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Category: Movies

  • Arfi Lamba the ‘Fugly’ boy bags an international project with Akon and Lady Gaga

    Arfi Lamba the ‘Fugly’ boy bags an international project with Akon and Lady Gaga

    MUMBAI: The Fugly boy Arfi Lamba is on cloud nine these days, reason being he has been offered an international film with Akon and Lady Gaga. The name of the film is The Key Project and it is directed by Will’o (Pantheras Films). 

     

    Will ‘O, has directed many television productions and commercials. He has been in the business for over 14 years and has seen and experienced all aspects of film production. His last project was the feature film The Million Dollar Date starring Tom Sizemore.

     

    Lamba will be the only Indian in the film. Clarifies Arfi, “Yes, I have been offered the key project though right now it’s too early to reveal any further details. I am really excited about the project.” 

     

    “I am really excited to work with Akon and Lady Gaga. Lady gaga is doing a small but very important role in the film,” he adds.

     

    The Key Project is a film about real experiences that successful people have gone through to get to where they are today. Will ‘O states, “Success means a lot of different things, from health, finances, and many others… we want to capture the different stories from celebrities to teachers, to show the power of never giving up.”

  • Denzel Washington new film trailer released

    Denzel Washington new film trailer released

    MUMBAI: After playing the criminal gone rogue, Denzel Washington now takes on the role of a vigilante out to protect the needful in the new action thriller, The Equalizer. Sony Pictures released the trailer for the new film earlier today.

     

    In The Equalizer, Denzel Washington plays McCall, a former black ops commando who has faked his death to live a quiet life in Boston. When he comes out of his self-imposed retirement to rescue a young girl, Teri, he finds himself face to face with ultra-violent Russian gangsters. As he serves vengeance against those who brutalise the helpless, McCall’s desire for justice is reawakened. If someone has a problem, the odds are stacked against them, and they have nowhere else to turn, McCall will help. He is The Equalizer.

     

    Along with Academy Award winner Denzel Washington (Glory, Training Day), The Equalizer also stars MTV Movie Award winner Chloe Grace Moretz (Kick-Ass, Carrie) and Academy Award winner Melissa Leo (The Fighter). Washington produces the film along with Batman vs. Super: Dawn of Justice director Zack Snyder. The film is based on the 1980s’ television series that starred Golden Globe Award winning Edward Woodward as a middle aged retired intelligence officer with a mysterious past who helps people in trouble. 

     

    Watch the trailer below:

     

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpOINF4f27k

  • Heropanti creates a bang at the BO

    Heropanti creates a bang at the BO

    MUMBAI: Tiger Shroff, with his mastery over action and dance, has carried his debut film, Heropanti, on his shoulders with the collections maintaining evenly through its opening weekend to collect Rs 21 crore.

     

    Rajnikant may be a media star but his films found no takers in the Hindi belt. Kochadaiiyan, his latest, part animated film, meets with poor response with shows being cancelled due to lack of audience at many places.

     

    The Children Of War has managed to collect about Rs 70 lakh in its first week.

     

    Much promoted, Himesh Reshammiya’s The Xpose ends its first week with figures of Rs 12.35 crore which just about marks the end of its recovery.

     

    Hawaa Hawaai is steady in its second week. The film collects Rs 1.9 crore for its second week taking its two week total to Rs 7.95 crore.

     

    2 States is holding well in its fifth week. The film has added Rs 2.75 crore in its fifth week taking its five week total to Rs 102.95 crore.

  • Shah Rukh Khan is second wealthiest in list of Hollywood and Bollywood stars

    Shah Rukh Khan is second wealthiest in list of Hollywood and Bollywood stars

    NEW DELHI: Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan has edged past Hollywood bigwigs like Tom Cruise and Johnny Depp to be listed second in the top 10 wealthiest celebrity list.

     

    According to Wealth-X’s Hollywood and Bollywood Rich List released on 21 May, the 48-year-old actor is estimated to have a fortune of over $600 million.

     

    Comedian Jerry Seinfeld tops the list with a fortune of $820 million. Cruise is third, with a fortune of $480 million, while Tyler Perry and Depp are fourth and fifth respectively with an estimated wealth of $450 million each.

     

    With over 50 Hindi films in his 20-year career, Khan co-owns the Indian Premier League cricket team Kolkata Knight Riders, and has his own production company, Red Chilies Entertainment.

     

    Married to Indian film producer Gauri Chibber, Khan’s vast fortune includes homes in Mumbai, Delhi, Dubai and London. Much of Khan’s wealth comes from highly lucrative endorsement deals with companies such as Nokia, Pepsi and TAG Heuer, the Guardian reported. His savvy marketing skills lead Forbes Middle East to recently place him number one in their annual ranking of the world’s top Indian leaders.

     

    Several Academy Award winners are featured on the list, including three-time Oscar winner Jack Nicholson, who has a net worth of $400 million, putting the 77-year-old actor in seventh spot, while Tom Hanks is in eighth place with a personal fortune of $390 million. Clint Eastwood, who at 84 is the oldest actor in the list, has an estimated personal fortune of $370 million, making him the nineth wealthiest. Bill Cosby shares the eighth spot with Hanks with $380 million, while Adam Sandler is on the tenth spot, with $340 million.

     

    Wealth-X is world’s leading ultra-high net worth intelligence and prospecting firm with the largest collection of curated research on ultra- high net worth individuals. The research was done by using a proprietary valuation model to assess all asset holdings including privately and publicly held businesses and investible assets to develop the net worth valuation.  

  • Cannes Palme d’Or goes to Turkey’s Nuri Bilge Ceylan for feature and to Simón Mesa Soto for shorts

    Cannes Palme d’Or goes to Turkey’s Nuri Bilge Ceylan for feature and to Simón Mesa Soto for shorts

    NEW DELHI: Renowned Turkish filmmaker Nuri Bilge Ceylan has won the Palme d’or for his film Winter Sleep on the conclusion of the 67th Cannes Film Festival.

     

    The award – to the best of the 18 in competition – was presented to him by the American actress Uma Thurman and the American director Quentin Tarantino. The Jury was presided over by Jane Campion.

     

    Nuri Bilge Ceylan said: “This is a huge surprise for me, I wasn’t expecting it. I don’t know what to say. This year marks the 100th anniversary of Turkish cinema, which is a happy coincidence. I would like to thank the Festival de Cannes for supporting this long project. Thank you to the Jury, to Thierry Frémaux and Gilles Jacob. I would like to dedicate this Palme d’or to the young people of Turkey and to those who lost their lives during the year. Thank you very much”. 

     

    The film also won the top award given by The FIPRESCI (International Association of film critics) jury headed by Esin Kücüktepepinar of Turkey.

     

    While Titli by Kanu Bahl from India was highly lauded, the film that was selected for Un Certain Regard and Gitanjali Rao’s 19-minute animated romance True Love Story in the Critics’ Week failed to make any mark. Behl was also a contender for the Camera d’Or, the award for feature directing debut.

     

    Sergio Leone’s Per un pugno di dollari (A Fistful of Dollars) presented by Quentin Tarantino, was screened at the end of the ceremony.

     

    Le Meraviglie (The Wonders) by Alice Rohrwacher received the Grand Prix award while the best Director Award went to Bennett Miller for Foxcatcher.

     

    The Jury Prize ex-aequo went to Mommy by Xavier Dolan (the youngest winner at 25) and Adieu Au Langage (Goodbye to language) by the renowned Jean-Luc Godard.

     

    The best acting awards went to actress Julianne Moore in Maps to the Stars by David Cronenberg and actor Timothy Spall in Mr Turner by Mike Leigh. Mr Turner also won the award of the Vulcan Award for Technical Artist of the Jury of the CST to Dick Pope, director of photography, for bringing to light the works of Turner.

     

    The Best Screenplay Award was awarded to Andrey Zvyagintsev and Oleg Negin for Leviathan.

     

    The Palme d’Or for Short Films went to Leidi by Simon Mesa Soto.

     

    A Special Mention – Ex-aequo – was made of A?ssa by Clément Trehin-Lalanne and Ja Vi Elsker (Yes we love) by Hallvar Witzo.

     

    The Un Certain Regard Prize went to Fehér Isten by Kornél Mundruczó. FIPRESCI gave the Un Certain Regard award to Jauja by Lisandro Alonso.

     

    The Jury Prize went to Turist by Ruben Östlund while the Un Certain Regard Special Prize was awarded to The Salt of the Earth by the lauded Wim Wenders and Juliano Ribeiro Salgado.

     

    The Ensemble Prize was given to Party Girl by Marie Amachoukeli, Claire Burger and Samuel Theis, and the film also received the Camera d’Or award in the Un Certain Regard, while the Best Actor Award went to David Gulpilil in Charlie’s Country by Rolf de Heer.

     

    In the Cinefondation category for student films, the first prize went to Skunk by Annie Silverstein from the Texas University at Austin in the United States, while the second prize went to Oh Lucy!  by Atsuko Hirayanagi of the NYU Tisch School of the Arts Asia, Singapore and the third prize was given jointly to Lievito Madre by Fulvio Risuleo of Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia, Italy and The Bigger Picture by Daisy Jacobs of the National Film and Television School in the United Kingdom.

     

    The Nespresso Grand Prize in the Critics’ Award category went to The Tribe by Myroslav Slaboshpytskiy, which also received the France 4 Visionary Award. It additionally got the Gan Foundation Support for Distribution.

     

    The SACD Award went to Hope by Boris Lojkine.

     

    A Ciambra by Jonas Carpignano received the Sony CineAlta Discovery Prize for short film and the Canal+ Award for short film went to Crocodile by Gaëlle Denis.

     

    In the Directors’ Fortnight section, the Europa Cinema Label, the SACD Prize and the Art Cinema Award went to Love At First Fight (Les Combattants) by Thomas Cailley. The film also received the FIPRESCI award.

     

    The Illy prize for short film was given to Heartless (Sem Coraç?o) by Nara Normande and Ti?o.

     

    A special mention was made of It Can Pass through the Wall (Trece si Prin Perete) by Radu Jude.

     

    Ceylan’s film is a 210 minute morality tale about a former actor who runs a hotel in remote Anatolia. As winter approaches, he is alone with his young wife and her sister going through a divorce. The cold weather makes the hotel not only a shelter but a site where the three must confront their growing feelings of animosity.

     

    Mommy, like the films of Jean Luc Godard, has broken ground, and ironically Dolan shared the jury prize with the French New Wave director with the daring hand held camera and jump cuts. Godard’s film Adieu au Langage (Goodbye to Language) in the official competition uses colorized scenes and fragmentation in a rather well shaped non-linear narrative. Dolan’s “Mommy” represents a paradigm shift for cinematic language. Defying established aspect ratios, Dolan and his director of photography André Turpin used a perfectly square 1.1 instead of today’s widescreen formats. Mommy shot on 35mm explores futuristic Canada with new mental-health laws in this film about a mother with a violent son.

  • Annie Silverstein’s ‘Skunk’ wins first prize at the 17th CineFondation selection

    Annie Silverstein’s ‘Skunk’ wins first prize at the 17th CineFondation selection

    NEW DELHI: Skunk directed by Annie Silverstein from the University of Texas at Austin in the United States has bagged the first prize at the 17th CineFondation selection.

     

     With this, Silverstein’s first feature film will be presented at the Festival de Cannes.

     

    The second prize went to Oh Lucy! directed by Atsuko Hirayanagi from the NYU Tisch School of the Arts Asia, Singapore. The third prize was won jointly by Lievito Madre directed by Fulvio Risuleo from Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia, Italy; and The Bigger Picture directed by Daisy Jacobs of the National Film and Television School, United Kingdom.

     

     The awarded films will receive €15,000 for the first prize, €11,250 for the second and €7,500 for the third.

     

    The CineFondation and Short Films Jury was headed by Abbas Kiarostami and comprised Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, Noémie Lvovsky, Daniela Thomas and Joachim Trier.

     

     The awards were given during a ceremony held in the Bunuel Theatre, followed by the screening of the winning films.

     

     The CineFondation selection consisted of 16 student films, chosen out of 1631 entries coming from 457 film schools around the world.

  • Activities galore at India Pavilion of the Cannes Film Festival

    Activities galore at India Pavilion of the Cannes Film Festival

    NEW DELHI: The India Pavilion at the 67th Cannes Film Festival saw an unprecedented presence this year.

     

    Organised by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry in association with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), the packed pavilion was inaugurated on 15 May by Indian Ambassador to France Arun K. Singh, I&B secretary Bimal Julka and Indian cinema legend Kamal Haasan.

     

    Others present were veteran filmmaker and producer Ramesh Sippy; renowned filmmaker Sudhir Mishra; YRF Entertainment CEO, actor and producer Uday Chopra; screenwriter Arash Amel; Cannes Film Market executive director Jerome Paillard,; FICCI secretary general A. Didar Singh and filmmaker and producer Bobby Bedi.

     

    The Indian presence at the India Pavilion also included film industry stalwarts such as Film Federation of India president Ravi Kottarakara, T.P. Aggarwal who is the first Indian vice president of FIAPF – the International Federation of Film Producers Associations, and Film and TV Producers Guild of India CEO Kulmeet Makkar.

     

    The pavilion saw a lot of interesting activity with hoards of people jostling for space as they watched the interactive sessions. The first day saw a session on ‘The Making of Grace of Monaco’ – featuring Uday Chopra and Jonathan Reiman from YRF Entertainment – one of the producers of the opening film at the festival – and Arash Amel, the writer of the film. Anchored by Patrick Frater, Asia Bureau Chief of Variety, the discussion hinted at interesting growth and expansion for Indian cinema in the international space by means of collaboration and co-production.

    A very special session, ‘The Journey to Cannes’, was organised at the pavilion for ‘Titli’, India’s official entry in the Un Certain Regard section of the festival. (The festival’s Critics Week section had also selected another Indian film, Gitanjali Rao’s ‘TrueLoveStory’.)

     

    The cast and crew of ‘Titli’ – director Kanu Behl; actors Ranvir Shorey and Shashank Arora; writer Sharat Katariya; editor Namrata Rao; Yash Raj Films VP international operations Avtar Panesar; Sikhya Entertainment founder Guneet Monga and CEO Anurag Kashyap Films were felicitated by the Ministry of I&B, and also spoke about their experience of making the film and being selected to be screened at the Cannes Film Festival.

    A feature of the activities at this year’s India Pavilion at the Cannes Film Market was exclusive networking receptions co-hosted by the Ministry and film bodies, producers and filmmakers from three countries: New Zealand, Australia and Germany.

     

    The New Zealand event was organised in coordination with the New Zealand Film Commission; the delegation was led by NZFC CEO Dave Gibson, and comprised filmmakers and producers from the country; Screen Australia CEO Graeme Mason led the Australia contingent; and German Films organised the third event.

     

    The Indian guest list saw representation from filmmakers, producers and industry body members at Cannes this year. This new initiative is aimed at promoting and forging ties for co-production and partnerships between India and these countries.

     

    On the sidelines of these events were structured B2B meetings between Indian delegates and international stakeholders in order to facilitate business promotion and explore opportunities for partnership between the Indian film community and the global one.

    Sessions were also held on co-production with representatives from India and six other countries, and a discussion on Single Window Clearance for promoting hassle-free film shooting for the global film community in India.

     

    Kamal Haasan was interviewed by critic and anchor Anupama Chopra; filmmakers Ramesh Sippy, Sudhir Mishra and Bobby Bedi were seen in conversation about Indian cinema today and going forward, and Indian films at Cannes over the years.

  • ‘Pulp Fiction’ anniversary at Cannes, ‘Django’ television series planned

    ‘Pulp Fiction’ anniversary at Cannes, ‘Django’ television series planned

    MUMBAI: To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the cult classic, maverick director Quentin Tarantino along with the stars of Pulp Fiction, John Travolta and Uma Thurman, treated the masses to a public screening of the cult classic on the beach at Cannes. Standing on a makeshift stage in front of a giant screen, Tarantino welcomed his two actors, who, one by one, walked down a sandy aisle before flanking their Pulp Fiction director.

     

    Pulp Fiction was the winner of the 1994 Palme d’Or (Golden Palm) from a jury presided over by Clint Eastwood; Pulp Fiction had its official world premiere at the Grand Theatre Lumiere on 19 May that year. However, although the film had been kept tightly under wraps and was screened for no one in the United States before its Cannes debut, a number of critics did get a secret sneak peek at it the night before.

     

    Prior to the screening, the cast and crew of Pulp Fiction were spot walking on the official red carpet at the Palais De Cannes and then attended a party hosted by Miramax Pictures.

     

    The Oscar-winning director told the audience at the Cannes Film Festival on Friday that he’s looking at a four-hour miniseries version of his acclaimed 2012 pre-Civil War Western Django Unchained.

     

     “I have about 90 minutes’ worth of material with Django [that] hasn’t been seen,” said Tarantino to USA Today. “My idea, frankly, is to cut together a four-hour version of Django Unchained… But I wouldn’t show it like a four-hour movie. I would cut it up into hour chapters. Like a four-part miniseries. And show it on cable television. Show it like an hour at a time, each chapter.”

     

    “We’d use all the material I have and it wouldn’t be an endurance test,” he added. “It would be a miniseries. And people love those.”

     

    Django earned a total of five Academy Award nominations, including for Best Picture. It grabbed the golden statuette for Original Screenplay and Supporting Actor Christopher Waltz.

  • Vijender Singh and Mohit Marwah: The ‘Fugly’ boys

    Vijender Singh and Mohit Marwah: The ‘Fugly’ boys

    MUMBAI: Shot in the picturesque foothills of Leh, Grazing Goat Pictures introduced its third track from the upcoming film Fugly, titled Banjarey. The song which talks about friendship and travelling is being greatly appreciated by music lovers internationally.

     

    On the sets of Banjarey, since there were no gyms in Leh, the boys Mohit and Vijender used the rocks lying around for free weight training while shooting for the song.

     

    Banjarey has been composed by music sensation Yo Yo Honey Singh and is unlike any of his previous compositions.

     

    After the instant-hit Yeh Fugly Fugly Kya Hai and Dhupchik, Grazing Goat Pictures has released the third track.

     

    Its title track Yeh Fugly Fugly Kya Hai has created a huge stir with its signature ‘Spider Step’. The song became the most popular video on YouTube India within four days of its release.

     

    Fugly, directed by Kabir Sadanand, is shot extensively in Delhi and the breathtaking locations of Leh. It is a story of four friends: Dev, Devi, Gaurav and Aditya and how this carefree bunch, at the threshold of their lives, get caught in a ‘Fugly’ incident, which sucks them slowly into the big bad world of corruption, politics and the real society in the capital. The entertainingly original Fugly is wacky, kitsch and puts the best of friends through the most bizarre events of their life – the game is Fugly!

  • Heropanti: Of a one man army

    Heropanti: Of a one man army

    MUMBAI: There are a few oddities about Heropanti, probably created on purpose. The film is identified with the 1983 film Hero which launched, Jackie Shroff, the father of the hero of Heropanti, Tiger Shroff. All that is common between Hero and Heropanti is that the latter uses the signature flute tune of Hero, that too in a badly slaughtered and remixed version.  The genes of both films have nothing in common. This film seems to have been made on a shoestring budget with the intent of cashing in on Jackie Shroff’s goodwill of over 30 years and freshness of Tiger Shroff.

    In fact, Heropanti resembles any south Indian film where a strong family with a lot of muscle power finds suitors for its daughters in a similar family status. Even the treatment meted out is like any recent south film though here the strong muscle-wielding family is Jat, who don’t mind killing their own daughter if she marries outside of the family arrangement.

    The story goes like this: the daughter of the most dreaded Jat Chaudhary, played by Prakash Raj, has eloped with her lover on her wedding day (in films they have to vanish from the mandap for greater effect). The Chaudhary is devastated as his izzat is at stake. He decides to follow the tradition, find his daughter and her lover and kill them. To find them, he rounds up the guy’s friends because they should know where the couple has gone. While the two friends are easily picked up and half beaten to death and imprisoned, the third one, Tiger, is not as easy to handle. He bashes up all of Prakash’s goons until he is taken by surprise.

    Producer: Sajid Nadiadwala.

    Director: Sabbir Khan.

    Cast: Tiger Shroff, Kriti Sanon, Prakash Raj, Vikram Singh.

    Tiger too is locked up in a barn with his other friends and they try to escape on the first opportunity. However, Tiger wastes the chance when he spots the girl he had fallen in love at first sight back in Delhi. He decides to stay back, track the girl and win her over. As happens in film stories, the girl he loves is the Chaudhary’s other daughter. Chaudhary, who is overly possessive about his daughters and can’t bear to think that his daughters can love somebody else more than they love him.

    As Tiger displays his prowess with action and dancing while chasing his love, the second half of the film succeeds in generating more interest than the earlier part which dragged a lot. In fact, with no known face except Prakash Raj, the film is all about Tiger’s abilities.

    The fact is, Heropanti, like its title, is forced (the real Mumbai slang is Herogiri). While the background of the film is about north Jats, it is made to look like a typical southern film. The direction is shoddy with chalta hai attitude. The dialogue is good in parts. Action is very well shot. The film has two good numbers with well choreographed dance moves. Performance wise, Tiger excels in action and dance but needs to improve in dialogue delivery. Kriti Sanon is a mismatch with Tiger; she looks much more mature and manly. Prakash Raj is his usual self. Rest of the goons are okay.

    Heropanti has opened to over 50 per cent houses which are very good for a new face film and considering its budget. The film should jump to plus side on its first weekend of business thanks to curiosity to watch Tiger.