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Looper Writer-director:Rian Johnson Stars: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, Emily Blunt Time travel is a popular science fiction ploy but although the sub-genre is nominally concerned with ‘scientific possibilities’, its actual preoccupation is different. It is essentially a narrativization of technological, social or political fear. The very first bit of...
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Melancholia Writer-director: Lars von Trier Stars: Kirsten Dunst, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Alexander Skarsgård Lars von Trier has zeroed in on Andrei Tarkovsky as the greatest filmmaker of all times and, judging from his pronouncements, he is regarding himself as Tarkovsky’s successor. Tarkovsky was a great filmmaker but if Lars von...
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The Servant Director: Joseph Losey Writers: Harold Pinter, Robin Maugham Stars: Dirk Bogarde, Sarah Miles, Wendy Craig Genre: Drama Language: English Release date: 1964 Duration: 1 hour, 56 mins. Awards: winner of 3 BAFTAs, and nominated for a Venice Golden Lion Story Published in 1948, THE SERVANT is...
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Les Enfants Du Paradis Director: Marcel Carné Writer: Jacques Prévert Stars: Arletty, Jean-Louis Barrault, Pierre Brasseur Awards: Nominated for Oscar for Best Original Screenplay Widely regarded as the greatest film ever made, Marcel Carne’s Les Enfants Du Paradis (1945) is not as well known in India where that other contender for...
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The Monk Director:Dominik Moll Writers: Matthew Lewis, Dominik Moll, Anne-Louise Trividic Stars: Vincent Cassel, Déborah François, Joséphine Japy Dominik Moll has not been prolific, The Monk (2011) being only his fourth feature film. But on the strength of the three films widely seen, there is little doubt that he...
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Lincoln Director:Steven Spielberg Writers: Tony Kushner, Doris Kearns Goodwin Stars:Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field, David Strathairn Awards: Oscar for Best Actor and for Production Design. There are numerous ways in which a biopic of a statesman or a politician can be put together in cinema and the chosen approach...
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Arbitage Writer-director: Nicholas Jarecki Stars: Richard Gere, Susan Sarandon, Tim Roth Nicholas Jarecki’s Arbitrage is a political film, but its statement is disguised as family drama. The first factor that makes it highly political is that it is about a hedge-fund tycoon and investment bankers have become highly...
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The Holy Innocents Director: Mario Camus Writers: Miguel Delibes, Antonio Larreta, Manolo Matji Stars: Alfredo Landa, Terele Pávez, Belén Ballesteros Mario Camus’ The Holy Innocents (1984) is a Spanish film that may be roughly described as ‘humanist realism’ because it deals with rural poverty in Spain during the...
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“War is hypocrite, peace is worse.” Tolstoy could have written this on his epic treatment of the Napoleonic war. Since the end of the WWII, the world has been witnessing the scourge of peace, and silent violence, every year, at every turn on the road. Marriages have been nullified,...
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Steven Spielberg’s penchant for historico-political films began with The Color Purple (1985), for which he was panned both by the American black community and the critics. He grew up, in a big way, since this early attempt, when he tried an epic scale recreation of the Auschwitz, its background...