Why Guardians of the Galaxy is the greatest superhero film of all time #Ode #VoxPop

Note: This piece was written by Nikhil Taneja (@tanejamainhoon) for the VoxPop Blog.

So I’m going to go on a limb out here and say that Guardians of the Galaxy is the greatest superhero movie of all time. BOOM!  Yes, I did just make a sweeping declaration and no, it’s not because it’s Marvel Month at VoxPop (even though it is) or because I have a man crush on Chris Pratt (even though I totally do), or because my Baby Groot action figure means more to me than actual babies mean to some people (even though I am Groot). It’s because it’s true.

I do understand how some of you may feel about this as the legend of Christophar Nolan’s The Dark Knight has elevated it to the defecto status of the greatest, while there are some who swear by Spider-Man 2, The Incredibles, Unbreakable, Blade, Superman: The Movie, X2 and Batman Returns in the older ones, and X-Men: First Class, Deadpool, Chronicle, Kickass, plus Avengers, Iron Man, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Iron Man 2… well, basically everything else from Marvel, in the newer ones.  There are also some who believe Krrish 3 ROXXX, but unfortunately 7 year olds don’t know any better, so we will let them be for now.

The Curse of Christopher Nolan
But I can reason it out, *logically*. Let’s go back in time to the year 2008, when The Dark Knight released, and the superhero world, heck, the entire blockbuster movie world, turned dark. We got a Spiderman reboot sans humour (The Amazing Spiderman), a Superman reboot that had a dark tinge throughout the film (Man of Steel), an Iron Man so dark that it was shot mostly at night (Iron Man 3), a Captain America so dark that even the Hulk had better jokes (The Avengers) and a Thor so dark that they even put the word ‘dark’ in its title, you know, in case anyone thought it *looked* too bright (Thor: The Dark World).

Even if you discount the Zack Snyder affliction that’s plaguing the DC world at the moment, even movie titles *literally* went ‘dark’ post-2008. Here’s a list of just some of the movies that came out after The Dark Knight:  Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011), The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Star Trek Into Darkness (2013), Thor: The Dark World (2013)… and I’m only listing summer movies here. There’s also Edge of Darkness (2010), The Darkest Hour (2011) Dark Shadows (2012), Zero Dark Thirty (2012), You Will Meet a Tall, Dark Stranger (2010)…. Umm, okay I made my point.

On the heels of this illness, came the unlikely Guardians of the Galaxy, a movie so aggressively anti darkness that its trailer featured Swedish pop rock band Blue Swede’s ‘70s anthem, ‘Hooked on a Feeling’ as opposed to, you know, Mike Zarin’s BRAAAM!s from the Inception trailer. Considering the fact that the joke was actually on the last few superhero films that tried being funny (Green Lantern and The Green Hornet failed spectacularly), it cannot be stressed enough how mental the very idea of Guardians of the Galaxy was.

Marvel’s Lab Experiment
Here’s a film that was so disruptive that it was practically a lab experiment by Marvel. It was directed by an indie filmmaker whose most notable work was having scripted the Scooby-Doo movies (James Gunn), it was set in outer space with a budget of $170 million dollars (enough to feed Bangladesh), and featured five anti-heroes: a lead who was earlier best known as the chunky dude in a niche TV show (Pratt as Starlord), a former WWE wrestler (Dave Bautista as Drax), and three recognisable faces who were either in unrecognizable makeup (Zoe Saldana as Gamora) or were animated (Bradley Cooper as Rocket Raccoon and Vin Diesel as Groot)! Recipe for disaster, right?

But NO! Guardians of the Galaxy became the biggest August-release of all time in the US, making $773.14 million globally in 2014 (for comparison, Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice is at $872.7 million in 2016) and there’s one big reason why: it brought back the essence of what comic book movies were always supposed to be but something that most superhero movies had completely forgotten to be in the years preceding: FUN!

Take the pre-climax scene where the five anti-heroes agree to go on a suicidal mission to save the world after Starlord’s ‘I have a plan’ speech. The movie does the cliché Blake Snyder’s beat sheet tick mark, but then, once all five are standing, Rocket remarks snarkily, “There, I’m also standing. Look at us, a bunch of jackasses, standing in a circle!” It’s this – how the film took all such superhero tropes and played it to perfection, only to turn it on its head before the end, so that the audience got to watch both an irreverent indie film that’s new and exciting and the familiar summer film that’s become such a lost art.

Indie Soul in a Blockbuster
Because that’s what the legacy of Guardians of the Galaxy and that’s what makes it so great – and in my books, the greatest: a summer blockbuster with the soul of an indie film. It has the big ticket action scenes, but it also has the quiet moments – like the scene where Groot grows a flower to gift a little girl; or the scene where Groot releases fireflies to bring about light in a dark scene; or well, just the fact that it’s got Groot! Instead of going the ‘one for them, one for us’ way with their slate of blockbuster films that go right up to 2020, Marvel figured out the inspired middle-path in this one: ‘something for both’. How else do you explain an ingenious ‘70s soundtrack (‘The Awesome Mix Vol. 1) to a film set in space?

Even besides this, what Guardians of the Galaxy did with its success was empowering indie filmmakers to give their own unique voice to big budget films. Now you have a Spiderman movie made by the guy who last made a violent road thriller (Jon Watts), a Thor movie made by a dude who made a horror comedy mockumentary on vampires (Taika Waititi) and a Doctor Strange movie by the guy who made indie horror scary again (Scott Derickson)!

In Groot We Trust
GOTG also empowered hapless audience that wanted to be entertained but could not suffer through one more never-ending Michael Bay explosionfest (especially without any Megan Fox) or a Snyder VFXfest (especially without Nolan exec producing) to demand movies that actually DO have a story, a heart and a soul. Most importantly, it empowered studios to experiment with new subjects (even if its superheroes), the wackier, the better. Hence, we already have a Deadpool and Suicide Squad, and are in the line for a Lego Batman Movie, a *young* Spiderman and Flash, and so many more!

Just like the heroes at its helm, Guardians of the Galaxy is the unlikely misfit superhero film that the world needed, and not just the film they wanted, hence making it the greatest ever. With a franchise like GOTG, the future of the galaxy is in safe hands indeed, because essentially, in Groot, we trust.

 

Follow the blog on your left and like The Tanejamainhoon Page on FB: /tanejamainhoonpage
Follow Nikhil Taneja on FB: /tanejamainhoon, on Twitter:
@tanejamainhoon, on Instagram:@tanejamainhoon,
on Youtube: /tanejamainhoon

Liked/disliked the piece? Leave your comments below!
Note: This interview first appeared on the Vox Pop Blog in September 2016.
Picture courtesy: Google. None of the pictures are owned by the author all rights belong to the original owner(s) and photographer(s).
© Copyright belongs to the author, Nikhil Taneja. The article may not be reproduced without permission. A link to the URL, instead, would be appreciated.

The 30 Best Indies of 2015

#ICYMI:
THE 50 BEST TV SHOWS OF 2015: http://goo.gl/exsraC
THE 35 BEST FILMS OF 2015: http://goo.gl/Z796RR
THE 100 MOST AWAITED FILMS OF 2016: http://goo.gl/KLHbTP
THE 35 MOST AWAITED TV SERIES OF 2016: http://goo.gl/b20Hr7
THE COMPLETE POP CULTURE CALENDAR OF 2016 (WITH RELEASE DATES): http://goo.gl/JMWW7c


I love indie films and I especially love happy, feel-good, uplifting indie films, which are my favourite of all kinds of films. In 2015, I didn’t nearly see as many Indies as I’d have liked to but there are many that stayed with me. Here’s a list of 30 of my favourites; 20 of them happy and 10 others that are dark/edgy:

20 BEST HAPPY INDIES OF 2015

1. SPRING: Because the film is about love at its purest and it made me want to write: Spring Movie Recommendation.
2. ME AND EARL AND THE DYING GIRL: Because ‘death’ as a coming of age device has never been captured so poignantly (with such a perfect comic tone).
3. COMET: Because the creator of Mr. Robot, Sam Esmail, is just as good a director as he’s a showrunner (and this scifi romance is a must watch).
4. AMIRA AND SAM: Because Martin Starr is an underrated indie rockstar and this is the year’s most unexpectedly awesome romcom for me.
5. DOPE: Because it’ll be tough to find a better ode to hip hop culture of the ‘90s than this refreshing comic of age comedy.
6. PRIDE: Because no one can make you smile and cry at the same time like the Brits (and this ode to the LGBT community will lift your spirits!).
7. PAPER TOWNS: Because whatever Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber write is solid gold and this ode to teenage friendship is just that.
8. MISTRESS AMERICA: Because Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach know something about today’s young urban 20-somethings that no one else does.
9. HECTOR & THE SEARCH FOR HAPPINESS: Because it’s a Simon Pegg starring travel comedy about happiness and that’s SUCH an epic throughline.
10. TOP FIVE: Because Chris Rock’s back and he gives us a spanking, fresh, all check-boxes ticked romcom that’s a blast in every scene.
11. STANDBY: Because while Ireland’s Before Sunrise may be a long way away from reaching that level, but has enough charm to keep you smiling through its runtime.
12. SLEEPING WITH OTHER PEOPLE: Because in the garb of a mainstream commercial romcom, Jason Sudeikis and Alison Brie give you a beautiful, thoughtful love story about sex.
13. THE REWRITE: Because Hugh Grant never gets old and this romcom, though totally missed by everyone, will take you to the genre’s good ol’ 90s.
14. MAGIC IN THE MOONLIGHT: Because it’s got Emma Stone and Colin Firth and is directed by Woody Allen and do you need any more reason than that?
15. NIGHT OWLS: Because there is something admirable about Adam Pally’s blabbermouth routine and Rosa Salazar is a firecracker on screen, which makes this is a great ‘night-in’ romcom.
16. INFINITELY POLAR BEAR: Because Mark Ruffalo is such a fucking fantastic actor and he really needs to be in everything, so this lovely portrayal of bipolar disorder by him will make your heart swell.
17. THE END OF THE TOUR: Because James Ponsoldt can make you feel for a stone if he wanted, so this five-days-in-the-life-of David Foster Wallace is stuffed with the feels.
18. DEAR WHITE PEOPLE: Because a smart and funny satire about campus race relations is a refreshingly cool way of tackling the issue!
19. WHILE WE’RE YOUNG: Because Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach know something about today’s not-so-young urban 30-somethings that no one else does.
20. HAPPY CHRISTMAS: Because Joe Swanberg directs Lena Dunham, Anna Kendrick and Melanie Lysnkey and the result is indielicious.

 

10 BEST DARK INDIES OF 2015

1. JOHN WICK: Because this is Keanuissance (Reevaissance?) at its kickass, brutal, violent, head-smashing, bone-breaking, batshit crazy best in a full blown action classic.
2. EX-MACHINA: Because when three of the greatest young actors of today, Oscar Issac, Domnhall Gleeson and Alicia Vikander, come together for one scifi film, you know it’s going to be fantastic.
3. ’71: Because the period of The Troubles always makes for gripping cinema and with Jack O’Conner and Richard Dormer leading the cast, it makes for thrilling cinema too.
4. IRRATIONAL MAN: Because when Woody Allen does dark comedy he does it like no one else and when Joaquin Phoenix & Emma Stone team up, it’s a match like none else too.
5. COP CAR: Because there is a reason Jon Watts got handpicked to direct the next Spiderman and it is all too clear in this terrific road thriller.
6. THE GUEST: Because Dan Stevens breaking out of his Downton Abbey nice-guy routine is a how-to on ‘playing against type’ in this action thriller.
7. CHI-RAQ: Because when Spike Lee gets it right, he gets it right and how, and this satire on Chicago street violence is his best work in a while.
8. IT FOLLOWS: Because indie horror is a tough genre to get noticed in so when a movie manages to creep out of nowhere to creep you out, it instantly becomes memorable.
9. THE STANFORD PRISON EXPERIMENT: Because the sheer number of young talent in this film is enough of a reason to watch it, and the film tops it up by being an uneasy, uncomfortable watch.
10. BIG GAME: Because the Scandinavians know how to get their thrillers right and this low-budget actioner starring Samuel L. Jackson and a kid is a throwback to the good ol’ ‘80s.

#ICYMI:
THE 50 BEST TV SHOWS OF 2015: http://goo.gl/exsraC
THE 35 BEST FILMS OF 2015: http://goo.gl/Z796RR
THE 100 MOST AWAITED FILMS OF 2016: http://goo.gl/KLHbTP
THE 35 MOST AWAITED TV SERIES OF 2016: http://goo.gl/b20Hr7
THE COMPLETE POP CULTURE CALENDAR OF 2016 (WITH RELEASE DATES): http://goo.gl/JMWW7c

Follow the blog on your left and like The Tanejamainhoon Page on FB: /tanejamainhoonpage
Follow Nikhil Taneja on FB: /tanejamainhoon, on Twitter:
@tanejamainhoon, on Instagram:@tanejamainhoon,
on Youtube: /tanejamainhoon

Liked/disliked the piece? Think I’m awesome or really, really not? Leave your comments below 🙂
Picture courtesy: Google. None of the pictures are owned by the author all rights belong to the original owner(s) and photographer(s).
© Copyright belongs to the author, Nikhil Taneja. The article may not be reproduced without permission. A link to the URL, instead, would be appreciated.

THE 35 BEST FILMS OF 2015

#ICYMI:
THE 50 BEST TV SHOWS OF 2015: http://goo.gl/exsraC
THE 30 BEST INDIES OF 2015: http://goo.gl/xfRuOk
THE 100 MOST AWAITED FILMS OF 2016: http://goo.gl/KLHbTP
THE 35 MOST AWAITED TV SERIES OF 2016: http://goo.gl/b20Hr7
THE COMPLETE POP CULTURE CALENDAR OF 2016 (WITH RELEASE DATES): http://goo.gl/JMWW7c

I have already made a list of the 30 BEST INDIES OF 2015, but I also wanted to put together a list of my favourite Summer Films, Hindi Films and ‘Good Films’ (Dramas/Comedies). Please note that this is a list of MY 35 Favourite Films of 2015 and if there are films missing from here, trust me, they’ve been left out on purpose (for eg. I didn’t feel too much for Piku or Spectre, etc). Anyway, here are my lists below:

THE 15 BEST HINDI FILMS

1. TALVAR: Because Irrfan Khan and Neeraj Kabi and Gajraj Rao and Konkana Sen Sharma and Vishal Bharadwaj and Meghna Gulzar.
2. DUM LAGAKE HAISHA: Because this could well be India’s first indie romcom by a big studio.
3. MASAAN: Because it made me want to write: On Masaan.
4. BABY: Because Neeraj Pandey is to thrillers what Raju Hirani is to feel good cinema. Here’s my piece on it: On Baby.
5. DETECTIVE BYOMKESH BAKSHY!: Because Dibakar Banerjee is a star and this film got the short end of the stick. My piece on it: On Detective Byomkesh Bakshy!
6. TAMASHA: Because Imtiaz Ali has the power to make you feel feelings that no other Indian director does.
7. DIL DHADAKNE DO: Because Anil Kapoor!!
8. TANU WEDS MANU RETURNS: Because two Kangana Ranaut is even better than one Kangana Ranaut.
9. BOMBAY VELVET: Because it was a GOOD film and my thoughts on it are well documented: On Bombay Velvet.
10. NH10: Because we haven’t managed to pull off a road thriller so well ever before and hats off to Anushka Sharma for debuting as a producer with this.
11. TITLI: Because this was the most hard-hitting Indian film I’ve seen in ages.
12. COURT: Because it captured class divide and ‘India’ of the towns and of the shanties like very few could have.
13. PYAAR KA PUNCHNAMA: Because let’s admit it, even with its misogyny, it was freaking hilarious.
14. ANGRY INDIAN GODESSES: Because in spite of the filmy ending, this is a Dil Chahta Hai for women.
15. BAJRANGI BHAIJAAN: Because Salman Khan did a good film and I still can’t believe it.

THE 10 BEST SUMMER FILMS

1. MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: ROGUE NATION: Because what a perfect, perfect screenplay and what a perfect, perfect Tom Cruise.
2. MAD MAX: FURY ROAD: Because this was not really a Mad Max film and we know it – it was a Furiosa film and that’s why we love it.
3. JURASSIC WORLD: Because this was a throwback to the good ol’ family blockbusters of the ‘90s and Chris Pratt is the ‘hero’ we’ve been waiting for.
4. THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E.: Because Guy Ritchie makes action films like no one makes action films and Guy Ritchie is my Tarantino.
5. STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS: Because it was great trip back in time but as an independent film it could have been so much more.
6. SPY: Because who knew Jason Statham could be SO FREAKING FUNNY!
7. AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON: Because it was Joss Whedon’s last superhero film (as we know it) but otherwise it could have been so much more.
8. FURIOUS 7: Because they showed ALL THEIR ACTION PIECES in trailers and there was nothing left to watch in the film.
9. PITCH PERFECT: Because Anna Kendrick is acc-awesome.
10. THE INTERVIEW: Because it was hilarious and I don’t know why critics found it vile and unfunny – the James Franco-Kim Jong Un friendship scenes were ROFL!

THE 10 BEST DRAMAS/COMEDIES

1. BIRDMAN: Because OH MY GOD, what a film.
2. STEVE JOBS: Because the greatest writer of the 21^st century, Aaron Sorkin, wrote a film about the greatest mind of the 21^st century, Steve Jobs, and it was perfect.
3. WHIPLASH: Because this movie *is* my tempo.
4. CREED: Because THIS is how you do a reboot, and hell, Ryan Coogler, you are a master of the art of screenwriting and storytelling – what a perfect film this was.
5. THE INTERN: Because who knew a Robert DeNiro-Anne Hathaway film could be the feel good film of the year and charm the socks off you?
6. TRAINWRECK: Because Amy Schumer’s hilarious big screen writing-acting debut has redefined the raunchy female comedy.
7. THE MARTIAN: Because this was Ridley Scott’s happiest film ever and if getting back Matt Damon is such a fun time, he should get in these situations more!
8. INSIDE OUT: Because no Hollywood film gave you as many feel as this one.
9. SICARIO: Because Dennis Villeneuve can do no wrong and looks like even Emily Blunt can’t.
10. TOMORROWLAND: Because it was an original film that had the right intentions even if it failed a bit in putting them across.

#ICYMI:
THE 50 BEST TV SHOWS OF 2015: http://goo.gl/exsraC
THE 30 BEST INDIES OF 2015: http://goo.gl/xfRuOk
THE 100 MOST AWAITED FILMS OF 2016: http://goo.gl/KLHbTP
THE 35 MOST AWAITED TV SERIES OF 2016: http://goo.gl/b20Hr7
THE COMPLETE POP CULTURE CALENDAR OF 2016 (WITH RELEASE DATES): http://goo.gl/JMWW7c

Follow the blog on your left and like The Tanejamainhoon Page on FB: /tanejamainhoonpage
Follow Nikhil Taneja on FB: /tanejamainhoon, on Twitter:
@tanejamainhoon, on Instagram:@tanejamainhoon,
on Youtube: /tanejamainhoon

Liked/disliked the piece? Think I’ve left out some fantastic films? Think I’m awesome or really, really not? Leave your comments below 🙂
Picture courtesy: Google. None of the pictures are owned by the author all rights belong to the original owner(s) and photographer(s).
© Copyright belongs to the author, Nikhil Taneja. The article may not be reproduced without permission. A link to the URL, instead, would be appreciated.

The 100 Most Awaited 2016 Movies

#ICYMI:
THE 35 MOST AWAITED TV SERIES OF 2016: http://goo.gl/b20Hr7
THE 50 BEST TV SHOWS OF 2015: http://goo.gl/exsraC
THE 30 BEST INDIES OF 2015: http://goo.gl/xfRuOk
THE 35 BEST FILMS OF 2015: http://goo.gl/Z796RR
THE COMPLETE POP CULTURE CALENDAR OF 2016 (WITH RELEASE DATES): http://goo.gl/JMWW7c

Note: This piece was written by Nikhil Taneja (@tanejamainhoon) for Huffington Post. An edited version of the piece can be found here: https://goo.gl/04ZsS6
2016 is going to be an unbelievable year at the movies. There’s SO MUCH HAPPENING! DC, Marvel, Scorsese, Linklater, Kashyap, Bharadwaj and SO MUCH MORE. I have put together a list of MY most awaited 100 films below. There are movies I have left out on purpose because I may not be excited about them and movies that I have put in because I may be more excited about them than others. So having given the disclaimer that this is a list of films ‘I’ am most excited about, check out my 100 below:

THE 25 MOST ANTICIPATED HOLLYWOOD FILMS

1. DEADPOOL: Because Ryan Reynolds and that trailer! Time to make the chimi-fucking-changas!
2. BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE: Because BATMAN V SUPERMAN WHAT PART OF THAT DOES NOT EXCITE YOU!
3. EVERYBODY WANTS SOME: Because Richard Linklater is back with a ‘spiritual sequel to Dazed and Confused and I WANTS SOME.
4. FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM: Because JK Rowling! And magic! And wizardry! Accio Release Date!
5. THE NICE GUYS: Because the guy who made Kiss Kiss Bang Bang teams up with the guy who was in LA Confidential and the guy who was in Drive and this looks like it will be one of my all time favourites.
6. SUICIDE SQUAD: Because, to quote David Ayer, ‘Enough of Good vs Evil, it’s time for Bad vs Evil.’ Also, JOKER + HARLEY QUINN = WIN!!
7. THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN: Because Chris Pratt and Denzel Washington and Ethan Hawke and Peter Sarsgaard and Matt Bomer and Vince D’Onofrio in this remake!! WHYISTHISNOTMAKINGMORENEWS?!
8. DOCTOR STRANGE: Because Benedict Cumberbatch is Doctor Strange and that’s the only reason I forgive Marvel for not casting Keanu Reeves in it.
9. CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR: Because it should have been the most exciting movie of the year but the trailer didn’t live up but I still have hopes because WARRRRRRR.
10. X-MEN: APOCALYPSE: Because though I’m not a Bryan Singer fan, Oscar Isaac as the villain is SUCH FANTASTIC NEWS.
11. KUNG FU PANDA 3: Because GET, SET, PO!!!
12. BOURNE 5: Because Matt Damon is back! Paul Greengrass is back! Julia Stiles is back! I can’t stop with the exclamations!
13. THE JUNGLE BOOK: Because even though I’m looking forward to Jungle Book: Origins more (because Andy Serkis), Bill Murray and Idris Elba on this makes it unmissable.
14. WARCRAFT: Because though I haven’t played the game, Duncan Jones helming it makes me think that this will probably be better than anyone’s expecting this to be.
15. THE CIRCLE: Because James Ponsoldt, an international treasure where I’m concerned, directs Tom Hanks, Emma Watson and John Boyega. How are more people not dying to see this!
16. GAMBIT: Because Channing Tatum as a superhero is dope, yo.
17. THE GREAT WALL: Because Matt Damon and Pedro Pascal star in a film directed by Yimou Zhang and this could totally be the event movie of the year.
18. ICE AGE: COLLISION COURSE: Because this is my favourite animated series of all time (yes, of ALL TIME).
19. LA LA LAND: Because Whiplash director returns with a jazz musical starring Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling and there is no way he could have topped himself on paper.
20. PASSENGERS: Because America’s sweethearts Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence star so this better be the movie of the year.
21. ZOOLANDER NO. 2: Because BLUE STEEL FACE (And that Benedict Cumberbatch cameo!).
22. ASSASSIN’S CREED: Because Michael Fassbender stars and there is no reason greater than that.
23. ARMS AND THE DUDES: Because Jonah Hill and Miles Teller together in a Todd Philips movie is bound to be the dude movie of the year.
24. STAR TREK BEYOND: Because they should have ended with the last one but with Justin Lin attached, the series could Live Long and Prosper.
25. ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY: Because Gareth Edwards’ Godzilla was one of the worst blockbusters I’ve ever seen so I have no idea how this will turn out.

THE 15 MOST ANTICIPATED INDIAN FILMS

(NOTE: The most anticipated Indian film for me would be BANK CHOR since that’s the first film I’ve worked on as a Creative Producer and that releases SOON :D. The list below is movies besides Bank Chor, of course.)

1. RANGOON: Because Vishal Bharadwaj is making a ‘Casablanca’ like love story featuring Kangana Ranaut along with Shahid ‘Kaminey’ Kapoor and Saif Ali ‘Langda Tyagi’ Khan.
2. DANGAL: Because Aamir Khan.
3. RAMAN RAGHAV 2.0: Because Anurag Kashyap is going back to his indie thriller roots with this one.
4. AE DIL HAI MUSHKIL: Because Ranbir Kapoor and Anushka Sharma come together for a Karan Johar Film so this better be the romcom of the decade.
5. FAN: Because have you seen Shah Rukh Khan’s Gaurav? I mean!!!!
6. KAPOOR & SONS: Because Shakun Batra’s Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu is one of my favourite Hindi films of the last five years and this one has Alia Bhatt so it will be a cracker.
7. UDTA PUNJAB: Because Abhishek Chaubey has pulled in a stellar starcast in Shahid Kapoor, Alia Bhatt and KAREENA KAPOOR, set against the backdrop of the drug trade in Punjab.
8. RAEES: Because SRK looks like a badass and him facing off against Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Farhan Akhtar is going to be a treat.
9. KI & KA: Because the first stills look absolutely amazing and Balki looks set to charm the hell out of us.
10. DHONI: Because Neeraj Pandey has not set a foot wrong so far and Sushant Singh Rajput is going to play Dhoni like a champ.
11. MANMARZIYAN: Because I loved Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana and I can’t wiat to watch Ayushmann-Bhumi again on screen.
12. MOHENJADARO: Because Ashutosh Gowarikar directs Hrithik Roshan again and hopefully this film will not be as long as the time between that age and ours.
13. MIRZIYA: Because Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra is a fantastic director and from everything I’ve read about Harshvardan Kapoor, his sensibilities seem on point (he assisted Anurag Kashyap!).
14. DINESH VIJAN’S UNTITLED FILM: Because after Dinesh Vijan broke up with Saif Ali Khan, the first two things he produced independently (Badlapur and Finding Fanny) were better than anything else he’s done before so I give him the benefit of doubt.
15. BAAR BAAR DEKHO: Because even though this film has Katrina Kaif and that probably means it will end up sucking, it’s an Excel film by the writer of Zindagi Milegi Na Dobara and Dil Dhadakne Do, so I have my hopes high.

THE 10 MOST ANTICIPATED HOLLYWOOD DRAMAS

1. SILENCE: Because Martin Scorsese directs Andrew Garfield, Adam Driver and Liam Neeson in this historical drama.
2. THE BFG: Because Steven Spielberg is making a family film after ages and this one’s adapted from a Roald Dahl book!
3. STORY OF YOUR LIFE: Because Denis Villeneuve (of being amazing fame) directs Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner and Michael Stuhlbarg in a sci fi drama about aliens landing on earth.
4. THE FREE STATE OF JONES: Because Matthew McConaughey is starring in this civil war drama from the writer of Big and Seabiscuit.
5. BILLY LYNN’S LONG HALFTIME WALK: Because Ang Lee directs a script from Simon Beaufoy that stars a cast featuring Vin Diesel, Chris Tucker, Garrett Hedlund and Kristen Stewart.
6. THE ACCOUNTANT: Because the director of Warrior directs Ben Affleck and Anna Kendrick in an action thriller and that’s all we need to know.
7. DEMOLITION: Because the ever-dependable Jake Gyllenhaal costars with the ever-dependable Naomi Watts in a drama by Jean-Marc Vallee.
8. SULLY: Because Clint Eastwood is still going strong at 85 and this time directs an autobiographical film starring Tom Hanks about a pilot who landed a plane on water, saving lives.
9. MONEY MONSTER: Because Jodie Foster directs, George Clooney and Julia Roberts star, and it is a political thriller.
10. SNOWDEN: Because it is a biographical drama from the king of biographical dramas, Oliver Stone, about Edward Snowden, starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

THE 10 MOST ANTICIPATED ‘SUMMER’ FILMS

1. JACK REACHER: NEVER GO BACK: Because although not a summer release, Tom Cruise reunites with Edward Zwick after The Last Samurai… actually just because Tom Cruise.
2. TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: OUT OF THE SHADOWS: Because I thoroughly enjoyed the first installment so let’s hope there’s more Cowabunga, Dude!
3. PRIDE AND PREJUDICE AND ZOMBIES: Because what a bloody insane cast with Matt Smith, Charles Dance, Jack Huston, Lena Headey, Sam Riley, and Lily James and what a crazy ass idea.
4. THE HUNTSMAN – WINTER’S WAR: Because even though the first part sucked, this one has Emily Blunt (and Jessica Chastain!) and we all know Emily Blunt can do no wrong now.
5. INFERNO: Because screw Dan Brown, anything Tom Hanks does is immensely watchable plus this has Irrfan Khan too.
6. INDEPENDENCE DAY: RESURGENCE: Because even though I’m sorely disappointed that this has no Will Smith, it’s got the same director and well, Jeff Goldblum again, so fingers crossed.
7. THE LEGEND OF TARZAN: Because Margot Robbie as Jane!!!
8. JUMANJI: Because our childhoods are back!
9. NOW YOU SEE ME 2: Because basically they’ve got Daniel Radcliffe to star in another movie about magic and that deserves nothing but respect.
10. BEN-HUR: Because in spite of zero buzz, Jack Huston as Ben-Hur is fascinating casting, and there’s also Morgan Freeman and Toby Kebell, so let’s hope it’s ‘epic’.

THE 10 MOST ANTICIPATED HOLLYWOOD THRILLERS

1. HIGH-RISE: Because Ben Wheatley directs Tom Hiddlestone and Elisabeth Moss and a fantastic concept of class war in a high rise and I simply cannot wait.
2. JOHN WICK 2: Because come on!
3. TRIPLE 9: Because another fabulous trailer, Lawless director John Hillcoat at its helm and a crazy ass cast in Woody Harrelson, Casey Affleck, Aaron Paul, Norman Reedus and Kate Winslet!
4. MIDNIGHT SPECIAL: Because Jeff Nichols is special and when he teams up with Michael Shannon for a scifi thriller again it will be even more special and when the cast has Adam Driver, Joel Edgerton and and Kirsten Dunst, you know this is going to be a must watch.
5. GREEN ROOM: Because it’s from the director of Blue Ruin, it’s got enormous festive buzz and because Patrick Stewart fights off Neo Nazis!
6. FREE FIRE: Because there will be one more Ben Wheatley crime thriller this year with another amazing cast that includes Sharlto Copey, Armie Hammer, Brie Larson and Cillian Murphy.
7. THE WITCH: Because it’s got better reviews than any other horror film in recent history.
8. THE PURGE 3: Because this film has been my guilty pleasure for two installments now and I can bet part three will not let me down either.
9. THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN: Because the novel’s supposed to be as good as Gone Girl and this one stars Emily Blunt (who can do no wrong) and Rebecca Forguson of MI5 so this could be gooood.
10. THE NEON DEMON: Because Nicolas Winding Refn directs Keanu Reeves in a thriller shot at 60 fps, are you kidding me!

THE 10 MOST ANTICIPATED HOLLYWOOD COMEDIES

1. LIFE ON THE ROAD: Because Ricky Gervais’ David Brent is back and is on the road with a band so this will be AMAZING!!
2. GHOSTBUSTERS: Because Paul Feig directs Melissa McCarthy and Kristen Wiig again so this is obviously going to be a comedy classic.
3. THE BROTHERS GRIMSBY: Because Sacha Baron Cohen and Mark Strong play estranged brothers one of whom becomes a spy and the other remains a village idiot and then they meet again and this is just going to be hilarious amiright?
4. CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE: Because The Rock and Kevin Hart come together in an action comedy and I repeat: THE ROCK and KEVIN HART come together in an ACTION COMEDY!!
5. KEANU: Because Key and Peele make their big screen debut so how are you not jumping with joy already?
6. CONNER4REAL: Because The Lonely Island are writing and starring in this movie and there is no information about it except the certainty that it will be hilarious.
7. RIDE ALONG 2: Because I loved part one and Kevin Hart and Ice Cube is the best buddy cop duo since Mel Gibson and Danny Glover in Lethal Weapon.
8. KEEPING UP WITH THE JONESES: Because Greg Mottola of Superbad fame directs a spy comedy starring Jon Hamm, Zach Galifianakis and Wonder Woman Gal Gadot!
9. BAD MOMS: Because the guys who wrote The Hangover are making their debut movie and it stars Mila Kunis and Christina Applegate and Kristen Bell as bad moms so this could just be mean girls but with women.
10. NEIGHBORS 2: Because even though Bad Santa 2 is also releasing this year and I’m personally looking forward to that more, Seth Rogen needs representation in a list like this and so he will get it!

THE 10 MOST ANTICIPATED HOLLYWOOD DRAMEDIES/ROMCOMS/INDIES

1. HAIL, CEASOR: Because this is the final part of the ‘Numbskull’ trilogy feat. George Clooney by the Coen Brothers and to top that, it has Scarlett Johannson, Channing Tatum, Josh Brolin and Jonah Hill too!
2. ME BEFORE YOU: Because my favourite screenwriters of this generation, Michael H. Weber and Scott Neustadter and writing this romantic drama and I have no doubt it will turn out amazing.
3. GOING IN STYLE: Because Zach Braff directs a bank heist comedy featuring Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman and Alan Arkin!
4. EDDIE THE EAGLE: Because Dexter Fletcher is an underrated gem of a Brit director (check out Wild Bill if you haven’t) and this may just be the feel good film of the year.
5. WHISKEY TANGO FOXTROT: Because Tina Fey is producing this war comedy that she is also starring in, plus it’s got Martin Freeman and Margot Robbie and Billy Bob Thornton!
6. THE BRONZE: Because this raunchy sex comedy got tremendous reviews at Sundance last year and is the directorial debut of The Big Bang Theory’s Bernadette (Melissa Rausch)
7. BRIDGET JONES’ BABY: Because Renee Zewelleger and Colin Firth are back again and let’s admit it, this is going to be a trip down good ol’ memory lane.
8. MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING 2: Because Nia Vardalos and John Corbett are back again and let’s admit it, this is going to be a trip down good ol’ memory lane.
9. TUMBLEDOWN: Because Jason Sudeikis has proved with his recent choices that he’s a capable leading man and this film has a lovely logline about love and death, and also stars the lovely Rebecca Hall.
10. MASTERMINDS: Because though this film has been going through release hell, it’s got a crazy cast in Zach Galifianakis, Owen Wilson, Jason Sudeikis and Kristen Wiig so can’t wait!

THE 10 MOST ANTICIPATED HOLLYWOOD ANIMATED FILMS

1. FINDING DORY: Because Finding Nemo.
2. THE ANGRY BIRDS MOVIE: Because Angry Birds Movie!
3. THE SECRET LIFE OF PETS: Because great teaser.
4. SAUSAGE PARTY: Because first animated film by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg!
5. STORKS: Because voices by Key and Peele and Andy Samberg and Kelsey Grammar.
6. KUBO AND THE TWO STRINGS: Because what animation movie has the cast of Matthew McConaughey, Charlize Theron, Rooney Mara, Ralph Fiennes and George Takei!
7. TROLLS: Because Anna Kendrick leads this and Anna Kendrick is the best.
8. SING: Because it’s a music animated comedy featuring Matthew McConaughey, Scarlett Johannson and Reese Witherspoon (what!).
9. MOANA: Because THE ROCK makes his animated debut.
10. PETE’S DRAGON: Because it’s the remake of a much loved animated classic.

#ICYMI:
THE 35 MOST AWAITED TV SERIES OF 2016: http://goo.gl/b20Hr7
THE 50 BEST TV SHOWS OF 2015: http://goo.gl/exsraC
THE 30 BEST INDIES OF 2015: http://goo.gl/xfRuOk
THE 35 BEST FILMS OF 2015: http://goo.gl/Z796RR
THE COMPLETE POP CULTURE CALENDAR OF 2016 (WITH RELEASE DATES): http://goo.gl/JMWW7c

 

Follow the blog on your left and like The Tanejamainhoon Page on FB: /tanejamainhoonpage
Follow Nikhil Taneja on FB: /tanejamainhoon, on Twitter:
@tanejamainhoon, on Instagram:@tanejamainhoon,
on Youtube: /tanejamainhoon

Liked/disliked the piece? Think I’ve left out some films? Think my list is shit? Think I’m awesome or really, really not? Leave your comments below 🙂
Note: This piece first appeared in Huffington Post on January 14, 2016
Link: http://www.huffingtonpost.in/nikhil-taneja-/the-100-most-awaited-movies-of-2016/
Picture courtesy: Google. None of the pictures are owned by the author all rights belong to the original owner(s) and photographer(s).
© Copyright belongs to the author, Nikhil Taneja. The article may not be reproduced without permission. A link to the URL, instead, would be appreciated.

SPRING (2014): How do you know it’s love? #FILM #RECOMMENDATION

Spring Poster

It’s been over a week since I saw American indie, SPRING, directed by brilliantly by Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead, but I haven’t really stopped thinking about it. Love is my favourite genre of all time, but only a few movies have made me reflect over it, and those films need not necessarily be entirely about love at all.

For example, the last film that made me deliberate over love was Spike Jonze’s HER. Unfortunately, I never did end up writing about the film, and I know that Her is about so many larger issues than love – but at its heart, it was about the heart. Because when you think about it, is there really an issue larger than love? Deeper than matters of the heart? Wars have been fought about it, Facebook has been invented over it, wonders of the world have been created for it…

What I really did love about Her – and I think I’ll go back to the film one of these days to feel again what I felt when I first saw it – was that it asked a very pertinent question about love, and attempted to explore the answers to the same: Can love exist beyond bodies? If yes, then can love exist beyond souls too? Of course, in the answer to this question, lies an entire universe of questions about the mind, loneliness, intimacy and sex, which needs to be answered first. And the genius of Her lies in the fact that each one of its viewers would have a different answer to the same, and each one of those answers would be the own, personal truth of that viewer.

Spring, of course, is not nearly as complex as Her, and it doesn’t need to be, because the beauty of the film lies in the simplicity of its theme. But Spring too, raises a pertinent question about an aspect of love that may seem all too simple, but is, in fact, the most complex question, perhaps, of all time: How do you know it’s love? And as an extension to the same: *When* do you know it’s love?

I cannot continue any further without mild spoilers about the plot, but trust me, as in all romantic films, the movie’s not really about the climax at all, but about the journey towards it. Spring is a genre mash up of a romantic comedy and body horror. It’s Richard Linklater meets David Cronenberg; or Woody Allen meets Guillermo Del Toro. But the terrific thing about the film is that it’s got its own, unique take on love, which is distinctly different to those of the aforementioned masters of cinema.

If you’ve seen the trailer of the film above, you’ll know that Spring is about a guy (the charming Lou Taylor Pucci) who meets a beautiful Italian girl (and my God, Nadia Hilker *is* beautiful) and over multiple nights of a Before Sunrise-esque romance, falls desperately in love with her. But instead of a train that the girl needs to get on, there’s a fantastical, paranormal, biological or perhaps straight-up twisted phenomenon that the girl needs to get with, and her love is tested against this ticking clock, but also by this phenomenon.

To go into the territory of strong spoilers: The girl has a condition wherein she’ll morph into another woman every 20 years (but only after becoming a monster first) and live another life from scratch, unless… she falls in love with somebody. And that’s the brilliance of Spring: writer Justin Benson possibly worked backwards with the answer to the question of ‘How/when do you know it’s love’ – when you morph into another being – and created this beautiful, quirky horror romcom that leads upto the ‘will she/won’t she’ climax on drugs.

The body horror element of the script is what lends a wonderful weirdness to this odd scifi romcom, but as with Her, at its heart, Spring is not about the body, but about the heart too. It takes the fear and profound anxiety of learning whether or not the person you love, loves you back, and compounds it with the terrifying fantasy element of the worst way to get turned down ever: by getting eaten by the monster that person turns into! But as they say, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger… as a couple, right?

Lame jokes aside, the gorgeously shot (by Aaron Moorhead) and directed Spring is easily my favourite indie film of the year so far and perhaps will be on the top of my list through 2015, because ultimately, it is about love, in its purest and most heartbreaking form, the love that ‘comes around only a couple of times if you’re lucky.’ And if you’re really lucky, she’ll know that it’s love too.

 

Agree/disagree with the review? Know other films similar to it? Leave your thoughts in the comments below 🙂
Follow the blog on your left and like The Tanejamainhoon Page on FB: /tanejamainhoonpage
Follow Nikhil Taneja on FB: /tanejamainhoon, on Twitter:
@tanejamainhoon, on Instagram:@tanejamainhoon,
on Youtube: /tanejamainhoon

Picture courtesy: Google. None of the pictures are owned by the author all rights belong to the original owner(s) and photographer(s).
© Copyright belongs to the author, Nikhil Taneja. The article may not be reproduced without permission. A link to the URL, instead, would be appreciated.

THE BEST OF 2014 INDIE FILMS – OVER 50+ RECOMMENDATIONS!

We are well into the new year but the year doesn’t officially start for me until I’m done with making lists about the last one. Like most years, I watched over a 100 indies (108 to be exact) in 2014, so here’s a comprehensive list of the indies I loved and liked and the ones that I really didn’t (I have omitted in the list the ones that are neither good nor bad – just unmemorable to even be talked about).

A+
I have to say, after putting together my favourite indies of the year in this list, one thing struck me – EVERY film in the list is not only refreshingly original but also crazily innovative. From Birdman, which was shot like a continuous one-take, to Locke, which was completely shot in a car featuring a single actor, to Snowpiercer, which was shot in a moving bullet train, to Boyhood, which was shot over 12 years! This has been a fantastic year of cinematic originality and I think it’s an year that will stand out in this decade as one of the best years for film in a long, long time.

Ankhon Dekhi (comedy drama) – Because simplicity is underrated.
Birdman (comedy drama) – Because Michael Keaton’s comeback!!
Boyhood (drama) – Because RICHARD LINKLATER!!!!!!!!!!
Coherence (scifi) – Because how can a scifi indie made in no money be SO brilliant?
Comet (scifi romcom) – Because after ages a romantic film made me *feel* (also, scifi romcom!).
Filmistaan – Because the purity of friendship hasn’t been depicted so well in so long.
Frank (dramedy) – Because this is the most affecting dramedy I’ve seen in a long time and it stars Michael Fassbender in a giant head.
Locke (thriller) – Because 90 minutes of Tom Hardy in a car makes for a must watch!
Nightcrawler (thriller) – Because Jake Gyllenhaal is the f–king shit and this commentary on the state of media today has been robbed off awards glory (also Riz Ahmed!).
Pride (comedy drama) – Because the story of unlikely friendship between the LGBTs and the miners in 80s Brit is inspiring and heartwarming – and because *no one* does emotions like the Brits do (apart from Raju Hirani)!
Snowpierecer (thriller) – Because ‘a post apocalyptic thriller set on a train where the rich and poor are segregated’ is an AWESOME PLOT.
Sulemani Keeda (slacker comedy) – Because INDIAN SLACKER COMEDY WHAT MORE DO I NEED TO SAY?
The Fault in Our Stars (romance) – Because Michael H. Weber and Scott Neustader are my heroes and they can do no wrong.
The Grand Budapest Hotel (Wes Anderson) – Because Wes Anderson.
Whiplash (drama) – BECAUSE THIS IS THE  BEST FILM I HAVE SEEN IN AGES.

A
A Most Wanted Man (spy thriller) – Because Philip Seymour Hoffman in a John Le Carre thriller is something we should have seen more of.
Bethlehem (war thriller) – Because its a gut wrenching take on the Israel-Palestine issue.
Blue Ruin (thriller) – Because this came out of the blue and thrilled the hell out of everyone!
Calvary (drama comedy) – Because there’s something about the collaboration between Brendan Gleeson and the McDonagh brothers that just makes sense.
Dear White People (dramedy) – Because it is the smartest take on the white – and black – culture, and a biting satire the likes of which we just don’t see often enough.
Enemy (scifi thriller) – Because a scifi thriller is another genre Jake Gyllenhaal NAILS.
Fading Gigolo (dramedy) – Because John Turturro has it in him to make a Woody Allen film.
Filth (Brit crime comedy drama) – Because James McAvoy on acid is even better than James McAvoy without it.
It’s a Disaster (comedy) – Because this is This is The End for adults.
Joe (drama) – Because this is Nicholas Cage’s redemption and you don’t even know it!
John Wick (action) – Because few things are cooler than seeing Keanu Reeves kick some ass.
Obvious Child (comedy) – Because Jenny Slate is da woman.
Ping Pong Summer (coming of age) – Because a coming of age comedy set in the ’80s featuring ping pong is rad.
Sunshine on Leith (comedy musical) – Because a Brit music comedy is the best genre of film you haven’t seen enough of.
The Inbetweeners 2 (comedy) – Because The Inbetweeners are f–king hilarious.
The Internet’s Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz (documentary) – Because the story of Aaron Swartz is a story that must be seen.
The Guest (thriller) – Because Dan Stevens is SO great beyond Downton Abbey and this is indie thriller DONE RIGHT!
The Pretty Ones (romcom) – Because Zoe Kazan and Jake Johnson have enough charisma to make the romcom genre feel refreshing.
The Square (documentary) – Because this documentary on the Egypt revolution was shot *during* the revolution.
Tusk (horror comedy) – Because this is the most bizarre, creepy and f–ed up film you’d watch in a while with a helluva brave performance by the awesome Justin Long)

B+
A Birder’s Guide to Everything (coming of age) – Because if a coming of age film stars Ben Kingsley in any role, you are home before the movie begins.
A Walk Among The Tombstones (thriller) – Because Liam Neeson kicking ass in a different decade is just as cool as him kicking it in this one.
Adult World (coming of age dramedy) – Because even with the cast of John Cusack and Emma Roberts, the movie surprisingly made me chuckle quite a bit.
Begin Again (musical romcom) – Because Keira Knightley singing is what you need when you’re alone.
Blood Ties (crime drama) – Because this was a super well done throwback to the crime dramas of the ’70s with a stellar cast (and reminded me of Deewar in some ways)
Cold in July (crime thriller) – Because a throwback to pulpy 80s crime thrillers is never a bad thing, esp when it stars Dexter.
Felony (cop drama) – Because this Australian films gives a decent ethical twist to the age old cop drama movie.
Horns (Fantasy horror) – Because Daniel Radcliffe being Satan against his wishes makes for a *very* interesting movie.
Love is Strange (dramedy) – Because John Lithgow and Alfred Molina are easily the most heartwarming couple on screen in 2014.
Maps to the Stars (drama) – Bizarre f–ked up drama from David Cronenberg about the bizarre f–ked up world of Hollywood starring an A cast.
Predestination (scifi thriller) – Because ‘time-travel indie sci starring Ethan Hawke’ is the best one-line intro of the year.
Rosewater – Because even with its uneven screenplay, the Jon Stewart directed film works because of the tenacity of the great Gael Garnia Bercel.
Rover (thriller) – Because Australia makes some badass gritty films and with a cast feat.  Guy Pearce, Robert Pattinson and Scoot McNairy, how much more badass do you need?
The Hundred Foot Journey – Because Om Puri and Meryl Streep facing off in a movie about food is just too tasty a plot.
The Giant Mechanical Man – Because is there anything Chris Messina can’t pull off?!
The One I Love (sci fi romcom) – Because another sci-fi romcom (whaaat!) that stars Elisabeth Moss and Mark Duplass!
The Purge: Anarchy (thriller) – Because this was the guilty pleasure of the year.
The Raid 2: Berendal (action) – Because the beauty of the brutal action was lost in the chaos of the been there done that story.
The Skeletal Twins (dramedy) – Because Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig make for the best suicidal brother-sister casting ever (but can dramedies have ANYTHING new to whine about than ‘life’?)
The Two Faces of January (thriller) – Because Viggo Mortensen and Oscar Isaac star in this 50s’ thriller throwback and no one knows about this!?!
Wish I Was Here (dramedy) – Because Zach Braff directing his second dramedy makes for the most promising indie ever (but wish it had as much heart as it did quirk)

B
About Alex (dramedy) – Because it’s got such a brilliant cast that all the cliches that it put forth can ultimately be overlooked.
After the Dark (thriller) – Because even with a spectacular lack of plot, the premise of ethical dilemmas in a post apocalyptic world is quite interesting.
Bad Words (comedy) – Because after a hilarious first half, the movie spiraled down in the second else Jason Bateman would’ve been one of the indie debut directors of the year.
Chef (road trip comedy) – Because even though it was the most overrated indie of the year, it still had a fantastic cast that pulled off some fun moments.
Finding Fanny (road trip comedy)- Because even with its forced quirkiness, Naseeruddin Shah, Pankaj Kapur and Dimple Kapadia are a riot to watch.
Hello Ladies: The Movie (comedy)- Because it was a nice little bow on a sometimes-awkward TV series about loneliness in big cities.
Life After Beth (zombie romcom) – Because zombie romcom starring Aubrey Plaza as a zombie is SUCH a fun premise (if only the movie was *that* much fun)
Men, Women and Children (drama) – Because the internet is worse than flesh-eating zombieland and that’s fun to watch (but tell me something new yaar #TMSNY).
Rob The Mob (crime Drama) – Because even with its B-movie looks, it is not a bad take on the mob world.
Paolo Alto (drama) – Because high school in genereal is worse than flesh-eating zombieland and that’s fun to watch (but #TMSNY)
Premature (comedy) – Because groundhog day meets American Pie is not a bad idea at all.
Some Velvet Morning (drama) – Because Stanley Tucci is brilliant to watch even in a two-actor movie remake of a play.
The Drop (crime drama) – Because with a cast of Tom Hardy, James Gandolfini and Noomi Rapace, we deserved more than a tired crime drama.
What If (romcom) – Because Zoe Kazan is charming and awesome and Daniel Radcliffe is not Harry Potter (but Adam Driver should have been lead! Also #TMSNY)

C & below
A Long Way Down – Because this is the worst executed Nick Hornby adaptation in the long time, even with SUCH a fab cast at its helm.
Homefront – Because Jason Statham saving himself/family/someone is older than the Bible now, so #TMSNY.
Someone Marry Barry – Because it flushes the comedic talents of a great cast down the drain with its abominable writing.
The Bachelor Weekend – Because Andrew Scott as a romantic one-sided lover on a bachelor trip is not a film you want to see.
This is Where I Leave You – TELL ME SOMETHING NEW YAAR (What a waste of a spectacular cast).
Two Night Stand – Because the dialogues are so painfully cliched that Miles Teller and Analeigh Tipton (AND JESSICA SZOHR) should file a suit for wasting their time.
Veronica Mars – Because all that kickstarter money should’ve gone into writing at least an average plot.

P.S. Here are the indies I’m yet to see (and I’m looking forward to catching up on) and I’ll keep updating this list as and when I see them:
’71, A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night, A Most Violent Year, Appropriate Behaviour, Are You Here, Before I Go To Sleep, Bird People, Camp X Ray, Cold Comes the Night, Cuban Fury, Dead Snow 2: Red vs Dead, Force Majeure, Get On Up, God’s Pocket, Goodbye To All That, Growing up and Other Lies, Hector and the Search for Happiness, Hellion, Ida, I Origins, In Your Eyes, Infinitely Polar Bear, Inherent Vice, Kill Me Three Times, Laggies, Leviathan, Life of Crime, Life Itself, Listen Up Phillip, Love,Rosie, Magic in the Moonlight, Merry Christmas, Mommy, Night Moves, No Good Deed, Northern Soul, Omar, Only Lovers Left Alive, Plastic, Road to Paloma, Song One, Selma, St Vincent, Starred Up, Stretch, Take Care, That Burning Feeling, The Babadook, The Big Ask, The Captive, The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby, The Double, The Grant Seduction, The Homesman, The Humbling, The Immigrant, The Longest Week, The Mule, The November Man, The Riot Club, The Signal, To Be Takei, Top Five, Trip to Italy, The Voices, They Came Together, Third Person, Tracks, Ugly, Under the Skin, Vinyl, White Bird in a Blizzard, We Are The Best, Wetlands, What We Do In The Shadows, Wild, X/Y, Young Ones.

ICYMI: Here are my TV recommendations – 50+ TV shows to watch from 2014 (out f 119): http://tanejamainhoon.com/2015/01/26/bestof2014tv/

What are your favourite movies of the year? Agree/disagree with  this list? Any movies I missed out on? Do leave your favourites in the comments below 🙂

Follow the blog on your left and like The Tanejamainhoon Page on FB: /tanejamainhoonpage
Follow Nikhil Taneja on FB: /tanejamainhoon, on Twitter:
@tanejamainhoon, on Instagram:@tanejamainhoon,
on Youtube: /tanejamainhoon

Picture courtesy: Google. None of the pictures are owned by the author all rights belong to the original owner(s) and photographer(s).
© Copyright belongs to the author, Nikhil Taneja. The article may not be reproduced without permission. A link to the URL, instead, would be appreciated.

The Best of Best Of Lists 2014 – Movies

(Read The Best of Best of Lists 2014 – TV here: http://goo.gl/fbDQ1f)

‘Tis the season of Best Of Lists! And now that there are *SO* many out there, it’s quite difficult to get a real idea of films that have truly stood out in the year – since the lists of every individual critic varies just that much. So I’ve drawn up the best of lists of some of the best film critics out there.

Unlike ‘The Best of Best of Lists 2014 – TV‘ version (read here), there seems to be very little unanimity in the movie lists. Film critics have generally not agreed upon the best films of the year, saving a very few; while TV critics have pretty similar lists over all, barring a few personal choices.

So here are some of the things that stood out after going through all the lists:
The only film on *everybody’s* lists: Boyhood (Read my interview with director Richard Linklater here: http://goo.gl/ErdfnS)
The only other films on *almost* everybody’s lists: The Grand Budapest Hotel & Selma
The documentary film surprisingly on a lot of lists: Citizenfour
The highly buzzed films surprisingly on very few lists: Foxcatcher,  Gone Girl & Interstellar
The worst reviewed film (among these) surprisingly on some lists: Lucy
The foreign film on most lists: Ida (Poland)
The British film on most lists: Mr. Turner
The only animated film on the lists: The LEGO Movie
The only straight-to-DVD film on the lists: Snowpiercer

Here are the lists, that will be updated as more lists come up (The name of the critic links to his/her Twitter page):

Hitflix’s ‘Top 10 of 2014’ – By Drew McWeeny: http://goo.gl/Ro2waf
(1 to 10) Inherent Vice, Boyhood, Wild Tales, Selma, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Force Mejeure, The Tribe, Nightcrawler, Snowpiercer, The Raid 2

Indiewire’s ‘Best Films of 2014’ – By Eric Kohn: http://goo.gl/TOh0Rz
(1 to 10) Boyhood, A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night, Mankamana, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Leviathan, Ida, Starred Up, Only Lovers Left Alive, The Double, Inherent Vice

Little White Lies’ ’25 Best Films of 2014′ – By David Ehlrich: http://goo.gl/NXs5kf
(1 to 10) The Grand Budapest Hotel, Inherent Vice, Under the Skin, Nymphomaniac, Gone Girl, Only Lovers Left Alive, The Double, God Help The Girl, Force Majeure, The Tale of the Princess Kaguya, Boyhood, Goodbye to Language, Ida, Paolo Alto, The Babadook, Mommy, Why Don’t You Play in Hell, Starred Up, Godzilla, Listen Up Philip, Love is Strange, Selma, Timbuktu, We Are The Best!, Lucy

Rolling Stones’ ’10 Best Movies of 2014′ – By Peter Travers: http://goo.gl/ahbG5b
(1 to 10) Boyhood, Birdman, Foxcatcher, Selma, Gone Girl, Whiplash, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Unbroken, Under The Skin, Interstellar

The Guardian’s ’10 Best Films of 2014′ – By Peter Bradshaw: http://goo.gl/5lHFPR
(1 to 10) Under The Skin, Boyhood, Inherent Vice, Whiplash, Leviathan, Two Days One Night, Nightcrawler, Ida, The Grand Budapest Hotel, The LEGO Movie

The New York Times’ ‘Top 10 Movies of 2014’ – By A. O. Scott: http://goo.gl/NyLZxl
(1 to 10) Boyhood, Ida, Citizenfour, Leviathan, Selma, Love is Strange, We Are The Best!, Birdman & Listen Up, Philip & Mr. Turner, Dear White People, The Babadook

The New Yorker’s ‘Best Movies of 2014’ – By Richard Brody: http://goo.gl/kWMnzV
(1 to 30) The Grand Budapest Hotel, Thou Wast Mild and Lovely, Goodbye to Language, The Last of the Unjust, The Immigrant, American Sniper, Listen Up Philip, Actress, Memphis, Butter on the Latch, Evolution of a Criminal, Gone Girl, Happy Christmas, It Felt Like Love, Jimmy P, Life of Riley, Magic in the Moonlight, Soft in the Head, Story of my Death, Stranger by the Lake, Jealousy, Jersey Boys, Life Itself, Manakamana, Marvin Seth and Stanley, The Missing Picture, Selma, Tip Top, The Unknown Known, What Now? Remind  Me, One Day Pina Asked…

TIME Magazine’s ‘Top 10 Best Movies’ – By Richard Corliss: http://goo.gl/egfzcX
(1 to 10) The Grand Budapest Hotel, Boyhood, The LEGO Movie, Lucy, Goodbye to Language,  Jodorowsky’s Dune, Nightcrawler, Citizenfour,  Wild Tales, Birdman

Thompson on Hollywood’s ‘Top Ten Films of 2014’ – By Anne Thompson: http://goo.gl/ygGhJB
(1 to 10) Birdman, Boyhood, Mr. Turner, Nymphomaniac Volumes 1 & 2, Only Lovers Left Alive, Ida, Selma, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Wild Tales, Beyond the Lights

Vanity Fair’s ’10 Best Movies of 2014′ – By Richard Lawson: http://goo.gl/Buc3Wd
(1 to 10) Love is Strange, Mommy, Force Majeure, Citizenfour, Boyhood, Selma, Snowpiercer, Mr. Turner, Pride, X Men: Days of Future Past

Vulture’s ’11 Best Movies of 2014′ – By David Edelstein: http://goo.gl/7E87WI
(1 to 10) Boyhood, Selma, The Babadook, Whiplash, Tales of the Grim Sleeper, Only Lovers Left Alive, Citizenfour, Mr. Turner, Two Days One Night, The Immigrant, The Overnighters

Also,
Edgar Wright’s ‘Top 10 Movies of 2014: http://goo.gl/PQkT4i
(no order) Birdman, Boyhood, Edge of Tomorrow, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Interstellar, The LEGO Movie, Nightcrawler, Snowpiercer, Under the Skin, Whiplash
So, obviously, after I made this list, I realised there are other such lists out there too. So I’ve kept this list exclusive to critics whose reviews I read and love. You can read other compilations with even more lists here:
Indiewire Compilation: http://blogs.indiewire.com/thompsononhollywood/critics-top-10-films-2014
Metacritic Compilation: www.metacritic.com/feature/film-critic-top-10-lists-best-movies-of-2014
Also, here’s a great article by Anne Thompson on ‘How to Make a Ten Best List in Five Easy Steps‘: http://blogs.indiewire.com/thompsononhollywood/how-to-make-a-ten-best-list-in-five-easy-steps-20141210

 

What are your favourite films of the year? Do leave your favourites in the comments below 🙂
Follow the blog on your left and like The Tanejamainhoon Page on FB: /tanejamainhoonpage
Follow Nikhil Taneja on FB: /tanejamainhoon, onTwitter:
@tanejamainhoon, onInstagram:@tanejamainhoon,
onYoutube: /tanejamainhoon

Picture courtesy: Google. None of the pictures are owned by the author all rights belong to the original owner(s) and photographer(s).
© Copyright belongs to the author, Nikhil Taneja. The article may not be reproduced without permission. A link to the URL, instead, would be appreciated.

Dark. Twisted. Funny. Fucked Up. Gone Girl. #Review #GoneGirl

As I sat watching Gone Girl and the movie unravelled one of its incredible plot twists, I could sense a feeling of dread settle into couples throughout the theatre. I was transfixed at what was happening on screen – and how staggering it was – yet, I was distinctly aware that a quiet unease was creeping its way into the psyche of every couple, married or otherwise, as the theatre slowly fell into an uncomfortable silence. Perhaps this was the paranoia that the movie had projected unto me manifesting itself into a dark, perverse fantasy about the lives of others, or perhaps, Gone Girl is, in fact, the kind of movie that will make every couple momentarily reassess all that is right, and certainly all that is wrong with their relationship.

To say that Gone Girl is a thriller about a the hunt for the missing wife of a seemingly sociopathic man (or look at it as a thriller from the angle that you’ll see when you watch the film) will be a gross misjudgement of what director David Fincher and screenwriter Gillian Flynn have attempted to do with the movie, and will be a much too simplistic – and inaccurate – reduction of what is undoubtedly one of the most twisted and murky deliberations of marriage on the big screen.

That marriage is not easy is a fact that has been explored through several prisms in many a great films of our times, and of that before, from Who’s Afraid of Virgina Woolf? to Blue Valentine. But just how f**ked up marriage, or for that matter, relationships can be, has arguably yet to be dissected in a manner in which Fincher and Flynn together do through the movie.

Gone Girl takes any and all expectations a viewer may have aligned himself with when going into the movie, and then smashes them to pieces, much like it does to every thought we may have had about the institution of marriage, or about what it means to be in a committed relationship. What the movie may do to couples watching it together is entirely dependent on just how seriously they take the movie or for that matter, just how mature or happy they are, because at its best, Gone Girl is a movie that can save a troubled marriage; and at its worst, it is the most horrid and unpleasant date movie of all time.

On the other hand, and in a most brilliant contradiction to the theme of the film, Gone Girl is also a first rate black comedy and satire. I found myself laughing out loud on several occasions through the film, because its meditation on the bizarreness, incredulity, ridiculousness, stupidity, ethical and moral ambiguity, and the complete and utter disregard for professionalism that has become the media, is top class and should necessarily be seen and taken with a very big salt of pinch by everyone who works in the profession themselves.

David Fincher has used the plot of the movie to deliver a scathing diatribe on what has come to be called the ‘media circus’, where (no spoilers, don’t worry) people are put on trial and verdicts are passed without evidence, facts or even logic, where the convenient outcome is passed on the news as the right outcome, and where the consequence could be immense and tragic and yet no individual person has to take the fall – and which is why this unfortunate trend continues to grow, unabated.

Cinematically speaking, there’s nothing I can tell you that you wouldn’t know already: Fincher’s direction is outstanding, the music by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross is fantastic, Flynn’s screenplay is far too superior for being her first, and most other things including editing (Kirk Baxter), cinematography (Jeff Cronenweth) and the cast are near-perfect. But if there are two elements that stand tall among equals, they are the acting performances by leads Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike.

It’s funny how Matthew McConaughey’s McConaissance is spoken about with much ferocity all over the internet when Ben Affleck underwent a McConaissance, or Benaissance, if you may, much before he did. This is an actor whose performance does not rely on histrionics or dramatics but on subtlety – and Affleck betrays the confidence of an actor who could be, at this stage of his career, unbeatable at his game. This is a performance worthy of many rewards, and oh man, I can’t wait to see Affleck as Batman now. He’s going to fucking kill it! Since I can’t say much about Pike because of spoilers, let me say this: The greatest actress you didn’t know of so far has arrived, and how. Her performance is the stuff of legend (and I believe it would’ve been amplified if the film were to be shown without cuts).

Since I don’t need to convince you any more to go watch the movie, let me say this: I don’t think it was a perfect movie because the end didn’t go down well with me (I will write why after everyone’s seen it). And I still think Fincher’s best films are The Social Network and Fight Club. But if you are a fan of movies, and particularly of movie experiences, Gone Girl is as unique an experience as you’d get at the movies. Do not miss it.

P.S.: If you liked the film, you are going to love these alternate posters of Gone Girl: http://goo.gl/qe98H3

If you liked/disliked the piece, do leave a comment below 🙂
Follow the blog on your left and like The Tanejamainhoon Page on FB: /tanejamainhoonpage
Follow Nikhil Taneja on FB: /tanejamainhoon, onTwitter:
@tanejamainhoon, onInstagram:@tanejamainhoon,
onYoutube: /tanejamainhoon

Picture courtesy: Google. None of the pictures are owned by the author all rights belong to the original owner(s) and photographer(s).
© Copyright belongs to the author, Nikhil Taneja. The article may not be reproduced without permission. A link to the URL, instead, would be appreciated.

Shining new ‘light’ on superhero franchises #SundayGuardian #GOTG #Column

In Groot We Trust: Guardians of the Galaxy and the bright future of the Superhero genre

Weekly column by Nikhil Taneja (@tanejamainhoon) for The Sunday Guardian. Original article: http://goo.gl/8JkfSE

When it was initially announced, Guardians of the Galaxy was a movie set in outer space, featuring five anti-heroes: a violent talking raccoon (Rocket voiced by Bradley Cooper), a dim-witted talking tree (Groot voiced by Vin Diesel), a former WWE wrestler (Drax played by Dave Bautista), a lead who was earlier best known as the chunky shoe-shiner in a niche TV show (Starlord played by Chris Pratt from Parks and Recreations) and the only recognisable face in green makeup (Gamora played by Zoe Saldana).

It was being directed by an indie filmmaker whose most notable work may have been scripting the Scooby-Doo movies (James Gunn), was allotted a budget of $170 million dollars (enough to feed Bangladesh) and to make matters worse, it was an action comedy (the last superhero action comedy announced, Deadpool, never got released). Recipe for disaster, right?

Wrong! Because at a domestic box office of $255 million and counting in four weeks since its release, Guardians of the Galaxy has just become the highest grossing film of 2014 in the US, beating established franchises like Transformers: Age of Extinction, The Amazing Spiderman 2 and X-Men: Days of Future Past, and is well onto becoming one of the highest grossing films globally too, with an estimated worldwide box office of $500 million and counting.

But it’s not the numbers that you should care about, it’s what the numbers represent. If you’ve been even moderately interested in superhero flicks over the last decade, you’d have noticed a dubious trend: At some point during the last few years, comic book movies took a turn towards darkness and stopped being ‘comic’ altogether. Christopher Nolan, auteur that he may be, is to completely blame for this disturbing mess – his ‘Dark’ Knight trilogy set the tone for pretty much every comic book superhero movie to follow.

After Nolan’s gritty reboot of Batman with Batman Begins, we got a Spiderman reboot sans humour (The Amazing Spiderman), a Superman reboot that had a dark tinge throughout the film (Man of Steel), an Iron Man so dark that it was shot mostly at night (Iron Man 3), a Captain America so dark that even the Hulk had better jokes (The Avengers) and a Thor so dark that they even put the word ‘dark’ in its title, you know, in case anyone thought it *looked* too bright (Thor: The Dark World).

On the heels of this illness that has plagued non-superhero franchises too (Star Trek Into ‘Darkness’), came the unlikely Guardians of the Galaxy, a movie so aggressively anti darkness that its trailer featured Swedish pop rock band Blue Swede’s ‘70s anthem, ‘Hooked on a Feeling’ as opposed to, you know, Mike Zarin’s BRAAAM!s from the Inception trailer (yup, that’s the ‘dong’ sound you’ve heard in the trailer of *every* summer film since Inception, and yup, that’s how it’s spelt on the internet).

Considering the fact that the joke was actually on the last few superhero films that tried being funny (Green Lantern and The Green Hornet failed spectacularly), it cannot be stressed enough how monumental the earth-shattering success of the unlikely Guardians of the Galaxy is. Here’s a film that’s so experimental that it’s practically a lab experiment by Marvel. It’s not that the film has an exceptionally original storyline – it would do Blake Snyder’s beat sheet proud – it’s old wine, but only if the bottle was an insane novelty, designed in outer space by a bunch of misfit goons.

Take the pre-climax scene where the five anti-heroes agree to go on a suicidal mission to save the world after Starlord’s ‘I have a plan’ speech. The movie does the cliché but then, once all five are standing, Rocket remarks snarkily, “There, I’m also standing. Look at us, a bunch of jackasses, standing in a circle!” It is how the film takes all such superhero tropes and plays it to perfection, only to turn it on its head before the end, so that the audience gets to watch both an irreverent indie film and the familiar summer film that they all can’t seem to watch enough of.

Because that’s what Guardians of the Galaxy is: a summer blockbuster with the soul of an indie film. It’s got the big ticket action scenes, but it’s also got the quiet moments – like the scene where Groot grows a flower to gift a little girl; or the scene where Groot releases fireflies to bring about light in a dark scene; or well, just the fact that it’s got Groot! Instead of going the ‘one for them, one for us’ way with their slate of blockbuster films that go right up to 2020, Marvel Studios have figured out the inspired middle-path: ‘something for both’. How else do you explain an ingenious ‘70s soundtrack (‘The Awesome Mix Vol. 1) to a film set in space?

The success to the film bodes well for indie filmmakers with original voices who are looking to do something more than great films that give them creative satisfaction but pay a journalist’s salary (next to nothing, in case you were wondering). It also plays out remarkably for the hapless audience that wants to be entertained but cannot suffer through one more never-ending Michael Bay explosionfest (especially without any Megan Fox). Most importantly, it is exactly the hint (a $500 million one at that) that studios needed to make films that are something other than the 50^th instalment of their safe franchise or the 80^th reboot of the proven one.

It is early days yet, but like the heroes at its helm, Guardians of the Galaxy may be the unlikely misfit film that the world needed, and not just the film they wanted. The future of the galaxy is in safe hands indeed, because in Groot, we trust.

Like The Tanejamainhoon Page on Facebook: /tanejamainhoonpage
Follow Nikhil Taneja on FB: /tanejamainhoon, onTwitter: @tanejamainhoon, on Instagram: @tanejamainhoon, onYoutube: /tanejamainhoon

Note: An edited version of this article first appeared in The Sunday Guardian in the September 7, 2014 issue.
Link: http://www.sunday-guardian.com/masala-art/shining-new-light-on-superhero-franchises

Picture courtesy: Google. None of the pictures are owned by the author all rights belong to the original owner(s) and photographer(s).
© Copyright belongs to the author, Nikhil Taneja. The article may not be reproduced without permission. A link to the URL, instead, would be appreciated.

Comic-Con 2014 Roundup: Winners, Losers and Others #SundayGuardian

– Nikhil Taneja (@tanejamainhoon) for The Sunday Guardian

In an age where it is ‘normal’ for a fully functioning male adult to own superhero costumes and where there are more superhero movies lined up in the future than romantic comedies exist so far in life, if anyone still has a doubt that the geeks have, in fact, already inherited the earth, then they needn’t look any further for conclusive proof than Comic-Con International, San Diego.

A vulgar display of all that is geek, from comics to video games to comic-book movies to fantasy-themed TV shows, Comic Con is a convention that is geek-gasmic level of awesome for the kind of people who aren’t ready to give away their GI Joe collection even after they’ve birthed other people.

But that isn’t to say that Comic Con is only a place for ‘men’ who’ve had wet dreams to Wonder Woman and Princess Leia; this year, the convention that saw 130,000 people go nuts during the massive 4-day weekend from July 24-27, included a sizeable number of women fans who were there to cheer ass-kicking super-heroines in shows like Orphan Black and Game of Thrones, or go ga-ga over the dreamy superheroes in movies like Avengers: Age of Ultron and Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice; or just revel in some of the hottest and craziest cosplay outside of the big screen.

Here’s a roundup of the best and worst of Comic-Con 2014 in Movies that would make fellow Indian geeks excited:

MOVIES: #WINNERS

1. AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON

How to win Comic-Con: Have a cast that includes the who’s who of big-ticket names like Robert Downey Jr (Iron Man), Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury), Mark Ruffalo (Hulk), Chris Evans (Captain America), Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Jeremy Renner (Hawkeye), Cobie Smulders (Maria Hill) and Paul Bettany (Jarvis… yes, Jarvis) all turn up on one stage, with some of them dancing (and Downey Jr throwing roses at the crowd!). Add to the cast even more stars in new entries Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Quicksilver), Elizabeth Olsen (Scarlet Witch), James Spader (Ultron) and Josh Brolin (Thanos) wearing the much-talked about Infinity Gauntlet. Then reveal some mad concept art for the movie scheduled on May 1, 2015, and an extended first look that includes Iron Man fighting Hulk, Captain America’s shield broken, Thor crushing a tank, the appearance of Andy Serkis (without motion capture) and a devastating scene with some Avengers possibly dead… and as the geeks go bonkers, you know Comic-Con 2014 is yours to claim.

2. BATMAN VS SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE

Where Avengers was the most anticipated panel of the Comic-Con, the Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice panel was Warner Bros’ surprise gift to fans, and what a surprise it was: Director Zack Snyder brought DC Comics’ superhero holy trinity in Ben Affleck (Batman), Henry Cavill (Superman) and Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman) to wave at the crowd (no one was allowed to interact though); tweeted the first look of Wonder Woman, and revealed a minute of footage of Batman turning on the Bat signal even as Superman is waiting in the shadows with glowing ‘heat vision’ eyes (the leaked version of the footage can be found online). The result: madness! The movie, scheduled for April 28, 2016, had the most number of social media mentions at the end of the Comic-Con.

3. INTERSTELLAR

Another huge surprise that fans weren’t expecting was the appearance of auteur director Christopher Nolan, who made his debut at the Con two years after the end of The Dark Knight trilogy, along with fellow Comic-Con virgin Matthew McConaughey, the star of his next, highly-anticipated film, Interstellar, to see “what the fuss was about”. A new trailer of the movie, scheduled for November 7, 2014, was shown to squealing fans, revealing first hand the fuss to Nolan. The trailer can now be found online. Watch the trailer here: 

4. THE HATEFUL EIGHT

Quentin Tarantino was at Comic-Con to talk about an upcoming comic that’s a crossover of his film Django Unchained and masked crusader Zorro, when a fan asked him whether The Hateful Eight, the film that Tarantino shelved when its script was leaked online by Gawker.com, would ever happen. Tarantino replied in the affirmative for the first time since the debacle, to loud cheers from fans, and within the next couple of days, also released the official poster for the film, set for a 2015 release. Rejoice, fanboys! Check out the poster here: http://goo.gl/oSTrmZ

5. MAD MAX: FURY ROAD

With over 8 million views to its YouTube trailer in less than 7 days, one movie that fans all over the world are suddenly dying to watch, as a result of the buzz that its ‘sizzle reel’ generated at Comic-Con, it is George Miller’s reboot of the dystopian Mad Max franchise, that first launched Mel Gibson as a bonafide star. Mad Max: Fury Road, releasing on May 15, 2015, stars Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron and with the maddest, baddest, biggest and loudest stunts (including an incredible car chase sequence) seen in a long time, wins the ‘Trailer of the Year’ award hands down. Watch the trailer here:  

MOVIES: #LOSERS

1. SKULL ISLAND/JURASSIC WORLD

Another King Kong movie, you say? A prequel, you say? That may possibly have fan favourite Joe Cornish attached to it as director, you say? Doesn’t sound too bad, right? But for all the geeks who went for Legendary Pictures’ panel at Comic-Con hoping to get a first look at Jurassic World, the ‘surprise teaser’ that featured a jungle with an ape instead of dinosaurs, left everyone confused and slightly annoyed, because the reboot of Jurassic Park releases before next year’s Comic-Con, so why had the geeks paid $200 for this kind of betrayal?

2. LET’S BE COPS/FANTASTIC FOUR

Another betrayal came at the hands of 20^th Century Fox that stabbed fans in the back by choosing not to showcase any footage from its Fantastic Four reboot, instead having a panel on Let’s Be Cops, which is a comedy not inspired from a comic-book, which has no geek book or movie affiliations and which can only be considered fantasy if lead actors Damon Wayans or Jake Johnson are alien cops. This befuddling logic took away the buzz from X-Men: First Class director Matthew Vaughn’s next, KINGSMAN: THE SECRET SERVICE and THE MAZE RUNNER, both decent properties owned by 20th Century, which would have got a much better showcase if 20^th Century Fox had appeased the fans. Watch the trailer of Let’s Be Cops and Kingsman here: 

3. THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 3

Instead of giving any sort of a first look at any sort of a thing to do with the Spider-Man franchise or its various spin-offs in the works, Sony Pictures announced that the third part in the Amazing Spiderman franchise has been pushed to 2018 from 2016, and Sinister Six, its villain-centric spinoff, will arrive first in 2016. No news was given about The Amazing Spiderman 4 that was originally scheduled for 2018. All this added more fuel to the fire that the franchise is in trouble after The Amazing Spider-Man 2 failed to live up to the box office expectations and Roberto Orci, who had penned the first two films with Alex Kurtzmann, left the franchise recently.

4. SIN CITY: A DAME TO KILL FOR

Unanimously called the dullest panel of the Comic-Con, even with stars like Josh Brolin, Rosario Dawson and Jessica Alba and fan favourites, directors Robert Rodriguez and Mark Millar participating, Sin City: A Dame to Kill For generated little to no buzz at the convention this year. This could be because the film’s sequel is coming nine years after the first one, or because bigger stars like Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Bruce Willis were absent from the panel or perhaps because the movie’s marketing campaign included semi-naked girls gyrating live in different parts of the convention turned people off.  Watch the trailer here: 

5. BLACKHAT

Legendary director Michael Mann made a surprise visit to Comic-Con to unveil the trailer of his new film, a cyberthriller starring Chris Hemsworth, but unfortunately, the only reason fans at Comic-Con were surprised was because had nothing to do with comics and Mann had no reason to be there.  The trailer’s not online yet so the damp squib of a reception that it received at Comic Con could possibly have to do with the genre rather than the trailer’s merits.

MOVIES: #THEOTHERS:

Production Studio Legendary Pictures revealed that GODZILLA will have a sequel, to nobody’s general surprise, but proceeded to tease that it will feature even more monsters than part one, including iconic Japanese monsters, Rodan, Mothra and Ghidorah, which are apparently bigger and more dangerous than Godzilla. At present time, no humans were announced as part of the film. Peter Jackson premiered the first trailer in the final part of the Hobbit trilogy, THE HOBBIT: BATTLE OF FIVE ARMIES. The epic trailer of the movie, which releases on December 17, 2014, can be found online but the movie’s panel, which featured a cast that included the most number of adored celebrities in a single film, Benedict Cumberbatch, Cate Blanchett, Andy Serkin and director Peter Jackson, among others, is an equally awesome watch, especially because of the hilarious Stephen Colbert, who moderated the panel in a Hobbit costume. Watch the trailer here: 

Guillermo Del Toro, who is omni-present at the Comic-Con every year, had another brilliant year, as he released a teaser for his next, CRIMSON PEAK, featuring Tom Hiddleston, Jessica Chastain and Charlie Hannum, that got loud cheers from the crowd; his upcoming animation film, THE BOOK OF LIFE and his TV series, THE STRAIN. THE HUNGER GAMES: MOCKINGJAY PART I also debuted its trailer as did PENGUINS OF MADAGASCAR, but it was the latter that stole the show amongst most big-budget trailer premieres, because its panel featured Cumberbatch, and everyone loves Cumberbatch, probably including Katniss. Watch the trailer of Penguins of Madagascar here: 

The one other movie that made a splash at Comic Con was ANTMAN that lost its long-term director Edgar Wright a few months ago, to general scorn from the internet community. Marvel Studios released a teaser poster for the movie that stars Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas and Evangeline Lilly, and is now helmed by Peyton Reed. It also showcased some test footage that was well-received, which is an indication that the movie will not ‘suck all balls’, as some internet comments have given us a reason to believe.

Note: An edited version of this article first appeared as The Sunday Guardian cover story on August 2, 2014
Link: http://www.sunday-guardian.com/masala-art/the-winners-and-losers-at-this-years-comic-con

Picture courtesy: Google. None of the pictures are owned by the author all rights belong to the original owner(s) and photographer(s).
© Copyright belongs to the author, Nikhil Taneja. The article may not be reproduced without permission. A link to the URL, instead, would be appreciated.

Follow Nikhil Taneja on FB: /tanejamainhoon, on Twitter: @tanejamainhoon, on Instagram: @tanejamainhoon, on Youtube: /tanejamainhoon