Cinema
Nurul Alam Atique's 'Pyara Subash' at 45th Moscow Film Festival
Nurul Alam Atique's “Pyara Subash” or “The Scent of Sin” has made it to the competition category in the 45th edition of the Moscow International Film Festival, according to the official website and Facebook page of the festival.“Pyara Subash” is one of the 12 films in the competition category. There are also films from Argentina, Russia, China, France, and Japan in this category.Jaya Ahsan played the lead role in the film while Tariq Anam Khan, and Ahmed Rubel, among others, have played as other lead characters.The 45th edition of the Moscow International Film Festival will take place from April 20 to 27.Bangladeshi film “Adim” was also on the list of competition sections in the last edition of the film festival.
Shilpi Samity suspends Zayed Khan
Actor Zayed Khan's membership in the Bangladesh Film Artists Association was suspended during a meeting held today.
The media was informed about it in a press conference at the FDC premises.
According to Simon Sadiq, the reason behind this suspension was Zayed Khan's remarks against the constitution and the president and general secretary of the Bangladesh Film Artists Association on various platforms.
Simon stated, "He had taken oath from the president of the current committee on a fake paper and had made false and insulting statements against the current general secretary of the committee in various media, which goes against the constitution of the organisation. We sent him a letter requesting him to respond to these allegations as per the constitution, but he did not respond within the given timeframe."
In response to the letter, Zayed Khan wrote, "I was out of the country for professional reasons from February 19 to March 6, and during that time, you sent me an illegal notice on February 22, referring to yourself as the General Secretary of the Bangladesh Film Artists Association. As I was out of the country, I did not receive the notice on time and only received it on March 31. However, I have replied to the notice."
Priyanka Chopra says Bollywood’s obsession with fair skin contributed to her departure
Indian actor Priyanka Chopra Jonas has said that Bollywood’s everlasting “obsession with fair skin” was one of the reasons she left the industry to try her luck in Hollywood eight years ago.
Priyanka, also a former Miss World, was at the height of her success in India’s Bollywood when she unexpectedly declared her decision to relocate to the United States, reports The Guardian.
The actress had previously declined to clarify her reasons for leaving Bollywood, but recently told Dax Shepard on the podcast “Armchair Expert” that she was “tired of the politics and certain cliques” that needed to be “grovelled” to.
Priyanka described how “dark skinned” actresses, such as her, were treated in Bollywood.
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“I was lightened up in many movies. Through makeup and then blasting lighting. There was a song which I still remember. It was called Chitti Dudh Kudi which means a girl who is as white as milk and I ain’t that but I was playing her and I was really lightened up in the movie,” she was quoted as saying.
Priyanka Chopra said that fair-skinned actresses had a higher chance of getting picked for lead roles and succeeding, and that even a celebrity like her suffered prejudice. “If you were darker – I’m not even that dark – for darker girls it was: ‘Let’s lighten you up’.”
Priyanka, who is married to American musician and actor Nick Jonas, expressed guilt for appearing in an early advertisement for a fairness cream, said the Guardian report.
She now believes that such advertisements are harmful to the self-esteem of Indians with dark complexion. She said she then agreed to the ad because big cosmetic companies give prominence and revenue for female celebrities. “A beauty brand is a really big part of an actress’s trajectory,” she said.
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Moving to Hollywood is risky for Indian actors, but Priyanka has had success – appearing in US TV shows such as “Quantico” and starring in the film “The White Tiger”.
Priyanka has maintained a large fan base in India, and her comments have gained widespread attention. They are unlikely to alter much, either in the Bollywood film industry or in wider society, where light skin is still regarded as more attractive, the report said.
Review: ‘Dungeons & Dragons’ puts the funny in fantasy
“You’re not a lot of fun, are you,” notes barbarian Holga (Michelle Rodriguez) to brave fighter Xenk (Regé-Jean Page) in the new “Dungeons & Dragons” film, making two jokes at once.
The first is that Xenk, a paladin (or holy knight) in “D&D” lingo, is everything BUT fun — gorgeous, noble, heroic, smart, and did we mention gorgeous? He’s just REALLY not fun, or funny. He’s so not funny, it’s hilarious.
The second, broader joke is that “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves,” hotly awaited by devotees of the decades-old role-playing game, makes darned sure to be fun, and funny — enough to laugh at itself. And that’s the thing that makes it work.
At least, for a newbie like me. I’ve never played the game, I confess. But this is a movie, not a game, and I’m here to tell you how it works for over two hours at the multiplex. Which is to say, surprisingly, sometimes delightfully well — even if you have no clue what a paladin or Red Wizard or Harper is, or if the term “Dungeon Master” sends your mind straight to “Fifty Shades of Grey.”
The most obvious reason for this success, besides fleet-footed direction by Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley, is star Chris Pine, whose sunny charisma and smooth knack for comedy, plus an ability to seem like he’s both inside the movie and outside looking in, keeps everything bubbling.
He’s ably assisted by Rodriguez, plus young accomplices Justice Smith as a confidence-challenged (but sweet) wizard and Sophia Lillis as a shape-shifting druid. And then we have a graying Hugh Grant, playing the heck out of yet another comic villain role — a character almost as curmudgeonly as he was on the Oscar red carpet.
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Plus there’s a cameo from another big star, but more on that in a minute. Because first we have to mention the pudgy dragon. Yes, pudgy. Whatever dragons eat, and we can only try to imagine, he’s had too many.
But back to Pine, aka the bard Edgin, whom we first meet in a dank, freezing prison cell. He’s — well, he’s knitting. Nearby sits Holga (Rodriguez), and her own hobby is eating. She’s not a cordial sort, especially when food supply is at risk.
An appearance in front of a judicial council, begging for a pardon, gives Edgin the chance to tell his backstory. Turns out he wasn’t always a criminal; he was a Harper, part of a spy guild acting for the greater good, but he attracted the ire of the Red Wizards of Thay, which led to the tragic murder of his wife.
Teaming with Holga, he sets out to find the magical Tablet of Reawakening that would return his wife to him and especially their baby daughter Kira (played by Chloe Coleman as a youngster). But they get captured, and their accomplice Forge (Grant), who somehow escapes, swears to take care of Kira.
Edgin, a master planner, devises a jailbreak right during the pardon hearing. They discover Kira is now living in a walled city with Forge, a con-man who turns out (gasp!) to have planned the whole thing, and has convinced her that Dad betrayed her for riches. And now he’s allied with Sofina, a terrifying sorceress (Daisy Head). Forge not only refuses to give Kira back but sends Edgin and Holga to their deaths. Holga, however, quickly dispatches all the soldiers meant to kill them — all while Edgin tries, and fails, to untie a rope.
Now they need that tablet, but first they need a magical helmet (bear with us.) The quest, upon which they’re joined by Simon (Smith) and Doric (Lillis), leads to the film’s most entertaining scenes. One of these is an impressive, fast-paced sequence where shape-shifter Doric infiltrates enemy lines and then, chased by Sofina, morphs seamlessly into various animal forms and back to herself again.
READ: True story behind Rani Mukerji’s latest film “Mrs Chatterjee Vs Norway”
Another is a comic bit where Pine’s Edgin tries to elicit key information from a series of corpses. Summoned to life by an increasingly effective Simon, each corpse can answer five questions before returning to the grave forever. Edgin keeps wasting his chances with questions like “Did that count as a question?”
And a prime comic moment comes from none other than Bradley Cooper (see, worth the wait!). We’ll reveal nothing but the observation that this cameo is small, but packs a punch.
Finally we have Xenk (Page), perfectly cast as a paladin so, well, perfect that he delivers babies in between vanquishing enemies, and provides the crucial help Edgin needs. But for all sorts of reasons, Edgin can’t bring himself to like the guy. Most of all, he can’t deal with his lack of understanding of irony, sarcasm, and especially humor.
He’s probably right. Heroism is all well and good, but humor is crucial. That’s a lesson this film has, luckily, already figured out.
“Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves,” a Paramount Pictures release, has been rated PG-13 by the Motion Picture Association of America “for fantasy action/violence and some language.” Running time: 134 minutes. Two and a half stars out of four.
MPAA definition of PG-13: Parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.
Tesla cars performing ‘dance of lights’ to 'Naatu Naatu' goes viral
“Naatu Naatu”, the song from Indian film “RRR”, has caused a worldwide frenzy following its Oscar victory.
Celebrities, cricketers, and even diplomats have been inspired by the high energy dance performed by actors Jr NTR and Ram Charan.
Now, a video of Tesla cars creating a light show to the beats of the Oscar-winning song has appeared on the internet, reports NDTV.
The now-viral video was uploaded by RRR's official Twitter account.
In the video, multiple Tesla cars in New Jersey, US light up to the beats of the song.
“In New Jersey, @Teslalightshows light sync with the rhythms of #OscarWinning Music #NaatuNaatu. Thank you for all of your support. @Tesla @elonmusk, #RRRMovie.” — the caption of the post reads.
The Tesla cars' headlights were blinking in sync, and the light display was spectacular, the report said.
After only a few hours, the video has received over 175,000 views and 13,000 likes on Twitter. Tesla Light Show also responded to the post, saying, "Amazing! What a night... Congratulations."
Many comments were also left on the video. "Damn that's so cool!" one person said.
"Nice But how was it done?" — another netizen asked.
"Goosebumps," another tweet said.
“Naatu Naatu” was the first Telugu song to be nominated for an Oscar in the “Original Song” category. It won, beating out famous names like Rihanna and Lady Gaga. Rahul Sipligunj and Kaala Bhairava, as well as director SS Rajamouli and star actors Jr NTR and Ram Charan were present on the occasion.
True story behind Rani Mukerji’s latest film “Mrs Chatterjee Vs Norway”
Popular Bollywood film actress Rani Mukerji returned to the big screen after two years with the film 'Mrs Chatterjee Vs Norway.' At the same time, Anirban Bhattacharya, the heartthrob of Bengali films, made his Bollywood debut through this film. The film is based on a real-life story and plotted from Sagarika Chakraborty's 2022 book The Journey of a Mother. The film has been released on Friday, March 17, 2023, and appears to be a blockbuster.
Details about the Film Mrs Chatterjee Vs Norway
Main Casts
Rani Mukerji as Debika Chatterjee; Anirban Bhattacharya as Aniruddha Chatterjee, Debika's husband; Jim Sarbh as Daniel Singh Ciupek, lawyer of Norway; Neena Gupta as Vasudha Kamat, Indian External Affairs Minister (the character based on Sushma Swaraj).
Plot
Debika and her family - husband Aniruddha, son Shubha, and five-month-old daughter Shuchi - live in Stavanger. During their last visit, Sia and Matilda of Velfred, a child welfare service, take away Shubha and Shuchi, leaving the Chatterjees in shock. They are informed that they are not allowed to keep custody of their children as they are considered unfit.
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Debika then decides to battle the government to regain her children. In the process, she discovers the shocking truth about the child custody system in Norway, prompting her to take drastic action. The rest of the story follows her journey.
Director and Producers
Ashima Chibber is an Indian film director who began her career as an assistant director for films such as “Rockstar” and "Chakde! India." Ashima's fame in Bollywood has been enhanced by her appearances in multiple blockbusters and collaborations with elite directors, allowing her career to flourish. Her entry into television was concurrent with a new phase in Indian TV.
This Hyderabadi girl, who has studied in Delhi and the UK, made her cinematic debut under the direction of acclaimed filmmaker Shimit Amin. In 2013, she made her directorial debut with the romantic comedy "Mere Dad Ki Maruti." The film received positive reviews and was a box-office success. Now she is back with another sensation, “Mrs Chatterjee Vs Norway.”
The film is produced by Monisha Advani, Madhu Bhojwani, and Nikkhil Advani.
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James Gunn to direct ‘Superman: Legacy,’ aiming for 2025
James Gunn is directing a Superman film.
“Superman: Legacy,” which Gunn also wrote, is also set for a July 11, 2025, he and his co-chair and fellow CEO of DC Studios Peter Safran announced Wednesday.
The film, Gunn said, deals with the superhero’s journey to make sense of both his aristocratic Kryptonian heritage and his small town, midwestern upbringing as Clark Kent.
The legacy of Superman has been somewhat fraught recently. In October, Henry Cavill announced that he would be returning to the role starting with a cameo in “Black Adam.” Two months later, though, Cavill was back on social media with the news that he was out.
“This news isn’t the easiest, but that’s life,” Cavill wrote. “The changing of the guard is something that happens. I respect that. James and Peter have a universe to build.”
Gunn and Safran were announced as the new DC leaders just a few days after “Black Adam” opened in October, replacing Walter Hamada, who had headed DC Films for four years. And Cavill as Superman was one of the casualties of the new guard.
“It has been a long road to this point,” Gunn wrote on Twitter Wednesday. “I was offered Superman years ago - I initially said no because I didn’t have a way in that felt unique and fun and emotional that gave Superman the dignity he deserved. ... Then a bit less than a year ago I saw a way in.”Gunn also said the release date is the same as his late father’s birthday.
“He was my best friend,” Gunn wrote. “He didn’t understand me as a kid, but he supported my love of comics and my love of film and I wouldn’t be making this movie now without him.”
Gunn has for several years been the rare director to bounce between both DC and Marvel films. He first came to DC after directing Marvel’s well-regarded “Guardians of the Galaxy” films. When the Walt Disney Co. temporarily dropped Gunn over old tweets that joked about rape and pedophilia, he jumped to DC and made the supervillain film “The Suicide Squad,” a kind of blockbuster do-over that followed David Ayer’s much-maligned “Suicide Squad.”
He and the veteran producer Safran came aboard with several upcoming DC films already on their way to theaters, including “Shazam! Fury of the Gods” (March 17), “The Flash” (out June 16) and “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” (Dec. 25). And he still has “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” coming on May 5.
“Superman: Legacy” will be the first film in the new iteration of the connected DC Universe, followed by Matt Reeves’ “The Batman Part II,” which is set for an Oct. 2025 launch. That film, like Todd Phillips’ “Joker” sequel coming in 2024, will lie outside of the DCU.
Oscars 2023: Vogue misidentifies Deepika Padukone as Camila Alves
Deepika Padukone, despite being an internationally recognized Indian actress, was misidentified as Camila Alves by Getty and Vogue in their Oscars 2023 coverage.
Deepika, who was one of the Oscar presenters, introduced a rousing performance of RRR’s Oscar-winning viral track “Naatu Naatu”, and has been on the international circuit – Cannes jury and a FIFA World Cup last year, but apparently Western media “can’t tell her apart from Matthew McConaughey’s wife Camila,” reports NDTV.
Deepika wore a black Louis Vuitton to the Oscars, and she “did not resemble” Camila, a Brazilian model and designer, it said.
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Deepika is making waves, and for good reason. She and Iker Casillas introduced the FIFA World Cup 2022 trophy in Qatar. She has also been on the Cannes Film Festival jury.
Deepika Padukone is now enjoying the success of her latest film “Pathaan”, in which she co-stars with Shah Rukh Khan and John Abraham. The film is now breaking box office records.Deepika Padukone will next be seen in “Fighter” with Hrithik Roshan.
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This is how Oscar winners are decided
The road to an Oscar winds through a long awards season, which finally culminates Sunday at the Academy Awards. We take you through the process of getting that golden statuette into a winner’s hand — this is how Oscar voting works:
WHO VOTES ON THE OSCARS?
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences boasts some 10,000-plus members, divided among 17 branches. All academy members have to be involved in the movie business in some capacity, but membership isn’t restricted to creatives — there are branches for executives and marketing and public relations professionals, as well.
While nominations are mostly decided by members of the relevant branch (directors nominate directors, for instance), all voting members can nominate films for best picture. Once nominees are decided, all voting members are eligible to cast their ballots in any category.
In recent years, the academy has taken steps to diversify its membership, especially after receiving criticism for a spate of all-white acting nominees.. It adds new members once a year.
WHEN DOES OSCAR VOTING TAKE PLACE?
Voting takes place over a few days not too long before the ceremony — in 2023, voting opened March 2 and ended March 7, five days before the big night.
HOW ARE VOTES CAST?
While the final results can sometimes be controversial, there’s no risk of hanging chads — voting takes place entirely online.
Tabulation for most categories is simple — the nominee that gets the most votes wins.
Best picture, on the other hand, employs ranked-choice voting (also known as preferential voting). Voters order the nominees by preference; if one movie comes away with more than 50% of the first-place votes in the first round, that’s the winner. But if no movie meets that threshold, then the one with the fewest first-place votes is eliminated — people who had ranked that film first will have their votes transferred to their second choices. And so on it goes until some movie wins a majority.
It sounds complicated, we know, but proponents of ranked-choice voting argue that it’s more representative, especially in a large field of nominees.
WHO KNOWS THE WINNERS BEFORE THEY’RE ANNOUNCED?
According to the academy website, just two PricewaterhouseCoopers partners know the results beforehand. PwC is the accounting firm that tabulates the votes. Each partner is stationed in the Dolby Theatre’s wings during the ceremony with a full set of winners’ envelopes. They’re charged with handing the sealed envelope to the winner.
Infamously, in 2017, a PwC accountant handed Warren Beaty and Faye Dunaway the wrong envelope, resulting in the “La La Land”/“Moonlight” best picture fiasco.
2023 Oscars: What to know about the best actor nominees
It’s always fun when an Oscars category is filled with first-time nominees at varying stages of their careers. Best actor is another three-way race, between Austin Butler, Colin Farrell and Brendan Fraser, with each having scored notable wins from guilds and critics groups. The Associated Press’ film writers predict Fraser to have the edge.
Here’s a bit more about the nominees and their roles before the Oscars on March 12, which airs live on ABC beginning at 8 p.m. Eastern. And if you’ve missed a performance, there’s still time to watch this year’s nominees.
BRENDAN FRASER
Brendan Fraser doesn’t mind that people have called his turn in Darren Aronofsky’s “The Whale,” in which he plays a reclusive English teacher named Charlie who is grappling with his past in the midst of a dire prognosis, a “comeback.” But it’s not the word he’d choose.
“If anything, this is a reintroduction more than a comeback,” Fraser told The AP. “It’s an opportunity to reintroduce myself to an industry, who I do not believe forgot me as is being perpetrated. I’ve just never been that far away.”
The film, an adaptation of Samuel D. Hunter’s play, shows a different side of Fraser as an actor than the affable action/comedy roles that made him beloved and famous in the 1990s.“I gave it everything I had every day,” he said. “We lived under existential threat of COVID. An actor’s job is to approach everything like it’s the first time. I did but also as if it might be the last time.”
Age: 54
Notable Wins: Critics Choice, Screen Actors Guild.
COLIN FARRELL
In Martin McDonagh’s tragicomic tale of the end of a friendship “The Banshees of Inisherin,” Colin Farrell’s Pádraic is the one being broken up with by Brendan Gleeson’s Colm on their small Irish island in 1923.
“He has an innocence where he can’t comprehend why his friend of so many years has cut him out,” Farrell said of his character last year at the Venice Film Festival, where he’d go on to win the best actor prize. “It shakes him to his core ... He lives in a beautiful life and that beauty is taken away.”
The film was a reunion for the trio who developed a deep bond on “In Bruges” 14 years ago.
“From the start, there was a deep sense of kinship and an understanding of each other,” Farrell told The AP. “In a strange way, I understand myself more through Martin and his mind and his heart and his work. And I understand myself more through my interactions with Brendan.”
Age: 46
Notable Wins: Venice Film Festival, New York Film Critics Circle, National Board of Review, Golden Globes (Musical/Comedy)
AUSTIN BUTLER
Austin Butler spent so much time and mental and emotional energy in preparing to play and playing Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrmann’s colorful drama that he finds it difficult to talk about without “sounding incredibly pretentious and self-important,” he told The AP. “There are certain aspects that even I don’t fully understand.”
The past few weeks have brought their own emotional highs and lows too, with his Golden Globe win, his Oscar nomination and the tragic death of Lisa Marie Presley in the span of a few days.
“The peaks are so high and the valleys have been so low,” Butler said.
“I just wish Lisa Marie were here with us to celebrate. At times, in the midst of intense grief and just a shattering loss, it feels sort of bizarre to celebrate. But I also know how much this film meant to Lisa Marie, how much her father’s legacy meant to her. So I feel so proud and humble to be a part of that story.”
Age: 31
Notable Wins: Golden Globes (Drama), BAFTA.
BILL NIGHY
Bill Nighy plays a British civil servant who receives a terminal diagnosis in 1953 London in Oliver Hermanus’s remake of the Kurosawa classic “Ikiru.”
“I was very moved by it when we were making it, the fact that we were making it, that we were back and that it was the first thing I’d done since the pandemic,” Nighy told The AP. “The pandemic forced us to look at our priorities in our lives and all that and this film discusses how to make the most of every day. So I suppose in that regard it was timely.”
The veteran actor said he thought they were making something special, but he was unprepared for the rapturous reception everywhere. And thematic resonance aside, it hasn’t got him thinking about his own legacy.
“I don’t ever think in terms of legacy,” he said. “I find it difficult to get enthusiastic about a world which is not going to include me.”
Age: 73
Notable Wins: Los Angeles Film Critics Association.
PAUL MESCAL
Paul Mescal did not expect to come out of “Aftersun” friends with an 11-year-old. But that’s what happened with his co-star Frankie Corio on the set of Charlotte Wells’ personal and evocative film about a young father and his daughter on vacation in Turkey in the 1990s.
“Both of us got out two weeks before filming started. There was kind of a loose plan that we might rehearse. And we did some of that, but ultimately, we just spent the two weeks where I was playing like pretending to be her dad,” Mescal told The AP. “It’s one of the greatest professional experiences that I’ve had. It really surprised me. I fell in love with her and I adore her and she’s just a phenomenal actor.”
The Irish actor said he likes working on smaller films with first-time directors. If anything, he hopes that his raised profile following his nomination might help him be able to get another project like that made.
“I take great pride in the fact that there’s an appetite for those films still,” he said.
Age: 27