Rohini Nair
Deccan Chronicle·Firstpost
Most Divergent Takes
- The Predator (2018)2.0 vs TRM 5.1-3.1
- Raees (2017)8.0 vs TRM 5.8+2.2
- Playing It Cool (2015)3.0 vs TRM 4.9-1.9
- Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)6.0 vs TRM 7.3-1.3
- The Revenant (2016)8.0 vs TRM 6.8+1.2
Romeo Akbar Walter
2019 · Firstpost · Apr 2019
These stories deserve the spotlight more than ever before, given the tinderbox India is sitting on currently after the Pulwama attack. But RAW chooses to tell the other, more populist side of the story. Though that is completely the makers' choice, one wishes they would have not given up on nuance while translating the popular sentiment into a half-baked spy thriller.
The Predator
2018 · Firstpost · Sep 2018
There's little to recommend in this hackneyed reboot...
Rangoon
2017 · Firstpost · Feb 2017
Rangoon is far from a perfect film; there are scenes that definitely do not work in terms of the effects. Some of the pivotal moments can have a cartoon-ish quality and that does detract from the immersive-ness of the experience. It can be a distraction just when you need to be with these characters every step of the way.
Raees
2017 · Firstpost · Jan 2017
Watch Raees for Shah Rukh Khan. Watch Raees for Nawazuddin Siddiqui. Watch Raees for Rahul Dholakia. But most of all, watch Raees for Raees.
Race
2016 · Firstpost · Mar 2016
This Jesse Owens biopic grips you till the finish line...
Carol
2016 · Deccan Chronicle · Feb 2016
As a showcase for Cate Blanchett's acting prowess, it is wonderful. As a meditation on a love that defies social norms, it leaves room for so much more.
The Revenant
2016 · Deccan Chronicle · Feb 2016
More than one man's revenge, it is this narrative — about the battle for settling on America's frontiers, and the many victims it claimed — that is the truly gripping offering in The Revenant.
Spotlight
2016 · Deccan Chronicle · Feb 2016
In a world full of glittering rhinestones, Spotlight is like a quietly shining gem.
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
2015 · Deccan Chronicle · Dec 2015
By the time the film reaches its climax, you'll find yourself quite satisfied with this reboot. It gives fans of the franchise everything they could possibly hope for -- but it also updates the series for a new generation of viewers, ensuring that the Star Wars brand will continue to enthrall our collective imagination for many more years.
Spectre
2015 · Deccan Chronicle · Nov 2015
With so much going for it, we're pretty willing to overlook the weak moments in SPECTRE — of which there are quite a few.
Crimson Peak
2015 · Deccan Chronicle · Oct 2015
Crimson Peak is a story of ghosts, both real and metaphorical. Its flaw is that the "real" ones are far more fascinating than the "metaphorical" ones. The most compelling films in the horror genre have humans who're at least as interesting as the ghosts they're haunted by, if not more. InCrimson Peak, that sadly, isn't the case.
Sicario
2015 · Deccan Chronicle · Oct 2015
Sicario is grim, Sicario is dark, Sicario is also, in its quiet way, gorgeous.
The Martian
2015 · Deccan Chronicle · Oct 2015
Director Ridley Scott's visuals are either deeply intimate (focused up close on Watney and his doings) or immeasurably vast (the unending red desert stretches of Mars, the infinity of space) and the latter touch something deep and elemental in you.
Ricki and the Flash
2015 · Deccan Chronicle · Aug 2015
Ricki and the Flash is let down by a schmaltzy, too-pat climax. Most of the final sequence feels almost forced — like the director and the writer had to check certain boxes: 1. Emotional redemption for Ricki and her children, check. 2. Pair everybody off happily with partner, check. 3. Ensure Ricki 'saves' the day and gets to be the heroine, check.
Mr. Holmes
2015 · Deccan Chronicle · Jul 2015
Mr Holmes attacks your well-nursed beliefs about the detective in other ways as well. McKellen's Sherlock is fallible and fragile and his deterioration is undeniably poignant. This Sherlock has found that even at the height of his powers, his weapon of choice — logic — is no match for human nature.
Amy
2015 · Deccan Chronicle · Jul 2015
I went into it not knowing much about her beyond the reports of her drug and alcohol abuse, and came out, a convert to her brand of music, to her brand of personality.
Pitch Perfect 2
2015 · Deccan Chronicle · Jul 2015
Pitch Perfect 2 may go off key on the comedy, but on the a capella, it hits all the right notes.
Inside Out
2015 · Deccan Chronicle · Jun 2015
Inside Out isn't just about the laughs, however. Just as Joy and Sadness travel together through Riley's mind, these emotions will affect you in equal measure when watching the film. You may be reminded of your own childhood, or Riley's predicament or the home truths at the end of the film may touch you, and compel you to shed a tear or two. At other times, you'll be laughing aloud at the shenanigans of Joy, Sadness and Bing Bong. As a heartwarming tale that lets you slip inside the very complex space that is a child's mind, Inside Out is a gem indeed.
The Age of Adaline
2015 · Deccan Chronicle · Jun 2015
...is a pleasant enough depiction of passion, if not a deep rumination on the perils of eternal youth.
Mad Max: Fury Road
2015 · Deccan Chronicle · May 2015
Even as the characters in Fury Road fight to seek redemption, or to sustain a fragile measure of hope, they give you a thrilling ride — quite possibly the best ride at the movies for a long time to come.
Playing It Cool
2015 · Deccan Chronicle · May 2015
Towards the end of the film, we see our hero making a breathless dash though the airport, as he's trying to find Her. He notes to himself that what he's really doing is trying to outrun a cliché. Well, Playing It Cool doesn't manage to outrun any of those clichés it attempts to satirise. What a pity.
While We're Young
2015 · Deccan Chronicle · May 2015
...works at many levels — it is at once a humorous jab at our varied obsessions, be it with technology, or with keeping up, or with wanting to stay young. It's also — like that column written by Cheryl Strayed — a look at youth and all its charm and promise and pretensions. It's a look at the things we get to know only when we're no longer so terribly young: That "about eight of the 10 things you have decided about yourself will over time prove to be false". And that the other two "will prove to be so true that you'll look back in 20 years and howl".
Avengers: Age of Ultron
2015 · Deccan Chronicle · Apr 2015
...may not go down as a superhero classic, but it delivers what it's meant to. And of course, it sets the scene for the Marvel instalments still to come. Mission accomplished.
Jupiter Ascending
2015 · Deccan Chronicle · Feb 2015
Jupiter Ascending then, is a missed opportunity for the Wachowskis—and a missed opportunity for viewers.
Foxcatcher
2015 · Deccan Chronicle · Jan 2015
Foxcatcher illuminates three complex men (to varying degrees) and their relationships. It highlights the disservice we as a society do to our sportspersons (a point that will resonate with audiences here). And it depicts just how much we're willing to overlook when great wealth and power are brought to bear on a situation.