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Racheal Cain’s debut feature feels derivative, with plotlines that are forced together and cartoonish reductions that sell its characters short Hard on the heels of The Substance comes another film about a dodgy Los Angeles experimental clinic and showbiz obsession – only this medical outfit, Somnium, is a shonky mind-fixing operation à la Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind . Wannabe actor Gemma (Chloë Levine) lands a “sleep-sitting” job at the firm, watching over patients in pods who are hoping to improve their lives by having helpful dreams injected into their subconsciouses. Already working the audition circuit hard, she doesn’t appear to need that kind of assistance – but flashbacks to the idyllic relationship she ditched in Georgia hint at a festering inner wound. Appealing though its crisp sci-fi premise makes it, Racheal Cain’s debut feature nonetheless feels as if it has been directly imprinted with far too many secondhand pop-cultural memories: some decaying Eternal Suns...

Janhvi Kapoor is presently in the news for her performance in Param Sundari with Sidharth Malhotra. The actress has also created waves with the teaser of Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsikumari co-starring Varun Dhawan. And now, Bollywood Hungama has got another exciting update on Janhvi Kapoor. If our sources are to be believed, Janhvi Kapoor is all set to step into the shoes of her mother. A reliable insider informs us that a leading producer has offered the official remake of Chaalbaaz to Janhvi Kapoor. "For Janhvi, Chaalbaaz is a lot more than just a film. It's an emotion. She has jumped onto the chance of playing the lead role in Chaalbaaz, but is treading this with utmost caution," a source told Bollywood Hungama. The source also informed us that Janhvi doesn't want to just cash in on her mother's legacy. "She is taking opinions from people around for the Chaalbaaz remake. She is excited, but is also wary of all the comparisons. She is expected to take a call o...

Venice film festival Pierfrancesco Favino is a robust lead as a teenage tennis hopeful’s charming yet flawed new coach in a film that’s too long and too indecisive to stand up to recent big hitters We have had some sparky tennis movies recently, such as Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers and Reinaldo Marcus Green’s King Richard , and it seemed at first as if this coming-of-age comedy from Italian actor turned director Andrea Di Stefano could be joining them. But despite a very robust lead performance from Pierfrancesco Favino, the enjoyably grizzled alpha male of Italian cinema, this completely runs aground in the third act, quite unable to decide if it should offer the traditional comeback story of an underdog sports movie, or if it should pursue its implied repudiation of the win-at-all-costs ethic. The other issue is whether its young hero should ignore what his dad has to say in favour of an attractive, if flawed, new mentor. The film does in fact appear finally to get off the fence ...

Venice film festival Oscar Isaac and Jacob Elordi star as the freethinking anatomist and his creature as Mary Shelley’s story is reimagined with bombast in the director’s unmistakable visual style Guillermo del Toro has created a movie about a grotesquely unnatural attempt to make a human being shocking in his physical strangeness … but that’s enough about his film version of Pinocchio . Now Del Toro has written and directed a bombastic but watchable new version of Mary Shelley’s great novel and makes of it a stately melodrama, starring Oscar Isaac as the anatomist and passionate freethinker Victor Frankenstein and Jacob Elordi as his creature: no passé neck-bolts or big fringey forehead, of course, and if you compare him with portrayals by other actors – Boris Karloff, Peter Boyle, Robert De Niro – he is, for all the picturesque prosthetic scars, the nearest this iconic figure has come to being a bit of a hottie. It’s an epic bromance between scientist and monster, both of whom spe...

Venice film festival There is a real end-of-days quality to Gianfranco Rosi’s utterly distinctive documentary of war, violence, cynicism and the climate crisis in an uneasy city Gianfranco Rosi has made a movie that could be thought of as the last of a conceptual trilogy about normal life and spiritual life in Italy: the first was his Sacro GRA from 2013 about Rome, for which Rosi won the Venice Golden Lion; the next was Fire at Sea about the migration crisis as experienced in Lampedusa in Sicily. Now there is Below the Clouds, in luminous black-and-white. It’s another of his brilliantly composed docu-mosaic assemblages of scenes and tableaux, shot from fixed camera positions without any camera narration. The title is taken from Jean Cocteau: “Vesuvius makes all the clouds in the world.” Rosi reports from Naples, a city uneasily preoccupied with the earthquakes and volcanic eruptions for which it is famed, and with the great catastrophe of AD79 that buried nearby Pompeii. We see t...

Venice film festival A postman’s forgotten poetry collection finds new admirers in a tale of how the mystique of the past filters to the present Ed Saxberger is an amiable, unassuming New Yorker on the cusp of old age who works at the post office and wears a pen behind one ear. In his youth, he published an anthology of poetry called Way Past Go, which caused barely a ripple and quickly slipped out of print. Then one day he is accosted outside his apartment by an NYU student, who explains that he stumbled across Way Past Go at a secondhand bookstore and was transported, blown away and could scarcely believe what he’d found. “You’re a man of letters,” the student tells Saxberger, which is undeniably true given that he spends his days sorting them. Hitchcock once said that nine-tenths of a film’s success is in the casting, by which measure Late Fame already qualifies as a hit. Saxberger is portrayed with a loose, warm-leather ease by Willem Dafoe, who makes the man look bemused but ne...

Another slice of Mumbai’s cinematic legacy is set to disappear. Famous Studios, the 79-year-old film hub in Mahalaxmi that once echoed with lights, cameras, and action, will soon be razed to make room for a glitzy residential skyscraper. The studio, founded in 1943 by J. B. Roongta, has been a part of Bollywood’s history for nearly eight decades, offering state-of-the-art facilities for shooting, sound recording, and post-production. From iconic films to ad shoots, countless projects passed through its gates, making it a landmark in the city’s creative ecosystem. But the curtains are finally coming down. Reports suggest that the landowners themselves will be sealing the deal and currently quite keen on partnering with K Raheja Corp Real Estate. It has been learnt that they have finalized plans to redevelop the 70,000 sq ft plot into a high-rise residential tower. According to layouts submitted to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, the new project will rise 69 floors above Mahala...

The actor and director on struggling with Dostoevsky, her love of Maggie Smith and flossing in her car Born in Auckland, New Zealand, Lucy Lawless, 57, studied drama in Canada. In the 1990s she starred on television in Xena: Warrior Princess. She went on to appear in Battlestar Galactica, Spartacus, Parks and Recreation, Agents of SHIELD and Salem. Her films include Spider-Man, EuroTrip, Boogeyman, Bedtime Stories and Minions: The Rise of Gru. In 2024 she made her directorial debut with Never Look Away . She plays Alexa Crowe in the crime series My Life Is Murder; all four series are now available on DVD and digital. She is married for the second time, has three children and lives in New Zealand. What is the trait you most deplore in yourself? Laziness. Continue reading... from Film | The Guardian https://ift.tt/7GLVR64 via IFTTT

After delivering films like The Tashkent Files (2019), The Kashmir Files (2022) and The Vaccine War (2023), director Vivek Agnihotri is back with another hard hitting film, The Bengal Files. The makers of the film secured the censor certificate in advance and Bollywood Hungama, in this article, would exclusively focus on the same. To begin with, the film wasn't passed by the Examining Committee of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). The Bengal Files was referred to the Reviving Committee (RC) presumably due to its content. The RC passed the film but asked for some changes. The RC asked the makers to remove 'contemptuous' words against the transgender community and replace them with appropriate terms. Similarly, the pictures of prominent personalities were removed and replaced. As per the directive of the RC, the makers submitted supporting documents for the historical events depicted in the film. The makers also provided consent letters from the parents of the...

Bollywood stars Ayushmann Khurrana and Sara Ali Khan faced a shocking ordeal along with the entire team of Pati Patni Aur Woh 2 during the shoot of this upcoming romantic comedy in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. According to recent reports, local miscreants attacked members of the film crew in broad daylight, exposing glaring lapses in security arrangements for film productions in the state. And now, All Indian Cine Workers Association (AICWA) has issued a press statement calling out this kind of behaviour. The incident, captured in videos that surfaced on social media over the past two days, shows the crew being assaulted while shooting on location. AICWA’s statement strongly condemned the attack, questioning how filmmakers, actors, and technicians can risk their lives in an environment where law and order are evidently compromised. The association said, “If the Uttar Pradesh Government cannot provide safety and security to those engaged in film production, then what is the purpose of pro...

Venice film festival An unemployed paper worker hatches a cunning plan to murder his way back into the job market in this continually surprising black comedy from the director of The Handmaiden and Oldboy Korean director Park Chan-wook’s new film brings his usual effortlessly fluent, steely confidence and a type of storytelling momentum that can accommodate all kinds of digressions, set-pieces and the occasional trance-like submission to mysterious visions. It starts out like an Ealing comedy-type caper then somehow morphs into something else: a portrait of family dysfunction, fragile masculinity and the breadwinner crisis, and the state of the nation itself. It is based on Donald E Westlake ’s satirical horror-thriller The Ax from 1997, previously filmed in 2005 by Costa-Gavras, to whom this film is dedicated. It may not be Park’s masterpiece but it is the best film in the Venice competition so far. The scene is a perfect family home, where the man of the house, You Man-su (played ...

The big-screen spectacle of Dharma Productions is back, and it arrives with a bang this Dussehra! The much-awaited teaser of Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari has finally dropped, setting the stage for what promises to be the grand festive entertainer of 2025. Slated for release on October 2, the film is already being hailed as the quintessential Dharma experience, filled with vibrant emotions, high-voltage drama, and all the elements that define Bollywood masala at its finest. The teaser opens with dazzling visuals and a colorful swirl of music, dance, and romance, capturing the unmistakable Dharma Productions vibe. Audiences are treated to glimpses of Varun Dhawan and Janhvi Kapoor’s playful chemistry, Sanya Malhotra and Rohit Saraf’s intriguing screen presence, and the comedic punches delivered by Varun himself. The promise is clear — this is not just a love story, but a rollercoaster ride of laughter, lies, and larger-than-life celebrations. Directed by Shashank Khaitan, Sunny Sansk...

The former 007 and current star of The Thursday Murder Club revisits his old haunts in London’s Camden Town and Primrose Hill. Can he get past the security guard at the Roundhouse, where he once walked a tipsy Tennessee Williams to his car? It is a weekday morning and I am standing beside Pierce Brosnan on a deserted backstreet, watching a woman in a hairnet and white wellies hosing down the entrance to a fishmarket. The former James Bond is in full flow. “You know the scene in MobLand where I’ve got my foot on that guy’s throat and Tom Hardy is shooting the shit out of everyone?” He is talking in his rich, buttery burr about the recent series in which he and Helen Mirren play the heads of an Irish crime family. “We shot that right here!” He waves at the woman, who silences her hose temporarily. “Hi, hello,” he calls out. “I shot a television show here called MobLand.” She smiles back at him. “Yes,” she replies sweetly, as though indulging a confused uncle. “No idea, has she?” he c...

The much-awaited romantic comedy Pati Patni Aur Woh 2, starring Ayushmann Khurrana and Sara Ali Khan, has found itself in the middle of an unexpected storm. The film, which brings the two actors together for the first time on screen, is currently being shot in Prayagraj (formerly known as Allahabad). However, what was supposed to be a smooth schedule recently took a turbulent turn when the production team faced major resistance from the locals. According to eyewitness accounts, tensions between the crew and some locals escalated during filming, eventually spiralling into a physical confrontation. Reports suggest that certain members of the crew were allegedly beaten up by agitated locals, creating panic on the set. The exact cause of the rift remains unclear, but the situation has raised concerns about security arrangements during high-profile shoots in crowded public spaces. Fight During Shooting of Pati Patni aur Wo 2 byu/bollyfanboi inBollyBlindsNGossip Even as this controversy br...

Venice film festival The affable star plays an affable star assessing his life and career at a Tuscan film festival in a wildly sentimental and self-indulgent piece of cine-narcissism Everybody loves George Clooney, and rightly so. His performances in films such as Michael Clayton, Out of Sight and Ocean’s Eleven have been a joy, and as an elegant public figure he has more or less single-handedly underwritten the continuing currency of Hollywood classiness. But in this dire, sentimental and self-indulgent film, he has the look of a man who has found strychnine in his Nespresso pod and can’t remember which of the cupboards in his luxury hotel suite contains the antidote. It is directed by Noah Baumbach, whose 2022 film White Noise, based on the Don DeLillo novel, was a superb competition entry at Venice. (Baumbach was reportedly disconcerted by a tepid response; I thought it was brilliant .) But this one is a grisly, sucrose, sub-Fellini swoon on the subject of a super-handsome Hollyw...

Today, that is, Thursday, August 28, the much awaited trailer of Aabeer Gulaal, will be unveiled at 1:00 pm IST. Starring the irresistible Fawad Khan and the radiant Vaani Kapoor, the film releases worldwide (except India) on September 12, 2025. From the very first frame, the trailer brims with joy, energy, and serendipity. It teases the playful yet profound journey of Aabeer (Fawad Khan) and Gulaal (Vaani Kapoor) — a “situationship, friendship, relationship” that blossoms in the most unexpected of ways. Aabeer Gulaal is more than a romance — it’s a fiery celebration of second chances, unspoken connections, and the courage to make space for love. Messy, inconvenient, Magical — love arrives unannounced, and the trailer captures that truth with irresistible charm. We meet the irresistibly charming Aabeer at a food contest, only to be swept into Gulaal’s spirited world of culinary flair and dance-floor fire. Her knack for landing in sticky situations collides with Aabeer’s reluctant ye...

Phil Mulloy, my life partner, who has died aged 76, was one of Britain’s most fiercely independent voices in animation, known for the dark wit and distinctive visual style of his films. He found international acclaim with Cowboys (1991), a series of six short films that parodied westerns and masculinity, and were produced by Channel 4 and the Arts Council. Later his Ten Commandments shorts (1994–96) and the Intolerance trilogy (2000–04) offered brutal, funny critiques of ideology and human cruelty. Phil rejected slick studio polish in favour of rawness, rage and provocation, and as a result developed a cult following as an “anti-animator”. His work was celebrated in retrospectives and DVD collections, including with the British Film Institute’s Phil Mulloy: Extreme Animation (1999) and several releases in France by ED Distribution. Continue reading... from Film | The Guardian https://ift.tt/vVMuHtk via IFTTT

Questions over biennale’s stance dominates launch, with protest planned for one of event’s big nights on Saturday Dozens of Hollywood A-listers will descend on the Venice film festival this week, but activists hope to shift the spotlight from the red carpet to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. With an anti-war demonstration planned for one of the festival’s biggest nights on Saturday, questions over the biennale’s stance on Gaza dominated Wednesday’s launch event. Continue reading... from Film | The Guardian https://ift.tt/8g2J7Ir via IFTTT

Emma Heming Willis recalls the actor’s ‘alarming and scary’ early symptoms and says his family has ‘learned to adapt’ as his brain ‘is failing’ amid ‘really great health overall’ Bruce Willis’s brain is “failing him” and his “language is going”, his wife, Emma Heming Willis, has revealed, more than two years since the actor was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia. “Bruce is still very mobile. Bruce is in really great health overall, you know,” Heming Willis told Diane Sawyer in an ABC special on Tuesday. “It’s just his brain that is failing him. The language is going. We’ve learned to adapt and we have a way of communicating with him, which is just a different way.” Continue reading... from Film | The Guardian https://ift.tt/cCWPXoi via IFTTT

A surly war vet takes in the daughter he never knew he had in a well-intentioned but overly sentimental film This low-budget, US-made comedy-drama is full of sincerity and good intentions but that doesn’t quite get off the hook for its egregious sentimentality and copious cliches. But the well-directed (though somewhat artless) performances and competent assembly make it palatable enough to pass the time, especially if you have a particular interest in stories about living with a disability. The protagonist is surly war veteran and wheelchair-user Patrick (Tobias Forrest, who uses a wheelchair in real life). When he’s not drunk, in a strip club or both, he’s down at the social security office bickering with the staff. (The fact that there’s still an office he can wheel into betrays the fact this was made well before the Trump administration and Doge started gutting the agency.) One day, a pair of social workers show up and inform Patrick that he’s the father of a four-year-old girl, ...

The performers and director of the original TMNT film describe how they battled hellish costumes and slippery sets to bring their tale of family bonding and kung fu to life Steve Barron (director): [Hong Kong production company] Golden Harvest didn’t know whether to use creature suits or hand-drawn animation like Who Framed Roger Rabbit. The cartoon series was becoming quite popular so they thought: “Maybe the cartoon characters could come into a live-action film?” I thought: “No. This has to be real and in the sewers where it’s moody.” I didn’t get anything cinematic from the cartoon. I did from the comic book. Josh Pais (Raphael) : They flew us to London to get body casted. I was in the back room of Jim Henson’s Creature Shop with my arms out to the side suspended by ropes. They started covering my body in plaster and did the back of my body first. Then they started my front, neck and my face. They put straws in my nose so I could breathe. The plaster gets warm as it sets and ev...

Bollywood’s stylish Nawab, Saif Ali Khan, is bringing his royal charm to your kitchen! The actor has just been announced as the brand ambassador of JK Spices & Food Products, popularly known as JK Masale — a household name trusted by Indians for over 67 years. The collaboration feels like a match made in heaven. On one side, Saif Ali Khan with his royal Pataudi lineage, effortless sophistication, and star power spanning decades. On the other, JK Masale, a brand that has seasoned Indian kitchens with authenticity, purity, and legacy since 1958. Together, they promise to spice things up in more ways than one, revealed the brand. Talking about why Saif was the perfect fit, the brand shared a statement saying, “In Saif Ali Khan, we see a reflection of our own journey. His royal lineage, refined persona, and the trust he commands make him a natural fit for a brand like ours. This partnership goes beyond endorsement – it is a union of legacies, where tradition and modern taste come tog...

In desperation at his antisocial behaviour, the mother of the French new wave pioneer sent him to work in ‘purgatory’. It was to inspire Operation Concrete, Godard’s only documentary When Jean-Luc Godard’s debut feature, Breathless , exploded on to cinema screens in 1960, it was heralded as an instant classic. However, his directorial career did not start with Breathless, but rather five years earlier with Operation Concrete, a remarkable documentary with an even more poignant backstory. In 1953, when Godard’s mother, Odile, sent him to work as a labourer on the construction of the Grande Dixence dam in the canton of Valais, Switzerland, it represented a desperate last throw of the dice for her wayward 22-year-old kleptomaniac son. Continue reading... from Film | The Guardian https://ift.tt/n2OfCzH via IFTTT

The Madras High Court has stepped into a fresh legal battle involving late Bollywood icon Sridevi’s property on Chennai’s East Coast Road (ECR), directing the Tambaram tahsildar to make a clear decision within four weeks. The case was brought forward by film producer Boney Kapoor, who has accused three individuals of fraudulently staking ownership over land his wife had purchased back in 1988. Justice N. Anand Venkatesh, who presided over the matter, issued the directive after hearing Kapoor’s plea to cancel a legal heirship certificate obtained by the claimants in 2005. According to Kapoor, the document was wrongly issued in their favour and is now being used to assert rights over Sridevi’s farmhouse property. The contested land has deep roots, tracing back to its original owner, M.C. Sambanda Mudaliar. His family had divided the property among three sons and two daughters through a mutual arrangement in 1960. Relying on this arrangement, Sridevi lawfully purchased the land on April...

A garbled story of metaverse musicians based on a mobile game leaves its audience little to grasp hold of Even by the standards of franchise anime that caters to the faithful and drops newcomers in blind, this is particularly incomprehensible. Based on the mobile game Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage!, it features a barely characterised blur of wannabe musicians and actors who ascribe Manhattan Project importance to writing syrupy J-pop. As they interact with virtual counterparts in metaverses called “Sekai” created from users’ emotions, the film is like The Matrix if Neo had huffed a nitrous oxide canister before having every edition of Pop Idol downloaded into his cranium. One of the virtual pop stars, a rogue version of Hatsune Miku (voiced by Saki Fuijta), keeps invading high-school kids’ mobile phones and flatscreens, begging for help. Apparently issuing from a Sekai created by the emo angst of everyone about to give up on their creative ambitions, she is hoping to connect with thes...

Bollywood actor Tina Ahuja has finally responded to the persistent rumours surrounding her parents, Govinda and Sunita Ahuja, and their alleged divorce. In an interview with Hindustan Times, Tina dismissed the reports outright, calling them baseless and untrue. “It’s all rumours. I don’t pay attention to these rumours,” Tina said firmly. She further added, “I feel blessed to have a beautiful family, and I’m truly grateful for all the love, concern and support we’ve been receiving from the media, fans, and loved ones.” The clarification comes after weeks of speculation that began when Sunita Ahuja shared an emotional vlog online. The video sparked chatter about potential trouble in the couple’s marriage. This was followed by claims that Govinda and Sunita were living separately, and further fuel was added when some reports suggested that Tina herself had filed for divorce at the Family Court in Mumbai. Adding to the confusion, Govinda’s manager had earlier told media outlets that a d...

The much-awaited Bigg Boss 19 premiered on Monday evening, August 24, with 16 diverse contestants stepping into the iconic house. Staying true to its tradition of mixing glamour, controversy, and talent, this year’s lineup features television heartthrobs, social media stars, models, actors, and even a celebrated musician. Leading the list is Ashnoor Kaur, who recently made headlines with a nostalgic reel from Saath Nibhana Saathiya. Joining her is Gaurav Khanna, the much-loved Anuj from Anupamaa, bringing his massive TV fan base into the show. Popular faces like Basheer Ali (Kundali Bhagya) and Abhishek Bajaj (Student of The Year 2, Babli Bouncer) add more television and film charisma to the house.   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by ColorsTV (@colorstv)   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by ColorsTV (@colorstv)   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by ColorsTV (@colorstv)   View this post on Instagram ...

Author Abbott Kahler, who inspired the film starring Jude Law and Sydney Sweeney, tells the stranger-than-fiction tale of mayhem on a remote island “Was Dr. Ritter, With His Steel Teeth, Poisoned in Paradise? Was ‘Baroness Eloise,’ Known as ‘Crazy Panties,’ Who Ruled the Island With a Gun and Love, Murdered by One of Her Love Slaves After She Had Driven the Other to His Death? And Why is Frau Ritter Going Back to What She Once Called ‘Hell’s Volcano?’ – the Mystery of the Galapagos Island Which Germany Covets, to Be Solved At Last?” This florid passage from a tabloid newspaper caught the eye of the author Abbott Kahler decades after it was published in 1941. “Basically it was the equivalent of a record scratch,” she recalls. “I was thinking: what the hell is the story? ” Continue reading... from Film | The Guardian https://ift.tt/jmGNBhc via IFTTT

Fashion designer Manish Malhotra will unveil the first glimpse of Gustaakh Ishq on Monday. Marking his debut as a film producer under Stage 5 Production, he announced the update on social media and also confirmed that the film will release in November. A part of his note read, “Since childhood, I’ve lived with a deep Ishq for cinema. The magic of the stories, the glow of the big screen and the emotions that stay long after the credits roll.” He added, “That love has shaped who I am, and today, it gives me the greatest joy to share a dream come true. This November, 2025, my first film as a producer, Gustaakh Ishq - Kuch Pehle Jaisa will release in theatres. A film born out of passion, poetry and a celebration of love in all it’s forms.”   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by Manish Malhotra (@manishmalhotra05) Another part of it read, “This Monday, I will be sharing with you, the very first glimpse into the poetic world of Gustaakh Ishq. This journey is special,...

Regena Cassandrra, the leading lady of Madhur Bhandarkar’s upcoming mystery thriller The Wives, has successfully wrapped the first schedule of the film’s shoot in Mumbai. The actress recently hinted at the schedule wrap on social media, sharing a candid behind-the-scenes picture from the set, dressed in a sleek black outfit while holding a clapperboard that read ‘The Wives'. The Wives aims to dive deep into the glamorous yet turbulent world of Bollywood star wives, peeling back the curtain on their hidden realities, high-profile scandals, and the extravagant lifestyles they lead. Joining Regena in this intriguing ensemble cast are Mouni Roy, Sonali Kulkarni, and other notable names, making the project one of the most anticipated in Bhandarkar’s filmography. Known for his sharp and concept-driven storytelling, Madhur Bhandarkar once again is expected to bring his signature touch to The Wives, blending drama, suspense, and realism into a compelling narrative. With the first schedul...

Bollywood heavyweights Akshay Kumar and Saif Ali Khan have officially begun filming for their much-anticipated collaboration with veteran director Priyadarshan, marking a reunion after nearly two decades. Production for the Hindi thriller Haiwaan officially kicked off today in Kochi, Kerala. Akshay Kumar shared a behind-the-scenes video from the set, teasing his co-star and director and capturing fans’ attention with a playful exchange. In the video, Akshay is seen holding a clapperboard while wearing a T-shirt inscribed “Saint.” Priyadarshan jokingly insists he should instead wear “Haiwaan.” Akshay responds, “For all you know, he (Saif) must be the devil. This devil you know about and this devil you don’t know about.”   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by Jolly Mishra - Asli Jolly from Kanpur (@akshaykumar) Accompanying the clip, Akshay wrote, “Hum sab hi hain thode se shaitaan… Koi upar se Saint, koi andar se Haiwaan. Starting the shoot for #Haiwaan today wit...

The Indian Express Group is proud to unveil a bold reimagining of Screen Awards 2025 on YouTube, one of India’s most iconic celebrations, of cinema and storytelling. The Screen Awards 2025 is more than just an awards show. Combining editorial credibility, cultural legacy, and digital reach, it reflects the Indian Express Group’s journalism-first ethos. Winners are selected by the Screen Academy, an independent, not-for-profit body of respected filmmakers, artists, and cultural voices dedicated to honouring true excellence. Anant Goenka, Executive Director of the Indian Express Group said, “Indian cinema deserves a stage that celebrates creativity beyond collections. Our storytellers carry 1.4 billion dreams — rooted in tradition and racing toward an exciting future. This award will honour that spirit and spotlight India’s boldest, most original voices. We’re thrilled YouTube shares our enthusiasm for this endeavour." Taking a digital-first approach to content and format, the Sc...

Sriram Raghavan is one of the most celebrated filmmakers of our industry. Hence, his next film Ikkis is much awaited. It stars Agastya Nanda and this will be his first theatrical film and second film as an actor after the 2023 Netflix original, The Archies. It is scheduled to be released on October 2 and Bollywood Hungama has learned that the film has been postponed. A source told Bollywood Hungama, "Ikkis will now release on November 7. The decision was taken by producer Dinesh Vijan of Maddock Films who felt that the first week of November and post-Diwali time will be ideal for their movie." An industry insider commented, "This is a good move as two major films are scheduled for a release on October 2 - Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari and Kantara: A Legend - Chapter 1. November 7 is a better date in that regard." Ikkis also stars Dharmendra and Jaideep Ahlawat. It is against the backdrop of the 1971 war and follows the life of second Lieutenant Arun Khetrapal. A...

The Talented Mr Ripley gets an upgrade in a buzzy and biting film about a desperate outsider who infiltrates the inner circle of a singer on the rise If Tom Ripley lived in LA in 2018 and was really into lo-fi bedroom pop, he might look something like the main character of Lurker . The debut feature from Alex Russell, The Bear and Beef writer-producer, is an elegantly creepy thriller about one super-fan’s scheme to become close to his musical idol, transposing author Patricia Highsmith’s “two-man theme” into a murkier grey territory, with parasitic attachment giving way to co-dependence that blooms into something that looks like a twisted kind of love. The lurker of the title is Matthew (Théodore Pellerin), an isolated twentysomething who lives with his grandma and works shifts at a local vintage boutique to make ends meet. After a chance run-in with his idol Oliver (Saltburn’s Archie Madekwe) at the vintage store where he works, Matthew worms his way into Oliver’s entourage and make...

There’s much to enjoy in this adaptation of Osman’s ingenious book, with Helen Mirren, Ben Kingsley, Celia Imrie and Pierce Brosnan as the senior-citizen X-Men Richard Osman’s phenomenal bestseller from 2020 was an ingenious, accessible, good-natured book, which helped rebrand the English detective novel as “cosy crime”, started a celeb-copycat publishing trend and, being about four elderly people in a retirement community rising above ageist condescension to solve crimes, spoke eloquently to the shut-in frustrations and escapist yearnings of the Covid age. Now it has been adapted as a funny and likable, if slightly bland, comedy-drama for Netflix, which as one character amusingly and pre-emptively comments, feels just like a Sunday teatime TV crime drama. There is nothing new about these nostalgist leanings: Agatha Christie has after all been a solid film and TV export for more than half a century. Screenwriters Katy Brand and Suzanne Heathcote adapt the novel and director Chris Col...

A big fear that plagues scriptwriters in our industry is that someone might plagiarize their script. Believe it or not, Imran Khan also went through a similar turmoil way back in 2005. The actor spoke about it in detail in an interview with Planet Bollywood. Imran Khan began by saying, “The incident about me taking a script to a channel and it getting stolen happened in early 2005. In the aftermath of that, I found I was completely powerless and could not catch hold of the guys who did this to me. I had gone into this meeting. It had been set up through contacts. These people had no context of my family relationships or background. To them, I was just a kid off the street. That is why they felt comfortable enough to lift my script. I was helpless and could not hold them accountable. I was very upset about it. If I had some name or recognition of my own, they might not have done this. To what extent that is true is a debatable point. I was 22 at that point.” Imran Khan further said, “...

The stars and makers of a new version of The War of the Roses discuss modern dating, swearing in America and the problem with Mr Tickle At the start of The Roses, a counsellor asks a couple to list what they love about each other. It’s a struggle. “He has arms,” is about as good as it gets. The actors who play them are less reticent. Highlights are itemised before I’ve even asked. “I love your hair,” Olivia Colman tells Benedict Cumberbatch. “Short at the sides! Brilliant!” It’s their first time together in ages. They compare half-terms and weeding. She coos over his dislocated shoulder. He admires her suit. OK, enough mush. What do they hate about one another? Continue reading... from Film | The Guardian https://ift.tt/1lAImXc via IFTTT

With a new score by Pet Shop Boys, the Russian director’s masterpiece remains a stunning paean to revolution Here for its hundred-year anniversary is a restored version of Sergei Eisenstein’s pioneering silent classic from 1925, itself commissioned for the 20-year anniversary of the events it showed and reimagined. It is in black-and-white of course, apart from the vivid red flag flown from the battleship’s mast. This rerelease is accompanied by a soundtrack composed by Pet Shop Boys in 2005; it is a fervent, continuous score but not, for me, one that engages fully with the drama’s light-and-shade. It also perhaps reopens the debate about when and how a silent-movie musical accompaniment should be content to fall silent in favour of discreet ambient background sound. The subject is a 1905 anti-Tsarist mutiny on an Imperial Russian Navy battleship in the Black Sea near Ukraine. It is an uprising of sailors demoralised by losses in the Russo-Japanese war, resentful of the officers’ arr...

Alia Bhatt recently appeared in a campaign video released by the Chandigarh division of the Narcotics Control Bureau. What was meant to be a strong awareness message soon turned into controversy online, drawing sharp reactions from many users. The criticism eventually forced the agency to turn off comments on the post, but the video still remained the talk of social media, with many continuing to share and react to it in different ways. The clip was shared on NCB’s official X account, where Alia urged people to stand against drugs and support the bureau’s mission. Within hours of being posted, the video gained traction and went viral, crossing 1.1 million views and being shared more than 680 times. The caption on the post read, "Alia Bhatt joins hands with NCB to spread the message of a #DrugsFreeBharat #NashaMuktBharat #azadifromdrugs". In the video, Alia addressed the issue of drug addiction, calling it a growing threat to individuals, society, and the nation. She asked p...

Veteran actor Neena Gupta, celebrated for her candid demeanour and bold fashion choices, recently responded with grace and wit to a troll’s body-shaming comment after she posted a video from the airport. In the clip, Gupta shared how she carries homemade snacks during long airport waits—specifically, roti rolls packed in a tiffin filled with potatoes, chillies, paneer, onions, and other ingredients—with the caption: “Shorts wali desi girl.” The video, featuring the actor dressed in a casual black outfit and shorts and speaking directly to the camera in the airport lounge, earned a mixed reaction from viewers. One commenter wrote, “Very good ...only request dont show your legs ,they are not well toned ...we have never seen dadi mummy showing their legs this way ...ageing gracefully is excellent.”   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by Neena Gupta (@neena_gupta) Unfazed by the criticism, Gupta fired back with characteristic confidence and candor, “Don’t worry. The...

Available for hire, professional persuaders deceive their way into the lives of cheating men – and see off the extra lover. We meet the maker of a jaw-dropping documentary about a growing phenomenon Not long into Mistress Dispeller, a quietly jaw-dropping new documentary from director Elizabeth Lo, the film’s eponymous character lays out her thesis for ridding marriages of troublesome extra lovers. “When someone becomes a mistress,” she says, “it’s because they feel they don’t deserve complete love. She’s the one who needs our help the most.” Wang Zhenxi, a mistress dispeller based in north-central China’s Henan province, is one of a growing number of self-styled professionals who earn a living by intervening in people’s marriages – to “dispel” them of intruders. “I was looking for a love story set in China,” says Lo, speaking from Hong Kong. “I thought it would be really interesting to [explore] the peripheral gaze of a mistress.” Continue reading... from Film | The Guardian http...

Stoner was a small child when they began acting professionally – and their experience included extreme pressure, dangerous diets, rehab, dashed hopes and self-doubt. Now, with a new memoir, they consider how they escaped ‘the toddler to train-wreck pipeline’ When Alyson Stoner was nine, a wardrobe assistant on the set of a TV show noticed the child actor’s dark leg-hair and told Stoner it was “dirty and unladylike”, and that they couldn’t wear shorts in the show until it was removed. “I started to view my body in a detached way where it was just something to control, to fix, to manipulate for whatever standard was presented to me,” says Stoner. “In this case, the extreme beauty standards of the industry.” It was a lot for a nine-year-old to take on, but by then Stoner had been working for several years – they were a Disney regular, and appeared in films such as Cheaper By the Dozen – and were used to doing whatever adults asked. As a teenager, this would lead to an excessive exercise...

Mahesh Manjrekar and Sanjay Dutt once made for an envious director-actor jodi. Both collaborated for the first time on Vaastav (1999). The film turned out to be a cult and is considered to be one of the most accomplished performances of the actor. Later, Mahesh Manjrekar directed Sanjay Dutt in Kurukshetra (2000), Hathyar (2002), Pitaah (2002), Rakht (2004), Viruddh (2005) and Vaah Life Ho Toh Aisi (2005). If all goes well, both might join hands once again, after nearly two decades, for the remake of the acclaimed 2024 Marathi film, Juna Furniture. A source told Bollywood Hungama, “Mahesh Manjrekar directed Juna Furniture and he played the main lead. The film got a lot of critical acclaim for its message, subject and performances. Mahesh realized that it has the potential to touch the Hindi-speaking audiences as well. Hence, he has begun work on the scripting of the Hindi remake.” The source further said, “He has approached Sanjay Dutt as he feels that the veteran actor will do compl...

Actor and director responded to stunt professional’s claims she was forced to perform an unscripted sexual assault Kevin Costner has spoken out against a lawsuit filed by a stunt performer on his film Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 2, alleging that she was forced to perform a “violent” unscripted rape scene without required notice, consent or the mandatory presence of an intimacy coordinator. In a legal declaration filed Monday in LA superior court, Costner called the breach of contract suit, filed in May by lead stunt double Devyn LaBella, a “bold-faced lie” that was “designed, through the use of false statements and sensationalistic language, to damage my reputation”. The Yellowstone star seeks to have LaBella’s suit dismissed or kneecapped under anti-Slapp laws, measures that are supposed to protect against intimidation lawsuits. Continue reading... from Film | The Guardian https://ift.tt/dfhAqMa via IFTTT

Actor to lead adaptation of acclaimed play Ink with Jack O’Connell also in talks to play the Sun editor Larry Lamb Danny Boyle is set to direct an adaptation of award-winning play Ink, based on the rise of the Rupert Murdoch empire. According to Deadline , Guy Pearce is in talks to take on the lead role with Jack O’Connell also in negotiations to star as Larry Lamb, who Murdoch hired to run the Sun in the late 1960s. Continue reading... from Film | The Guardian https://ift.tt/4yL9lxJ via IFTTT

2026 is going to be exciting as some of the biggest films, featuring popular names, are scheduled for release. One of the highly awaited ones is Love & War. It is directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali and features an envious star cast comprising Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt and Vicky Kaushal. Another factor that is enticing about this film is that its Bhansali’s first film in 26 years, which will be shot abroad. A source told Bollywood Hungama, “Sanjay Leela Bhansali is known for making grand and visually spectacular films. Yet, he hasn’t gone abroad for the same for his films like Devdas (2002), Black (2005), Saawariya (2007), Guzaarish (2010), Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-leela (2013), Bajirao Mastani (2015), Padmaavat (2018) and Gangubai Kathiawadi (2022). Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam (1998) was the last film for which he travelled abroad, to Hungary (depicted in the film as Italy), to shoot a crucial sequence of the second half.” The source continued, “But for Love & War, there’s a requir...

Filmmaker Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri has warned that he will pursue legal recourse if the release of his film The Bengal Files is prohibited in West Bengal. This statement came during a press conference following the disruption of the film’s trailer launch in Kolkata. Scheduled to hit theatres on September 5, The Bengal Files delves into the Calcutta riots of August 16, 1946, triggered by the All-India Muslim League’s call for “Direct Action Day” . Vivek Agnihotri recounted the series of setbacks faced during the trailer launch: it was initially cancelled by a multiplex, then shifted to a hotel where the power suddenly went out, and police eventually intervened to inquire whether proper permissions had been obtained . “We will go by the Constitution. We will go legally. If they stop us, we will take the legal course. What can we do? We are common citizens like you… We will pray that sanity prevails and the state government does not do it,” said the director, directly challenging the Mam...

Director names his ‘masterpiece’ film, along with his favourite and the one he was ‘born to make’ It’s one of cinema’s most contested subjects: which Quentin Tarantino movie is the best? The director himself has finally weighed in – while also sharing his personal favourite and which of his films he was “born to make”. Speaking on The Church of Tarantino podcast, the 62-year-old film-maker said his 2009 second world war drama Inglourious Basterds was the best of his nine films, while his 2019 movie Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood was his favourite. Continue reading... from Film | The Guardian https://ift.tt/MVyTvP3 via IFTTT

Filmmaker and producer Karan Johar recently shared an introspective note with fans, teasing his upcoming projects and giving a glimpse into his mindset ahead of 2026. The director, known for shaping some of Bollywood’s most iconic dramas, reflected on the past year, describing it as one of “internal revaluations, revelations and resolutions.” In his candid social media post, Johar wrote, “The Sun … the Sea…. The Clarity … The last year has been a year of internal revaluations, revelations and resolutions…. It almost feels like the onset of the 2.0 version of my life… where you value what you truly have and feel for and the rest you slowly dissolve into emotional oblivion… 2026 is the year I will be back on set.. a promise I have made to myself… because that is not only my happy space and place but also my only calling in life… to tell stories with all the prerequisites of good old fashioned Hindi cinema… it’s in my DNA so why run away from it …( or try to please a bunch of people I do...

A documentary following the only staff psychiatrist in a Paris hospital reveals both the indifference of society and a doctor’s devoted care Within the corridors of a psychiatric ward in Beaujon hospital in Clichy, Paris, tensions run high. Every day, a steady stream of patients pours in, while resources are stretched pitifully thin. Through jagged handheld cinematography, Nicolas Peduzzi’s gripping and passionate documentary reflects the facility’s breakneck pace. Amid a flurry of frantic calls and rolling stretchers, a calm presence emerges: here comes Dr Jamal Abdel-Kader, the only staff psychiatrist in the building. The camera trails after Abdel-Kader’s hurried steps as he splits his day between various departments, from the emergency rooms to the intensive care units. Despite his colossal workload – a result of crumbling infrastructure and lack of government budget – he devotes his full attention to each individual patient. Some are only in their late teens when they attempt sel...