Bollywood

A distant, vastly disappointing “second”; unfathomable, dreary interpretation of characters so alive and vibrant in the first “chapter”; gone is the exciting, enticing flavor of India; this bland, silly scenario could have taken place anywhere. The same cast, marginalized by mundane writing and superfluous directing (John Madden, “Shakespeare in Love”). Dev Patel, “Sonny” the endearing proprietor of the “Marigold Hotel” ... Read More »

To enter: 1)   You must be a subscriber to Peneflix. By entering the contest, you agree to share your information with Peneflix.com and will be subscribed to the Peneflix email newsletter. 2)   You may only enter once. 3)   You have to beat me; which is the easiest challenge of all. 4)   $100.00 gift card will be mailed to you to enjoy movies. ... Read More »

To enter: 1)   You must be a subscriber to Peneflix. By entering the contest, you agree to share your information with Peneflix.com and will be subscribed to the Peneflix email newsletter. 2)   You may only enter once. 3)   You have to beat me; which is the easiest challenge of all. 4)   $100.00 gift card will be mailed to you to enjoy movies. ... Read More »

Director Amit Sharma’s “Tevar”, loosely translated “attitude/anger” is monotonous, predictable, cacophonous, intolerably boring; a major conundrum is why this formula is perpetually pervasive in the Bollywood genre; hundreds of films, sundry actors, ubiquitous scenario.  Arjun Kapoor a porky, athletic, rebel -rouser, “Pintu”, comes to the aid of a “damsel in distress’ (myriads of them pulsate on the India screen, waiting ... Read More »

Aamir Khan is one of the most remarkable, versatile actors on the contemporary screen; from action hero to alien his chameleon attributes never cease to overwhelm; “P.K.”, comparable to “Forest Gump”, “E.T”, “Dorothy” charms, intrigues and elucidates; he is a one-of-a-kind  creature who sheds enlightenment and enchantment as he looks for his stolen “remote”, without which he can never return ... Read More »

Woefully, for the first twenty minutes of this abused Bollywood theme (saviors vs villains) my impulse was to run, demand a refund, conserve my sanity, luxuriate in the freedom of three undetermined hours; reasoning aside, I remained. Ajay Devgan is the Eastern composite of: Sylvester Stallone, Charles Bronson, Bruce Willis,  Arnold Schwarzenegger, Tom Cruise; superheroes who have felled thousands of ... Read More »

Director/choreographer Farah Khan (“Om Shanti Om”) serves her revenge Masala style, hot and spicy; “Happy New Year” is a Bollywood romp reminiscent of “Ocean’s Eleven”, “Italian Job” and a plagiarized version of Hollywood’s 1987 “Happy New Year”, starring Peter Falk and Charles Durning; Shah Rukh Khan is at his “abs”olute best as “Charlie”, seeking revenge for the false imprisonment of ... Read More »

A strange phenomena occurs while watching three to four films a day; similarities, idiosyncrasies, poetic ploys, resonate as they would not under normal viewing circumstances: smoking informs approximately 80% of the films, regardless of the country they represent; cell phones, despite the direness of living conditions, are a major tool of contemporary filmmakers (“Timbuktu”);  child stars are a prime, compelling ... Read More »

Bollywood’s anemic and hardly recognizable imitation of Hollywood’s  2010 “Knight and Day” starring Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz;  India’s eleven-fingered, handsome,  heartthrob Hrithik Roshan (with an abdomen so defined it defies pulsation; questioning the veracity of such tautened ripples, resembling robotic, digital action toys), is “Jai” the daredevil protagonist, capable of phenomenal wizardry; stealing the Koh-i-noor Diamond from the Tower ... Read More »

William Shakespeare (1564-1616) did his most prolific writing between the years 1589-1613; he was the quintessential Bard, has never come close to being duplicated; his works, themes, resonate today as they did hundreds of years ago; no one captures the foils, fantasies, baseness or heroics of the human condition as did this timeless genius. Director Vishal Bhardwaj’s “Haider” is a ... Read More »