public ‘understanding’…
Rajen uncle–i hope u wont mind the above post
U will appreciate how ‘sensitive’ and ’empathetic’ it is to your current ‘problem @hand”
anyhow –hope u will take this in the right spirit
ps–Amy has agreed to the ‘deal” and so will not be making any more ‘revelations’
Sorry rajen uncle 🙂
feel sorry for rajen uncle btw
he doesnt mean to, but puts his foot in the wrong place/time and gets stung
i know he doesnt mean bad though..
A grown up “Mr Bean” rajen uncle
hope he ‘regroups’ for another futile attempt as the umpteen ealrier ones
now, even his scars are getting difficult to count
🙂
Rajen uncle has a knack of getting some choiciest ones from me lol
NOt sure if he enjoys em though
BUt due to the ‘passive’ orientation of his sadomasochism, he invariably asks for more (and gets it!)
Any unintentional hurt is regretted 🙂
“get humped like a pony and discarded by the roadside”
hahaha–this is what happened with rajen uncle in the priapism self help group meeting, it seems 😉
our sympathies…
btw just to clarify, i really dont mind rajen uncle–unlike the karen kumars and henrys
this is ‘fun’ banter
he doesnt mean wrong and is a good soul
infact a very educated one..
So, no offense,
cheers 🙂
BTW- I’m just joking- I actually like Gauhar- she is talented for sure. I haven’t seen Ishaqzaade yet- but I really like the Jallah Wallah promo- and she can act as well.
Alex,
I honestly dont mind the banter but still most of your comments
when not talking of films, for me ( and I suspect quite a few others) end up in the WTF section.
I do believe you are a true film buff IMO, you let the other stuff take over your identity far too often. Not for me to police your commenting or the site but this is an honest opinion.
man– i pick up stuff intuitively
if folks know the exact credentials and qualifications of rajen uncle–they will be damn impressed..
the other day, i fought with tony to ‘upgrade’ rajen unlce
he was making an akki out of rajen uncle but i felt ‘bad’ 🙂
satyam is more than an effective and able moderator folks
He doesnt ‘police’ stuff, as it should be
the other day i ventured into another blog who has a ‘rulebook’ longer than the ‘constituion’ of a nation state
but
the bickerings and fightings resemble a group of nubile females fighting over boyfriends 🙂
RGV lost the plot a while back.
The fact that quite a few people including myself would take RGV and his movies over 90% of BW directors is a sad commentary on the state of BW.
RGV has become increasingly whimsical and monotonous. Hard for his films to be commrecially viable. I dont blame AB one bit tho for accepting his films as they do have a certain rougish charm even if the final product can be difficult to stomach and commercially unviable. Without seeing cannot really comment on how bad Department is ( cant trust those clowns that pass off as reviewers)
but will not be worse than BG,OSO,MNIK or RNBDJ.
AB has a poor script sense for sure and wouldnt trust his judgement. He is a pure artitst and that is what I want in an actor.We have enough shrewd businessmen masquerading as actors. One can certainly fault his script sense and justifiably blame it for the dilution of his BO prowess though provoking Nishabd to make the argument sort of undoes it. Nishabd mgiht not be perfect or even a great film but can easily trump MOST of SRK’s and ALL of Salman’and Akshays filmography.
“” AB has a poor script sense for sure and wouldnt trust his judgement. He is a pure artitst and that is what I want in an actor.We have enough shrewd businessmen masquerading as actors. One can certainly fault his script sense and justifiably blame it for the dilution of his BO prowess ”
One of the problems is that a lot of people are not able to separate the commercial failure or even disaster from the truly poor film. Aag was a terrible film, Rakta Charitra was the opposite, but both had similar results. These distinctions are totally lost on people and of course partisans prey on this kind of attitude. But on RGV as I was saying earlier today he’s become target for many anti-Bachchan partisans anyway for his stance on the Bachchans! He now comes in for extra scrutiny in many ways. And of course he’s hardly been very kind to SRK and some of Yashraj ‘attitudes’ in the past so he becomes that perfect target. Will hand it to him though — he seems least bothered. Even in interviews he’s least defensive.
The box office in any case has become an absolute criterion for web wars of all kinds. Completely vulgarity on this score. I am as interested in the box office as anyone else but to make the worth of a film completely and totally reducible to this is beyond idiotic. Specially when history often produces very different judgments. Unfortunately this has become the game these days which is why some of the fanatical Aamir fans these disappoint me greatly. Because they produce word for word the logic SRK fans used once upon a time. What’s the point of being ahead if you resort to the same nonsense? And specially when Aamir has never fostered this kind of unthinking attitude. It’s like after arguing for Abhishek’s sensible films for years I were to suddenly say ‘it’s all about crores’ if he delivered a number of big ones in the usual commercial formats.
I shouldn’t be very surprised though. It’s a very vulgar age in some ways, all about numbers and so on, in many other matters too.
“on RGV as I was saying earlier today he’s become target for many anti-Bachchan partisans anyway for his stance on the Bachchans!” – Satyam, u r so right. i am seeing this happen on the blog today itself and i am disgusted
It’s nothing new.. unfortunately on the blogosphere you see such agendas more often than not. It’s never an honest debate. When you asked me about Sunny yesterday I said I just don’t like him at all though I like some of the films. Maybe it’s an extreme view or whatever but I don’t like him. However instead of saying that if I were to start talking only about the flops and how he doesn’t have fans today because the films don’t do well or whatever that would be an unfair argument. Why? Because that wouldn’t have been the real reason of my dislike.
What’s happened online, and this is a general fact of life not just restricted to cinema, is that every debate becomes very polarized and very nasty because people are just trying to fit every ‘event’ into their pre-perceived notions. Hence we see that even if a film is called Bol Bachchan or even if the director talks about Abhishek’s centrality to the film and so on some folks still keep saying it’s a supporting role or whatever. I don’t like Salman much more today than I did 5 years ago or 10 years ago or whatever. But I don’t have a problem recognizing his astonishing box office run or even understanding what it is about his current persona that has that kind of appeal. So perhaps it’s an old fashioned view but for all the favoritism all of us indulge in from time to time there should be some ‘reasonable’ position in debates. Whatever I might think about SRK and the way he conducts himself and many of his key films I don’t have a problem calling DDLJ a classic or saying Swades is a very moving film and a bit of a favorite despite some serious flaws (I’d take Swades over RDB even though as cinematic efforts go the latter is vastly superior to the former, it’s not even close) or even saying as late as MNIK that the film is quite ok and SRK hasn’t done a bad job here. I could produce other examples.
Again the problem isn’t our personal preferences but the extent to which we can get so biased sometimes that we start denying basic facts. Now there are some fanatical fans who are completely blind when it comes to their favorite star but who don’t really have a problem with other stars one way or the other. That sort of attitude one can live with. Otherwise it’s the same tiring stuff. People pretending to criticize RGV when you know it’s really about something else. The hilarious thing is that the same folks then turn on me and suggest I am supporting certain stars for the very same reason. I think that whatever my other virtues might or might not be (and I am still looking for them!) diplomacy wouldn’t seem to be one of my strengths!
Someone was telling me Mera Naam Joker had very low numbers on IMDB.
The problem Bhalo_Manush is that you don’t need to pretend this is some sort of serious debate. I don’t want to produce some of your past comments on Bachchan’s peak period here and start a fight but you’re a partisan and you should be comfortable with this label. Don’t make Department the excuse to say what you’re saying about Deewar or Naseeb anyway!
One can be a fan, even a fanatical one but the partisan wraps it up in an agenda which relies on a very dishonest framing. And I’m not picking on you because I was saying the same thing to some Aamir fans the other day. You can be as pro-SRK as you want or whoever else it is that you like without trying to make these other ridiculous attempts. Much as whatever problems I have with SRK I don’t call his KKHH a multistarrer (though by the definitions of many anti-Bachchan folks it is one!).
I am not affected by what you’re doing but let’s be clear about what it is.
I stopped a SRK-Aamir war elsewhere but it was hilarious to see SRK’s defense protesting in Aamir fans the very things they’d said for years. It all comes around. Ranbir’s fans think SRK is too old and should do other stuff! Time passes before you know it!
“Don’t make Department the excuse to say what you’re saying about Deewar or Naseeb anyway”
When did i brought Deewar or Naseeb here??
.All i wanted to say is that Nishabd is bad film. Mera Naam Joker has quite good rating on IMDB. I am not saying IMDB is the only thing to decide on quality but it is one of the better sites which has views/votes of maximum users.
I mean i will any day prefer IMDB than any Bachhan fans (or any other star’s fans) views on a movie. I can say this because i saw Dum Maro Dum and Buddha based on some of the reviews here.
“I stopped a SRK-Aamir war elsewhere but it was hilarious to see SRK’s defense protesting in Aamir fans the very things they’d said for years. It all comes around. Ranbir’s fans think SRK is too old and should do other stuff! Time passes before you know it!”
Now see ur own response. In a thread where i was discussing Nishabd, Department and Big B’s choice of movies u have brought the SRK fan thing here….I mean as SRK fans we even can’t criticize a bad movie…SRK fan hone ki itni badi sazaa 😉
See the difference here. U r a bachhan fan abusing me but don’t remember i have ever done that to you. Also go through ur comments here and in NG and my comments here.
“Like star,like fan!”…huh..is anyway Abhishek or Amitabh has similarity with u???
Also I have always criticized Bachhans..but show me wrong word i have used against them..but u know the kind of words u use against SRK in the name of cheap humor…
Finally managed to catch up Drive. much has been said and theories built around it as the return of neo-noir etc. Good enough I thought, but fell short of expectations..
Gosling is a great screen presence though. an actor with terrific range, from the smooth-talking, glib casanova in Crazy Stupid Love to this awkward, no-nonsense driver.
i don’t like this genre but bcos of gosling saw it- i had always seen gosling excell in serious self-destructive roles so i thought he would not be able to pull-off this lounge-lizard act. but then gosling is gosling! he did the unthinkable. i believe he is the only current actor who can come close to my fav, the awesome Matt Damon, in versatility
the slow-mo scene in drive in the elevator where there is a transition from the couple kissing to hyper-violent action was like a splendid poem.also driver/kid is sort of a modern ‘man with no name’ (eastwood)
when ‘ami the auteur’ says so, it better be (after knowing that u have not even missed ray and mrinal sen, i think after satyam,q,abzee and gf, u r the next auteur here-the youngest one) .u know one may think i have perverse tastes but when violence is artistically done, i simply adore it (especially like the way a cornea is punctured in some films- but can’t stand torture on girls, i instantly feel like puking). and the fact it gave a boost to the dying action genre was like a double-whammy for me.
‘Ami the auteur’- absolutely not! I’m actually very uninformed on the topic of noir/ neo-noir cinema- but I found the action seqences in this film pretty fascinating:
BTW- I don’t know much about the technicalities associated with action sequences so I only pay special attention to them when they are extremely well done- that elevator sequence in Drive was probably the best thing I’ve seen in this regard since the single shot action sequences in Children of Men.
Oh- and I forgot to mention that Ryan Gosling was stupendous in the movie- this role was the perfect fit for him- and he’s also unbelievably attractive.
My earlier comment is awaiting moderation because of multiple links- but here is an interview where the director of Drive speaks about the elevator sequence-
I really like what he says about stylish Vs. Stylised action sequences- because that’s what I loved about this film- the action sequences were incredible but they were not so stylised and artificial that they pulled you out of the movie. It’s hard to have so much technical artistry on display without the film appearing self-indulgent- but this film completely manages to avoid that pitfall and keeps you gripped the whole way even while you admire the composition of the action.
oh! thanks for mentioning that chase sequence in children of men- crisp stuff( actually there is a very good track shot used by rgv in shiva- i had put up the video on the ‘department trailer’ thread-). and now u r giving me a complex girl, u know stuff abt action too(i wonder if i can becum half as knowledgable abt stuff as u guys). btw if u or anyone is interested i have a personalized collection best action videos from various hollywood,bwood and foreign films which i could post here-if satyam allows.
Ami, thanks much for posting Refn’s interview. the fact that he is such a good technician is also exhibited by his interest in old world hollywood trope of ‘expressionist techniques’.”I really like what he says about stylish Vs. Stylised action sequences- because that’s whatI loved about this film- the action sequences were incredible but they were not so stylised and artificial that they pulled you out of the movie.”- superbly put ami.
btw ami if u r interested in expressionism do see this old sunil dutt film called as ‘yaadein’- it is one of a kind- it is one of the handful of films made in the world where,in the entire film, there is only character and character- no one else.
yes thanks for mentioning the lighting. and the bg score was eclectic and had an old world charm to it. but i have a huge problem with that word ‘neo-noir’ which foreign writers keep using- believe there is no such concept of neo-noir, a simple noir is good enough. in that way there is also something called as palmetto-noir
surprising-‘on the road’ has kirsten stewart? hmm
btw apparently some chicks who told me about this film have gone mad for garett head-lund and sam riley…–puttin up posters and all..
guess will catch this one
I’m surprised this got no coverage from the media ESP in compared to srks Yale ‘honour’
A young research scientist working at Ohio mentioned this to me and saw this actually who -was expectedly impressed with Rahman…
Apparently -some key messages were-
‘learn from your travels’
‘never rush your judgments’
Wow-among the v few Indian celebrities I truly admire…
Haha
Well have already given my take on it
All things considered, and not due to this or any other award including oscars–
If one considers the genres, styles, impact, pure divinity of his music and overseas impact–nobody from the subcontinent comes close to Rahman
As mentioned, I learn music as a hobby and do some informal ‘jamming’ sessions with certain multiethnic and multiple background music lovers…
Most of them are Rahman fans
Infact just yesterday, we played a reworking of rahmans ‘rehna tu’ which we are aiming to play in a university festival shortly …..
Ps–not meant to degrade or belittle rd burman who is an I disputed great but I’m not really convinced he is definitely better than sd burman. There are many factors at play at his sudden ‘born again’ fan hysteria nowadays -have discussed this earlier…
^^ There are many factors at play at his sudden ‘born again’ fan hysteria nowadays
Same can be said for any MD, like It is now fashion to like rehman, If you dont like him n say his music is great than ppl will say something wrong with you.. Herd mentality..
Every argument is a double edged Sword..
Anyone can say anything, It doesn’t cost a dime as Lata said that Rehman just brought new sound using technology, nothing else.. That is Lata Speaking not me…
Every generation has its own Favorites but RD is still being talked about and used by every new Tom Dick and harry Music directors shows something more than what’s visible to naked eye..
‘rehna tu’–for any Rahman fans here…
Won’t provide the delhi6 link, since I actually detest the way this gem has been filmed on a obese (tummy hanging down) rishi kapoor showing glimpses of his derrière leaning frowards on a pool table. For all my liking for Rakesh mehra, wanna shoot him for this–really!!
Love this creation by rehman
Prasoon Joshua lyrics are noteworthy
Minor-Incidentally, we played it yesterday and will play this shortly informally in one of the unis..
Surprisingly I’m the ONLY one who knows anything about Bollywood in the bunch…
And am benefitting from some guitar lessons from a Czech -this girl is a doctor who also plays guitar as a hobby…though much much better than me
Enjoy folks
alex, it’s great to know that u r learning music and that u also jam. and it’s evident that u know quite a bit abt guitar. well i used to play saxophone (trust me man, chicks get impressed by it…lol) and mouth-organ which i still sometimes play occasionally just to fight boredom
Haha minor
In this case-I’m not learning to ‘impress any chicks’
Somehow that comes naturally to me lol oops
Btw am lately becoming more of a music than a movie fan
One can enjoy music anytime even whilst working and doesn’t need to stick to any time/duration
Also, have a problem nowadays sparing 2-3 hours at a stretch to watch any movie in totality
Watching a few scenes, punching in few comments here n there is more feasible…
Ps-I learn music but am nowhere very fluent
But good to learn from the Czech doctor this week
Incidentally saw her carrying a small ‘Harrison’s medicine book’ with her to the sessions–apparently she’s also getting ready for postgraduation, seems…
‘small Harrison book’- harrison is huge- it’s one of the best books in the branch of ‘medicine’. btw czech girls r really good looking. i was a huge fan of czech tennis star ‘jana novotna’ in 90s
Minor-does it come in a mini-pocket version maybe?
Will ask her…maybe she’s going for shortcuts lol
” btw czech girls r really good looking”
Ya well this one is no different though better than novotna!
But as mentioned– I’m just ‘focussed’on music in this case 😉
Ishaqzaade held up very well on its 8th day collecting around 1.75-2 crore nett as per early estimates. The collections in some circuits were as good as the previous day while the single screen dominated circuits had slight drops as it lost screens due to Department.
The 8th day collections of Ishaqzaade are a bit lower than the first day of Department but its likely that over the weekend it will emerge top of the box office charts again as it shows more growth than Department.
The weekend should come out in the 7.50 crore nett which would make it a near certainty to cross the 40 crore nett mark for lifetime business.
Department had a very poor day as it collected around 2.25 crore nett as per early estimates. The film started poorly and did not show any improvement in the evening shows.
Single screens at some stations have fared better but still collections are low. Multiplexes all over have seen a very low turnout and in some Delhi/NCR multiplexes, the collections of Vicky donor in its fifth Friday were better than the first Friday of Department.
There is not much hope for the film from this low level and will not be a surprise if the film is not able to show a jump on Saturday despite such low collections.
alex i am glad that u guys r performing for a univ festival- it’s amazing (i remember this famous indian band ‘parikrama’ performed in our school and we went crazy). but u seem to be really talented. and once u perform in the college, do share the experience. and i hope people here will realise that u r much more than a guy with a gross sense of humour
“i hope people here will realise that u r much more than a guy with a gross sense of humour”–haha minor…
its been my earnest effort that they DONT realise anything more than what i want them to see (ie more than the gross sense of humour)…
(btw i suspect that some may not die out of sheer surprise and awe, if exposed to anything more than that lol)
btw on a lighter note–guess it will be just a matter of a couple of years of more of ‘growing up’ for u as well, when u shall start seeing beyond ‘impressing girls with music’ or writing stuff even on anonynmous blogs with an intention to ‘impress’ or ‘stun into influencing’ others
Cheers–just joking…
“writing stuff even on anonynmous blogs with an intention to ‘impress’ or ‘stun into influencing’ others”- mate i know it very well that i write too badly to impress anyone (though apart from the big guns like satyam, gf and q, people like ami especially, oldgold, tony and occasionally you continue to impress me a great deal). as of girls, they were never my field of interest. i always preferred batting on the real pitch…lol. and since i have joined mbbs, i have left those days way behind
“–rotflol
oops minor: but couldnt help laughing @ that..since the impression is different
Have atleast half a decade of more ‘experience’ than u—
only if u dont mind and i genuinely mean it and not to pull your leg—-
an earnest and friendly advice to u will be to get hold of a few (atleast one chick) in your medical college(s) since it will give u a much needed ‘focus’ 🙂
If u dont mind–from what ive seen of some other medics i know like that czech girl, u seem to have TOO much time for other things like films, comics, blogs and the time u r on here is sometimes more than even me on my free day lol-
which also may mean that your ‘time management’ skills are v good though….
but coming back to my free ‘self styled counselling’ session–
u seem too ‘excitable” lol and I do see u somewhat at risk of immense psychological ‘manipulation’ for eg by shrewd girls –maybe im speaking out of turn or too soon–but thats what u remind me of another buddy i knew a few years ago.
Hope u will take this positively—u r a bright guy and hope u dont lose your balance once u are ‘hit by the female species’ 🙂
sanjana, why would i blast u though it’s amply clear that ur sentence was meant for me.anyway, i don’t know how much abt students of medical college, but if u will ask any of them they will tell u abt the academic burden they have for getting addicted to other things. though a lot of them do smoke(and sometimes booze) to relieve the tension (i don’t do that ok). btw it’s very clear that u r not a student, are u?
saurabh, sorry if I hurt you unintentionally. I have a cousin who is almost an net addict though he is a student. There was one article about how a twitter addict almost lost all contact with the real world and then it took him a while to come out of it. Internet addiction is too powerful and there are scores of articles about it.
sanjana, u don’t have to apologise to me at all. and i am not hurt by ur remark, i know they were well-intentioned. anyway i don’t like girls apologising to me, makes me uncomfortable…lol. so chill out. and yes u have a fair point. especially social networking is a big addiction. anyway do u work professionally? ur fav actors/actresses?
and before i get kicked by myself for handing out too much ‘free unwanted advice’ to all n sundry like some knowall ‘holy guy’–need to open the other window on the computer and do some real work of my own 🙂
LOL…thanks for the advice. but just to tell u while i blog, i actually study alongside( one cannot survive in a mbbs if one doesn’t study for atleast 4-5 hrs a day). before this yr i never got the time to make a single comment though i used to follow the blog once a week.but this yr, we have few classes and more ‘hospital postings’ where, in the hospital of my college, few patients came so i have free time. but come july and this will change. and i am almost an insomniac,sleep for not more than 4 hrs.
dont worry minor–just to borrow your own comment from the other thread —
“u dont need to be defensive” 🙂
btw to lighten u up after this relatively ‘serious’ counselling session—i initially misread your last line of this comment as–
” i dont sleep with more than 4 girls at a time!” 🙂
ps–do pay heed to my advice of having a few girls/friend(s) since u seem to be in a stage that u sincerely need em.
Do ask me for any free advice (though i dont claim to be an expert like srk in KHNH..) Cheers
Minor-The likes of Rahman play for the pleasure of others and the others are privileged to listen to him
The likes of me play for myself and am actually thankful to others to listen 🙂
That’s the crucial difference …
As i said -just do this as a hobby and dont tell most of the other music students what I do otherwise lest they get somewhat overawed…
Anyhow–have recently also done some seminars introducing contemporary Bollywood to some naive uni crowd —
The films I chose were of my own choice–had certain v interesting feedback -may share sometime
By the way, I watched ‘Dangerous Ishq’. It was a complete junk-fest! The story is all over the place all the time, the screenplay’s very loose and it just drags on. The film could have used a massive trim and then, it may have been a decent watch. But, instead, it’s a slow-as-hell movie that just makes you cringe at the writers. There’s practically no logic to the story. Seriously, (AND I’M BEING UNBIASED HERE) compared to this, Bodyguard and RA.One seem like they should’ve won the Oscar for “Best Story”, “Best Screenplay” and “Best Director”. I shouldn’t completely down the movie, I guess, since Karishma Kapoor at least makes an attempt to give a decent performance. That’s the only thing that’s making this movie ‘hang by the thread’. Jimmy does a decent job too. Rest of them just scream their guts out, especially Ravi Kishen. Supporting performances were over-the-top, to say the least.
When I turned off the computer to go to sleep (yeah, I torrented it…this piece of $H*T doesn’t deserve to be watched in theatres), I kept thinking to myself, were they serious when they made this movie? And Karishma was trying to go for a comeback with this junk??? 0.5/5
for a period film named Dangerous Ishq 3D, this was something that was forthcoming. could never be less bothered about something like this? I aint a fan of karisa, bbut what made her sign this?
Have had my share of fun with two of Indiana Jones’ films: the amrish puri one (temple of doom) and last crusade.. Great fun, I admit. But guess im missing out on the most important one – the one widely hailed as the greatest adventure of all time..
There was of course the more recent one too which wasn’t bad but it became a little preposterous by the end.
The Indiana Jones movies are essentially ‘comedies’ which is to say they’re not dramatic adventures. And though these are absolute classics I’m much more for the ‘tension’ adventure. The Guns of Navarone kind of deal. By the way have you seen a Michael Douglas/Val Kilmer film called the Ghost and the Darkness? No one talks about it but it’s an underrated film and in any case one I have a very great weakness for. Not exactly an adventure film though. It’s bears some thematic similarity with Ismail Kadare’s book, Three-Arched Bridge.
unfortunately there’s still a lot of cinema to still catch up with..
To top it all, dont have any reliable source to watch cinema. Youtube sucks, and a last resort isohunt doesnt work anymore (access blocked in India)… will probably have to turn to my US cousins.
tension adventure – thats an interesting term! what sort of tension adventures do you like?
Many arent made in this country unfortunately, they’re either instant suckers or instantly rejected. India I guess doesnt have a budget for such films, unless one talks about Naksha.
Haatimtai was fun though.. i remember as a child! dont know how much I’d find it earale now.. lol
I mean adventure films that have some genuine edge of the seat moments. Many thrillers that could be considered as such. For example Where Eagles Dare is a war thriller but really has the format of an adventure film. It’s one of my all time favorites incidentally. Must have seen it 20-25 times! Of course this too is based on an alastair Maclean book much like Guns of Navarone (and Ice Station Zebra). He did a lot of adventure thrillers. This genre kind of died down after the early 70s. Now we have the ‘hypertension’ thriller! I’m a fan of many of those but the principle is quite different. The adventure thriller works at a somewhat more relaxed pace and then gradually builds up tension around some key sequences. With these contemporary thriller from the first scene to the last one is on a state of red alert. Which has its own fun but sometimes gets to be a bit too much. But in fairness there are some classic adventure films that have the Indiana Jones model. The classic adventure film has its roots in colonial exotica in many ways. So you’re always going to these imperial possessions and discovering crazy natives and idiosyncratic cultures and so on. To complete the adventure the colonial subject must pass through the wild superbazaar of his colonized lands! This really forms the classic adventure film which is why it had its peak (as a genre) roughly from the 30s through the 50s (and a bit in the 60s as well). Once decolonization was complete in various parts of the globe the genre died out.
Satyam, i have seen ghost and the darkness. and i must say it’s one the very few good roles which kilmer has done- my fav remains his ‘salton sea’ but i also like his doors and batman. the film had genuine moments of spine chilling tension. i found om puri’s cameo a bit ridiculous and demeaning. douglas was over the top but fun.i liked the entire theme of nature retorting against the encroachment by humans and the metaphor of ‘engineer'(kilmer) turning into the ‘hunter’ and a potential threat to nature
@Satyam and @Alex- I have written a detailed review on DEPARTMENT. Is there an email I could send it to? Or do I have to post it as a comment? How does it work?
yes, also ‘topgun’ is rather good. I believe Heat remains one of the finest mainstream hollywood film of that decade. the legendary where both hanna and mcCauley meet for the first in the restaurant is still fresh in memory. luved this dialogue from the film- A guy told me one time, “Don’t let yourself get attached to anything you are not willing to walk out on in 30 seconds flat if you spot the heat around the corner.”- also the first heist was nicely done. satyam, what do you think of matt damon?
Department collected 2.75 crore nett on day one as Nizam out performed as Rana Duggabatti is a regional star in that area. The collections in Nizam were 2.5 times higher then they would normally be. The first day territorial breakdown is as follows.
LOL, on the Rana Daggubati bit. When a Bachchan is associated with a film and doesn’t work they can never resist not just sticking the knife in but twisting it around a bit!
Obviously Rana Daggubati gets the audience in Nizam. Somehow I don’t think it makes a huge difference to this film either way!
The collections of Department crashed on Saturday as the film was 25% lower than Friday. It is rare to see such a big fall on the second day. The film collected around 2.75 crore nett on Friday and 2 crore nett on Saturday. the Sunday collections are unlikely to be better than Friday and may not even be much higher than Saturday. The early Saturday figures from some circuits are as follows. Friday numbers in brackets.
didnt expect any gr8 numbers, but this is obscene
wasnt dutt coming back from a ‘resurgent’ kaancha act in AP?
Also shows how acutely aware the audience is about a director/producers immediate/recent track record..
havent seen this ‘deptt’ and have heard it is crap, but still…
ps–in this case, the sins of the recent past have come back to haunt the likes of RGV, dutt and even bachchan
Satyam-This is a very good and insightful article- What makes a movie ‘cultish’? For a lot of people,it’s about the thrill of discovery—because these films traditionally don’t do well in the box office, they end up hidden in unlikely places, like small art theaters, late-night television, or listed in Netflix’s more eccentric genres (e.g. “psycho-dramas with a strong female lead”, or “campy horror films set in outer space”). link-http://kitschmag.com/index.php%3Foption%3Dcom_content%26
Contd- The “found” nature of a cult film makes the viewer feel that,in discovering it,he or she has unearthed a cinematic gem too fringe for the mainstream viewer to ever understand.This self-proclaimed separation from the movie-going masses adds the viewer by default to the film’s “cult,” or whatis perceived to be the small group of people who are also cognizant of its splendor.Although it explains the appeal of cult film to individual viewers, this characterization of the movies themselves is problematic.
excerpt from the above article- Office Space , a movie about the vengeance of disgruntled IT workers at a software company, is an iconic cult satire, in which the characters represent a sub-culture of disillusioned college grads in the 90s tech industry. This film and many others also feature unlikely heroes like Marge Henderson, the pregnant Police Chief with a heavy Minnesotan accent in Fargo, or Veronica, the girl who murders the bitchy popular crowd in the black comedy Heathers.
this is a perfect movie for a election year! i love jay roach(meet the parents, austin powers movies, dinner with schmucks, mystery, alaska). saw this trailer last night before watching “the dictator” and the audience was laughing like crazy.
I saw the trailer for Ted…man, it looks freaking HILARIOUS!!! Love that part where he’s working at the mall and says, “Yeah, so that’s where we’ll draw the line”! hope the movie lives up to the trailer
Also, the Dictator’s a good movie, I hear. Might go watch it soon.
well if you’re fan of family guy then you will LOVE Ted. these two comedies are going to be great in my mind.
and if you liked borat then you will like the dictator also. there are some uncomfortable moments but overall i laughed out loud a lot though it wasn’t as good/funny as borat. unfortunately it looks like it will bomb at the box office.
The Avengers has done incredibly well! I never expected this kind of performance. In its first 17 days it has done 457 m. The Dark Knight did 393m over the same period! And this weekend it only dropped 46%. This was the third weekend. Just an amazing run here. Now even accounting for inflation and greater 3D showings it’s probably keeping pace with TDK at the very least.
that’s fine. I just put up the chart. Yours is a writeup..
Doubt it will get close to Avatar though. That is probably a bridge too far because Cameron’s movies just have a habit of sustaining week after week. Don’t think that will happen here but then again it’s already surprised me greatly. I thought Dark Knight would be the year’s biggest grosser. Now it will have to be at least as good as the previous one to have a chance.
yeah i think the avatar total of $750 mill domestically is tough to reach. MIB 3 will hurt avengers next weekend and after that its one big summer movie after another. i think it can end up around $600-650. have you seen the movie yet?
well you’ve got to see it soon!! make sure to see it in 3D at least…it is worth it! will love to read your review/thoughts on the movie. i think after you see it, you will know why it has done so well…it is a pure entertainer.
wow, just noticed that this guy, taylor kitsch, will be part of two of the biggest disasters this year. first he was the lead role in john carter and now battleship. ouch.
meanwhile avengers is going to blow past the $500 mill mark domestically this week and probably challenge Avatar. Amazing. I don’t see the TDKR sustaining this kind of box office prowess. i totally underestimated Avengers box office potential. it did help that it was a great entertainer.
“Mrs. Eastwood & Company,” a new reality series, focuses on the family of Clint Eastwood
this is very surprising. nothing good comes out of a reality show. and i don’t know why they call it a reality show, when it’s totally scripted “reality”.
Department is a disaster at the box office as it collected around 7.25-7.50 crore nett over the weekend. The film grossed 2.75 crore nett on Friday, 2 crore nett on Saturday and Sunday was around 2.50-2.75 crore nett.
The collections at multiplexes were extremely low while single screens at mass centres recorded better collections.
Ishaqzaade in its second week was better at multiplexes all over while children’s animation film Chhota Bheem and The Curse Of Damyaan was ahead at multiplexes where both films had screenings. Even Vicky Donor in its fifth week was recording better numbers at many multiplexes.
Department was released on 44 theatres in Delhi city and collected just 55 lakhs approx. Thats just over 1 lakh per theatre when Delhi city has the most high grossing theatres in the country.
Ishaqzaade Has emerged the fifth highest first week of 2012 topping the figures of Kahaani. The highest first week grossers of 2012 are as follows. Approx figures
Another half-ass gangster/cop movie with sexual theme from Anurag Kashyap’s production house.
The Hollywood Reporter
Peddlers: Cannes Review
12:34 PM PDT 5/21/2012 by Deborah Young
The Bottom Line
Three young people in Mumbai tangle lethally in a drama that only takes off towards the end.
The first feature by Indian writer-director Vasan Bala focuses on two destitute 20-year-olds who fall into Mumbai’s drug trade and a young cop who stalks them.
CANNES — Confused, at times naive story-telling eventually gives way to a powerful dramatic finale, but one so downbeat it leaves a bitter taste in the mouth, in Peddlers, a first feature by Indian writer-director Vasan Bala. The rest of the tale leisurely circles around two destitute 20-year-olds who fall into Mumbai’s drug trade and a young cop who stalks them; all three carry scars from their childhood that supposedly, but not very convincingly, motivate their execrable behavior. Though it takes a long time coming together, the Hindi-language film does finally succeed in its action-packed last half-hour, rewarding audiences who hang on for that long. Its bow in Cannes’ Critics Week should indicate more festival life ahead.
The characters have something very familiar about them. Mandar (Siddharth Menon) is a shaggy-haired orphan with a quick wit, ready to do odd jobs for a small-time organizer. Part of what he organizes is drug traffic, and that is how he meets and falls for pretty country girl Bilkis, who is hired to swallow capsules of coke for transport. Although she’s qualified throughout the film as a former chemistry teacher who is slowly dying of cancer, she seems perfectly healthy, apart from a slight cough. She flubs her first disco drug run and, with her chem background, is sent to work in a hidden factory where crystal meth is synthesized.
In an intercut story, hot-looking Ranjit is a rookie cop with a problem he confesses only over the phone to a doctor: his inability to have an erection. Because of this stain on his manhood, the script would have us believe, he is pushed into psychotic bouts of uncontrollable violence, not just with women but with anyone he can find to punish. Needless to say, his line of work gives him ample opportunity for sadism. When his path crosses Mandar and Bilkis’s, all the silly character motivation becomes irrelevant and, beginning with a fast foot chase through a slum, an action movie springs to life, building to an extremely nasty climax.
Lensing is professional and well-handled throughout, giving the sordid environment a sort of naturalness that pulls the viewer into the story.
Ram Gopal Varma @RGVzoomin
Whatever else happening to Department I am supremley happy tht I don’t nd 2 see the faces of Sanjay dutt nd Dharam uberoi fr rest of my life
Ram Gopal Varma @RGVzoomin
Frm forcing me 2 take kangana out of the film 2 constantly cornering me 2 change screenplay I had the most horrible time wrking wth dutt
Ram Gopal Varma @RGVzoomin
If Dutt n uberoi think I am the bad in Dept let’s wait for zilla ghaziabad nd sohams film whr I am not there 2 spoil their creative inputs
I don’t know if I shall work with RGV again: Sanjay Dutt- timesofindia.indiatimes.com/…/news… Sanjay – Dutt /…/13379030.cms- Speaking to us on Monday evening, Dutt said, “Hits and flops are a part of the industry.But I really don’t know if I shall work with Ramu again.”Dharam Oberoi,CEO of Sanjay Dutt Productions,too said,”I am sure that I don’t want to work with Ramu on any other project in my life. We told Ramu so often those 5D cameras,which he used,are not apt but he never listened to us even once
Contd. From above – Dutt seconded Oberoi saying, “I have been in the industry for 32 years and I know which cameras are suitable and which are not. But ab kya karen? Jo ho gaya so ho gaya. But yes , I really don’t know at this point of time if I want towork with Ramu again.”
RGV’s reaction to the outrage was predictable: “Idon’t know what they are thinking and neither do I care… but from my side, I don’t want to see the faces of Sanjay Dutt and Dharam Oberoi for the rest of my life.”
What an era of unprofessionalism. Either these guys are seeking publicity or they’re too immature to talk about their differences to the media. Why dont they sort out their issues in private?
Sanju is having lot of rifts with the makers of his films. thruout the making of Department there were continuous rumours of arguements between him and ramu. there are also news of him delaying the shooting and having the problems with the producer of his next- ‘zilla ghaziabad’. only film where he seems to be happy is his close friend ajay devgan’s production ‘son of sardar’
Ishaqzaade continued with strong business on its second Monday as it collected around 1.40 crore nett. Last Monday the film had collected around 2.75 crore nett meaning the Monday to Monday drop is less than 50%.
The total non performance of Department has helped the film and now Ishaqzaade is comfortably ahead of Department on a daily basis even though Department is first week and Ishaqzaade in its second week.
The film should reach the 45 crore nett mark as it will be be in the 37-38 crore nett range after two weeks and should be able to add 7-8 crore thereafter.
On Day 2 of the war of words, RGV hits back with potshots at Dutt and Oberoi and doesn’t spare Bachchan Jr either
Amrapali Sharma
Posted On Wednesday, May 23, 2012 at 01:56:10 AM
Why did you wait for Department’s release to vent your anger and discomfort with Sanjay Dutt and Dharam Oberoi?
It is dangerous to start changing the content and screenplay midway through a film because it is so easy to lose your objectivity. So when they compelled me to do that by using various coercive forces halfway through the film since I was anyway stuck, I had a professional commitment to finish the film and had to wait until now.
Isn’t it a blame game going on after the film crashed?
I am not blaming anyone except myself. The biggest mistake I made was to go to an actor as unprofessional and as unimaginably erratic as Dutt.
There were problems with Sanjay Dutt and co-producer Dharam Oberoi even during the making of the film?
The problems were innumerable, ranging from Dutt’s coming late to last-minute cancellation of shoots and schedules to erratically wanting to change the content of scenes in the name of creative discussions that are not to be confused with mindless interference. Aamir and me had creative differences during Rangeela but I didn’t pay heed to the mistakes he pointed out. Despite Rangeela becoming a blockbuster, when I saw the film much later, I felt I had gotten away with the mistakes that he had pointed out. I genuinely believe Rangeela would have been a bigger hit had I listened to Aamir. The difference being Aamir’s suggestions and observations came from a long and intense deliberation on his part and not like Dutt who was blurting out without thinking, encouraged by the likes of Dharam who pander to him for their personal benefits.
You have said Dutt forced you to drop Kangana from the film and also interfered in the screen play?
Yes. Dharam told me Sanjay wanted Kangana to be dropped and since it’s a predominantly male-dominated action film, I didn’t want to make an issue. I also wish Sanjay Dutt realises what Dharam talks behind his back and for his sake, I hope he distances himself from Oberoi before it is too late.
What difference would Kangana have made to your film?
It’s not about the difference and like I said, that’s the reason I didn’t make an issue. It’s about the way Dutt behaved.
Apparently, Dutt had concerns about the cameras you were using?
Not only him, even Amitji and Rana had but when they saw the quality of the film, they were happy and they spoke about it in the media too. In fact, Amitji spoke about it as the future of cinema even after the release and the reviews. The problem wasn’t about using the cameras but the way they were used in terms rapid panning, some unseen angles and some deliberately jerky moments. However, these were hardly eight to 10 shots in the film. Otherwise, usage of these cameras is prevalent the world over, including in the Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire.
Apparently, Dharam made additional money. Did he take a commission for casting Sanjay Dutt that was over and above his payment?
I wouldn’t like to comment on that but I guess, the concerned people know.
And while you’ve said with respect to Department that you don’t make films for critics, we’d like to ask you whether you don’t make films for the box office either?
Why would any director, be it me or Sriram Raghavan or Ashutosh Gowariker, want to make a film that doesn’t work? Why would I want all my time and effort to be wasted? Whether anyone believes it or not, I work with the same passion on every film. Only, I seem to have more bad films simply because I make more number of films.
On Monday night, you sent a message to Abhishek Bachchan saying, “You brought this disease into my life by recommending Sanjay Dutt”. Comment.
No messages happened between Abhishek and me with regard to this but the truth is that when Abhishek was supposed to do Rana’s role, it was he who convinced me about Dutt against my better judgement. Later on, he couldn’t do the film and I was left with Dutt. So I definitely blame Abhishek for making me go through this though it was unintentional on his part.
While you’ve made landmark films, people say you’ve lost focus. Comment.
Since everyone has a mouth, everyone will have an opinion. The people who work with me know how focused I am and so I would advise people who are not concerned with me to rather focus on themselves instead of focusing on my focus.
All this had me go thru this question which i was avoiding for a long time simply because i have always been a huge Dutt fan- Has the career of Sanjay Dutt finished as a solo-lead? currently it looks like yes.
Again this is big! here comes the sequel to one of the greatest comedies of all time ‘Anchorman’- “Anchorman 2”- stars Will Ferrel in his legendary role of Ron Burgundy, Paul Rudd and Steve Carrell- links-http://www.justjared.com/2012/05/21/will-ferrell-anchorman-2-teaser-trailer-watch-now/&sa=U&ei=su-7T_ujFsjw2gXAzdnTCQ&ved=0CEMQtwIwBA&usg=AFQjCNHHTKxJrghAEC59vlsLF6NbkI_bvA
Yeah but it has a pretty strong following since its release. It’s also got most of the Apatow regulars. Personally don’t think it’s great but it is funny.
Nothing in Pineapple Express was funnier than Bill Hader’s opening scene. Had some funny moments though. Not a great fan of “Mary”. For me the best laugh out loud comedy in the past ten years is probably 40 Year Old Virgin.
No I actually think The Hangover is really overrated. Can think of several funnier films here. I think 40 Year Old and Superbad are easily funnier than Hangover.
well in pineapple i found james franco really good. also i have a huge liking for farrelly brothers’ ‘stuck on you’. and ‘shakespeare in love’ was also damn good courtesy paltrow
to me old school beats the hang over any day. i did like hang over a lot initially but after the “hoopla” died down…i find some parts boring. my fave comedies recently have to be: pineapple express, 40 y/o virgin, stepbrothers, talledega nights, office space, something about mary, wedding crashers, borat, dodgeball and my most fave, what i consider a modern classic…tropic thunder.
“Despite Rangeela becoming a blockbuster, when I saw the film much later, I felt I had gotten away with the mistakes that he had pointed out. I genuinely believe Rangeela would have been a bigger hit had I listened to Aamir.”
–The kind of form RGV is in, only an Aamir could bail him out
LOL sad but true tony. in a similar vein i only see hirani bailing sanju out.(since he has lost the services of sanjay gupta and mahest bhatt has quit direction)
Btw RGV is still working at a break-neck pace- his sequel to Bhoot called ‘ Bhooo’ starring Manisha Koirala is tentatively releasing this September. and he has started working on his 26/11 project which comes out next year
Feel for RGV…
hes always been more than susceptible to these antics and i enjoy them, but now he seems to be having a real psychic, emotional and physical melt down/ breakdown…
rgv Seems to be a man on a mission–to ‘destroy himself”
and wtf–will kanganas presence change the result of this film..
Also –havent seen the film but cant believe it is AS bad as beeing mentioned…
ps–think rgv needs a break, pack up for a few months and go to the alps (with some fresh talent to keep him occupied with screen tests)
btw what WAS dutt doing in this cap in deptt..
really puts one off asap–a police officer at that..
Alex, i saw the film on the 1st day- was more excited abt it than anyone here including satyam. it was a BAD film, period. And dutt probably wore that baseball cap in order to hide those eye-bags. Seriously Ami was right, Dutt is really looking decrepit
“While the grapevine was abuzz with recent ‘observations’ regarding Karan Johar’s behaviour with Priyanka Chopra, the filmmaker has gone an extra mile and cleared the air about the same. According to Johar, PC always featured on his birthday list, and he has seemingly sorted all issues between him and the actress.
Ram Gopal Varma, however, doesn’t feature anywhere on the list of invitees that is keeping KJo busy these days. Says Johar: “RGV is neither a friend nor a professional associate, so he is not invited to my party.”
Seems like ‘Department’ and the ensuing blame-game hasn’t gone down well with the biggies of Bollywood!”
I feel like the average Bollywood personality is only slightly less mature than a fifth grader- it’s amazing how much childish gossip KJo’s birthday party has generated!
“I feel like the average Bollywood personality is only slightly less mature than a fifth grader- it’s amazing how much childish gossip KJo’s birthday party has generated!”- LOL well said Ami (the one who wants to vanquish the race of man-children)
Ishaqzaade continued its great run in week three with rock steady collections. Delhi/UP grossed nearly 30 lakhs nett which is less than 50% drop from last week.
The collections on its third Friday should come in around 1 crore nett, if Mumbai circuit collections come in as strong as Delhi/UP, it may even be over 1 crore nett.
The way the film is performing it may even hit the 45 crore nett mark by the end of the third week or at least be very close it. Ishaqzaade and Vicky Donor are the only mainstream Hindi films which are still doing well while others like Department, Tezz and Jannat 2 have all faded away.
The collections of Department have crashed on the 8th day like never before. Not many major releases have seen such a huge fall in collections. The fall in collections is around 95%. East Punjab has not even collected 1 lakh on day eight while DUP is around just 2-3 lakhs.
The all India collections of the film on the 8th day are probably somewhere in the 10-12 lakhs nett region.
The film will not even add 1 crore nett business to its tally after the first week.
The film has performed so badly that in many areas exhibitors preferred to give films like MLA and Rakhtbeej a chance rather than keep Department playing for another week. Normally a MLA or Rakhtbeej would hardly get screenings in places like Jaipur, Lucknow or Kanpur but due to Department crash these films have actually found there way into some multiplex screens in these areas. Some multiplexes that retained the film say shows cancelled due to no audience.
Chotta Bheem And The Curse Of Daymaan Surprise Success Department Is Disaster
The new Hindi releases Chutki Bajaa Ke, Love Recipe, MLA, Rakhtbeej and Yeh Khula Aasman all opened to very dull houses and have no chance at the box office. The animation film Arjun: The warrior Prince was a bit better but still very low.
Department has emerged a huge disaster with a 11.50 crore nett first week and a huge drop on the 8th day with very low collections. DISASTER
Choota Bheem and The Curse Daymaan has done well at the box office. The film with a very limited release collected 1.35 crore nett over its first three days and just over 2 crore nett in its first week.
Ishaqzaade sustained very well with collections of around 12.25 crore nett in week two. The film has grossed around 37.75 crore nett in two weeks and is very strong in its third week also. The film will be the fourth biggest grosser of the year after Agneepath, Housefull 2 and Kahaani.
Vicky Donor has collected around 37.75 crore nett in five weeks. SUPER HIT
yeah I couldn’t find it at a theater either.. and I think GF said it wasn’t screening in Manhattan. I will wait for a proper DVD on this. Because the ambience seems to be the strong element here and there’s no point if the DVD doesn’t do it justice. Very pleased the film did well.
The Animation film “ARJUN” is getting rave reviews-
Masand: ‘Arjun: The Warrior Prince’ is a valiant effort
Rating: 3 / 5
Director: Arnab Chaudhuri
Director Arnab Chaudhuri has mentioned in interviews that his animation film ‘Arjun: The Warrior Prince’ is not a children’s movie, and I’m inclined to agree with him. The Mahabharata may be a story you heard from your grandmother at bedtime, or grew up reading in Amar Chitra Katha. In that sense, the character of Arjun, the brave warrior amongst the virtuous Pandavas, is one you’re familiar with. And yet, the film has an unusual approach – it’s a coming-of-age story, a boy-becomes-man yarn that has emotions like uncertainty, fear, frustration, will-power and courage running through it.
Arjun gets the treatment of an action-movie hero, and as he slays his way through a chakravyuh of soldiers from the Kaurava army you find yourself rooting for him. In fact, I was strongly reminded of the high-voltage drama that contributed to the Sunday ritual of watching BR Chopra’s long-running Mahabharata TV series in the 1990s.
The film unfolds from Arjun’s point of view – showing him first as a boy learning his skills from his guru Dronacharya. Even though he and his brothers suffer many injustices at the hands of their Kaurava cousins, Arjun is unable to summon up the courage to retaliate on the battlefield. The film’s director builds up the narrative by showing what goes into the making of a committed warrior.
The heroic exploits and inner struggles of Arjun are woven into the film’s narrative so convincingly that you tend to forget this is animation. The characters’ features are drawn sharply, giving the film the look of Japanese manga. The action has a martial arts-movie feel to it, and thus the violence — also the sight of severed torsos — may be too graphic for younger audiences. In portions, the animation is stiff and the characters seem stilted in their movements, but there are also beautifully stylized sequences, like the one in which Arjun dives into a pond to shoot an arrow into the fish and win Draupadi’s hand at the swayamvar.
However the film is not without its weaknesses – some characters, like that of the scheming Shakuni mama, are too caricaturish and could have done with a more subtle touch, while the Pandavas’ exile portion feels overly stretched and dull. For the most part, the movie works when it concentrates on its protagonist and his evil cousin Duryodhan.
I’m going to with three out of five for Arjun: The Warrior Prince. Like its hero, the film too is a valiant effort, and an interesting interpretation of a much-loved mythological story. Worth a watch.
May 24, 2012
Movie Review
An Animated Mahabharata Story
By RACHEL SALTZ
Opens on Friday in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Dallas and Houston.
Directed by Arnab Chaudhuri
In Hindi, with English subtitles
1 hour 36 minutes; not rated
At about seven times the length of the Iliad and the Odyssey combined, the great Indian epic the Mahabharata has story to burn. The 96-minute animated feature “Arjun — The Warrior Prince” obviously can’t tell the whole complicated tale (that would take weeks), so it concentrates on the life of young Arjun, one of five brothers who lose their kingdom in a game of dice, go into exile and then fight to regain it.
An action movie, “Arjun” takes story liberties, but not always in the service of clarity. (The script is by Rajesh Devraj.) Children will probably be confused, and adults familiar with the tale may wonder where all the good bits went. We see Arjun win the green-eyed Draupadi, but never learn that she becomes the wife of his brothers too. (And Draupadi’s disrobing? Gone.)
If you could separate spectacle from story, “Arjun” wouldn’t be half bad. Directed by Arnab Chaudhuri and accompanied by Vishal and Shekhar’s propulsive songs, the film is fast and exciting, weaving together different types of animation: a cartoony Disneyish style with a more “real” live-action look, a flat appearance with a more dimensional one.
Two scenes stand out: To win Draupadi, Arjun does a high dive into a pool, where, below the surface, he shoots a fish with an arrow, tracking it only by its shadow on the top of the water. Later, when those dice are tossed up, the camera follows them; the whole world spins, turning upside down — as indeed it soon will in the epic — in a swirl of color and shapes.
“Arjun” ends just as the war to win back the kingdom is about to begin. Sequel, anyone?
I want to see it because Dr. Anil Rastogi has a big role in the movie, Dr. Rastogi was my wife’s teacher in Lucknow…he has done a lot of stuff for Lucknow TV and was also in Chintu Jee..
“While it had to settle for second place, The Avengers was still very impressive this weekend. The superhero team-up eased 34 percent to an estimated $37 million, which is the second-highest fourth weekend ever behind Avatar’s $50.3 million. On Saturday, the movie set a new record by crossing the $500 million mark in just 23 days. Through Sunday, The Avengers has earned $513.7 million, and will pass The Dark Knight ($533.3 million) by Friday to move in to third place on the all-time domestic chart.”
Finally saw avengers. Enjoyed it a lot but nothing here is quite as good as the initial 40 min or so. I continue to be disappointed with how some of the climactic action sequences are staged in these films. All in chaotic fashion with little sense of the dramatic. There is no ‘shape’ to these segments. Characters go at it for a while and eventually the good guys win! It’s about things happening so fast on so many fronts that one is forced to remain ‘engaged’ but I think far more impressive sequences could be crafted with a little imagination. There is no need to rush through everything.
with 1.3 billion and counting for the avengers…you just know DC and warner brothers are somehow, someway formulating a plan to bring the justice league on screen. there is too much money there…and i think they’d want christopher nolan to be the director. i would think the justice league would be much more darker and serious…with superman and batman and the rest….
RGV-Sanjay Dutt patch up
By Bollywood Hungama News Network ,May 28, 2012 – 12:13 hrs IST
#
They say there are no permanent friends and enemies in Bollywood. After Department’s disappointing run at the box office, director Ram Gopal Varma and lead actor Sanjay Dutt got embroiled in an ugly public spat. But now the friends-cum-foes have buried their differences and have patched up.
RGV had openly spoken against Sanjay Dutt and his manager Dharam Oberoi after the failure of Department. RGV also added that more than Dutt it was Dharam who was responsible for creating trouble for Department and also spoiling Dutt’s name. The spat resulted in the ouster of Dharam Oberoi as the CEO of Sanjay Dutt Productions.
Reportedly, choreographer and filmmaker Ahmed Khan jumped in and worked out the reconciliation between Sanjay Dutt and RGV. Ahmed is very close to both Sanjay and Ramu. Ramu had given Ahmed his first big break in Rangeela, when Ahmed was just 19 years old and Sanjay is like an older brother to Ahmed so he couldn’t see them fighting. He and another common friend Rafi Kazi tried to patch them up.
Ahmed convinced Sanjay to call RGV; reportedly the two spoke for a while and sorted out their differences.
RGV tweeted, “Don’t know if dharam is out of sanjays life but if true its the best news I heard cos he’s more dangerous for sanjay than the 93 blast case…Its weeds which ruin structures nd I am supremley glad the dutt realized.”
“More than for sorting out my differences with Sanjay I am happy that the Evil disease is out of Sanjays life,” he added further.
Sanjay Dutt buys remake rights of Badri
By Bollywood Hungama News Network ,May 28, 2012 – 15:52 hrs IST
#
That Sanjay Dutt and Ajay Devgn are thick buddies is known to one and all. Ajay starred in Sanjay’s home production Rascals while Sanjay too has been seen in Ajay’s home productions like All The Best and the forthcoming Son Of Sardaar.
Now taking this friendship ahead, Sanjay Dutt has acquired the remake rights of Telugu super-hit Badri and plans to make a Hindi remake of the film with Ajay Devgn in the lead. Sanju apparently feels Ajay would be apt for the role which was originally essayed by Pawan Kalyan. And even though the film will be made under Sanjay Dutt Productions, Sanju Baba will be giving Ajay a free hand in deciding the cast, director etc. Moreover, Sanju Baba has also said that he would like to have Ajay in all the films made under his banner.
Looks like Dutt wants to make amends for the fiasco called Rascals.
Ishaqzaade had a strong third weekend collecting around 4.25 crore nett and taking its seventeen day business to around 42 crore nett. The film collected 1 crore nett on Friday, 1.50 crore nett on Saturday and 1.75 crore nett on Sunday.
Kahaani had grossed 5.50 crore nett in its third weekend while Vicky Donor grossed around 3.75 crore nett. The top third weekend collection was the 8 crore nett of Housefull 2.
Ishaqzaade will have the fourth best third week collections of 2012 and have business in the range of 44.5-45 crore nett in three weeks.
Till last year, most film-makers would fear releasing their movies during the cricket matches, especially during the IPL extravaganza. It’s akin to committing suicide, they felt. But IPL is no longer the dragon that it used to be for film folks. The success of HOUSEFULL 2, VICKY DONOR, HATE STORY, JANNAT 2 and ISHAQZAADE — all released during the IPL season this year — just goes to prove that a film with merits can brave and withstand any opposition. In fact, as many as 5 successful films in a span of 54 days [almost 8 weeks] is no mean achievement, what say?
But the best phase is yet to begin. Year after year, the onset of monsoon coincides with the release of big-ticket films and 2012 is no exception. Starting with ROWDY RATHORE this Friday, the forthcoming weeks are packed with films that could change the fortune of the entertainment industry. So far, AGNEEPATH and HOUSEFULL 2 have merited a place in the coveted 100 cr Club and I expect more and more films to hit the ton.
While on ROWDY RATHORE, a section of the industry feels that the film might be the next entrant in the 100 cr Club. Akshay Kumar’s last release, HOUSEFULL 2, has been a huge grosser, but it was a franchise of a successful film, with a much bigger cast this time. Therefore, Akshay alone cannot be credited for its dream run at the ticket window. ROWDY RATHORE is the real test for Akshay and whether Akshay has the pull and clout to have a 50 cr weekend will be known soon.
Meanwhile, last week’s movies — all actually — have sunk at the box-office. Barring MEN IN BLACK 3, which was the first choice of moviegoers and to an extent, UTV’s animation film ARJUN, all new releases only added to the tally of flops.
SATYAMSHOT 
May 17, 2012 at 11:02 PM
‘Avengers’ Reaches $1 Billion Worldwide
http://boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=3443&p=.htm
Domestic Total as of May. 16, 2012: $395,813,047
http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=avengers11.htm
i think this weekend it will remain number 1. battleship and the dictator might cancel each other out.
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May 18, 2012 at 1:02 AM
Department’s reviews are anything to go by – disaster – it is written all over it – my problem with Big B is that he goes on dishing out craps with ramu – nishabd, RGV ke sholay and now this….what exactly is he trying to do???
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May 18, 2012 at 1:18 PM
Nishabd is one of AB’s best movies… anyone who calls that crap …. something ain’t right! AB’s performance is so natural…. the role so beautifully done…. the use of his eyes and his facial expression….. every actor can use this movie as text book in acting….!!!!
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May 18, 2012 at 1:05 AM
one theory would be – both ramu and big b agree to work on a project and they are somehow convinced that it will work with audience – now this is a serious error of judgement – Big B better give a flop with Amol Palekar or Ritpurno or Shyam Benegal or Mani than dish out craps like this….Satyam, Big B responds to your comments some time – why not request him to work with above mentioned directors? He can produce them or there will be n no. of producers lined up for him….he can eveb request these people to come up with scripts and then direct. Why not? Why not? Why not?
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May 18, 2012 at 1:15 AM
Big B’s accent from the promos always looked like a disaster..
So is the coming together of Ramu, Amitabh and Sanju still a deadly combo?
oops.. sorry saurabh, couldnt help it 😉
Lets wait for actual reviews.. too early to label it a disaster!
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May 18, 2012 at 2:09 AM
Taran 2 stars
http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/moviemicro/criticreview/id/537948
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May 18, 2012 at 5:24 AM
B.O. Update-‘Department’ opens to poor houses- Taran Adarsh-Despite having formidable names,the new release DEPARTMENT opened to dismal houses across the country.The opening and noon shows were in the range of 10% to 15% at most screens.Response at plexes was poor,while the start at single screens was equally discouraging.The film will have to show a big jump on Friday evening and also over the weekend if it has to sustain at the BO.http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/trade/update/id/277/date/2012-05-18
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May 18, 2012 at 5:26 AM
This is a really bad news. Anyway i would hopefully be going for the 4:15 show in the evening today.
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May 18, 2012 at 5:28 AM
It was expected only fans don’t believe though 🙂
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May 18, 2012 at 5:32 AM
I think one can do much more heinous crimes in this world than be a die-hard bachchan and dutt fan
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May 18, 2012 at 5:36 AM
Every Fan thinks same way and doles out same logic.. 🙂
Extremity of fanship is always wrong 🙂
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May 18, 2012 at 5:32 AM
Here, most question SRK’s choice of movies but no one questions Big B choice of movies ???
He has doled out more crapfest movies in recent years than anyone… It seems its all for money, when one doesn’t think of quality and stars in every sort of pathetic movies…
Srk, Sallu and Akki are also sailing in same boat but only Srk is picked up not Big B 🙂
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May 18, 2012 at 1:27 PM
Well unlike your srk….taking responsibility for one’s action is important…. so he owed lots of people to pay back…see every action has a reaction….he had a debt to pay…he could have declared bankruptcy and left all those people without the money he owed…but he DIDN’T…. he paid them back, no matter what it took him. Respect to AB!
Looking at srk, and since you brought him in…he can’t handle being told what to do by a security guard coz his ego is massive and you talk of srk and Bachchan in the same breath? For all the fame he has….. and no matter how much he tries to match Bachchan… getting respect he so desperately seeks, will not happen…. he needs many lessons on humility!
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May 18, 2012 at 1:38 PM
“he can’t handle being told what to do by a security guard coz his ego is massive” – there seems to be an other side of story here as srk’s daughter was shoved and other kids too…..if that is true, any parent could have lost his/her temper – so lets not judge it now.
Yes Big B did pay his debts (or so we are told) when he called up
YR in the middle of one night (i read it in an interview) asking for work – YR so much touched that he immediately got him on board for Mohabbatein – and then KBC followed and many other things… Big B did pay back and also earned much much more….but where is his script-sense? Why can’t he do more films like Aarakshan?
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May 18, 2012 at 1:44 PM
“Well unlike your srk…”
Who told you He is Mine 🙂 ???
I mentioned Akki and salman also, So I m fan of them also and tomorrow i may mention Big B and than I m fan of him also…
I said Choice of movies and you started talking like fan boy 🙂
Did I mention acting or anything else, my word was ‘ choice of movies’ and Why ?? ( gave some of my own reasons also, money or etc) … just that.
It seems one cant even ask simple Question without being labelled fan of so and so..
Ps: Thank God I am not blind fan of damn anyone 😀
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May 18, 2012 at 2:02 PM
Bliss, i am also asking u a simple question- is there anything wrong in being a fan of ‘the superstar of millenium?’ if it is, i am ready to do thia crime in every birth. But it’s not that i don’t criticise his poor choices/films. On this thread itself i have trashed department, go check it out. But comparing his choices with sallu and akki is senseless.
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May 18, 2012 at 2:32 PM
Its doesn’t matter to me if you are or anyone is fan or not, but don’t suspect and cast doubts if someone asks simple Q and instead of replying, ppl here start labeling and never answer the Q…
How come its senseless and i am only on choice of movies not on acting, there is no comparison on that front???
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May 18, 2012 at 2:40 PM
bliss, that remark was not supposed to be personal. i apologise if u thought so. and i know that as satyam said, an rgv film becomes a groud for trashing bachchan, but i am sad bcos even someone as sensible as u seems to have joined this circus. as to why did i say that comparing bachchan’s choices of films with salman and akki, it’s because the 2 of them have done so much trash that one does not know where to start from (i am being fair here, i had myself listed down bachchan’s trashy films below)
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May 18, 2012 at 2:20 PM
“.taking responsibility for one’s action is important…. so he owed lots of people to pay back”
What a typical reply from a Bachhan fan. He has already paid his debt long ago by hosting KBC. Bliss was talking about the quality of movies he is doing now a days…and then u suddenly jumped onto SRK’s character (i can understand this is the right time to do so)
SRK’s behavior does not answer RGV Ki Aag, Buddha, Nishabd, Alladin, Department and lot many movies…
The main topic here was why only SRK is criticized for his choice of movies and suddenly it came down to behaviors by actors…
I agree SRK should learn from BIG B and should apologize the way BIG B said sorry to Raj Thakrey for Jaya’s comments…
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May 18, 2012 at 2:26 PM
Nishabd is a class act in a very good and daring film- his performance was acclaimed everywhere
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May 18, 2012 at 3:40 PM
“Nishabd is a class act in a very good and daring film- his performance was acclaimed everywhere”
It’s just your opinion. IMO Nishabd was a bad film and don’t think any body thinks highly of it except Bachhan fans. Well they even claimed Buddha was a critical and commercial success through Andhra box office site 😉
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May 18, 2012 at 3:56 PM
When Kaagaz Ke Phool released no one thought highly of it except Guru Dutt fans…!
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May 19, 2012 at 11:11 AM
I agree with @Bhalo_Manush here…Nishabd was a decent film performance wise; But, even though it was a daring effort, it turned out to be a below mediocre film for me!
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May 18, 2012 at 5:34 AM
i completely disagree to the above statement. comparing his choices with akki and sallu is plain ridiculous
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May 18, 2012 at 5:39 AM
I stand by my Statement and you have right to agree and disagree ..
I completely disagree to your statement 🙂
Shall I name the movies 🙂 ???
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May 18, 2012 at 5:47 AM
you can count BHTB from last year first. its had a big WTF written on it from beginning till end.
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May 18, 2012 at 5:38 AM
Let’s face it. Ramu’s best years are behind him. No matter what he comes up with, I doubt he can ever match up to a Sarkar, forget Company / Satya.
Sad to see Amitabh signing up films like these. first that shocker called BHTB and now this..
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May 18, 2012 at 5:47 AM
the crapfest movie of bachchan in this decade imo r- dil jo bhi kahe, aag, kyun ho gaya na, family, god tussi great ho, ab tumhare hawale watan saathiyo and probably aetbaar and hum kaun hai- but one should not forget he has done 41 films since 2000. srk obviously has done less crap films but that’s bcos he has done very less films comparatively. and let’s not even talk abt sallu and akki- 80% of their career is crap
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May 18, 2012 at 5:50 AM
and as much as i hated bhrb, it was not crap (it overall got good reviews). if this is crap, then apart from 4-5 films since 2000 i find all salman films crap
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May 18, 2012 at 5:55 AM
aur akki ke barey me to baat bhi mat karo. btw we r talking abt bachchan giving craps- can someone tell if srk (save CDI), sallu and akki have given a single performance which iS as good as Black, khaaki, paa, aks, kaante, baghban, last lear
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May 18, 2012 at 6:07 AM
its unwise to ask question that seeks to compare Big B performances to the minnows.
But talking of SRK, i do think his Swades and CDI performances are overrated – films where he chose to play restrained when his strength lies in his histrionic abilities (thats another thing that he’s hardly use it in the past ten years). I think he was best in Dil Se and Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa, displayed his energy yet not being unnatural for a moment in either of these two.
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May 18, 2012 at 6:13 AM
kabhie haa kabhie na, baazigar and cdi remain my fav srk acts( manisha overshadowed him dil se imo)- special mention to raam jaane, swades and rnbdj- one of srk films which i like is ketan mehta’s ‘oh darling, yeh hai india’- a nice satire. but i did not like srk there
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May 18, 2012 at 10:09 AM
I am with you on this point..Srk need not be credited for much in Swades..infact even in Dil Se..its like mani and gowariker just tells SRK, “Do not do what you wish to do on these sets, u do it my way!!”
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May 18, 2012 at 5:59 AM
A page from RGV’s script for department 😉
http://twitpic.com/9m4yu5
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May 18, 2012 at 6:09 AM
LOL.. Good one..!
Reminds me of a comic strip I read spoofing Rann, where Ramu explains a black screen as ‘an aesthetically zoomed in shot of Ritesh Deshmukh’s left nostril’ !
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May 18, 2012 at 6:10 AM
these assholes from media have again started their game against bachchan. and btw bachchan is above the concept of hit and flops
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May 18, 2012 at 6:56 AM
B.O. update: ‘Department’ opens to poor houses
By Taran Adarsh, May 18, 2012 – 14:41 IST
Despite formidable names on and off screen, the new release DEPARTMENT opened to dismal houses across the country. The opening and noon shows were in the range of 10% to 15% at most screens. The response at plexes was poor, while the start at single screens was equally discouraging. The film will have to show a big jump on Friday evening and also over the weekend if it has to sustain at the BO.
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May 18, 2012 at 6:58 AM
Top 5: ‘Ishaqzaade’ is a winner!
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May 18, 2012 at 7:16 AM
I said this a week ago that there was no excitement for this and apart from Yakuza, no one was interested.
I also agree that Amitabh has been doling out a lot of shit over the years. I would loved it, if he made less films but as long as they were good. He’s already a legend but he could have used the 2nd phase of his career to enhance his legend further. However it seems to me that he doesn’t have v.good script sense, either that or he needs the money to keep doling out his son 😉
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May 18, 2012 at 7:27 AM
Since when you see i was excited ? I was waiting .. and i always knew this will not work … check my predictions here and NG.
BTW .. check my review below.
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May 18, 2012 at 7:30 AM
Department – My short take !!
I was waiting for Department for two reasons :
1. I am big fan of Ramu and mostly admire his work.
2. Always enjoyed Bachchan + Sanjay Dutt outings (even liked Hum Kisi Se kam nahi).
First i will explain about positives of movie :
1. Breathtaking action sequences of Sanjay dutt and Rana, that too in plenty. Movie is out an out action bonanza and brilliantly shot.
2. Bachchan performance(Though a cameo role of 3 scenes 5 minutes each).
3. Never seen before shots on silver screen, some absolutely stunning shots.
4. Climax and last 20 minutes of action is superb.
Now Negatives :
1. Screenplay and script. Both are coherent and inconsistent. There are many high points where movie can go to another level, but thanks to uninspiring writing which couldn’t induce life.
2. Absurd use of brilliant camera techniques. Basically Ram gopal verma gets it wrong. I have put this camera technique on plus side as well, but downer is that Ramu just overdone it. IMO Ramu should use such unique shots only to portions where there is no conversation. When characters are talking, Camera should be normal and capture emotions and expressions only. But here we see camera going to Tea cup and on carem board while characters are in coversation mode. I missed many dialogue exchanges because attention goes to those stunning shots rather than dialogues.
3. Story is not new, even we have witnessed such twists and turns in Ramu’s own Sarkar and Sarkar raj. But those movies also have good screenplay which this one is missing.
Overall .. A movie for Dutt and Amitabh fans(He is in short appearances of 5 minutes in 3 scenes), And those who are looking for awesome action scenes. rest can miss.
I will go for ……… 2/5
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May 18, 2012 at 7:32 AM
“Screenplay and script. Both are coherent and inconsistent.”
Read it *Incoherent*
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May 18, 2012 at 9:36 AM
Satyam, The best thing about Department-
Trailer of Ab Tak Chhappan 2
http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/more/videos/view/id/1439115
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May 18, 2012 at 11:11 AM
yes Tony put it up earlier too. waiting for a youtube on it.
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May 18, 2012 at 11:18 AM
Hate to say it, but that looks amateurish beyond belief. Almost thought it was a spoof! What’s especially sad is that that the first one was one of the few (now defunct) RGV Factory films that was not marred by RGV’s aesthetic intervention. This on the other hand is wallowing in the bizarre, comical camerawork that has come to define the man’s movies.
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May 18, 2012 at 11:28 AM
Happy to see Nana again after Shagird but this honestly looks like a bona fide disaster. Looks like the work of an amateur film student
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May 18, 2012 at 11:43 AM
Nana was good in Shagird and I enjoyed the film overall but this whole act is something Nana could pull off in his sleep!
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May 18, 2012 at 11:51 AM
I think Shagird was a good film until it tried to pull one twist too many- it tried to be too smart for its own good. Actually Department tried to be like Shagird but failed miserably
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May 18, 2012 at 9:43 AM
Subhash K. Jha speaks about Department
By Subhash K. Jha, May 18, 2012 – 01:52 IST
Shoot at sight. Pointblank. In different ways that’s exactly what Ram Gopal Varma (RGV) and his characters do in Department. While his cop heroes Sanjay Dutt, Rana Daggubati and their hazily sketched compatriots (one of whom looks like Deepak Tijori) go on a cleansing rampage against sociopaths, RGV goes on his own trip, shooting characters at angles you’ve never seen them being shot. They don’t always look fetching with their stained teeth and dirty nails showing up in embarrassing close-ups. So who said life in cinema is about postcard pictures?
Welcome to RGV’s world of muck and mayhem.
The one definite thing that must be said about RGV is that his exploration of the nexus between the law and the underworld is ceaselessly seeking new modes of storytelling. Department is one breathless surge of aggression and violence. Shot with cameras that capture the actors at their quirkiest and most candid the film is not for those who think cinema is all about style. RGV left his stylish days behind in Rangeela and Company.
Repeatedly and mercilessly RGV dismantles all conventions of pretty storytelling and aims for the jugular. The camera angles are often much too casual to be considered ‘cinematic’. But breaking rules is a given in RGV’s cinema. He breaks them in Department in a noisy rush of agitated images that go well with the edgy fidgety characters.
Not all the characters work. Vijay Raaz as a whiny dhoti-clad gangster and debutant Madhu Malini as a tartish sharp-shooter are a scream. The talented Abhimanyu Singh has a tough time trying to maintain equilibrium between the two unintentionally comical evildoers. The dialogues these gangsters exchange try so hard to be real they end up being howlers. It’s like eavesdropping on a conversation between two pathologists.
The camera, manned by no official Director Of Photography (and it shows) goes through the character’s legs, into their nostrils, over their armpits, under their thighs… Every possible orifice is officially declared public property in this film about cops who do their own thing. And a director who doesn’t mind banging the bullets in places where feelings don’t enter.
Yup, Department is a brutal film. There’s no room here for emotions. Even when Sanjay Dutt playing a senior cop goes home his wife (played by Laxmi Manchu, speaking in a strangely loud tone) he talks to her in unsentimental tones. There’s more feeling in the two cops Dutt and Rana’s buddy-buddy baatein in the line of duty.
There’s a long history in cinema of cops striking a rapport on the beat. Dutt and Rana are no Danny Glover and Mel Gibson. But then this is no Lethal Weapon.
The action here is a strange mix of street aggression and stylized stunts. While scenes of Daggubati chasing goons through claustrophobic crowded areas of Mumbai are vintage Varma the climactic fist-to-fist between Rana and Dutt proves a battle of unequal titans. One of the two actors being just too agile for the other.
What grabs your attention in this oft-told tale of the cops resorting to extra-constitutional means to ‘cleanse’ the city is the frenetic pacing. The characters are constantly on the move. Even Mr. Bachchan while taking sardonic jibes at a ‘system’ that is corroded is seen restlessly circling Dutt or Rana, depending on which of the two the wily wizened politicians is provoked into action.
Not surprisingly Mr. Bachchan’s neta-giri provides the liveliest interludes in the proceedings. He seems to be having the most fun even when saddled with dialogues that must have sounded far funnier on paper than they do in their delivery. Among the rest of the cast Rana Daggubatti with his restrained ruggedness stands tall.
What Department delivers is yet another RGV product that takes Hindi cinema’s crime genre away from conventional storytelling. There are no punctuations except exclamation marks, no speed breakers except songs (terribly screechy and grating with Nathalia Kaur’s item number hitting rock-bottom) and no way out for these restless law-enforcers than to take the law in their own hands.
The world of Department is anarchic, destructive and apocalyptic. The narrative format imposed on the world of gangsterism is freewheeling almost chaotic. Violence and death are written into the DNA of the characters. You can’t separate RGV’s people from their chaotic karma.
Department tells a virile story with no patience for sappy humbug. It’s not meant for those who think lovers laughing their way into death , as they did in Ishaqzaade, are the last words in ruinous relationships. In Department the characters share a far more intimate bonding with their guns than with their friends
Kisiki nozzle na lag jaye.
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May 18, 2012 at 10:00 AM
bdw..guys get the trailer of ab tak chappan here…ull know what i mean by “RGV raping his own director’s minds”…i mean what brainwashing..shmit amin didnt make the first as blownout and hence the sensitive yet decent film…and now this sequel has all that RGV’s cinematography would bring in and more…cameras following people around and wobbling and making an arch is not cinematography ASS#$#!!! it pain to see a good filmmaker such as RGV bringing himself down to such levels..and this when there are brave young filmmakers who are soldiering on with films that they want to make. Why cant RGV use this new wave’s ideology to his advantage and make cinema and not his rotten sense of violence? ok what the #$#, make your own violent movies..fine..but atleast create something that deserves some credit..please help indian cinema’s cause, not against it by making garbage that he for some reason believes is “good cinema”
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May 18, 2012 at 10:03 AM
i dare say..even the weakest of his good films such as Company had characters that you felt for..RGV died after company!! he came back from death just to make nishabd..and then died again..
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May 18, 2012 at 10:07 AM
OT,
First pictures released of Ralph Fiennes as Charles Dickens :
British actor Ralph Fiennes plays Charles Dickens in The Invisible Woman, joining an illustrious list of actors who have portrayed the author, including Simon Callow, Derek Jacobi and Anthony Hopkins
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May 19, 2012 at 9:34 AM
Fiennes is a fantastic actor……he’s done some gr8 roles throughout his career
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May 18, 2012 at 11:17 AM
Department Sucked!! A Bad Film- and it was me who was most excited for it here. Even if it earns 30 crores it will be an achievement
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May 18, 2012 at 11:32 AM
Ramu has hit rock bottom with this one. And it was a pain to see Sanju in such a badly written role. The film is devoid of any story. That Bachchan, given a caricaturish character, came out of the film with his reputation unscathed isitself an example of his greatness. Avoid it
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May 18, 2012 at 11:42 AM
you could’ve gone for even an ishaqzaade instead (not that i liked it, im sure it must be still better than this … whateva). or the latest animation flick wassitzname
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May 18, 2012 at 11:43 AM
I have seen ishaqzaade
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May 18, 2012 at 11:45 AM
I never came to know.. how did you find it?
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May 18, 2012 at 11:49 AM
Tony remember i said it was disappointing but I was raving about Gauhar
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May 18, 2012 at 12:01 PM
Sorry dude. I either missed it or suffering from memory lapses.. lol..
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May 18, 2012 at 11:42 AM
Saurabh, there was a reason why I was never excited about this. I have a rule of thumb with RGV, if Abhishek’s not in the film it’s not worth watching! At least over the number of years. The one big exception here is Rakta Charitra where I found the double film impressive at many levels. And if I were a betting man I’d say RGV would have liked Abhishek in one of those roles. The other exception for me is Nishabd. Wouldn’t put it in the RC category but this was a worthwhile effort. Rann was watchable but an insipid film.
But it is also true that RGV has become the ‘site’ on which many wage an anti-Bachchan campaign. It’s true that RGV has delivered some real turkeys over the years, in a box office sense and otherwise. But it’s hard to believe that people who routinely swallow and digest and enjoy lots of garbage out of Bollywood suddenly find these the worst films around! And yes RGV has gotten lost in many ways, a point that I remember making a long time back, but on his better days he is nonetheless someone who can still take a lot of the competition to school. For all my objections to certain aspects of the film I found SR a rather strong film and the same goes for VC.
With Department though I always had the gravest doubts about RGV venturing into rogue filmmaking. He tends to go overboard with this stuff but more importantly is often not able to find an appropriate match for his narrative intentions.
Will say this about RGV — he seems quite comfortable with what he’s doing. He’s had these low points many times over the years and he hasn’t changed course. Clearly the films are made on very small budgets so even when they fail spectacularly they don’t really bankrupt anyone.
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May 18, 2012 at 11:48 AM
Satyam u r very correct here. but somehow i had a belief that Dutt is combining with Ramu after yrs so there will be atleast something worthwhile but ironically it was Dutt who got the worst part here. And whatever nice moments were there, they were destroyed by RGV’s nauseating camera-work. Rana is made to dub in his own voice and his dialogue-delivery sucked big time- he seemed to be busy getting his hindi diction write and just refused to act. The only bright spots r Bachchan who is hilarious, Vijay Raaz and ANjana Sukhani in a bit role
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May 18, 2012 at 11:52 AM
But what did they do years ago? That was an awful film!
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May 18, 2012 at 11:58 AM
I know but trust me, compared to this, Daud seems like an Osacr winner, atleast it was fun in parts- had great music and a nice Pinky act by Paresh Rawal. The worst thing here is that Ramu just did not his use cast properly- Abhimanyu Raj Singh, who was superb as Bukka Reddy, is made to act like a fool here. And some of the casting is horrible. Madhu Shalini palying a female gangster and Abhimanyu’s moll is an embarrassment – she does not know how to act, period.And can u imagine Deepak Tijori with a handle-bar moustache, he looked atrocious. Actually even without a storyline this could have been an enjoyable actioner but the fight choreography is pathetic- the climactic battle between Dutt and Rana looks horrible bcos Dutt is simply not agile enough. I think this film required a Sanjay Gupta as a director- I hope u r getting my point
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May 18, 2012 at 12:00 PM
You combine Dutt’s judgment 9 out of 10 days and then RGV’s own problems and you’re really rolling the dice when you get the two together!
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May 18, 2012 at 12:05 PM
U r so right about Dutt- this guy could have given any star any star a run for his money and he is destroying his career. And the worst part is that he is looking horrible- even the baseball cap he is wearing can’t hide his eye-bags. Anyway he has Zila Ghaziabad lined up next and then he is doing Son of Sardar (maryada ramanna remake) with Devgn – let’s see
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May 18, 2012 at 3:00 PM
havent seen this film nor was about to watch it
but this 10-15% opening is still surprising..
Cant believe the film will be THAT bad…
Just goes onto show how the —-
“paying public strikes back”!!!
those who think they can take em for granted, take one star and another ‘icon’ in the promos, add in a nathalia number and thats it?….
well, thats it then…lol
rgv, dutt and even bachchan here are paying for their ‘sins’ from the (recent) past….
ps–whos madhu shalini and whos the girl with the ‘thunder thighs’ in tight jeans in the promos…
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May 18, 2012 at 3:06 PM
the 10-15 % opening is hogwash. the theatre i went today was 70 % occupied- my friends in bombay, delhi and lucknow tell me that there was above 50% occupany everywhere. though i must tell u that i found the film shitty, there were some scenes where people were wolf-whistling
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May 18, 2012 at 3:45 PM
about departments ‘opening’
-btw just telling folks some inside scoop….
Amy has gone on a ‘blind date’ tonight
and imagine where? Where can peace and privacy be attained—–
in an empty hall showing ‘department’
welldone amy–do keep us ‘updated’ 🙂
ps–as u know, i shall keep it a ‘secret’ lol
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May 18, 2012 at 3:50 PM
well in that empty hall she had imran ‘chocoboy’ khan tied to her leash…LOL- just/kidding (actually taking revenge for ur ridiculing of my gauhat yesterday 🙂
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May 18, 2012 at 3:57 PM
shhhh
i shouldnt have told all about her
amy–dont worry-i wont spill the beans on what u were upto yesterday …
Ok, no blackmail as of now, provided my ‘conditions’ are met –deal done 🙂
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May 18, 2012 at 4:00 PM
Alex,
When you are about 70 ( roughly 20 years from now), if you come back and read your comments, your response will be -WTF was I thinking!!! About the same as what most of us are feeling right now about your comments.
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May 18, 2012 at 4:01 PM
LOL…..
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May 18, 2012 at 4:06 PM
Lovely one Rajen Sir. the long-hop from alex was carted over the cow corner by rajen sir
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May 18, 2012 at 4:07 PM
Hahaha
so nice to see rajen uncle of the ‘murder2’ fame
or the “dirty picture asking for complimentary papertissue” fame is back—
am really entertained by rajen uncle—
who after using sildenafil has actually changed self-help groups!
we know what the problem was ‘BEFORE”
but now “AFTER”- he has joined the ‘priapism’ society 🙂
ps–not meant to be derogatory or judgemental on either rajen uncle or any of the other priapism sufferers. infact this takes into account their need for ‘self help’ and public ‘understanding’…
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May 18, 2012 at 4:09 PM
LOL,Alex! I mean, WTF??
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May 18, 2012 at 4:11 PM
Rajen uncle–i hope u wont mind the above post
U will appreciate how ‘sensitive’ and ’empathetic’ it is to your current ‘problem @hand”
anyhow –hope u will take this in the right spirit
ps–Amy has agreed to the ‘deal” and so will not be making any more ‘revelations’
Sorry rajen uncle 🙂
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May 18, 2012 at 4:16 PM
When he’s 25 he’ll probably be thinking the same..
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May 18, 2012 at 4:19 PM
feel sorry for rajen uncle btw
he doesnt mean to, but puts his foot in the wrong place/time and gets stung
i know he doesnt mean bad though..
A grown up “Mr Bean” rajen uncle
hope he ‘regroups’ for another futile attempt as the umpteen ealrier ones
now, even his scars are getting difficult to count
🙂
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May 18, 2012 at 4:23 PM
Alex,
LOL! You are so screwed up that even when you get humped like a pony and discarded by the roadside, you dont have the sense to realise it!
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May 18, 2012 at 4:24 PM
Rajen uncle has a knack of getting some choiciest ones from me lol
NOt sure if he enjoys em though
BUt due to the ‘passive’ orientation of his sadomasochism, he invariably asks for more (and gets it!)
Any unintentional hurt is regretted 🙂
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May 18, 2012 at 4:26 PM
so rajen uncle has found some good ones on loan–
hahaha
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May 18, 2012 at 4:28 PM
“get humped like a pony and discarded by the roadside”
hahaha–this is what happened with rajen uncle in the priapism self help group meeting, it seems 😉
our sympathies…
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May 18, 2012 at 4:33 PM
btw just to clarify, i really dont mind rajen uncle–unlike the karen kumars and henrys
this is ‘fun’ banter
he doesnt mean wrong and is a good soul
infact a very educated one..
So, no offense,
cheers 🙂
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May 18, 2012 at 4:36 PM
Hey Henry’s a good guy! It’s entirely the blog’s loss that he doesn’t come here anymore.
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May 18, 2012 at 4:36 PM
‘taking revenge for your ridiculing of my gauhat yesterday’
I was not ridiculing her- just stating the obvious- that both Freida and Mindy are in a far more enviable position than Gauhar. 😉
Which reminds me- I don’t have to ridicule Gauhar- she does the job pretty well herself on her reality TV show. 😛
http://www.firstpost.com/bollywood/no-khan-do-khan-sisters-is-just-rubbish-not-trashy-142948.html
BTW- I’m just joking- I actually like Gauhar- she is talented for sure. I haven’t seen Ishaqzaade yet- but I really like the Jallah Wallah promo- and she can act as well.
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May 18, 2012 at 4:37 PM
oops–amy is bak
lemme hide for a bit….
ps–amy i know u dont mind anything i say, isnt it? 😉
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May 18, 2012 at 4:39 PM
Alex,
I honestly dont mind the banter but still most of your comments
when not talking of films, for me ( and I suspect quite a few others) end up in the WTF section.
I do believe you are a true film buff IMO, you let the other stuff take over your identity far too often. Not for me to police your commenting or the site but this is an honest opinion.
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May 18, 2012 at 4:40 PM
man– i pick up stuff intuitively
if folks know the exact credentials and qualifications of rajen uncle–they will be damn impressed..
the other day, i fought with tony to ‘upgrade’ rajen unlce
he was making an akki out of rajen uncle but i felt ‘bad’ 🙂
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May 18, 2012 at 4:42 PM
satyam is more than an effective and able moderator folks
He doesnt ‘police’ stuff, as it should be
the other day i ventured into another blog who has a ‘rulebook’ longer than the ‘constituion’ of a nation state
but
the bickerings and fightings resemble a group of nubile females fighting over boyfriends 🙂
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May 18, 2012 at 4:56 PM
Re; Henry’s a good guy! It’s entirely the blog’s loss that he doesn’t come here anymore.
Couldnt agree more.
Henry is a good bloke. For an SRK fan! No, genuinely he IS a very welcome presence.
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May 18, 2012 at 3:54 PM
RGV lost the plot a while back.
The fact that quite a few people including myself would take RGV and his movies over 90% of BW directors is a sad commentary on the state of BW.
RGV has become increasingly whimsical and monotonous. Hard for his films to be commrecially viable. I dont blame AB one bit tho for accepting his films as they do have a certain rougish charm even if the final product can be difficult to stomach and commercially unviable. Without seeing cannot really comment on how bad Department is ( cant trust those clowns that pass off as reviewers)
but will not be worse than BG,OSO,MNIK or RNBDJ.
AB has a poor script sense for sure and wouldnt trust his judgement. He is a pure artitst and that is what I want in an actor.We have enough shrewd businessmen masquerading as actors. One can certainly fault his script sense and justifiably blame it for the dilution of his BO prowess though provoking Nishabd to make the argument sort of undoes it. Nishabd mgiht not be perfect or even a great film but can easily trump MOST of SRK’s and ALL of Salman’and Akshays filmography.
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May 18, 2012 at 3:59 PM
“” AB has a poor script sense for sure and wouldnt trust his judgement. He is a pure artitst and that is what I want in an actor.We have enough shrewd businessmen masquerading as actors. One can certainly fault his script sense and justifiably blame it for the dilution of his BO prowess ”
Well said Rajen 🙂
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May 18, 2012 at 4:07 PM
Sorry should read – INVOKING Nishabd instead of provoking!
I was provoked when Nishabd was invoked!
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May 18, 2012 at 4:09 PM
One of the problems is that a lot of people are not able to separate the commercial failure or even disaster from the truly poor film. Aag was a terrible film, Rakta Charitra was the opposite, but both had similar results. These distinctions are totally lost on people and of course partisans prey on this kind of attitude. But on RGV as I was saying earlier today he’s become target for many anti-Bachchan partisans anyway for his stance on the Bachchans! He now comes in for extra scrutiny in many ways. And of course he’s hardly been very kind to SRK and some of Yashraj ‘attitudes’ in the past so he becomes that perfect target. Will hand it to him though — he seems least bothered. Even in interviews he’s least defensive.
The box office in any case has become an absolute criterion for web wars of all kinds. Completely vulgarity on this score. I am as interested in the box office as anyone else but to make the worth of a film completely and totally reducible to this is beyond idiotic. Specially when history often produces very different judgments. Unfortunately this has become the game these days which is why some of the fanatical Aamir fans these disappoint me greatly. Because they produce word for word the logic SRK fans used once upon a time. What’s the point of being ahead if you resort to the same nonsense? And specially when Aamir has never fostered this kind of unthinking attitude. It’s like after arguing for Abhishek’s sensible films for years I were to suddenly say ‘it’s all about crores’ if he delivered a number of big ones in the usual commercial formats.
I shouldn’t be very surprised though. It’s a very vulgar age in some ways, all about numbers and so on, in many other matters too.
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May 18, 2012 at 4:14 PM
“on RGV as I was saying earlier today he’s become target for many anti-Bachchan partisans anyway for his stance on the Bachchans!” – Satyam, u r so right. i am seeing this happen on the blog today itself and i am disgusted
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May 18, 2012 at 4:35 PM
It’s nothing new.. unfortunately on the blogosphere you see such agendas more often than not. It’s never an honest debate. When you asked me about Sunny yesterday I said I just don’t like him at all though I like some of the films. Maybe it’s an extreme view or whatever but I don’t like him. However instead of saying that if I were to start talking only about the flops and how he doesn’t have fans today because the films don’t do well or whatever that would be an unfair argument. Why? Because that wouldn’t have been the real reason of my dislike.
What’s happened online, and this is a general fact of life not just restricted to cinema, is that every debate becomes very polarized and very nasty because people are just trying to fit every ‘event’ into their pre-perceived notions. Hence we see that even if a film is called Bol Bachchan or even if the director talks about Abhishek’s centrality to the film and so on some folks still keep saying it’s a supporting role or whatever. I don’t like Salman much more today than I did 5 years ago or 10 years ago or whatever. But I don’t have a problem recognizing his astonishing box office run or even understanding what it is about his current persona that has that kind of appeal. So perhaps it’s an old fashioned view but for all the favoritism all of us indulge in from time to time there should be some ‘reasonable’ position in debates. Whatever I might think about SRK and the way he conducts himself and many of his key films I don’t have a problem calling DDLJ a classic or saying Swades is a very moving film and a bit of a favorite despite some serious flaws (I’d take Swades over RDB even though as cinematic efforts go the latter is vastly superior to the former, it’s not even close) or even saying as late as MNIK that the film is quite ok and SRK hasn’t done a bad job here. I could produce other examples.
Again the problem isn’t our personal preferences but the extent to which we can get so biased sometimes that we start denying basic facts. Now there are some fanatical fans who are completely blind when it comes to their favorite star but who don’t really have a problem with other stars one way or the other. That sort of attitude one can live with. Otherwise it’s the same tiring stuff. People pretending to criticize RGV when you know it’s really about something else. The hilarious thing is that the same folks then turn on me and suggest I am supporting certain stars for the very same reason. I think that whatever my other virtues might or might not be (and I am still looking for them!) diplomacy wouldn’t seem to be one of my strengths!
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May 18, 2012 at 4:32 PM
Re: He is a pure artitst and that is what I want in an actor.We have enough shrewd businessmen masquerading as actors.
Couldn’t agree more with this sentiment.
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May 18, 2012 at 3:59 PM
rajen sit, completely agree with u on rgv and nishabd. but trust me, department is actually bad- bachchan is the only good thing about it.
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May 18, 2012 at 4:08 PM
OK,I sat down! Now what??
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May 18, 2012 at 4:09 PM
Now stand up…. Attention 😀
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May 18, 2012 at 4:34 PM
LOL!
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May 18, 2012 at 4:36 PM
“Now stand up…. Attention ”
hahaha
“stand up” –oops..
bliss–pray dont be disrespectful of rajen uncle
i will take offense 🙂
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May 18, 2012 at 4:42 PM
you have the ability to convert any random line into something of a double entendre..
You can do well as a late night stand-up comic artist
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May 18, 2012 at 4:48 PM
Tony ,
Did you stay STAND UP artist??
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May 18, 2012 at 4:51 PM
thanx tony for the ‘compliment’
that ‘talent’ is just incidental …
will try to catch up with something now…
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May 18, 2012 at 4:52 PM
lol.. rajen.. didnt realize it.. my bad!
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May 18, 2012 at 4:56 PM
@”standup’
the ‘priapism’ diagnosis was correct after all, rajen uncle 🙂
U have to give credit there (atleast secretly lol)
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May 18, 2012 at 4:07 PM
For All Rehman fans here ,,,
Roja : A Tribute
Enjoy 🙂
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May 18, 2012 at 4:09 PM
Quite funny that in the box office thread for Department, Nishabd is discussed more n more..
Wanted to check IMDB to know what others think about the movie Nishabd..and was not surprised at all…
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May 18, 2012 at 4:15 PM
Someone was telling me Mera Naam Joker had very low numbers on IMDB.
The problem Bhalo_Manush is that you don’t need to pretend this is some sort of serious debate. I don’t want to produce some of your past comments on Bachchan’s peak period here and start a fight but you’re a partisan and you should be comfortable with this label. Don’t make Department the excuse to say what you’re saying about Deewar or Naseeb anyway!
One can be a fan, even a fanatical one but the partisan wraps it up in an agenda which relies on a very dishonest framing. And I’m not picking on you because I was saying the same thing to some Aamir fans the other day. You can be as pro-SRK as you want or whoever else it is that you like without trying to make these other ridiculous attempts. Much as whatever problems I have with SRK I don’t call his KKHH a multistarrer (though by the definitions of many anti-Bachchan folks it is one!).
I am not affected by what you’re doing but let’s be clear about what it is.
I stopped a SRK-Aamir war elsewhere but it was hilarious to see SRK’s defense protesting in Aamir fans the very things they’d said for years. It all comes around. Ranbir’s fans think SRK is too old and should do other stuff! Time passes before you know it!
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May 18, 2012 at 5:36 PM
“Don’t make Department the excuse to say what you’re saying about Deewar or Naseeb anyway”
When did i brought Deewar or Naseeb here??
.All i wanted to say is that Nishabd is bad film. Mera Naam Joker has quite good rating on IMDB. I am not saying IMDB is the only thing to decide on quality but it is one of the better sites which has views/votes of maximum users.
I mean i will any day prefer IMDB than any Bachhan fans (or any other star’s fans) views on a movie. I can say this because i saw Dum Maro Dum and Buddha based on some of the reviews here.
“I stopped a SRK-Aamir war elsewhere but it was hilarious to see SRK’s defense protesting in Aamir fans the very things they’d said for years. It all comes around. Ranbir’s fans think SRK is too old and should do other stuff! Time passes before you know it!”
Now see ur own response. In a thread where i was discussing Nishabd, Department and Big B’s choice of movies u have brought the SRK fan thing here….I mean as SRK fans we even can’t criticize a bad movie…SRK fan hone ki itni badi sazaa 😉
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May 18, 2012 at 4:40 PM
I dont really consider IMDB to be a criteria to judge Hindi films at least..
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May 18, 2012 at 4:21 PM
Neither Bhalo nor manush!
Like star,like fan!
What can one say? Pointless to argue with wankers.
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May 18, 2012 at 5:46 PM
See the difference here. U r a bachhan fan abusing me but don’t remember i have ever done that to you. Also go through ur comments here and in NG and my comments here.
“Like star,like fan!”…huh..is anyway Abhishek or Amitabh has similarity with u???
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May 18, 2012 at 5:57 PM
Bhalo mate, are you on lithium or something!?
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May 18, 2012 at 5:48 PM
Also I have always criticized Bachhans..but show me wrong word i have used against them..but u know the kind of words u use against SRK in the name of cheap humor…
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May 18, 2012 at 4:42 PM
Ram Gopal Varma on The Front Row
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May 18, 2012 at 5:10 PM
watched the first few inutes.. interesting to see him talk about his own works and his point of views
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May 18, 2012 at 5:13 PM
See more, he shows “unintentional (?) Finger” When grilled arnd 14 min 😛
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May 18, 2012 at 5:15 PM
Did you listen to the Gun song of GOW?? Posted on GOW thread 🙂
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May 18, 2012 at 4:56 PM
OT:\
Finally managed to catch up Drive. much has been said and theories built around it as the return of neo-noir etc. Good enough I thought, but fell short of expectations..
Gosling is a great screen presence though. an actor with terrific range, from the smooth-talking, glib casanova in Crazy Stupid Love to this awkward, no-nonsense driver.
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May 18, 2012 at 4:57 PM
as far as the film’s concerned, I need to revisit it once more.. will do it shortly
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May 18, 2012 at 5:03 PM
Tony…
I Loved Drive… Its a Terrific Movie, IMO
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May 18, 2012 at 5:34 PM
You’ve seen Crazy, Stupid, Love? What did you think of it?
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May 18, 2012 at 5:46 PM
i don’t like this genre but bcos of gosling saw it- i had always seen gosling excell in serious self-destructive roles so i thought he would not be able to pull-off this lounge-lizard act. but then gosling is gosling! he did the unthinkable. i believe he is the only current actor who can come close to my fav, the awesome Matt Damon, in versatility
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May 18, 2012 at 5:00 PM
I found drive a modern day classic. also wrote random points abt it sometime back. easily my fav gosling performance after ‘lars and the real girl’
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May 18, 2012 at 5:07 PM
the slow-mo scene in drive in the elevator where there is a transition from the couple kissing to hyper-violent action was like a splendid poem.also driver/kid is sort of a modern ‘man with no name’ (eastwood)
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May 18, 2012 at 5:12 PM
yep.. that and I loved the use of lighting.. the scene you mention is the highpoint of course
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May 18, 2012 at 5:32 PM
Yes Saurabh- the scene you mention was so imaginatively conceptualised and flawlessly executed- and the film is indeed an instant classic.
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May 18, 2012 at 5:40 PM
when ‘ami the auteur’ says so, it better be (after knowing that u have not even missed ray and mrinal sen, i think after satyam,q,abzee and gf, u r the next auteur here-the youngest one) .u know one may think i have perverse tastes but when violence is artistically done, i simply adore it (especially like the way a cornea is punctured in some films- but can’t stand torture on girls, i instantly feel like puking). and the fact it gave a boost to the dying action genre was like a double-whammy for me.
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May 18, 2012 at 6:07 PM
‘Ami the auteur’- absolutely not! I’m actually very uninformed on the topic of noir/ neo-noir cinema- but I found the action seqences in this film pretty fascinating:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tribeca-film/nicolas-winding-refn-drive_b_964636.html
http://www.hdvideopro.com/display/features/a-boy-and-his-car.html?start=2
BTW- I don’t know much about the technicalities associated with action sequences so I only pay special attention to them when they are extremely well done- that elevator sequence in Drive was probably the best thing I’ve seen in this regard since the single shot action sequences in Children of Men.
Oh- and I forgot to mention that Ryan Gosling was stupendous in the movie- this role was the perfect fit for him- and he’s also unbelievably attractive.
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May 18, 2012 at 6:15 PM
My earlier comment is awaiting moderation because of multiple links- but here is an interview where the director of Drive speaks about the elevator sequence-
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tribeca-film/nicolas-winding-refn-drive_b_964636.html
I really like what he says about stylish Vs. Stylised action sequences- because that’s what I loved about this film- the action sequences were incredible but they were not so stylised and artificial that they pulled you out of the movie. It’s hard to have so much technical artistry on display without the film appearing self-indulgent- but this film completely manages to avoid that pitfall and keeps you gripped the whole way even while you admire the composition of the action.
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May 18, 2012 at 6:26 PM
oh! thanks for mentioning that chase sequence in children of men- crisp stuff( actually there is a very good track shot used by rgv in shiva- i had put up the video on the ‘department trailer’ thread-). and now u r giving me a complex girl, u know stuff abt action too(i wonder if i can becum half as knowledgable abt stuff as u guys). btw if u or anyone is interested i have a personalized collection best action videos from various hollywood,bwood and foreign films which i could post here-if satyam allows.
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May 18, 2012 at 6:32 PM
I actually DON’T know much about the technicalities of action at all. Don’t get a complex for no reason. 😛
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May 18, 2012 at 6:35 PM
Ami, thanks much for posting Refn’s interview. the fact that he is such a good technician is also exhibited by his interest in old world hollywood trope of ‘expressionist techniques’.”I really like what he says about stylish Vs. Stylised action sequences- because that’s whatI loved about this film- the action sequences were incredible but they were not so stylised and artificial that they pulled you out of the movie.”- superbly put ami.
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May 18, 2012 at 6:40 PM
btw ami if u r interested in expressionism do see this old sunil dutt film called as ‘yaadein’- it is one of a kind- it is one of the handful of films made in the world where,in the entire film, there is only character and character- no one else.
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May 18, 2012 at 5:16 PM
yes thanks for mentioning the lighting. and the bg score was eclectic and had an old world charm to it. but i have a huge problem with that word ‘neo-noir’ which foreign writers keep using- believe there is no such concept of neo-noir, a simple noir is good enough. in that way there is also something called as palmetto-noir
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May 18, 2012 at 5:33 PM
talking of palme d’or–
Cannes honours the bookworm…
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2012/may/18/cannes-film-festival-literary-adaptations
btw any bookworm here read/seen ‘on the road’
mat catch this one…
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May 18, 2012 at 5:44 PM
surprising-‘on the road’ has kirsten stewart? hmm
btw apparently some chicks who told me about this film have gone mad for garett head-lund and sam riley…–puttin up posters and all..
guess will catch this one
gud nite folks
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May 19, 2012 at 6:35 AM
I’m surprised this got no coverage from the media ESP in compared to srks Yale ‘honour’
A young research scientist working at Ohio mentioned this to me and saw this actually who -was expectedly impressed with Rahman…
Apparently -some key messages were-
‘learn from your travels’
‘never rush your judgments’
Wow-among the v few Indian celebrities I truly admire…
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May 19, 2012 at 6:48 AM
Alex, rehman is currently one of the biggest music composers in the universe but people here believe that he is no match to r d burman.
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May 19, 2012 at 6:57 AM
Haha
Well have already given my take on it
All things considered, and not due to this or any other award including oscars–
If one considers the genres, styles, impact, pure divinity of his music and overseas impact–nobody from the subcontinent comes close to Rahman
As mentioned, I learn music as a hobby and do some informal ‘jamming’ sessions with certain multiethnic and multiple background music lovers…
Most of them are Rahman fans
Infact just yesterday, we played a reworking of rahmans ‘rehna tu’ which we are aiming to play in a university festival shortly …..
Ps–not meant to degrade or belittle rd burman who is an I disputed great but I’m not really convinced he is definitely better than sd burman. There are many factors at play at his sudden ‘born again’ fan hysteria nowadays -have discussed this earlier…
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May 19, 2012 at 8:08 AM
^^ There are many factors at play at his sudden ‘born again’ fan hysteria nowadays
Same can be said for any MD, like It is now fashion to like rehman, If you dont like him n say his music is great than ppl will say something wrong with you.. Herd mentality..
Every argument is a double edged Sword..
Anyone can say anything, It doesn’t cost a dime as Lata said that Rehman just brought new sound using technology, nothing else.. That is Lata Speaking not me…
Every generation has its own Favorites but RD is still being talked about and used by every new Tom Dick and harry Music directors shows something more than what’s visible to naked eye..
He is still relevant after 40 yrs… 🙂
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May 19, 2012 at 7:06 AM
‘rehna tu’–for any Rahman fans here…
Won’t provide the delhi6 link, since I actually detest the way this gem has been filmed on a obese (tummy hanging down) rishi kapoor showing glimpses of his derrière leaning frowards on a pool table. For all my liking for Rakesh mehra, wanna shoot him for this–really!!
Love this creation by rehman
Prasoon Joshua lyrics are noteworthy
Minor-Incidentally, we played it yesterday and will play this shortly informally in one of the unis..
Surprisingly I’m the ONLY one who knows anything about Bollywood in the bunch…
And am benefitting from some guitar lessons from a Czech -this girl is a doctor who also plays guitar as a hobby…though much much better than me
Enjoy folks
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May 19, 2012 at 7:10 AM
taran adarsh @taran_adarsh
#Department Friday *estimates* 2.5 cr +. Poor.
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May 19, 2012 at 7:10 AM
alex, it’s great to know that u r learning music and that u also jam. and it’s evident that u know quite a bit abt guitar. well i used to play saxophone (trust me man, chicks get impressed by it…lol) and mouth-organ which i still sometimes play occasionally just to fight boredom
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May 19, 2012 at 7:18 AM
Haha minor
In this case-I’m not learning to ‘impress any chicks’
Somehow that comes naturally to me lol oops
Btw am lately becoming more of a music than a movie fan
One can enjoy music anytime even whilst working and doesn’t need to stick to any time/duration
Also, have a problem nowadays sparing 2-3 hours at a stretch to watch any movie in totality
Watching a few scenes, punching in few comments here n there is more feasible…
Ps-I learn music but am nowhere very fluent
But good to learn from the Czech doctor this week
Incidentally saw her carrying a small ‘Harrison’s medicine book’ with her to the sessions–apparently she’s also getting ready for postgraduation, seems…
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May 19, 2012 at 7:24 AM
‘small Harrison book’- harrison is huge- it’s one of the best books in the branch of ‘medicine’. btw czech girls r really good looking. i was a huge fan of czech tennis star ‘jana novotna’ in 90s
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May 19, 2012 at 7:37 AM
Minor-does it come in a mini-pocket version maybe?
Will ask her…maybe she’s going for shortcuts lol
” btw czech girls r really good looking”
Ya well this one is no different though better than novotna!
But as mentioned– I’m just ‘focussed’on music in this case 😉
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May 20, 2012 at 8:25 AM
yes minor–checked it–it IS harrisons medicine, though a pocket version 🙂
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May 19, 2012 at 7:11 AM
Ishaqzaade Holds Strong On 8th Day
Saturday 19th May 2012 12.00 IST
Boxofficeindia.Com Trade Network
Ishaqzaade held up very well on its 8th day collecting around 1.75-2 crore nett as per early estimates. The collections in some circuits were as good as the previous day while the single screen dominated circuits had slight drops as it lost screens due to Department.
The 8th day collections of Ishaqzaade are a bit lower than the first day of Department but its likely that over the weekend it will emerge top of the box office charts again as it shows more growth than Department.
The weekend should come out in the 7.50 crore nett which would make it a near certainty to cross the 40 crore nett mark for lifetime business.
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May 19, 2012 at 7:12 AM
Department First Day Business
Saturday 19th May 2012 10.00 IST
Boxofficeindia.Com Trade Network
Department had a very poor day as it collected around 2.25 crore nett as per early estimates. The film started poorly and did not show any improvement in the evening shows.
Single screens at some stations have fared better but still collections are low. Multiplexes all over have seen a very low turnout and in some Delhi/NCR multiplexes, the collections of Vicky donor in its fifth Friday were better than the first Friday of Department.
There is not much hope for the film from this low level and will not be a surprise if the film is not able to show a jump on Saturday despite such low collections.
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May 19, 2012 at 7:15 AM
alex i am glad that u guys r performing for a univ festival- it’s amazing (i remember this famous indian band ‘parikrama’ performed in our school and we went crazy). but u seem to be really talented. and once u perform in the college, do share the experience. and i hope people here will realise that u r much more than a guy with a gross sense of humour
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May 19, 2012 at 8:44 AM
“i hope people here will realise that u r much more than a guy with a gross sense of humour”–haha minor…
its been my earnest effort that they DONT realise anything more than what i want them to see (ie more than the gross sense of humour)…
(btw i suspect that some may not die out of sheer surprise and awe, if exposed to anything more than that lol)
btw on a lighter note–guess it will be just a matter of a couple of years of more of ‘growing up’ for u as well, when u shall start seeing beyond ‘impressing girls with music’ or writing stuff even on anonynmous blogs with an intention to ‘impress’ or ‘stun into influencing’ others
Cheers–just joking…
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May 19, 2012 at 8:56 AM
“writing stuff even on anonynmous blogs with an intention to ‘impress’ or ‘stun into influencing’ others”- mate i know it very well that i write too badly to impress anyone (though apart from the big guns like satyam, gf and q, people like ami especially, oldgold, tony and occasionally you continue to impress me a great deal). as of girls, they were never my field of interest. i always preferred batting on the real pitch…lol. and since i have joined mbbs, i have left those days way behind
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May 19, 2012 at 9:09 AM
“–rotflol
oops minor: but couldnt help laughing @ that..since the impression is different
Have atleast half a decade of more ‘experience’ than u—
only if u dont mind and i genuinely mean it and not to pull your leg—-
an earnest and friendly advice to u will be to get hold of a few (atleast one chick) in your medical college(s) since it will give u a much needed ‘focus’ 🙂
If u dont mind–from what ive seen of some other medics i know like that czech girl, u seem to have TOO much time for other things like films, comics, blogs and the time u r on here is sometimes more than even me on my free day lol-
which also may mean that your ‘time management’ skills are v good though….
but coming back to my free ‘self styled counselling’ session–
u seem too ‘excitable” lol and I do see u somewhat at risk of immense psychological ‘manipulation’ for eg by shrewd girls –maybe im speaking out of turn or too soon–but thats what u remind me of another buddy i knew a few years ago.
Hope u will take this positively—u r a bright guy and hope u dont lose your balance once u are ‘hit by the female species’ 🙂
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May 19, 2012 at 9:30 AM
This is worrisome trend among students who pursue professional courses. They become addicted but they dont want to admit.
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May 19, 2012 at 9:36 AM
sanjana-wtf was that. addicted to what, may i know
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May 19, 2012 at 9:45 AM
addicted to internet, blogs etc. I am not talking about anyone in particular. So you need not blast me.
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May 19, 2012 at 9:52 AM
sanjana, why would i blast u though it’s amply clear that ur sentence was meant for me.anyway, i don’t know how much abt students of medical college, but if u will ask any of them they will tell u abt the academic burden they have for getting addicted to other things. though a lot of them do smoke(and sometimes booze) to relieve the tension (i don’t do that ok). btw it’s very clear that u r not a student, are u?
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May 19, 2012 at 10:03 AM
saurabh, sorry if I hurt you unintentionally. I have a cousin who is almost an net addict though he is a student. There was one article about how a twitter addict almost lost all contact with the real world and then it took him a while to come out of it. Internet addiction is too powerful and there are scores of articles about it.
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May 19, 2012 at 10:10 AM
sanjana, u don’t have to apologise to me at all. and i am not hurt by ur remark, i know they were well-intentioned. anyway i don’t like girls apologising to me, makes me uncomfortable…lol. so chill out. and yes u have a fair point. especially social networking is a big addiction. anyway do u work professionally? ur fav actors/actresses?
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May 19, 2012 at 10:54 AM
Re: “i don’t like girls apologising to me”
Do you prefer the opposite?
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May 19, 2012 at 11:28 AM
LOL Q, the opposite is fine by me. once u apologise to a girl, their gargantuan ego is satisfied and then u r protected from their wrath…LOL
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May 19, 2012 at 9:10 AM
“as of girls, they were never my field of interest”–minor–contd below
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May 19, 2012 at 9:12 AM
and before i get kicked by myself for handing out too much ‘free unwanted advice’ to all n sundry like some knowall ‘holy guy’–need to open the other window on the computer and do some real work of my own 🙂
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May 19, 2012 at 9:24 AM
LOL…thanks for the advice. but just to tell u while i blog, i actually study alongside( one cannot survive in a mbbs if one doesn’t study for atleast 4-5 hrs a day). before this yr i never got the time to make a single comment though i used to follow the blog once a week.but this yr, we have few classes and more ‘hospital postings’ where, in the hospital of my college, few patients came so i have free time. but come july and this will change. and i am almost an insomniac,sleep for not more than 4 hrs.
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May 19, 2012 at 9:29 AM
dont worry minor–just to borrow your own comment from the other thread —
“u dont need to be defensive” 🙂
btw to lighten u up after this relatively ‘serious’ counselling session—i initially misread your last line of this comment as–
” i dont sleep with more than 4 girls at a time!” 🙂
ps–do pay heed to my advice of having a few girls/friend(s) since u seem to be in a stage that u sincerely need em.
Do ask me for any free advice (though i dont claim to be an expert like srk in KHNH..) Cheers
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May 19, 2012 at 7:29 AM
Minor-The likes of Rahman play for the pleasure of others and the others are privileged to listen to him
The likes of me play for myself and am actually thankful to others to listen 🙂
That’s the crucial difference …
As i said -just do this as a hobby and dont tell most of the other music students what I do otherwise lest they get somewhat overawed…
Anyhow–have recently also done some seminars introducing contemporary Bollywood to some naive uni crowd —
The films I chose were of my own choice–had certain v interesting feedback -may share sometime
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May 19, 2012 at 2:19 PM
By the way, I watched ‘Dangerous Ishq’. It was a complete junk-fest! The story is all over the place all the time, the screenplay’s very loose and it just drags on. The film could have used a massive trim and then, it may have been a decent watch. But, instead, it’s a slow-as-hell movie that just makes you cringe at the writers. There’s practically no logic to the story. Seriously, (AND I’M BEING UNBIASED HERE) compared to this, Bodyguard and RA.One seem like they should’ve won the Oscar for “Best Story”, “Best Screenplay” and “Best Director”. I shouldn’t completely down the movie, I guess, since Karishma Kapoor at least makes an attempt to give a decent performance. That’s the only thing that’s making this movie ‘hang by the thread’. Jimmy does a decent job too. Rest of them just scream their guts out, especially Ravi Kishen. Supporting performances were over-the-top, to say the least.
When I turned off the computer to go to sleep (yeah, I torrented it…this piece of $H*T doesn’t deserve to be watched in theatres), I kept thinking to myself, were they serious when they made this movie? And Karishma was trying to go for a comeback with this junk??? 0.5/5
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May 19, 2012 at 3:08 PM
for a period film named Dangerous Ishq 3D, this was something that was forthcoming. could never be less bothered about something like this? I aint a fan of karisa, bbut what made her sign this?
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May 19, 2012 at 3:25 PM
I don’t even know. She was pro’lly just desperate to sign a film.
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May 19, 2012 at 3:09 PM
OT:
Raiders of the Lost Ark v/s Kickass: which one should I watch first?
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May 19, 2012 at 3:27 PM
Raiders.. without question!
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May 19, 2012 at 3:31 PM
kickass is real fun- the hyper-violent scenes r awesome but everything can wait for an indiana jones film
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May 19, 2012 at 3:49 PM
Thanks Satyam n Saurabh..
Have had my share of fun with two of Indiana Jones’ films: the amrish puri one (temple of doom) and last crusade.. Great fun, I admit. But guess im missing out on the most important one – the one widely hailed as the greatest adventure of all time..
Guess there’s only one Spielberg
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May 19, 2012 at 3:54 PM
There was of course the more recent one too which wasn’t bad but it became a little preposterous by the end.
The Indiana Jones movies are essentially ‘comedies’ which is to say they’re not dramatic adventures. And though these are absolute classics I’m much more for the ‘tension’ adventure. The Guns of Navarone kind of deal. By the way have you seen a Michael Douglas/Val Kilmer film called the Ghost and the Darkness? No one talks about it but it’s an underrated film and in any case one I have a very great weakness for. Not exactly an adventure film though. It’s bears some thematic similarity with Ismail Kadare’s book, Three-Arched Bridge.
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May 19, 2012 at 4:02 PM
in my pending list satyam..
unfortunately there’s still a lot of cinema to still catch up with..
To top it all, dont have any reliable source to watch cinema. Youtube sucks, and a last resort isohunt doesnt work anymore (access blocked in India)… will probably have to turn to my US cousins.
tension adventure – thats an interesting term! what sort of tension adventures do you like?
Many arent made in this country unfortunately, they’re either instant suckers or instantly rejected. India I guess doesnt have a budget for such films, unless one talks about Naksha.
Haatimtai was fun though.. i remember as a child! dont know how much I’d find it earale now.. lol
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May 19, 2012 at 4:15 PM
I mean adventure films that have some genuine edge of the seat moments. Many thrillers that could be considered as such. For example Where Eagles Dare is a war thriller but really has the format of an adventure film. It’s one of my all time favorites incidentally. Must have seen it 20-25 times! Of course this too is based on an alastair Maclean book much like Guns of Navarone (and Ice Station Zebra). He did a lot of adventure thrillers. This genre kind of died down after the early 70s. Now we have the ‘hypertension’ thriller! I’m a fan of many of those but the principle is quite different. The adventure thriller works at a somewhat more relaxed pace and then gradually builds up tension around some key sequences. With these contemporary thriller from the first scene to the last one is on a state of red alert. Which has its own fun but sometimes gets to be a bit too much. But in fairness there are some classic adventure films that have the Indiana Jones model. The classic adventure film has its roots in colonial exotica in many ways. So you’re always going to these imperial possessions and discovering crazy natives and idiosyncratic cultures and so on. To complete the adventure the colonial subject must pass through the wild superbazaar of his colonized lands! This really forms the classic adventure film which is why it had its peak (as a genre) roughly from the 30s through the 50s (and a bit in the 60s as well). Once decolonization was complete in various parts of the globe the genre died out.
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May 19, 2012 at 4:38 PM
Satyam, i have seen ghost and the darkness. and i must say it’s one the very few good roles which kilmer has done- my fav remains his ‘salton sea’ but i also like his doors and batman. the film had genuine moments of spine chilling tension. i found om puri’s cameo a bit ridiculous and demeaning. douglas was over the top but fun.i liked the entire theme of nature retorting against the encroachment by humans and the metaphor of ‘engineer'(kilmer) turning into the ‘hunter’ and a potential threat to nature
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May 19, 2012 at 6:05 PM
His Phantom is pretty enjoyable too (as a film). Of course he had a great part in Heat.
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May 19, 2012 at 10:39 PM
@Satyam and @Alex- I have written a detailed review on DEPARTMENT. Is there an email I could send it to? Or do I have to post it as a comment? How does it work?
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May 19, 2012 at 10:50 PM
An jo, u can post it as a comment here and Satyam will make it as a separate post. alternatively u can mail ur write-up to Satyam
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May 19, 2012 at 11:12 PM
Thanks Saurabh. I would prefer emailing but do not have Satyam’s email. My email is joan0701@gmail.com
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May 19, 2012 at 11:28 PM
An,in that case u mail ur review to me and i will forward it to satyam- my email address is saurabhcool117early@gmail.com
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May 19, 2012 at 6:18 PM
yes, also ‘topgun’ is rather good. I believe Heat remains one of the finest mainstream hollywood film of that decade. the legendary where both hanna and mcCauley meet for the first in the restaurant is still fresh in memory. luved this dialogue from the film- A guy told me one time, “Don’t let yourself get attached to anything you are not willing to walk out on in 30 seconds flat if you spot the heat around the corner.”- also the first heist was nicely done. satyam, what do you think of matt damon?
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May 19, 2012 at 9:40 PM
bill murray as FDR!
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May 19, 2012 at 9:57 PM
Being that the Roosevelt House is a stone’s throw away (in general NY distance terms) from where I live, this one will definitely enthrall me.
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May 19, 2012 at 9:58 PM
Wow that’s now the third movie featuring George VI. Gotta milk that Oscar bait, I guess.
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May 20, 2012 at 8:13 AM
Department First Day Territorial Breakdown
Saturday 19th May 2012 17.00 IST
Boxofficeindia.Com Trade Network
Department collected 2.75 crore nett on day one as Nizam out performed as Rana Duggabatti is a regional star in that area. The collections in Nizam were 2.5 times higher then they would normally be. The first day territorial breakdown is as follows.
Mumbai – 1.05 crore
Delhi/UP – 45 lakhs
East Punjab – 16 lakh
West Bengal – 12 lakhs
Bihar – 7 lakhs
CP Berar – 15 lakhs
CI – 12 lakhs
Rajasthan – 14 lakhs
Nizam – 29 lakhs
Mysore – 12 lakhs
Others – 10 lakhs
TOTAL – 2.78 crore
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May 20, 2012 at 8:16 AM
LOL, on the Rana Daggubati bit. When a Bachchan is associated with a film and doesn’t work they can never resist not just sticking the knife in but twisting it around a bit!
Obviously Rana Daggubati gets the audience in Nizam. Somehow I don’t think it makes a huge difference to this film either way!
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May 20, 2012 at 8:14 AM
Department Crashes On Saturday
Sunday 20th May 2012 09.00 IST
Boxofficeindia.Com Trade Network
The collections of Department crashed on Saturday as the film was 25% lower than Friday. It is rare to see such a big fall on the second day. The film collected around 2.75 crore nett on Friday and 2 crore nett on Saturday. the Sunday collections are unlikely to be better than Friday and may not even be much higher than Saturday. The early Saturday figures from some circuits are as follows. Friday numbers in brackets.
Delhi/UP – 35 (46)
East Punjab – 13 (17)
CP Berar 9 (14)
CI – 8 (12)
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May 20, 2012 at 8:32 AM
didnt expect any gr8 numbers, but this is obscene
wasnt dutt coming back from a ‘resurgent’ kaancha act in AP?
Also shows how acutely aware the audience is about a director/producers immediate/recent track record..
havent seen this ‘deptt’ and have heard it is crap, but still…
ps–in this case, the sins of the recent past have come back to haunt the likes of RGV, dutt and even bachchan
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May 20, 2012 at 8:45 AM
Satyam-This is a very good and insightful article- What makes a movie ‘cultish’? For a lot of people,it’s about the thrill of discovery—because these films traditionally don’t do well in the box office, they end up hidden in unlikely places, like small art theaters, late-night television, or listed in Netflix’s more eccentric genres (e.g. “psycho-dramas with a strong female lead”, or “campy horror films set in outer space”). link-http://kitschmag.com/index.php%3Foption%3Dcom_content%26
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May 20, 2012 at 8:51 AM
Contd- The “found” nature of a cult film makes the viewer feel that,in discovering it,he or she has unearthed a cinematic gem too fringe for the mainstream viewer to ever understand.This self-proclaimed separation from the movie-going masses adds the viewer by default to the film’s “cult,” or whatis perceived to be the small group of people who are also cognizant of its splendor.Although it explains the appeal of cult film to individual viewers, this characterization of the movies themselves is problematic.
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May 20, 2012 at 8:58 AM
excerpt from the above article- Office Space , a movie about the vengeance of disgruntled IT workers at a software company, is an iconic cult satire, in which the characters represent a sub-culture of disillusioned college grads in the 90s tech industry. This film and many others also feature unlikely heroes like Marge Henderson, the pregnant Police Chief with a heavy Minnesotan accent in Fargo, or Veronica, the girl who murders the bitchy popular crowd in the black comedy Heathers.
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May 20, 2012 at 10:12 AM
Department is heading to become a disaster.Sad to see Bachchan being wasted by this director again.
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May 20, 2012 at 7:59 PM
this is a perfect movie for a election year! i love jay roach(meet the parents, austin powers movies, dinner with schmucks, mystery, alaska). saw this trailer last night before watching “the dictator” and the audience was laughing like crazy.
but the loudest laughs were for this movie:
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May 21, 2012 at 12:46 AM
I saw the trailer for Ted…man, it looks freaking HILARIOUS!!! Love that part where he’s working at the mall and says, “Yeah, so that’s where we’ll draw the line”! hope the movie lives up to the trailer
Also, the Dictator’s a good movie, I hear. Might go watch it soon.
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May 21, 2012 at 2:26 AM
well if you’re fan of family guy then you will LOVE Ted. these two comedies are going to be great in my mind.
and if you liked borat then you will like the dictator also. there are some uncomfortable moments but overall i laughed out loud a lot though it wasn’t as good/funny as borat. unfortunately it looks like it will bomb at the box office.
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May 20, 2012 at 8:10 PM
The Avengers has done incredibly well! I never expected this kind of performance. In its first 17 days it has done 457 m. The Dark Knight did 393m over the same period! And this weekend it only dropped 46%. This was the third weekend. Just an amazing run here. Now even accounting for inflation and greater 3D showings it’s probably keeping pace with TDK at the very least.
http://boxofficemojo.com/weekend/chart/
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May 20, 2012 at 8:13 PM
lol oops can you remove my link satyam bhai..i guess we posted the same story at the same time.
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May 20, 2012 at 8:21 PM
that’s fine. I just put up the chart. Yours is a writeup..
Doubt it will get close to Avatar though. That is probably a bridge too far because Cameron’s movies just have a habit of sustaining week after week. Don’t think that will happen here but then again it’s already surprised me greatly. I thought Dark Knight would be the year’s biggest grosser. Now it will have to be at least as good as the previous one to have a chance.
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May 20, 2012 at 8:30 PM
yeah i think the avatar total of $750 mill domestically is tough to reach. MIB 3 will hurt avengers next weekend and after that its one big summer movie after another. i think it can end up around $600-650. have you seen the movie yet?
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May 20, 2012 at 10:18 PM
not yet, have been hopelessly behind this time!
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May 21, 2012 at 12:15 AM
well you’ve got to see it soon!! make sure to see it in 3D at least…it is worth it! will love to read your review/thoughts on the movie. i think after you see it, you will know why it has done so well…it is a pure entertainer.
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May 20, 2012 at 8:11 PM
‘The Avengers’ crushes ‘Battleship’ and ‘The Dictator’ with $55.1 mil
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-et-ct-box-office-20120520,0,676040.story
wow, just noticed that this guy, taylor kitsch, will be part of two of the biggest disasters this year. first he was the lead role in john carter and now battleship. ouch.
meanwhile avengers is going to blow past the $500 mill mark domestically this week and probably challenge Avatar. Amazing. I don’t see the TDKR sustaining this kind of box office prowess. i totally underestimated Avengers box office potential. it did help that it was a great entertainer.
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May 20, 2012 at 8:44 PM
off topic:
“Mrs. Eastwood & Company,” a new reality series, focuses on the family of Clint Eastwood
this is very surprising. nothing good comes out of a reality show. and i don’t know why they call it a reality show, when it’s totally scripted “reality”.
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May 21, 2012 at 1:38 AM
Really an incredible run for Avengers..
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May 21, 2012 at 6:56 AM
Department Is A Disaster
Monday 21st May 2012 14.00 IST
Boxofficeindia.Com Trade Network
Department is a disaster at the box office as it collected around 7.25-7.50 crore nett over the weekend. The film grossed 2.75 crore nett on Friday, 2 crore nett on Saturday and Sunday was around 2.50-2.75 crore nett.
The collections at multiplexes were extremely low while single screens at mass centres recorded better collections.
Ishaqzaade in its second week was better at multiplexes all over while children’s animation film Chhota Bheem and The Curse Of Damyaan was ahead at multiplexes where both films had screenings. Even Vicky Donor in its fifth week was recording better numbers at many multiplexes.
Department was released on 44 theatres in Delhi city and collected just 55 lakhs approx. Thats just over 1 lakh per theatre when Delhi city has the most high grossing theatres in the country.
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May 22, 2012 at 12:43 AM
knew this film would be bad right from the start. seems to be a much worse film than “agent vinod”!
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May 21, 2012 at 6:57 AM
Ishaqzaade Tops Kahaani First Week
Monday 21st May 2012 11.30 IST
Boxofficeindia.Com Trade Network
Ishaqzaade Has emerged the fifth highest first week of 2012 topping the figures of Kahaani. The highest first week grossers of 2012 are as follows. Approx figures
1. Agneepath – 86 cr (8 days)
2. Housefull 2 – 62 cr
3. Agent Vinod – 36 cr
4. Jannat 2 – 34 cr
5. Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu – 30.5 cr
6. Ishaqzaade -25.5 cr
7. Kahaani – 24 cr (inc paid previews)
8. Players – 21.5 cr
9. Tezz – 14.5 cr
10. Vicky Donor – 14 cr
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May 21, 2012 at 6:57 AM
Midweek: ‘Department’ is a debacle
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May 21, 2012 at 11:19 PM
Another half-ass gangster/cop movie with sexual theme from Anurag Kashyap’s production house.
The Hollywood Reporter
Peddlers: Cannes Review
12:34 PM PDT 5/21/2012 by Deborah Young
The Bottom Line
Three young people in Mumbai tangle lethally in a drama that only takes off towards the end.
The first feature by Indian writer-director Vasan Bala focuses on two destitute 20-year-olds who fall into Mumbai’s drug trade and a young cop who stalks them.
CANNES — Confused, at times naive story-telling eventually gives way to a powerful dramatic finale, but one so downbeat it leaves a bitter taste in the mouth, in Peddlers, a first feature by Indian writer-director Vasan Bala. The rest of the tale leisurely circles around two destitute 20-year-olds who fall into Mumbai’s drug trade and a young cop who stalks them; all three carry scars from their childhood that supposedly, but not very convincingly, motivate their execrable behavior. Though it takes a long time coming together, the Hindi-language film does finally succeed in its action-packed last half-hour, rewarding audiences who hang on for that long. Its bow in Cannes’ Critics Week should indicate more festival life ahead.
The characters have something very familiar about them. Mandar (Siddharth Menon) is a shaggy-haired orphan with a quick wit, ready to do odd jobs for a small-time organizer. Part of what he organizes is drug traffic, and that is how he meets and falls for pretty country girl Bilkis, who is hired to swallow capsules of coke for transport. Although she’s qualified throughout the film as a former chemistry teacher who is slowly dying of cancer, she seems perfectly healthy, apart from a slight cough. She flubs her first disco drug run and, with her chem background, is sent to work in a hidden factory where crystal meth is synthesized.
In an intercut story, hot-looking Ranjit is a rookie cop with a problem he confesses only over the phone to a doctor: his inability to have an erection. Because of this stain on his manhood, the script would have us believe, he is pushed into psychotic bouts of uncontrollable violence, not just with women but with anyone he can find to punish. Needless to say, his line of work gives him ample opportunity for sadism. When his path crosses Mandar and Bilkis’s, all the silly character motivation becomes irrelevant and, beginning with a fast foot chase through a slum, an action movie springs to life, building to an extremely nasty climax.
Lensing is professional and well-handled throughout, giving the sordid environment a sort of naturalness that pulls the viewer into the story.
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/peddlers-cannes-review-327285
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May 22, 2012 at 12:12 AM
Ram Gopal Varma @RGVzoomin
Whatever else happening to Department I am supremley happy tht I don’t nd 2 see the faces of Sanjay dutt nd Dharam uberoi fr rest of my life
Ram Gopal Varma @RGVzoomin
Frm forcing me 2 take kangana out of the film 2 constantly cornering me 2 change screenplay I had the most horrible time wrking wth dutt
Ram Gopal Varma @RGVzoomin
If Dutt n uberoi think I am the bad in Dept let’s wait for zilla ghaziabad nd sohams film whr I am not there 2 spoil their creative inputs
https://twitter.com/#!/RGVzoomin
hahahaha RGV has seriously lost it
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May 22, 2012 at 2:05 AM
LOL…..Love his tweets..
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May 22, 2012 at 4:08 AM
I wish his films were as entertaining as his tweets…the guy has well & truly lost it.
And he won’t me making any new friends by tweeting against Dutt in this manner !
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May 22, 2012 at 4:30 AM
I don’t know if I shall work with RGV again: Sanjay Dutt- timesofindia.indiatimes.com/…/news… Sanjay – Dutt /…/13379030.cms- Speaking to us on Monday evening, Dutt said, “Hits and flops are a part of the industry.But I really don’t know if I shall work with Ramu again.”Dharam Oberoi,CEO of Sanjay Dutt Productions,too said,”I am sure that I don’t want to work with Ramu on any other project in my life. We told Ramu so often those 5D cameras,which he used,are not apt but he never listened to us even once
Contd. From above – Dutt seconded Oberoi saying, “I have been in the industry for 32 years and I know which cameras are suitable and which are not. But ab kya karen? Jo ho gaya so ho gaya. But yes , I really don’t know at this point of time if I want towork with Ramu again.”
RGV’s reaction to the outrage was predictable: “Idon’t know what they are thinking and neither do I care… but from my side, I don’t want to see the faces of Sanjay Dutt and Dharam Oberoi for the rest of my life.”
here is the link to the above interview- http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/bollywood/news-interviews/I-dont-know-if-I-shall-work-with-RGV-again-Sanjay-Dutt/articleshow/13379030.cms
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May 22, 2012 at 5:06 AM
What an era of unprofessionalism. Either these guys are seeking publicity or they’re too immature to talk about their differences to the media. Why dont they sort out their issues in private?
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May 22, 2012 at 6:20 AM
Sanju is having lot of rifts with the makers of his films. thruout the making of Department there were continuous rumours of arguements between him and ramu. there are also news of him delaying the shooting and having the problems with the producer of his next- ‘zilla ghaziabad’. only film where he seems to be happy is his close friend ajay devgan’s production ‘son of sardar’
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May 22, 2012 at 7:32 AM
taran adarsh @taran_adarsh
#Ishaqzaade Wknd 2: Fri 1.77 Cr, Sat 2.40 Cr, Sun 3.21 Cr, Mon 1.43 Cr. Total: 8.81 Cr. Grand total: Rs 34.54 Cr nett. Fantastic.
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May 22, 2012 at 2:10 PM
Ishaqzaade Continues to Be Strong On Second Monday
http://www.boxofficeindia.com/boxnewsdetail.php?page=shownews&articleid=4460&nCat=
Ishaqzaade continued with strong business on its second Monday as it collected around 1.40 crore nett. Last Monday the film had collected around 2.75 crore nett meaning the Monday to Monday drop is less than 50%.
The total non performance of Department has helped the film and now Ishaqzaade is comfortably ahead of Department on a daily basis even though Department is first week and Ishaqzaade in its second week.
The film should reach the 45 crore nett mark as it will be be in the 37-38 crore nett range after two weeks and should be able to add 7-8 crore thereafter.
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May 22, 2012 at 2:11 PM
Ishaqzaade going great guns…a sure shot success now !
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May 22, 2012 at 2:46 PM
Now there’s big war of words going on between Sanjay Dutt and RGV.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/bollywood/news-interviews/I-had-the-most-horrible-time-working-with-Dutt-RGV/articleshow/13385199.cms
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May 22, 2012 at 3:28 PM
they had a similar problem the last time they worked together.
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May 22, 2012 at 4:30 PM
I blame Abhishek for this
On Day 2 of the war of words, RGV hits back with potshots at Dutt and Oberoi and doesn’t spare Bachchan Jr either
Amrapali Sharma
Posted On Wednesday, May 23, 2012 at 01:56:10 AM
Why did you wait for Department’s release to vent your anger and discomfort with Sanjay Dutt and Dharam Oberoi?
It is dangerous to start changing the content and screenplay midway through a film because it is so easy to lose your objectivity. So when they compelled me to do that by using various coercive forces halfway through the film since I was anyway stuck, I had a professional commitment to finish the film and had to wait until now.
Isn’t it a blame game going on after the film crashed?
I am not blaming anyone except myself. The biggest mistake I made was to go to an actor as unprofessional and as unimaginably erratic as Dutt.
There were problems with Sanjay Dutt and co-producer Dharam Oberoi even during the making of the film?
The problems were innumerable, ranging from Dutt’s coming late to last-minute cancellation of shoots and schedules to erratically wanting to change the content of scenes in the name of creative discussions that are not to be confused with mindless interference. Aamir and me had creative differences during Rangeela but I didn’t pay heed to the mistakes he pointed out. Despite Rangeela becoming a blockbuster, when I saw the film much later, I felt I had gotten away with the mistakes that he had pointed out. I genuinely believe Rangeela would have been a bigger hit had I listened to Aamir. The difference being Aamir’s suggestions and observations came from a long and intense deliberation on his part and not like Dutt who was blurting out without thinking, encouraged by the likes of Dharam who pander to him for their personal benefits.
You have said Dutt forced you to drop Kangana from the film and also interfered in the screen play?
Yes. Dharam told me Sanjay wanted Kangana to be dropped and since it’s a predominantly male-dominated action film, I didn’t want to make an issue. I also wish Sanjay Dutt realises what Dharam talks behind his back and for his sake, I hope he distances himself from Oberoi before it is too late.
What difference would Kangana have made to your film?
It’s not about the difference and like I said, that’s the reason I didn’t make an issue. It’s about the way Dutt behaved.
Apparently, Dutt had concerns about the cameras you were using?
Not only him, even Amitji and Rana had but when they saw the quality of the film, they were happy and they spoke about it in the media too. In fact, Amitji spoke about it as the future of cinema even after the release and the reviews. The problem wasn’t about using the cameras but the way they were used in terms rapid panning, some unseen angles and some deliberately jerky moments. However, these were hardly eight to 10 shots in the film. Otherwise, usage of these cameras is prevalent the world over, including in the Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire.
Apparently, Dharam made additional money. Did he take a commission for casting Sanjay Dutt that was over and above his payment?
I wouldn’t like to comment on that but I guess, the concerned people know.
And while you’ve said with respect to Department that you don’t make films for critics, we’d like to ask you whether you don’t make films for the box office either?
Why would any director, be it me or Sriram Raghavan or Ashutosh Gowariker, want to make a film that doesn’t work? Why would I want all my time and effort to be wasted? Whether anyone believes it or not, I work with the same passion on every film. Only, I seem to have more bad films simply because I make more number of films.
On Monday night, you sent a message to Abhishek Bachchan saying, “You brought this disease into my life by recommending Sanjay Dutt”. Comment.
No messages happened between Abhishek and me with regard to this but the truth is that when Abhishek was supposed to do Rana’s role, it was he who convinced me about Dutt against my better judgement. Later on, he couldn’t do the film and I was left with Dutt. So I definitely blame Abhishek for making me go through this though it was unintentional on his part.
While you’ve made landmark films, people say you’ve lost focus. Comment.
Since everyone has a mouth, everyone will have an opinion. The people who work with me know how focused I am and so I would advise people who are not concerned with me to rather focus on themselves instead of focusing on my focus.
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May 22, 2012 at 4:45 PM
All this had me go thru this question which i was avoiding for a long time simply because i have always been a huge Dutt fan- Has the career of Sanjay Dutt finished as a solo-lead? currently it looks like yes.
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May 22, 2012 at 3:59 PM
Again this is big! here comes the sequel to one of the greatest comedies of all time ‘Anchorman’- “Anchorman 2”- stars Will Ferrel in his legendary role of Ron Burgundy, Paul Rudd and Steve Carrell- links-http://www.justjared.com/2012/05/21/will-ferrell-anchorman-2-teaser-trailer-watch-now/&sa=U&ei=su-7T_ujFsjw2gXAzdnTCQ&ved=0CEMQtwIwBA&usg=AFQjCNHHTKxJrghAEC59vlsLF6NbkI_bvA
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May 22, 2012 at 11:27 PM
here you go bro:
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May 22, 2012 at 4:46 PM
If I recollect accurately,Anchorman was only a modest success.
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May 22, 2012 at 4:53 PM
Yeah but it has a pretty strong following since its release. It’s also got most of the Apatow regulars. Personally don’t think it’s great but it is funny.
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May 22, 2012 at 4:57 PM
i believe 2 of the funniest comedies i have seen in the last 10-15 yrs are- pineapple express and there is something about mary
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May 22, 2012 at 5:00 PM
Nothing in Pineapple Express was funnier than Bill Hader’s opening scene. Had some funny moments though. Not a great fan of “Mary”. For me the best laugh out loud comedy in the past ten years is probably 40 Year Old Virgin.
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May 22, 2012 at 5:02 PM
Yup, dont get ‘Mary’ at all.
The ‘hair gel’ scene was too gross tho likes of Alex might be able to identify with it!
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May 22, 2012 at 5:05 PM
Are we forgetting, Hangover?
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May 22, 2012 at 5:06 PM
No I actually think The Hangover is really overrated. Can think of several funnier films here. I think 40 Year Old and Superbad are easily funnier than Hangover.
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May 22, 2012 at 5:06 PM
well in pineapple i found james franco really good. also i have a huge liking for farrelly brothers’ ‘stuck on you’. and ‘shakespeare in love’ was also damn good courtesy paltrow
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May 22, 2012 at 11:36 PM
to me old school beats the hang over any day. i did like hang over a lot initially but after the “hoopla” died down…i find some parts boring. my fave comedies recently have to be: pineapple express, 40 y/o virgin, stepbrothers, talledega nights, office space, something about mary, wedding crashers, borat, dodgeball and my most fave, what i consider a modern classic…tropic thunder.
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May 22, 2012 at 4:51 PM
yes but it was a huge critical success.Empire magazine had listed it amongst the 500 greatest films of all time
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May 22, 2012 at 5:06 PM
“Despite Rangeela becoming a blockbuster, when I saw the film much later, I felt I had gotten away with the mistakes that he had pointed out. I genuinely believe Rangeela would have been a bigger hit had I listened to Aamir.”
–The kind of form RGV is in, only an Aamir could bail him out
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May 22, 2012 at 5:08 PM
Rangeela did very well but it was hardly blockbuster material.
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May 22, 2012 at 5:11 PM
LOL sad but true tony. in a similar vein i only see hirani bailing sanju out.(since he has lost the services of sanjay gupta and mahest bhatt has quit direction)
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May 22, 2012 at 5:25 PM
Btw RGV is still working at a break-neck pace- his sequel to Bhoot called ‘ Bhooo’ starring Manisha Koirala is tentatively releasing this September. and he has started working on his 26/11 project which comes out next year
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May 26, 2012 at 1:47 AM
dont think anyone should attempt a film on 26/11 so early.. do not appreciate it
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May 22, 2012 at 5:45 PM
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118053978.html?cmpid=RSS%7CNews%7CLatestNews
Variety Magazine lists the Indian films to look out for this year- Gangs of Wasseypur, Miss Lovely, Pune 52, Tasher Desh and Barfi.
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May 22, 2012 at 5:45 PM
Feel for RGV…
hes always been more than susceptible to these antics and i enjoy them, but now he seems to be having a real psychic, emotional and physical melt down/ breakdown…
rgv Seems to be a man on a mission–to ‘destroy himself”
and wtf–will kanganas presence change the result of this film..
Also –havent seen the film but cant believe it is AS bad as beeing mentioned…
ps–think rgv needs a break, pack up for a few months and go to the alps (with some fresh talent to keep him occupied with screen tests)
btw what WAS dutt doing in this cap in deptt..
really puts one off asap–a police officer at that..
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May 22, 2012 at 5:50 PM
Alex, i saw the film on the 1st day- was more excited abt it than anyone here including satyam. it was a BAD film, period. And dutt probably wore that baseball cap in order to hide those eye-bags. Seriously Ami was right, Dutt is really looking decrepit
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May 25, 2012 at 9:29 AM
Top 5: ‘Ishaqzaade’ dominates, ‘Department’ fails
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May 25, 2012 at 10:00 AM
“While the grapevine was abuzz with recent ‘observations’ regarding Karan Johar’s behaviour with Priyanka Chopra, the filmmaker has gone an extra mile and cleared the air about the same. According to Johar, PC always featured on his birthday list, and he has seemingly sorted all issues between him and the actress.
Ram Gopal Varma, however, doesn’t feature anywhere on the list of invitees that is keeping KJo busy these days. Says Johar: “RGV is neither a friend nor a professional associate, so he is not invited to my party.”
Seems like ‘Department’ and the ensuing blame-game hasn’t gone down well with the biggies of Bollywood!”
I feel like the average Bollywood personality is only slightly less mature than a fifth grader- it’s amazing how much childish gossip KJo’s birthday party has generated!
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May 25, 2012 at 10:02 AM
“I feel like the average Bollywood personality is only slightly less mature than a fifth grader- it’s amazing how much childish gossip KJo’s birthday party has generated!”- LOL well said Ami (the one who wants to vanquish the race of man-children)
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May 26, 2012 at 1:12 AM
Ishaqzaade Continues Excellent Run In Week Three
Saturday 25th May 2012 10.00 IST
Boxofficeindia.Com Trade Network
Ishaqzaade continued its great run in week three with rock steady collections. Delhi/UP grossed nearly 30 lakhs nett which is less than 50% drop from last week.
The collections on its third Friday should come in around 1 crore nett, if Mumbai circuit collections come in as strong as Delhi/UP, it may even be over 1 crore nett.
The way the film is performing it may even hit the 45 crore nett mark by the end of the third week or at least be very close it. Ishaqzaade and Vicky Donor are the only mainstream Hindi films which are still doing well while others like Department, Tezz and Jannat 2 have all faded away.
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May 26, 2012 at 2:39 AM
Fantastic ! Ishaqzaade may end up crossing Jannat 2 if it touches 45 crores…which is a terrific achievement for a film with newcomers.
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May 26, 2012 at 3:41 AM
Department Has Epic Crash in Collections On Day Eight
http://www.boxofficeindia.com/boxnewsdetail.php?page=shownews&articleid=4472&nCat=
The collections of Department have crashed on the 8th day like never before. Not many major releases have seen such a huge fall in collections. The fall in collections is around 95%. East Punjab has not even collected 1 lakh on day eight while DUP is around just 2-3 lakhs.
The all India collections of the film on the 8th day are probably somewhere in the 10-12 lakhs nett region.
The film will not even add 1 crore nett business to its tally after the first week.
The film has performed so badly that in many areas exhibitors preferred to give films like MLA and Rakhtbeej a chance rather than keep Department playing for another week. Normally a MLA or Rakhtbeej would hardly get screenings in places like Jaipur, Lucknow or Kanpur but due to Department crash these films have actually found there way into some multiplex screens in these areas. Some multiplexes that retained the film say shows cancelled due to no audience.
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May 26, 2012 at 3:42 AM
Chotta Bheem And The Curse Of Daymaan Surprise Success Department Is Disaster
The new Hindi releases Chutki Bajaa Ke, Love Recipe, MLA, Rakhtbeej and Yeh Khula Aasman all opened to very dull houses and have no chance at the box office. The animation film Arjun: The warrior Prince was a bit better but still very low.
Department has emerged a huge disaster with a 11.50 crore nett first week and a huge drop on the 8th day with very low collections. DISASTER
Choota Bheem and The Curse Daymaan has done well at the box office. The film with a very limited release collected 1.35 crore nett over its first three days and just over 2 crore nett in its first week.
Ishaqzaade sustained very well with collections of around 12.25 crore nett in week two. The film has grossed around 37.75 crore nett in two weeks and is very strong in its third week also. The film will be the fourth biggest grosser of the year after Agneepath, Housefull 2 and Kahaani.
Vicky Donor has collected around 37.75 crore nett in five weeks. SUPER HIT
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May 26, 2012 at 3:53 AM
I think what Vicky Donor’s achieved is extraordinary despite not much of a hype
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May 26, 2012 at 4:45 AM
Amul Mohan of Supercinema Trade Magazine tweeted the following news :
https://twitter.com/#!/amul_mohan
“Hrithik Roshan has been signed by Shankar for his next Hindi venture. Movie to go on floors immediately after Hrithik finishes Krissh3.”
“Salman Khan has apparently put Sooraj Barjatya’s BADE BHAIYA on his top priority list.”
“Ranbir has put Anurag Kayshap’s Bombay Velvet on the back burner. He’s starting a new movie in October tho. Its titled Besharam”
“Besharam is going to be directed by Anurag’s own brother Abhinav. Parineeti Chopra is going to be opposite Ranbir in the movie.”
“Boney Kapoor has picked up the remaking rights of Mahesh Babu’s Telugu blockbuster from last year DOOKUDU. Will make it with Eros.”
“Eros International has picked up the world rights of Ram Gopal Varma’s next two movies SARKAR 3 and 26/11 for a mental price.”
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May 26, 2012 at 8:25 AM
Have doubts about most of this barring the Salman/Barjatya thing and possibly the Ranbir thing.
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May 26, 2012 at 4:49 AM
Some gamble by Eros on SARKAR 3 and 26/11, after the debacle of Department !
Ranbir / Parineeti pairing is definitely something to look forward to !!
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May 26, 2012 at 8:36 AM
Ishqzade for some reason is not playing in Chicago …
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May 26, 2012 at 8:41 AM
yeah I couldn’t find it at a theater either.. and I think GF said it wasn’t screening in Manhattan. I will wait for a proper DVD on this. Because the ambience seems to be the strong element here and there’s no point if the DVD doesn’t do it justice. Very pleased the film did well.
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May 26, 2012 at 8:50 AM
The Animation film “ARJUN” is getting rave reviews-
Masand: ‘Arjun: The Warrior Prince’ is a valiant effort
Rating: 3 / 5
Director: Arnab Chaudhuri
Director Arnab Chaudhuri has mentioned in interviews that his animation film ‘Arjun: The Warrior Prince’ is not a children’s movie, and I’m inclined to agree with him. The Mahabharata may be a story you heard from your grandmother at bedtime, or grew up reading in Amar Chitra Katha. In that sense, the character of Arjun, the brave warrior amongst the virtuous Pandavas, is one you’re familiar with. And yet, the film has an unusual approach – it’s a coming-of-age story, a boy-becomes-man yarn that has emotions like uncertainty, fear, frustration, will-power and courage running through it.
Arjun gets the treatment of an action-movie hero, and as he slays his way through a chakravyuh of soldiers from the Kaurava army you find yourself rooting for him. In fact, I was strongly reminded of the high-voltage drama that contributed to the Sunday ritual of watching BR Chopra’s long-running Mahabharata TV series in the 1990s.
The film unfolds from Arjun’s point of view – showing him first as a boy learning his skills from his guru Dronacharya. Even though he and his brothers suffer many injustices at the hands of their Kaurava cousins, Arjun is unable to summon up the courage to retaliate on the battlefield. The film’s director builds up the narrative by showing what goes into the making of a committed warrior.
The heroic exploits and inner struggles of Arjun are woven into the film’s narrative so convincingly that you tend to forget this is animation. The characters’ features are drawn sharply, giving the film the look of Japanese manga. The action has a martial arts-movie feel to it, and thus the violence — also the sight of severed torsos — may be too graphic for younger audiences. In portions, the animation is stiff and the characters seem stilted in their movements, but there are also beautifully stylized sequences, like the one in which Arjun dives into a pond to shoot an arrow into the fish and win Draupadi’s hand at the swayamvar.
However the film is not without its weaknesses – some characters, like that of the scheming Shakuni mama, are too caricaturish and could have done with a more subtle touch, while the Pandavas’ exile portion feels overly stretched and dull. For the most part, the movie works when it concentrates on its protagonist and his evil cousin Duryodhan.
I’m going to with three out of five for Arjun: The Warrior Prince. Like its hero, the film too is a valiant effort, and an interesting interpretation of a much-loved mythological story. Worth a watch.
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May 26, 2012 at 9:07 AM
NY Times:
May 24, 2012
Movie Review
An Animated Mahabharata Story
By RACHEL SALTZ
Opens on Friday in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Dallas and Houston.
Directed by Arnab Chaudhuri
In Hindi, with English subtitles
1 hour 36 minutes; not rated
At about seven times the length of the Iliad and the Odyssey combined, the great Indian epic the Mahabharata has story to burn. The 96-minute animated feature “Arjun — The Warrior Prince” obviously can’t tell the whole complicated tale (that would take weeks), so it concentrates on the life of young Arjun, one of five brothers who lose their kingdom in a game of dice, go into exile and then fight to regain it.
An action movie, “Arjun” takes story liberties, but not always in the service of clarity. (The script is by Rajesh Devraj.) Children will probably be confused, and adults familiar with the tale may wonder where all the good bits went. We see Arjun win the green-eyed Draupadi, but never learn that she becomes the wife of his brothers too. (And Draupadi’s disrobing? Gone.)
If you could separate spectacle from story, “Arjun” wouldn’t be half bad. Directed by Arnab Chaudhuri and accompanied by Vishal and Shekhar’s propulsive songs, the film is fast and exciting, weaving together different types of animation: a cartoony Disneyish style with a more “real” live-action look, a flat appearance with a more dimensional one.
Two scenes stand out: To win Draupadi, Arjun does a high dive into a pool, where, below the surface, he shoots a fish with an arrow, tracking it only by its shadow on the top of the water. Later, when those dice are tossed up, the camera follows them; the whole world spins, turning upside down — as indeed it soon will in the epic — in a swirl of color and shapes.
“Arjun” ends just as the war to win back the kingdom is about to begin. Sequel, anyone?
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May 26, 2012 at 8:50 AM
I want to see it because Dr. Anil Rastogi has a big role in the movie, Dr. Rastogi was my wife’s teacher in Lucknow…he has done a lot of stuff for Lucknow TV and was also in Chintu Jee..
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May 26, 2012 at 8:54 AM
Anil Rastogi plays the father of the lead hero Arjun Kapoor here- he is in the role of a local politician- he played his part very well
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May 27, 2012 at 5:15 PM
‘Men in Black 3’ takes down ‘Avengers’ with $55M
http://boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=3448&p=.htm
Avengers still drops only 33% from last weekend. this is really damn good. also will have to check out moonrise kingdom. is at 95% at RT.
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May 27, 2012 at 5:19 PM
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May 28, 2012 at 12:15 AM
http://boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=3448&p=.htm
“While it had to settle for second place, The Avengers was still very impressive this weekend. The superhero team-up eased 34 percent to an estimated $37 million, which is the second-highest fourth weekend ever behind Avatar’s $50.3 million. On Saturday, the movie set a new record by crossing the $500 million mark in just 23 days. Through Sunday, The Avengers has earned $513.7 million, and will pass The Dark Knight ($533.3 million) by Friday to move in to third place on the all-time domestic chart.”
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May 28, 2012 at 12:19 AM
Finally saw avengers. Enjoyed it a lot but nothing here is quite as good as the initial 40 min or so. I continue to be disappointed with how some of the climactic action sequences are staged in these films. All in chaotic fashion with little sense of the dramatic. There is no ‘shape’ to these segments. Characters go at it for a while and eventually the good guys win! It’s about things happening so fast on so many fronts that one is forced to remain ‘engaged’ but I think far more impressive sequences could be crafted with a little imagination. There is no need to rush through everything.
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May 28, 2012 at 1:29 AM
you are so right on the climax scene. transformers was the same way. overall though for me both movies it was paisa ek dum vasool.
you should clear your schedule for the weekend of july 20th…lol.
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May 29, 2012 at 12:10 AM
with 1.3 billion and counting for the avengers…you just know DC and warner brothers are somehow, someway formulating a plan to bring the justice league on screen. there is too much money there…and i think they’d want christopher nolan to be the director. i would think the justice league would be much more darker and serious…with superman and batman and the rest….
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May 28, 2012 at 7:09 AM
Midweek: ‘Ishaqzaade’ continues to dominate
http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/trade/top5/id/863/date/2012-05-28
Ishaqzaade collected Rs 4.34 cr in Wknd 3, taking the total to Rs 42.52 cr nett. Fri 1.08 cr, Sat 1.51 cr, Sun 1.75 cr. Super Hit.
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May 28, 2012 at 10:25 AM
RGV-Sanjay Dutt patch up
By Bollywood Hungama News Network ,May 28, 2012 – 12:13 hrs IST
#
They say there are no permanent friends and enemies in Bollywood. After Department’s disappointing run at the box office, director Ram Gopal Varma and lead actor Sanjay Dutt got embroiled in an ugly public spat. But now the friends-cum-foes have buried their differences and have patched up.
RGV had openly spoken against Sanjay Dutt and his manager Dharam Oberoi after the failure of Department. RGV also added that more than Dutt it was Dharam who was responsible for creating trouble for Department and also spoiling Dutt’s name. The spat resulted in the ouster of Dharam Oberoi as the CEO of Sanjay Dutt Productions.
Reportedly, choreographer and filmmaker Ahmed Khan jumped in and worked out the reconciliation between Sanjay Dutt and RGV. Ahmed is very close to both Sanjay and Ramu. Ramu had given Ahmed his first big break in Rangeela, when Ahmed was just 19 years old and Sanjay is like an older brother to Ahmed so he couldn’t see them fighting. He and another common friend Rafi Kazi tried to patch them up.
Ahmed convinced Sanjay to call RGV; reportedly the two spoke for a while and sorted out their differences.
RGV tweeted, “Don’t know if dharam is out of sanjays life but if true its the best news I heard cos he’s more dangerous for sanjay than the 93 blast case…Its weeds which ruin structures nd I am supremley glad the dutt realized.”
“More than for sorting out my differences with Sanjay I am happy that the Evil disease is out of Sanjays life,” he added further.
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May 28, 2012 at 10:27 AM
Sanjay Dutt buys remake rights of Badri
By Bollywood Hungama News Network ,May 28, 2012 – 15:52 hrs IST
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That Sanjay Dutt and Ajay Devgn are thick buddies is known to one and all. Ajay starred in Sanjay’s home production Rascals while Sanjay too has been seen in Ajay’s home productions like All The Best and the forthcoming Son Of Sardaar.
Now taking this friendship ahead, Sanjay Dutt has acquired the remake rights of Telugu super-hit Badri and plans to make a Hindi remake of the film with Ajay Devgn in the lead. Sanju apparently feels Ajay would be apt for the role which was originally essayed by Pawan Kalyan. And even though the film will be made under Sanjay Dutt Productions, Sanju Baba will be giving Ajay a free hand in deciding the cast, director etc. Moreover, Sanju Baba has also said that he would like to have Ajay in all the films made under his banner.
Looks like Dutt wants to make amends for the fiasco called Rascals.
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May 28, 2012 at 10:35 AM
Ishaqzaade Has Strong Third Weekend
http://www.boxofficeindia.com/boxnewsdetail.php?page=shownews&articleid=4479&nCat=
Ishaqzaade had a strong third weekend collecting around 4.25 crore nett and taking its seventeen day business to around 42 crore nett. The film collected 1 crore nett on Friday, 1.50 crore nett on Saturday and 1.75 crore nett on Sunday.
Kahaani had grossed 5.50 crore nett in its third weekend while Vicky Donor grossed around 3.75 crore nett. The top third weekend collection was the 8 crore nett of Housefull 2.
Ishaqzaade will have the fourth best third week collections of 2012 and have business in the range of 44.5-45 crore nett in three weeks.
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May 28, 2012 at 10:38 AM
Terrific trending this…there is a possibility of Ishaqzaade touching even 50 crore depending on how Rowdy Rathore turns out.
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May 28, 2012 at 10:44 AM
yeah this is great news..
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May 30, 2012 at 3:19 AM
5 Hits during IPL 2012. Howzzat?
http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/trade/businesstalk/id/534/date/2012-05-30
Till last year, most film-makers would fear releasing their movies during the cricket matches, especially during the IPL extravaganza. It’s akin to committing suicide, they felt. But IPL is no longer the dragon that it used to be for film folks. The success of HOUSEFULL 2, VICKY DONOR, HATE STORY, JANNAT 2 and ISHAQZAADE — all released during the IPL season this year — just goes to prove that a film with merits can brave and withstand any opposition. In fact, as many as 5 successful films in a span of 54 days [almost 8 weeks] is no mean achievement, what say?
But the best phase is yet to begin. Year after year, the onset of monsoon coincides with the release of big-ticket films and 2012 is no exception. Starting with ROWDY RATHORE this Friday, the forthcoming weeks are packed with films that could change the fortune of the entertainment industry. So far, AGNEEPATH and HOUSEFULL 2 have merited a place in the coveted 100 cr Club and I expect more and more films to hit the ton.
While on ROWDY RATHORE, a section of the industry feels that the film might be the next entrant in the 100 cr Club. Akshay Kumar’s last release, HOUSEFULL 2, has been a huge grosser, but it was a franchise of a successful film, with a much bigger cast this time. Therefore, Akshay alone cannot be credited for its dream run at the ticket window. ROWDY RATHORE is the real test for Akshay and whether Akshay has the pull and clout to have a 50 cr weekend will be known soon.
Meanwhile, last week’s movies — all actually — have sunk at the box-office. Barring MEN IN BLACK 3, which was the first choice of moviegoers and to an extent, UTV’s animation film ARJUN, all new releases only added to the tally of flops.
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