achyutaghosh

War is battle of economic might of countries. With that in mind, and without a functional navy among other things, Germany was always going to lose World War 2. Supplies from America kept Britain alive in the war. But there was a phase when the German navy terrorized Allied supplies through it's U-boats. Operating in packs, and attacking convoys at night in areas that were beyond the reach of air protection, German U-boats sank more than 6000 ships during WW2. When the U-boat strategy worked for a couple of years, Germany punched above their weight.

It is 1942, and Greyhound is the story of one such convoy to Liverpool- 37 ships, escorted by 5 destroyers. Ernest Krause, played by a typically composed Tom Hanks, is in command of the lead destroyer USS Keeling. But even without trying, Hanks exhibits more charisma than what is required. He has after-all played Captain Miller, Jim Lovell, Robert Langdon, James Donovan, and Sully.

The German submarines, led by one with the insignia Gray Wolf, begin their attacks 3 days when the convoys are 3 days away from air cover. The rest of the story is about surviving those 72 hours. Clocking in under 90 minutes, it is a taut, action packed thriller that eschews character building for an immersive, fast paced cat and mouse game of ships vs submarines. And immersive it is- watching the ships make evasive maneuvers, torpedoes careening all round, guns blazing, depth-charges exploding, friendly-fire at it's absolute worst, and a beautiful shot of the Aurora Borealis above the clouds during a night-time battle.

Greyhound is based upon C.S. Forester's 1955 novel- The Good Shepherd. Given the source material, the enemy is suitably faceless. Always unseen, always hunting, they are ferocious and smart. And while they are at it, they taunt well too.

"Gray Wolf is so very hungry. Your women will learn of your dying, and weep into the long night, before they turn to the arms of their lovers"

In Greyhound, Tom Hanks also earns his first solo screenplay credit in a 40 year career. It is interesting to see how actors write themselves parts, and being the lead in this one, Hanks does not spare himself the economical treatment. We hardly get to know him beyond perfunctory details like he is religious, he is green, and has a girl waiting for him back home. The other characters fare worse. The script is mostly a long list of rapid-fire orders that make sense only when contextualized with the vivid open ocean combat scenes. In feel, Greyhound is probably closest to Dunkirk, where Nolan showed how personality-less war movies could be made great.

In the end, the beauty of Greyhound lies in its simplicity and efficiency. It is a pity COVID did not allow it a big-screen release, where it should have rightly viewed. But for the audience, given the circumstances, better now than late. Now playing at Apple TV+

In Extraction, Chris Hemsworth does not have Mjolnir by his side. He still manages to ratchet up a triple digit bodycount to save a drug lord's son. How ungodly of him.

The plot is as simple as it gets- India's biggest drug lord's son gets kidnapped for ransom by Bangladesh's biggest drug lord, and the former enlists Hemsworth's group of mercenaries for the rescue. Of course, the obstacles start piling up, and Thor summons up all the thunder he can to save the innocent.

Neflix may have thought a movie set in Bangladesh offers novelty, but their treatment is so formulaic, that you replace Bangladesh with any other 3rd world country setting, the movie would virtually remain the same. The 10 year old child soldiers, machete waving teenagers, corrupt police forces and simply high gangsters could fit in anything set in Mexico, Africa or Burma. There is absolutely no attempt to develop the precious few characters in the movie, including the leads.

Seems Chris Hemsworth is saving his laughs for Marvel only. Here he plays Tyler Rake- a mercenary with a heart of gold and lot of bullets- you know the kind of characters Arnold used to play back in the 80s. Regular Netflix stalwarts Pankaj Tripathi, Neha Mahajan and David Harbour play side characters, but the one man that really makes every scene count is a buffed up Randeep Hooda. He stands toe to toe against Hemsworth in the action sequences, and gets a poignant send-off too. Rest of the cast are caricatures of the highest order.

Irrespective of the genericity of the plot, Extraction is probably one of Netflix's most well-choreographed action movie. and why not- given that director Sam Hargreaves has been the stunts director in a host of Marvel movies. Mind you, this is no Chad Stahelski, or Gareth Edwards stuff. Hargreaves trades off Chad's style, and Gareth's art for effective brute. It is a cocktail of everything you see in action movies- manic car chases, exploding helicopters, sniper fire, close quarter gunfights, and car crashes, and from a first time film-maker, really impressive at that.

Am sure he will only get better- and learn to nuance his characters a bit more, and make his movies a bit less predictable.

But the two things that make up my price of my time cost of viewing are the epic Thor vs Hellboy fight (can you do that, Marvel?) and making Hemsworth speak Bengali 😊

Indian don vs Bangladeshi don really? Whom did you think will win?

Extraction- playing on your phone.

No wonder 1917 is getting awards by the truckloads- it is a fine war movie. Not only because it makes you abhor war, like every good war movie does. Also because it is without being overtly gritty, a very realistic portrayal of those lowest in the pecking order- the infantry-man. And also for the fact that technically- it is a marvel.

It is also a very different kind of war movie. Thank god to the title, it did not need a prologue, or any character build up. We straightaway jump into the odd mix of silence and mayhem that trench warfare was in the First World War. We learn that the Germans have made a strategic withdrawal and are waiting to pounce on unsuspecting British forces chasing them, with the obvious mcguffin being telegram wires cut. The task of stopping the pursuing British forces from attacking the artillery reinforced Germans falls upon two Lance Corporals- Blake and Schofield, and they literally have to go through hell to succeed. Shades of another war epic from Spielberg I say, along with some inspiration from Tolkien of course.

"They're walking into a trap. Your orders are to deliver a message calling off tomorrow morning's attack. If you fail, it will be a massacre"

The plot is based on a true story told by director Sam Mendes' grandfather. And Mendes goes all in to make 1917 an experience like no other. For people unfamiliar with WW1, a large part of the war was fought through two opposing trenches- the land between them known as No Man's land. Last time we saw No Man's land in a big budget mainstream release, it was Wonder Woman's launch pad. Grim, but still comicky. In 1917, the opening tracking shot has to be admired not only for the authenticity of the sets, but also the way Mendes is able to show change in attitude and morale of the soldiers as we get closer to the trench frontline. No man's land is hell itself though- dead horses with files buzzing around, dead soldiers hung up on fences or caked in the mud, craters that much rather be euphemistically called death pits, prowling aircraft waiting to machine gun stragglers, and the rats that are constantly feasting on still festering bodies- there is death everywhere even if the enemy has long left.

"You are in no man's land. Which never moves, which never changes, which never grows older, but remains forever, icy and silent."

Blake and Schofield somehow make it through initially because they have each other. The loss of Blake at midpoint in addition to what he has already experienced strengthens Schofield's resolve further as he is on a race against time. And all throughout there are scenes that pay homage to past war classics- the encounter with a German sniper is reminiscent of Enemy at The Gates, the touching moment with the baby calls out to Ayer's 2014 tank classic -Fury, while the knife battle in the shadows again doffs its hat to Saving Private Ryan. It is to Mendes' credit that he makes Schofield's Frodo like journey believable till the end, even as he put his life one final time by sprinting through the battlefield to prevent the homicide.

The two main leads do not have come with loads of experience, but they do an excellent job. Pity that the script did not allow for a Game of Thrones reunion. In fact this is perhaps the only film in 2019 where everything comes together in a perfect symphony- music, cinematography, realistic sets, CGI, acting and the script.

The list of Oscar nominations for 1917 is a testament- Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Original Score, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, Best Cinematography, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, and Best Visual Effects. The best part is that unlike Joker, this is no award baiting movie. This just has a honest story to tell, and Mendes tells that with honesty and style, and that is why it is my pick for all the awards it has got nominated for.

This is a mesmerizing movie. Technically brilliant, and shot in a way that kind of immerses the viewer the way Dunkirk never could. Sorry Nolan.

Here is a bet- watch the movie, and if you are not running in your mind as Schofield makes his final dash, I will pay for your ticket.

A few weeks ago, in a media interview, Saif Ali Khan candidly said that today in Bollywood, whenever there is a negative Muslim protagonist/country, it sells. Look at Padmavaat, Kesari, War or even Uri. Given the spate of nationalism these days, it is kind of surprising that it took Bollywood so long to stumble upon Tanhaji- the original Indian commando, if there ever was one.

The history- we all know. Tanhaji Mulsare was the right hand of Shivaji. And he scaled the 750 mt high Kondhana fort walls, with a bit of help from some monitor lizards, to ambush the Mughal occupiers, and recapture the fort for his king. The movie sticks to the basic story with minor creative changes- so out went the lizards, and in came some backstory about the titular character, his motivations, and a worthy villain. Oh, let us also not forget that nod to Alistair McLean's epic Guns of Navarone.

So righteous is Tanhaji's character that you cannot point a figure at him and die of shame.

He is courageous but not ambitious. He is smart but not sly. He leads from the front, but does not crave to rule. He complains up, motivates down. He lives by sacrifice, but is a symbol of hope. He gives speeches, but keeps it short.

I could go on, but you do get my point- this was meant to be Ajay's show given the righteousness of the character and his part experience in essaying such roles (Bhagat Singh, LOC: Kargil), so it is a wonder when you see Saif Ali Khan stealing the show as the unhinged Udaybhan Rathod. Directors more often than not straight-jacket Saif into conventional characters, but give him black to play with and he effortlessly converts it into grey with not more than a glint in the eye and his trademark humor. Remember Omkara? Or Ek Hasina Thi?

While director Om Raut does not deviate much from the standard patriotic and brave war hero template that the Chinese movie industry churns out by the score. Tanhaji's hair-raising introduction flying down a ravine will not look out of place in a Zhang Yimou wuxia, and the spear fighting sequences seem to have been edited out of a Frank Millar 300 comic panel.

The year is still young, but easy to say though the visual effects are a bit iffy, the action sequences are among the very best you will see in a Bollywood production. The thumping soundtrack and even pacing further makes it an enjoyable watch, however predictable it is.

To sum up, Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior is a good movie. It is about a story that should be told, and it has been told the right way- with passion and intent.

War as defined by Merriam Webster= a state of usually open and declared armed hostile conflict between states or nations

War as defined by Yashraj Films= a state of open and declared armed hostile conflict between two action superstars of Bollywood, who may or may not be secretly attracted to each other.

While Yashraj may bill it as a clash of titans that serves as a filler till Dhoom 4 comes on, there is no denying that War is perhaps the most technically competent action movie that has come out of India. It has fight and stunt choreography that will not look out of place in a Hollywood B-grade flick. In Hritik and Tiger, it has two naturally gifted action stars who have no qualms in pushing themselves to their limits, and it also has that live for my country only patriotic streak that we see in Chinese nationalist action movies that mostly star Wu Jing.

But let us talk about the elephant in the room first. No it is not bromance. War is an action version of Brokeback Mountain. The movie takes pride in letting Tiger Shroff ogle at Hritik most of the time as he goes about doing his Greek god stuff. Being awestruck is one thing, but in War the constant stares and heaving bodies deserve police complaints.

Next up, War is a total rip-off. Considering how far behind Bollywood is from Hollywood when it comes to action, technical editing and visual effects, is a Hollywood copy, albeit a good one, a sign of progress? I would think yes. In fact the ripping off starts even before the movie begins- the opening credits soundtrack is a lift from Ramin Djawadi's iconic Pacific Rim theme. After that, it pretty much doffs its cap to James Bond and the much criticized (but among my favorites) Pierce Brosnan starrer Die Another Day. Without giving spoilers away, let us just say that action lovers will come back satisfied with the testosterone fueled ride, while intelligence seekers will have to wait for the time when Ayushman Khurana his hand on this genre.

While War has an interesting support cast, none of them really matter. Vaani Kapoor as the love interest cum civilian asset has 4 scenes and a song. Soni Razdan as the worrying mother has 3 scenes and no songs. Ashutosh Rana as a paunchy Colonel and Anupriya Goenka as an intelligence analyst is as stereotyped as they get.

Siddharth Anand pretty much continues from from where he left off in Bang Bang! with style and show taking center stage. International locales, top notch action, magnetic leads reasonable plot twists and an epic bike chase will keep the average viewer engrossed.

Why has there been a spate of spy themed sagas on TV and film recently? While some have been over the top (Bard of Blood, War, Ek Tha Tiger) and other have been around the earthly undercover agent (The Family Man, Raazi, Baby). Can we pin it on the rise of Modi and Indian nationalism?

Either ways there seems to be something for everyone today. More power to consumers then 😊

What started off 18 years ago with Vin Diesel and Paul Walker starring in an illegal street racing and car hijacking movie has grown over the years. The Fast and Furious cast has become bigger and bigger- Dwayne Johnson, Tyrese Gibson, Gal Gadot, Michelle Rodriguez, Ludacris, Sung Kang, and Jason Statham all joining in at various points. The plots have become more and more ludicrous and the action has gone global too. All these guys would not even fit in the same frame, and the producers wanted to prepare for life after Fast & Furious too, so at some point a spin-off was necessary. Ergo- Hobbs and Shaw, which tries to build on the budding bromance between hulking federal agent played by Dwayne Johnson and the smooth mercenary played by Jason Statham. Was it fun- yes it was!

It is a Fast and Furious presentation after all, so as far as the plot is concerned, all that really matters are the 3 F's - family, fast cars/bikes and of course, fate of the world. But to start with, a lot of time is devoted to setting up the characters, who actually are not too different as far as end outcomes are concerned.

Luke Hobbs: "I'm what you call an ice-cold can of whoop-ass"

Deckard Shaw: "I'm what you might call a champagne popper"

There is a virus than can destroy half the world population. There is a secret terrorist organization Eteon which is hellbent on acquiring the virus. Shaw's sister Hattie, an MI6 agent injects the virus into her and escapes Eteon's agents. Hobbs and Shaw get together to save Hattie and the world, with a little help from all the Samoans Hollywood could put together.

Director David Leitch is a former stuntman who has impressed in John Wick and Atomic Blonde, and with the firepower at his disposal he needed a worthy villain. Idris Alba gives us one.

Luke Hobbs: "He really is Black Superman"

Probably not Superman, but as cyber-genetic enhanced Brixton Lore, Elba is definitely close to Captain America. And he relishes the role- strutting around and beating the living daylights out of the dynamic duo.

Hobbs and Shaw scores zero in originality- plot points are lifted from every action movie in the last decade- there is a Dark Knight inspired high rise building entry, there is a Winter Soldier inspired helicopter pull scene, there is a MI Fallout like bike chase sequence, a corridor fight like Old Boy, Russian factory scene from any Bond movie, with a script full of high school insults like in Mean Girls, and as far as saving the world is concerned, it is 4th time already for Johnson within the Fast and Furious franchise itself.

Speaking of whom, this may be Hobbs and Shaw, but it is an out and out Hobbs movie where Johnson gets the widest canvas ever- action, emotion, even a bit of romance. Statham is serviceable, but his accent is a pain, and he simply cannot better his comedic turn in Spy. Vanessa Kirby as Hattie though is a scene stealer, as is the tug of war between the Hobbs family cars and that errant helicopter. The end credits tease the future directions for this spin-off series, and the cameos itself point to the exciting probable expanded star cast.

Zero brain. Zero depth. Caricatures all the way. Ridiculous proportions. Mindless fun. Laugh your sides off. Popcorn all the way.

"Nostalgia is a file that removes the rough edges from the good old days"- Doug Larson

Finding joy in nostalgia when it comes to movies is rather easy. The sense of growing up with characters, and having them influence the person that you may have become is such a strong sentiment. These memories cannot be taken away, and that is true for the Lion King remake.

The 2019 Lion King version is impressive- the painstaking efforts that have gone into making the visual effects come alive are to be experienced. In 2019, going gaga over visuals effects is pretty much passe, but still The Lion King is downright astounding. The thing is that beyond the visuals, there is little else that it adds to the original, which in my humble opinion, was a seminal movie. The script, music, the voice acting, the traditional animation remains unparalleled till date.

Replace traditional animation with modern live motion capture, and the 2019 version is a shot for shot remake of the 1994 original. All the animals assemble as Simba is born, and as he grows up with his best friend Nala, Mufasa explains to him the circle of life. Scar plots with the hyenas to kill Mufasa, and Simba is chased out of the Pride Lands. He meets Pumba and Timon and grows up with them leading a hakuna matata life, till Nala comes to get him back to his rightful place as king. Scar gets his comeuppance and Simba completes the circle of life when his newborn cub is presented to the assembled animals.

Had it been a National Geographic special, there would have been no equal- please take that as a compliment, Lion King. However, even with a stellar voice cast with James Earl Jones reprising Mufasa 25 years on along with Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, Beyonce, John Oliver and Chiwetel Ejiofor, Elton John's all-time classic songs, the movie lacks the emotional impact that the original was able to create. Call it corporate greed, lack of creativity and artistry or just plain laziness- nostalgia notwithstanding, it brings nothing new to the table. Director Jon Favreau did a much better job with 2016's The Jungle Book, which, in my mind is one of the best live action remakes ever.

But hey, whatever Disney touches these days turns to gold. The Lion King will might make a few billion for sure, and kids will surely enjoy this round too, but Simba's roar is decidedly low this time round.

Let's face it- every follow-up to Endgame was going to be a let down. Spiderman Far From Home though is the gentlest touchdown one could have, kudos to Marvel for that. More teen romance than superhero caper, Far From Home presents an extremely likeable friendly neighborhood Spiderman tale.

It starts on an expected note. The world including Peter Parker has not yet recovered from the death of Ironman, and he plans to confess about his feelings to MJ on a field trip to Europe. Meanwhile ancient primal forces called Elementals ( wind, fire, earth and water) are appearing in random places on earth causing destruction. None of the Avengers seem to be around to tackle this threat, so Nick Fury recruits Peter who is in the midst of wooing the snarky MJ. Meanwhile a costumed hero called Mysterio with magical powers from an alternate dimension appears to help fight the Elementals.

"I think Nick Fury just hijacked our summer vacation"- Spiderman

Who says work and fun can't go together? Peter says so. After all he is not alone in vying for MJ's affections. There is Brad, who irritates Peter so much that he summons a drone strike against him. And Peter is weighed by Tony Stark's decision of passing on the mantle to him. Yes, he gets access to Stark's latest weapons program- EDITH (Even Dead I am The Hero), named so with utmost humility by Tony Stark himself.

"They will believe anything."- Mysterio

In this age of fake news and propaganda, nothing is what it seems. Mysterio emerges as master manipulator, playing on current themes of distrust and make belief. He aims to wiping out truth, and most people will find it more scary than Thanos trying to wipe out half the universe. With his Roman armor and cloak output, and goldfish bowl helmet, Jake Gyllenhaal gets negative points, but as far as his act is concerned- he is at the top of his game. He is great when he is required to be over the top, or emotionally invested, as and when the role demands. Tom Holland is probably the best Spiderman ever- playing angsty teen and savvy superhero with elan. His chemistry with Zendaya's MJ and Jacob Batalon's Ned is just right. Marisa Tomei and Jon Favreau as Aunt May and Happy Hogan make an endearing pair, as do JB Smoove and Martin Starr as the school trip chaperones.

The best thing returning director Jon Watts does is to infuse humor in every scene in Far From Home. He also keeps the pace snappy, and does not let the aftermath of Endgame (imagine 4 billion people suddenly back) bog down the narrative. The action scenes involving the Elementals are intentionally cheesy, while those involving Spidey are arguably the very best MCU has served up. The villain itself is both ingenious and creative, and the roadtrip is full of laughs.

Trivia- the Elementals are modeled upon classic Spidey villains- Hydro Man, Molten Man, Sandman and Cyclone.

At the end though, Peter Parker does find his spider tingle, his heart, and his place in the world, and like his mentor, when he is on the clock, he does save the world. The end credits point to exciting future directions the MCU could go to. No Iron Man, Captain America, Black Widow or Vision around anymore, but all seems to be well with the MCU.

Dark Phoenix is yet another botched take on an iconic storyline. The X-Men reboot that started off strongly in 2011 with X-Men First Class and Days of Future Past, lost its way by the end of X-Men Apocalypse. Given the Disney takeover of Fox, it was just a matter of time for Marvel to give the X Men their own spin, so Dark Phoenix should ideally have gone out with a bang, a final send-off to a high potential star cast. That is not the case, and Dark Phoenix is as flat as it gets, perhaps even flatter than when the story was last imagined on screen- The Last Stand.

The X-Men movies have always been ultra predictable. There usually is an instigator (such as Magneto, Apocalypse, Stryker) whose actions make the X-Men go out of control so that they get an opportunity to smash stuff, till sanity prevails in the climax. Dark Phoenix is no different.

"You're special, Jean. And if you stop fighting that force inside you, if you embrace it, you will possess the very power of a god."

Things start off well enough. It is 1975, and young Jean Grey has enough problems controlling her powers, leading to the death of her parents. After being adopted by Professor Charles Xavier, the scene cuts to 1992, where there is an uneasy peace between mutants and humans. Xavier and the POTUS even have a hotline. When the X-Men go to a seemingly routine mission to resume some astronauts, what seems like a solar flare makes Jean Grey the host, shattering the controls placed by Charles and threatening to destroy both her friends and family, and the precarious peace that exists between humans and mutants.

"It's funny. I can't actually remember the last time you were the one risking something. And by the way, the women are always saving the men around here. You might want to think about changing the name to X-Women"

It is 2019 and what director Simon Kinberg gets right are the visual effects, the pace of the movie, and a team of strong female characters. The action is probably the best we have seen in an X-Men movie. Everything else is as flat as a pancake. The actors look like they have had enough, there is absolutely no emotional impact even in the much publicized death scene, and the biggest disservice is that the stakes are just not built high enough. The Phoenix Saga is to X-Men lore what Infinity Wars was to The Avengers, but there is a massive difference in the how Marvel addressed their crown jewel versus Fox's approach.

"I've seen evil... and I'm looking at it now."

Maybe Magneto meant this line not only for Dark Phoenix, but also for the Fox executives too. As for the fans, the X-Men series probably ended with 2017's Logan.

Once upon a time, an almost washed out star Keanu Reeves, and a stunt director Chad Stahelski met and agreed that Hollywood needs to get one up on Oriental cinema with for usurping the action category crown martial arts extravaganzas such as The Raid, The Raid 2, Ong Bak, The Man from Nowhere, Ip-Man and Tom-Yum-Goong.

Minimum plot, maximum action- they decided, and out came John Wick in 2014. The movie practically invented a new action genre- gun fu. With 91 onscreen kills, and $88 million at the box office, there was no looking back. John Wick 2 released in 2017- had 119 confirmed onscreen kills and made $170 million at the box office. The numbers do not look like much, but consider the R-ratings, low budgets and critical acclaim, it is only natural that John Wick is here to entertain us again, with a kill count in the range of 170.

"Si vis pacem, para bellum" - translates to if you want peace, prepare for war.

Parabellum starts right where John Wick 2 ended. Wick is on the run in New York after being excommunicated by the High Table, and a bounty of $14 million is placed on his head. Cue to start of kill count. If John Wick 2 showed what he could do with a pencil, Parabellum shows what John can do with a book. He follows that up with a knife fight that sets up the action theme for the movie. Blades, lots of them all around, even though John prefers guns, lots of guns. Wick has very few options and friends left, who in turn incur the wrath of the High Table too. the action quickly shifts to scenic Casablanca, where he elicits the help of fellow assassin Sofia. The two good things about Sofia are her two Malinois, and that she is played by Halle Berry, who makes finally makes us forget her action turn in Catwoman with a scene stealing act. Stahelski also goes one step further and invents- you got it, dog fu. They go for your "soft spots". Watch it to believe it.

Like it's predecessors, the plot can be summed up in one line- John Wick kills everybody.

However, as the series got bigger with every installment, Stahelski and Reeves continue to introduce new characters, and expand the Wicki-verse. In that process we also get to know John better and better. In John Wick 2, we got to know John knows sign language and Italian. In this one, we get to know he is originally Russian (Jovonovich= John Wick), he can speak Indonesian, and he knows there exists a higher power than the High Table. Staying true to the what the fans want, John duly dispatches every assassin who comes up against him in inventive style- guns and knives are passe, this time we have horse mule kicks, samurai swords, wacky motorbike chases, and that book! John Wick is so awesome that even his enemies go all giggly and blabbermouth in front of him.

Zero: "I've been a huge fan forever, and so far you haven't disappointed"

Keanu may not be a natural action star but he goes about his duties with an unmatched earnestness. Stahelski proves yet again that he is a master at framing visceral action shots. He is also great at casting- Mark Dacascos makes a welcome comeback as Zero, the sushi-chef assassin, while the Indonesian silat experts Yayan Ruhian and Cecep Arif Rahman do justice to the best fight sequence in the film.

The scale might be getting bigger than it should, the ending appeared forced, and the new characters not interesting enough anymore. But there is no denying that John Wick 3 is a martial arts masterpiece, and that Keanu Reeves has miles to go when it comes to the onscreen kill count scale. Jimmy Wang Yu is currently sitting pretty at 2477.

So I say, keep going at it, Keanu.

Ah Hellboy! What did you do?

We waited 11 years for you. We still thought that even though there will be no Perlman or Del Toro for the third movie, the Hellboy reboot could turn out interesting given the David Harbour and Neil Marshall team up, and the wealth of stories to be told from the Dark Horse comic books. Well, the interesting bits in 2019's Hellboy are not for all, and the Perlman and del Toro shoes are too big for Harbour and Marshall.

Funnily it starts off ludicrous enough as a sword and sorcery tale in the Dark Ages. King Arthur's magical sword Excalibur is probably the most popular sword in the world- Michael Bay filched it for Transformers Last Knight and here it is again, putting evil (in the form of a sorceress Blood Queen Nimue) to rest. All that poor Nimue wants, like most evil characters, is to rid the world of humans and then rule, but she is cut to pieces and hidden all around England.

Cue to present day, where Hellboy hunts a missing agent who has been turned into a vampire. Hellboy handily stakes him, but something is causing the age of monsters upon us it seems, and it is not the titular horned destroyer of worlds. Seems a Gruagach's revenge on Hellboy is to be achieved by bringing Nimue back to life. Baba Yaga- Hellboy's nemesis features and Hellboy ups his investigation and this leads to the best action set-piece in the movie- an ultra violent fight with 3 giants. However it ends fast, and the film does not have any sequence that touches the highs as this one does.

Hellboy quickly moves to make his own team (Alice- the good witch, and Ben- the were-jaguar), and a showdown between Nimue and Hellboy is imminent when she attacks London with a plague. Hellboy has to attain his true demonic state to rid the world of Nimue. This climactic battle is what the movie builds towards, but surprisingly it never happens. Expectations go crash, boom and bang- to quote Roxette.

Baba Yaga: They will build statues of you from the bones of your enemies! Hellboy: Gonna need a XXXX-ton of bones.

Hellboy 2019 tries to pander exclusively to fans. It embraces it's R rating, and there is no holding back on the gore, the dismemberments, the endless spurts of blood, and chopped off heads, and the spilled out guts. It sure is not for the faint hearted- that we have to agree. And David Harbour does deliver on Hellboy's profanity infused sardonic wit. For most fans, these two factors are good enough. The violence may not be everything for all, especially it is a launch sandwiched between family friendly flicks such as Captain Marvel, Shazam and upcoming Avengers Endgame. The support characters are not as nuanced as del Toro's version, and the CGI is spotty at best.

Like Shazam, Hellboy is a movie that has stayed close to it's source. However, Hellboy's source is a niche audience. If you are that audience, the movie is a blast (sans the anti-climatic climax). If you are not that audience, then stay away. 7/10

DC is on a roll finally. It was on a roll under Nolan a decade back, and then lost it's way as the audience embraced Marvel's light hearted fare over DC deep dark ones. But this time the roll is different. Both Shazam and Aquaman are as far off from Nolan's creations as you could imagine, yet they prove that the formula for success can be different for DC.

How to make comic book stories fun? Simple, just like what Harry Potter did- add a bit of magic to it. Magic is front and square in Shazam, as it starts with the origin of the supervillain Thaddeus Sivana. Belittled all his life by his father and brother, called onto the Rock of Eternity and then again rejected by a Hagrid looking ancient sorcerer (Djimon Honsou), Sivana devotes his life to getting back there to control the Seven Deadly Sins trapped by the sorcerer. What does he want to do with the deadly sins gargoyles is not quite clear but then who cares.

Finding the right family is a common theme between the hero and villain in Shazam. Billy Batson (played with utmost seriousness by Asher Angel) is an orphan abandoned by his mother. That is unlucky. He finds a foster home with awesome parents and kids (including breakout star Jack Dylan Grazer as the fast talking, comic book fan Freddy). That is super lucky. Yet Billy does not feel at home, he continues to yearn for his real life mother. Whisked away by the sorcerer and being made his champion by uttering the magic word SHAZAM, he is immediately transformed into a costumed (of course) superhero with the wisdom of Solomon, strength of Hercules, stamina of Atlas, power of Zeus, courage of Achilles and the speed of Mercury. This is a buffed up, white caped, lightning fingered and utterly confused Zachary Levi.

Freaky Friday revisited, and Superman, beware, there is a new kid (pun intended) in town.

Freddy Freeman: What're your superpowers? Shazam: Superpowers? Dude, I don't even know how to pee in this thing!

Much of the movie's hilarious mid section is devoted to discovering Shazam's powers, and to find a right name. Captain Sparklefingers, Red Cyclone, Thundercrack, Power Boy, Zaptain America, Sir Zaps a Lot, Human Powerstorm, Mr. Philadelphia are some of the contenders proposed by Freddie. Many dumb youtube videos and cashing in on power schemes later, Shazam comes face to face with Sivana, and then things become standard superhero movie fare- biff, boom, bang with cheesy CGI. And even then the climax does not fail to spring a surprise.

Avengers, beware, there is a new superhero tag team in town.

Director David F Sandberg had a tight budget and a fantasy context to sell, and he does that very well, zipping through the fantastical elements and focusing more on the building lovable characters and a humour script, along with interspacing DC references throughout to keep the nerds happy. The only two things he could have done better was building up Sivana's intent (given there was no Black Adam to fight Shazam) and bringing some tonal parity in the two characters of Billy and Shazam- Billy being Nolanesque serious and Shazam being over the top delirious.

Rest of it is all good and great family fare. Proof- my four year old daughter sat though the movie. This has not happened for any other movie in the recent past, so there is that. Enjoy and do stay back for the mid credit scene.

Simmba's plot can be summed up in one line. It is the story of Sangram Bhalerao- a corrupt cop who transforms into a good cop once his loved ones are wronged. If the first half of the movie establishes Ranveer Singh's Simmba as gleefully amoral, the second half suddenly does the switch over to "Singham" mode. More on that later but as a viewer you tend to ask questions like why the sudden switch? Why has it not happened before? Didn't Simmba find a cause earlier? And also, can a cop be judge, jury and executioner all in one overnight?

But then Simmba is a Rohit Shetty production which means it is out and out a masala movie, you leave your thinking out of the hall, and try to get entertained in his over the top way. Simmba is as formulaic as ever- bright colors, forced emotions, shoddy sets, literally "slap-stick scenes", caricatured female characters, and illogical slow motion action is there as expected. Rohit Shetty's first attempt in his career at any form of character development is as simple as an on-off switch, and do spare a thought for Sara Ali Khan's thankless lead actress role which is no more than a cameo. However the script is funny in the first half and addresses an issue of national disgrace in the second half relatively well. Ranveer's high energy, Sonu Sood's menacing turn and Ashutosh Rana's emotiveness further elevates Simmba to a few notches above an average Rohit Shetty flick.

Simmba further cements Rohit Shetty's position as the premier masala movie maker in Bollywood and he is on to something here. He is trying to build a money spinning Fast and Furious type franchise out of Bollywood. His formula is about economizing on what his audience does not want, and maximizing what they want. So in come moderately differentiated action stars, rollicking action sequences, music remakes, exotically pictured songs for marketing promos, and let the concoction roll. Simmba is a spin off from Shetty's Singham and features Ajay Devgn in the titular role as well. As the last scene indicates, another spin off is on the cards- Veer Sooryavanshi, which will star Akshay Kumar. India's Hobbs and Shaw will be here before Hollywood's Hobbs and Shaw I think, and I am really excited to see whether Shetty has it in him to make something more unforgettable that his usual fare.

Simmba is fun while it lasts. 6/10

Aquaman is a blast!

DC got everything right for a change, and in doing so James Wan conjures (pun intended) a level of entertainment that bests their greatest in this decade- Wonder Woman. The humor, action, acting, editing, all are spot on for a change, and Jason Momoa as Aquaman is as inspired a choice as Gal Gadot was.

This connected universe thing is not DC's cup of tea. They never established the characters well enough to connect them like Marvel did, and each movie was tonally different. DC's 2018 shift towards independent, disconnected universe way is far better than them copying the Marvel way. Aquaman though, introduced in fine style in 2017's Justice League is a remnant of their connected strategy. Momoa isn't the only guy bringing the house down though, the key guy here is James Wan. Wan has injected a sense of fun that helps entertain a wider audience, which DC so far lacked. Not that he has given up on his horror roots- some of the sea creatures and inspiring visuals will not look out of place in the Conjuring universe.

Watching a comic book movie requires you to enter into the theater with an open mind. In this case, that is an underwater world, complete with shark and whale riders, highways for turtle-cabs, sea horses that are quite literally sea horses, bongo playing octopuses, giant prehistoric monsters, pink haired Dolph Lungdren- you get the idea.

Aquaman picks up where Steppenwolf is defeated in Justice League, and people of earth know of a sea dweller who is out to help them. A backstory gives Arthur Curry's origin- eldest son of the queen of Atlantis who fell in love with a lighthouse keeper. She was apparently executed for her infidelity, but you know DC movies are all about mommies, so hold that thought. Arthur's half brother Orm wants to unite all the undersea kingdoms (yes, there are 7!) and wage war with Donald Trump and the rest of us genteel land dwellers because of global warming, ocean trash, pollution etc. Only Arthur can take him on, but for that he needs the Trident of Atlan. He is helped by Mera, daughter of Sir Pink Hair Dolph, and Vulko, counselor of Atlantis, while in his way stands Orm and his dreams of becoming Ocean Master, and his comic book nemesis, Black Manta.

Arthur Curry: I'm no leader. I'm not a king. Mera: Atlantis has always had a king. Now it needs something more. Arthur Curry: Well, what could be greater than a king? Mera: A hero.

In one fell swoop, Wan provides an exciting origin story for both hero and villain, a believable romantic angle, and an emotional family drama, replete with epic battle scenes that shade Star Wars, and thrilling expedition sequences that match up to Indiana Jones. Momoa plays Aquaman as he played Khal Drogo- brashness and physicality that he has made his own, along with doses of humor and charm- no lasso of truth required for him to lay out his feelings for Mera. Speaking of whom, Mera is perhaps Amber Heard's first big budget role, and she fits the Atlantean princess to the T. Nicole Kidman is the most charming DC superhero mommy, and Yahya Abdul Mateen is a passionate Black Manta. Patrick Wilson as Orm is probably the only miscasting, but he too gamely plays along.

Many thought this year's greatest spectacle was Avengers:Infinity War but do watch Aquaman and you may be pleasantly surprised.

One feels sad for JK Rowling after watching Fantastic Beasts Crimes of Grindelwald. Her once rich fountain of creativity has gone dry, and everything served up is a rehash of the original Harry Potter saga. Same old megalomaniac rising against the orderly world of wizards, and everything building up towards an epic duel over a course of 5 films. Franchise building and expanded universe is all good if you have a treasure trove of characters over time you can dig into like Marvel. No offence to Harry Potter lovers, but that universe is just not deep enough, or frankly, interesting enough.

The first movie plot was relatively simple and it ended with the capture of Gellert Grindelwald (Johnny Depp). Crimes of Grindelwald starts soon after, with the evil wizard escaping from captivity in fine style. Meanwhile the budding relationship between Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) and Tina Goldstein (Katherine Waterston), and Jacob (Dan Fogler) and Queenie (Alison Sudol) seem to have been nipped in the buds itself by plot points straight out of tv dramas. Maybe adult romance is not Rowling's thing, like kid infatuations are. For a change the focal city is Paris and all the characters converge there in search of Credence Barebone (Ezra Miller), who somehow survived his end in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

Albus Dumbledore: "I can't move against Grindelwald. It has to be you. In your shoes, I'd probably refuse to"

The plot becomes more and more convoluted as new characters come in. Who is Credence? Why is everyone after him? Which side is Leta Lestrange and Nagini on? When is Dumbledore going to make a decisive move? Is he ever going to come out of the closet? Who is Yusuf Kama and what is his problem with the Lestrange family? What is the context of the new prophecy and why are the wizards so stuck on prophecies? Who is Nicholas Flamel? When is the titular character going to commit some major crimes? Nothing against Johnny Depp but isn't Grindelwald the most boring movie villain ever?

Rowling tries to tie the prequel plots into the Harry Potter saga, but it is complex, to say the least. Search for unknown origins, family relations, wizard Nazi uprising, and some intermittent romance drags the first half down considerably. The plot twists are incredulous- Queenie, even though she is a mind reader, betrays her friends and joins Grindelwald. Leta Lestrange is in love with a Scamander all right, but not the one she is marrying. The mother of all twists is at the end, where we discover that all things powerful are essentially Dumbledore, so as to speak.

The magical creatures (fan favorite Nifflers, along with Kelpies and the astounding Zouwu), Eddie Redmayne, and Jude Law make up for it partially. Pity there isn't too much of Law, but every scene those blue eyes are in, the movie seems to come alive.

After these two prequels, you kind of appreciate the original Harry Potter series even more. There was magic in them, and we grew with the characters. Maybe the next few films will surprise, but as of now the expanded universe is not half as interesting. 6/10

Thugs of Hindostan has many firsts to its credit. It is the first to feature Aamir and Amitabh together (if you do not consider anthology movies and voice acting). It is the first Bollywood sea adventure movie shot in extravagant outdoor locales. It is the first "Thugee" centric movie this century. It is also the first Pirates of the Caribbean rip-off from Bollwood.

Much like like Inglourious Basterds, Thugs of Hindostan is alternate history. Set in late 18th century, it is a tale of a gang of patriotic Indian pirates/bandits standing up to the ever-expanding British East India Company. The thugs are led by Khudabaksh (Amitabh Bachchan), who conveniently calls himself Azaad. His protégé is Zafira (Fatima Sana Sheikh), a princess who he rescued from the evil clutches of Clive (John mind you, not Robert) when she was a child. Clive sends small time thug Firangi Mallah (Aamir Khan) as a spy to capture Khudabaksh.

It is a swashbuckler all right, and I love the genre, period. The visual effects are perhaps the best Bollywood has seen, and the action sequences are great. Aamir and Amitabh are excellent. Everything else though is abysmal. First- the characters. Khudabaksh is also a mishmash of epic Amitabh characters- Badshah Khan, Shahenshah, Toofan. Even Allah Rakha, the eagle from Coolie is there. What is new though is a dash of Deadpool- twin swords, and epic longevity. He is a rebel leader whose motto is that he trusts everyone. I am still scratching my head trying to understand how has he survived so long as a rebel with that belief.

Firangi Mallah is the modern day double agent, and to be honest Aamir does justice to the character, balancing the dominating survival instinct with the nobler cause. However, like he did in 3 Idiots and most of his movies, he made Thugs of Hindostan all about himself. None of the other actors get much to do, all 2 hour 45 mins of the movie.

The lesser said about the female characters the better. Katrina as Suraiyya is there only for 2 item numbers, and since it is the season of rip-offs, there is Fatima Sana Sheikh as a Katniss Everdeen. Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub is the comedian in the mix, but he rarely gets a line though, and the white actors ham their way through as expected.

Vijay Krishna Acharya's resume will tell you that he is no auteur. However, with the talent and budgets at his disposal, I had high hopes. He kept the overall pace bearable, that's about it. Too much of Firangi, too little of everyone else was a big mistake. Too much of action with very little character development, along with a cliched and unfunny script is his other big fault. The most important piece though is probably the tone of the movie- merging high stakes patriotic intensity with Jack Sparrow inspired irreverence.

Except for the background theme, music in the movie is extremely average, and that too coming from a banner that gave us blockbuster albums Kabhi Kabhi, Silsila, Chandni, Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge, Dil Toh Pagal Hai, Dhoom, Band Baaja Baaraat, and Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi.

My advice- for swashbuckling fun, go ahead and watch the first Pirates of the Caribbean, and for similar alternate history patriotic glory, go ahead and watch the far better Manoj Kumar starrer Kranti.

5/10 - a couple of points just for the love of Amitabh Bachchan!

So what there is no Spiderman in a Venom movie. So what there is no Carnage in a Venom movie. So what there is no A list actor other than Tom Hardy in the Venom movie. So what it lacks the Marvel family fun touch. So what if critics have shot it down so far.

Tom Hardy's Venom does not touch the highs of say Black Panther or Iron Man when it comes to comic book origin stories, but it sure is fun, a lot more fun than most DC movies, a little less than Marvel flicks. After long last here is a comic book film that behaves like what it is, and not try to change the world. Dr. Carlton Drake - "Look around at the world. What do you see? A planet on the brink of collapse. Human beings are disposable. But man and symbiote combined, this is a new race, a new species... a higher lifeform"

Sure enough. Venom starts off as science fiction. New species found that requires a suitable host, and one that is sought after by an evil genius. Enter investigative reporter Eddie Brock who is found to be the suitable host for the above symbiotic species and voila, we have Venom. Brock has teething problems (no pun intended) to start with, but once they bond, the movie shifts several gears at one go, and at the end, you are left asking for more. Most of the movie, Brock-Venom is not a superhero, but bent on self preservation. Towards the end Venom realizes he is also a loser like Brock, and then accepts the earth saving duties.

Venom - "We will eat both of your arms, and then both of your legs, and then we will eat your face right off your head. You will be this armless, legless, faceless thing, won't you, going down the street like a turd in the wind!"

Venom is an action horror comedy, and had it got the R rating that it should have gone for, it might just have been THE R rated movie of the year. Hardy has gone on record to say that the 40 minutes edited out of the final cut were his favorite parts, you know, the unhinged stuff that you want to see in a Venom movie.

Director Ruben Fleischer does a good job of maintaining an even tempo throughout the movie, and i liked the fact that for once, a movie is just about the central character. But clearly the star is Tom Hardy, who removes the bane (again no pun intended) of Eddie Brock 2007. Eddie Brock is Spiderman 3 was an idiot, Eddie Brock in 2018 Venom is a hopeless romantic hero who manages to make a protector out of a symbiote who has a thing for biting off people's heads. Hardy plays Brock as witty, and charming, and as Venom, he is menacing.

Venom - "Eyes! Lungs! Pancreas! So many snacks, so little time!" Now give us the Spiderman- Venom crossover we deserve, along with Carnage for added fun.

Ah, Venom was fun, but cannot help wonder how much more fun it would have been if not for the ratings.....7/10

First things first. Mission Impossible- Fallout is an incredible movie. Tom Cruise raises the bar so high in the sixth entry in Mission Impossible series, and I am already salivating at what comes next. Frankly, saving the world is what Cruise does as a day job. But Fallout is exceptional- world ending context, dizzying action, thrilling chase sequences, picturesque locales, solid acting, witty script and the odd emotional moment - all come together to deliver probably the best action movie so far this year, Infinity War included.

"There cannot be peace without first, a great suffering. The greater the suffering, the greater the peace. The end you've always feared is coming. It's coming, and the blood will be on your hands." - Solomon Lane

For the first time in the franchise, we have a sequel. Fallout begins where Rogue Nation ended- Solomon Lane is incarcerated, and the remains of his organization, the Syndicate has become a terrorist group called the Apostles. Due to an uncharacteristic goof-up by Hunt and his IMF team, the Apostles get three plutonium cores, which they plan to detonate in Vatican, Jerusalem and Mecca. Ironically, not very religious, the Apostles.

Hunt and his team has to recover the plutonium cores under the watchful eyes of CIA Director Erica Sloane (Angela Bassett) and her stooge August Walker (Henry Cavill). This is a Mission Impossible movie, so mind you nothing meets the eye, and the pace is incredible. The action begins in Paris, moves to London and ends in Kashmir. In it, Ethan Hunt does halo jumps, suicidally bikes against traffic in city streets, runs like only Tom Cruise can, beats up thugs half his age in a Paris bathroom, and hangs out of helicopters for half the movie. Hell, the bathroom fight itself is worth the price of admission. Is this the future of action movies? Maximum action, maximum impact?

One begs the question though- at 56 how does Tom Cruise still do it? The Mission Impossible series may be 22 years old, but it still does stunts the old fashioned way, no green screen. Yet each stunt is so impeccably planned and executed, and Cruise goes all out to please audiences. During the production of Fallout, Cruise could have died half a dozen times over, but he emerged only with a broken ankle. Respect.

Mission Impossible 6 is also the 7th collaboration between Director Christopher McQuarrie and Cruise, each of them know each other so well that even though the plot is generic, but the inventiveness of the action, the wholehearted trust that Cruise has, and the sudden double crosses ensconced in the script is more than enough for this one to hit gold standards. Of course the references to older MI movies such as the rock climbing sequence from MI2, the moral choices that Nolan explored in The Dark Knight, and the True Lies bathroom fight dials in the nostalgia.

The rest of the cast is great. The old gang returns- Ving James as Luther and Simon Pegg as Benji, and Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson) from the previous movie join in too, along with Ethan's ex-fiance' Julia (Michelle Monaghan) who last featured 12 years back. There is a scene where both Julia and Ilsa share the screen, and then you realize Ethan has a type- tall, leggy brunettes.

Cavill is the hammer to Cruise's scalpel, and the movie does not hold him back in the fights. But then with Cruise in such top form, not even Superman is a match for him.

10/10

You have to hand it to Marvel- if not for anything, just for trying to be different. Just in 2018 they got us a Shakespearean saga in Black Panther, and a universe shattering epic in Infinity Wars. Marvel now brings us a love story in Ant Man and the Wasp. Love story it is, as it deals with an octogenarian trying to find his lost love, and it does help that they said characters are being played by two of the most charismatic stars of the 80s- Michael Douglas and Michelle Pfeiffer. Just to think that this is the first time these guys share screen space itself gives goosebumps, joyride of a film notwithstanding.

Ant Man and the Wasp picks up from the airport battle royale in Captain America: Civil War. As part of the punishment in violating the Sokovia Accords, Scott Lang is serving out a house arrest, while Hank Pym and Hope Van Dyne have been reduced to being fugitives. However, Scott's feat of coming back from the quantum zone has given Hank the confidence that maybe his wife Janet is alive too. Since this is a family fun movie, the rest of the script focuses on getting the family back together.

Scott Lang: Hold on, you gave her wings? Dr. Hank Pym: And Blasters. Scott Lang: So I take it you didn't have that tech available for me? Dr. Hank Pym: No, I did.

Family back together- mostly so. There are villains- Hannah John Kamen's Ghost, and Walton Goggins's Sonny Burch, but they are inconsequential. The first one is a villain because of a conflict of interest- nothing that can get sorted out when they come together and talk and the other is just a thug who wants to sell Pym tech to the highest bidder. Speaking of which, Pym tech once again is the star of the show. The ability to blow up or miniaturize is highlighted in creative action set pieces- both for impact and for the laughs. There is a quantum overdose- after a point an exasperated Scott does ask the scientist father-daughter duo whether they add quantum to anything that they speak.

The film's greatest strength though is its star cast. Douglas and Pfeiffer turn back time as effortlessly as ever. Evangeline Lily as the Wasp absolutely owns the action sequences, and she being better in everything is a something that Scott readily accepts- which is great as Paul Rudd specializes in this sort of a romantic loser role. Michael Pena stands out for providing comic relief, and that says a lot, given this is a comedy movie, while Abby Ryder Fortson melts hearts, like at the snap of Thanos's fingers.

True, the film is not as emotionally invested and connected as some of Marvel's recent films, and there is too little of Michelle Pfeiffer...but at the same time, like the first Antman movie, the film rejoices in its own intimate world. Plus it has a giant at playing drums! Now who would not want to see THAT????

That good things come in small packages- is in a shell Ant Man and the Wasp for you.

After surviving a near fatal bovine attack, a disfigured cafeteria chef (Wade Wilson) struggles to fulfill his dream of becoming Miami's hottest bartender, while also learning to cope with his lost sense of taste. Searching to regain his spice for life, as well as a flux capacitor, Wade must battle ninjas, the yakuza, and a pack of sexually aggressive canines, as he journeys around the world to discover the importance of family, friendship, and flavor - finding a new taste for adventure and earning the coveted coffee mug title of World's Best Lover.

That was the synopsis of Deadpool 2 as released by Twentieth Century Fox. Typically, loony, irreverent and fun as the movie itself.

Deadpool: Fuck Wolverine. First he rides my coattails with the R-rating, and then, that hairy motherfucker ups the ante by dying! What a dick! Well, guess what, Wolvie? I'm dying in this movie.

As it was in 2016, there was Deadpool on one side, and there was everything else from Hollywood on the other side. Wacky R-rated humor paired with obscene violence, and frequent fourth wall breaking paired with a narcissist of an anti-hero, Deadpool set a template that only Deadpool 2 could hope to match up. And match up it did, with oodles of style.

Deadpool: And every good family film starts with a vicious murder - Bambi, The Lion King, Saw VII...

2017 may have been Wolverine's year but 2018 is Deadpool's. And as he points out just before he mourns Wolverine's death in a montage that will send most James Bond themes to shame- this is a family film. The Merc with a Mouth has gone global, diligently killing bad guys, while dreaming of starting a family with Vanessa. But one of his targets escape and kill Vanessa, leading to the unkillable Deadpool becoming suicidal.

Deadpool: George Michael was right, I'm never going to dance again

Colossus and Negasonic Teenage Warhead try to make Deadpool into a X-Man but then shit happens. Machete don't tweet, and Deadpool no X-Man.

Colossus: We have rules. You are not judge, jury or executioner. Deadpool: Fuck your rules! I fight for what's right, and sometimes you gotta fight dirty.

Deadpool ends up in a prison for mutants where their powers are taken away by a collar strapped on to the neck and waits for his death because with the collar on, his superpower is just unbridled cancer. As he quietly resigns himself to grow some tumors, he finds another reason to live- defending a young mutant (Firefist) destined for bad things from a super soldier from the future- Cable, whose family has been murdered by Firefist. In the future, of course.

Cable: Who are you? Deadpool: I'm Batman.

And then it begins. Even though Cable in the movie is 5'11 only unlike the comics, Deadpool is badly mauled by him in round 1, and Deadpool assembles a team to take him on. Zietgeist, Bedlam, Shatterstar, Vanisher, Domino and Peter make up X-Force, because-

Deadpool: Thank you, Bedlam. I was always appalled by the blatant sexism in the group's name. X-Men? *Men*? The point is, our group will be forward-thinking. Gender neutral. From now on, we'll be known as... X-Force. Except for Domino- the mutant with the ability to manipulate luck, none of the other X-Force team members make it beyond 2 minutes of screen time. And soon, the "coolest Marvel character never to be used as of yet in the right way" is unleashed- Juggernaut

Deadpool: It has always been a dream to see my face reflected in your helmet. Juggernaut: I will rip you into half Deadpool: That is exactly what Juggernaut will say.

Ripped in half he is, and like in Deadpool, Wade had to slow-grow a hand, this time he has to slow-grow a pair of legs. Soon, my enemy's enemy is my friend mentality takes over, Cable, X-Force and X-Men unite to take down the big bad while also preventing Firefist from becoming a killer. And kudos to the editing team to fast forward the climax just when it seemed it will go all Groundhog Day.

As they say, it is often not the actor finding the role, that the role finds the actor. Ryan Reynolds channelizes all of his rom-com pedigree to sell this chaotic comedy. All the other actors do a great job too, including Josh Brolin as the diametrically opposite Cable, Zazie Beetz as the straight faced Domino, and TJ Miller as the weaselly Weasel. Besides there is a host of blink and you miss celebrity cameos that are worth the price of the ticket- Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Alan Tudyk, the entire X-Men cast, and a thousand pop culture references (my favorite being John Cusack's boombox scene from Say Anything when Deadpool serenades Colossus) that will demand incessant viewings.

Bigger, better and more cohesive that the first, with a funnier script, extended special effects and great characters- Deadpool 2 sets the bar even higher for R-rated action comedies.

I am not saying that Deadpool 2 is the best movie of the year, but it is most definitely the one that you will laugh in the most. As Deadpool says, hope the Academy is watching.

Avengers: Infinity War was 10 years in the making. Every MCU movie since 2008 hinted at this eventual end game. The ultimate, cosmic showdown between the entire assembly of heroes, and an all powerful villain. Fans have been waiting for this, Marvel has been building up the MCU for this. Given the genocidal backstory, the challenge for Marvel though was to make a different kind of movie, yet remain faithful to it's brand of film-making, which it actually manages to do well.

So planets are destroyed, and Asgardians liquidated even before the movie begins, while much loved characters soon start getting killed off 5 minutes into the movie. At long last, a villain takes front and center in a Marvel movie. For the last 10 years, Thanos has sent his underlings to collect the Infinity Stones. This time round, he is doing it on his own. The best part about Infinity War is that it is more about Thanos and less about the Avengers and Guardians. Unlike the comics, where Thanos wanted to eradicate half of all life in the universe to win his love, Lady Death, in the MCU, Thanos has a Malthusian hangover. He passionately believes his actions are imperative to save the universe, and goes about doing what he needs to do, methodically, even though it extracts a terrible price on everybody, including himself.

Thanos: Daughter. Gamora: Did you do it? Thanos: Yes. Gamora: What did it cost? Thanos: ...Everything.

So how did the Russo brothers sprinkle the Marvel formula in a movie that is all about death and destruction? First of all, they spread the action across half a dozen locations across the universe- Wakanda, Knowhere, Vormir, Nidavellir, New York and Titan. Then they broke up the heroes into disparate groups, and allowed their emotional connects and comic timings to take over. Other than probably Thor, Iron Man and Dr.Strange, most of the other heroes get a raw deal in this 2.5 hour ensemble set up. Even then, for them, these roles are but their second skin, and they do a great job, as expected. The result is a massive thrill ride, with it's own emotive moments.

At the end though, even when severely wounded by Thor, Thanos snaps his fingers, and half the universe is obliterated. As far as the Avengers go, only the original core team (Captain America, iron Man, Hulk, Thor, Black Widow, and I assume, Hawkeye) remains in existence. Come May 3rd 2019, will it be one last mission for them? Will the Infinity War duology be like the masterful Kill Bill series- the first one being all slam bang, the second a more intimate take? Who knows given that Captain Marvel is teased, and we have seen Adam Warlock last year. And as for those who seemingly no longer exist- Spiderman, Black Panther, Guardians etc- fret not. They all have sequels lined up in the next couple of years.

To sum up, Infinity War delivers a fantastic experience- on this scale, mixing action, imagination, humor and drama with a villain who you can almost sympathize with. The latter though is Infinity War's greatest triumph. I will need therapy to wait for Thanos's return.

Avengers Disassembled. For now. 9/10

Dwayne "The Rock"Johnson is on a roll. Over the past few years, he has really owned the good big guy character, essaying that in blockbusters action franchises such as Fast and Furious and G.I.Joe, and standalone ones such as Hercules, and Pain &Gain. Earlier this year, he rocked with the reboot of Jumanji, and this week, he is back at the top with Rampage, which is perhaps the best live action movie adaptation of a video game.

In the titular 1986 video game, you could play as a giant monster destroying cities all over while evading the military. In the live action movie though, there is a minor twist. The popular monsters in the game are all there- George, Lizzie and Ralph. But they are all animals that are exposed to a pathogen that causes them to not only grow exponentially, but also acquire other abilities such as increased aggression, intelligence, speed, strength and endurance- which roughly translates into imperviousness against bullets and bombs, but against the MOAB a.k.a Mother of All Bombs? We never get to know.

"Of course the wolf can fly"

Dwayne Johnson is a former Special Forces and member of an anti-poaching unit turned primatologist who shares a special bond with a albino gorilla with a twisted sense of humor (go figure) called George. When gene mutation pathogen samples from a space research station end up as debris and get consumed by a crocodile; and George and a wolf are also exposed to it, digital chaos begins. The military is useless, cities are evacuated, and buildings are razed. It is only in the third act, when George gets cured of his aggression, and then Rampage becomes George and Johnson against Lizzie and Ralph. Fair fight.

"Weirdos in the internet are calling it Ralph" - Harvey Russell

While Dwayne Johnson gives it his all as if his life depended on it, Jeffrey Dean Morgan's cowboy Government agent Harvey Russell gets to spawn the best lines. This is the third collaboration between Johnson and director Brad Peyton (San Andreas and Journey 2: The Mysterious Island), and there is a bit of sameness in all of them- impassionate, digital disaster/adventure flicks. Rampage takes inspiration from Godzilla, King Kong, Rise of the Planet of the Apes but lacks their emotional connect. It is also bit confused- is it a movie about the relationship between man and animal, or a video game disaster flick? Bit of both in the end, but hard to discern for the viewer as how to take it beyond just a popcorn movie. Plus there is the small matter of disproportionate monster sizes- the same issue that affected Roland Emmerich's 1998 Godzilla.

Rampage- enjoy it while it lasts at the theatres. 6/10

The Shape of Water is grounded in magical realism, a genre which combines elements of magic in an extremely realistic environment, but in essence is a twisted monster-fairy tale. Most monster stories have featured infatuations with things of beauty, only to end sadly with the monster protagonists, ala King Kong. The Shape of Water though is progressive-it follows through to a happy ending for both it's monster/god central character and it's human lover. And unlike the human converting the monster into another human (Beauty and the Beast) , it has the monster converting the human to, well, it's type.

The story is set at the height of the Cold War, 1962, where everything that every American used to do was looked through the filter of being pro-communism. Elisa Esposito, played to Academy award nominated perfection by Sally Hawkins, is a mute cleaning lady working at a top secret research institute in Baltimore. An amphibious creature (called The Asset), and played emotively by Doug Jones, is brought from the Amazon to the lab by Strickland, played in perverse style by Michael Shannon.

"The natives in the Amazon worshipped it. Like a god. We need to take it apart, learn how it works"

Merman or god, he is not in for a good time at the research institute, and typical of del Toro movies, humans are more monstrous than conventional monsters. Elisa's lack of speech helps form a bond with the Asset. Speaking of whom, he is curiously similar to del Toro's other amphibious character from Hellboy- Abe Sapien. Love for eggs, and classical music is all there. Understanding the finality of the creature's fate, Elisa, with her friends, hatches a plan to take it away from the institute.

"When he looks at me, the way he looks at me... He does not know, what I lack... Or - how - I am incomplete. He sees me, for what I - am, as I am. He's happy - to see me. Every time. Every day. Now, I can either save him... or let him die."

Soon the bond translates to love, but the creature is dying, and needs open water to survive. After that the plot focuses on racing against the Communists and Strickland to set it free in the sea. The ending is deliciously open ended too- does Elisa survive in the end or that is what the narrator wants us to think? Was she a mermaid in human guise? Does the story have a happy ending, however improbable it may be?

Guillermo del Toro is at his best in The Shape of Water. His love for monsters shows in his body of work (Hellboy, Pacific Rim, Pan's Labyrinth, Crimson Peak), and The Shape of Water is no different here. Del Toro creates a fascinating world, full of relatable characters, and drily so, takes digs at today's environment. The central human character is probably a Mexican, the villain is a gun-loving white man, and if a love story between an animal and human isn't awkward enough, there is an old man in the movie who is secretly gay! What would Trump say about that last bit?

If the first ace for The Shape of Water was the characters, the next ace is the script. It is delightfully funny, even for those who do not talk and communicate only through expressions and signs. The third ace though is the real deal- he manages to extract superb performances from all the actors. Be it Sally Hawkins, Richard Jenkins, Octavia Spencer, or Michael Shannon.

Nominated for 13 Oscars, with 93 wins and 263 other nominations- is the hype real and is The Shape of Water the best film of 2017? Might not be, but seriously, who could have thought that something so unconventional could be so romantic? Here is raising a glass to Elisa Esposito's groundbreaking romance!

When the going gets tough, the tough gets going.

Not that in the comic book film universe, the going has got tough for Marvel due to DC Comics. We all know how Justice League ended up. The going has got tough for Marvel because of Marvel itself. Civil War and Thor: Ragnarok in their own way set the new gold standards. Also, as new characters enter the MCU, the treatment needs to change too. A comic book blockbuster today needs to be more than just a comic book blockbuster- and that is what makes Black Panther great. With gracious heroes, quipping villains, rocking car chases and fantastic weapons, it is an out and out enjoyable comic book blockbuster for sure. Elements of espionage sagas with homage to 007 Bond, paired with Afro futurist themes along with some Shakespearean twists gives the movie it's own flavor.

Marvel movies are increasingly getting interlinked, so for someone who has missed Civil War, there is a lot to catch up. For someone who hasn't, we jump straight into Black Panther roots and origins.

"Ulysses Klaue: Tell me something. What do you know about Wakanda? Everett K. Ross: It's a Third-World country. Textiles, shepherds, cool outfits. Ulysses Klaue: All a front. Explorers have searched for it, called it "El Dorado". They looked for it in South America, but it was in Africa the whole time. I'm the only one who's seen it, and made it out alive."

Welcome to Wakanda- blessed with mountains of vibranium, it is the most advanced society in the world. Fearful of the world's reaction to it's vibranium reserves, its culture and people, for centuries Wakanda has hidden it's true progress from the rest of the world. So while the motto is not "America First", but it is "Wakanda Forever".

While T'Çhalla wants to stay the path, there are others who feel Wakanda should share it's success with the rest of Africa, who have been brutalized by invasion, exploitation and colonization.

"To be or not to be the savior of the oppressed world" - this Shakespearean choice for the characters forms the crux of the story.

The hunt for Ulysses Klaue sets in motion the plans of Erik Killmonger- an American mercenary wronged in the past by the Wakandan royal family, and scarred by his experiences in the real world. T'Challa will need to draw up on every ounce of strength, and all the friends he has to save Wakanda.

Director Ryan Coogler is coming off Creed, and he delivers here too by crafting a movie that isn't about fighting gods and robots, or chasing aliens, but more about the rights to privilege. In Erik Killmonger, he has created a villain to whom at least half the audience will agree too. Wakandans have thrived while the rest of Africa has burned. Killmonger has a point.

He has also assembled the finest set of black actors working today- Chadwick Boseman plays Black Panther with pathos, Lupita Nyong'o exudes radiance as Nakia, a covert agent, Michael B. Jordan plays Killmonger with feral intensity, Forest Whitaker plays Zuri, the royal shaman while Angela Bassett plays Ramona, the queen mother. The standout characters though are Shuri, played by Letitia Wright, and Okoyo, played by Danai Gurira. Said to be smarter than Tony Stark, Shuri is the Q to T'Challa's Bond, and goes about her role with vibrancy and style. Okoyo is the badass leader of T'Challa's bodyguards, stars in the action sequences and also delivers some of the funniest lines. And I especially loved Andy Serkis in front of the camera as a maniacal Klaue!

Coogler has really soaked up the culture of the continent and let his imagination run wild. Wakanda is a riot of colors, steeped in spirituality and culture and because it was undisturbed by colonization - also a technological marvel. Is this what Africa could have been?

Bottomline- Black Panther is not only a fun movie, it is also a very impactful movie. Marvel getting marvelous, really! 10/10

Braveheart, Seven, Heat, Die Hard, Goldeneye, Toy Story, 12 Monkeys, Bad Boys, Desperado, Ace Ventura, Mortal Combat, Judge Dredd, Waterworld, Babe, Apollo 13- whew, what a year 1995 was in Hollywood. My favorite though in that year was the Robin William classic, Jumanji. A fantasy adventure based on the 1981 children's book, it featured a board game with a magical twist, along with a typically endearing performance by Robin Williams.

Targeting the Christmas holiday crowd, and with rhinos thundering down the streets, it made tons of money, even with relatively rudimentary visual effects. Given the state of VFX today, and the solid demand for good family fun in December, I was surprised that a sequel for Jumanji was not attempted all these years. Oh wait, there was Zathura: A Space Adventure in 2005. Right.

Circa Christmas 2017, and we finally have a sequel starring everyone's favorite eyebrow. Set 21 years after the original movie, the premise is slightly different this time. 4 teenagers get sucked into the jungle world of Jumanji, and they need to play as game characters and win to return back home. Sounds simple? Director Jake Kasdan livens things up by getting the teenagers to play avatars that are opposites of the real life characters. So nerdy Spencer Gilpin becomes the heroic Smolder Bravestone played by Dwayne Johnson, jock Fridge becomes wimpy sidekick Franklin Finbar played by Kevin Hart, shy Martha becomes Ruby Roundhouse (played by Karen Gillan) who is basically a Lara Croft rip-off, and popular college babe Bethany transforms into overweight cartographer Sheldon Oberon (Jack Black).

Throw in hippos, rhinos, elephants, jaguars, and snakes into the mix and bingo you can justify the title. There is of course a villain in the mix, but it is kind of immaterial. This is a family movie, releasing in Christmas, of people playing video game characters, so we all know how it goes.

In short, nothing exceptionally original- it is Breakfast Club + 13 going to 30 + Indiana Jones + Jack Black

Speaking of Jack Black, he is hilarious as a teenage girl, and we all know that Johnson and Kevin Hart have awesome chemistry- watch Central Intelligence for an even better showcase. The movie is fast paced, the script is funny, the special effects are as good as it gets, but the story lacks imagination, and the characters are way under-developed. True the kids learn something about life by playing different avatars, but that's about it. I kept going back to the original, and by god that was a classic! The game coming into our lives is certainly more interesting than us in a game.

Having said that Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle is a good one time watch. It is innocent, family fun, and that is what the season demands actually. 7/10