We recommend: The best new movies and TV series
Heeramandi: This one’s for all the Sanjay Leela Bhansali fans! His first ever web series is finally here. It is a historical fiction set in the Heera Mandi neighbourhood of Lahore during the Partition struggle and follows the lives of tawaifs or courtesans. Their establishment is in a tug between the demands of the British Raj and independence movement. The magnum opus stars a drop-dead gorgeous ensemble—consisting of Manisha Koirala, Sonakshi Sinha, Aditi Rao Hydari, Richa Chadha Sanjeeda and Sheikh Sharmin Segal.
Reviews are mixed. The Hindu says the series is “stunning to behold” but “Bhansali and his writers tend to go emotionally overboard, drawing well-meaning yet awkward parallels between the characters and India under British rule.” Mint is of the view that “it’s Koirala who holds the show together.” But it concludes: “There’s nothing transporting about Bhansali’s visions anymore. They could not be more full; they could not be emptier.” Our take: We have been waiting for all the glitz and glamour—delivered in the signature Bhansali style. The eight-part series dropped on Netflix on Wednesday.
The Fall Guy: Kenergy is back and how! In this action comedy, Ryan Gosling plays a stunt guy named Col trying to impress his director Jody—played by Emily Blunt. But the absurd world of Hollywood stunts has some real-life action awaiting Colt when he is sent out to find the lead actor, Tom Ryder (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) who has run into ‘bad company’. FYI: The film is helmed by a former stuntman himself—Director David Leitch and inspired by the 1980s series called TV show of the same name as the movie.
Reviews are good! New Yorker writes that the movie “displays a palpable joy in craft, revelling in the deftness of its comedy, the inventiveness of its stunts, and a generous sprinkling of Easter eggs.” The Guardian calls it a “solid serving of popcorn entertainment.” Our take: We expect a lot of cars rolling about—that will certainly put Rohit Shetty to shame. The movie was released in theatres worldwide yesterday.
The Idea of You: This rom-com is an adaptation of a book of the same name which centres around the love story between a 40-year-old single mom and art gallery owner Solène (Anne Hathaway)—and 24-year-old lead singer of a ban— Hayes Campbell (played by Nicholas Galitzine of ‘Red, White & Royal Blue’ fame). It is a steamy case of a reverse age gap romance.
Reviews are in praise of Anne Hathaway. Variety deems it so: “[S]he owns it: independent, desirable and never, ever desperate.” Empire gives a pointed review: “Deceptively courageous and perceptive on parasocial celebrity culture”. Our take: Is there anything that Anne Hathaway cannot do? We’re definitely tuning in for this one. The movie dropped on Prime Video on Thursday.
Fiasco: A French mockumentary series—this one packs a punch with realistic characters, a doomed film set and that nuanced sense of humour we’ve come to expect from the country’s filmography. The hilarious show follows a young director off to shoot his big-ticket debut with generous funds and a star cast with the protagonist fighting fires and roadblocks at every step.
Reviewers are divided on this French comedy. Financial Times says the series co-creator (with Igor Gotesman) as well as the star “leads an excellent ensemble that delivers consistent laughs through sharp dialogue, puerile slapstick, throwaway one-liners and long-gestating punchlines.” OTOH Decider verdicts “skip it” as it has “a couple of funny moments” and mostly left them “stone-faced”. Our take: It’s been a while since we’ve seen a mockumentary done well and especially from Europe, so we’ll be bingeing this over the weekend. The series is out on Netflix.
The Veil: A new international spy thriller to suck our teeth into! This one has Elisabeth Moss as the lead—best known as ‘Peggy Olson’ from the hit series ‘Mad Men’ and as Offred from ‘Handmaid’s Tale’. The series follows two women—a secret keeper and an agent who needs to uncover the said secret before thousands of lives are lost—as they travel from a Syrian refugee camp to Paris and London. Also complicating matters: the CIA (as always lol).
Reviews are decent. NPR is of the view that this is Moss’ “best role yet” and likes that “both characters are delightfully unpredictable.” Variety says that the show is “flawlessly paced and thoughtfully executed.” Our take: Sometimes spy thrillers are the most predictable of shows—which makes them the easiest watch. Two episodes out of six are streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.
Fresh off the big screen…
Manjummel Boys: This Malayalam movie has created a buzz like no other. Partly constructed from real life events, the story alternates between two timelines—one exploring a boy's trip gone bad as one of the ten accidentally falls into a pit inside Guna Cave of Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu, and the other is a game of hide and seek between children. Both timelines go parallelly to create the thriller. You can enjoy the movie on Disney+ Hotstar.
Shaitaan: Those who couldn’t catch this horror film in theatres, fret not. The Shaitaan has come to your doorstep. The movie is a remake of a Gujarati film titled ‘Vash’. The thriller is set in a farmhouse where Ajay Devgn and Jyotika spend a holiday with their two kids. All is good until a stranger played by R Madhavan comes into their house and hypnotises their daughter Janvi (Janaki Bodiwala). He turns out to be an occultist and makes her commit heinous acts. The movie is now streaming on Netflix.
